• Sony Music Defends Spotify Payout Process Amid 19 Lawsuit

    Sony Music has defended its Spotify payout process after being sued by American Idol-affiliated outfit 19, which manages artists like Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson. Sony claims that taking equity in the streaming giant to the tune of 6 percent under its current deal and keeping some profits from artists are all within their contractual right.

  • Sony Music Has 'No Plans' To Pull Beyoncé From TIDAL Catalog

    Contrary to prior rumors and reports, Beyoncé is not in jeopardy of having her catalogue of music pulled down from the music service she has invested in and the one her husband owns, TIDAL. This according to a statement by Sony Music CEO Doug Morris who says the label has "no plans" to take her music down from Jay Z's TIDAL.

  • Ultra Records CEO Patrick Moxey Backs Sony In Soundcloud Fight

    The battle between Sony and Soundcloud has turned ugly this month as the label has decided to start pull down it's artist's music from the Berlin music service. Among those who have been affected this far include Adele, Miguel, Passion Pit and in the next day or two Madeon. Sony Music recently bought dance music label Ultra Records as its U.S. electronic music branch. Ultra Records CEO Patrick Moxey was a speaker at IMS Engage in Ibiza, a conference for electronic music industry folks and he was asked about the conflict between his label parent and Soundcloud. According to Music Week, he backed Sony and spoke rather candidly about the lack of monetization opportunities found on Soundcloud at the moment - a common theme echoed among labels now.

  • Leaked Sony, Spotify Contract Reveals One-Sided Streaming Splits

    Streaming is the next frontier for music - denying it is only going to make the transition harder. The primary issue has been getting artists, songwriters and content creators paid a fair shake for their music. While most of the attention has been focused on services like Spotify and their small payouts, little has been given to the labels and their contracts with the streaming services, which have been kept secret until now. The Verge was able to obtain a copy of Sony's previous agreement with Spotify, which shines light on the splits, advances and payments that the major label was able to get from the Swedish streaming giant, as well as some outside revenue sources that have not been previously shared.

  • Soundcloud vs Sony: Madeon Slams Imminent Takedown of Account

    The war between Soundcloud and the second largest label in the world, Sony, is getting uglier by the day. It was reported earlier this month that negotiations between the two parties had broken down over "lack of monetization opportunities" and Sony was pulling down music from some of its major artists like Passion Pit, Adele and Miguel. Now the takedowns are spreading to their smaller artists and some are not happy at all. One artist who is about to get his music removed from Soundcloud is French electronic producer, Madeon, and he is not happy at all about the situation.

  • Sony Pulls Adele, Miguel, Hozier, Passion Pit From Soundcloud

    The relationship between the majors and Soundcloud has been complicated. The labels know they need the influential discovery and streaming service to help find new artists and to promote their own music. However they are frustrated at the copyright infringement and lack of monetization opportunities present on the platform. Sony apparently is fed up with Soundcloud as the two parties are at an impasse over licensing negotiations. In response, Sony has pulled down the pages of more than a dozen artists including, Miguel, Adele, Hozier, Kelly Clarkson, Passion Pit, Leon Bridges and MS MR.

  • Unlocking the Truth Trying to Leave Sony, Promoting 'Breaking a Monster' Doc

    The relationship between Sony and grade-school rockers Unlocking the Truth appears to be coming to an end. The band made headlines over the summer after the label signed Malcolm Brickhouse, Jarad Dawkins and Alec Atkins to an impressive $1.8 million contract. According to Brickhouse, though, the group's lawyers are trying to eliminate the short-lived partnership, 'Billboard' noted. The singer relayed the news yesterday, March 14, at the premiere for the band's 'Breaking a Monster' documentary. Manager Alan Sacks offered no other information aside from confirming Brickhouse's statement.

