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IPOD'S ''dirty Little Secret''
From danr1
PostID 296088 On Wednesday, November 26, 2003 (EST) at 6:38:13 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Batt. Life of the EDIG players superior?
From Marketwatch:
Two filmmakers are getting attention around the Net for an ''antiadvertising'' project aimed at protesting what they call the ''dirty secret'' of the iPod music player--its battery life.
Brothers Casey and Van Neistat, who collaborate on video projects using Mac editing software, said they were told by a technical support representative at Apple Computer that the cost to replace the dead battery in an 18-month-old iPod would be $255--comparable to the cost of a new device. Irked at what seemed to be the early obsolescence of the music player, the brothers trekked around New York City stenciling the words ''iPod's unreplaceable battery lasts only 18 months'' on all the iPod posters they could find.
Now the Neistats claim that the video they created of their exploits is getting 50,000 hits a day on the Web site Ipodsdirtysecret.com. As of Wednesday afternoon, the site's traffic counter indicated it had seen more than 194,000 visitors.
As it turns out, it's possible to replace the battery for as little as $49 using third-party kits. Apple itself offers a battery-replacement service for about $106 including mailing, with a 90-day guarantee on materials and workmanship. Apple's program was introduced only in the past two weeks.
Other iPod users have reported that the device's battery life diminishes with use, as is common for many rechargeable batteries. Unlike standard disposable batteries, the rechargeable power supplies used in the iPod and other high-tech gadgets do not come in a standard design. Replacing the battery involves a tricky process of dismantling the gadget, but third parties offer this service for around $70.
Of course Cassie you also called and confirmed this....
How to explain this ahhhh "misunderstanding" shall we call it?
Posted by: Cassandra
In reply to: gernb1 who wrote msg# 43719
Date: 8/29/2003 1:27:41 PM
Post #
GMT Capital closed out their position on EDIG.
I just spoke to Mr. Geiger at (770) 989-8261. He said it was an older position that they no longer hold.
http://www.nubridges.com/investors.htm#GMT
And today we see...
E DIGITAL CORP OTCBB
Institutional Holdings Description / Hide Summary
Company Details
Total Shares Out Standing (millions): 155
Market Capitalization ($ millions): $82
Institutional Ownership: 0.1%
Price (as of 11/13/2003) 0.53
Ownership Analysis # Of Holders Shares
Total Shares Held: 6 137,200
New Positions: 1 100
Increased Positions: 2 1,600
Decreased Positions: 1 200
Holders With Activity: 3 1,800
Sold Out Positions: 1 200
Date Shares Held Change (Shares) % Change (Shares) Value ($1000)
GMT CAPITAL CORP 9/30/2003 109,600 1,500 1.39% $58
HARTLINE INVESTMENT ... 9/30/2003 19,000 0 0.00% $10
RBF LLC 9/30/2002 5,000 0 0.00% $3
BABSON DAVID L & CO ... 9/30/2003 3,500 0 0.00% $2
WELLS FARGO & CO/MN 9/30/2003 100 100 New $0
On it's face this would appear to be a bald-faced lie ...in fact they added to their position slightly...some need to be careful what they post methinks...
and so you would understand why we would treat your posts with more than a little suspicion....no offense
Timely...-The Customer Peers Back
December 10, 2003
Corporate integrity is a more valuable asset now that the world is more transparent. With abundant and free information, customers can now discern the true value of vendors and their goods and services. Business policies and processes — and the systems in which they manifest — should embrace this transparency rather than fight it.
by Don Tapscott & David Ticoll
For years, intelligent enterprises have had a window on their operations, customers, and other stakeholders. They've used BI, CRM, data mining, and other techniques to get this view. Now those who interact with corporations are doing the same thing: gaining unprecedented access to all sorts of information about corporate behavior, products, and performance.
Armed with new tools to find out, inform others, and even organize, stakeholders now scrutinize the firm like never before. Every corporation is becoming naked as various outsiders gain intelligence about it. This reversal of fortune has profound implications: Enlightened self-interest will lead companies to embrace transparency and become open enterprises.
BI — Outside In
Consider customers. In the past, firms relied on surveys to discern customer preferences. Today massive, exquisitely detailed databases track customer behavior. A large retailer, for instance, can know which models of jeans sold in the Cleveland store in the last hour. If they were bought with a credit card, the company also knows the buyer's purchasing habit — information tailor-made for custom marketing campaigns. For years, customers have been on the disadvantaged side of a one-way transparency mirror.
Today, all of that is changing. Customers can peer back at companies. And they can act on what they now know — with seismic effects. Customers have increased access to knowledge about products and services and they can discern true value more easily.
Once upon a time, in the 1950s, consumers were only too happy to buy just about any good or service that came their way. Abundance — what John Kenneth Galbraith called the affluent society — was a novel experience for Americans, and they embraced it with gusto. No more. Today, many industries and markets are battlegrounds where consumers and sellers wage battle in a fog of mutual mistrust. This problem is not universal: great brands like Coca-Cola, IBM, Disney, and Mercedes retain their sheen despite ups and downs. But it's nasty down in the trenches.
Increasingly consumers depend on growing transparency to protect themselves and prepare for marketplace combat.
* They prepare for car purchases with military precision. The Internet provides, mostly for free, government crash test results, product reviews from a variety of perspectives, personal advice and consultation, and several versions of dealer pricing. One site (Edmunds.com) offers dealer price comparisons by ZIP code.
* The travel industry's economics are beset by transparency. Air and hotel bookings continue to increase on the Internet, and many analysts predict that in both good times and bad, online bookings will push prices down.
* Not only did Wall Street lose the confidence of consumers, but banking is also under pressure. E-Loan, a dotcom survivor, returned to television advertising and turned profitable in 2002. It ended the year with $13 billion of consumer loans on its books. Its site lives and breathes the transparency of its lending process.
* Type "insurance rates" in a search engine, and find all sorts of resources that provide advice and comparative deals for your particular situation.
* The recording industry has been in crisis since the MP3 file format took off in 1998. Because music is pure information, transparency in this case challenges a century-old business model.
* Millions of Americans think the healthcare system misleads them. Tenet is but one example of a major provider that lost public trust under suspicion of overcharging Medicare and conducting unnecessary operations. Physicians and pharmaceutical companies seem to be in an unholy alliance, fueling a new mini-industry in Canada — the sale of low-cost branded and generic drugs to U.S. patients via the Internet. Pharmaceutical companies malign the safety of these suppliers; Glaxo Smith Klein has threatened to cut off their supplies. But elderly patients on fixed incomes know that this idea works.
In the past, consumers were isolated. A few joined quaint consumer groups, others talked to neighbors about products they might buy, or read the main source of objective advice, Consumer Reports. Today, they self-organize. They get other readers' book reviews on Amazon's Web site from their home, workplace, or coffee shop — even from a screen in a competing bookstore. To learn what others think about a car, movie, camera, garden tool, office product, restaurant, or wine, they can consult numerous sites, such as Epinions.com.
Access to information has created power struggles in many markets. Sellers see customers commoditizing them, going to Wal-Mart and Internet merchants to challenge their prices and profit margins, and ready to launch a class action suit at the least provocation. Consumers see sellers ripping them off, providing bad service, and invading their privacy. Notable exceptions exist, but nastiness rules in many industries, especially big-ticket ones like auto, travel, financial services, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and telecom.
Meanwhile, values-oriented activist consumers have agendas that go beyond personal benefit. They probe deep into a company's supply chain to expose environmental and human rights practices, then demand and force change. In 1996, such activists publicized the fact that Wal-Mart's Kathie Lee Gifford celebrity collection of clothing was being stitched by Honduran children who often worked 24-hour days for wages as low as 31 cents an hour. Gifford broke into tears on national television when confronted by the evidence. The consumer reaction soon led not only Wal-Mart, but also eventually Nike, Gap, Disney, and others to revise labor practices in their supply chains. Consumers have inspired Starbucks to sell Fair Trade coffee and led retailers such as Home Depot and Ikea to stop using virgin timber. In the United Kingdom, France, and other European countries, consumers and farmers forced their governments to halt the sale of genetically modified foods, leading to the near-collapse of Monsanto Company.
Transparency and the Net
The pervasiveness of the broadcast media alone creates a culture of transparency; people expect that they can know anything instantaneously. We are bathed in broadcast news and information. In case we missed the TV clip or print article, we can go to the Internet to catch up on the newspaper, TV channel, or financial information service of our choice. Too much of it is one dimensional, but alternative points of view do seep through — easy to find for those who care to look.
The Internet raises transparency to a whole new level. Broadcast media are one-way channels that are centrally controlled. The multidirectional Internet is just the opposite. Anyone can use it to originate messages from any location, any time. You can find any point of view you want if you care to look. And no central authority controls its content. The Internet, as the saying goes, "routes itself around obstacles" — it's virtually impossible to block it. The Net has boundless versatility: simple person-to-person communications, fancy and complex informational Web sites, the instant personal soapboxes known as weblogs, real-time activity coordination (business, personal, and political), financial transactions, information capture, long-term archiving — the list goes on. All these are new and powerful tools for transparency.
Throughout the economy, the transparency-opacity battle rages on. Food companies resist labeling their products as genetically modified. Old-style firms hide product inadequacies. Companies with high price structures work to keep customers ignorant. But the forces of opacity are in retreat. And smart businesses know this.
Customer Power
Customers have a growing sense of power. Most people in G20 countries feel empowered as consumers according to a 2001 survey by Environics International.
Two-thirds of those surveyed believed that consumers have the power to protect themselves against unfair or dishonest practices by a company. People aged 65 and higher tended to feel less able to protect themselves.
Seven in 10 people do not hesitate to complain to companies that produce or sell the products that they use. More than one-third of respondents are adamant about this aspect of their consumer behavior. Better-educated people, those with higher levels of income, and Internet users are more likely than others to be ready to take companies to task.
Consumers feel empowered because they have increased access to knowledge about products and services and they can discern true value more easily.
Marketing to Customers Who Have BI
The implications of this new reality are profound. First, companies need to create true value more than even before. To compete, firms need truly differentiated products, better service, or lower prices, because deficiencies in value cannot be hidden as easily. Companies can't make garbage smell like roses anymore. It's getting harder and harder to "spin," advertise, or otherwise trick customers into doing what is not in their interests.
Second, companies need to understand customers better than ever to build relationships with them. Relationship capital refers to a new class of assets that are based on the relationships a company develops with its customers, suppliers, and others. The wealth embedded in these relationships is becoming as important as the capital contained in land, plant, buildings, and even big bank accounts. Managers must know how to design the new relationships and exploit the wealth they contain. When you have knowledge about your customers, you can better balance the power dynamic between you and them. Business intelligence is an idea whose time has come.
Third, notwithstanding the foregoing, businesses must protect customers' privacy. The corporate standard of transparency should not be applied to individuals. Customers will want to be clothed for the foreseeable future, and firms need to respect their privacy. Embrace appropriate privacy principals. Get permission before compiling individuals' information. Limit collection of such information to what you need. Make clear your purposes for collecting personal information. And unless the customer authorizes it, don't use information for purposes other than those for which it was collected. When it comes to customers, privacy is good business.
Fourth, business integrity should be part of the corporate DNA. Historically, customers cared about price and value (product utility, quality, innovativeness, services, and safety). Nearly eight in 10 U.S. consumers now say they can help drive responsible corporate behavior. Three in four consumers also want to learn more about how companies seek to be more responsible. This combination of empowerment and desire to learn sets the stage for new kinds of consumer behavior. Customers care about corporate values.
Customers also care about brands in a new way. Increasingly, customers want to buy from companies they consider to be "good," that give back to the community. The new architecture of the brand has business integrity at its base. Nothing goes better with Coke if Coke is accused of complicity in the murder of union organizers in its Columbian bottling plants. If the Coca-Cola Co. is blameless, it needs to engage its stakeholders to convince them. Customers can increasingly hold corporations accountable for everything from integrity to the value of its products and services. Open enterprises understand this power shift and embrace it.
Fifth, embrace candor. Transparency is a new form of power, which pays off when harnessed. Rather than to be feared, transparency is becoming central to business success. Rather than be unwillingly stripped, smart firms are choosing to be open. Transparency of course is not always the right thing, nor may it always be practical. And it has its enemies. Transparency can be controversial, poorly executed, or placed at risk. Undeniably, though, transparency is an unstoppable force; a glasnost for business and capitalist society.
The best firms have clear leadership practices that others can adopt. They understand that investments in good transparency deliver significant payoffs: engaged relationships, better quality and cost management, innovation, and overall business performance improvements. They build transparency and integrity into their business strategy, corporate character, technology strategy, brand and reputation, products, and services. They build an open technology architecture to enable candor on a minute-to-minute basis, while at the same time ensuring appropriate business intelligence for the firm.
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They do this because they know that open enterprises — firms that operate with candor, integrity, and engagement — are most likely to survive and thrive.
Don Tapscott & David Ticoll are coauthors of the newly released book The Naked Corporation: How the Age of Transparency Will Revolutionize Business (Reed Business Information Inc., 2003). Tapscott [don@tapscott.com] is a consultant, business speaker, and a columnist for Intelligent Enterprise. Ticoll has conducted extensive research into the nature of the firm and the impact of technology on business and society.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Information Everywhere
Corporate transparency channels extend beyond weblogs and email, to include:
* Wireless communicators for specialties such as health care, education, security, and gaming
* Communication chips embedded in everything from running shoes to soup cans, door handles, production lines, and prosthetics
* Commercial remote-sensing satellites that let anyone with a few hundred dollars buy detailed images of any spot on the planet
* Surveillance cameras everywhere; you can't take a half-hour walk in downtown London without having your picture taken 200 times
* Cameras that communicate with the mobile Internet, which are becoming commonplace.
Hmmmm...HP expected to follow other PC makers in TV sales
Wednesday November 26, 3:58 pm ET
[maybe they would like to make some MP3 players as well...LOL]
SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 26 (Reuters) - Reports that Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ - News). will sell flat-panel televisions came as no surprise to industry analysts, who noted the growing trend of personal computer companies expanding into consumer electronics, where profit margins are fatter.
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"We knew it was going to happen, it was a question of when," said Bob O'Donnell, a research director at technology research firm IDC, who added that he expects HP to unveil the flat-panel TVs at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, and to ship them in the spring.
"If anything, it's a surprise they're waiting until the spring," O'Donnell said. "They don't have to move into TVs but it's a wise move for all the PC companies."
Consumer electronics companies typically have profit margins of 35 percent to 40 percent on their wares, while PC companies have long made do with margins of 10 percent or less on PCs and related hardware, O'Donnell said.
HP, which is the No. 2 maker of computers after International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM - News) and the No. 1 maker of computer printers, would follow Gateway Inc. (NYSE:GTW - News) and and Dell Inc. (NasdaqNM:DELL - News) into the market.
Above and beyond selling their own branded TVs, Gateway, which is the market share leader in plasma televisions, and Dell already offer digital cameras, "living-room PCs" that play digital music, videos and games, as well as other gizmos traditionally sold by consumer electronics companies.
