EmuBands

Last updated
EmuBands Ltd
Company typePrivate
Industry Music
Founded2005
Founder
  • Ally Gray
  • Matt Kennedy
Headquarters,
Area served
Worldwide
ProductsOnline Delivery (Music)
ServicesDigital music distribution
Website EmuBands Website

EmuBands is a digital music distribution service founded in 2005 and headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland. It provides a platform for self-releasing artists and independent record labels to distribute their music across various digital streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, and Tidal.

Contents

Overview

EmuBands offers distribution for musicians and labels to get their music online while retaining full ownership and control of their rights. The service operates on a one-time fee basis for distribution of releases [1] with additional features and services available through optional subscription plans. The company offers customer support in English and Spanish.

Services

In addition to its core digital music distribution platform, EmuBands offers a range of supplementary services through optional subscription packages, which are designed to complement its core offering. [2] These services include:

These services are available to subscribers seeking additional support and features beyond EmuBands' basic distribution offering.

Recognition

EmuBands is recognized as a 'Preferred Provider' by Spotify, achieving 'Platinum' level status within the Preferred Provider Programme. [4] This recognition grants EmuBands customers access to additional benefits, including instant access to Spotify for Artists. Spotify's Preferred Providers are selected based on their adherence to high standards for quality metadata and anti-infringement measures. [5]

Industry Engagement

Employees of EmuBands have appeared on panels for seminars and conferences such as The Great Escape Festival, Wide Days, [6] BIME Pro, and LPA Music Studio. EmuBands is a member of Merlin Network, the Association of Independent Music, and the Scottish Music Industry Association.

In April 2020, EmuBands supported the launch of a Covid-19 Crisis Fund for freelancers and contractors working within the music industry facing hardship due to lost work as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The fund was managed by the Association of Independent Music (AIM). EmuBands supported the fund in conjunction with a number of AIM members, including Beggars Group, Cherry Red Records, Elephant Music, Ninja Tune, Phonographic Performance Limited, Sega Bodega, Specific Music and SRLV. [7]

EmuBands worked with the Association of Independent Music and Secretly Canadian to launch AIM's free associate membership tier, available to clients of distributor members of AIM. [8]

Controversies

Global removal of Glory to Hong Kong on streaming platforms

On 24 May 2024, the song was taken off streaming platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify around the world, with the distributor citing Hong Kong's ban on the song. DGX Music said they opposed its removal and the injunction does not have extraterritorial jurisdiction. DGX Music also said the song itself is not banned by the Hong Kong Government. [9]

Notable Artists & Labels

Notable artists & record labels who have utilized EmuBands for music distribution include:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital music store</span> Online retailer of audio files

A digital music store is a business that sells digital audio files of music recordings over the Internet. Customers gain ownership of a license to use the files, in contrast to a music streaming service, where they listen to recordings without gaining ownership. Customers pay either for each recording or on a subscription basis. Online music stores generally also offer partial streaming previews of songs, with some songs even available for full length listening. They typically show a picture of the album art or of the performer or band for each song. Some online music stores also sell recorded speech files, such as podcasts, and video files of movies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CD Baby</span> Digital music distributor

CD Baby, Inc. is a Portland, Oregon based online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. It was established in 1998 and offered distribution for artists in physical and online format, however it discontinued the physical media service and went digital only in June 2023.

SpiralFrog was a very early music streaming service based in New York City that launched in the United States and Canada on September 17, 2007. SpiralFrog offered free and legal music downloads, all supported by advertising, and was the largest site of its kind in North America. On March 19, 2009, SpiralFrog terminated operations due to loan recalls. While SpiralFrog was not successful in the end, it nonetheless helped shaped the digital music industry shift from the purchase to streaming models, and its ultimate revenue recovery

Amazon Prime Video, or simply Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered both as a stand-alone service and as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced by Amazon MGM Studios or licensed to Amazon, as Amazon Originals, with the service also hosting content from other providers, content add-ons, live sporting events, and video rental and purchasing services.

Moov is a subscription-based music, podcast and video streaming service that combines lossless audio and high-definition music videos with exclusive content and special features on music. Moov was launched in 2006 by Hong Kong public company PCCW.

Spotify is a Swedish audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 615 million monthly active users, including 239 million paying subscribers, as of March 2024. Spotify is listed on the New York Stock Exchange in the form of American depositary receipts.

A music streaming service is a type of online streaming media service that focuses primarily on music, and sometimes other forms of digital audio content such as podcasts. These services are usually subscription-based services allowing users to stream digital copyright restricted songs on-demand from a centralized library provided by the service over the internet. Some services may offer free tiers with limitations, such as advertising and limits on use. They typically incorporate a recommender system to help users discover other songs they may enjoy based on their listening history and other factors, as well as the ability to create and share public playlists with other users. It may also include customized radio or social media platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SoundCloud</span> German audio streaming service

SoundCloud is a Swedish founded- German headquarter audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming services in the world and is available in 190 countries and territories. The service has more than 76 million active monthly users and over 200 million audio tracks as of November 2021. SoundCloud offers both free and paid memberships on the platform, available for mobile, desktop and Xbox devices. SoundCloud has evolved from a traditional online streaming platform to an entertainment company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ditto Music</span> Online music distribution company

Ditto Music is an online music distribution company. It distributes music to 160 digital music stores, including Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Amazon, Vevo, Apple Music, Beatport, Deezer, and Shazam. It currently operates from its head office in Liverpool, England. And, as of 2017 it has 22 offices across 19 countries.

