Mobile Music Downloads

Only 10% of U.S. cell phone owners listen to music on their devices, according to a report from market research firm Forrester Research.

This compares with 27% of Britons and 70% of Chinese mobile subscribers.

"Part of the reason is that mobile and music providers have focused on their business models first and the user experience second. Europe and Asia have fared better in terms of user adoption, but direct revenues from mobile music remain lean," the report says.


"To benefit from mobile music adoption, music labels need to shift their strategy from direct to indirect revenue gains, services need to become platform-agnostic, and device makers and carriers need to up the ante on innovative offerings."

While 60% of U.S. mobile subscribers polled said they had no interest in purchasing music on their phones, Forrester predicts that the U.S. market for purchasing music via cell phones will reach $263 million by 2013.

Music Fan interrogated over mobile phone vote

One of the hidden risks of pursuing a digital future:

Rovshan Nasirli, a young Eurovision fan living in the Azerbaijani capital Baku, says he was summoned this week to the country's National Security Ministry -- to explain why he had voted for Armenia during this year's competition in May.

Nasirli, like others, used his mobile phone to send a text message expressing his preference, little imagining his vote would eventually result in a summons from national security officials......

The full story here.

Mmino second call for applications 2009

Since we're also looking at music in the NMB area, I thought you might be interested in this: Mmino, the South African - Norwegian music cooperation programme, has announced a second call for applications for 2009.

Housed at the National Arts Council in Johannesburg, Mmino provides funding to music education and exchange projects (between Norway & SA and SA & SADC countries). The organisation attempts to establish and strengthen mutually beneficial relationships between Norway and South Africa.

Official application forms can be downloaded from the website www.mmino.org.za. The closing date for this funding session is 12 August 2009 at 12h00.

Television and Music

In this blog I'm going to be looking a lot at how the lessons learned by the music industry in terms of distribution, copyright protection, audience development, online marketing etc. can be applied to our regional tv industry. And to reiterate the cross-over, Senegalese master-musician Baaba Maal has announced the release of his new album entitled, Television - a groundbreaking successor to 2001's Missing You.

The title-track refers to that African phenomenon - ubiquitous TV screens. "The television set is like a stranger you didn't ask for coming into your living-room," explains Baaba. "You don't care about who he is: he just seems to come from nowhere and gives you information."

Now we just need to get Eastern Cape product onto those screens.....



Television is a collaboration primarily between Baaba Maal and singer Sabina Sciubba and keyboardist Didi Gutman, both members of New York's Brazilian Girls. The result is a stunningly beautiful and diverse record that meshes two genres, generally unfamiliar to each other, to produce an eclectic and romantic sound.