News & UK Play Chart

Here at Soundnet, we've always been committed to offering our customers affordable products and services. As one of the leading digital jukebox music suppliers in the UK, we're proud to provide pubs, restaurants and bars with an exciting selection of background music packages at low prices. Since 2009, we've built a solid reputation as one of the market leaders in audio and visual content and we're constantly looking at ways to offer our customers more.

From February, we’re extending our commitment to value even further as we launch a new entry-level package for customers. For £27.50 per month, we're offering Premium 20K a landmark service for customers with a Sound Leisure SoundWave or Starburst digital jukebox, providing coin operators with the best music at the lowest prices.

We understand that a jukebox is a big investment and the launch of this new deal is a sign of our determination to respond to customer needs. As a result, the new package features 20,000 audio tracks, contains all the most-played songs from over 15,000 jukeboxes. It also includes the most popular albums from the past five years and a collection of classic tracks from a variety of different decades. As ever, the packages offer peace of mind in regards to legal issues and offers consumers absolute piece of mind.

It's been an exciting time here at Soundnet. Regular readers will remember that we recently revealed a variety of exciting announcements at the EAG show in London, unveiling Premium 20k as well as embarking on a partnership with online music hub Last.fm.

The EAG International Expo at Excel, London from 24th - 26th January 2012, provided an essential insight into the direction of jukebox and entertainment technology. At EAG, Soundnet launched a number of landmark music and audio visual packages designed to bring much-needed revenue boosting potential to the pub and hospitality industry.

The new 20,000 Track Audio Service breaks new ground as the most comprehensive, low-cost music package. Combining the most played tracks from over 15,000 jukeboxes, the most popular albums of the last five years and classic tracks from various decades and genres, the track list is compiled from Soundnet’s extensive play data and knowledge of what music customers will pay to hear.

Soundnet also launched its VHub AV package, an unrivalled low-cost music and music video offering for the popular VenueHub digital jukebox, providing 30,000 audio tracks and 7,000 music videos for £27.50 per month for the first year.

Speaking about the launches, Soundnet spokesperson Toby Hoyte said:

"The VHub jukebox has allowed us to make huge leaps in the provision of the UK’s most advanced and affordable music and music video packages. As well as the VHub’s reputation for providing the largest ever online jukebox offering, with access to over seven million songs and the latest tracks delivered twice weekly, our new products, combined with consumers’ familiarity with handheld digital music technology will continue to drive demand for Soundnet’s services."

Today, we're delighted to announce a ground-breaking venture, in conjunction with Sound Leisure, with global musical service Last.fm. The partnership will see VenueHub customers access their online profiles via an innovative new application on our digital jukeboxes.

The application, which was developed by our partners at Sound Leisure, gives consumers the opportunity to access their Last.fm profiles from any of the VHub jukeboxes in the United Kingdom. It enables customers to quickly and easily listen to their favourite music from the 30,000 song library, as well as receive recommendations and view the profiles and track selections of other VHub customers. Customers will also be able to arrange tracks into 'top artist', 'top tracks' and 'loved tracks categories'. The application is the first example of a V-App which takes licensed data from a third-party provider.

Speaking about the partnership, our friends at Sound Leisure said:

"The Last.fm app provides jukebox users with immediate access to the music they listen to at home and on their mobile devices. This is a great leap forward for the industry and shows our commitment to provide V-Apps that enhance the customer experience.

"Last.fm is a huge music brand with millions of followers worldwide; the new app will help to cement VHub’s standing as the most advanced digital jukebox available."

Last.fm is the free online music service, offering its 30 million plus users the opportunity to document their playlist history from a variety of different musical services. The application, developed by Sound Leisure, will be available on all VHub jukeboxes (free of charge) from February.

2011 was like an end-of-season finale for the music industry. There were thrills, spills and adventures. It was all a bit too exciting for us really.

Still, the start of January gives us the opportunity to review the year just passed and we've been eagerly combing through our digital jukebox data in order to make sense of it all. And, you have been busy. Over the past 12 months, Soundnet jukeboxes across the country have been playing your favourite tunes. And today, we'll reveal your background music of choice for 2011.

While she occasionally forgets her own name, Rihanna was the most popular artist in Soundnet's 2011. The 23-year-old singer released her sixth studio album, Talk The Talk, in November. The record, which contained hits like We Found Love' and 'You Da One' helped the singer to the cherished number one spot. It also didn't hurt that her fifth album ' Loud', released the previous year, contained such stonking hits like 'S&M' and 'California King Bed'.

