French Biz Falters, Digital Remains Strong
"The wholesale value of the French recorded music market in the first nine months of 2008 decreased to €382 million ($484 million), down 13.9% from the corresponding period last year, according to new figures issued by labels trade body SNEP. It follows a 20.5% year-on-year shortfall registered for the first nine months in 2007.
i
The reduction in the rate of decline is mainly due to a stronger growth in digital sales, up 52.6% to €52.8 million ($66.9 million). Digital represented 14% of the French market during the period." [Billboard]
The impact of iTunes on the music industry came under the spotlight at the latest MusicTank session earlier this week.
"Sincere Management’s Peter Jenner, the keynote speaker at the Coalition of The Billing event, said that digital retailer has “had the disastrous effect on the record industry of debundling the album”. He told delegates at the third session in the Lets Sell Recorded Music think tank series that iTunes had the effect of converting “a £10 product, the album, into a £1.60 product, the two singles that are worth buying"
Beggars Group director of digital Simon Wheeler argued, “iTunes set a level that took power out of rights holders. Whether it's right or not, it has set the price for a la carte downloads."" [MusicWeek]
Amazon.com launch artist pages
"With MySpace looking to now sell MP3s off artist profile pages, and Live Nation-owned Musictoday, who run official onlines stores for hundreds of artists in the US, announcing last week that they would start selling MP3s from their artists' pages, Amazon US have announced a move in the opposite direction. Already selling CDs and MP3s via their e-tail website, they are launching a new website of artist profiles which will include both editorial and commercial content for each featured singer or band.
Commercially, the new service will basically aggregate all the CDs, MP3s and DVDs Amazon already stocks for any one artist, so that fans can browse all available content on an editorially-driven page, rather than having to work their way through album or artist searches. Amazon US VP of Music & Movies, Peter Faricy, told reporters: "These [artist pages] allow our customers to easily find and discover the music they love in any format along with a variety of artist content, like exclusive music videos and behind-the-scenes footage, all in a single place"." [CMUDaily]
Sources: Apple, music labels talk DRM-free songs
"A year after iTunes began offering music without copy protection software from EMI, Apple is in discussions with the other three top recording companies about acquiring DRM-free songs, according to two music industry sources.The talks are still preliminary and no deals have been finalized, but one source said one of the major labels is close to a final agreement. Rumors have been swirling on the Internet for a week that Sony would soon be offering music without the controversial digital rights management software. My sources could not confirm this.
Spokespeople for Apple and the major labels declined to comment." [CNet]
Showing posts with label MySpace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MySpace. Show all posts
11/7/08
Music News Bulletin - 07/11/08
MySpace, MTV Test Piracy-Profit Plan
"A new technology that essentially allows content owners to profit from piracy will get a high-profile test this month from MySpace and MTV Networks.
Instead of triggering the usual take-down notices, copyright-infringing footage of select MTV Networks programing uploaded by MySpace subscribers would be automatically redistributed with advertisements that would generate revenue for the companies. MTV Networks is the parent company of such channels as MTV, BET, Comedy Central, Spike and Nickelodeon." [Billboard]
EMI, Warner Sign Up To Unlimited MP3 Package
"EMI Music and Warner Music have signed up to an all-you-can-eat download service run by Datz.com, which will provide access to unlimited music in MP3 format for £99.99 ($164.45) a year. The service will allow fans to keep the music when the year is up.
Beggars Group and The Orchard have also signed up to the Datz Music Lounge and more are set to join in the coming weeks. " [Billboard]
Can The Major Labels Handle Their Debt?
"The expanding crisis engulfing the international financial system has music industry executives worried that rising credit costs could eventually affect term loans, interest payments and revolving credit facilities at record labels.
"There is a lack of confidence out there so that regardless of credit worthiness, investors are shunning risk," says Thomas Carroll, senior VP/managing director of SunTrust's Sports and Entertainment Specialty Group."" [Billboard]
Free vs. Fee Content in a Recession
"An article at eMarketer (see http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1006660 ) brings up a topic that is worth discussing in the music business: Will free lose out to paid content in an economic downturn? The article debates whether or not creators will increasingly scoff at giving away their content and turn to sites that pay for their content." [Coolfer]
EMI, one of the world's largest record companies, is considering turning over its distribution, sales and marketing operations in the United States to a rival in an attempt to cut its extensive losses, music industry sources said Friday.
"Three industry sources told Fortune that the storied British company - whose catalog includes the Beatles, the Beach Boys and Coldplay - is talking to Warner Music, SonyBMG and Universal Music Group about assuming these functions in the U.S. Those companies declined to comment." [CNNMoney]
"A new technology that essentially allows content owners to profit from piracy will get a high-profile test this month from MySpace and MTV Networks.
Instead of triggering the usual take-down notices, copyright-infringing footage of select MTV Networks programing uploaded by MySpace subscribers would be automatically redistributed with advertisements that would generate revenue for the companies. MTV Networks is the parent company of such channels as MTV, BET, Comedy Central, Spike and Nickelodeon." [Billboard]
EMI, Warner Sign Up To Unlimited MP3 Package
"EMI Music and Warner Music have signed up to an all-you-can-eat download service run by Datz.com, which will provide access to unlimited music in MP3 format for £99.99 ($164.45) a year. The service will allow fans to keep the music when the year is up.
Beggars Group and The Orchard have also signed up to the Datz Music Lounge and more are set to join in the coming weeks. " [Billboard]
Can The Major Labels Handle Their Debt?
"The expanding crisis engulfing the international financial system has music industry executives worried that rising credit costs could eventually affect term loans, interest payments and revolving credit facilities at record labels.
"There is a lack of confidence out there so that regardless of credit worthiness, investors are shunning risk," says Thomas Carroll, senior VP/managing director of SunTrust's Sports and Entertainment Specialty Group."" [Billboard]
Free vs. Fee Content in a Recession
"An article at eMarketer (see http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1006660 ) brings up a topic that is worth discussing in the music business: Will free lose out to paid content in an economic downturn? The article debates whether or not creators will increasingly scoff at giving away their content and turn to sites that pay for their content." [Coolfer]
EMI, one of the world's largest record companies, is considering turning over its distribution, sales and marketing operations in the United States to a rival in an attempt to cut its extensive losses, music industry sources said Friday.
"Three industry sources told Fortune that the storied British company - whose catalog includes the Beatles, the Beach Boys and Coldplay - is talking to Warner Music, SonyBMG and Universal Music Group about assuming these functions in the U.S. Those companies declined to comment." [CNNMoney]
10/24/08
Music News Bulletin: 24/10/08
UMG Bundles Tunes With Dell
"Universal Music Group is teaming with Dell to give customers the option of adding pre-loaded MP3s from the label's catalog to new computers purchased from the company.The deal does not provide access to the full UMG catalog, but rather a collection of curated playlists organized by various themes - No. 1 songs, Rock Titans, Blues Masters, etc. - as well as music featured in films that Dell also offers as bundled content. A 50-song playlist for $25, and a 100-song playlist for $50, which works out to about half the cost per-track from music purchased online. All files will be DRM-free.
