On Tuesday, as the legal battle between Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald and Kesha Rose Sebert continues to progress after seven years in court, New York Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Schecter rejected Sony Music’s concerns and ordered that various contracts, business plans and other financial records be unsealed within days.
Source: Sony Music Loses Bid for Secrecy in Dr. Luke-Kesha Fight
The slowdown in Disney Plus subscriber growth has helped push the stock down by more than 7% over the past month, and two influential analysts said the entertainment giant will likely have to dig deep and spend more on content to get itself back on track.
Source: Analysts Say Increased Content Spend Is Needed to Halt Disney Plus Subscriber Slowdown
Spotify on Wednesday announced a new partnership with ecommerce provider Shopify to let artists list merchandise directly on their profiles on the audio-streaming giant’s platform. Any artist globally can already link to their Shopify store if they have one from their Spotify profile. But now Spotify users will see featured product listings from Shopify on the service.
Source: Spotify Adds Virtual Merch Tables for Music Artists in Pact With Shopify
From marketing to distribution and royalty management to sync – not to mention creating and performing live – there’s a tremendous amount for independent artists to handle in the modern music industry. Now, free music promotion service HUDL Music is building a consolidated platform designed to help indie acts save time and set themselves up for success.
Source: Indie Artists Are Spread Too Thin — HUDL Music Is Fixing That
The U.K. competition regulator is to conduct a review of the music streaming business, looking at any possible competition concerns that result from the major labels’ dominance of the industry, and how they may leverage that power at the expense of artists, independents and consumers.
Source: UK Music Streaming Sector Faces Probe From Competition Watchdog
If the unexpected success of Netflix’s Korean sensation “Squid Game” has taught the TV industry anything, it’s that the next breakout hit can come from anywhere at anytime. That’s given international producers more leverage than ever before, as global streaming services ramp up their commission and acquisition of scripted hits from around the world.
Source: In the Hunt for the Next ‘Squid Game,’ Industry Execs See ‘Unlimited Potential’
Clubhouse, which developed a significant following (and secured ample funding) after arriving on the scene in March of 2020, just recently unveiled the rollout of Music Mode in a “Product Update” blog post. According to this brief article, “Music Mode optimizes Clubhouse to broadcast your music with high quality and great stereo sound.”
Source: Clubhouse Debuts Music Mode to Enhance Live Shows’ Audio Quality
YouTube said the past twelve months has taught it to focus on three key aspects of development: “building a creation experience that empowers anyone to create and find an audience; refining our viewer experience to make sure we’re helping people find Shorts that they’ll love and discover new creators; and determining more ways we can reward creators for the Shorts they make.”
“The movie business is dead, long live the movie business,” says Morgan Stanley in a deep new note from a number of its analysts looking at an industry that has “permanently changed” in the wake of a COVID-19 pandemic and a rush of technological and cultural developments.
Source: SeekingAlpha
While many workers are happy an agreement has been reached, not all crew members are thrilled with the agreement for a new three-year contract. Even though the pact includes improved wages and working conditions, as well as a 10-hour turnaround time between shifts, they believe it doesn’t go far enough.
Source: After IATSE Strike is Averted, Hollywood Workers are Split Over Agreement: ‘It’s Not Enough’