3.4.3 Canais de streaming

A experiência da Microsoft na «rádio» não tem sido feliz

«MSN RADIO DROPS PANDORA AND SIMPLY SHUTS DOWN: Pandora and MSN Radio have ended their partnership, causing the latter service to shut down. MSN Radio had been powered by Pandora. Ending the partnership — which was enacted in November 2006 — was a “mutual” decision, reports Pandora founder Tim Westergren. He revealed that Pandora’s “limited resources” need to be consolidated in their flagship site, and that any partnerships “have to really be substantial…having been [on MSN Radio] for a while and been in front of their audience, it was no longer contributing that level.” For more on the story, read the Seattle Times’ coverage here. RAIN ANALYSIS: Radio has not been easy for MSN. MSN Radio has had a checkered history: In 2000, Microsoft acquired a company called MongoMusic in a $65 million stock deal to build stations called “Sounds Like” that matched artists or moods. In 2003, MSN experimented with a $29.99 subscription service called MSN Radio Plus. In 2004, they launched a set of 900 “Local Sounds” stations that tried to mimic local-market FM stations (more coverage here). One flaw in the “MSN Radio — Powered by Pandora” plan may have been the fact that if an MSN user sampled and liked the product, it was probably easier for them to go to Pandora.com directly, rather than to radio.msn.com, thereafter. — KH» (fonte: HANSON, Kurt, «RAIN 6/20: MSN Radio gives up; Edison on covering spot breaks» Jun 20, 2008)

Lojas de música cada vez mais ´portáteis'

«Problem : You purchased the new digital Alanis Morrissette album at work, but now you want to listen to it on your home computer.  Now what? Solution : When you purchase MP3s from stores like AmazonMP3, Napster, Wal-Mart they’re instantly added to all your computers and your Music Locker  (with album artwork!) using LockerSync. It’s now easier than ever to automatically get all your purchases on all your computers! Step 1 : Download LockerSync on all your computers Step 2 : Buy MP3s from your fave MP3 store or download songs and watch them automatically go to all your computers»

As dificuldades dos canais de streaming na negociação com as editoras

«Warner Music Group and Last.fm are at loggerheads over attempts to renew a revenue-sharing deal that allows users to listen to full-length tracks for free on the music recommendation website. The company, which became the first major music label to arrange a deal with Last.fm in February 2007, pulled its full catalogue from the site on Friday but gave no official reason. Behind the scenes, Warner is thought to be frustrated with the deal, which offers a lower share of advertising revenue than comparable agreements with other music websites. Warner owns a stake in the social music service Imeem, as well as a new joint venture with MySpace and other major music labels that is due to launch this summer. One source familiar with the situation told MediaGuardian.co.uk that music labels "do like Last.fm, but want to get paid". They are said to be frustrated that Last.fm has not introduced a proposed premium subscription service, which would allow users to stream unlimited songs for about £5 per month. Last.fm's current streaming service lets users listen to songs up to three times.  "Even if Warner manages to negotiate a better deal, that would mean the other labels want the same, so Last.fm is in a bit of a bind," said Dan Cryan, a music analyst with Screen Digest. "They either need to pay more to the labels, or demonstrate that they add value, either showing that they help increase sales or have a genuine promotional role. But there are a clutch of similar sites that could do this and pay more to the labels."»

fonte: «Warner Music Group and Last.fm at loggerheads over deal» Jemima Kiss guardian.co.uk, June 12 2008

O problema de comercialização dos canais de musica

«Today’s relaunch of AOL Radio (in beta) embraces that aspect of radio in many ways. First and foremost is its partnership with CBS Radio, which is replacing XM Satellite as the provider of music for 150 radio stations on AOL Radio (AOL itself continues to program another 200). Along with providing much of the music people can listen to for free, (...) CBS Radio’s ability to sell local ads was major reason why it won the partnership deal, especially with online music royalties increasing sharply. Lisa Namerow, the general manager of AOL Radio, tells me:

The royalties have gone up significantly. We had to reevaluate our business. We needed to partner in order to monetize radio better. We have grown advertising year-t0-year 100 percent, but with the increasing cost of royalties, we need to do a better job by leveraging local markets and advertisers. CBS has a string foothold in that local sales market, with over 140 sales teams.