The pre-installed music bundles will be organized under a "Music" icon in Dell's system, which customer can then move to their preferred music management software as they like. UMG says it plans to expand the number and themes of the playlists, as well as update the songs added to each, on a regular basis." [Billboard]
Microsoft celebrates antipiracy day
"Microsoft plans on Tuesday to announce "Global Anti-Piracy Day," an effort to gain attention for the steps the company undertakes in order to thwart those who would profit from illegitimate software. As part of the event, Microsoft is highlighting recent antipiracy efforts in 49 countries, ranging from the filing of lawsuits in the U.S. to a seminar for journalists in Pakistan.
It's the kind of thing that Microsoft does all the time, although the company is aiming for some added ink by grouping together so many actions at once.
"One of the things we want to illustrate with this announcement is the diverse nature of the work," associate general counsel David Finn said in an interview from Singapore" [CNet]
Baidu launches legitimate music channel
"BEIJING - Baidu has partnered with seven record companies to launch a music-streaming channel in an attempt to better combat illegal downloading.
According to Chinese reports, the channel, called New Song Debut, legally pairs Baidu with labels including EMI Music, Emperor Entertainment Group and Rock Records & Tapes to offer albums from nine Chinese artists for streaming.
This comes nearly a year after Beijing courts ruled that Baidu’s music search - which linked to sites that allowed users to illegally download music - was not classified as copyright infringement.
The ruling cleared the Chinese search engine of lawsuits issued in 2005 by seven international record labels, including EMI and Warner Music." [BrandRepublic]
MySpace Music adds more indies
"MySpace Music has signed a deal with leading indie distributor IODA, adding more than 1m tracks from independent labels to the service. The deal, announced this morning, adds labels such as Cooking Vinyl, Demon Music Group, Fat Cat Records and Cherry Red to MySpace Music, which already has content from all four major labels and aggregator The Orchard.
However, Merlin, which represents leading indie players such as Beggars Group and Domino, has still yet to agree a deal with MySpace after a very public war of words, and the announcement is likely to put more pressure on its CEO Charles Caldas MySpace co-founder and CEO Chris DeWolfe re-affirms the company’s commitment to indie music, saying, “The independent music community has been a cornerstone of MySpace Music. We remain fully committed to building an economy for artists and providing them with the necessary tools to further their careers and better connect with music fans everywhere." [MusicWeek]
MySpace Music Adds IODA
"MySpace Music added thousands of independent labels to its service today (Oct. 23) through a new deal with independent digital distributor IODA. Details of the agreement were not disclosed. MySpace Music has drawn criticism from some in the indie community for striking equity deals with major labels while not offering the same terms to indies.
The service opened Sept. 25 as a joint venture partially owned by the four major record labels, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing. The partners in the joint venture will profit not only from a cut of the same ad and sales revenue, but also in the underlying revenue the venture receives, even from content contributed by other labels.
The service has deals in place with indie digital distributor the Orchard, as well as the indie distribution arms of the four major labels. Merlin, the indie global rights organization that spoke out publicly about what they perceived as unfair treatment by MySpace Music, still has not signed a deal. Merlin says its represents labels that have a 9% share of the U.S. digital recorded music market." [Billboard]
TuneCore, iLike Bundle Indie Services
"TuneCore and iLike have teamed up to offer independent and unsigned artists a package deal on both distributing and promoting their music. The partnership is more of a bundled product than it is a new service, as both companies offer their core services independently. But together, the two hope to present a more complete message than they could marketing their services separately.
TuneCore brings to the table a wide digital distribution platform, which can post clients' music to all the major digital retailers and subscriptions services. Once the music is available, iLike then lets users promote it through full-song streaming applications on social networks like Facebook, Bebo and other channels. Each time their music is played, artists get a royalty from the corresponding service hosting the file.
The partnership between the two firms lets artists sign up for both services at the same time, rather than requiring separate agreements." [Billboard]
Facebook Music Redux
"Facebook doesn't seem ready to give up its music-service aspirations just yet. After first approaching the major labels with the idea back in March of this year, the company is now reportedly reaching out to existing streaming services as part of an outsourcing strategy.
The New York Post, citing unnamed sources, reports that Rhapsody, Imeem, iLike and Lala are all potential targets.
Tapping an existing provider to turnkey its music strategy would allow Facebook to avoid striking its own licensing deals with labels, not to mention give the winning service a huge marketing boost by promoting it via the massive Facebook platform." [Billboard]
Click here to read more from the Music News Bulletin
"Universal Music Group is teaming with Dell to give customers the option of adding pre-loaded MP3s from the label's catalog to new computers purchased from the company.The deal does not provide access to the full UMG catalog, but rather a collection of curated playlists organized by various themes - No. 1 songs, Rock Titans, Blues Masters, etc. - as well as music featured in films that Dell also offers as bundled content. A 50-song playlist for $25, and a 100-song playlist for $50, which works out to about half the cost per-track from music purchased online. All files will be DRM-free.
The pre-installed music bundles will be organized under a "Music" icon in Dell's system, which customer can then move to their preferred music management software as they like. UMG says it plans to expand the number and themes of the playlists, as well as update the songs added to each, on a regular basis." [Billboard]
Microsoft celebrates antipiracy day
"Microsoft plans on Tuesday to announce "Global Anti-Piracy Day," an effort to gain attention for the steps the company undertakes in order to thwart those who would profit from illegitimate software. As part of the event, Microsoft is highlighting recent antipiracy efforts in 49 countries, ranging from the filing of lawsuits in the U.S. to a seminar for journalists in Pakistan.
It's the kind of thing that Microsoft does all the time, although the company is aiming for some added ink by grouping together so many actions at once.
"One of the things we want to illustrate with this announcement is the diverse nature of the work," associate general counsel David Finn said in an interview from Singapore" [CNet]
Baidu launches legitimate music channel
"BEIJING - Baidu has partnered with seven record companies to launch a music-streaming channel in an attempt to better combat illegal downloading.
According to Chinese reports, the channel, called New Song Debut, legally pairs Baidu with labels including EMI Music, Emperor Entertainment Group and Rock Records & Tapes to offer albums from nine Chinese artists for streaming.
This comes nearly a year after Beijing courts ruled that Baidu’s music search - which linked to sites that allowed users to illegally download music - was not classified as copyright infringement.
The ruling cleared the Chinese search engine of lawsuits issued in 2005 by seven international record labels, including EMI and Warner Music." [BrandRepublic]
MySpace Music adds more indies
"MySpace Music has signed a deal with leading indie distributor IODA, adding more than 1m tracks from independent labels to the service. The deal, announced this morning, adds labels such as Cooking Vinyl, Demon Music Group, Fat Cat Records and Cherry Red to MySpace Music, which already has content from all four major labels and aggregator The Orchard.
However, Merlin, which represents leading indie players such as Beggars Group and Domino, has still yet to agree a deal with MySpace after a very public war of words, and the announcement is likely to put more pressure on its CEO Charles Caldas MySpace co-founder and CEO Chris DeWolfe re-affirms the company’s commitment to indie music, saying, “The independent music community has been a cornerstone of MySpace Music. We remain fully committed to building an economy for artists and providing them with the necessary tools to further their careers and better connect with music fans everywhere." [MusicWeek]
MySpace Music Adds IODA
"MySpace Music added thousands of independent labels to its service today (Oct. 23) through a new deal with independent digital distributor IODA. Details of the agreement were not disclosed. MySpace Music has drawn criticism from some in the indie community for striking equity deals with major labels while not offering the same terms to indies.
