pandora

WASHINGTON D.C.--The technology sector is supposed to be one of the new power players in national politics. But you might be wondering what happened to its newfound political capital after watching its hapless attempts to lobby Congress to pass the Internet Radio Fairness Act (IRFA), a bill that would reduce the music royalties paid by Web radio services.

At a hearing yesterday before a House subcommittee studying IRFA, the tech world seemed to be the same amateurs in navigating Washington as they were before January's triumph over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Pandora and the other … Read more

I was probably one of the last people in our great land who regularly purchased CDs. After Spotify landed on our shores, however, I finally stopped the practice of buying them, instead relying on Spotify and Pandora for my listening pleasure. I enjoy both services, and now with a Chrome extension called Pandora to Spotify Playlist Converter, I can get the two talking to one another, to a degree.

The conversation is one-sided. That is, the extension helps you move tracks from Pandora to Spotify. Specifically, it lets you copy links for tracks you've liked on Pandora and paste … Read more

WASHINGTON, D.C.--Two representatives from the technology sector told Congress today that distributing music online is a losing business and that's due to the high cost of music.

A House subcommittee is holding a hearing this morning on the Internet Radio Fairness Act, a bill that would reduce the royalties Web radio services, such as Pandora, must pay for music. One of the six witnesses who testified was David Pakman, the former CEO of Web music service eMusic, who is now a partner at Venrock, the venture arm of the Rockefeller family.

The music industry, which opposes the legislation, … Read more

WASHINGTON, D.C.--Five songwriters responsible for well-known hit songs wanted members of Congress to consider this question: What would Internet radio be without the artists and songwriters who create the music played by these services?

The writers: Lee Thomas Miller, BC Jean, Kara DioGuardi, Desmond Child and Linda Perry, performed their songs, all made famous by others, such as Bon Jovi, Beyonce, and Christina Aguilera, on Capitol Hill today. The performance was held an hour before a House subcommittee was scheduled to hear testimony about a proposed bill that would cut the music royalties Pandora and other Web radio … Read more

WASHINGTON, D.C.--It doesn't take a sophisticated algorithm to know that Pandora's pitch for a new music royalty rate has been a dud.

Pandora says Web radio services pay too much in music royalties and is backing the Internet Radio Fairness Act. If passed, this federal legislation would reduce the rate these streaming services would pay. Pandora gets another chance tomorrow to convince the public and lawmakers of the bill's necessity during a hearing before the U.S. House subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet.

The music industry, which will also send representatives to … Read more

The new Myspace has had a tough first year and is again looking for funding.

According to Business Insider, a little more than year after Interactive Media Holdings -- which is mostly owned by the Vanderhook family -- took control of Myspace, the company has lost more than $40 million on $14 million in revenue this year.

Myspace expects to lose another $25 million in funding next year, according to the documents. Meanwhile, the company is out looking to raise $50 million in investment, says Business Insider.

Too much shouldn't be made about the losses, as the new Myspace … Read more

As Twitter becomes more and more mainstream, it may also be trying to become more Hollywood.

According to AllThingsD, Twitter plans to name Peter Chernin, a well-known Hollywood executive, to its board of directors. Chernin would take the spot on the board vacated by Flipboard CEO Mike McCue.

Rumors have been flying for months that Chernin, who has held top slots at News Corp., and who helped start Hulu and is on Pandora's board, would become a Twitter director.

Twitter's current board members are CEO Dick Costolo, co-founder Evan Williams, Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures, co-founder and … Read more

A large number of artists have signed a letter saying Pandora should not be allowed to "slash musicians' pay."

MusicFIRST, an organization that represents performers and their rights, along with music industry supporter SoundExchange, announced today that 125 artists, including popular band Maroon 5, Missy Elliot, T.I., and the Zac Brown Band, have signed a letter entitled "A Musicians' Perspective On Pandora," that criticizes the music-streaming company for seeking to cut its royalty payments.

"Why is the company asking Congress once again to step in and gut the royalties that thousands of musicians rely … Read more

Pandora Media is facing a new and politically powerful opponent in its quest to see a bill passed in Congress that cuts the royalty rates Webcasters pay artists and labels.

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has come out strongly against the legislation known as the Internet Radio Fairness Act, a bill that is heavily backed by Pandora.

In a letter to members of the House subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet, the NAACP said if the legislation was made law it "would unfairly deprive artists and performers of fair pay for their … Read more