Could stronger partnerships between streaming services and mobile operators be the next giant leap forwards for the US digital music market? Companies are jockeying for position if and when it happens. Here’s Deezer CEO Axel Dauchez telling the Wall Street Journal that his company does want to enter the US after all: “We are looking for a partner in the US, maybe an operator or a blue-chip company, that is able to provide us with a significant volume of subscribers,” he says, hinting at discussions with potential partners “months ago”. Yet Rhapsody has been working on such relationships for years, with the latest evidence being its new agreement with AT&T to enable the latter’s customers to pay for Rhapsody through their mobile bills. President Jon Irwin adds in the announcement that 56% of Rhapsody subscribers listen on mobile, up from 38% in 2011, with 42% of customers only using mobile. 51% of all tracks played on the service are mobile, up from 27% in 2011.
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Tools: Kaiber
In the year or so since its launch, AI startup Kaiber has been making waves,…