The service opened Sept. 25 as a joint venture partially owned by the four major record labels, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing. The partners in the joint venture will profit not only from a cut of the same ad and sales revenue, but also in the underlying revenue the venture receives, even from content contributed by other labels.
The service has deals in place with indie digital distributor the Orchard, as well as the indie distribution arms of the four major labels. Merlin, the indie global rights organization that spoke out publicly about what they perceived as unfair treatment by MySpace Music, still has not signed a deal. Merlin says its represents labels that have a 9% share of the U.S. digital recorded music market." [Billboard]
TuneCore, iLike Bundle Indie Services
"TuneCore and iLike have teamed up to offer independent and unsigned artists a package deal on both distributing and promoting their music. The partnership is more of a bundled product than it is a new service, as both companies offer their core services independently. But together, the two hope to present a more complete message than they could marketing their services separately.
TuneCore brings to the table a wide digital distribution platform, which can post clients' music to all the major digital retailers and subscriptions services. Once the music is available, iLike then lets users promote it through full-song streaming applications on social networks like Facebook, Bebo and other channels. Each time their music is played, artists get a royalty from the corresponding service hosting the file.
The partnership between the two firms lets artists sign up for both services at the same time, rather than requiring separate agreements." [Billboard]
Facebook Music Redux
"Facebook doesn't seem ready to give up its music-service aspirations just yet. After first approaching the major labels with the idea back in March of this year, the company is now reportedly reaching out to existing streaming services as part of an outsourcing strategy.
The New York Post, citing unnamed sources, reports that Rhapsody, Imeem, iLike and Lala are all potential targets.
Tapping an existing provider to turnkey its music strategy would allow Facebook to avoid striking its own licensing deals with labels, not to mention give the winning service a huge marketing boost by promoting it via the massive Facebook platform." [Billboard]
Click here to read more from the Music News Bulletin
10/10/08
Music News Bulletin - 10/10/08
Music Week
YouTube plans music sale
YouTube will start to sell music and video games and experiment with new advertising formats to grow revenue. The Google-owned business is reportedly taking steps toward building an e-commerce service through which it will sell music, films, TV shows, video games, books and other media-related products featured on YouTube.
Visitors to YouTube.com can buy songs from music videos they watch by clicking on buttons that take them either to Amazon.com’s store or iTunes.
It is expected Amazon and iTunes will share revenue with YouTube when users buy content through the partnership.
YouTube had 330 million visitors in August 2008. [MusicWeek]
Digital radio summit to reconvene
Key players in the commercial radio industry are expected to reconvene last Friday’s (October 3) digital radio crisis summit within the next few weeks after the initial day of talks failed to produce a resolution.Global Radio CEO Ashley Tabor has suggested that broadcasters pool their services to reinforce the existing digital radio multiplex, and he has appealed to Channel 4 to reconsider its plans to launch a second multiplex.
But last Friday’s all-day meeting, called by Tabor and reportedly attended by executives from Channel 4’s 4 Digital Group, Bauer Radio and UTV Media, failed to move the matter forward. A date for follow-up talks has yet to be announced.
BILLBOARD
9/10 Editorial: MySpace Caters To Majors, Not Indies
As president of Koch Records, the No. 1 independent in the United States, it is my obligation to counter MySpace's effervescent statements that patronized the independent labels and informed us that we were being offered the same deal as the majors. In a nutshell, MySpace has given equity to the majors in what appears to be an unhealthy and anti-competitive arrangement while treating the indies as second-class citizens. [BillBoard]
Popkomm Day 1: Delegates Debate Rights
Rights issues were at the top of the agenda at the first day of Popkomm in Berlin.
A total of 15,000 exhibitors and trade visitors are expected, according to managing director Ralf Kleinhenz, although the opening day was a fairly relaxed start to the event.
Popkomm comprises an international music and entertainment business trade fair, conference and live music festival. Organizers say they are expecting 843 exhibitors from 50 countries, while the festival will feature 400 artists from 30 countries. [BillBoard]
Popkomm Day 2: Digital Drives Forward
The development of digital music was the major topic of debate at day two of Popkomm in Berlin, with delegates discussing the need for users to be able to synchronize their music collections between their computers, phones and even automobiles. [BillBoard]
European Labels Back Streaming Service Spotify
New music streaming service Spotify launched today in Europe with the support of all four major labels, as well as independent rights body Merlin and independent digital music distributor The Orchard.
The service is available in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Norway and Sweden. It plans to roll out in further territories through the remainder of 2008 and into 2009. [BillBoard]
In The City: Digital Will Deliver
A bright future for artists, consumers and the music industry was the general prognosis at the second day of Manchester's In The City (Oct. 6) -- the U.K.'s biggest music conference -- but only after several more years of struggle and dwindling revenues. "It's going to be tough for a time to come," stated Barney Wragg, who exited as EMI Music's global head of digital in January. Speaking at the event's digital music panel "the Digital Buffet," Wragg said: "I think it's going to be hard for labels and that's going to make it hard for artists. The change that [the industry is going through] is going to make it very difficult." [BillBoard]
RECORD OF THE DAY
SPOTIFY ANNOUNCES LICENSING DEALS AND UPCOMING LAUNCH
Spotify announces a series of licensing deals with music companies including Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, EMI Music, Warner Music Group, Merlin and The Orchard for their content to be included in the new digital music service. Spotify offers instant access to a world of music via a service that enables on-demand streaming of audio content.
Spotify users will have unlimited access to millions of tracks from a vast music catalogue, with the opportunity to create and share playlists with each other and explore music through a wide range of discovery and social features. Spotify will launch on October 7th 2008 in UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Throughout the remainder of this year and into 2009 Spotify will be rolled out to further markets. Spotify will be marketed both as a premium monthly subscription service and a version which is free for consumers to use and supported by advertising. Consumers will also have the option to purchase a day pass that gives access to Spotify without advertising. Advertisers that have signed up to be included from the launch include Ford, T-Mobile and Xbox. Daniel Ek, founder and CEO at Spotify says: "We believe that everyone loves music, and we're thrilled to partner with all major content owners already at launch. This is an exciting step forward in our mission to provide the best possible music experience by allowing people to listen to whatever they want, whenever they want." [RecordOfTheDay]
Record of the Day press releases of the week
[RecordOfTheDay]
YouTube plans music sale
YouTube will start to sell music and video games and experiment with new advertising formats to grow revenue. The Google-owned business is reportedly taking steps toward building an e-commerce service through which it will sell music, films, TV shows, video games, books and other media-related products featured on YouTube.
Visitors to YouTube.com can buy songs from music videos they watch by clicking on buttons that take them either to Amazon.com’s store or iTunes.
It is expected Amazon and iTunes will share revenue with YouTube when users buy content through the partnership.
