SYDNEY, AUCKLAND, New Zealand and OAKLAND, Calif., Dec.
10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pandora (NYSE: P), the leading
internet radio service in the U.S., is now fully live in
Australia and New Zealand.
The personalized radio service can now be accessed via smartphone
apps for iOS and Android devices, in addition to the Web-based
player.
(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110615/SF20192LOGO)
Pandora is reinventing how people enjoy music by offering the
best personalized radio experience in the world, allowing listeners
to easily create stations based on their musical tastes across
hundreds of genres. Personalized stations are powered by
"thumbs," which fine-tune each listener's stations, and the Music
Genome Project, a richly detailed taxonomy of more than a million
tracks, each of which has been manually analysed by a trained
musician along hundreds of musical "DNA" traits. This database,
more than a decade in the making, represents the music of over
100,000 artists, the majority of whom are independent.
As part of Pandora's commitment to personalization for local
listeners, Pandora has curated genre stations of Australian- and
New Zealand-specific music across
a variety of genres including today's hits, singer-songwriter,
roots and reggae dub, indigenous, classic pub rock and more. These
genre stations complement Pandora's vast catalog ranging from jazz,
blues and classical to pop, punk, reggae, electronica and
everything in between.
Pandora Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Tim Westergren said, "After years of preparation
and anticipation we are absolutely thrilled to fully launch Pandora
internationally in Australia and
New Zealand. Personalized radio is a wonderful medium for
listeners to enjoy music they know and discover music they'll love.
Now we begin the incredibly exciting process of connecting the
100,000-plus working musicians in the Pandora catalog with millions
of new listeners. What an amazing opportunity."
Of Pandora's 175 million registered users in the U.S., more than
115 million have accessed the smartphone apps. Today, more than 75
percent of listening occurs on mobile, making Pandora a global
leader in mobile app downloads, usage and engagement. This is
especially important in Australia
and New Zealand, which are among
the world's most mobile-centric societies.
As Westergren noted, "With the huge number of mobile device
users in Australia and
New Zealand, we anticipate fast
adoption of our free mobile apps that allow people to listen to
their personalized stations on the go, wherever they
are."
Why Pandora is unique
Pandora brings simplicity and ease of use to listeners who don't
have the time or desire to manually curate their playlists. With
just the name of a favorite song or artist, a listener is launched
into hours of completely personalized listening, full of songs they
love and new songs to discover. Pandora represents more than 400
genres of music and comedy and offers listeners hundreds of curated
genre stations to appeal to their inner pop, country, jazz, or
dubstep fan.
Westergren elaborated, "Pandora combines the unique power of the
Music Genome Project with an incredible trove of listener feedback
in the form of over 22 billion 'thumbs' up and down delivered
contextually on individual stations. Together these form a
personalization engine that combines great predictive capabilities
with a steady stream of discovery. This is not only valuable to
listeners but also represents an unprecedented opportunity for tens
of thousands of talented, emerging artists to find their
audiences."
Local team
Pandora has hired a local Managing Director for Australia and New
Zealand, Jane Huxley, who
brings more than 20 years of executive experience in the digital
media, technology and consumer spaces. Most recently, she
spent five years at the helm of digital for Fairfax Media where she
was responsible for leading the company's product, mobile, video
and online business strategies and driving growth in the business
through development, acquisition and talent management.
"I feel as though I've stumbled upon music's greatest secret and
I can't wait for Australians and New Zealanders to enjoy music in
the Pandora way. The service has certainly changed the way people
have consumed and enjoyed music in America for the last 12 years,
and I'm looking forward to seeing its adoption in Australia and New
Zealand," Huxley said. "This version of Pandora has been
built specifically for Australians and New Zealanders and we are
going to be all about bringing the best music experience of local
and international artists as well as supporting local musicians.
It's an honor for me to be able to introduce Australians and New
Zealanders to Pandora. My focus for the coming year will be to grow
the audience for this great new medium as fast as I can."
Launch partnership
Holden will be the first car company in Australia and New
Zealand to offer full compatibility with Pandora via its new
Holden MyLink infotainment system.
Debuting in the new Barina CDX, Holden MyLink offers in-car
smartphone connectivity that allows control of supported
information and entertainment apps. In the first quarter of next
year, drivers will be able to use Pandora while on the move to
stream music, control radio station choices and access track
information on a large easy-to-use touch screen.
Holden Technology Director Richard
Marshall said MyLink has been developed to enable drivers to
enjoy simple and safe connectivity while on the road.
"As consumers become more attached to their smartphones, there's
an expectation that cars will function with their device and enable
access to more content, so we need to work on solutions that
are safe, enabling drivers to keep their hands on the wheel and
their eyes on the road.
"Holden MyLink has been designed to minimize distraction for the
driver and is also customizable by downloading selected apps
including Pandora.
