1. Troy Carter Talks Hybrid Label Venture With Capitol Music Group, New Signings (Exclusive)

    August 21, 2013 1:57 PM EDT Troy Carter’s Atom Factory Entertainment is teaming with Capitol Music Group to form Atom Factory Music, a joint label that has signed two indie-rock bands, New York’s Basic Vacation and Los Angeles’ The Ceremonies. The deal will emphasize in ...

  2. Insane Clown Posse Juggle TV Commitments, FBI Attention & Being the World's Most 'Hated' Band

    August 21, 2013 1:55 PM EDT They are the self-proclaimed "Most Hated Band in the World," and now they're bringing their own theater of the absurd to the Fuse Network with the aptly titled "Insane Clown Posse Theater." For 24 years, Joseph Bruce and ...

  3. Madison Square Garden Co. Q4 Earnings Exceed Wall St. Expectations

    August 21, 2013 12:40 PM EDT The Madison Square Garden Co., controlled by the Dolan family that also owns cable operator Cablevision Systems, reported on Wednesday higher fiscal fourth-quarter earnings that exceeded Wall Street estimates. MSG said its quarterly profit of $3 ...

  4. Business Matters: Behind Apple iTunes Radio’s Launch Strategy

    August 20, 2013 6:37 PM EDT Don't expect a soft launch for iTunes Radio. Apple has lined up blue chip advertisers for its upcoming launch next month of iTunes Radio, according to an Ad Age report . McDonald’s, Nissan, Pepsi and Procter & Gamble were named as ad ...

  5. Eddie 'Piolin' Sotelo, MLB Deals Boost Sirius XM Outlook

    August 20, 2013 2:07 PM EDT Lazard Capital Markets analyst Barton Crockett in a bullish report has lauded satellite radio giant Sirius XM Radio for a couple of recent "serious content upgrades." He cited a just-announced Major League Baseball deal extension and a ...

  6. Beats by Dr. Dre Maker Looking for New Investor (Report)

    August 20, 2013 7:12 AM EDT Beats Electronics, the company behind the Beats by Dr. Dre headphones, is looking to broaden its product lineup and bring in a new investor, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation. Beats Music Beefs Up Curati ...

  7. Jennifer Lopez Deal with 'American Idol' Imminent (Source)

    August 20, 2013 7:02 AM EDT A person familiar with negotiations to bring Jennifer Lopez back as an "American Idol" judge says her return will be announced this week. The person said Monday that a deal is close to being signed with Lopez, who was an "Idol&quo ...

  8. Dick Clark Productions Names Greg Economou EVP and Chief Revenue Officer

    August 20, 2013 6:18 AM EDT In the newly created position, the former executive VP of the Charlotte Bobcats will look to ramp up sales around The American Music Awards and other events. Greg Economou has been named executive VP & chief revenue officer for Dick Clark Pr ...

  9. Flo Rida Swerves Six-Figure Lawsuit for Snubbing Australian Fest

    August 20, 2013 5:22 AM EDT Flo Rida has dodged paying roughly US$400,000 in damages to the organizers of an Australian music festival he failed to show up to. The artist, whose real name is Tramar Dillard, was a no-show at the Fat As Butter fest in 2011, for which he’d ap ...

  10. Cash Money's Birdman Launches Apparel Lines With Bravado, Lil Wayne; Includes 'Python Accents'

    August 19, 2013 4:18 PM EDT Cash Money's ever-expanding empire now includes hip-hop (Lil Wayne, Nicki MInaj and Drake among othgers), pop , R&B and rock artists, a book publishing division (which reacently inked a deal with Rev. Al Sharpton), a spirits brand,  fil ...

  11. Jacqueline Saturn, 20-Year Veteran of Epic Records, Heads to Capitol's Harvest

    August 19, 2013 2:42 PM EDT Jacqueline Saturn, a 20-year veteran of Epic Records who left the company in late July, is headed to Capitol Music Group's Harvest Records label, the Hollywood Reporter has learned. Todd Glassman Replaces Jacqueline Saturn as Head of Epic P ...

  12. Sinking Jamaican Dollar Brings Challenges to Reggae Sumfest, the Country’s Largest Music Festival

    August 19, 2013 2:22 PM EDT The ongoing devaluation of the Jamaican dollar within the past 12 months has brought significant challenges and steep price increases to this year’s staging of Reggae Sumfest, Jamaica's largest music festival. “It cost US$2 million to put ...