Plasma TVs are wide-screen televisions that are typically 40 inches across, measured diagonally. Flat-panel TVs, either LCD or plasma, may be as thin as 6 inches deep, or less, and may or may not provide high-definition pictures.
An HP spokeswoman said the company does not comment on unannounced products. Cnet Networks Inc.'s (NasdaqNM:CNET - News) News.com Web site reported last week that HP was considering making TVs while the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday reported the same, citing "people familiar with the matter."
FLAT TVs, FAT MARGINS
HP could certainly use the profits. In the Palo Alto, California, company's most recent quarter, its struggling PC business yielded a meager 0.4 percent operating margin after a $21 million operating profit on $6.0 billion in revenue.
Additionally, for PC companies that already sell flat-panel computer displays, the move into flat-panel and plasma televisions is a no-brainer, O'Donnell said.
"If you're making LCD (liquid crystal display) monitors already, it's trivial to get into LCD TVs," O'Donnell said. "You're going to use a lot of the same suppliers and component vendors."
IDC expects about 4.1 million flat-panel TVs to ship this year, a drop in the bucket compared with the roughly 165 million traditional TV sets sold in any given year, he said, which explains why HP may not be too late to the party.
"If they're a few months late, it's not a big deal," O'Donnell said.
IDC expects significant volumes of flat-panel and plasma TVs by 2007, when prices will have declined dramatically. For now, the cost of the newfangled TVs are pretty steep, at about $3,400 for a 30-inch LCD television. Prices for various high-tech TVs range from $500 to more than $10,000.
"That's a lot of money," O'Donnell said.
Jennifer Gallo, another analyst at IDC who tracks LCD monitors and televisions, said that the rush among PC companies to enter the market could create an oversupply, but she considered that unlikely.
"That is a risk, but I think what's going to happen is prices are going to come down, and that's going to happen anyway, because if you want people to buy these things, prices have to come down," Gallo said.
That, in turn, will fuel demand.
As the PC companies move into these new markets, challenging traditional consumer electronics companies such as Sony Corp. (Tokyo:6758.T - News; NYSE:SNE - News) and others, there could be too many brands, but not necessarily too many products, O'Donnell added.
"The market place is going to be broken wide open by all these new players," he said, adding that it won't happen right away. "It's going to upset the apple cart over the next three to five years." (Additional reporting by Caroline Humer in New York)
wicked little site from RB...
http://www.ipodsdirtysecret.com/
CNET to launch indie music service
By John Borland
CNET News.com
November 26, 2003, 11:09 AM PT
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Shortly after buying the MP3.com domain name and announcing that its sprawling music archive would close, CNET Networks said Wednesday it will start its own free service for independent musicians online.
MP3.com's existing database, which contains more than 1 million songs, largely from unsigned and independent musicians, will be shut down Dec. 2. But CNET said it will create a new service similar to the old MP3.com early next year, offering free storage space, uploads and downloads for artists as part of its Download.com software aggregation site.
"Download.com plans to do for musicians what it did for software developers when it launched nearly 10 years ago: give independent artists an affordable way to build a market for their work," read a note sent to MP3.com artists by CNET late on Tuesday. CNET Networks is the publisher of CNET News.com.
CNET's announcement earlier this month that it would purchase the MP3.com domain and close the service prompted a stir of resentment inside the independent music community, although the music site had lost much of cachet it enjoyed during the early dot-com years.
MP3.com's founder, Michael Robertson, sent out a message from his current company, Lindows.com, under the heading "Digital Museum Burns to the Ground." In it he called on former MP3.com owners Vivendi Universal to arrange for the preservation of the independent music archive's contents.
In its announcement Wednesday, CNET said it did not have the capacity to transfer all the old music and Web pages over to its new service, since it did not acquire the back-end database systems that formed the core of the old MP3.com, or their contents. The company's message advised artists to retain copies of everything posted on MP3.com so that they can later be posted on the new Download.com music site.
A brief message about the new site, posted on its future home page, reads: "The music community spoke, and Download.com listened." The free site will launch in early 2004, it said, but it gave few other details.
CNET has said it plans to use the MP3.com domain to launch an information service focusing on digital music. Industry insiders had said the company risked alienating a large part of its potential target audience for the new site with the closure of the original MP3.com music archive. The launch of the new independent music archive may in part be aimed at smoothing over those community dissatisfactions.
Other sites are also seeking to take advantage of the closure of the original MP3.com. Broadjam, a company that charges for similar online music archiving and distribution services, said Wednesday it would waive its $50 annual membership fee for former MP3.com artists.
At the peak of the Internet boom, several sites, including MP3.com, Riffage.com and Garageband.com, offered huge, free database and distribution services for musicians who wanted to make their music available online. None found long-term profits in the model, however.
The San Francisco Megastore is Born Again!
Our very own Virgin chairman, Sir Richard Branson, will be flying in from London to lead the revival at our San Francisco Megastore on Dec 3. From 4-8pm there will be much rejoicing including:
Belly Dance Superstars
Glide Memorial Choir
San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus
DJ Mark Farina
Charity Auction
Chance to win a Triumph motorcycle
Other blessed treats
Plus, at 6pm Sir Richard will lead a special service to celebrate the rebirth!
Virgin Megastore rises again – with a new look, a new layout and a new lineup of products. So, come join the festivities, and bask in the glow of entertainment shopping like you've never seen before. Seek new experiences among not only the best selection of CDs and DVDs, but tons new products including the best of today's electronics, fashion, accessories, and more.
You will find serenity in our new Mind, Body & Spirit department. Or cross over to the other side with some of the exotic confections in our new Adult Entertainment department. If its grooves you seek, check our new Dance/Hip Hop section, where we have the biggest selection of dance and hip music plus DJ equipment, DJ gear and loads of vinyl. And if movies are your thing, let the largest selection of DVDs on the west coast make your eyes water.
You'll also be enlightened by the most advanced technology in an entertainment retail store, including hand-held listening devices, in-store kiosks where you can download songs (for free!) and CD/DVD vending machines. Plus, the largest concert stage in a North American retail store.
So, come celebrate the second coming of Virgin Megastore San Francisco Wednesday, December 3rd from 4-8 pm. It will be a devilishly good time.
See you there.
- VirginMegaMag Staff
November 24, 2003
Dell Unveils Its iPod Kryptonite
Bizarro was an imperfect clone of Superman yet still pulled off the occasional superhero feat. So it is with the Dell DJ.
By Peter Lewis
The evil scientist Lex Luthor used his duplicator ray to try to clone Superman, but something went terribly wrong. The result was Bizarro, a good-natured but ugly and backward version of the Man of Steel. Bizarro was the antithesis of cool; his home planet, Htrae, was square.
When Bizarro had good news to announce, he would say, "This am terrible!"
Which leads us into a discussion of Dell's new Bizarro version of Apple's iPod, called the Dell Digital Jukebox Music Player, or Dell DJ for short. Coming from the square world of Dell instead of the hip world of Apple, it's bigger, heavier, and clunkier than Apple's sleek, suave, elegant iPod, which arrived on the scene two years ago and quickly became the most popular portable digital music player on our home planet, Earth. Even worse, the Musicmatch-backed Dell Music Store is the clumsy, Bizarro counterpart to Apple's brilliant iTunes Music Store.
So why am the Dell DJ terrible, in the good sense of the word?
Devoted fans of Bizarro know that although he was an imperfect clone of Superman, he was still capable of the occasional superhero feat. And so it is with the Dell DJ, which has a superheroic battery capable of lasting 16 hours between charges, or twice as long as the iPod's.
On top of that, the two models of the Dell DJ are both around $100 cheaper than their iPod equivalents. The 20-gigabyte DJ costs $299, vs. $399 for the 20GB iPod. Both hold up to 5,000 songs. The 15GB DJ is $249; Apple no longer makes a 15GB iPod, but the 10GB iPod costs $299, so the price differential holds true.
The third advantage the Dell DJ has over the iPod: It was designed from the start to work with the Microsoft Windows operating system and with industry-standard USB 2.0 connection ports. (Apple has since released Windows-flavored iTunes software and an optional USB 2.0 iPod dock connector, much to the horror of Macintosh purists. However, the true glory of the iPod is revealed only when it is connected to the Apple iTunes Music Store via a Macintosh computer through a FireWire connection.) The Dell DJ's native affinity for Windows will make the PC majority quite happy.
Bizarro, the pathetic wretch, was driven mad by constant comparisons with the handsome, smart, and sexy Superman he was meant to emulate. So too must the DJ suffer from inevitable comparisons with the iPod, with its two-year headstart. If the iPod did not exist, the DJ might even lay claim to the title of Best Portable Music Player Since the Sony Walkman.
But the iPod does exist, and so do Apple iTunes and the Apple iTunes Music Store, and thus the Dell DJ is doomed to be merely the second-best player on the market.
In other words, we must praise the DJ with faint damns.
The DJ's blue, backlit screen and function keys are attractive but hardly as sexy as the red-orange glowing buttons on the newer iPods. Everybody has blue lights these days, it seems.
Much is made of the sheer simplicity of the iPod's navigation system. Actually, in many ways I like the DJ's system better. It has a clever mechanical scroll wheel-button combination that some people will like better than the solid-state scroll wheel on Apple's device. And the DJ has an on-off button, something that disappears in the iPod's too-cool minimalist design. (To turn off an iPod, one has to push and hold the play button. It's sort of like shutting down a Windows computer by clicking the start tab.) The other buttons on Dell's maximalist design are all clearly identified and intuitive.
Despite the DJ's obvious heft—it weighs just shy of half a pound—Dell still tries to portray it in its advertisements as "sleek" and "ultra-portable." A more honest approach would be to tout the DJ's solid feel in the hand and its ruggedness and macho silver-and-black color scheme. It's more like the Humvee of digital music players.
Well, maybe the Humvee is a bad example, since the DJ is outgunned by the iPod in other areas.
Apple already has a 40GB, 10,000-song iPod that's smaller and lighter than the 20GB Dell. (Why Dell ignored the 40GB drive offered by Hitachi, which makes the 1.8-inch hard drives used in the DJs, is a mystery—as is Dell's decision to offer two models that differ by a mere five GB.)
The DJ can be used for backing up data from the user's PC, but the iPod goes further; it can be used as a bootable hard drive. Sure, that's a geeky distinction, but it's one of the things that contributes to the iPod mystique.
The Dell supports MP3, WMA, WAV, and mono sound files. The iPod does too, plus AAC, which some consider to be a superior music-compression format.
The iPod's software enables it to store contacts, an appointment calendar, to-do lists, a clock, and games, all synced with the computer. Dell chose not to include these handy extras. However, the DJ has a built-in microphone that's useful for capturing classroom lectures and all those fascinating marketing presentations that Dell's corporate customers enjoy so much. On the iPod, voice recording requires an add-on device.
The biggest difference between the iPod and the DJ, besides the classic difference between Beauty and the Beast, is in their respective music-software services. Musicmatch is my favorite Windows-based online music service—that's like saying a prostate exam is my favorite invasive procedure—and it's at the heart of Dell's new online Music Store. Songs can be downloaded for a buck and transferred to the DJ with relative ease.
However—and who can blame Bizarro for screaming, "Yes! Keep going! I can stand it!"—Musicmatch and the Dell Music Store are simply no match for Apple's iTunes and the Apple iTunes Music Store when it comes to elegance of operation and ease of use.
Cheer up, Bizarro. With your superior battery life, lower cost, and intuitive user interface, you am definitely terrible, at least in the Windows universe.
From the Dec. 8, 2003 Issue
Last Updated: Tuesday, 25 November, 2003, 10:39 GMT
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Talking newspapers get human 'voice'
By Geoff Adams-Spink
BBC News Online disability affairs reporter
Partially-sighted and blind people will be able to get time-sensitive information from newspapers and magazines from a device which reads to them, instead of relying on recoded tapes.
The AudioRead does away with robotic voices
The development is a result of a partnership between the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) and a company called Rhetorical Systems.
Rhetorical's rVoice text-to-speech technology (TTS) is based on the voice files of real people and sounds which are considerably more natural than traditional speech synthesisers.
Using robotic-sounding speech synthesis to read long newspaper or magazine articles is hard on the ear.
But having a real person read an entire newspaper on tape takes time and involves considerable cost.
Skip and jump
The RNIB plans to harness Rhetorical's TTS technology to deliver information to subscribers via a device called the AudioRead.
It is like a portable MP3 player that will dial in to retrieve information which people can listen to whenever and wherever they like.
The mainstay of our users who listen to books have never liked the idea of synthetic speech, they've always wanted a real reader
Steve Tyler, RNIB
Unlike tape, users will also be able to navigate the newspaper, skipping between articles and sections at will.
Speaking to BBC News Online at the recent RNIB Techshare conference in Birmingham, the organisation's technology expert, Steve Tyler, said the organisation was "very excited" about the technology.
"We'll be able to produce 400 hours of audio in one hour," he said.
"It's one of the most human-like voices we've come across.
"The mainstay of our users who listen to books have never liked the idea of synthetic speech, they've always wanted a real reader."
Mr Tyler hopes that this solution will be acceptable to those people and trials of the AudioRead will start next month.
Pay to hear
The RNIB said one aspect they are keen to evaluate is whether subscribers are prepared to pay for such a wealth of information.
"People haven't had access to this kind of material before, ever," said Mr Tyler.
"At the same time they've never had to pay the costs."
People will be charged the annual equivalent of the cost of a daily paper or weekly or monthly magazine.
"The question is, will people do that? Is it sufficiently interesting," said Mr Tyler.
Rhetorical produces the synthetic voices by having someone read a standard script.
The various sounds are then "sliced and diced" and used in the company's speech engine.
A whole voice can be produced in around five weeks.
Rhetorical's products are already in use with automated telephone systems, and as a virtual newsreader on a website.
Tuesday - November 25, 2003
US legal music downloads double
By Macworld staff
Digital music download services are exploding, with the number of US consumers downloading tracks doubling in the first half of 2003.
Ownership of MP3 players such as Apple's market leading iPod is also climbing: 19 per cent of US music downloaders own such devices – up from 12 per cent in December 2002.
A quarterly digital music behaviour report from research firm Ipsos-Insight shows that in late June 2003, "roughly" one out of six (16 per cent) of US music downloaders aged 12 and older had paid to download music online. The company says this is the equivalent of 10 million people.
At that time, Apple's iTunes Music Store was setting the trend for digital music sales and consumer rights. Few of the current big-name digital music services, such as Napster 2.0, existed at that time. Forrester Research recently asserted that digital music sales will account for one third of all music sales by 2008.
The data is contained within the company's Tempo: Keeping Pace with Digital Music Behavior, a quarterly research study that examines the ongoing influence and effects of digital music worldwide. Report author Matt Kleinschmit observed: "A twofold increase in the number of American downloaders exposed to for-pay music downloads in just a six-month time frame (compared to 8 per cent in December 2002 and 13 per cent in April 2003) signals a remarkable shift in downloader behaviour."
Wisdom of youth
The research also reveals that young adults aged 18-24 are most likely to have paid to download digital music, however, it also shows that older downloaders are getting involved. 19 per cent of computer users between 25-54 have also paid to buy digital music.