That statement is an eye-opener for any music service hoping to make money from advertising. If AOL Radio, with three million unique listeners per month (according to Namerow), is having a hard time, how are smaller ad-supported music startups supposed to survive? And affiliate links are not going to cut it. Every song on AOL Radio has a link to iTunes or Amazon, yet Namerow cautions that “those commerce links are a very minor revenue source.”

(...) Two more suggestions: 1) Make personal music recommendations based on my listening habits; 2) Integrate with CBS-owned Last.fm for more music choices and social recommendations», AOL Radio Relaunches, Now Powered By CBS: Going After Local Ads Erick Schonfeld 10/06/08 tecrunch.com

Para quê fazer o download se o streaming tem tudo?

«“Kids now only listen to music, they don’t download it’, Leonhard said. “Access has become an important factor. People want to listen to music on their mobile. Developments like Wifi, 4G, iPhone’s, fancy Nokia’s turn streaming music into the new radio”. This shift requires new business models, as even fewer people than now will want to pay for music. “The new business model is selling stuff around music. Tickets, merchandising, posters, books, things like that.”» fonte: Ernst-Jan Pfauth Leonhard: “Streaming music is the new radio”, The Nextweb.com 7/06/08

Para uma tentativa de categorização dos sites de musica

«Streaming music is a popular alternative to the pay-per-download and subscription services.  Streaming music allows site users to listen to music for free without actually owning the source of the song, like listening to a radio station.  There are quite a few websites where visitors can stream music for free.  Radio stations all over the US stream their broadcasts online.  Other sites like Pandora, for example, provide visitors with radio stations customized with music by artists they like as well as music that has a related sound.  If a song plays that a listener doesn’t like, then you can give it a thumbs down and you won’t have to hear that song, or any other like it, again.  Also, you can create as many stations as you want—all for free, with no advertisements! The Evolution of Digital Music On Demand   Mary Sekerak  28/04/08

 

A música na net não é apenas pop/rock; música clássica

«O propósito do MusOpen é tornar pública toda a música que já não esteja abrangida pela protecção de direitos de autor. E o serviço online adicionou recentemente novos títulos ao seu repertório: as 32 sonatas para piano compostas por Beethoven disponíveis para download gratuito e ilimitado.

Muitas das partituras escritas pelos grandes compositores da história da música fazem parte do domínio público desde há muito - os direitos expiram ao fim de 70 anos depois da morte do respectivo autor. Mas esta condição não torna acessíveis as obras gravadas para serem utilizadas em remisturas ou bandas sonoras. Às edições discográficas estão associados direitos conexos, que recaem sobre os intérpretes que executam as obras. E na Europa, a sua duração é de 50 anos desde a edição comercial. Tais direitos impedem a utilização livre dos registos.

O MusOpen propõe a regravação destas obras por músicos profissionais. Para tal, convoca os seus utilizadores para o apoio nos custos que suportam tal processo. As doações feitas online servem para pagar as gravações, que posteriormente são colocadas no site à disposição de qualquer pessoa. Por exemplo, para gravar as 32 sonatas de Beethoven foram recolhidos dois mil dólares em doações. De acordo com o próprio MusOpen, são necessários cerca de cinco dólares por pessoa para que uma gravação deste género seja concretizável (menos de cinco euros)» (ou seja, à margem das editoras, um modelo de viabilização alternativo ao dos sites de pop/rock)

Outras opções, aqui sistematizadas por Paulo Querido.

 

Sobre o crescimento do nº de sites que oferecem música

Quase todas as semanas, em 2008, aparece mais um site que oferece música atraves da internet (streaming ou donwloading) e que se afirma 100% legal. Somando todos os que existem, em versões desenvolvidas ou apenas «beta», serão nesta altura perto de 100. Ou estarão a chegar a esse número. A centena, neste contexto, nada tem de especial (não é uma meta). É importante, contudo, perceber que quantos mais existirem mais esta 'industria' se desenvolverá e se afirmará. Mais gente os utilizará, mais eles ganham dimensão. E, perante a concorrência, mais se desenvolverão, mais afirmarão capacidades de fazer a diferença. Todos têm música. O que irá variar ´não é portanto esse conteúdo (eles têm «toda» a música) mas a relação que estabelecerem com os utilizadores (porque disso depende a sua viabilidade). Ora para construirem uma relação com os utilizadores parece certo que o caminho será o de dar-lhes mais poder. Um exemplo final: o Pandora foi durante alguns anos «the best killer application» (para usar o jargão informático) mas perdeu fulgor a partir de 2007/2008, com o aparecimento de programas concorrentes que oferecem muito mais oferta, mas sobretudo mais personalização e poder de controlo ao utilizador.

