Top News:
ABC:
Australia says Facebook agreed to reinstate news content in Australia in the coming days after the government promised amendments to its proposed media bill — We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.
Discussion:
New York Times, @kantrowitz, Financial Times, BBC, The Guardian, Nieman Lab, Financial Times, MediaPost, Sydney Morning Herald, Washington Post, @mikeisaac, BBC, CNET, Wall Street Journal, @zsk, @mathewi, @fbnewsroom, Breitbart, @yathinkn, Protocol, Gizmodo Australia, NBC News, Axios, @yathinkn, @rasmus_kleis, @caseynewton, 9News, Yahoo Finance, @nytimesworld, @slpng_giants, @robpegoraro, @jason_kint, The Wrap, Washington Times, @profcarroll, Engadget, CNET, @likebutterfield, @braveheartsinc, @orskov and Beyond Search, more at Techmeme »
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Nieman Lab:
Facebook's Australian news ban may leave it operating like WeChat, with news provided by platform-specific content houses posting tons of low-quality articles — Last week, in response to Australia's proposed media bargaining code, Facebook effectively halted all posting of links …
Discussion:
news.com.au, Bloomberg, Adweek, MediaNama, contextisking.com, The Ethical Reckoner, Newser and Financial Times, more at Techmeme »
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
Q&A with Spotify's Daniel EK on growing the number of creators on the service and engaging with them, podcast success metrics, Clubhouse, and more — Spotify hosted an event on Monday to discuss its ambitions in audio, and one message came through loud and clear: the company wants to play …
Discussion:
@ashleyrcarman, @dcseifert, @jake_k, @jyarow, @ashleyrcarman, The Muffin por Mauricio … and Engadget
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Dylan Byers / NBC News:
Spotify launches Renegades: Born in the USA, an exclusive, eight-episode podcast with Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen as co-hosts
Discussion:
Politico, @dylanbyers, CNN, @barackobama, New York Times, Variety, The Verge, @axios, Firstpost Tech, @davidcorndc, @sisario, @johnlevenstein, @timothys, @danfostertype, @dylanbyers, @heminator, @heminator, @sethamandel, @jonallendc, @brendelbored, @anthony, @lucas_shaw, @nickriccardi, @edglavin, @benlabolt, @mikedelmoro, Axios, That Eric Alper, WayneDupree.com, Slate, Breitbart, TechCrunch, The A.V. Club, The Daily Caller, Forbes, The Week, The Haps, The Big Lead, Mediaite, Hollywood Reporter, TheBlaze, Vanity Fair, CNBC, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, The Wrap, The Verge, Reuters, Spotify and The Western Journal
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Spotify says it will test paid podcast subscriptions in the US this spring through a new feature in Anchor
Discussion:
Matt on Audio and Spotify
Chris Welch / The Verge:
Spotify says it will launch a subscription later this year called HiFi that will offer “CD-quality, lossless audio”; Spotify currently tops out at 320kbps audio
Discussion:
TechCrunch, Spotify, XDA Developers, Firstpost Tech, @chrismaddern, @passantino, @alex, @reckless, @mlchild, @kerrymflynn, @tomwarren, @snazzyq, @lucas_shaw, @chriswelch, @iamkory, @stevekopack, @varadmehta, @chriswelch, @martinsfp, @spotify, ScreenRant, Gizmodo Australia, Music Business Worldwide, 9to5Google, Spotify and CNET, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
Spotify will launch an audio advertising marketplace, the Spotify Audience Network, and plans to offer podcasts on its self-serve ad platform Spotify Ad Studio
Discussion:
@sarafischer, RAIN News, AdExchanger, Spotify and Adweek, more at Techmeme »
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Spotify says it will launch in 80+ new markets in the coming days, expanding from 93 markets, making the service available to 1B potential new users
Discussion:
@eldsjal, Ad Age, Bloomberg, @lucas_shaw, @lucas_shaw, @dbricej, @kerrymflynn and CNET, more at Techmeme »
The Information:
Internal data: ~40%, or 40M, of Disney+ subscribers are in the US, and Disney has said 30% are in India, so Europe and LatAm seem to make up <30% of total subs — Disney's flagship video-streaming service, Disney+, has quickly emerged as the only true competitor to Netflix …
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Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge:
Star, a new section on Disney+ for international customers that offers content Disney places on Hulu in the US, launches today — Here's why US customers still have to pay for Hulu — Today marks the launch of Star. It's a new section of Disney Plus for international audiences …
Discussion:
@loudmouthjulia, @loudmouthjulia, Musings on Mouse and Engadget
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Networks like ABC, CBS, and NBC, sticking to “both sides-ism”, still let GOP leaders spread the “Big Lie” that Trump won the election with little or no pushback — (CNN Business)A version of this article first appeared in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter.
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Rob Barrett is named president of media at Maven, where he will run Sports Illustrated and The Street; Barrett was previously president of digital at Hearst — Maven Media, which runs the publishing businesses of Sports Illustrated and TheStreet, has tapped digital-media veteran Rob Barrett as president of media.
Emma Pinedo / Reuters:
Sources: Google is negotiating individual licensing deals with media outlets in Spain that may allow Google News to resume there after shutting down in 2014 — (This Feb. 22 story corrects to clarify Google's position, paragraph 5) — MADRID (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google …
Liz Pelly / Real Life:
Issues with streaming and its distribution of royalties could be resolved with a federal, taxpayer-funded music streaming service, an “American Music Library” — The problems with corporate music streaming are clear. The pay is inconsequential, the power is far too centralized …
Discussion:
@erinmckeown, @thejoshuaafagan and @drvolts
Kelsey McKinney / Defector:
Internal memo: Slate indefinitely suspended The Gist host Mike Pesca over a Slack discussion; sources: he argued for the use of the N-word in some cases — Mike Pesca, host of Slate's daily podcast, The Gist, has been suspended from the company indefinitely according to an internal memo sent …
Discussion:
New York Times, Reason, @espiers, @mckinneykelsey, @jonathanchait, Newser, @nelliebowles, @moorehn, @urbanachievr, @kittypurrzog, @mckinneykelsey, @kmele, @scottnover, @blackamazon, @emilyctamkin, @katie_robertson, @nytimes, @mtaibbi, @jessesingal, @iramiof, @oz_f, @bookishfeminist, @justinnxt, @daveweigel, @chsommers, @teasippinsherpa, @drewmagary, @chsommers, @lhfang, @ijbailey, The Wrap and Fox News
Kathryn Hopkins / WWD:
Hearst says O, The Oprah Magazine will get a new name and a paywall on its website, as the magazine hires a new general manager and shifts to quarterly print — Hearst also revealed that the publication's name will be changed and a paywall is to be introduced.
Discussion:
@kerrymflynn, @jkosner and Daily Front Row
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
UK's Independent had an operating profit £2.7M, up 18% YoY, on revenue of £30.3M, up 12% YoY; majority of readers are in the US, but UK makes up 50% of revenue — Financial results at The Independent for 2020 show Covid-19 has not stopped it achieving a fourth year in profit since going digital-only.
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