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Billboard Español Launches With New Website, All-Spanish Content
In an unprecedented move that underscores its commitment to Latin music and Spanish speaking music fans, Billboard has launched a new, all-Spanish language digital brand, Billboard Español. Billboard Español will serve as the premiere in-language global destination for Latin music, and the premiere global destination for music in Spanish. Its launch also makes Billboard the first U.S. mainstream media company to launch an all-Spanish site devoted to music. The inaugural issue features Colombian superstar Camilo on its cover, as well as exclusive video and digital content with Maluma, Grupo Firme and Romeo Santos. All four artists will also participate in Billboard Latin Music Week, September 26 – October 1. Billboard Español will also feature the Billboard charts readers expect. “At...
Post Malone Manager Dre London Turns His Tastemaking Skills to Tequila
Dre London knows to trust his gut feeling when he thinks he’s struck gold. He felt it with Post Malone, the genre-bending, global superstar whom London met in 2014 while visiting a house in Encino, California, full of burgeoning, young creatives. He eventually moved into that house and began managing Malone months later, resulting in three multi-platinum albums, four Billboard Hot 100 No. 1s and nine Grammy nominations in the following years. London felt it again while working on his own premium tequila, Don Londrés, which he launched in the U.S. this month. “I’d never tasted anything like it before. And it was the same way when I heard Post Malone: I’d never heard anything like it before,” he tells Billboard. “It had that first-time gut feeling of, ‘Woah, am I onto something right here? I...
Ethereum risks another 10% drop versus Bitcoin as $15.4M exits ETH investment funds
Ethereum’s Merge on Sep. 15 turned out to be a sell-the-news event, which looks set to continue. Notably, Ether (ETH) dropped considerably against the U.S. dollar and Bitcoin (BTC) after the Merge. As of Sep. 22, ETH/USD and ETH/BTC trading pairs were down by more than 20% and 17%, respectively, since Ethereum’s switch to Proof-of-Stake (PoS. ETH/USD and ETH/BTC daily price chart. Source: TradingView What’s eating Ether bulls? Multiple catalysts contributed to Ether’s declines in the said period. First, ETH’s price fall against the dollar appeared in sync with similar declines elsewhere in the crypto market, driven by Federal Reserve’s 75 basis points (bps) rate hike. Second, Ethereum faced a lot of flak for becoming too centralized ...
Chamber of Digital Commerce gets approval to join the SEC vs Ripple lawsuit
A United States crypto advocacy group, the Chamber of Digital Commerce (CDC), has been granted approval from the Court of Southern District of New York to participate as an amicus curiae in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) case against Ripple Labs. The status of “friend of the court” permits them to assist a court by providing information, expertise or insight. An order was signed by Judge Analisa Torres on Sept. 21. The CDC shall file its brief by Sept. 26. While explaining its interest in the case, the CDC legal team emphasized the far-reaching consequences of the court decision, namely, whether the law applicable to the securities transaction is properly distinguished from the one applicable to secondary transactions. The case was opened in 2020 when the SEC alleg...
Binance establishes Global Advisory Board to work on regulatory and political issues
As the crypto community grows, issues within the crypto community become more complex. Regulatory, political and social issues often get in the way of crypto adoption, slowing the advancements within the space. In response to these issues, crypto exchange Binance formed a task force called the Global Advisory Board (GAB). The board consists of individuals expected to tackle any issues that may arise as the exchange continues its initiatives to advance crypto, blockchain and Web3 adoption. The group will be led by a former United States Senator, Max Baucus. Members include various figures like Ibukun Awosika, HyungRin Bang, Bruno Bezard, Leslie Maasdorp, Henrique de Campos Meirelles, Adalberto Palma, David Plouffe, Christin Schäfer, Lord Vaizey and David Wright. In a press relea...
Streaming Is Growing — Just Not Like It Used To: 5 Takeaways From the RIAA Mid-Year Report
The music subscription market, the driving force behind the U.S. recorded music industry’s six-year growth streak, posted another gain in the first half of 2022, according to RIAA midyear figures released Wednesday (Sept. 21). But revenue from paid services such as Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music have slowed from earlier break-neck paces. After rising at double-digit growth rates in recent years, subscription revenue grew by only 9.4% in the first half of 2022, down from 11.3% at the mid-point of 2021 and 13.7% at the mid-point of 2020. The $387.6 million increase, to $4.5 billion, was less than half of the $823.5 million reported a year earlier, a period in which streaming services surged during the early pandemic’s lock-down periods and strict restrictions. Still, subscription rev...
