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It’s official: SoundCloud may sell this year – but only if the firm’s board can find the “right long-term” buyer. Otherwise? It might do something altogether different. In conversation with MBW, SoundCloud’s CEO, Eliah Seton, today stressed that there is a “universe of opportunities” now available to the company he leads, after it became profitable in 2023. “Becoming […]

The global music business has become increasingly focused on the Middle East and North Africa in recent years. Based on recent recorded music revenue growth in the region, it’s clear to see why. According to IFPI’s latest Global Music Report, the MENA region’s recorded music market grew 23.8% YoY in 2022 (the third-fastest globally that year), and represented the highest share

At the start of 2023, Universal Music Group Chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge called for a new streaming payout model in his New Year note to the company’s global workforce. Over the course of last year, that plan became a reality, with a UMG-approved ‘artist-centric’ model announced by Deezer in September. The world’s largest subscription music streaming platform, Spotify, is also embracing elements

Independent music retailer Rough Trade is expanding its presence in the UK, announcing plans for its biggest store in the country to date, to be located in Liverpool.  This marks a significant step in the retailer’s ongoing growth, following a three-fold increase in its UK vinyl market share over the past five years, according to a press

YouTube has launched a new ‘Top Songs on Shorts’ music chart. This is the platform’s first-ever Shorts chart which will include a daily and weekly version to showcase the most popular music on the short-form video platform in real time. YouTube says that the new chart will highlight Shorts creation trends, and “provide new insights to enable artists to share

Citing disruptions to “social harmony,” Nepal has declared it is banning TikTok, making it the second country, after India, to declare a complete ban on the social media platform. The decision was announced during a cabinet meeting on Monday (November 13), although it remains unclear when the ban will take effect, according to local newspaper The

As CD Baby sharpens its focus on streaming this year by ending its vinyl and CD distribution service, the company is introducing a new feature to support independent songwriters in royalty collection and sync opportunities. The independent music distributor under Downtown Music Holdings has launched CDB Boost, the latest addition to CD Baby’s suite of artist-centric tools, offering a new approach to

Warner Records has launched a new label as part of a joint venture with Nashville-headquartered country music startup underscore works. The new label, dubbed underscore works recordings (and written entirely in lowercase) will “focus on discovering and developing fresh talent in the country music scene,” Warner Records’ parent company, Warner Music Group, said in a statement Monday

K-Pop powerhouse JYP Entertainment has announced a new multi-year strategic partnership with Live Nation. The collaboration aims to produce tours for all of JYP’s artists including TWICE, Stray Kids, ITZY, Xdinary Heroes (XH), NMIXX, and their emerging talents, according to a press release on Monday (November 13). The latest partnership builds on an existing relationship between JYP

Audio giant HARMAN has acquired audio technology company, Roon, a music management, discovery, and streaming platform. HARMAN, whose portfolio of brands in the audio industry include AKG, Bang & Olufsen, Harman Kardon, Infinity Audio and JBL, was acquired by Samsung Electronics for $8 billion in March 2017. Roon operates a music player that claims to be compatible “with any audio device” and a “playback engine designed to