  13. Chris Brown's Health Condition Results in Canadian Concert Cancellations

    August 19, 2013 1:24 PM EDT TORONTO (AP) -- The promoter of four Chris Brown concerts in Canada scheduled this summer says the events have been cancelled. Stephen Tobin, owner of Drop Entertainment Group, said Monday that the decision was made after consulting with Brown a ...

  14. Live Nation Confirms Nathan Hubbard Is Out at Ticketmaster in SEC Filing

    August 16, 2013 4:30 PM EDT THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN BILLBOARD MAGAZINE – READ MORE HERE GET THIS WEEK'S ISSUE HERE OR SUBSCRIBE TO BILLBOARD HERE The surprise exit of Nathan Hubbard as Global President of Ticketmaster was made official on Friday, ushering in a ...

  15. Hearings Ordered for 'I'll Fly Away' Legal Dispute

    August 16, 2013 12:20 PM EDT A long-running family dispute over a classic gospel song won't just fly away. The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday ordered more hearings in the fight over who owns the rights and royalties to Albert Brumley Sr.'s classic & ...

  16. Robin Thicke Sues to Protect 'Blurred Lines' from Marvin Gaye's Family

    August 15, 2013 9:50 PM EDT 5 2.698 k 173 0 0 In order to shield "Blurred Lines," the hottest hit of the summer, Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams and Clifford Harris, Jr. are going to court. A lawsuit was filed Thursday in California federal court by the trio against Marvin ...

  17. Billy Currington Facing Trial on Terrorist Threat Charges

    August 15, 2013 11:11 AM EDT A judge Wednesday scheduled an Oct. 4 trial date for country singer Billy Currington, who was charged in the spring with threatening a 70-year-old tour boat captain who cruised past the dock of a $3.5 million waterfront home in Georgia where the ...

  18. Elvis Presley Estate Bid In Second Round, Sony Corp. and G2 Investment Group Among Expected Suitors

    August 14, 2013 8:24 PM EDT The auction for Core Media’s packaged estates of Elvis Presley and Muhammad Ali is now in the second round as bids are landing at the the Raine Group, the investment bank running the auction for Core Media. The New York Post reported that bids w ...

  19. Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino Sells Almost $12 Million in Stock

    August 14, 2013 5:15 PM EDT Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino recently sold 640,000 shares of his common stock holdings in the company, earning him $11.7 million, according to an Aug. 13 Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The two transactions, made on Friday and Monda ...

  20. Chance the Rapper, with 'Acid Rap' Mixtape, Meets the Legal Black Hole Around Unsigned Artists (From the Magazine)

    August 14, 2013 12:08 PM EDT Nearly a decade after the mixtape wars of the mid-2000s, the format still resides in an awkward limbo for retailers, distributors, artists and labels. Many retailers stopped carrying mixtapes after the RIAA proved litigious against the sale of ...

  21. Martin Hanaka, Interim Chief for Guitar Center, Appointed to Trans World Entertainment's Board of Directors

    August 14, 2013 11:42 AM EDT Trans World Entertainment has appointed Martin Hanaka, interim chief executive officer of Guitar Center, Inc., to its board of directors. According to a press release, Hanaka previously served on the company's board from 1998 to 2009.  &quo ...

  22. Former EMI Executive to Run Expanded Music Business for Germany's RTL

    August 13, 2013 10:12 AM EDT Germany's leading commercial broadcast group, RTL Deutschland, is expanding its music rights business with the launch of a new label, Music for Millions, and increasing its licensing and live events operations. Uli Mucke, a former vp new mu ...

  23. Eddie 'Piolin' Sotelo Gets His Own Channel with SiriusXM

    August 13, 2013 9:33 AM EDT Less than a month after having his long-running, nationally syndicated show cancelled by Univision, radio personality Eddio “Piolín” Sotelo will launch his own channel on SiriusXM, which will include his own daily show, “El Show de Piolín.”    “ ...

  24. Steinway Musical Instruments Inc. Receives New $477 Million Bid

    August 12, 2013 4:08 PM EDT A new bid to buy a legendary piano maker could be music to the ears of its shareholders. Steinway Musical Instruments Inc. said Monday that an investment firm has offered to pay $38 per share, or about $477 million, for the company. That tops an ...

  25. Lorde First Woman in 17 Years to Top Alternative with 'Royals'

    August 12, 2013 1:31 PM EDT With the aptly-titled "Royals," Lorde becomes the first lead solo female to crown Billboard's Nielsen BDS-based Alternative chart in more than 17 years.   No female soloist, in fact, had led the list as a lead artist in Lorde' ...

