DIY Music Tech News: SoundCloud, Vimeo, Tunezy, Thefuture.fm, Musicplayr, PledgeMusic
Though some folks still mistake "music tech" for a limited range of companies and products such as Spotify, Pandora and iTunes, the diy-focused music tech world is typically a much more interesting space. Recent news relevant to diy and indie musicians ranges from SoundCloud and Vimeo's new pro offerings to updates from a variety of music tech startups including Tunezy, Thefuture.fm, Musicplayr and PledgeMusic.
SoundCloud Reboots Premium Offerings with SoundCloud Pro
As has been widely noted this week, SoundCloud is switching things up with new premium plans. They discuss SoundCloud Pro further in a blog post.
Vimeo Debuts Vimeo On Demand
Though YouTube remains the leader in the ad-supported social video world, Vimeo offers a less noise-filled environment and more control for users. Last fall they introduced Vimeo Creator Services, including a tip jar, followed by their first pay-to-view offerings.
Now they're stepping up their premium game with Vimeo On Demand. More info is available on their blog.
The Naughty By Nature "Private VIP Experience" from Tunezy.com
The music fan experience space is definitely heating up with BandPage's entry and a new report from Nielsen about lost revenue due to the ongoing industry obsession with sales of recorded music.
Last month I wrote about Tunezy's fan wishlists and their nuanced approach to figuring out what fans actually want and how much they're willing to pay. Recently Naughty By Nature shared the above video of their first Tunezy-facilitated fan experience and it's a nice look at why bands should be investigating this potentially profitable opportunity to feed their superfans.
Digiwaxx to Promote Thefuture.fm
Thefuture.fm is now spreading the word via promotional partnerships about the unique monetization opportunities available through their platform for making dj mixes legal.
This week they announced their first promo deal with Digiwaxx to recruit djs to the platform. Other digital record pools and dj networks are expected to follow.
Musicplayr Introduces Facebook Fanpage App for Artists
Musicplayr, a service designed for fans to collect and share free streaming music on the web from sites like YouTube and SoundCloud, last month introduced Musicplayr for Artists.
Now artists can add a Musicplayr app to their Facebook Page. Such an app might best be used not just to feature one's own music but to share a genre or a scene and thus create a context for one's music.
Back in January Musicplayr also added the option to follow auto-aggregated artist pages on the site. Though not a diy music site per se, Musicplayr is now doing more to market musicians while serving listeners.
PledgeMusic Wins GRAMMY Music Technology Lab Pitch Event
Last month's GRAMMY Music Technology Lab introduced "five superstar entrepreneurs" to "50 VIP guests from the music industry, digital world and venture capital" in a special event for the GRAMMY Awards weekend.
D2F campaign site PledgeMusic participated and their pitch won. Congratulations!
More:
- Red Bull Amplifier Launches Music Tech Startup Accelerator
- YouTube Video Tips & Tools From The Music Playbook To vidIQ
- Music Ticketing News: Limited Run, Eventbrite x Facebook, TapCanvas, Ticketmaster
Hypebot Senior Contributor Clyde Smith (@fluxresearch/@crowdfundingm) also blogs at All World Dance: Videos and maintains Music Biz Blogs. To suggest topics for Hypebot, contact: clyde(at)fluxresearch(dot)com.
Signed up for Tunezy after reading your review last month – I really like their business model and the look and feel of the site. My fans seem to enjoy it so far…
Then came Bandpage — which has an advantage due to their plug and play Bandpage connect. I think Tunezy has the edge for design and innovative #fanwish integration. Solution: use both and see how it goes? Thanks for the heads up on Tunezy Clyde.
Let me know how it goes. I enjoyed your album!