YouTube had 330 million visitors in August 2008. [MusicWeek]
Digital radio summit to reconvene
Key players in the commercial radio industry are expected to reconvene last Friday’s (October 3) digital radio crisis summit within the next few weeks after the initial day of talks failed to produce a resolution.Global Radio CEO Ashley Tabor has suggested that broadcasters pool their services to reinforce the existing digital radio multiplex, and he has appealed to Channel 4 to reconsider its plans to launch a second multiplex.
But last Friday’s all-day meeting, called by Tabor and reportedly attended by executives from Channel 4’s 4 Digital Group, Bauer Radio and UTV Media, failed to move the matter forward. A date for follow-up talks has yet to be announced.
BILLBOARD
9/10 Editorial: MySpace Caters To Majors, Not Indies
As president of Koch Records, the No. 1 independent in the United States, it is my obligation to counter MySpace's effervescent statements that patronized the independent labels and informed us that we were being offered the same deal as the majors. In a nutshell, MySpace has given equity to the majors in what appears to be an unhealthy and anti-competitive arrangement while treating the indies as second-class citizens. [BillBoard]
Popkomm Day 1: Delegates Debate Rights
Rights issues were at the top of the agenda at the first day of Popkomm in Berlin.
A total of 15,000 exhibitors and trade visitors are expected, according to managing director Ralf Kleinhenz, although the opening day was a fairly relaxed start to the event.
Popkomm comprises an international music and entertainment business trade fair, conference and live music festival. Organizers say they are expecting 843 exhibitors from 50 countries, while the festival will feature 400 artists from 30 countries. [BillBoard]
Popkomm Day 2: Digital Drives Forward
The development of digital music was the major topic of debate at day two of Popkomm in Berlin, with delegates discussing the need for users to be able to synchronize their music collections between their computers, phones and even automobiles. [BillBoard]
European Labels Back Streaming Service Spotify
New music streaming service Spotify launched today in Europe with the support of all four major labels, as well as independent rights body Merlin and independent digital music distributor The Orchard.
The service is available in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Norway and Sweden. It plans to roll out in further territories through the remainder of 2008 and into 2009. [BillBoard]
In The City: Digital Will Deliver
A bright future for artists, consumers and the music industry was the general prognosis at the second day of Manchester's In The City (Oct. 6) -- the U.K.'s biggest music conference -- but only after several more years of struggle and dwindling revenues. "It's going to be tough for a time to come," stated Barney Wragg, who exited as EMI Music's global head of digital in January. Speaking at the event's digital music panel "the Digital Buffet," Wragg said: "I think it's going to be hard for labels and that's going to make it hard for artists. The change that [the industry is going through] is going to make it very difficult." [BillBoard]
RECORD OF THE DAY
SPOTIFY ANNOUNCES LICENSING DEALS AND UPCOMING LAUNCH
Spotify announces a series of licensing deals with music companies including Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, EMI Music, Warner Music Group, Merlin and The Orchard for their content to be included in the new digital music service. Spotify offers instant access to a world of music via a service that enables on-demand streaming of audio content.
Spotify users will have unlimited access to millions of tracks from a vast music catalogue, with the opportunity to create and share playlists with each other and explore music through a wide range of discovery and social features. Spotify will launch on October 7th 2008 in UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Throughout the remainder of this year and into 2009 Spotify will be rolled out to further markets. Spotify will be marketed both as a premium monthly subscription service and a version which is free for consumers to use and supported by advertising. Consumers will also have the option to purchase a day pass that gives access to Spotify without advertising. Advertisers that have signed up to be included from the launch include Ford, T-Mobile and Xbox. Daniel Ek, founder and CEO at Spotify says: "We believe that everyone loves music, and we're thrilled to partner with all major content owners already at launch. This is an exciting step forward in our mission to provide the best possible music experience by allowing people to listen to whatever they want, whenever they want." [RecordOfTheDay]
Record of the Day press releases of the week
[RecordOfTheDay]
9/29/08
Music News Bulletin - 29/09/08
Industry Groups Reach Agreement On Internet Royalties 23/09/08
"In an agreement that ends some cases of litigation and encourages new ways for consumers to listen to music online, a number of key industry groups have reached an agreement on digital royalties and have sent the recommendations to the Copyright Royalty judges. This agreement was necessary to encourage new models without scaring away current and future entrepreneurs and enthusiasts." [Coolfer]
Survey Reveals Opportunities, Threats of Unlimited Music Services 29/09/08
"Today's music industry is often one step forward, one or two steps back. As progress is made in new formats, products and services, revenue is lost in the abandonment of older formats and products. With unlimited mobile music services on the horizon, now is the time to ponder their impact." [Coolfer]
CEO David Pakman to Depart eMusic 29/09/08
"eMusic, the world's largest retailer of independent music and the world's second-largest digital music service after iTunes, today announced that President and Chief Executive Officer David Pakman will depart the company. Pakman will become a partner at a premier venture capital firm. The name of the firm is undisclosed. eMusic has retained the Barlow Group, a Connecticut-based executive search firm to recruit a new chief executive." [MarketWatch]
Free Music: Good or Bad and/or Inevitable? 29/09/08
"While reading the comments to Michael Arrington's positive review of MySpace Music at TechCrunch (seen via Idolator), I came across two comments that perfectly sum up the worries about free music. The move toward free music (free streaming, actually, not free everything) is an inevitable and positive step, but it brings with it permanent changes. Both comments point to the public's attention going to the most popular artists at the expense of everyone else." [Coolfer]
So Long, Music Week 29/09/08
"As of today, I'm a former reader of the Music Week website. Amidst changes to the print publication and a redesign of the website, articles have been hidden behind a subscription wall. Not just its charts and features are inaccessible. The previously accessible short daily news bites are behind a subscription wall. The only free content I could find is the infrequently updated A&R Blog. The UK trade publication offers news that gets overlooked in the U.S. and it's unfortunate that I will no longer be able to read and link to their articles." [Coolfer]
High Drama Over Digital Royalties 28/09/08
"There was a high level of drama this weekend as supporters of Internet radio, spurred by a plea from Pandora, voiced their support for the law passed by the House on Saturday. The Webcaster Settlement Act authorizes SoundExchange to negotiate new royalty agreements for Internet radio through February 15, 2009." [Coolfer]
New organisation to represent industry 26/09/08
"An historic agreement was reached yesterday afternoon with eight industry bodies, including the BPI and AIM, signing up to launch a new umbrella organisation that will “present a unified industry voice” to be headed by BMR chairman Andy Heath and chief executive Feargal Sharkey." [MusicWeek]
Pirate Bay Wins Court Case, Italian Block Lifted 25/09/08
"The Pirate Bay has successfully appealed the decision of an Italian judge who had ordered ISPs to block access to the popular BitTorrent tracker last month. The Court of Bergamo decided that this block was unlawful, and that Italian users should regain access to the site." [TorrentFreak]
A Chat With Merlin CEO Charles Caldas 25/09/08
"Earlier this month, MySpace finalized deals with three of the four majors -- only EMI has yet to join -- to create MySpace Music. The majors will receive equity in the standalone company and will receive a share of its ad revenue." [Coolfer]
Poptastic MySpace Music launches, without indies: Big splash for Big Music 26/09/08
"MySpace Music, the ambitious new joint venture between the major record labels and News Corporation, has finally gone live. Don't let the name mislead you - the only thing it has in common with the scrappy ethos of the original "MySpace" is the name.