JPMorgan CEO calls crypto ‘decentralized Ponzi schemes’
While testifying before United States (U.S.) lawmakers, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon referred to himself as a “major skeptic” on “crypto tokens that you call currency like Bitcoin,” labeling them as “decentralized Ponzi schemes.” Dimon was asked what keeps him from being more active in the crypto space during an oversight hearing held by the House Financial Services Committee on Sept. 21. Dimon emphasized that he sees value in blockchain, decentralized finance (DeFi), ledgers, smart contracts, and “tokens that do something,” but then proceeded to lambast crypto tokens that identify as currencies. Asked for his thoughts about the draft U.S. stablecoin bill, Dimon said he believes that there is nothing wrong with stablecoins that are properly regulated and that the regulation sh...
NFTs ‘biggest on-ramp’ to crypto in Central, Southern Asia and Oceania — report
Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) may be the biggest driver of crypto adoption in Central, Southern Asia, and Oceania (CSAO), a new report has found. According to a Sept. 21 Chainalysis post titled “Crypto Adoption Steadies in South Asia, Soars in the Southeast,” NFT-related actions accounted for 58% of all web traffic going to cryptocurrency services from this region in the second quarter of 2022. Meanwhile another 21% of traffic in the quarter went to websites of play-to-earn (P2E) blockchain games, with major titles including Axie Infinity, STEPN and Battle Infinity. Chainalysis noted that P2E blockchain games are “intimately related” to NFTs, as most P2E games feature in-game items in the form of NFTs that can be sold on marketplaces like MagicEden and OpenSea, thus meaning: ...
Cardano Vasil upgrade ready with all ‘critical mass indicators’ achieved
The Cardano Vasil upgrade is set to take place in less than 24 hours on Sept. 22, with the Cardano team noting all three “critical mass indicators” needed to trigger the upgrade are now met. A Sept. 21 update on Twitter by the company behind Cardano, Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK) states within the last 48 hours 13 cryptocurrency exchanges had confirmed their readiness for the hard fork, representing over 87% of Cardano’s (ADA) liquidity. With this latest addition we have met all 3 critical mass indicators: 39 exchanges upgraded (87,59% by liquidity)Over 98% of mainnet blocks are now being created by the Vasil node (1.35.3)The top Cardano #DApps by TLV have confirmed they have tested and are ready — Input Output (@InputOutputHK) September 21, 2022 Of the top exchanges for ADA liquidity, Coi...
FTX in talks with investors to raise $1B for further acquisitions — Reports
Sam-Bankman Fried’s crypto exchange FTX is reportedly engaged in talks with investors to raise $1 billion in new funding, as it looks to utilize extra capital for financial acquisitions during the bear market. According to a Sept. 21 report from CNBC which cites sources close to the matter, the talks are still ongoing and the details could still be subject to change. If found to be true, the funding amount would keep the FTX’s current valuation of roughly $32 billion intact. The potential $1 billion funding round would add to the $400 million FTX raised in January, and could signal strong investor faith in the firm despite the sector undergoing a lengthy crypto winter. Other details are sparse at this stage, however, the sources said some of the new funds would be put towards m...
Manchin sets up new Congress clash with release of energy permitting bill
As the most centrist Democrat in an evenly divided Senate, Manchin has been at the heart of the fights over key legislation for the past 18 month that has been critical to Biden’s congressional agenda — shaping and helping to pass the IRA, the CHIPs and Science Act to boost U.S. semiconductor production and last year’s bipartisan infrastructure act. Passing the permitting bill though may be his most difficult task yet. Manchin’s pressure to pare some climate policies in the IRA angered progressives and green-minded Democrats, who ultimately acceded to him. But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has vowed he won’t back a bill to fund the government that’s tied to loosening permitting rules, and dozens of House Democrats have also urged party leadership to split the two, though they have stopped sh...
House appropriators eye as much as $200M for Jackson water crisis
Jackson’s 150,000 residents were without drinking water for weeks this summer after flooding on the Pearl River caused the system’s water pressure to drop precipitously. The city has also issued a series of boil water orders throughout the year due to dangerous water quality. Jackson’s water system, which was built in 1914, is in a dire state of disrepair, according to a 2020 EPA review. The total cost for upgrading it is unclear, but estimates have ranged as high as $1 billion. The city has not completed a long-term plan for addressing its problems. Thompson said $200 million is “what appears to be reasonable” now, in the absence of a plan. Mississippi’s two Republican senators, Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith, have both voiced support for including additional funds for Jackson’s water ...
