*By Conor White*
During the bitter months of winter, music-lovers may dream of summer festivals like Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Governors Ball.
But actually planning trips to those festivals is another matter entirely ー and an expensive one, at that.
Enter LiveXLive, a platform that brings festivals and other live events to music enthusiasts who can't afford to attend in-person.
"We set out to take the playbook from ESPN, to create the next generation MTV," founder Robert Ellin told Cheddar Thursday. "And then add the community and social components of it to give the consumer the most immersive experience while they watch a live event."
LiveXLive has already streamed 20 events in 125 countries to the tune of more than 45 million views. The company's next event is iHeartRadio's ALTer Ego Festival through a new partnership with the entertainment giant.
Ellin said the possibilities for his company are immeasurable.
"We gave them an opportunity to partner and curate a brand new revenue stream for the entire music industry," he said.
The new partnership with iHeartMedia should only boost LiveXLive's ($LIVX) already-rapid growth. The company now has over 650,000 paying subscribers and more than 1.2 million active users, with almost 30,000 new subscribers a month.
While it might seem counterintuitive for festivals to partner with a platform that allows users to watch events from their couches, Ellin argues it's actually a mutually beneficial arrangement.
"You can watch it on TV but you'd still rather be at the live event," he said. "We're driving more people to these events."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/livexlive-partnering-with-iheartmedia-to-stream-festivals).
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