Executives have said they want the service to be "the new MTV", and the launch offering certainly lives up to those low ambitions." [TheRegister]
"In an agreement that ends some cases of litigation and encourages new ways for consumers to listen to music online, a number of key industry groups have reached an agreement on digital royalties and have sent the recommendations to the Copyright Royalty judges. This agreement was necessary to encourage new models without scaring away current and future entrepreneurs and enthusiasts." [Coolfer]
Survey Reveals Opportunities, Threats of Unlimited Music Services 29/09/08
"Today's music industry is often one step forward, one or two steps back. As progress is made in new formats, products and services, revenue is lost in the abandonment of older formats and products. With unlimited mobile music services on the horizon, now is the time to ponder their impact." [Coolfer]
CEO David Pakman to Depart eMusic 29/09/08
"eMusic, the world's largest retailer of independent music and the world's second-largest digital music service after iTunes, today announced that President and Chief Executive Officer David Pakman will depart the company. Pakman will become a partner at a premier venture capital firm. The name of the firm is undisclosed. eMusic has retained the Barlow Group, a Connecticut-based executive search firm to recruit a new chief executive." [MarketWatch]
Free Music: Good or Bad and/or Inevitable? 29/09/08
"While reading the comments to Michael Arrington's positive review of MySpace Music at TechCrunch (seen via Idolator), I came across two comments that perfectly sum up the worries about free music. The move toward free music (free streaming, actually, not free everything) is an inevitable and positive step, but it brings with it permanent changes. Both comments point to the public's attention going to the most popular artists at the expense of everyone else." [Coolfer]
So Long, Music Week 29/09/08
"As of today, I'm a former reader of the Music Week website. Amidst changes to the print publication and a redesign of the website, articles have been hidden behind a subscription wall. Not just its charts and features are inaccessible. The previously accessible short daily news bites are behind a subscription wall. The only free content I could find is the infrequently updated A&R Blog. The UK trade publication offers news that gets overlooked in the U.S. and it's unfortunate that I will no longer be able to read and link to their articles." [Coolfer]
High Drama Over Digital Royalties 28/09/08
"There was a high level of drama this weekend as supporters of Internet radio, spurred by a plea from Pandora, voiced their support for the law passed by the House on Saturday. The Webcaster Settlement Act authorizes SoundExchange to negotiate new royalty agreements for Internet radio through February 15, 2009." [Coolfer]
New organisation to represent industry 26/09/08
"An historic agreement was reached yesterday afternoon with eight industry bodies, including the BPI and AIM, signing up to launch a new umbrella organisation that will “present a unified industry voice” to be headed by BMR chairman Andy Heath and chief executive Feargal Sharkey." [MusicWeek]
Pirate Bay Wins Court Case, Italian Block Lifted 25/09/08
"The Pirate Bay has successfully appealed the decision of an Italian judge who had ordered ISPs to block access to the popular BitTorrent tracker last month. The Court of Bergamo decided that this block was unlawful, and that Italian users should regain access to the site." [TorrentFreak]
A Chat With Merlin CEO Charles Caldas 25/09/08
"Earlier this month, MySpace finalized deals with three of the four majors -- only EMI has yet to join -- to create MySpace Music. The majors will receive equity in the standalone company and will receive a share of its ad revenue." [Coolfer]
Poptastic MySpace Music launches, without indies: Big splash for Big Music 26/09/08
"MySpace Music, the ambitious new joint venture between the major record labels and News Corporation, has finally gone live. Don't let the name mislead you - the only thing it has in common with the scrappy ethos of the original "MySpace" is the name.
Executives have said they want the service to be "the new MTV", and the launch offering certainly lives up to those low ambitions." [TheRegister]
9/24/08
Music News Bulletin - 24/09/08
MySpace Music set to launch tonight, with all four majors on board September 24, 2008
"The MySpace Music joint venture intends to go live tomorrow with a new Web site that will give users free access to a massive catalog of songs from all four major labels as well as independents. The last holdout, EMI Group plc, has agreed to be part of the service, and has received equity in the joint venture alongside Warner Music Group Corp. [WMG], Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group, and MySpace Inc. itself, a division of News Corp. [NWS] Independent content will be supplied by key distributor The Orchard Enterprises Inc. [ORCD], and Sony/ATV Music Publishing has also agreed to be part of the venture." [TheDeal]
Anticipating MySpace Music launch, Imeem plans outreach September 24, 2008
"As the launch date nears for MySpace Inc.'s joint venture with three major record labels, its many rivals have begun to anticipate a new competitive landscape. Apple Inc. [AAPL], whose iTunes music store already faces off with rumored MySpace partner Amazon.com Inc.'s [AMZN] download store, will see redoubled competition from the new operation. Social network operator Facebook Inc. continues to gain strength from the proliferation of third-party applications on its platform, including music tools such as iLike Inc. And on-demand streaming music provider Imeem Inc., itself a social network as well, has taken steps to differentiate itself from MySpace Music, which will likely be its largest competitor yet." [TheDeal]
Could MyTunes beat Apple at its own game?
"A few months ago News Corporation announced that it was taking on Apple in the music downloads marketplace.
Chris DeWolfe, the CEO of MySpace, said it would be starting up a one-stop music shop by spinning out the existing MySpace Music service to become an independent joint venture." [Mark8]
With SlotMusic, SanDisk gambles that physical music isn't dead yet September 22, 2008
"SanDisk Corp. is baffling observers with its introduction of a new physical format for music retailers, intended to replace CDs on shelves in big-box retail stores. Why in the world would the company expect people to buy music in a new, unfamiliar physical form when so many listeners are moving toward paid downloads with no physical media, not to mention various free models?" [TheDeal]
ImTheMusic: Whose musical taste is it, anyway?
"As an abundance of user-generated content continues to appear on the Web, mechanisms for separating wheat and chaff increase in importance. Influential companies such as Digg Inc. may point the way to the future of democratically filtered content, but thus far, the thumbs-up-or-thumbs-down functions of most Web 2.0 sites are largely underused and ineffective. As one VC said to me recently, "What's more depressing than the comments section of a YouTube video?"" [TheDeal]
"The MySpace Music joint venture intends to go live tomorrow with a new Web site that will give users free access to a massive catalog of songs from all four major labels as well as independents. The last holdout, EMI Group plc, has agreed to be part of the service, and has received equity in the joint venture alongside Warner Music Group Corp. [WMG], Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group, and MySpace Inc. itself, a division of News Corp. [NWS] Independent content will be supplied by key distributor The Orchard Enterprises Inc. [ORCD], and Sony/ATV Music Publishing has also agreed to be part of the venture." [TheDeal]
Anticipating MySpace Music launch, Imeem plans outreach September 24, 2008
"As the launch date nears for MySpace Inc.'s joint venture with three major record labels, its many rivals have begun to anticipate a new competitive landscape. Apple Inc. [AAPL], whose iTunes music store already faces off with rumored MySpace partner Amazon.com Inc.'s [AMZN] download store, will see redoubled competition from the new operation. Social network operator Facebook Inc. continues to gain strength from the proliferation of third-party applications on its platform, including music tools such as iLike Inc. And on-demand streaming music provider Imeem Inc., itself a social network as well, has taken steps to differentiate itself from MySpace Music, which will likely be its largest competitor yet." [TheDeal]
Could MyTunes beat Apple at its own game?