Qbox, o novo serviço musical online

«Qbox Corporation today announced the official beta launch of its streaming social network music service, available from Qbox.com. By indexing the entire music inventories of top social media sites, Qbox makes it easy for users to search, organize, and listen to the entire catalog of free and legally available online music - all through a single, easy-to-use point of access.

 

With tens of millions of unique visitors each month, social networking and media sites have become a leading destination for music search and discovery, allowing artists and fans to interact directly. But such services tend to search only their own sites, are largely browser-dependent, and offer limited listening and bookmarking options.

Qbox is an integrated hybrid desktop/web application, designed for user freedom and access to content from multiple social networks.»

Editoras de música apostam na net e no streaming

«Major labels are continuing to invest in emerging digital companies, part of a broader diversification strategy.  Over the weekend, sources pointed Digital Music News to a Universal Music Group stake in Uber (uber.com), a startup that allows users to instantly create multimedia websites and blogs. (...) But Universal Music Group is not the only major investing in startups.  Just recently, Warner Music Group invested $20 million in Lala (lala.com), a company that offers ubiquitous access to music collections and is launching a novel, per-stream purchasing proposition» fonte: «Universal Music Keeps Investing; Uber Stake Surfaces», Digital Music News, 4/06/08

EMI Starts Supporting Ad-Supported; Qtrax + Spiralfrog: «The experiment that is ad-supported music received a powerful nod this week from EMI Music.  On Tuesday morning, the company licensed its catalog to Spiralfrog, and later in the day, the company announced an agreement with Qtrax.  (...) The Qtrax license covers both streams and downloads.  The DRM-protected downloads can be ported onto three compatible players, though users must visit the Qtrax destination at least once every 60 days to keep the songs alive.
Both Qtrax and Spiralfrog have been trudging through difficult and expensive licensing processes, perhaps a strong advertisement against legitimate licensing paths.  In the case of Qtrax, a blowout launch in January simply blew up, thanks to missing major label licenses. Spiralfrog has also experienced its ups and downs, though both are pushing forward with their steadily-expanding catalogs.  On Tuesday, Spiralfrog pointed to a monthly unique user base of five million, quoting data from Nielsen//NetRatings. fonte: EMI Starts Supporting Ad-Supported; Qtrax + Spiralfrog, Digital Music News, 4/06/08

60 sites de música grátis

1. iMesh

2. Pandora

3. Last.fm

4. IMEEM

5. Songza

6. thesixtyone

7. Grooveshark

8. SpiralFrog

9. Mp3eq

10. Ruckus

11. Jamendo

12. Live Music Archive

13. Songerize

14. Free Music Zilla

15. DEEZER

16. SeeqPod

17. MOG

18. MACIDOL

19. Slacker

20. Jango

21. OurStage

22. Allmusic

23. Sideload

24. MyBloop

25. Mininova

26. Unsigned Band Web

27. Soundflavor

28. Live365

29. iLike

30. Dizzler

31. finetune

32. Digitally Imported

33. Tagoo

34. purevolume

35. The Hype Machine

36. GarageBand

37. musicovery

38. MP34U

39. Fairtilizer

40. Music

41. Jamwave

42. Opsound

43. Artist Direct

44. MySongCast

45. Magnatune

46. liveplasma

47. Project Playlist

48. itBreaks

49. Newgrounds

50. Anywhere.FM

51. WeenRadio

52. Mashuptown

53. thetastates

54. SkreemR

55. GO Video [Codes]

56. Blastro

57. SpinJay

58. Yallwire

59. Roxwel

60. Muxtape

61. (em italico os que conheço; esta lista de 60 não inclui todos os sites que existem: não está aqui o we7, o Accutunes ou o Launchcast; quanto mais sites destes, mais dimensão critica, e mais opção se tornarão) fonte

Não há, no espaço da música, um site de referência

A LAst.fm é provavelmente a melhor colocada para ocupar na musica o espaço que a Google ocupa relativamente aos motores de busca, o YouTube no video, a amazon e a ebay nas compras ou a wikipedia no conhecimento. Mas não há um lider claro. A Last.fm vai à frente.

