Welcome to Music Business Worldwide’s weekly round-up – where we make sure you caught the five biggest stories to hit our headlines over the past seven days. MBW’s round-up is supported by Centtrip, which helps over 500 of the world’s best-selling artists maximise their income and reduce their touring costs.
Speculation about the pending global launch of a dedicated TikTok Music service has been gathering pace for months.
This week, a report from The Wall Street Journal brought news that TikTok’s parent ByteDance is in talks with record companies about expanding its Resso music app into several new territories (not including the US initially).
Resso is currently only available in Brazil, India and Indonesia, and the reported expansion plans, if successful, would see the app launch in “more than a dozen” new territories.
The WSJ’s article follows MBW’s report last week that at least six verified Twitter accounts have popped up in multiple global markets for ‘TikTok Music’.
According to MBW’s sources, ByteDance’s plan is meeting some resistance from certain music rightsholders who question the current monetary reward their music receives from TikTok itself (a separate platform to Resso).
Another cause for concern for some music rightsholders, reports the WSJ, are the payouts they’re seeing from Resso, which – similar to Spotify – operates both an ad-funded and subscription tier.
Elsewhere, MBW reported that Latin Music is still on course to hit $1 billion in revenues in the United States this year, after growing 23% in H1 2022, to reach $510 million.
Not only is Latin Music still on course to hit $1 billion in revenues in the US by the end of the year, but its growth is also outpacing that of the wider US recorded music market.
This week also brought news that Julie Greenwald has been promoted to the role of Chairman and CEO of a newly-created entity at Warner Music – Atlantic Music Group.
In her new post, the widely respected Greenwald oversees Atlantic Records (including the Atlantic, ATCO, Big Beat, and Canvasback labels) as well as 300 Elektra Entertainment, which encompasses 300, Elektra, Fueled By Ramen, Roadrunner, Low Country Sound, DTA, and Public Consumption.
Plus, BMI is changing to a for-profit model, while SoundCloud launched a new creator dashboard and rebranded artist services platform, now dubbed SoundCloud for Artists.
Here’s what happened this week…
1) TIKTOK PARENT IN TALKS WITH LABELS TO LAUNCH MUSIC STREAMING SERVICE IN 12+ NEW MARKETS – REPORT
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday (October 12), citing people familiar with the discussions, that TikTok parent ByteDance is in negotiations with record companies about expanding its dedicated music-streaming platform to multiple new markets.
The move, if successful, would see TikTok’s sister app, Resso, expand out of its three current marketplaces – Brazil, India and Indonesia – and into “more than a dozen” new territories.
Initially, those markets would not include the United States, reports the WSJ, citing sources…
In April, MBW predicted that the recorded music market for Latin artists in the United States will generate over a billion dollars in revenue across the 12 months of this year.
Latin music generated $886.1 million on a retail basis (money spent on streaming subscriptions, as well as physical and digital music), in the US in FY 2021, which was up by 35.4% versus the prior year.
As reported in April, this annual revenue figure will now only have to rise by a further 12.9% (+$114m) in 2022 to hit 1 billion dollars.
According to new mid-year data released in a report by the RIAA, on a retail basis, Latin Music is very much on course to hit $1 billion in revenues in the United States this year, after growing 23% in the first half of 2022, to reach $510 million.
3) JULIE GREENWALD PROMOTED TO CHAIRMAN & CEO OF NEWLY-CREATED ATLANTIC MUSIC GROUP
Julie Greenwald has been promoted to the role of Chairman and CEO of a newly-created entity at Warner Music – Atlantic Music Group.
In her new post, the widely respected Greenwald oversees Atlantic Records (including the Atlantic, ATCO, Big Beat, and Canvasback labels) as well as 300 Elektra Entertainment, which encompasses 300, Elektra, Fueled By Ramen, Roadrunner, Low Country Sound, DTA, and Public Consumption.
Greenwald and Craig Kallman will continue to jointly lead Atlantic Records, with Kallman as Chairman and CEO, according to a press release issued by Warner Music Group (WMG) on Wednesday (October 12).
4) AFTER SCRAPPING SALE PLANS, BMI TRANSITIONS TO A FOR-PROFIT BUSINESS MODEL
There’s a significant change afoot at US-based performance rights company BMI (Broadcast Music Inc.).
BMI revealed on Wednesday (October 12) that its not-for-profit business model, under which it has operated since the PRO was founded in 1939, is changing to a for-profit model.
The news was announced by the company in a post published to its website, which includes a note sent by BMI President & CEO Mike O’Neill to the organization’s affiliates…
5) THE EXEC WHO BUILT SPOTIFY FOR ARTISTS JUST LAUNCHED… SOUNDCLOUD FOR ARTISTS
SoundCloud just launched a new creator dashboard and a new name for its artist services platform, now dubbed SoundCloud for Artists.
‘SoundCloud for Artists’ was formerly known as ‘Repost’ which SoundCloud acquired in May 2019 for around $15 million.
Following the acquisition of Repost, in April 2020, SoundCloud launched its Repost by SoundCloud marketing and distribution platform. At the time, it said that it was aimed at “serious artists who want to take their career to the next level”.
Now, all of that has been reborn as ‘SoundCloud for Artists’. The rebranded services platform was announced on Thursday (October 13) by Tracy Chan, SoundCloud’s Senior Vice President of Creator, and former Head of Music at Twitch.
Prior to joining Twitch, Chan was Director of Product Management at Spotify, where he led the strategy and development of analytics tools for artists and labels, including Spotify Analytics and… Spotify for Artists…
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