"A few months ago News Corporation announced that it was taking on Apple in the music downloads marketplace.
Chris DeWolfe, the CEO of MySpace, said it would be starting up a one-stop music shop by spinning out the existing MySpace Music service to become an independent joint venture." [Mark8]
With SlotMusic, SanDisk gambles that physical music isn't dead yet September 22, 2008
"SanDisk Corp. is baffling observers with its introduction of a new physical format for music retailers, intended to replace CDs on shelves in big-box retail stores. Why in the world would the company expect people to buy music in a new, unfamiliar physical form when so many listeners are moving toward paid downloads with no physical media, not to mention various free models?" [TheDeal]
ImTheMusic: Whose musical taste is it, anyway?
"As an abundance of user-generated content continues to appear on the Web, mechanisms for separating wheat and chaff increase in importance. Influential companies such as Digg Inc. may point the way to the future of democratically filtered content, but thus far, the thumbs-up-or-thumbs-down functions of most Web 2.0 sites are largely underused and ineffective. As one VC said to me recently, "What's more depressing than the comments section of a YouTube video?"" [TheDeal]
9/22/08
Press Reaction to MySpace Music's Equity Deal - 22/09/08
MySpace Music hears the antitrust song: Indies call foul at exclusion 18/09/08
"News Corporation and the major record labels are facing antitrust questions about the blockbuster MySpace Music venture - even before the site has launched.
MySpace Music is billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. It's a one-stop shop backed by the cross-media muscle of Rupert Murdoch's media empire, with the three biggest record labels. The site promises to offer everything from downloads to ringtones to concert tickets, backed by the "street" cred of the MySpace brand, and a blockbuster launch is expected this week. Astronomical valuations - $2bn - have already been placed on the service, which MySpace insiders want to become the 'internet's MTV'.
The problem? Not everyone can play. Independents say they're being frozen out of the new venture. No independent music company has inked a deal with the News Corp, and independent labels report that they've been blocked from uploading their music. And since MySpace Music is a joint equity venture between News Corp and the three biggest labels, which control 70 per cent of the US recorded music business, the trouble might only be starting." [TheRegister]
MySpace Music Already Faces Legal Challenge 19/09/08
"MySpace Music hasn't even launched yet, but already it is facing anti-trust allegations from independent record labels. MySpace Music has the backing of its parent company, News Corp., as well as three of the four major labels, and the joint venture is being billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. Together, the three major labels involved - Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Sony BMG - account for 70 percent of the U.S. recorded music business. Meanwhile, smaller independent labels feel that they are being frozen out of selling their music on the site, which expects to become the MTV of the Internet. This has the indies crying foul." [FMQB]
MySpace Music Screws Over Indie Labels 9/22/2008
"As News Corp. readies the “internet’s MTV,” MySpace Music, legal troubles are looming even before the site has got off the ground. Indie labels have risen antitrust allegations against the company because its new one-stop music mega-site is allegedly locking out independents and blocking them from uploading their music to the new MySpace venture." [Exclaim]
MySpace Music Faces Threats Of Antitrust Suits From Indie Labels Before Its Launch: Indies claim they're being blocked from uploading music to the site. Sep 19 2008
"The very online service that has been such a boon for independent music artists is now facing criticism for allegedly freezing those same artists out of the picture with its new music venture. MySpace Music is drawing fire for its deal with major labels and threats of a possible antitrust action that could scuttle the venture before it even opens shop, according to a report in the British tech journal The Register." [MTV]
Indie labels may sue MySpace Music for anti-trust September 22
MySpace Music is reportedly set to launch sometime this week, but the new partnership between MySpace and the major labels may already be facing legal action from indie labels that say they are being excluded from the deal. [Prefixmag]
MySpace Music Responds To Indie Criticism 23/09/08
"Responding to reports that MySpace may be the subject of antitrust lawsuits because of an equity stake shared by three of the four major labels, as well as, growing criticism of its treatment of indie labels, a MySpace Music spokesperson gave Hypebot this statement:
“We are not aware of any antitrust complaint or inquiry pending against either MySpace or MySpace Music. MySpace Music welcomes indie artists and is not blocking content from them or other labels. Our goal is to provide the indie community with powerful tools and monetization channels to enable them to access revenue streams previously unavailable.”"
[Hypebot]
Is An Antitrust Lawsuit In MySpace Music's Future? 22/09/08
"Myspace's MySpace music is now scheduled to launch this week, but an antitrust lawsuit may be in the making as indie labels in the EU and US complain they are being excluded.Some speculate that the launch has been delayed because of ongoing negotiations with EMI. Others believe it has been more about tech issues. This is an important launch both for MySpace who wants to cement its relationship with consumers in the face of growing competition and the music industry who needsEu_flag to finds ways to monetize music particularly with MySpace's young audience." [Hypebot]
Indie Music Bigwig: MySpace Music Is Playing Nice With Us September 23
"Last week we heard some vague grumbling from small record labels -- primarily those based in Europe, it seems -- who were angry with MySpace because they didn't yet have access to MySpace Music, the soon-to-launch joint venture between News Corp. and three of the four major labels. And here in the U.S., indie heavyweight IODA, which digitally distributes 1.5 million tracks for several thousand labels, doesn't have a deal with the JV, either." [AlleyInsider]
Indie Labels Bite The Hand That Used To Feed Them: MySpace Music
"MySpace Music, the JV between News Corp. and three of the four big music labels (no EMI, yet) that should be launching any day now, is already drawing the ire of the indie music community. Their gripe? They say they can’t get their music uploaded onto the site, British site The Register reports." [AlleyInsider]
"News Corporation and the major record labels are facing antitrust questions about the blockbuster MySpace Music venture - even before the site has launched.
MySpace Music is billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. It's a one-stop shop backed by the cross-media muscle of Rupert Murdoch's media empire, with the three biggest record labels. The site promises to offer everything from downloads to ringtones to concert tickets, backed by the "street" cred of the MySpace brand, and a blockbuster launch is expected this week. Astronomical valuations - $2bn - have already been placed on the service, which MySpace insiders want to become the 'internet's MTV'.
