News
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Apple's iTunes Store To Remain Open As Royalty Rates Are Frozen In decision yesterday...
By Jason Gregory on 3 October 2008
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Apple's iTunes store will remain open after the Copyright Royalty Board decided against calls to increase royalty payments made to artists.
Apple had threatened to close its digital music outlet after The National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA) requested that the cost of a single track jump from 9 cents to 15 cents.
The rise would have been absorbed by either digital music stores like Apple, record labels or the consumer.
At a meeting yesterday (October 2nd), the Copyright Royalty Board decided to freeze the current rate at 9.1 cents for another five years.
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Barack Obama Launches iPhone Application To Boost Presidential Hopes He reaches out to public...
By Jason Gregory on 3 October 2008
US Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama is to launch an application on Apple's iPhone to help recruit supporters.
Mr Obama's Call Friends application is seen as key to helping the Illinois senator win the all important swing states in November's election.
The software was developed in just three weeks by Mr Obama's campaign team and will help his supporters to become “more directly involved” in his bid to “change the country”.
Call Friends will track who is supporting which candidate and also sends users a voting reminder on election day.
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Apple Threaten To Close iTunes Over Hightened Royalty Rates Which could be passed today...
By Jason Gregory on 2 October 2008
Apple has threatened to close its iTunes music store over a request for a rise in royalty payments made to artists.
The Copyright Royalty Board is expected to decide today whether to instigate the 66% increase requested by The National Music Publishers' Association.
The organisation believes the rise, which would see the cost of a single track jump from 9 cents to 15 cents, is necessary because of the growing popularity of the digital music market.
The rise would have to be absorbed by either digital music stores like Apple, record labels or the consumer.
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Nine Inch Nails Set To Unleash Special iPhone Application It's out later this month...
By Jason Gregory on 1 October 2008
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Nine Inch Nails are to release their own version of the Apple iPhone application TapTap Revenge.
The application will include 16 tracks from the band's recent albums 'The Slip' and 'Ghosts I-IV' - a number of which have been remixed for the game.
Developer Tapulous said the game would have a “special NIN look and feel”.
The Nine Inch Nails edition will be available as a download from Apple's Application store later this month, price $5.
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MySpace Set For Artist 'Exodus' Over New Music Service Label boss claims...
By Jason Gregory on 30 September 2008
MySpace's new music service will accelerate the “exodus” of artists moving away from the social-networking website, a record label owner has claimed.
The website's new MySpace Music platform, which allows users to stream songs by a host of big names musicians, has been criticised by independent record labels.
When it launched earlier this month it had the backing of the world's four major record labels - Sony BMG, Universal, Warner and EMI – but only one independent label had signed up in time.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, Tommy Boy Records owner Tom Silvermann said: "MySpace has been floundering lately already, and people have been moving toward Facebook and so on. This is going to accelerate that exodus.”
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MySpace Music Accused Of 'Disowning' Independent Labels With new music service...
By Jason Gregory on 26 September 2008
MySpace Music, which allows users to stream songs by a host of big names musicians, has been accused of disowning independent record labels.
The service launched on Wednesday with the backing of the world's four major record labels - Sony BMG, Universal, Warner and EMI – but only one independent label had signed up in time.
Martin Mills, chairman of Beggars Group, the UK's largest independent label base,expressed his frustration at the lack of independent involvement.
"It is both disappointing and astonishing that MySpace, built on the music of independent artists and labels, should, now it has the majors as partners, choose to launch without those that have been at its heart, and whilst treating independents as second class-citizens," he told the Guardian.
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MySpace Unveils 'Free To Listen' Music Service In the US...
By Jason Gregory on 25 September 2008
MySpace have launched a new music service which allows users to listen to music for free.
MySpace Music, which is currently restricted to the US, allows members to build up play lists of their favourite music on their profile page.
But they must buy a copy of the song if they want to be able to listen to it on a portable music device.
MySpace Music has won full support of the worlds four major record labels - Sony BMG, Universal, Warner and EMI – and looks set to make a dent in Apple's dominance of the digital download market.
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Sir Mick Jagger And Apple's Steve Jobs Unite For EU Consumer Debate
In Brussels yesterday...
By Jason Gregory on 18 September 2008
Rolling Stones frontman Sir Mick Jagger has taken part in a EU forum designed to make internet shopping easier.
Sir Mick joined names from the business world, including Apple's Steve Jobs and John Donahoe from eBay, at the meeting in Brussels yesterday (September 17th).
They discussed the notion that online consumers are not afforded the same shopping experience as people on the high street.
Among the concerns raised was the difficulty that some consumers had downloading a CD compared to ordering a physical copy.
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7digital Offer DRM-Free MP3s From All Four Major Record Labels In new deal...
By Jason Gregory on 17 September 2008
7digital has become the first European online music store to offer MP3 downloads by all four of the world's major record labels.
In addition to offering 4million tracks, the company said it would be cutting the cost of albums – with some new releases falling to £5 – in a bid to boost sales.
The deal, which brings in Universal, SonyBMG, EMI and Warner Brothers, comes as the popularity of the CD continues to fall.
7digital will be offering its users MP3s which are DRM-Free, allowing them to be played on a wider variety of portable devices.
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Six OiNK Users Charged Following Interpol Investigation The biTorrent site in the spotlight...
By Jason Gregory on 12 September 2008
Six users of the biTorrent OiNK, a file-sharing website which shut last year, have been charged in relation to illegal music downloads.
A 25-year-old IT worker from Middlesbrough has been charged with conspiracy to defraud, while the remaining five face copyright infringement penalties.
OiNK, which had servers based in Holland, was closed last October following a joint operation between Interpol, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and the British Phonographic Industry.
The operation was launched last year after the IFPI revealed that the members only download site had already leaked sixty pre-release albums in 2007.
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