The research also shows that 12-17 year olds – who often don't have credit cards – are the least likely to say they have paid for digital music. Apple has attempted to address this point in iTunes 4.1, introducing gift vouchers and a parent-controlled allowance feature so people in this age group can choose to use its legal service rather than steal music.
Kleinschmit said: "Downloaders of all ages are clearly beginning to experiment with fee-based online music distribution in increasing numbers."
The analyst points out that the new data was collected in June, prior to the debut of iTunes for Windows and competing Windows-friendly services: "It will be interesting to see how these refined fee-based online music services impact this figure in futures waves of Tempo, and whether downloaders' dependence on peer-to-peer filesharing decreases accordingly."
On the increased market-share for MP3 players, Kleinschmit said: "The rise in portable MP3 player ownership among US downloaders, coupled with the growth in paid downloading, suggests that digital music enthusiasts may be shifting their overall music acquisition and listening behaviors from a physical to a digital approach."
He described this as a potentially "positive sign" for associated industries: "Legitimate market opportunities are increasingly prevalent in the world of digital music, even alongside unauthorized peer-to-peer filesharing," he said.
The BBC's North America business correspondent, Stephen Evans, has an opinion piece available that confirms that digital music is transforming the way US citizens listen to music.
LimeWire chief technology officer Greg Bildson recently dismissed the impact of legal services on peer-to-peer networks. Speaking to Macworld he said: "We've seen no effect on the number of software downloads we see in any given day."
Data supporting the Ipsos-Insigh's claims was collected between June 27-30 from a sample of 1,112 respondents aged 12 and over. The analysts claim its conclusions are 95 per cent likely to be accurate.
Movielink, SBC Yahoo Link for Trial Service
Mon Nov 24,10:22 PM ET Add Technology - Internet Report to My Yahoo!
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Reuters) - Online movie download service Movielink on Monday said it will start offering a custom version of its service on a trial basis to SBC Yahoo broadband subscribers.
The deal marks another effort by Movielink to expand its reach into more consumer homes. Movielink, a venture among five of Hollywood's major movie studios, offers digital files of movies that can be downloaded directly onto computer.
SBC Yahoo, a venture between SBC Communications Inc. and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) provides Internet access to more than 3.1 million digital subscribers.
During the promotional trial, SBC Yahoo broadband members can go to sbc.movielink.com to browse, rent, and download movies from the co-branded site.
In recent months, Movielink has boosted its promotional efforts and struck similar deals with other Internet access providers to reach more potential users. In October, it launched a co-branded site with Internet portal Lycos.
Movielink was launched last year to provide a legal, paid alternative to movie swap sites utilizing peer-to-peer networks where users can download illegally copied films for free.
Films downloaded from Movielink currently range between $1.99 and $4.99 for a 24-hour viewing period and can be stored on a computer hard drive for up to 30 days.
Movielink is a venture of Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. . Warner Bros. is a division of Time Warner Inc . Paramount is part of Viacom Inc . Universal is a unit of Vivendi Universal, and Sony Pictures is a wing of Sony Corp (news - web sites) .
Digital jukebox will use broadband to storm pubs
Graeme Wearden
ZDNet UK
November 24, 2003, 17:50 GMT
Tell us your opinion
Picking a few tracks to listen to down the local will never be the same again, as high-speed Web access bringing music to the ears of drinkers
Thousands of pubs will soon be offering customers the chance to use the latest device to fuse high-speed Internet access and digital music -- the broadband-enabled jukebox.
Inspired Broadcast Networks, the company behind Wi-Fi network operator The Cloud, released details on Monday of the digital music player. Designed to replace the traditional pub jukebox, it uses a broadband connection to give customers access to an online database of two million songs.
It also embraces e- and m-commerce, through a partnership with Entertainment UK, part of high street chain Woolworths. After selecting a track to play, users will be able to order a CD of the relevant album. By next year, they should also get the option of getting it emailed to them as MP3 files.
If a ringtone version of their chosen song exists they can also buy that. Payment can be by cash or Visa.
Thousands of models of the digital jukebox should be rolled out across Britain's pubs over the next two years.
This deployment could have a knock-on effect on the availability of high-speed Web connectivity in rural areas.
The Cloud, which is the largest network of Wi-Fi networks in the UK, has the potential to become a wireless backbone that community groups can hang their own networks off. Back in February, company officials said they'd be happy for community broadband networks to be connected to its wireless hot spots.
MP3 seeps into hi-fi
Sholto Macpherson
NOVEMBER 25, 2003
THE convenience of memory cards that can hold hundreds or thousands of songs is changing the way we view music storage.
Light, high-capacity MP3 players have revolutionised portable music, and will affect the home stereo in a similar way.
But there are few home stereo products that play MP3 files directly from a storage device.
The audio industry has turned up its nose at the prospect of introducing MP3 playback into high-end products, as MP3s fall short in sound quality, and convenience is not a selling point when an amplifier alone costs several thousand dollars.
The digital file format also has negative associations because of the debate over file sharing.
Manufacturers have been uneasy about introducing the technology for fear of putting the recording industry offside.
One product manager says the implications of music piracy were considered during the design stages and the company has worked carefully to "make sure we're not stepping on anyone's toes".
As with airbags and power steering in the motor car industry, new technology normally filters down from high-end to budget products.
MP3 playback capability is bucking the trend, however, as mini and micro systems are leading the way.
Philips and Sony have units capable of streaming audio from a PC using a USB connection, but in the format stakes Sony's CMTM333NT one-ups Philips' MCM570 with its ability to also play minidiscs.
Of course, any home stereo can play music files from a PC over a simple auxiliary port connection, but the software with these two systems allows playlists to be chosen using the stereo's remote control.
The quality of PC soundcard and speaker packages now rivals that of low-end micro systems. Both models need a PC to drive the software, and at this stage it is not possible to play songs from an MP3 player or a single-purpose storage device such as a USB key drive.
The more expensive home theatre systems, such as the Philips MX5700D, can also play MP3 files through a PCMCIA slot that uses popular flash standards, such as Memory Stick, MMD and Compact Flash.
An interesting development in home audio that has crossed over to car stereos is systems built around a hard disk.
Sony's wall-mounted CMTL7HD comes with a 20GB hard drive that records tracks through optical input, USB or by loading a regular or MP3-carrying CD.
Pioneer sells a stereo based on a 10GB hard drive (the DEH-P900HDD), which slots into a car's dashboard, loading MP3s through CD or Memory Stick slots.
But hard drives may become an unnecessary addition and Philips Australia DVD audio senior product manager Scott Housely says the home stereo market will move in two different directions.
The most obvious step is to enable portable devices such as MP3 players to plug and play through a stereo using a USB connection. The alternative is to equip stereos with wireless receivers so they can play music files sent from a laptop or desktop PC in another part of the house.
Philips and its competitors expect to have models capable of performing both tasks next year.
Regardless of how it ends up on your system, digital MP3 files are destined to replace the racks of CDs stacked on your shelves. It's only a matter of time.
Investor Group Led by Thomas H. Lee Partners, Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Bain Capital and Providence Equity Partners to Purchase Warner Music Group and Create One of the World's Largest Independent Music Companies
Monday November 24, 9:07 am ET
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 24, 2003--Thomas H. Lee Partners
* Investor Group to Purchase Recorded Music and Music Publishing Businesses in Their Entirety for Approximately $2.6 Billion in Cash
* Time Warner Retains Option to Buy Back Minority Stake in Businesses
Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX - News) and an investor group led by Thomas H. Lee Partners, Edgar Bronfman, Jr.'s Lexa Partners, Bain Capital and Providence Equity Partners today announced the sale of Time Warner's Warner Music Group, including its recorded music operations and Warner/Chappell music publishing business, to the investor group for approximately $2.6 billion in cash and other consideration, including the option of buying back into the business on favorable terms in the future.
This purchase would create one of the world's largest independent music companies - home to an extraordinary roster of recording artists and songwriters; some of the best-known record labels in the industry, including Warner Bros., Atlantic and Elektra Records; and Warner/Chappell Music, one of the industry's largest music publishing companies with more than one million copyrights.
The company will retain the name Warner Music Group.
Investor Group to Build on Warner Music Strengths
"Warner Music Group is one of the world's greatest recorded music and music publishing companies, and we have great faith in its potential for growth as an independent company and in the long-term opportunities of this industry," said Edgar Bronfman, Jr. "We have brought together a highly sophisticated and well-financed group of investors to support the business. I personally look forward to working with Roger Ames and his outstanding management team to build on Warner Music's strengths, including its distinguished tradition of entrepreneurship and artist development. Together, we will continue to drive towards Warner Music's full potential."
Scott M. Sperling, Managing Director of Thomas H. Lee Partners, said: "We look forward to partnering with Warner Music Group's talented management to build upon its world-renowned franchise and industry-leading brands. While we do not foresee an immediate upturn in the overall market for recorded music, we believe opportunities are emerging that bode well for the long-term future of the business and that Warner Music will continue to be in the forefront of capitalizing on these opportunities."
Time Warner Chairman and CEO Dick Parsons said: "I'm very pleased that we are putting our music company in such capable hands. Despite my personal fondness for the music business as well as for all of our wonderful managers and music group employees, I believe that this transaction is clearly in the best interests of our company's shareholders. Not only will it greatly enhance our financial flexibility, it also will enable us to pursue higher growth opportunities in our other lines of business. At the same time, we expect to continue to work closely with Warner Music, and we are happy to have the option to participate in the music industry's eventual recovery. We thank Roger Ames for his superb leadership of the Warner Music Group over the past four years, and offer him and all of our music colleagues our best wishes."
Jeff Bewkes, Chairman of Time Warner's Entertainment & Networks Group, said: "With this investor group's deep commitment to the music business, we believe this deal is the best outcome for the people of our music company, our stellar roster of artists and their millions of fans around the world. Even with this sale, we look forward to continuing to work closely with Warner Music through a number of productive relationships involving our other divisions. Finally, we appreciate the tremendous efforts of Roger and his management team in strengthening Warner Music and helping to make this deal happen."
Roger Ames, Chairman and CEO of Warner Music Group, said: "I have every confidence that Warner Music will thrive under Edgar's leadership. His passion for the music business is clear, and his understanding of the creative process will be enormously important. It's an exciting chance to return to the independent roots that the music industry was built upon with what will be one of the world's largest independent music companies. These factors, along with the solid foundation we've built at the Music Group, mean we're very well positioned to take advantage of the technological advances that are spurring the industry's next phase of growth. I look forward to working with Edgar, as we strive to master the challenges our industry is facing."
Highlights of Transaction
The investor group will buy Warner Music Group in its entirety on a debt-free basis for approximately $2.6 billion. Time Warner has the option to buy up to 15% of the Company at any time during the three years following closing, and as much as 19.9% of the Company under certain circumstances.
This sale is expected to reduce Time Warner's reported net debt by approximately $2.6 billion. Any taxable gains from the transaction will be offset by existing capital and net operating losses.
The transaction, which is subject to the customary regulatory reviews, is expected to take up to 60 days to close.
The investor group has secured financing from leading investment banks, including Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch. Merger and acquisition advice for the investor group was provided by each of the aforementioned banks as well as by AGM Partners and Jeffries & Co. Gary Fuhrman of GF Capital was the merger and acquisition advisor to Lexa Partners. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett provided legal advice for the group.
Time Warner was advised by Morgan Stanley and Cravath, Swaine & Moore.
Experienced and Well-Financed Investor Group
Edgar Bronfman, Jr., who is CEO of Lexa Partners and will be the most senior executive of the new company, brings extensive experience and a proven track record in the entertainment industry. During his tenure as CEO of Seagram Company Ltd. from 1995 to 2000, he acquired Universal Music and Universal Studios and led the transformation of the entertainment properties from slow-growth operations into the #1 or #2 businesses in their respective markets.
Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P., a Boston-based private equity firm with approximately $14 billion under management, focuses on identifying and acquiring substantial ownership positions in growth companies. They and other members of the investor group - Bain Capital and Providence Equity Partners - have been behind some of the most successful media investments of the past decade.
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group consists of recorded music and music publishing businesses. It is home to some of the world's leading record companies, including The Atlantic Group, Elektra Entertainment Group, Rhino Entertainment, Warner Bros. Records Inc. and Word Entertainment. Warner Music, which posted revenues of $4.2 billion in 2002, currently has approximately 5,300 employees.
The company's Warner Music International, with a roster of more than 800 artists, operates in more than 70 countries through various subsidiaries, affiliates and non-affiliated licensees. Warner Music also includes one of the world's leading music and print music publishers, Warner/Chappell, and WEA Corp., Warner Music Group's U.S. sales and retail marketing company. The company's current corporate Website is at www.wmg.com.
Warner Music Group boasts a roster of some of today's most successful artists including: Bjork, Michelle Branch, Brandy, Tracy Chapman, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Ry Cooder, The Corrs, The Darkness, The Distillers, Missy Elliott, Enya, Fabolous, Fleetwood Mac, Amy Grant, David Gray, Green Day, Josh Groban, Emmylou Harris, Faith Hill, Jet, Jewel, Kick The Can Crew, Kid Rock, Gerald Levert, Madonna, Mana, matchbox twenty, MC Solaar, Metallica, Luis Miguel, Alanis Morissette, Jason Mraz, Nappy Roots, Randy Newman, P.O.D., Sean Paul, Laura Pausini, Tom Petty, Phish, Point Of Grace, Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M., Damien Rice, Alejandro Sanz, Simple Plan, Sixpence None The Richer, Staind, Sugar Ray, Mariya Takeuchi, Third Eye Blind, Trapt, Tweet, Tatsuro Yamashita and Neil Young.
Its catalog also includes such legendary artists as: B-52s, Black Sabbath, Jackson Browne, Ray Charles, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Depeche Mode, Dire Straits, The Doobie Brothers, The Doors, Eagles, Aretha Franklin, The Grateful Dead, The Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Little Feat, Natalie Merchant/10,000 Maniacs, Joni Mitchell, The Ramones, Linda Ronstadt, Carly Simon, Paul Simon, Frank Sinatra, Talking Heads, James Taylor, Van Halen, Van Morrison and Warren Zevon.
Among Warner Music's highlights in 2003:
* Increased share of music sales in the U.S. over the previous year;
* Reached #2 in U.S. total album sales;
* Delivered top sellers (year-to-date) from Linkin Park, Sean Paul, Madonna, Metallica, R.E.M., Cher, Kid Rock, Staind, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Josh Groban;
* Released top selling WMG debut albums from: Sean Paul, Simple Plan, Trapt and Jason Mraz;
* Played an industry-leading role in the development of Apple's iTunes, the most successful music download store;
* Continued to lead the industry in the wireless space through agreements with major wireless carriers AT&T and Sprint, among others; and
* Successfully sold the DVD/CD manufacturing and physical distribution businesses to Cinram International for US$1.05 billion.
* Warner Music's artists and recordings won 13 Grammy Awards, with an additional 6 awards going to songwriters signed to Warner/Chappell at the 45th Annual Grammy Awards.
* Warner Music International increased its chart share in the UK, France and other territories in the first half of 2003.