Zebralution is a German digital distribution company for independent record labels, audiobooks and podcasts operating worldwide from their Berlin headquarters. In December 2019, GEMA, the German society for musical performing and mechanical reproduction rights, acquired a majority stake.

rara was a music streaming media service. It operated between December 2011 and March 2015. It offered ad-free, on-demand music streaming from a range of major and independent record labels, including Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music and Warner Music Group, global rights agency Merlin and independent digital distributors The Orchard, INgrooves Fontana, Believe Digital, [PIAS] and VidZone Digital Media.

The following is a list of on-demand music streaming services. These services offer streaming of full-length content via the Internet as a part of their service, without the listener necessarily having to purchase a file for download. This type of service is somewhat similar to Internet radio. Many of these sites have advertising that supports free-to-listen options as well as paid subscription-based premium options.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Symphonic Distribution</span> Worldwide Music Distributor

Symphonic Distribution is a digital music distribution company launched in late 2006 by Jorge Brea, in Tampa, Florida. Symphonic Distribution delivers music from independent record labels and musicians to online retailers such as Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, Napster, Deezer, Pandora, Amazon, and Beatport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LANDR</span>

LANDR Audio is a cloud-based music creation platform developed by MixGenius, an artificial intelligence company based in Montreal, Quebec. Since launching with its flagship automated mastering service in 2014, LANDR has expanded its offerings to include distribution services, a music samples library, virtual studio technology (VSTs) and plug-ins, a service marketplace for musicians, and online video conferencing.

MusicBee is a crowdfunding platform focused on independent music based in Hong Kong. The company stated its mission as to gather resources and help bring independent music projects into life, providing musicians with dreams and opportunities. MusicBee has reportedly received $2 million funding over 15 music projects within one year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joox</span> Streaming music service developed by Tencent

Joox is a music streaming service owned by Tencent, launched in January 2015. Joox is the biggest music streaming app in Asian markets such as Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and also in South Africa before it was shut down in early 2022. Joox is a freemium service, providing most of its songs free, while some songs are only available for premium users, offered via paid subscriptions or by doing different tasks offered.

The second decade of the 21st century has continued to usher in new technologies and devices built on the technological foundation established in the previous decade. Technologically speaking, our personal devices and lives have evolved symbiotically, with the personal computer at the center of our daily communications, entertainment, and education. What has changed is accessibility and versatility; users can now perform the same functions and activities of their personal computer on a wide range of devices: smartphones, tablets, and even more recently, smart watches. The increase in personal computing capacity has a profound impact on the way people listen to, promote, and create music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DistroKid</span> American independent digital music service

DistroKid, formerly titled Fandalism, is an independent digital music distribution service, founded in 2013 by American entrepreneur Philip J. Kaplan. DistroKid principally offers musicians and other rights-holders the opportunity to distribute and sell or stream their music through online retailers such as iTunes/Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Tidal, Deezer, iHeartRadio and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glory to Hong Kong</span> Song of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests

"Glory to Hong Kong" is a protest anthem that was composed and written by a musician under the pseudonym "Thomas dgx yhl", with the contribution of a group of Hongkonger netizens from the online forum LIHKG during the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests. It was initially written in Cantonese and was eventually developed into various language versions starting with English.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amuse (music company)</span>

Amuse is a global music company offering digital music distribution, funding and artist services to independent artists and managements, who retain 100% of their master rights. The company was founded as a modern alternative to major record labels in 2015 in Stockholm, Sweden by entrepreneurs Diego Farias, Andreas Ahlenius, Christian Wilsson, Guy Parry, and Jimmy Brodd. Amuse is based in Stockholm, Sweden, with offices in London, UK and New York, US. In 2021, Roshi Motman was appointed CEO of the company.

References

  1. "Pricing". EmuBands. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  2. "Services". EmuBands. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  3. "EmuBands announces Dolby integration". Complete Music Update. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  4. "Spotify Preferred Providers List". Spotify. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  5. "Spotify Preferred Providers Criteria". Spotify. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  6. "Setlist Live from Wide Days 2023". Complete Music Update. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  7. "AIM extends Covid-19 Crisis Fund". MusicWeek. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  8. "AIM launches free Associate Membership tier to expand network". MusicWeek. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  9. "Glory to Hong Kong: Distributor removes Hong Kong protest song from Spotify, Apple Music after court order". Hong Kong Free Press HKFP. 2024-05-25. Retrieved 2024-05-26.