  26. The Echo Nest's Three Steps for Targeting Music Services' Most Valuable Users (From This Week's Issue)

    August 12, 2013 11:43 AM EDT Taste profiles, most often used to serve up recommendations and connect listeners to other users with like-minded tastes, has the potential to serve another purpose -- predicting which new customers will become high-value ones. According to a r ...

  27. Jonas Nachsin, Former President of Roadrunner Records, Appointed GM of UMG's Spinefarm Records

    August 12, 2013 11:21 AM EDT Jonas Nachsin, who enjoyed a 13-year stint as president of Roadrunner Records, has been appointed the worldwide GM of Universal Music’s hard rock and metal label, Spinefarm Records. Under Nachsin’s leadership, Spinefarm will increase investment ...

  28. Court Declines to Hear Curb Records' Lawsuit Against Tim McGraw

    August 10, 2013 9:13 AM EDT A federal court has declined to hear Curb Records' lawsuit against Tim McGraw and Big Machine Records, another setback in the label's legal fight with the country star. Curb Records Sues Tim McGraw in Federal Court A U.S. District Cour ...

  29. Ticketmaster UK Appoints Simon Presswell Managing Director

    August 09, 2013 3:48 PM EDT Ticketmaster UK has tapped Simon Presswell as managing director. Based in the Ticketmaster International headquarters in Angel, London, Presswell will be responsible for the U.K. operation of the Live Nation-owned ticketing business, which inclu ...

  30. Sony, Columbia Records Next In Line for Internship Lawsuit

    August 09, 2013 1:32 PM EDT And the intern lawsuits continue. The latest targets? Sony and Columbia Records, hit Tuesday with a class-action lawsuit by a former intern who claims she -- and over 500 other interns -- were unfairly unpaid. The complaint by Britt’ni Fields, f ...

  31. K-Pop Museum Coming to Los Angeles' Koreatown

    August 08, 2013 8:55 PM EDT Multi-faceted Korean company SM Entertainment, which functions as both a record label and a talent agency, is set to open a Korean pop culture museum in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles. SM Entertainment is largely credited with the concepti ...

  32. 'Cowboy' Jack Clement, Country Music Hall of Famer, Dies Aged 82 (Updated)

    August 08, 2013 1:30 PM EDT "He became a giant figure in the business, establishing his own publishing company and recording studio" In a town where individuality might often be looked at as the exception rather than the rule, "Cowboy" Jack Clement was ...

  33. Universal Music Launches Caroline International, Michael Roe, Jim Chancellor To Head-Up

    August 08, 2013 8:56 AM EDT The Universal Music Group has launched Caroline International, an independent distributor and label services provider; and has named Michael Roe and Jim Chancellor to head the London-based operation. Roe, who founded the international arm of EMI ...

  34. Warner Music Group's Revenues Up Slightly While Net Losses Nearly Double

    August 08, 2013 8:36 AM EDT Warner Music Group's red ink doubled in its latest quarterly earnings as the company posted a $63 million net loss on revenues of $663 million for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2013. That compares with the $32 million in net loss accu ...

  35. Kobalt Neighbouring Rights Signs Thirty Seconds to Mars, Matt Corby, Train and More

    August 08, 2013 7:00 AM EDT Kobalt Neighbouring Rights, a division of Kobalt Music Group, has announced the signing of several high-profile artists, including the band Thirty Seconds To Mars, DJ and singer Havana Brown, Train, pop star A*M*E and 'Australian Idol' ...

  36. Rate This App: Seenth.is Helps Organize Your Music Fandom

    August 07, 2013 8:40 PM EDT Along with the branded apps that artists use to personally disseminate news and photos, die-hard fans need to know which news outlets, blogs, Twitter accounts and Instagram users to follow in order to be completely updated on their favorite act. ...

  37. Backbeat: How Does Chris Thile, Mandolin Player/MacArthur Genius, Get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, Practice, Twitter, Impromptu Gig in NYC's Tompkins Square Park

    August 07, 2013 7:45 PM EDT Before he takes his recent interpretations of famed composer Johan Sebastian Bach to Carnegie Hall later this fall, mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile surprised about two dozen fans by offering to play his newest material on a bench in Tompkins Squar ...