Among Warner Music's companies are:
Warner Bros. Records
Jack Warner founded Warner Bros. Records as a soundtrack factory 45 years ago. Today, Warner Bros. Records has expanded to cover a vast spectrum of musical genres through the addition of Reprise Records and Maverick Records and the formation of the Warner Nashville and Warner Jazz divisions.
Over the years, Warner Bros. Records and Reprise Records have earned a reputation as artist-friendly labels with a visionary approach toward discovering and nurturing musical talent. In fact, Warner Bros. Records has become one of the most successful labels in history, and the Warner and Reprise catalogs are recognized among the richest and most diversified in the industry.
Warner Bros. Records is also a partner in Maverick Records, which was launched as a joint venture with Madonna, Guy Oseary and Ronnie Dashev. Maverick has become one of the most successful artist-owned labels in history.
Elektra Records
Elektra Records was founded more than half a century ago in the heart of New York City's Greenwich Village by legendary music pioneer Jac Holzman. Over the years, this boutique label has set the standard for breaking new ground in the worldwide music scene.
Elektra was one of the primary forces in folk music in the 1960s, virtually inventing the artist-driven environment that fueled the Southern California rock boom a decade later. Elektra was also one of the first Warner Music labels to "go global," contributing to the development of Warner Music International.
In 1995, the company developed into the Elektra Entertainment Group, which comprises an array of imprints including the flagship Elektra label and Goldmind Inc., among others.
The Atlantic Group
Fifty-five years ago, Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson started an independent jazz and R&B label in New York City, which they named Atlantic Records. Growing from literally a one-room operation into one of the preeminent companies in the rapidly evolving music industry, the Atlantic label soon became recognized and revered around the world -- a name synonymous with artistry and quality.
Over the past half-century, Atlantic artists have had a profound impact on the development of modern music, while entertaining and engaging listeners with songs that have rooted themselves in our collective consciousness.
The Atlantic Group of today has been built on an enduring philosophy of developing career artists and nurturing top executive talent, spurring growth from within its own ranks. The company is now comprised of three main divisions: the flagship Atlantic label, Lava and Nonesuch. Together, they are releasing recordings by artists working in a wide spectrum of musical fields. At the same time, the company has been a pioneer in the marriage of music and new technology.
Word Entertainment
Founded in 1951 as Word Records, Word Entertainment is a pioneer of contemporary Christian music, a genre that is considered among the fastest-growing in the music industry. Today, Word Entertainment is a multi-faceted company known for innovative product development and marketing, as well as strategic distribution of music and videos. Encompassing Word Label Group, Word Publishing, Word Music, and Word Distribution, Word Entertainment is one of the great success stories of the contemporary Christian music industry.
Word Label Group is home to the Word Records and Squint Entertainment labels.
Word Publishing has approximately 45 Christian songwriters under contract and administers a catalog of more than 40,000 copyrighted songs.
Word Music is the industry's premier source for church hymnals, choral music, and associated instrumental music, vocal folios, and accompaniment tracks.
Word Distribution provides sales, marketing, and distribution to Christian Booksellers Association (CBA) accounts for WMG product and that of distributed labels, including Curb Records, Integrity Music, Big Idea Productions, M2.0 Communications, INO Records, Ray Boltz Music, Spindust Records, Spring Hill Music, Praise Gathering Music Group, Metro One Music, Daywind, Floodgate Records, Crowne Music Group, Garden City Music, and Family Home Entertainment.
An affiliate of Curb Records, Inc., a leading Nashville-based independent record company, is a 20% partner in Word Entertainment. Curb Records, Inc. and its affiliates are parties to long-term worldwide distribution agreements with WEA Corp., London Records and WEA International Inc.
Warner Music International
Established in 1970 as WEA International, Warner Music International (WMI) is the most far-reaching of Time Warner's divisions, promoting both U.S. and local repertoire around the world.
Alongside the artists signed to U.S. labels Warner Bros. Records Inc., Elektra Entertainment Group and The Atlantic Group, WMI distributes and markets repertoire from its own network of 47 affiliates and numerous licensees in more than 70 countries. With a roster of approximately 800 local artists performing in 25 languages, WMI has an ongoing commitment to developing domestic talent aimed at achieving national, regional, or international success.
WMI has three regional offices covering Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America, and its international operations also include Warner Music Canada, Warner Vision, Warner Strategic Marketing, Warner Classics and new media activities.
Warner Strategic Marketing (U.S.)
Warner Strategic Marketing was developed to promote Warner Music's vast catalog of extraordinary artists in the U.S., as well as to provide support and assistance to the company's frontline labels. The division -- which includes Rhino Entertainment, Warner Special Products, Warner Music Group Soundtracks, and Warner Television Marketing -- also develops new catalog-related business opportunities across Time Warner and with third-party companies.
Warner/Chappell Music
Warner/Chappell Music, WMG's award-winning music publishing company, has a catalog of more than one million copyrights worldwide. These range from standards like "Happy Birthday," "Rhapsody in Blue," "Winter Wonderland," and the collective works of Cole Porter to the contemporary music of Madonna, Radiohead, Sheryl Crow, Nickelback, India.Arie, Michelle Branch, and others. Warner/Chappell is often a first stop for record, film, and television producers; A&R executives; and others who need to acquire song rights. Warner/Chappell Music also includes Warner Bros. Publications, which is one of the largest publishers of printed music in the world. The company prints and distributes a broad selection of sheet music, books and educational materials, folios, personality books, orchestrations and arrangements from the catalogs of Warner/Chappell, Zomba and Universal Music Publishing among others.
WEA Corp.
WEA Corp. was the first major music distribution company in the U.S. and has continued to set the standard for sales and marketing in the music industry for more than thirty years. In addition to the Warner Bros., Elektra and Atlantic labels, WEA distributes audio, video and DVD releases from Rhino Entertainment, Word Entertainment, Time-Life Music, Warner Music Latina, and Curb Records and Palm Pictures, as well as several other labels.
Alternative Distribution Alliance
ADA was started in 1993 to focus on the independent music market, where some of the biggest music acts have always built their initial followings. Today the Alternative Distribution Alliance is recognized as the leading distributor of independent record labels, handling labels such as SubPop, Matador, Tommy Boy, Comedy Central, Touch and Go, Beggars Music Group, Palm Pictures, Saddle Creek, Side One/Dummy, and Bloodshot.
About Time Warner Inc.
Time Warner Inc. is the world's leading media and entertainment company, whose businesses include filmed entertainment, interactive services, television networks, cable systems, publishing and music.
About Thomas H. Lee Partners
Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. is a Boston-based private equity firm focused on identifying and acquiring substantial ownership positions in growth companies. Founded in 1974, Thomas H. Lee Partners currently manages approximately $14 billion of committed capital, including its most recent fund, the $6.1 billion Thomas H. Lee Equity Fund V. Notable transactions sponsored by the firm include: American Media, AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, Cott Corporation, Endurance Specialty Insurance, Experian, Eye Care Centers of America, Fisher Scientific International, General Nutrition Centers, Houghton Mifflin, Michael Foods, National Waterworks, Rayovac, Snapple Beverage and TransWestern Publishing.
About Edgar Bronfman, Jr.
Edgar Bronfman, Jr. is Chief Executive Officer of Lexa Partners LLC, a management venture capital group based in New York City. Mr. Bronfman also serves as Vice Chairman of the Vivendi Universal Board of Directors and co-Chairman of A&G Group Limited, the parent of Asprey and Garrard. In addition, Mr. Bronfman is a member of the boards of USA Interactive; Equitant, Inc., a leader in order-to-cash outsourcing; New York University Medical Center; and the Board of Governors of the Joseph H. Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies at the University of Pennsylvania.
From 1994-2000, Mr. Bronfman was President and Chief Executive Officer of Seagram Company Ltd. During his tenure as CEO of Seagram, he consummated $85 billion in transactions and transformed the company into one of the world's leading media and communications companies.
About Bain Capital
Bain Capital is a global private investment firm that manages several pools of capital including private equity, high-yield assets, mezzanine capital and public equity with over $15 billion in assets under management. Since its inception in 1984, the firm has made private equity investments and add-on acquisitions in over 225 companies around the world, in a variety of sectors, including media and entertainment. Bain Capital partners with exceptional management teams in order to build long-term value in its portfolio companies. Headquartered in Boston, Bain Capital has offices in Munich, London, New York, and San Francisco. For more information visit www.baincapital.com.
About Providence Equity Partners Inc.
Providence Equity Partners Inc. is one of the world's leading private investment firms specializing in equity investments in media and communications companies. The principals of Providence Equity manage funds with over $5.0 billion in equity commitments, including Providence Equity Partners IV, a $2.8 billion private equity fund, and have invested in more than 70 companies operating in over 20 countries since the firm's inception in 1991. Current and previous areas of investment include cable television content and distribution, wireless and wireline telephony, publishing, radio and television broadcasting and other media and communications sectors.
Significant investments include VoiceStream Wireless, AT&T Canada, eircom plc, Casema, Kabel Deutschland, Language Line, F&W Publications, ProSiebenSat.1, Continental Cable and Bresnan Broadband Holdings. The firm has offices in Providence, New York and London. Visit www.provequity.com for additional information.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact:
Edward Adler (Time Warner)
Edward.Adler@timewarner.com
212-484-6630
or
Tricia Primrose (Time Warner)
Tricia.Primrose@timewarner.com
212-484-7450
or
Mia.Carbonell (Time Warner)
Mia.Carbonell@timewarner.com
212-484-6684
or
Dawn Bridges (Warner Music Group)
Dawn.Bridges@WMG.Com
212-275-2208
or
Will Tanous (Warner Music Group)
Will.Tanous@wmg.com
212-275-2244
or
Lauren Hurvitz (Investor group - U.S.)
lhurvitz@rlmnet.com
212-484-6758
or
Laurent Dondey (Investor group - Europe)
EURO RSCG C&O
Laurent.Dondey@eurorscg.fr
Tel: (33) 1 58 47 95 17
Mobile: (33) 6 18 11 12 25
very nice answer to sunnyskies question chwd...short and to the point..positives and negatives each addressed
So then it will be shipping this Q...
...it is highly unlikely that Eclipse will not ship this Q.
DRM music goldrush is a race for losers - mp3.com founder
By Andrew Orlowski in San Francisco
Posted: 21/11/2003 at 11:24 GMT
Apple is leading a race of lemmings into the zero-profit business of closed music downloads, says the founder of MP3.com, Michael Robertson.
"It seems kind of crazy to me, the economics don't make sense," Robertson told us Thursday. "Why are all these guys like Microsoft and Wal-Mart rushing into a business where the industry leader says 'we cannot make money with the contracts that we have'?"
"This is a race where the winner gets shot in the head."
And William Tell-style, Apple volunteered to be the first into the firing range. Canny Apple has had to swallow the pigopolists royalty fees, and DRM restrictions, but it thinks it has a business because its closed business model sees downstream profits from iPods sales.
Robertson started MP3.com in 1998 and after a barrage of lawsuits, sold it to Vivendi Universal in 2001. Last week, after a night on the tiles, Vivendi sold the mp3.com domain name to CNET, leaving the million-song archive to the vultures. (Robertson is striving to find a host for this, and we shall have more news of this later today).
The computer industry traditionally opposed the copyright cartel, but Apple was the first snitch to cut a deal with the pigopolists. Was this wise, we wondered?
"If one company got a huge market share - say 50 per cent or higher - they could negotiate better royalty rates," notes Robertson. "But they forget something. The music industry is tens of thousands of publishers and just five major record labels. Getting all of them to agree is a real tough thing to accomplish even if you're market leader."
Without any Beatles songs, and with only one Roxy Music track on its music kiosk, Apple is currently in a position of begging the big five for content, rather than dictating the terms of the deal. It's the rebel without a clue. Can it turn the tables?
Well, there are several factors that ought to halt the wannabee players in the DRM goldrush in their tracks. A compulsory licensing scheme (which is now backed by the libertarian rights group the EFF) is one. But Robertson points to another: the decision by courts to permit KaZaA peer to peer-style sharing.
"It's the wild card," says Robertson. "KaZaA has been ruled legal, so why pay for restricted music?" he asks.
"Apple really haven't sold that much music. And they've received millions of dollars in free advertising. Don't get me wrong, Steve Jobs is a smart guy who knows the economics. He's clearly betting that he can subsidize it with profits from iPods, or get enough scale to begin renovating the royalty deals."
"It's a real dilemma for me," he says, echoing the thoughts of millions of peer to peer music lovers. "If I 'steal' music from KaZaA I get all this music, but if I pay I have all these restrictions."
If people can get unrestricted music for free, why would they need to go to a DRM store to get a low-quality version with all the strings attached, Robertson wonders. KaZaA, and future P2P technologies make file sharing so simple and fun.
"People will use P2P and people will buy CDs," he predicts.
With so many people - other than the DRM gold rush entrepreneurs - accepting such constraints, accepting that people will always want to share music, and technology will always outwit DRM controls - we're left with the ethical problem of how to compensate the artists.
(Which is why there is such momentum behind compulsory licenses right now. Many people accept that stopping music-sharing is a lost battle, so our better minds are thinking of schemes to use the technology to compensate artists fairly).
Robertson doesn't agree with the idea of a levy, but agrees "there needs to be a radical change here".
And pundits should be wary of Apple's early apparent success, he warns. "I'm not sure if an Apple user is representive sample of the population," he says.
True enough.
Paying for restricted versions of songs they could have got unrestricted and for free has been the real litmus test for Apple loyalists. It's a hurdle they've leaped over with glee. But how many will follow them? Has Steve Jobs mistakenly extrapolated cult behavior and assumed the rest of the world follows shares these values, and follows these assumptions?
That's not what we hear from you.
It's rather tasteless to remind you that this week is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Jonestown Massacre - where a charismatic San Franciscan decamped to the jungle and persuaded almost a thousand followers to commit suicide, by drinking toxic fruit juice. It gave birth to a lasting idiom: "have you drunk the Kool-Aid?"
Well, have you? ®
Yep, I remember that as well. I hear these hard drive players take a little longer to design...
Singing a Different Tune
Thursday, November 20, 2003
For a company who has never really had more to its name than a cool patented shade of silver and a sleek, single-button mouse, Apple may have just given itself purpose with its newest software application.
Apple’s foray into the online music business, iTunes has all but silenced critics in the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) whose whining mantra “we can’t compete with free” has prompted them to level mass lawsuits against the young people in this country who use file-sharing programs—the underlying idea being if they sue their ex-customers, these people will happily come back to CDs.
Since releasing the Windows version of the software last month, Apple’s sales have skyrocketed into the tens of millions, making Apple what CEO Steve Jobs called “the Microsoft of music stores.”
It’s a little known secret that Apple barely makes money off iTunes, despite the software’s popularity—nearly all revenues still go toward the copyright holders: the music labels.
By luring people in with the free iTunes, Apple put itself in a position to sell them its popular iPod mp3 player which is uniquely compatible with the iTunes software and is selling like hot cakes. Each $499 iPod brings in $175 in profit.