The problem? Not everyone can play. Independents say they're being frozen out of the new venture. No independent music company has inked a deal with the News Corp, and independent labels report that they've been blocked from uploading their music. And since MySpace Music is a joint equity venture between News Corp and the three biggest labels, which control 70 per cent of the US recorded music business, the trouble might only be starting." [TheRegister]
MySpace Music Already Faces Legal Challenge 19/09/08
"MySpace Music hasn't even launched yet, but already it is facing anti-trust allegations from independent record labels. MySpace Music has the backing of its parent company, News Corp., as well as three of the four major labels, and the joint venture is being billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. Together, the three major labels involved - Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Sony BMG - account for 70 percent of the U.S. recorded music business. Meanwhile, smaller independent labels feel that they are being frozen out of selling their music on the site, which expects to become the MTV of the Internet. This has the indies crying foul." [FMQB]
MySpace Music Screws Over Indie Labels 9/22/2008
"As News Corp. readies the “internet’s MTV,” MySpace Music, legal troubles are looming even before the site has got off the ground. Indie labels have risen antitrust allegations against the company because its new one-stop music mega-site is allegedly locking out independents and blocking them from uploading their music to the new MySpace venture." [Exclaim]
MySpace Music Faces Threats Of Antitrust Suits From Indie Labels Before Its Launch: Indies claim they're being blocked from uploading music to the site. Sep 19 2008
"The very online service that has been such a boon for independent music artists is now facing criticism for allegedly freezing those same artists out of the picture with its new music venture. MySpace Music is drawing fire for its deal with major labels and threats of a possible antitrust action that could scuttle the venture before it even opens shop, according to a report in the British tech journal The Register." [MTV]
Indie labels may sue MySpace Music for anti-trust September 22
MySpace Music is reportedly set to launch sometime this week, but the new partnership between MySpace and the major labels may already be facing legal action from indie labels that say they are being excluded from the deal. [Prefixmag]
MySpace Music Responds To Indie Criticism 23/09/08
"Responding to reports that MySpace may be the subject of antitrust lawsuits because of an equity stake shared by three of the four major labels, as well as, growing criticism of its treatment of indie labels, a MySpace Music spokesperson gave Hypebot this statement:
“We are not aware of any antitrust complaint or inquiry pending against either MySpace or MySpace Music. MySpace Music welcomes indie artists and is not blocking content from them or other labels. Our goal is to provide the indie community with powerful tools and monetization channels to enable them to access revenue streams previously unavailable.”"
[Hypebot]
Is An Antitrust Lawsuit In MySpace Music's Future? 22/09/08
"Myspace's MySpace music is now scheduled to launch this week, but an antitrust lawsuit may be in the making as indie labels in the EU and US complain they are being excluded.Some speculate that the launch has been delayed because of ongoing negotiations with EMI. Others believe it has been more about tech issues. This is an important launch both for MySpace who wants to cement its relationship with consumers in the face of growing competition and the music industry who needsEu_flag to finds ways to monetize music particularly with MySpace's young audience." [Hypebot]
Indie Music Bigwig: MySpace Music Is Playing Nice With Us September 23
"Last week we heard some vague grumbling from small record labels -- primarily those based in Europe, it seems -- who were angry with MySpace because they didn't yet have access to MySpace Music, the soon-to-launch joint venture between News Corp. and three of the four major labels. And here in the U.S., indie heavyweight IODA, which digitally distributes 1.5 million tracks for several thousand labels, doesn't have a deal with the JV, either." [AlleyInsider]
Indie Labels Bite The Hand That Used To Feed Them: MySpace Music
"MySpace Music, the JV between News Corp. and three of the four big music labels (no EMI, yet) that should be launching any day now, is already drawing the ire of the indie music community. Their gripe? They say they can’t get their music uploaded onto the site, British site The Register reports." [AlleyInsider]
9/19/08
Music News Bulletin - 19/09/08
Legal digital music is commercial suicide
"Opinion Lala, for those who don't know, is a free streaming music venture. Invested in by Warner Music group to the tune of $20m it streams about five million songs, but also offers 89 cent MP3 sales, and song rentals for 10 cents each. But why is almost nobody using their well-designed, expansive, free streaming service?" [TheRegister]
Best Buy snaffles Napster 15/09/08
"Napster's board has unanimously accepted a takeover bid from US retail behemoth Best Buy, worth $120m. Thus ends a bumpy four-year ride as an independent company. Like Frankenstein's monster, the reanimated Napster was constructed from the parts of formerly deceased music companies. Software vendor Roxio acquired the assets of the bankrupt rebel P2P outfit for just $5m in late 2002, and acquired the remains of Sony's unsuccessful music service PressPlay six months later. After the injection of electricity, and $20m, Napster went live five years ago this month." [TheRegister]
China's nonstop music machine: Baidu versus business
"Exclusive Baidu is renowned as China's glittering internet success story, and as the start-up that gave Google a bloody nose. It dominates the web in the world's second biggest economy with 70 per cent market share, and on Wall Street carries a market cap of almost $12bn. But Baidu's success comes at a price, for the legitimate music business, for the development of China and of its intellectual property (IP) law, and for any internet company wishing to do business in China." [TheRegister]
12th century thinking haunts digital music: On serfs, fanbois and bandits 17/09/08
"British digital music company 7Digital claimed a coup yesterday by becoming the first online music store to carry DRM-free catalog from the "Big Four" major record labels. Calling it a coup is misleading, however. It's really further confirmation that the top of the music business is run along feudal lines: closer to the 12th century than the 21st." [TheRegister]
Media standard backers attempt Apple-less solo run: 'We don't need no stinkin' iTunes' 17/09/08
"Computer and entertainment companies have announced a plan to standardise video and music files so that they play on any device. The ambitious plan has not been backed by the dominant force in digital downloads, Apple." [TheRegister]
Yahoo Search Adds Free Streaming 18/09/08
"As a part of its "play the web" mission, Yahoo has partnered with Rhapsody to offer free audio streams to Yahoo search results (read press release). Search results for some artists -- 10,00 at the time, reports Alley Insider -- will have an artist short cut at the top of the page. There are also links to lyrics (Yahoo has licensed lyrics from GraceNote), videos and albums." [Coolfer]
Research on Student Piracy Confirms Market Research and Anecdotes 17/09/08
"Now it's even more official. A professor at the University of Idaho has for years studied students and piracy. His findings echo what everybody else says. According to Woolley, who has been analyzing piracy among university students for several years, students aren’t even ashamed to admit illegally downloading music off the Internet. More than 95 percent of respondents in his research freely admitted to illegally downloading music, and some 63 percent admitted to copying a CD. Students indicate that they expect the trend to continue after they graduate and move into the workplace." [Coolfer]
MySpace Music Already Faces Legal Challenge 19/09/08
"MySpace Music hasn't even launched yet, but already it is facing anti-trust allegations from independent record labels. MySpace Music has the backing of its parent company, News Corp., as well as three of the four major labels, and the joint venture is being billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. Together, the three major labels involved - Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Sony BMG - account for 70 percent of the U.S. recorded music business. Meanwhile, smaller independent labels feel that they are being frozen out of selling their music on the site, which expects to become the MTV of the Internet. This has the indies crying foul." [FMQB]
A Conversation With Tunecore's Jeff Price