  38. Biz Poll Results: Should Sony Entertainment and Universal Music Leave Their Parent Companies?

    August 07, 2013 2:52 PM EDT In our most recent Biz Poll , we asked whether the propositions put forth to cleave Sony Entertainment and Universal Music Group -- the world's two largest music companies -- away from their parent companies were a good idea. Let's tak ...

  39. Pandora's Business Model: Is It Sustainable?

    August 07, 2013 1:45 PM EDT Subscribers read this analysis of Pandora's business model (in full below) when it first published last week via Billboard's print, online and iPad platforms. And you could have too if you subscribed to Billboard with our unmatched ...

  40. Jimmy Iovine Plucks Radio Vet Julie Pilat to Head Up Curation for Beats Music

    August 07, 2013 11:09 AM EDT Julie Pilat, who spent 20 years at Clear Channel stations, joins the as-yet-unlaunched subscription service in a key role. It's "the opportunity of a lifetime," Pilat said. Jimmy Iovine's music subscription service, Beats Mu ...

  41. Pandora's Listener Hours up 2% in July, Down 16% Since March; Stocks Decline (Correction Appended)

    August 07, 2013 10:21 AM EDT Pandora's listener hours recovered by 2% July after falling in April and June, according to figures the company released Tuesday. The Internet radio service's monthly active users rose by 100,000, or 0.1%, to 71.2 million.   Investors ...

  42. Business Matters: Google-Backed Group's Report Says Search Results Not a Major Driver of Piracy

    August 06, 2013 8:56 PM EDT The Computer & Communications Industry Association has released a paper that aims to refute the RIAA's arguments that search engines play a major role in music piracy. "The Search Fixation: Infringement, Search Results and Online C ...

  43. Live Nation Revenue, Attendance Each Up 8% in Second Quarter (Updated)

    August 06, 2013 4:58 PM EDT Driven by its concerts division, Live Nation revenue rose 8% to  $1.68 billion in the second quarter from $1.55 billion a year ago. The concerts division, the company's largest source of revenue, grew 10.9% to $1.2 billion in the second qua ...

  44. Biz Video: Cornerstone's Rob Stone and Jon Cohen Say Fader Festival 'Is Coming Really Soon'

    August 06, 2013 4:49 PM EDT Rob Stone and Jon Cohen, founding partners of music branding agency Cornerstone, have been coming to festivals like Lollapalooza over the years as fans as well as official partners via branded pop-up The Fader Fort, which has been coming to So ...

  45. Sony Shares Fall After Rejecting Entertainment Spinoff

    August 06, 2013 1:40 PM EDT Sony's board has unanimously rejected a U.S. hedge fund manager's proposal that it sell part of its entertainment business, sending the Japanese company's shares down more than 5 percent. In a letter to Third Point CEO Daniel Loeb ...

  46. Special Report -- The Pandora Wars: 'You Can't Be Victim to Congress and Success to Wall St.'

    August 06, 2013 12:28 PM EDT Subscribers read this  Special Report on The Pandora Wars (in full below) when it first published last week via Billboard's print, online and iPad platforms. And you could have too if you subscribed to Billboard with our unmatched music ind ...

  47. El Komander Denies Wrongdoing in Controversial Narcocorrido Concert, Says He 'Loves Rules'

    August 06, 2013 12:22 PM EDT In accordance with an ordinance prohibiting the singing of narcocorrido songs which glorify drug culture, authorities in Chihuahua, Mexico have fined a concert promoter 10,000 pesos (about $8,000) for a July 27 concert by the artist known as El ...

  48. Lollapalooza Brazil Partners with South American Promoter Time 4 Fun

    August 06, 2013 7:02 AM EDT C3, the Austin, Texas-based producer of Lollapalooza music festivals in Chicago,  Chile, and Brazil, announces today that it will partner on Lolla Brazil going forward with Time 4 Fun (T4F), the leading South American live entertainment promoter ...

  49. National Music Publishers Association Files Copyright Infringement Suit Against Fullscreen

    August 06, 2013 1:00 AM EDT The National Music Publishers Association. has filed a copyright infringement suit against Fullscreen Inc., a multi-channel network (MCN) operating on YouTube and largely comprised of independent artists playing cover songs allegedly without pro ...

  50. Amazon.com Founder Jeff Bezos Buys Washington Post

    August 05, 2013 6:35 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) -- Jeff Bezos, the Amazon.com founder who helped bring books into the digital age, is going after another pillar of "old media": the newspaper. Bezos is buying The Washington Post and other newspapers for $250 million, ...

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