Such a scheme effectively leaves other online music traders in the dust since they can’t hope to make a profit from just selling the music. Even Microsoft, who announced this week its intentions to enter the online music fray, faces a tough time. It’s even conceivable that artists may start selling straight through iTunes, cutting out the music labels altogether.
Although I do credit Apple for their cleverness in this venture, their timing deserves the most credit.
It’s no secret that there’s a lot of bad blood between music labels and their coveted demographic—college students.
After gutting Napster and steadily burying its successors, the RIAA proceeded to sue the file sharers themselves, most of whom inhabit dorms across the country.
Although barely denting the file-sharing business itself, the RIAA has succeeded in earning an incredible amount of bad PR—the kind an organization can only get from suing a 12-year-old girl for thousands and forcing college students to empty out their savings accounts in settlements.
In their own defense, the RIAA could only emphasize to an unsympathetic public that they were targeting thieves who stole mercilessly from the pockets of struggling artists through casual downloading from software like Kazaa.
There are probably many reasons this generally law-abiding populace did not lend a sympathetic ear to the hardships of the RIAA whose profits only began to plummet during the depths of the economic downturn in 2001.
The recording industry makes a difficult case when it tries to portray kids downloading mp3s as stealing from the pockets of artists, when it’s a well-known fact that most all profits go to the music labels themselves, not the artists.
Even more difficult, the RIAA has to fight off a “Robin Hood” notion of file-sharing that comes from knowing the labels themselves have already been convicted of robbing those they now accuse. A 2000 class action anti-trust lawsuit made the labels cough up $143 million in settlement for over five years of price fixing.
Given the light punishment, it would not be difficult to imagine file sharers exacting a kind of poetic justice. While this lacks a legal premise, I believe the answer is more fundamental.
College students don’t have a problem paying for music, as the success of iTunes demonstrates. But on the same note, nobody likes to know that they’re being ripped off. Whatever trust existed in an already rocky relationship between music labels and consumers surely vanished when news of inflated CD prices came out.
As the Internet developed into a rich medium to exchange newly digitized songs, the RIAA didn’t budge, fat and complacent in their pricing and methods. Enter Napster. File sharing became synonymous with the Internet, the newest social paradigm.
When the RIAA attacked file sharing, not only did it refuse to adapt to the new digital climate, it outright sought to cripple it and has since witnessed a backlash that has left a gash in their bleeding business model. People wanted convenience and fair pricing and the music labels would have no part of it.
iTunes is just salt in the wound.
Was free always better? E-mail david@dailycal.org.
New Alpine MP3/WMA Hard Disk Drive Player for the Car Is Ultimate Gift for Digital Music Enthusiasts
Thursday November 20, 4:43 am ET
TORRANCE, Calif., Nov. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- For the really serious MP3 music fan, burning tracks to CDs is passe. Why fumble around with all those CDs when you can fit thousands of tracks on one small hard disk drive?
ADVERTISEMENT
Alpine Electronics' new in-dash HDA-5460 player with a 16GB removable hard disk drive enables people to take upwards of 3,000 of their favorite MP3/WMA/.WAV music files on the road with them. The Alpine HDA-5460, available nationwide at Alpine authorized dealers in early December (target retail price $1,000), is the quintessential holiday gift for any MP3/WMA music enthusiast.
"With up to one million paid music downloads taking place weekly, it's clear that people are building massive MP3/WMA libraries," said Steve Witt, Alpine's vice president of Brand Marketing. "Alpine's HDA-5460 defines compressed media playback in the car with industry-leading functionality that addresses the particular challenges online music enthusiasts face, including the need to more intuitively navigate through large libraries to easily find the music they're looking for."
With Alpine's HDA-5460, enjoying large MP3/WMA music collections in the car is easy. The HDA-5460 is designed for in-dash installation, putting all the system controls in front of the user. The tricky task of managing large music libraries is made much easier with Alpine's exclusive Quick Search(TM), which enables people to search for tracks by genre, artist, album, song or playlist using a simple "paddle switch" on the front panel.
The HDA-5460 features a selectable DJ function that personalizes 10 genre selections with different DJ voices and sound effects. Alpine's Music Visualizer(TM) even provides cool accompanying graphics on the display.
Transferring music files from the desktop to the hard disk drive is fast. Users simply plug a cable from the computer directly to the removable disk drive's USB port. The system comes with Alpine's Mobile Multimedia Driver computer software, providing powerful desktop tools for burning, downloading and managing music collections. An "auto-synch" function enables people to quickly update their drive with the latest music and playlists on their desktop.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Alpine Electronics
What the labels still don't comprehend
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By Eliot Van Buskirk
Author of Burning Down the House
Senior editor, CNET Reviews
(November 19, 2003)
Welcome to phase two of the online music revolution, where Napster's legit song downloads cost 99 cents, and (some) portable MP3 players work with both secure and open files. After all of the suing, the convening, and the bellyaching, it seemed like we'd never get here. However, "here" is a very different place than where I thought we'd be by now.
According to Internet optimists such as myself, online distribution was supposed to enable a closer connection between artists and fans, allow fans to do more with their music, and increase music sales by lowering prices to reflect the increased efficiency of Internet distribution. Not to downplay the significant fact that there are now five or so authorized online distributors (with iTunes Music Store clearly in the lead), but we, the fans, are still being underserved in all three areas.
I recently attended the sort of panel discussion that is usually held at music conferences and the like (this time, courtesy of the Commonwealth Club of California), featuring the predictable array of music and technology types: David Sutphen, vice president of government relations and legislative council for the RIAA; Elizabeth Brooks, senior VP of business development at BuyMusic and former Napster VP of marketing; Glenn Otis Brown, professor of law at Stanford University; Joe Kraus, founder of DigitalConsumer.org and Excite.com; Miguel Depedro (a.k.a. Kid606), musician and founder of Tigerbeat6 Records; and the moderator, Chris Anderson, editor in chief of Wired magazine.
Here we go again
This panel, like many before it, turned into a battle between the RIAA guy and everyone else. The other panelists weren't united against the RIAA on a single issue, but at one point or another, each stood in direct opposition to him. That's because--as much as the labels have been dragged kicking and screaming into authorizing a few online distribution services--they still lack the gumption to offer their own compelling vision for the future of digital music. It's hard to swing to the next vine when you won't let go of the last.
Even iTunes Music Store, the most successful of the new online services, loses money with each download, according to Apple. Out of each 99-cent sale, the labels get about 65 cents, and the credit card companies get about 4 cents, leaving Apple with about 30 cents per song sold. Evidently, this doesn't cover Apple's bandwidth, encoding, development, and operation costs, while artists likely net only a few pennies per song. This system is big step forward, as there used to be no legal way to purchase music downloads from a catalog of this size and quality. But you'd have to be a fool to call it an optimal price structure for online music distribution. Since they are responsible for the pricing, only the labels have the power to make iTunes Music Store and similar services work better for everyone.
Higher volumes of wider catalogs at lower prices, now!
Record companies have largely responded to the current CD sales slump by shrinking their artist rosters and doubling down on the core selection of superstars that make the most money. In addition, due to licensing complexities, label laziness, and (in some cases) the artists' own preferences, lots of stuff that should be legitimately available digitally cannot be (although it can usually be downloaded from Kazaa or Soulseek).
Panelist Depedro made an excellent point: Selection is one of the main allures of file-sharing networks such as Kazaa, which dwarf "legitimate" online and offline record stores in terms of variety. Consumers appreciate a wider choice of music and will seek it out (although no matter where they "get" their music, songs on the Billboard 100 tend to reign supreme). Shouldn't the labels use the digital format to expand--rather than contract--the range of commercially available music?
An audience member wondered why the labels didn't try lowering the price of music downloads, in anticipation of the higher sales volume that could increase or maintain profit levels. The RIAA rep said that UMG's (Universal Music Group's) experiment with lower CD prices was an example of taking this approach--but he was dodging the heart of question, which asked why digital downloads weren't cheaper. Downloads cost much less to manufacture and distribute than CDs, and the labels restrict how consumers can use them to a greater degree than they do with CDs, so shouldn't they be significantly cheaper? The labels still don't understand that increased access to music could produce healthier sales figures.
Can deaf dogs hear new tricks?
When the talk was over, I approached the panelists and told the RIAA guy that I had an answer to a question he had posed early in the discussion, asking anyone in the audience to name one industry that had succeeded in competing with a free version of its product. I trotted out the old example of bottled water, noting that it continues to sell at record rates, despite the fact that tap water is essentially free.
Sutphen told me that tap water wasn't exactly free. After I countered that Kazaa and other file-sharing services are also not exactly free (the user has to pay for the electricity, the computer, and the Internet connection), he appeared to lose interest in the discussion and launched into an awkward diatribe about how Kazaa provides access to child pornography and should be shut down. Talk about a change in direction--but I shouldn't have been surprised. This attitude is typical of an industry that prefers to function inside a bubble. That bubble burst a few years ago, and the music and tech industries have become inextricably linked.
Let's hope that eventually the RIAA will notice that and start listening to other panelists and other viewpoints. Maybe then they'd consider licensing content in such a way that legitimate online music services such as Apple iTunes Music Store can turn a profit--and potentially save the music industry from itself.
Eliot Van Buskirk is senior editor for CNET Reviews and author of a new book called Burning Down the House: Ripping, Recording, Remixing, and More!
Lyra Jukebox adds video playback to the list
By Mike Langberg
Mercury News
Posted on Thu, Nov. 20, 2003
RCA's new Lyra Audio/Video Jukebox at $399 isn't perfect, but it's the first credible product in what could be a very exciting new category: handheld hard-disk players that display video and photographs on top of providing music.
By now, almost everyone knows about portable hard-disk music players because of Apple Computer's very successful iPod. There's also the Nomad Jukebox line from Creative Labs and the new Dell Digital Jukebox, among others. These players run from $250 to $500, offer hard drives from 10 to 60 gigabytes, and feature small monochrome LCD screens for navigating through a collection of songs.
The Lyra AV Jukebox (www.rca.com), also known as the model RD2780, adds one more crucial ingredient: a 3.5-inch color LCD display replacing the small monochrome screen. Along with a beefed-up processor, this lets the Lyra store and play back up to 80 hours of video programming, or hold a mix of video, music and still pictures.
What's especially impressive is the price. At $399 with a 20-gigabyte hard drive, the Lyra AV Jukebox costs the same as Apple's 20-gigabyte audio-only iPod. RCA shipped the Lyra AV Jukebox to stores about a week ago, and it should start appearing on shelves just before Thanksgiving.
Benefits of iPod
I'll stop here for a moment to genuflect before the Colossus of Cupertino, hoping to spare myself the wrath of demented Apple fanatics. Yes, the iPod is the best designed, slimmest and lightest portable hard-disk player. Yes, the Lyra AV Jukebox is almost 50 percent heavier at 10.5 ounces. Yes, the Lyra AV Jukebox's stated battery life is only four hours, half the iPod's.
But there's no denying the appeal of video; the Lyra AV Jukebox is more like a pocket-size TV where iPod and the others are more like radios.
The potential hasn't been missed by the Ogre of Redmond, Wash. Microsoft last month announced the very awkwardly named ``Windows Mobile Software for Portable Media Centers,'' and promises WMSFPMC will drive a new generation of handheld AV players coming from multiple hardware manufacturers in the second half of 2004.
What's here now is a good start. A silvery rectangle at 5 1/4 inches high by 3 1/4 inches wide by 1 inch deep, the Lyra AV Jukebox can slip into a large pocket. The color screen, measuring 2 7/8 inches wide by 2 1/4 inches high, sits in the middle of the Jukebox face, with two rocker buttons on the right side for navigating on-screen menus.
Plugged into a Windows or Macintosh computer through a USB 2.0 cable, the Jukebox appears to the PC as hard drive -- so you move files back and forth by drag and drop. You can even use the Jukebox to store data files, such as Word documents, that can't be played on the device.
For music, the Jukebox plays songs in the MP3 and WMA formats with a menu that lets you browse by artist, album, track title, genre or year. You can also create custom playlists.
For photographs, the Jukebox displays images stored in the near-universal JPEG format. You can show pictures one at a time, or start a slide show that automatically moves through images at a pace you specify.
For video, the Jukebox plays MPEG4 video clips. If you have clips in that format, you can drag them into the Jukebox.
The Jukebox goes another step beyond the iPod by acting as a recorder for both audio and video. There's a ``line in'' jack on the Jukebox that connects to a cable, included in the box, ending in the familiar yellow video jack and red and white audio jacks.
The cable can plug into any audio source -- such as a home stereo system -- to record music in MP3 format. Or the cable can plug into any video source -- such as cable box, videocassette recorder, DVD player or camcorder -- to record full-motion video with sound. The Jukebox holds 40 hours of video recorded this way; to get 80 hours, you must first prepare compressed video on a computer.
In addition to the headset jack for listening to music, there is also a ``line out'' jack for connecting the Jukebox to a stereo or television -- again with the yellow, red and white plugs -- for playing back audio and video.
I spent several days watching movies, listening to music and looking at pictures stored on the Jukebox, and came away satisfied.
Audio, video quality
Audio quality, as far as I could tell, matched other portable MP3 players I've tested. I'd rate video quality on the small screen as acceptable, rather than outstanding, roughly akin to VHS tape with occasional blotchy black rectangles showing up in dark scenes. Digital pictures looked sharp, although colors were slightly faded.
Overall, though, I wouldn't mind watching a movie on the Jukebox during a long airplane flight; the picture quality is no worse than what you see on many in-flight screens.
The battery life, as with every portable product sold today, is somewhat exaggerated. I got about three hours of playback time, still enough to watch two 90-minute movies.
Where the Jukebox fell short is in the details; the product gives off a strong smell of having been rushed to market.
For starters, there are numerous features that display the message ``will be available in future upgrades'' when you select them. RCA promises a free software upgrade soon that will extend battery life to 12 hours for audio playback, by turning off the power-intensive color screen.
Another failing is the documentation. A slender Quick Start Guide brochure is supplemented by a 37-page User's Guide that's only provided in electronic form on the install CD. Even the User's Guide doesn't explain everything.
One more gripe was the fast-forward/fast-reverse control, which worked erratically. Again, RCA is promising a fix through a software upgrade.
But the biggest frustration for me was getting video into the Jukebox.
Recording directly from a VCR or other video source is straightforward, but time-consuming -- a half-hour TV show takes a half-hour to copy into the Jukebox. You can't transfer Hollywood movies, by the way, if they're protected with the Macrovision anti-copy system.
Converting video
Moving video from the computer was almost impossible because, with no indication from the User's Guide, it turns out the Jukebox only supports one specific format: MPEG4 as an .avi file, which isn't used by most video-editing software. Converting digital home videos on your PC into that format isn't easy or obvious; I had to download a program called AVS VideoConverter (www.avsmedia.com) to get the job done.
All these problems are fixable, however, so I'd suggest holding off a few months if you're interested in buying the Jukebox.