"Offering access to Pandora to drivers will ensure they will be
able to access a much greater range of music than they could via an
iPod, CDs or hard drive while also introducing them to new artists
and genres."
Local launch activities
To accompany Pandora's launch in these new markets, the company
is holding listener "Town Hall" events in Auckland, Melbourne and Sydney this week, where Tim Westergren and Jane
Huxley will meet Pandora users and fans and talk about the
local service.
- Auckland, 6:30 p.m. December
10, Viaduct Events Centre
- Melbourne, 6:30 p.m. December
11, Melbourne Town Hall
- Sydney, 6:30 p.m. December
12, The Establishment Ballroom
Links
To check out Pandora and hear the new local genre stations, go
to www.pandora.com and sign up for the free service.
To listen to the new genre stations created for Australia and New
Zealand visit:
- Australia:
www.pandora.com/new/au/music
- New Zealand:
www.pandora.com/new/nz/music
To download the mobile apps, go to
www.pandora.com/new/au-nz.
The Android and iOS apps are available for download
immediately.
ABOUT PANDORA
Pandora (NYSE: P) gives people music and comedy they love
anytime, anywhere, through connected devices. Personalized stations
launch instantly with the input of a single "seed" - a favorite
artist, song or genre. The Music Genome Project®, a
deeply detailed hand-built musical taxonomy, powers the
personalization of Pandora® internet radio by using
musicological "DNA" and constant listener feedback to craft
personalized stations from a growing collection of hundreds of
thousands of recordings. Tens of millions of people turn on Pandora
every month to hear music they love.
www.pandora.com
APPENDIX: FULL LIST OF COUNTRY-SPECIFIC GENRE
STATIONS
AUSTRALIA
Aussie Today's
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG836
The hottest tracks from the charts featuring a mix of new Pop and
Hip Hop from Australia and the
U.S. including Timomatic, Kimbra, Guy
Sebastian, Havana Brown, Icona Pop, Reece Mastin
Aussie Today's
Country
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG838
We'll play the hottest tracks from the charts featuring a mix of
new Country from Australia and the
U.S. including Kasey Chambers &
Shane Nicholson, Keith Urban, The McClymonts, Beccy Cole,
McAlister Kemp
Aussie Today's Pop and Hip
Hop
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG6837
The hottest tracks that are on today's charts featuring a mix of
new Hip Hop and Pop, including Hilltop Hoods, Bruno Mars, 360, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Taio
Cruz
Aussie Alternative
Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG839
You'll hear the biggest Australian Alt Rock bands from the 90s and
2000s, including Silverchair, Killing Heidi, Wolfmother, The Vines,
The Living End, The Temper Trap
Aussie Country
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG843
We'll play many ARIA Award winning Country artists from the past
decades featuring Keith Urban,
Anne Kilpatrick, Adam Harvey, John
Williamson, Slim Dusty
Aussie Electronic and
Dance
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG848
You're in the club with cutting-edge Dance music and the most
innovative Electronic DJs, featuring Architecture in Helsinki, Empire of the Sun, Art vs Science,
Justice Crew, Cut Copy
Aussie Hip Hop
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG844
From underground to mainstream, you'll hear Australia's most influential rappers and MCs,
including Seth Sentry, Hilltop Hoods, Drapht, Tzu, Illy
Aussie Indie
Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG840
You'll hear the latest Aussie indie bands that are breaking out,
including music from Atlas Genius, Birds of Tokyo, Tame Impala, Boy & Bear, The
Lucksmiths
Aussie Indie
Singer-Songwriters
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG841
We'll play a mix of Australia's
most popular and up-and-coming singer-songwriters, including Angus
& Julia Stone, Missy Higgins, Paul
Dempsey, Ben Lee,
Sarah Blasko
Aussie Classic Pub
Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG842
This is the station that plays 70s and 80s Classics from
Australia's favorite bands that
made Pub Rock famous, including Chisel, AC/DC, The Angels, Midnight
Oil, Australian Crawl, Hoodoo Gurus
Aussie Lite Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG846
This station features some of the biggest Adult Contemporary
artists of the 90s to today, and many ARIA award winners,
including Colin Hay, Paul
Kelly, Missy Higgins, Husky,
Jimmy Barnes, Josh Pyke
Aussie
Indigenous
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG847
You'll hear music from contemporary Indigenous artists across a
variety of musical styles, featuring Busby Marou, Gurrumul,
Archie Roach, Troy Cassar-Daley, Christine Anu, Aaradhna
Aussie 2000s Hottest
100s
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG855
Top songs from the Triple J annual music poll spanning the 2000s
decade, including Alex Lloyd, Ben
Lee, Eskimo Joe, Grinspoon, Hilltop Hoods, John Butler Trio
Aussie 90s Hottest
100s
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG854
Top songs from the Triple J annual music poll spanning the 90s