38 sites de musica, gratis ou baratinhos...

38 free/cheap music sites — Welcome to the fray, Qbox!

- «No single strategy for listening to music online has come to dominate the market, as record labels, managers, artists, fans, Apple’s music offering, Internet radio and recommendation companies all jockey for position. But one thing is clear above all the din: Fans will not be denied their music — and most want it free.

- We tell you what the service does, what its business model looks like, and whether it lets users stream or download, among other things. The most useful categories may be 1) what we’ve termed “musicability,” or how easy can you find the song you want (this may be the best way to pick a potential favorite), and 2) “genre,” or how easy it is to search through a particular genre of music. Both are rated on a scale of 5.

-despite copyright restrictions, many of the sites manage to share music legally; others are dubious but are surviving anyway. We’ve most definitely missed several — we haven’t included most torrent or peer-to-peer (P2P) companies because there are simply too many of them and the majority operate illegally.

NOTAS essenciais:

- duas formas de difusão: streaming ou downloading (alguns tambem em telemoveis, iPhone

- Modelo de negócio: publicidade (audio ou banners), versões premium e vendas associadas (amazon, por exemplo

- A legalidade de alguns espaços é discutivel

A grande diversidade é na classificação destes sites: tanto são music search engines (ou search and discovery music engine ou jukebox/music search engine), como «music storage space», social music downloading, social music service, social music site, social network media site (ou social network service), music store, social media radio site, social music locker, social music blogging, online music locker, music storage locker, music radio, online music service

 

Grooveshark, «Listen to any song, anywhere in the world»

«Grooveshark was founded in 2006 by three University of Florida students determined to accomplish what the music industry couldn't - make purchasing music online easy, enjoyable and worthwhile. Grooveshark is the ability to find and listen to any song, share and receive personalized recommendations and purchase music at a fair price with the knowledge that the copyright holder will be paid. Today, Grooveshark has grown to a team of 40 passionate employees dedicated to creating the best online music experience possible - a goal that doesn't end, but instead will allow us to grow and evolve with our users.»

 

«Celestial Jukebox»

«

In 2008, this is all going to change.  We are now starting to see the next generation of music apps hit the web that no longer are beholden to the rules of Internet radio. These  music apps allow you to play any song you want, at anytime for free. Some notable next generation music apps that offer play on demand are Finetune, Jango, The Hype Machine, Grooveshark, and  seeqpod.  Spotify (in private beta) is extremely nice.  Over the next 6 months, we will see even more music apps released that let you listen to any song you want.

In the book ‘The future of music', authors Kusek and Leonhard write about a future where music 'flows like water'.  Where all songs are playable, on demand, anytime.  This is the Celestial Jukebox - the great jukebox in the sky that is ready to play any song you want.  2008 will be the year of the Celestial Jukebox - at least if you are sitting at your computer, You will be able to listen to virtually any song that you want, on demand.  The only time you will need to pay for music is if you want to listen to it on your iPod or your living room stereo.  And of course, in the not too distant future,  all of our devices will be connected to the net - when this happens, the Celestial Jukebox will really exist.  We will be able to listen to any song, at any time, at any place, on any device. » (ALBINIAK, Matt, The Celestial Jukebox is here May 24, 2008)

Meemix - mais uma rádio só minha

«Right now I'm playing with MeeMix Internet Radio. Meemix is a browser-based player which offers both an audio and video mode. MeeMix thinks of itself as an Internet community which offers members the ability to create and listen to personalized radio stations. MeeMix uses a "taste prediction algorithm" which tries and figure out what you will want to hear - not unlike what Internet stations like Pandora or Last.fm pioneered. I started by typing in "Abba" (It's just my default music search term) upon which MeeMix began playing "Take a Chance on Me" - a big 1978 hit for the band. MeeMix then decided I should hear Donna Summer's "Bad Girls" followed by a 1979 disco hit by Cameo. (...) MeeMix has a "Mood Control" with three controls: Surprize Me, Pulse, and Volume. (...). I definitely was surprised. MeeMix has a Not or Hot slider control which let's you tell it whether or not you like what it's picking for you to hear. MeeMix provides a lot of other controls to promote interaction, too: a favorites tool, another to block cuts, the ability to buy the CD you're listening to, recommendation tools, and more. MeeMix is fun to play with and free to use. First time visitors can try it out before registering and create up to 3 radio stations that allow you to listen to 5 songs on each one.»