A final note: RCA wasn't first to market with an AV jukebox. A small company called Archos (www.archos.com) launched its AV300 line in June, with the AV320 at $599 providing a 20-gigabyte hard drive and 3.8-inch color screen. I haven't looked at the AV320 because it struck me as too expensive -- you can get a decent laptop computer for just a few hundred dollars more -- and because Archos doesn't have the kind of marketing clout commanded by RCA. But Archos is promising a new generation of AV jukeboxes early next year with improved features, and has already cut the price of the AV320 by $50 to meet the Lyra challenge.
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Next-generation technology will put the individual first
Knight Ridder - Wednesday, November 19, 2003
Knight Ridder Newspapers
By Dan Gillmor
Take some basic human needs and add the inexorable progress of technological development. You end up with a communications world where the individual is the center of everything.
That's not how things work with today's mobile services. And it won't be tomorrow, even as the latest generation of mobile phone and data technologies _ advanced WiFi, 3G, fixed wireless and more _ takes hold in the marketplace.
But today and tomorrow are old news for people like Radu Popescu-Zeletin, director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems in Berlin, one of the field's most prominent think tanks.
Popescu-Zeletin and his colleagues in research labs around the world are more interested in what will happen in the next decade. They don't know precisely what will emerge from a technological standpoint. But many of them envision what Popescu-Zeletin calls an individual-centric model, "intelligent enough to adapt to the individual, wherever you are _ anytime, any place and according to your personal preferences."
It's an attractive idea. And basic trends suggest it will happen, assuming dominant players and governments don't throttle this evolution.
You can see it today, as telephone systems that use the Internet to carry calls make inroads into the markets of traditional carriers that use fixed wires. Soon enough, the same kind of technology will make its way into mobile phones, so if you're in range of a WiFi access point you'll be able to make voice calls, bypassing the cellular networks.
Extend current trends a few years, and the next-generation communications architecture looks like a combination of technologies, says Andrew Odlyzko, director of the Digital Technology Center at University of Minnesota in Minneapolis: "a variety of devices that will seamlessly connect to one of various networks, depending on the devices' features and on what networks are active in the area, and on pricing."
There will be room for all kinds of systems if competition is permitted to thrive. Wired networks will continue to haul bulk traffic along "backbone" routes. If we ever get fiber optic lines to our doorsteps (or the curb, anyway), wireless could easily cover the last 100 feet into the home. We can probably assume high communication speeds when we need them.
One promising area of development is in "ad hoc" networks _ systems that essentially configure themselves on the fly. Remember that devices will continue to get smaller and more powerful; it's no stretch to imagine every device being able to relay information, as a server computer or mobile phone tower does now, as well as display and manipulate it.
The implications of ad hoc networks are immense. In theory, they could eliminate or sharply reduce the need for traditional telecommunications carriers.
Some companies are trying to take advantage of new swaths of the airwaves that have been opened up by the Federal Communications Commission. (Michael Powell, the Bush administration's FCC chairman, has largely carried water for the corporate giants, especially the local phone and cable companies, but he's promoted innovation by deregulating some portions of the radio spectrum.)
At DaimlerChrysler's Research and Technology Center in Palo Alto, Calif., and at other auto industry labs around the globe, engineers are putting one piece of spectrum to an especially intriguing use. They're experimenting with a close cousin to the 802.11 wireless standard, called Dedicated Short Range Communications, or DSRC (www.leearmstrong.com/DSRC/DSRCHomeset.htm), that could let cars communicate with various kinds of wireless access points and with each other, creating a constantly changing, ad hoc network.
The first goal is safety. For example, let's say that a car in front of a big truck slows down and the trucker brakes, too. The communications system alerts the car behind the truck to brake, too, but does so before the trucker acts.
The automakers won't build such systems unless there is demand. And until the systems are widely in place, there won't be much demand.
So the FCC is encouraging other uses of DSRC, such as what DaimlerChrysler calls "DriveBy InfoFueling," a system that takes the basic notion of automatic tollbooth collections such as Northern California's FasTrak and turns it into something much more ambitious.
For example: Before leaving for work, you update the hard drive in your car with the latest MP3 songs from your home server or with an audio book you want to hear. You put gas in the car, and the station updates your mapping system with the latest street maps, including construction zones. On the way to work, you are alerted about accidents and given ample time, and suggested alternate routes, to bypass the trouble.
The technical challenges for DSCR and other advanced networking notions aren't trivial. But so many smart people, backed by some smart investors, are working to advance mobile and wireless communications that breakthroughs seem inevitable.
It has become a cliche to say that such-and-such a technology will "change everything." When we imagine the next generation of mobile and wireless communications, the cliche will be accurate.
(Visit Dan Gillmor's online column, eJournal (www.dangillmor.com/blog). E-mail dgillmor@mercurynews.com; phone (408) 920-5016; fax (408) 920-5917.)
Looks like Walmart will be using Liquid...
www.digitalmusic.walmart.com
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Microsoft Ready to Join the Chorus
Software giant prepares for music downloading online
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By Richard J. Dalton Jr
STAFF WRITER
November 18, 2003
Microsoft will launch an online service to sell songs electronically next year, the company confirmed yesterday, joining heated competition among legitimate music services as computer users are retreating from illegal downloading.
The software giant will go up against Apple's iTunes, RealNetworks' Rhapsody service, Roxio's Napster and MusicMatch. Major retailers, including Wal-Mart and Amazon.com, might offer music downloading as well. And record labels might also join in to offer their own music online.
Consumers are increasingly obtaining songs online for about 99 cents each as downloading music becomes quicker through high-speed Internet access and as the recording industry cracks down on illegal downloading.
The number of people using Kazaa, one of the popular services that allows people to illegally share copyrighted music for free, has dropped from 7 million people the first week of June to 3.2 million last week, according to Nielsen/NetRatings, which monitors computer usage.
Meanwhile, legitimate services such as iTunes have been drawing more and more users. Consumers have purchased more than 17 million songs from iTunes since its launch in April, Apple reported earlier this month. Apple launched a version of iTunes for Microsoft Windows last month.
Microsoft would not provide details in advance of the launch of its service. But MSN group product manager Lisa Gurry said in a statement: "We are excited to confirm that MSN will deliver a download music service next year, and we look forward to sharing more details at a later date."
Microsoft has already started a download service in Europe, launching the MSN Music Club in the United Kingdom in August.
Wal-Mart spokeswoman Cynthia Lin wouldn't say if Wal-Mart is launching a music downloading service. But there are hints of such a service.
An online search revealed a site called digitalmusic.walmart.com, which offers a free downloadable bonus track of a song by Nickelback. The site also lists a tech-support line for digital media. A representative on the line referred media inquiries about a launch of a music service to company headquarters but added: "We've just been getting ready for it."
Lin said: "I have no idea what that site is ... At any given time, we're looking at a number of new services and product categories that we might consider offering online. And this is a service that we're currently looking at."
Copyright © 2003, Newsday, Inc. / Article licensing and reprint options
Sales of audio products grow in September
Tuesday, November 18 @ 13:30:00 PST
Manufacturer-to-dealer sales of audio products took a turn for the better during the month of September, according to figures released by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).
Total revenues for the month reached more than $707 million, a slight increase compared to the same period in 2002. Overall category sales were given a boost from strong sales of portable audio products and, in particular, MP3 players.
Portable audio product revenues showed a 24 percent increase compared to September of 2002, pushing factory-to-dealer sales to nearly $260 million, thanks in part to impressive sales of both MP3 players and CD/MP3 combinations. Manufacturer-to-dealer sales of MP3 players increased some 258 percent over the same period in 2002 to generate more than $82 million in revenues. Sales of portable CD/MP3 player combinations reached more than $223 million with an increase of 21 percent over 2002.
Audio systems sales ended the month of September with $183 million in revenues - a modest gain of nearly two percent over the same period in 2002. The slight increase in systems revenues is due in large part to the continued growth of home-theater-in-a-box sales, which improved by nearly 18 percent over 2002 to more than $110 million. Year-to-date figures show home-theater-in-a-box sales remain very healthy with more than $630 million in total revenues.
Data cited in this release is available for purchase through CEA's Market Activity Reports and Analysis (MARA) program. With more than 500 reports published annually, the MARA program is recognized as the "authoritative source" for data on the consumer electronics industry. For a list of available reports and purchasing information, visit www.eBrain.org/mara or send an e-mail request to info@ebrain.com.
Delta's discount airline offers entertainment perks, but airline analysts are skeptical
By ABIGAIL KLINGBEIL
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: November 18, 2003)
NEW YORK
Passengers on the new discount airline Song soon will be able to watch live broadcasts from CNN, Animal Planet and 22 other television channels while they snack on vegetarian sushi or a sandwich of shaved turkey on foccacia.
Song, started in April by Delta Air Lines Inc., is trying to draw passengers away from successful low-fare airlines like Southwest and JetBlue. Song's flight attendants wear outfits designed by style maven Kate Spade. Song's food, which is not free, is organic, and heavy on the fresh vegetables.
Song introduced its latest perk, an extensive in-flight entertainment system, yesterday at Song in the City, a temporary SoHo store where visitors can sit in Song seats, buy Song food and otherwise learn about the Song experience. The store opened last week and is scheduled to close Dec. 21.
Locally, Song flies from John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport. Song flies to 13 cities, primarily along the East Coast.
Song is targeting people who care about entertainment, style and fashion, and health and wellness, said Tim Mapes, Song's director of marketing.
The first phase of Song's in-flight entertainment includes 24 live satellite channels, 24 audio channels and video games that allow inter-passenger play. All 36 Song planes should have those amenities by the end of March. The second phase, beginning in April, includes pay-per-view videos, and a 150-album digital music collection. (Hmmm..now this might be of interest...) The system eventually could include e-mail and Internet surfing capability.
"There's no other airline operating in the United States that's better than ours," Mapes said.
Airline industry analysts and fliers expressed skepticism yesterday about Song's efforts.
"It strikes me as, I guess, bizarre would be the best word for it. In effect it seems to be that they're saying, 'Try this. It's everything we (Delta Air Lines) are not,' " said James Brock, an airline industry analyst and professor of economics at Miami University in Ohio. "It seems like a terrible indictment of themselves."
Harley Riak, executive director for Valerie Wilson Travel in Purchase, says customers' primary concern is price. He said primarily two groups of passengers — those flying long distances and those with kids in tow — care about in-flight entertainment.
Riak said those perks mean nothing if Song doesn't let people know about them. "They have to let the traveling public know, 'We have a family entertainment center in each plane,' " Riak said.
Frank Werner, a Fordham University associate professor of finance who specializes in commercial airline management, said Delta created Song to help combat the crisis it faces. Delta lost $1.27 billion last year and nearly the same amount the year before. Its high-paying business passengers began flying less when the economy softened.
Now, Delta's going after the leisure passengers with Song.
"Song is intended to be a device to force down the cost of running the business so to compete with the low-cost airlines along Delta's routes," Werner said. "Delta wouldn't be doing this if there were no low-cost airlines.
"It's going to look great for a short period of time, then it's going to fizzle," said Werner, who lives in Croton-on-Hudson. "If you're really going to do a low-cost airline, do a low-cost airline that gets costs out of the system, and doesn't add costs into the system."
Send e-mail to Abigail Klingbeil
Microsoft jumps into music world
Benny Evangelista, Chronicle Staff Writer Tuesday, November 18, 2003
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After months of speculation, Microsoft on Monday confirmed plans to enter the increasingly crowded online music market, putting it in competition with companies such as Apple and Napster.
Microsoft's MSN online service is working on an online music download service that will start next year, Lisa Gurry, group product manager for MSN, said in a statement.
Gurry and other Microsoft representatives provided few other details about the new service. A spokeswoman said decisions about how much songs or subscriptions would cost are still pending.
Details aside, just the fact that the Redmond, Wash., softwaremaker -- with $32 billion in annual revenue -- is throwing its considerable weight into the online music gold rush is important news in the $31 billion worldwide record industry.
"It's too early to say whether Microsoft washes everybody else out of the pond,'' said Phil Leigh, senior analyst with consulting firm Inside Digital Media.
But music, Leigh said, "is only the first wave of the Gold Rush. Much like the one in California was followed by the Klondike, we believe that Hollywood films and similar video programming will follow recorded music into Internet distribution.''
Speculation about a Microsoft online music venture started soon after Apple found early success with its iTunes Music Store, which was started in April and expanded in October to include PCs that run on Microsoft's Windows 2000 or XP operating systems.
Microsoft's entry was inevitable, said Dan Sheeran, senior vice president for RealNetworks Inc., which operates the Rhapsody subscription music service based in San Francisco.
Sheeran said the MSN service may be bad news for companies that rely on Microsoft's media technologies because they might have to compete against a giant. But Sheeran said the attention Microsoft brings to the overall online music market is good news. Meanwhile, the Australian company that markets Kazaa, the huge file-sharing network and arguably still the biggest force in online music, outlined plans to start a marketing campaign to counter the Recording Industry Association of America's strategy of suing individual file- sharers to stop what it calls digital piracy.
Sharman Networks Inc. on Wednesday will start running ads in major newspapers in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia asking consumers to join a "Kazaa revolution.''
The $1 million campaign is intended to persuade consumers to buy more artist-sanctioned songs that are being offered through Kazaa. The campaign also hopes to drum up public support.
"We want to mobilize 60 million Kazaa users to pump up the volume and send a message to the recording industry,'' said Sharman Chief Executive Officer Nikki Hemming.
But RIAA spokesman Jonathan Lamy said Kazaa must first block copyright- protected songs before it can be "considered responsible corporate citizens who don't induce their customers to break the law.''
E-mail Benny Evangelista at bevangelista@sfchronicle.com.
No deal here...Apple's iPod Support site references the upcoming iPod Battery Replacement program in a list of troubleshooting steps for the iPod.
If your iPod fails to hold a charge and it's more than a year old, you may need a new battery. Click Continue to order iPod battery service for $99 USD. This program is not available in Europe at this time.
The page warns that "iPod equipment that is sent in for battery service or service requiring other repairs will be replaced with functionally equivalent new, used, or refurbished iPod equipment. You will not receive the same iPod that was sent in for service."
According to information available to MacRumors, engraved iPods may simply have a longer turnaround.
The program appears to be now available.
OT Amazing deal on SD flash card...
http://www.pdalive.com/showarticle.php?threadid=4639
Time Warner seen getting music offer
By Jon Friedman, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 11:35 AM ET Nov. 18, 2003
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Time Warner, the world's largest media company, is expected to receive a $2.5 billion offer for its music business from entertainment industry investors Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Haim Saban, according to media reports.
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Mia Carbonell, a Time Warner spokeswoman, declined comment Tuesday. Time Warner slipped a penny to $15.63 in recent stock trading.
Industry sources say Time Warner (TWX: news, chart, profile) could choose between an offer from the investor group and another proposal made by music foe EMI Group, when it board of directors convenes for a Thursday meeting.
Time Warner has managed to pare about $5 billion from its debt burden by disposing of extraneous businesses, ranging from sports teams and half of the Comedy Central cable-television channel to its CD/DVD manufacturing arm. Time Warner now has about $24.1 billion in debt, Carbonell said.
Warner Music, the fourth-largest music label in the world, owns such high-profile acts as Madonna, R.E.M., and Triumph The Insult Comic Dog.