  • Spotify Given Valuation of $5.7B: Report

    The news of Spotify's growth continues to roll in seemingly every week. The streaming giant just announced a deal with PlayStation and Sony that would launch a revamped service PlayStation Music across and PlayStation Network by connecting users's Spotify accounts to their gaming accounts. With all of the expansion that company has gone through in the past year or two, it has become one of the darlings of the music industry and tech startup world, where money flows like water. Spotify is seeing the payoff of that expansion with increasing valuations of its company, despite not being able to turn a profit. The latest valuation, according to a report from market research company Manhattan Venture Research, according to "Billboard," now has the Swedish streaming service sitting at $5.7 billion.

  • Spotify and Sony Partner With Playstation To Launch Playstation Music

    Spotify and Sony have teamed up with gaming giant, Playstation to launch Playstation Music. Playstation Network users will be able to link their Spotify accounts to their current accounts with their consoles. Users can import their current Spotify settings, including favorite artists, playlists etc., onto their Playstation 3 and 4 and Xperia smartphones and tablets. The move integrates Spotify's 30-million song library and over 1.5 billion playlists into the new network, which boats a membership of 64 million users.

  • Sony Unveils New ZX2 Walkman and Sell It for $1,120

    Sony recently introduced the latest incarnation of its portable music player, the Walkman, and it is a far cry from the 1979 original. The ZX2 Walkman plays tunes at a higher resolution than CDs, MP3s and streaming files. The only downside to casual music lovers is that the device costs $1,120, CNN Tech reports. "The new Walkman ZX2 is a great example of the quality of our high-res audio offerings," Sony Electronics executive Mike Fasulo said. "This Walkman is tailored for outstanding sound, and every piece of material and component has been crafted to realize the ultimate high-res audio experience on the move." Features for the device include 128 GB of storage — about 2,000 songs — a micro SD card port, Wi-Fi capabilities and a 60-hour battery life. Oddly enough, it runs the Android platform Jelly Bean, which is a little outdated. The ZX2 will be available in the spring. It comes at an opportune time for the company — Apple discontinued its flagship product, the iPod Classic, last year. Nearly two decades ago, Apple introduced the iPod to the world and it dethroned the Walkman as the most popular portable music device.

  • Sony's Salary Leaks Have Made Contract Negotiations Nearly Impossible

    We have spent the last few weeks dishing on the grand-scale hacking of Sony and the impact that it has had in the entertainment world. While learning that the FBI had officially determined that North Korea was ultimately the starting point for the hack, dealing with that situation may prove to be the very least of the company's problems. All the focus has been on The Interview, finally getting it into theaters and then what if any, repercussions would be. Sony still has to contend with a bunch of angry employees and that is a situation that's not going away any time soon.

  • Sony Will Release 'The Interview' in Theaters, on VOD

    If you are one of the growing number of people who wanted to see "The Interview" simply to defy North Korea's attempt to block its distribution, then it looks like you are in luck. Sony is reportedly gearing up to announce that the film, which was canceled a few days ago, will see the light of day. The plan as of now is to release the film in participating theaters as well as through video on demand simultaneously. The list of distributors is expected to be released at some point today, with theaters in both Atlanta and Austin, Texas, already on board to show the film. Talks between Sony and Dish Network reportedly fell apart over the weekend, and other possible distributors have expressed concern over the possibility of also being hacked if they agreed to show the film.

  • Amy Adams 'Today' Interview Canceled: Refused to Discuss Sony Hack

    Amy Adams held her ground with NBC executives yesterday and it cost her a promotional interview on "Today." The show wanted to get her opinion on one of the hottest topics out there now — the hacking of Sony — and apparently Adams refused to comment publicly. Her name has been mentioned in some of the leaked emails that prove she and Jennifer Lawrence were paid considerably less than their male costars in "American Hustle." It was a topic Adams refused to touch, so "Today" decided to cancel her interview on the spot in spite of her being there to actually promote her new film "Big Eyes." What actually transpired in the green room depends on who you ask. Adams's team insists she carried herself with grace while NBC insiders are saying things got heated and her attitude did not win her any fans. According to "Us Weekly," it was just business as usual for the morning show.
View More
Festivals
Popular Now
Real Time Analytics