Neil Young has shared a message demanding his music be removed from Spotify, citing the streaming service’s distribution partnership with Joe Rogan and accusing Rogan’s podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience” of spreading false information regarding COVID-19 and vaccines.
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NFT Platform Blockparty strikes first major label partnership with Warner Music Group
New York-headquartered digital collectibles platform Blockparty has struck its first major label partnership with Warner Music Group (WMG). The news follows WMG’s NFT-related global partnership in April last year with Genies, which dubs itself “the world’s largest avatar technology company.” Blockparty claims to have created “a new class of digital collectibles across art, music, and sports” which it says will “enable users to share and earn value together”.
Source: NFT Platform Blockparty strikes first major label partnership with Warner Music Group
France’s Revamped Windowing Gives Netflix Earlier Access to Fresh Movies
After months of heated debates and clashes, the French film industry has set new windowing rules for movies that are released in local theaters. Netflix is the only streamer to have signed the agreement and will therefore benefit from having access to fresh movies 15 months after their theatrical release, in comparison to the 36 months under previous windowing guidelines.
Source: France’s Revamped Windowing Gives Netflix Earlier Access to Fresh Movies
Indie Music Venues Grapple With 50% No-Show Rate In the United States
Last month, a troubling report revealed that live concerts were grappling with a serious no-show problem, with 20 percent of ticketholders opting not to attend certain big-name gigs. Now, ahead of a jam-packed event schedule for the remainder of 2022, the figure has spiked to 50 percent for indie music venues, according to the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA).
Source: Indie Music Venues Grapple With 50% No-Show Rate In the United States
Surprise! ‘Criminal Minds’ Was 2021’s Most-Streamed TV Show in the U.S.
Netflix has pumped billions of dollars into original programming — but overall, its library of older licensed TV shows far outperforms homegrown hits like “Squid Game” or “Bridgerton.” In 2021 on Netflix, “Criminal Minds,” the crime-drama procedural that aired on CBS from 2005-20, scored as the most-viewed TV show among U.S. streaming platforms tracked by Nielsen.
Source: Surprise! ‘Criminal Minds’ Was 2021’s Most-Streamed TV Show in the U.S.
Hollywood production more than doubled in 2021 during COVID recovery
Hollywood production bounced back in 2021, skyrocketing 141% versus 2020 thanks to a slew of new TV series. FilmLA, which tracks productions shot in Los Angeles and found last year that shoots in summer 2020 were cut in half, said last year’s July to September period marked the third-strongest quarter in 26 years, with over 10,000 days of filming recorded in the greater LA area.
Source: Hollywood production more than doubled in 2021 during COVID recovery
Streaming Music Subscriptions Grew 26% in 2021
A study released by Midia Research shows that worldwide streaming subscriptions grew by a healthy 26.4% in the second quarter of 2021, standing at 521.3 million subscribers at the end of that period, an increase of 109.5 million from the year before. But that growth didn’t necessarily come via the usual DSP suspects.
YouTube Shuts Down Original Content Group
YouTube is getting out of the business of originals: The Google-owned video giant said it is winding down its original productions team after more than six years. Going forward, YouTube will only be funding programs that are part of its Black Voices and YouTube Kids funds, chief business officer Robert Kyncl announced Tuesday.
Browser Extension Adds Sci-Hub Download Links to Publishers’ Websites
As scientists and academics of all kinds turn to Sci-Hub to freely access scientific papers, a new browser tool aims to make access even more straightforward. Currently available from the Mozilla addon store but also compatible with Chrome, ‘Sci-Hub Injector’ embeds Sci-Hub download links into popular publishers’ websites.
Source: Browser Extension Adds Sci-Hub Download Links to Publishers’ Websites * TorrentFreak
Streaming Video Is Ready for a Shakeout, Analyst Says
As the number of streaming video services has increased significantly over the past few years, Barclays media analyst Kannan Venkateshwar believes it may be time for a shakeout in the business, with participants faced with the dilemma to either double down on content investment or sell off assets. Since 2006, when Amazon launched Unbox, which became Amazon Prime Video, the number of major players in the streaming video business has ballooned from three (Netflix and Hulu are the other pioneers) to more than 50 services.
Source: Streaming Video Is Ready for a Shakeout, Analyst Says