Assuming a deal comes to pass, Time Warner would be exiting the industry at a tough time for the music industry. CD sales have plummeted in recent years because of the renewed popularity of free file-sharing services like KaZaa, a softer retail climate, and intense competition from DVDs and video games.
Forrester Research went so far as to predict the demise of CD sales because consumers would instead opt to get entertainment at home via their computers and skip the trip to the mall.
The industry slump sparked a proposed deal between Sony Music and Bertelsmann's BMG, announced earlier in the week.
Meanwhile, Time Warner Chairman Dick Parsons has been eager to reduce the size of its mammoth debt load and has publicly pledged to accomplish this goal as a way to build investors' confidence on Wall Street.
Parsons has sought to shed unnecessary businesses, possibly such as music, which has frequently caused headaches for Time Warner over the past few years.
As recently as Monday, the New York Times reported in detail about a rift between Time Warner's music operation and recording star Madonna over how much ownership Time Warner will exercise over Madonna's label, Maverick Records.
For example, Time Warner has also been criticized for the stewardship of the label in separate matters. It was said to have overpaid for the rock band REM at a time when the group seemed to lose some measure of its popularity in the U.S.
For Bronfman, an opportunity to buy the Time Warner music business would give him an opening back into the entertainment industry. He sold Seagram's U.S. entertainment interests in its Universal movie and music businesses to France's Vivendi Universal (V: news, chart, profile).
When Vivendi's fortunes sank under a massive debt load and discharged its unsuccessful head Jean-Marie Messier, the company sought to sell the Universal assets. Bronfman lost out in an auction to General Electric's NBC (GE: news, chart, profile) television subsidiary and has been seeking to make a deal for himself.
Saban is well known for assembling a children's entertainment business that includes the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Earlier this year, he obtained Germany's biggest commercial TV operation.
EMI has on its label such classic-rock acts as the Beatles, whose album "Let It Be -- Naked" hits the stores this week and is expected to attract a big following, and the Rolling Stones, which had a splash with its "Forty Licks" set in the past year.
EMI, the third-largest music company, had been offering $1 billion for a majority position in Warner's recorded music division.
Reuters and Dow Jones reported the speculation overnight.
Jon Friedman is media editor for CBS.MarketWatch.com in New York.
OT Garage Gadget Wins Digital Copyright Case
Sun Nov 16, 2:37 PM ET Add Technology - AP to My Yahoo!
By MIKE ROBINSON, Associated Press Writer
CHICAGO - In a closely watched technology lawsuit, a federal judge has ruled that a garage-door opener designed as a replacement for a model made by a rival manufacturer does not violate the nation's digital copyright law.
"Consumers have a reasonable expectation that they can replace the original product with a competing universal product without violating federal law," Judge Rebecca M. Pallmeyer said.
Pallmeyer's 10-page opinion came Thursday in a lawsuit filed by Chamberlain Group Inc., with offices in suburban Elmhurst, Ill., against Skylink Technologies Inc., of Mississauga, Ontario.
Chamberlain claimed Skylink garage-door openers that can interact with Chamberlain's digital security technology violated the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (news - web sites).
The dispute has been closely watched because there have been few court decisions to date that outline the limits of protections the digital copyright law affords manufacturers, said Gwen Hinze, an attorney with the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation.
"This is one of the first cases that has actually looked at the language of authority" given to the manufacturer by the law to prevent consumers from using a so-called aftermarket product, she said.
Andrea B. Greene, attorney for privately held Skylink, said a ruling in favor of Chamberlain "would have had serious consequences for all kinds of consumer products."
"This was an attempt to expand the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to where it had never gone before," she said. She called the ruling "very good news for consumers." She said she did not know if Chamberlain would appeal.
Chamberlain attorney Karl R. Fink did not return a message left at his office.
Pallmeyer likened garage-door openers to television remote controls.
"Consumers of both products might have to replace them at some point due to damage or loss, and may program them to work with other devices manufactured by different companies," she said.
Attorneys said the other federal court major case being watched for clues as to the limits of the digital copyright law is an effort by Lexmark International Inc. of Lexington, Ky., to bar Static Control Components Inc. of Sanford, N.C., from selling computer chips that match remanufactured toner cartridges to Lexmark International printers.
Gold rush!...is a DAP a pick or a shovel?/
Microsoft tunes in to online music market
November 18 2003 at 08:36AM
By Lisa Baertlein
San Francisco - Microsoft said on Monday that it will jump into the online music business next year, entering an increasingly crowded market that includes Apple Computer's iTunes Music Store and Roxio's reborn Napster online music service.
"We are excited to confirm that MSN will deliver a download music service next year, and we look forward to sharing more details at a later date," said Lisa Gurry, lead product manager for Microsoft's online division MSN.
The news comes on the heels of Microsoft's announcement of a 2004 release date for software that runs on a new portable media device that will play MP3 files as well as audio and video content recorded in Microsoft's own digital format - and pose a challenge to Apple's iPod digital music player.
'What we're really seeing is a gold rush'
"It's not surprising. What we're really seeing is a gold rush," Phil Leigh, senior analyst at Tampa, Florida-based Inside Digital Media, said of Microsoft's online music plans.
"It's pretty clear to me that it's going to go from CDs to Internet distribution," Leigh said, noting that the music labels' decision to participate in the download business removed the biggest barrier to online music sales.
The Redmond, Washington-based software giant will join a field of online music providers that also includes Liquid Audio, MusicMatch, BuyMusic.com, Rhapsody from RealNetworks and others.
Elsewhere, No 1 retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is expected to soon begin testing its own online music site while Amazon.com eyes the space and Viacom's MTV Networks plans a launch by early 2004.
Online media company Yahoo! last month bought BT Group's dotmusic.com and said it was mulling a move into the European download music sector.
As online music providers stake their claims, the market is brimming with deals aimed at expanding distribution.
To that end, Rhapsody inked a deal through which broadband Internet provider Comcast will deliver its music service to millions of customers via a co-branded website.
Dell, which sells a digital music player called the Dell DJ, is teaming up with MusicMatch for its Dell Music Store. Privately-held MusicNow has teamed up with retailer Best Buy to offer downloads via the Internet and special in-store kiosks, and Time Warner's America Online has a partnership with subscription services provider MusicNet.
Industry targets music journalists with piracy controls
By STEVEN PATRICK
Monday November 17, 2003
PETALING JAYA: Local music journalists have expressed shock and disbelief over new "digital watermarking" measures taken by record companies in an effort to discourage reviewers from putting new releases online.
Advance copies of the latest Pearl Jam Lost Dogs and Linkin Park, Live in Texas CDs come with a unique watermarking technology that identifies the journalist.
This watermark is an invisible line within each track that carries a code number specific to the journalist.
This is just the latest move by the record industry in its -- at times -- paranoid efforts to stem the tide of digital piracy. Last year, review CDs of the Pearl Jam album Riot Act were sent out to American music reviewers in portable CD players that were glued shut!
In Malaysia, music reviewers recently received the new watermarked Linkin Park release with an accompanying letter from Warner Bros. which stated, "illegal file trading and piracy are two of the most daunting issues facing the music industry today, and we at Warner Bros. Records are working very hard to deal with these problems.
"One of our efforts to thwart unauthorised copying of CDs is to watermark the CDs we distribute."
The one-page letter said that, "Watermarking enables us to track the CD back to the original authorised recipient.
"As part of this effort, the enclosed advance Linkin Park, Live in Texas CD has been individually watermarked with a unique identification number embedded in the music. This watermark is not changed or destroyed by extracting clips of the music, or by using any compression technology such as MP3.
"By accepting this CD, you agree not to make any copies of the CD, to not play the CD in your computer and to not upload the CD or any part of it available on the Internet. You agree that you will not lend this CD to anyone, and that you alone will listen to this CD for promotional purposes. Accordingly, you will not play this CD for anyone."
Nothing personal, mates
Warner Music marketing manager Adrian Lim said journalists should not take it personally as it was just a precaution.
All record companies have already embarked on watermarking measures for their staff from a year ago, and have recently decided to extend it to journalists for advance copies, he said.
However, he could not give details on the watermarking technology.
If any record company staff is found abusing copyright laws, this will result in instant dismissal.
"It's all about telling people not to treat intellectual property lightly. It stops the leaks from within the industry," said Universal Music managing director Sandy Monteiro.
StarMag music reviewer Sujesh Pavithran understands the point as "copyright is open to abuse online," but said that the recording industry is becoming "more and more paranoid."
Another StarMag reviewer Daryl Goh said this "Orwellian" exercise made him uncomfortable.
"You're doing a job but they're monitoring you. Not all music reviewers are into illegal file trading. It feels all too 'Big Brother' for me. Trust is fast becoming extinct in the industry," he said.
Malay Mail entertainment editor Zainal Alam said, "It's insulting because we don't do such things like online downloading. We must have our integrity.
"We call ourselves reviewers because we need to preview things and tell people in advance. That's our job," he said.
"It's not a wise move," concurred his colleague Adly Syairi.
"What's the point in the first place? The source is still there on the Net," he added.
Some reviewers felt that the rapport that has been built up between journalists and the music industry is diminishing quickly.
However, the recording industry maintains it was merely protecting its assets.
Copy protection: Friend or foe
OT US trade agency to launch Wolfson patent investigation
MARK SMITH November 18 2003
THE International Trade Commission, a US agency, is to launch an investigation into claims that Wolfson MicroElectronics infringed two patents of US rival Cirrus Logic.
Wolfson, the Edinburgh-based chipmaker and newest technology darling of the stock market, declined to comment yesterday beyond a statement on its website.
Unusually, the company did not announce news of the move by the ITC to the London Stock Exchange until 3.14pm yesterday.
A spokesman yesterday morning had insisted it had no intention of making an announcement on the ITC development to the exchange.
When asked for clarification, he said he was "not in a position to comment".
However, following the apparent change of heart and the subsequent announcement to the Stock Exchange, Wolfson's share price ended the day down 2.9%, or 9.25p, at 243p.
Texas-based Cirrus, which has filed a lawsuit against Wolfson, claims that 15 of the Edinburgh audio and video chipmaker's products infringe two US patents owned by Cirrus.
Wolfson's statement said: "The ITC's decision to undertake this investigation in no way alters Wolfson's belief that Cirrus's allegations do not have merit, and Wolfson will pursue a vigorous defence against
Cirrus's claims in this and any other action.
"Wolfson has notified Cirrus that it does not violate this patent and has provided Cirrus with information that questions the appropriateness of asserting this patent against Wolfson or anyone else."
The company added: "The ITC routinely investigates complaints of alleged infringement it receives, so Wolfson anticipated the ITC's action to initiate the investigation."
Cirrus's claims first appeared last month – just days before Wolfson was due to float in what was billed as the biggest technology flotation on the main London market for three years.
Specifically, the Cirrus complaint alleges "violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the importation into the United States, the sale for importation, and the sale within the United States after importation of certain audio digital-to-analog converters and products containing same that infringe a patent owned by Cirrus".
The Texas company has also requested that the ITC issues "a permanent exclusion order and a permanent cease and desist order", effectively barring Wolfson's allegedly offensive products from the US.
Wolfson, whose chief executive is David Milne, supplies audio and video chips that are used in the Microsoft Xbox games console, the Apple iPod MP3 player, as well as in DVD players, palmtop computers and other entertainment systems.
When asked which specific chips were in question, a spokesman for Cirrus said: "They are audio chips, but I cannot say which particular products they are in. They are chips that we developed, which they have infringed and we filed suit accordingly."
The ITC investigation process is expected to last at least 12 months.
THE International Trade Commission, a US agency, is to launch an investigation into claims that Wolfson MicroElectronics infringed two patents of US rival Cirrus Logic.
Wolfson, the Edinburgh-based chipmaker and newest technology darling of the stock market, declined to comment yesterday beyond a statement on its website.
Unusually, the company did not announce news of the move by the ITC to the London Stock Exchange until 3.14pm yesterday.
A spokesman yesterday morning had insisted it had no intention of making an announcement on the ITC development to the exchange.
When asked for clarification, he said he was "not in a position to comment".
However, following the apparent change of heart and the subsequent announcement to the Stock Exchange, Wolfson's share price ended the day down 2.9%, or 9.25p, at 243p.
Texas-based Cirrus, which has filed a lawsuit against Wolfson, claims that 15 of the Edinburgh audio and video chipmaker's products infringe two US patents owned by Cirrus.
Wolfson's statement said: "The ITC's decision to undertake this investigation in no way alters Wolfson's belief that Cirrus's allegations do not have merit, and Wolfson will pursue a vigorous defence against
Cirrus's claims in this and any other action.
"Wolfson has notified Cirrus that it does not violate this patent and has provided Cirrus with information that questions the appropriateness of asserting this patent against Wolfson or anyone else."
The company added: "The ITC routinely investigates complaints of alleged infringement it
THE International Trade Commission, a US agency, is to launch an investigation into claims that Wolfson MicroElectronics infringed two patents of US rival Cirrus Logic.
Wolfson, the Edinburgh-based chipmaker and newest technology darling of the stock market, declined to comment yesterday beyond a statement on its website.
Unusually, the company did not announce news of the move by the ITC to the London Stock Exchange until 3.14pm yesterday.
A spokesman yesterday morning had insisted it had no intention of making an announcement on the ITC development to the exchange.
When asked for clarification, he said he was "not in a position to comment".
However, following the apparent change of heart and the subsequent announcement to the Stock Exchange, Wolfson's share price ended the day down 2.9%, or 9.25p, at 243p.
Texas-based Cirrus, which has filed a lawsuit against Wolfson, claims that 15 of the Edinburgh audio and video chipmaker's products infringe two US patents owned by Cirrus.
Wolfson's statement said: "The ITC's decision to undertake this investigation in no way alters Wolfson's belief that Cirrus's allegations do not have merit, and Wolfson will pursue a vigorous defence against
Cirrus's claims in this and any other action.
"Wolfson has notified Cirrus that it does not violate this patent and has provided Cirrus with information that questions the appropriateness of asserting this patent against Wolfson or anyone else."
The company added: "The ITC routinely investigates complaints of alleged infringement it receives, so Wolfson anticipated the ITC's action to initiate the investigation."
Cirrus's claims first appeared last month – just days before Wolfson was due to float in what was billed as the biggest technology flotation on the main London market for three years.
Specifically, the Cirrus complaint alleges "violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the importation into the United States, the sale for importation, and the sale within the United States after importation of certain audio digital-to-analog converters and products containing same that infringe a patent owned by Cirrus".
The Texas company has also requested that the ITC issues "a permanent exclusion order and a permanent cease and desist order", effectively barring Wolfson's allegedly offensive products from the US.
Wolfson, whose chief executive is David Milne, supplies audio and video chips that are used in the Microsoft Xbox games console, the Apple iPod MP3 player, as well as in DVD players, palmtop computers and other entertainment systems.
When asked which specific chips were in question, a spokesman for Cirrus said: "They are audio chips, but I cannot say which particular products they are in. They are chips that we developed, which they have infringed and we filed suit accordingly."
The ITC investigation process is expected to last at least 12 months.