Following up in second place is our very own Adele. The East London songstress had a fantastic year which began with the launch of her sophomore album '21'. The songs 'Someone Like You', 'Rolling In The Deep' and 'Set Fire To The Rain' all appear in the most-played tracks in the Soundnet chart. Well done her.

The third-most popular artist of 2011 was Bruno Mars. The Hawaii-born musician, who launched his debut album in 2010, enjoyed a year of success in the digital jukebox chart. Mars' singles 'Grenade', 'The Lazy Song' and 'Just The Way You Are' all featured in the most-played songs of 2011.

Elsewhere in the chart, it was a bit disappointing for Lady Gaga. The Little Monster came 11th in our list of most-popular artists, being kerplunked by the likes of David Guetta, Oasis and Elvis in our 2011 chart. Indeed, the drama queen of pop failed to feature in your top songs of the year. Better luck next year your ladyship.

For your delectation, here's your list of the most-played artists in 2011:

• Rihanna
• Adele
• Bruno Mars
• David Guetta
• Oasis
• Pitbull
• The Beatles
• Elvis Presley
• Jessie J
• Eminem

It's worth mentioning that thousands upon thousands of tracks were played in our digital jukeboxes in 2011. Consumers were more than happy to pile in the pounds for the opportunity to hear their favourite track of the moment. If you're not giving your patrons this opportunity then your missing out on a dedicated revenue stream.

And if you're music jukebox doesn't contain any of these artists, perhaps it's time you gave us a call.

Background music can encourage customers to spend more time shopping, according to a number of leading psychologists.

In an article published by American news network NBC, a variety of US psychologists discussed the role of music in consumer shopping behaviour, arguing that a bit of background sound is music to the ears of retailers hoping to increase sales.

"In department stores, shoppers who are exposed to music shop 18 per cent longer and make 17 per cent more purchases than (in) non-music stores," states Kurt Mortensen, a US author who has penned a number of books relating to subconscious purchasing behaviour.

Here at Soundnet, we're constantly aware of the power of background music and how different songs can shape a customer's experience or purchasing habits. A good tune has the power to influence emotions – for better and worse – and organisations need to be aware that background music can completely change how customers perceive a shopping or dining experience.

But don't take our word for it.

Speaking to NBC, Seth Rabinowitz, a partner at a Los Angeles consultancy firm, argues that a range of music can influence shoppers.

"Faster-pace music would logically tend to promote more impulsive purchases, while slower music fosters a more contemplative, planned, stay-a-while feeling."

Mortensen, who we mentioned earlier, agrees with the sentiment.

"There are even rhythms, pitches and styles of music that are best for different shoppers," he states.

"Grocery shoppers respond best to slow tempos. Fast-food restaurants need a higher number of beats per minute."

So there you have it. You can turn your attention here if you'd like to marvel at our fantastic range of background music playlists.

So then, 2011. It's been alright, hasn’t it?

There's been winners and there's been losers. Overall though, Adele is probably the most deserving of a tipple on New Year's Eve. 21, her sophomore album, was released way back in January and, 12 months later, has been certified fourteen-times platinum in the United Kingdom.

Over 3.4 million copies were sold in Blighty over 2011 and the album eventually became the 10th biggest-selling record of all time in the country. Other artists deserving a celebratory drink include Rihanna, Lady GaGa, Beyonce and James Morrison for their album successes over the year.

Single victory came for Jennifer Lopez, Maroon 5, Rihanna and The Wanted, while Bruno Mars made a couple of appearances in the number one spot for his various efforts. Still, platinum-wise, only eight songs made the cut this year, including Adele's 'Someone Like You', Katy Perry's 'Firework' and 'Price Tag' by Jessie J.

We also welcomed back some familiar faces to our digital jukeboxes. Glam-rock-screechers The Darkness made a return, as did The Stone Roses, Bloc Party and Steps. We're not too fussed about Steps.

But, it's not all been good news and 2011 has seen a number of musical legends part ways. R.E.M, The White Stripes, The Streets and LCD Soundsystem all threw in the towel, vowing never to make beautiful music together again. In more serious news, it's also been a year which has seen the passing of a number of musical greats as John Barry, Jet Harris, Amy Winehouse and Clarence Clemons all bid us farewell during 2011.

We also quite enjoyed this year's X-Factor, eventually won by Little Mix, the first group to claim the prize. Still, they may not win the honours on the Christmas Day chart; the Military Wives Choir are looking more likely to scoop the prize come the 25th. It’s all very exciting.

See you all in 2012. Have a merry Christmas.