Ian Rogers is departing Apple just two months after the new streaming service he helped develop launched, seemingly to join a non-music-based company in Europe. Rogers enjoyed a high profile in the music industry while running direct-to-fan service TopSpin, and was then head-hunted by Beats to develop and launch its big streaming service. When Beats was bought by Apple, Rogers also joined the tech giant, though he had a much lower profile role in the subsequent evolution and launch of Apple Music....
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from CMU Online
Twitter's mini-video-message app Vine is having an upgrade and it is getting all kinds of musical. Well, I say that. They're adding a 'featured tracks' section where users can pick soundtracks for their videos. And they're adding a thing called Snap To Beat, which will help users trim the track so it loops nicely. And they will help other users identify what music appears in Vine videos. Which, I think sounds like Vine is getting all kinds of musical. I don't know why there was all that doubt...
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from CMU Online
More gossiping this week about the planned relaunch of Xfm, with Popbitch reckoning an official announcement is due within the next ten days. Though, while initially saying that – as previously mooted – the revamped station would become Capital Rocks, better intelligence this morning suggests owner Global has actually opted for Radio X. That, presumably, is a result of Global's plan to make X properly national, but via mainly online and digital rather than FM channels.
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from CMU Online
T-Mobile in Austria has knocked back a request from the local music industry to block its customers from accessing The Pirate Bay, though this isn't so much the phone firm rebelling against the concept of web-blocking in principle, but rather insisting that blockades be ordered by the courts rather than rights owners. As previously reported, Austria recently joined the web-block party with a court there ordering internet service provider A1 Telekom to block access to The Pirate Bay and some other...
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from CMU Online
Industry Observers are wondering why Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) would want to outbid AEG Live to acquire MAMA & Company at the 11th hour, as exclusively revealed in our sister publication Audience (issue 186).
LN-Gaiety (LN-G) Holdings, a joint venture between LNE and Denis Desmond's Gaiety Investments, announced it had completed the acquisition of MAMA on 4 August.
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from Live UK
Circle Tickets, the sham website which sold fake tickets to Ed Sheeran, AC/DC and Taylor Swift shows at Wembley Stadium (cap. 80,000) and Manchester Arena (20,000), tricked more than 3,500 people in eight months, LIVE UK understands (see issue 186).
PayPal and Ireland's Omnipay were used by Circle to process card payments between November last year and June.
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from Live UK
Music and art street festival Portabello Live sold more than 2,000 tickets for its debut in May, says organiser Micky P, with wristbands allowing access to performances in venues such as Mau Mau (cap. 200) in London's Notting Hill district.
Artistes appearing included The Egg, The Steve Dior Band and Human In Bloom.
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from Live UK
DF Concerts, organisers of T in the Park (cap. 85,000), has defended public funding it received from the Scottish Government, in the face of criticism from politicians and community groups.
The latest payment, £150,000 through the Scottish Government's State Aid budget, was allocated on 2 July. The Scottish Government has since confirmed the event has been given a further £223,000 in public funds since 2012.
Nottingham's 10,000-capacity Capital FM Arena is to be renamed the Motorpoint Arena Nottingham from January, after the car retailer signed a five-year naming deal with the venue's owner, Nottingham Ice Centre.
The Motorpoint brand is already stamped on arenas in Cardiff (7,500) and Sheffield (13,674).
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from Live UK
The latest AniMotion live painting, digital art and music show was presented by Aurora Nova as part of the 2015 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
The power of original painting created in real-time and projected onto stunning architecture accompanied by live music is a special collaboration between projection artist Ross Ashton, virtuoso percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie and acclaimed visual artist and painter Maria Rud.
Posted on: 01/09/2015Categories: News from TPi Magazine