Music Biz Monday // 12.3

Every Monday, we’re sharing the latest news and information for the music industry and technology worldwide.

Get your learn on and stay in the know with Symphonic’s Music Biz Monday!

Spotify Might Let You Import Your Own Music Collection Soon

Soon, users might not have to use a different music player or streaming service just to play their super hard-to-find tracks. Jane Manchun Wong, a researcher who’s built a track record for spotting experimental features on popular services, just discovered that Spotify is testing a new functionality that would let users import their phone’s local music into the app.
\\ Read more on Tech Times //

New Details on Apple’s Negotiations With iHeartMedia Surface

Earlier this month, Financial Times reported that Apple had held talks with U.S. radio company iHeartMedia regarding the possibility of Apple taking a financial stake in the struggling radio company that filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. Despite its financial troubles, iHeartMedia remains the largest radio station owner in the country with over 850 AM and FM stations.
\\ Read more on MacRumors //

A Lawsuit Against Apple’s App Store Could Be a Big Bonus for Spotify

The war between Spotify and Apple Music, music streaming’s two major players, may soon see an intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court. Earlier this week, the Court heard oral arguments for a consumer lawsuit over Apple’s App Store pricing model, and it appeared largely sympathetic to the plaintiffs — which could be good news for Spotify, YouTube, Pandora, SoundCloud and all the other music-streaming services competing with Apple Music.
\\ Read more on Rolling Stone //

TIDAL Integrates With Entertainment Platform Plex

TIDAL has partnered with ‘global music streaming and entertainment platform,’ Plex.
This partnership adds access to TIDAL into the Plex app, with an exclusive subscription deal for new Plex users that are new Tidal subscribers.
\\ Read more on Music Business Worldwide //

YouTube Expands ‘Stories’ to Any Channel With More than 10K Subscribers

Now YouTube Creators with more than 10,000 subscribers can use the feature. That automatically qualifies a large number of artist accounts, though let’s see how musicians approach this feature.
YouTube Stories are available for seven days on the mobile app, and they appear for both subscribers and non-subscribers. YouTube Stories also appear on YouTube’s “Up Next” sidebar.
\\ Read more on Digital Music News //