decade, including Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Powderfinger,
Spiderbait, You am I, Jebediah
Aussie 60s and 70s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG849
Enjoy the biggest classic hits from the 60s and 70s based on the Go
Set Magazine and Kent Music Report Charts, featuring The Seekers,
The Easybeats, Olivia Newton-John,
Helen Reddy, The Bee Gees,
Andy Gibb
Aussie 80s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG850
You'll hear a mix of pop, rock and R&B 80s hits based on the
Kent Music Report and ARIA Charts, featuring INXS, Men at
Work, The Little River Band, Split Enz, Rick Springfield, Crowded House
Aussie 90s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG851
What are your favorite songs from the 90s? Take this
station with you where ever you go this Summer, featuring music
from John Farnham, Human Nature,
Frente!, Kyle Minogue, Savage
Garden, Silverchair
Aussie 2000s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG852
You'll hear the most recent Summer hits featuring biggest Pop, Rock
and R&B from the decade based on the ARIA Charts, including
Delta Goodrem, Guy Sebastian,
Kylie Minogue, The Veronicas, The
Presets
Aussie 80s New
Wave
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG853
This was the cutting edge of modern rock from everyone's favorite
decade, featuring music from Hunters & Collectors, Midnight
Oil, Hoodoo Gurus, Icehouse, The Church, Paul Kelly and the Colored Girls
NEW ZEALAND
NZ Today's Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG858
The hottest tracks from the charts featuring a mix of new Pop, Rock
and Hip Hop from New Zealand,
Australia and the U.S., including
Aaradhna, Kimbra, Avalanche City, Swiss, Annah Mac, Six60
NZ Today's Pop and Hip
Hop
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG857
The hottest tracks from the charts featuring a mix of new Hip Hop
and Pop from New Zealand,
Australia and the U.S., including
Swiss, Rihanna, Six60, Ladi6, David
Dallas
NZ Today's
Country
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG859
The hottest tracks from the charts featuring a mix of new Country
from New Zealand and the U.S.,
including Kasey Chambers &
Shane Nicholson, Keith
Urban, The McClymonts, Beccy
Cole, McAlsiter Kemp
NZ Electronic and
Dance
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG870
You're in the club with cutting-edge Dance music and the most
innovative Electronic DJs, featuring Architecture in Helsinki, Empire of the Sun, Art vs Science,
Justice Crew, Cut Copy
NZ Today's Hip Hop and
R&B
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG856
The hottest tracks that are on today's charts featuring a mix of
new Hip Hop and R&B, including Aloe Blacc, Swiss, Nesian
Mystik, Ladi6, Che Fu, Scribe
NZ Indie Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG862
You'll hear the latest NZ indie bands that are breaking out,
including music from Willy Moon, The Veils, The Phoenix
Foundation, The Bats, Cut off Your Hands
NZ Classic Indie
Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG864
We'll take you back to the 80s and 90s for music from the early
Indie from bands on the Propeller and Flying Nun labels, including
Tall Dwarfs, The Clean, DD Smash, The D4, The Dead C
NZ Alternative
Rock
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG863
You'll hear some of the most influential Kiwi Alternative Rock
bands from the 90s and 2000s, including The Datsuns, Shihad,
Evermore, Steriogram, Die! Die! Die!
NZ Reggae, Roots,
Dub
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG861
This station features contemporary indigenous artists specializing
in Reggae and Roots music, including Fat Freddy's Drop, Katchafire,
The Black Seeds, Che Fu, Sola
Rosa
NZ Country
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG865
We'll play many award-winning Country artists from the past decades
featuring Keith Urban, Anne Kilpatrick, Adam
Harvey, John Williamson, Slim
Dusty
NZ Singer
Songwriters
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG860
We'll play a mix of New Zealand's
most popular and up-and-coming singer-songwriters, including Bic
Runga, Liam Finn, Gin Wigmore,
Lawrence Arabia, Dave Dobbyn
NZ 60s and 70s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG869
The biggest classic hits of the 60s and 70s based on the Kent Music
Report and the RIANZ Charts, featuring The Seekers, The Easybeats,
Olivia Newton-John, Helen Reddy, The Bee Gees, Andy Gibb
NZ 80s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG868
The biggest hits of the 80s based on the Kent Music Report and the
RIANZ Charts, featuring INXS, Men at Work, The Little River Band,
Split Enz, Rick Springfield, Crowded
House
NZ 90s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG867
The biggest hits of the 90s based on the Kent Music Report and the
RIANZ Charts, featuring John
Farnham, Human Nature, Frente!, Kyle
Minogue, Savage Garden, Silverchair
NZ 2000s Summer
Hits
http://www.pandora.com/?sc=miG866
The biggest hits of the 2000s based on the Kent Music Report and
the RIANZ Charts, featuring Delta Goodrem, Guy Sebastian, Kylie
Minogue, The Veronicas, The Presets
SOURCE Pandora