"Tunecore In this exclusive Hypebot interview, Ethan Bauley sits down with Jeff Price for a wide ranging conversation between two creative thinkers who know the industry. Price ran successfull indie label spinArt (Pixies, Apples In Stereo) before founding TuneCore which is democratizing digital distribution with its low cost flat fee model. Ethan Bauley is a musician and Director of Social Media Strategy at M80, a WPP agency. M80's sister company, m80 Music, is Dengue Fever's record label." Part One [HypeBot] Part Two [HypeBot] Part Three [HypeBot]
"Opinion Lala, for those who don't know, is a free streaming music venture. Invested in by Warner Music group to the tune of $20m it streams about five million songs, but also offers 89 cent MP3 sales, and song rentals for 10 cents each. But why is almost nobody using their well-designed, expansive, free streaming service?" [TheRegister]
Best Buy snaffles Napster 15/09/08
"Napster's board has unanimously accepted a takeover bid from US retail behemoth Best Buy, worth $120m. Thus ends a bumpy four-year ride as an independent company. Like Frankenstein's monster, the reanimated Napster was constructed from the parts of formerly deceased music companies. Software vendor Roxio acquired the assets of the bankrupt rebel P2P outfit for just $5m in late 2002, and acquired the remains of Sony's unsuccessful music service PressPlay six months later. After the injection of electricity, and $20m, Napster went live five years ago this month." [TheRegister]
China's nonstop music machine: Baidu versus business
"Exclusive Baidu is renowned as China's glittering internet success story, and as the start-up that gave Google a bloody nose. It dominates the web in the world's second biggest economy with 70 per cent market share, and on Wall Street carries a market cap of almost $12bn. But Baidu's success comes at a price, for the legitimate music business, for the development of China and of its intellectual property (IP) law, and for any internet company wishing to do business in China." [TheRegister]
12th century thinking haunts digital music: On serfs, fanbois and bandits 17/09/08
"British digital music company 7Digital claimed a coup yesterday by becoming the first online music store to carry DRM-free catalog from the "Big Four" major record labels. Calling it a coup is misleading, however. It's really further confirmation that the top of the music business is run along feudal lines: closer to the 12th century than the 21st." [TheRegister]
Media standard backers attempt Apple-less solo run: 'We don't need no stinkin' iTunes' 17/09/08
"Computer and entertainment companies have announced a plan to standardise video and music files so that they play on any device. The ambitious plan has not been backed by the dominant force in digital downloads, Apple." [TheRegister]
Yahoo Search Adds Free Streaming 18/09/08
"As a part of its "play the web" mission, Yahoo has partnered with Rhapsody to offer free audio streams to Yahoo search results (read press release). Search results for some artists -- 10,00 at the time, reports Alley Insider -- will have an artist short cut at the top of the page. There are also links to lyrics (Yahoo has licensed lyrics from GraceNote), videos and albums." [Coolfer]
Research on Student Piracy Confirms Market Research and Anecdotes 17/09/08
"Now it's even more official. A professor at the University of Idaho has for years studied students and piracy. His findings echo what everybody else says. According to Woolley, who has been analyzing piracy among university students for several years, students aren’t even ashamed to admit illegally downloading music off the Internet. More than 95 percent of respondents in his research freely admitted to illegally downloading music, and some 63 percent admitted to copying a CD. Students indicate that they expect the trend to continue after they graduate and move into the workplace." [Coolfer]
MySpace Music Already Faces Legal Challenge 19/09/08
"MySpace Music hasn't even launched yet, but already it is facing anti-trust allegations from independent record labels. MySpace Music has the backing of its parent company, News Corp., as well as three of the four major labels, and the joint venture is being billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. Together, the three major labels involved - Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Sony BMG - account for 70 percent of the U.S. recorded music business. Meanwhile, smaller independent labels feel that they are being frozen out of selling their music on the site, which expects to become the MTV of the Internet. This has the indies crying foul." [FMQB]
A Conversation With Tunecore's Jeff Price
"Tunecore In this exclusive Hypebot interview, Ethan Bauley sits down with Jeff Price for a wide ranging conversation between two creative thinkers who know the industry. Price ran successfull indie label spinArt (Pixies, Apples In Stereo) before founding TuneCore which is democratizing digital distribution with its low cost flat fee model. Ethan Bauley is a musician and Director of Social Media Strategy at M80, a WPP agency. M80's sister company, m80 Music, is Dengue Fever's record label." Part One [HypeBot] Part Two [HypeBot] Part Three [HypeBot]
8/11/08
Music News Bulletin - 11/08/08
MySpace faces rejection, internal dissent in hiring music venture CEO August 11, 2008
"MySpace Inc.'s search for a new CEO to run the MySpace Music joint venture has hit a number of snags, not the least of which is that its preferred candidates have declined the job. Another obstacle: Key technology executives inside the company have urged top brass not to hire a new leader until after MySpace Music launches next month.
A source with knowledge of the situation says the company's technology team has warned MySpace CEO Chris DeWolfe and chief operating officer Amit Kapur not to bring in a CEO with the new music service, a joint venture with three of the four major music labels, so close to launch for fear that a new executive would demand changes that would threaten the development team's timeline." [TheDeal]
The MySpace Music CEO Candidate Shortlist August 5, 2008
Get ready to start hearing a lot about MySpace Music, a huge joint venture project between MySpace and the big music labels. One big question about the project remains: who will be the CEO of the new company. We’ve gathered a shortlist of candidates that MySpace has interviewed. [TechCrunch]
Why are joint ventures such magnets for trouble? August 6, 2008
Why (apart from a journalistic weakness for handy labels) should this be? The governance challenge when two companies team up -- a great argument-starter whenever corp dev professionals talk about JVs -- is surely one factor. Decisions inevitably take longer with two parties involved.
But there's more going on.
Rarely a first choice as a strategic tool, JVs are usually formed because there seems no better way to solve a tough business problem. Sometimes the problem is one of market access. BP plc's deal with TNK and Group Danone SA's experience in China with Wahaha Group Co. Ltd. notwithstanding, these kinds of JVs do have a reasonable track record; lots of multinationals have used them to get established in developing markets, often buying them out as the local rules change. [TheDeal]
"MySpace Inc.'s search for a new CEO to run the MySpace Music joint venture has hit a number of snags, not the least of which is that its preferred candidates have declined the job. Another obstacle: Key technology executives inside the company have urged top brass not to hire a new leader until after MySpace Music launches next month.
A source with knowledge of the situation says the company's technology team has warned MySpace CEO Chris DeWolfe and chief operating officer Amit Kapur not to bring in a CEO with the new music service, a joint venture with three of the four major music labels, so close to launch for fear that a new executive would demand changes that would threaten the development team's timeline." [TheDeal]
The MySpace Music CEO Candidate Shortlist August 5, 2008
Get ready to start hearing a lot about MySpace Music, a huge joint venture project between MySpace and the big music labels. One big question about the project remains: who will be the CEO of the new company. We’ve gathered a shortlist of candidates that MySpace has interviewed. [TechCrunch]
Why are joint ventures such magnets for trouble? August 6, 2008
Why (apart from a journalistic weakness for handy labels) should this be? The governance challenge when two companies team up -- a great argument-starter whenever corp dev professionals talk about JVs -- is surely one factor. Decisions inevitably take longer with two parties involved.
But there's more going on.
Rarely a first choice as a strategic tool, JVs are usually formed because there seems no better way to solve a tough business problem. Sometimes the problem is one of market access. BP plc's deal with TNK and Group Danone SA's experience in China with Wahaha Group Co. Ltd. notwithstanding, these kinds of JVs do have a reasonable track record; lots of multinationals have used them to get established in developing markets, often buying them out as the local rules change. [TheDeal]
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