Corey Deitz, Make Your Own Radio Stations with MeeMix Internet Radio 12/05/08 

Os sites de musica via streaming mais populares

«These social streaming communities have risen rapidly in popularity. iMeem recently overtook Yahoo! Music as the most popular streaming site on the web.

*The Hypem1500 presents aggregate traffic to the more than 1500 music blogs tracked by the Hype Machine, a popular blog aggregator. The Hype Machine itself is ranked separately from its network at #16.

fonte: Music Industry Downfall, Part II: The Rise of Social Streaming by Alex Patriquin Compete.com May 12th, 2008

A popularidade da música via streaming (e grátis)

«(...) many consumers don’t pay for music at any price. The chart below, based on Compete’s data on more than 1,000 music sites, shows how the most popular options for listening to music online are free.

Despite lawsuits against illegal download sites, the fastest growing category in online music last year was P2P downloads, which shot up 140%. Nearly ten years after Napster raged through college networks, online music piracy continues to grow.»

fonte: Music Industry Downfall, Part II: The Rise of Social Streaming by Alex Patriquin Compete.com May 12th, 2008

Imeem começa a ser um caso sério

«Imeem is now becoming a serious contender in the streaming music space, at least according to data points surfacing Tuesday.  In a ranking of streaming music destinations compiled by Boston-based Compete, Imeem topped heavy-hitters Yahoo, AOL, MySpace, and Last.FM.  "As the music industry seeks to reassemble in the wake of digital distribution, it should recognize social streaming communities as the fastest growing opportunity in its evolution," explained Compete analyst Alex Patriquin. 
During the month of March, Imeem grabbed a unique visitor tally of 10.3 million, a bump of 58 percent from last year.  Yahoo Music (music.yahoo.com) was not far behind at 9.7 million, though AOL Music, MySpace Music and others trailed considerably. Specifically, AOL Music (music.aol.com) pulled 4.6 million uniques, down 30 percent, while MySpace Music (music.myspace.com) earned 4.5 million, down 3 percent.  That was followed by Project Playlist (playlist.com), MSN Music (music.msn.com), Pandora, iLike, Last.FM, Live365, and others.  Compete aggregated its data based on ISP, toolbar, and survey information»
Alex Patriquin, "Music Industry Downfall, Part II: The Rise of Social Streaming"

Editoras permitem downloads legais? (modelo de negócio)

«Some of the biggest music labels could soon allow free legal downloads, after an ambitious ad-funded file-sharing service, Qtrax, signed a deal with Universal, the world's largest record label and home to U2, Kanye West and Mariah Carey. (...) When it emerged that several deals were not yet fully in place or had lapsed, analysts expected the service to disappear in the ensuing backlash. But it has since signed deals with Beggars, the UK's largest independent label, home to Dizzee Rascal and the White Stripes, and the publishing arms of EMI and Sony/ATV.The contract with Universal is the first with a major label to cover both publishing and recording rights, meaning that it should be able to offer music by its artists within the next month or so. The Universal deal is initially understood to cover only the US. Qtrax is just one of several sites trying to make money from the concept of free, ad-funded downloads and streaming. Earlier this year We7, backed by Peter Gabriel, began offering downloads with embedded audio adverts and signed a deal with Sony BMG to offer its catalogue on a streaming basis. Other sites such as Imeem and Last.fm have also signed deals with leading labels to offer streaming services that act as vast, ad-supported online jukeboxes. Adverts are displayed during the search and downloading processes. Spiralfrog, a New York-based site that has been striving for two years to establish a user base in the US and Canada, also has a deal with Universal. Qtrax has promised that tracks downloaded through its browser can be kept by users for ever as long as they regularly log in to renew the rights management software. It will also enable iPod users to transfer the tracks to their audio players, which could hit sales of downloads through Apple's iTunes Music Store. In addition to sites offering ad-funded music, labels are also exploring new licensing models for subscription-based or bundled offerings such as Nokia's Comes With Music and MusicStation and beginning tentative discussions with internet service providers about packaging music downloads into monthly broadband subscriptions» (fonte: Universal to allow free music downloads, Owen Gibson, The Guardian, Thursday May 8 2008»)