Study shows music streaming services are shortening musical intros

Music streaming services aren’t just disrupting traditional record labels. It seems they’re changing the way songs are made, too. A new study from Hubert Léveillé Gauvin, a doctoral student in music theory at The Ohio State University, finds that songs are getting shorter instrumental introductions to try and accommodate the shortening attention span of listeners. And it seems the streaming services—such as Spotify and Pandora—are to blame.

Gauvin listened to and analyzed songs that made it into the top 10 from 1986 to 2015 and found “a dramatic shift away from long intros” and “a marked increase in tempo.” Songs back in the mid-80s had intros averaging over 20 seconds, now they’re down to five seconds on average so they immediately get to the lyrics. Tempo has also increased by around eight percent.

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Prince's music tipped to be returning to Spotify and other music streaming services

People have been reading between the lines, or at least between the subway posts in New York, saying that Prince's catalog will be making a comeback on popular music streaming services in time for the Grammys on February 12. Currently, Tidal has exclusive streaming rights to the Purple One's back catalog. Speculation started when Spotify started posting very coy billboards in high-foot traffic areas like the Union Square in New York. And by coy, they're just posts painted in purple with Spotify's logo on them. If there is any truth to the rumor, Prince's catalog is expected to hit Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Unlimited, Deezer, and Pandora.

Source: CNET + Billboard

Pandora reportedly wants to get acquired

Pandora seems to be positioning itself to be acquired. A report from The New York Times claims Pandora, with the guidance from Morgan Stanley, is currently in preliminary discussions for a possible acquisition. It isn’t specified if there are potential buyers. Recent moves from Pandora’s end—like buying technology from the now-shuttered Rdio and acquiring Ticketfly—are believed to help make the service more attractive to streaming music fans, especially with its stocks down 60 percent since October 2015. But it can also be looked at as a way to make the company more attractive to potential buyers. Pandora won’t comment on the report but we won’t be surprised if we hear more about this in the future.

Source: The New York Times | Via: The Next Web

Pandora acquires RDIO music streaming service for US $75M

RDIO, one of the pioneering streaming music services has been purchased by Pandora for US $75 million. Pandora, it appears, plans to cannibalize RDIO and use it for parts to improve its service. Pandora said in an announcement that the acquisition includes “technology and intellectual property from Rdio.”

Pandora, which isn't available in Canada, has been facing stiff competition from streaming music leader Spotify and new entrant Apple Music  which are gaining popularity and being Internationally available. The streaming music industry has surpassed CD sales and even online music sales for the first time this year. 

Source: Variety