Pandora's CEO Says Its Milestone Royalty Payment Is 'Very Promising News' For The Industry

Pandora Media Inc P announced on Monday it has generated more than $2 billion in all-time royalties for the artists and songwriters that are featured in its streaming music platform. Pandora noted that it reached the milestone just 9 months after hitting the $1.5 billion royalty mark. "The rapid acceleration of royalty payments from internet radio is very promising news for the industry," said Tim Westergren, founder and CEO of Pandora. "We are delighting listeners, driving discovery for new music, and creating powerful new promotional tools for musicians, all while creating a massive new revenue stream for labels and artists that has never existed before from radio. Music makers and the art they produce are the backbone of Pandora, and I'm proud that we now play such a large role in helping them thrive and grow their careers." Pandora also touted recent "big steps" to support the music industry, including investments in upcoming artists. Secifically, the company's Artist Marketing Platform (AMP) was launched in October 2014 and continued to expand. Pandora also added that its artists are able to access for free its "big data" information through Pandora's Next Big Sound. The company stated that its "highly precise" data is an "invaluable" marketing tool that can be expanded to include a range of offerings, including tour planning and ticket sales following the complete integration of Ticketfly. Shares of Pandora were trading higher by around 0.50 percent mid-Monday afternoon.