THE International Trade Commission, a US agency, is to launch an investigation into claims that Wolfson MicroElectronics infringed two patents of US rival Cirrus Logic.
Wolfson, the Edinburgh-based chipmaker and newest technology darling of the stock market, declined to comment yesterday beyond a statement on its website.
Unusually, the company did not announce news of the move by the ITC to the London Stock Exchange until 3.14pm yesterday.
A spokesman yesterday morning had insisted it had no intention of making an announcement on the ITC development to the exchange.
When asked for clarification, he said he was "not in a position to comment".
However, following the apparent change of heart and the subsequent announcement to the Stock Exchange, Wolfson's share price ended the day down 2.9%, or 9.25p, at 243p.
Texas-based Cirrus, which has filed a lawsuit against Wolfson, claims that 15 of the Edinburgh audio and video chipmaker's products infringe two US patents owned by Cirrus.
Wolfson's statement said: "The ITC's decision to undertake this investigation in no way alters Wolfson's belief that Cirrus's allegations do not have merit, and Wolfson will pursue a vigorous defence against
Cirrus's claims in this and any other action.
"Wolfson has notified Cirrus that it does not violate this patent and has provided Cirrus with information that questions the appropriateness of asserting this patent against Wolfson or anyone else."
The company added: "The ITC routinely investigates complaints of alleged infringement it receives, so Wolfson anticipated the ITC's action to initiate the investigation."
Cirrus's claims first appeared last month – just days before Wolfson was due to float in what was billed as the biggest technology flotation on the main London market for three years.
Specifically, the Cirrus complaint alleges "violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the importation into the United States, the sale for importation, and the sale within the United States after importation of certain audio digital-to-analog converters and products containing same that infringe a patent owned by Cirrus".
The Texas company has also requested that the ITC issues "a permanent exclusion order and a permanent cease and desist order", effectively barring Wolfson's allegedly offensive products from the US.
Wolfson, whose chief executive is David Milne, supplies audio and video chips that are used in the Microsoft Xbox games console, the Apple iPod MP3 player, as well as in DVD players, palmtop computers and other entertainment systems.
When asked which specific chips were in question, a spokesman for Cirrus said: "They are audio chips, but I cannot say which particular products they are in. They are chips that we developed, which they have infringed and we filed suit accordingly."
The ITC investigation process is expected to last at least 12 months.
THE International Trade Commission, a US agency, is to launch an investigation into claims that Wolfson MicroElectronics infringed two patents of US rival Cirrus Logic.
Wolfson, the Edinburgh-based chipmaker and newest technology darling of the stock market, declined to comment yesterday beyond a statement on its website.
Unusually, the company did not announce news of the move by the ITC to the London Stock Exchange until 3.14pm yesterday.
A spokesman yesterday morning had insisted it had no intention of making an announcement on the ITC development to the exchange.
When asked for clarification, he said he was "not in a position to comment".
However, following the apparent change of heart and the subsequent announcement to the Stock Exchange, Wolfson's share price ended the day down 2.9%, or 9.25p, at 243p.
Texas-based Cirrus, which has filed a lawsuit against Wolfson, claims that 15 of the Edinburgh audio and video chipmaker's products infringe two US patents owned by Cirrus.
Wolfson's statement said: "The ITC's decision to undertake this investigation in no way alters Wolfson's belief that Cirrus's allegations do not have merit, and Wolfson will pursue a vigorous defence against
Cirrus's claims in this and any other action.
"Wolfson has notified Cirrus that it does not violate this patent and has provided Cirrus with information that questions the appropriateness of asserting this patent against Wolfson or anyone else."
The company added: "The ITC routinely investigates complaints of alleged infringement it receives, so Wolfson anticipated the ITC's action to initiate the investigation."
Cirrus's claims first appeared last month – just days before Wolfson was due to float in what was billed as the biggest technology flotation on the main London market for three years.
Specifically, the Cirrus complaint alleges "violations of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 in the importation into the United States, the sale for importation, and the sale within the United States after importation of certain audio digital-to-analog converters and products containing same that infringe a patent owned by Cirrus".
The Texas company has also requested that the ITC issues "a permanent exclusion order and a permanent cease and desist order", effectively barring Wolfson's allegedly offensive products from the US.
Wolfson, whose chief executive is David Milne, supplies audio and video chips that are used in the Microsoft Xbox games console, the Apple iPod MP3 player, as well as in DVD players, palmtop computers and other entertainment systems.
When asked which specific chips were in question, a spokesman for Cirrus said: "They are audio chips, but I cannot say which particular products they are in. They are chips that we developed, which they have infringed and we filed suit accordingly."
The ITC investigation process is expected to last at least 12 months.
Korea Betting on Car Telematics Industry
By Kim Sung-jin
Staff Reporter
South Korea will bet a total of 203.6 billion won ($173 million) on fostering its automotive telematics system industry into a top-tier player in the world by 2008.
According to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy (MOCIE) on Monday, a task force under its auspices released a long-term plan for telematics and car ``infotainment'' systems during a meeting with private-sector executives.
Telematics systems are in-car wireless telecom services built into automobiles that combine a global positioning system (GPS), satellite tracking and wireless communications for quick and easy roadside assistance. Besides route guidance, it is also used for vehicle-theft tracking.
A small LCD (liquid crystal display) screen on an electronic device gives the driver real-time updates on the traffic situation in the area by showing the geographical position of the vehicle as a blinking dot. It enables the driver to make smart navigation choices to roads that are less congested.
``The government will create a business environment that will facilitate private firms to operate telematics-related businesses. It will because telematics is a business area that is difficult for a private firm to single-handedly jump into since it involves diverse technological expertise related to car parts, automobiles and telecommunications,'' Deputy Commerce-Industry-Energy Minister Kim Jong-kap said.
Kim said MOCIE hopes the nascent local telematics market will help spur growth in the car industry and give a boost to wireless telecoms and software companies as well. He added that telematics would grow into a key export for South Korea in the future.
Telematics is one of the 10 core next-generation technologies that South Korea is seeking to develop into the nation's future growth engine industries.
Of the long-term investment, 112.3 billion won will be spent in developing core telematics technologies, including driving safety information database development technology, and expand the sales of telematics terminals at home and abroad.
Another 91.3 billion won will be invested in building relevant industry infrastructure and industrial clusters, including building a telematics database center, establishment of a test bed, construction of research and licensing centers and fostering of manpower.
The government will account for 155 billion won of the aggregate investment.
Lee Soo-young, chief of the task force, said MOCIE would revise and ease related laws to furnish a favorable business environment for telematics-related businesses.
South Korea plans to play catch-up with Japan, Europe and the United States. Currently, Japan accounts for 67 percent of the global telematics market, with Europe and the U.S. making up 29 percent and 4 percent, respectively, according to MOCIE. South Korea only accounted for 1.1 percent of global telematics-related production and 0.5 percent of global exports.
However, MOCIE predicts that if the government's blueprint to expand the local telematics industry is carried out as planned, South Korea will capture around 5.6 percent of the $26.5 billion global telematics market by 2007 in combined sales of cars equipped with telematics and in sales of telematics kits and technology to global carmakers.
By 2012, it expects South Korea's market share will reach 27 percent of the $99.4 billion world market.
Considering that South Korea now boasts one of the world's highest penetration rates in both broadband Internet and cell phones and that it has been aggressively investing in wireless Internet infrastructure, there is a high chance that the country will also lead the global telematics market in a not-so-distant future.
Further brightening the future prospect is global computer giant IBM's decision to invest $16 million in a software lab that will develop applications for mobile communications devices, including telematics. The Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC) is investing another $16 million into the project.
The MIC is also planning additional investments for building a traffic information center together with the Ministry of Construction and Transportation in Seoul to store up-to-the minute information on traffic across the country, major roadwork, maps and other aids for use by telematics service providers.
Hyundai Mobis, one of the country's frontrunners in the local telematics industry, a leading auto parts supplier and an affiliate of Hyundai Motor, estimates that, based on the market growth forecast by MOCIE, the company's telematics device-related sales will reach 250 billion won in 2005, grabbing the largest market share, at 30 percent, of the Korean market.
``Our annual telematics-related sales projection includes combined sales of cars made by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors that are equipped with telematics and telematics kits to other carmakers,'' a Hyundai Mobis spokesman said.
``It is difficult to roll out local telematics market projections at the moment as the market has just started to form in the beginning of last year. But in our view, the local market is forecast to grow to 850 billion won in 2005, about eightfold the current market size,'' he said.
Hyundai Mobis rolled out its first terminal, Exride, for telematics services last September. Exride, a voice-operated telematics system device, goes for 2.4 million won ($2,000) when including the installation fee and the value-added tax.
The Exride terminal, which can be operated by voice command, offers more than 20 features including radio, television, navigation, telematics, a CD player, an MP3 player and voice mail.
The high-tech gadget, which can fit any type of vehicle, can provide services including route-guidance and tracking of stolen vehicles as well as fuel and engine maintenance alerts. Users only need to pay for the wireless Internet access available through their mobile handsets.
Other carmakers have teamed up with wireless-telecom companies to offer telematics services. Renault Samsung Motors and SK Telecom began a service that provides real-time traffic situations and tells the driver which is the quickest route to take last September. The information is transmitted through the driver's mobile phone, which is connected to the telematics terminal.
LG Telecom has joined hands with Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors.
Meanwhile, LG Electronics last Thursday said it will provide handset systems to allow telematics services in two General Motors (GM) car models. They are the Buick Regal and Pontiac Grand Prix models. LG's products will be installed in GM cars as early as 2005.
sjkim@koreatimes.co.kr
11-17-2003 19:48
The Open Music Model
Would you subscribe to a legal, p2p system for music files with these characteristics?
* File sharing with all other users on an unrestricted, worldwide network
* Unlimited, high quality downloads in MP3 and other formats, with no usage limitations
* Fair compensation to all artists and record labels
* Subscriptions available via credit or cash, online or in stores
* $5 per month subscription (payment on a month-to-month basis)
Shuman Ghosemajumder wants the know. And he also wants the recording industry to think about the fact that there are alternatives to suing music fans.
With this in mind, he's started a survey asking the above questions, emphasising that it's not sponsored by, nor connected to, any external company or organization, or the RIAA.
Ghosemajumder was a President's Scholar at the University of Western Ontario in Canada, where he earned a BA in Computer Science and was ACM champion, completed his graduate studies at MIT, where he earned an MBA from the Sloan School of Management, wrote a Master of Science thesis on digital content distribution, and won the MIT 1K Business Plan Competition.
In the meanwhile, he's proposing model built around the idea that in the future, music will be thought of more as a service than as discrete goods.
Now read on >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The Open Music Model
By Shuman Ghosemajumder
It is clear from the upheaval in the recording industry that the traditional distribution model does not meet the needs of either the industry or its consumers. Many consumers ? apparently over 60 million in the United States alone, according to some of the recording industry?s estimates ? find that downloading music from free exchanges, primarily Kazaa, is the most convenient way to access and store music.
The leading commercial solutions, Apple?s iTunes Music Store and BuyMusic.com, have both experienced stalled sales and failed to spark an interest in the dollar-per-track model that was hailed as the industry?s salvation merely a few months ago. Now the Recording Industry Association of American has launched its infamous campaign of suing individual consumers, based solely on the owner of the IP address used to make files available on free exchanges. So far, all the cases have been settled on the basis of the individual?s financial resources rather than the extent of their violation, and none were tried in court. These lawsuits must necessarily be a temporary phenomenon. They may in fact drive users from the Kazaa platform, but then they will simply adopt file sharing systems which suppress IP-based identification. Whether the RIAA would even be able to win their legal argument is questionable, but the simple technological circumvention of the only weapon in their arsenal renders that point moot.
This article provides a solution. The proposed model may be challenging for some, and is built around the idea that new music (as opposed to deep catalog tracks) will be the primary reason for most people in the future to pay for music, and that music in the future will be thought of more as a service than as discrete goods. It is based on consumer research conducted just over one year ago at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (http://shumans.com/p2p-business-models.pdf) which shows why it could succeed where other solutions have failed. That thesis correctly predicted the failure of all the new commercial solutions in the past year. The Open Music Model is based on the ?open clearinghouse networks? idea presented in that work, which should be referenced for the detailed analysis of these issues. The fundamental premise of the new model is:
A peer-to-peer system with a flat monthly fee of $5 for unlimited downloads, and proportional compensation for content owners.
In addition, it would have the following five ?open? characteristics:
1. Open File Sharing: users must be free to share files on their hard drives with each other.
2. Open File Formats: content must be distributed in MP3 and other formats with NO digital rights management protection.
3. Open Membership: content owners must able to freely register to receive compensation.
4. Open Payment: users must be able to access the system using either credit cards or access cards purchasable anonymously in cash from retail stores.
5. Open Competition: there must be multiple such systems which can tie into each other?s file sharing databases. It must not be a monopoly through legal design.
The reasoning for these characteristics is based on what surveyed users said they desired in an online system, but has logical justifications as well, detailed below.
Why $5 per month?
The $5 monthly fee for unlimited downloads model is based upon survey data which indicated that over 84% of existing file sharers would pay more than $10 per month for a system which provided access to a complete library of music recordings, rather than just a subset of licensed titles as currently offered by all commercial systems. The $5 price point is deliberately one half of what the research indicates is a sustainable fee. The reasoning is that if demand turns out to be weaker than anticipated, the system should still be commercially viable. Reducing the price for the sake of this model also recognizes that a powerful network effect exists for file sharing systems and that the primary competitors are distributing the product for free. The greater the number of users, the more powerful such a system would be. Going forward, the monthly fee might be revenue maximizing between $30 and $120 per year.
Why unlimited downloads?
The a-la-carte download model made famous by Apple iTunes Music store generated initial excitement, but failed to show any growth or create a loyal user base. Those systems had some good ideas ? exemplified primarily in their simplicity of use ? but their relatively small amount of content relative to free exchanges, and the expense associated with building up a library of several thousand MP3?s ? as many users are now accustomed to doing ? proved uncompetitive. Systems which offered a capped number of downloads encourage hording. Allowing for unlimited downloads acknowledges the ease with which users can already copy several thousand tracks from a friend for free, and allows consumers to shift their thinking from owning discrete tracks to accessing the recording industry?s goods as a service ? similar to how cable television is sold. Consider that a single blue laser DVD will be able to store more music than most individuals buy in their lifetimes ? for example, the top 100 songs of the past fifty years. It is unrealistic to think that individuals copying such a single disc for their friends could be prevented. Therefore, the industry must adopt a model which is cognizant of the future and understands that with greater societal interest in music, there are ever greater opportunities to make money from it. Providing a system which meets users needs, rather than pretending those needs don?t exist or arguing that they shouldn?t exist, is the only sustainable model.
Why Open File Sharing?
Users say that ease of use and database size are among the most important characteristics to them. Open file sharing ensures the greatest likelihood of a search for any given song coming back with a positive match, which addresses both factors. Systems which only offer explicitly licensed content eventually drive users back to free exchanges to find content that closed catalog systems lack. The goal of a commercial solution should be to make non-commercial file sharing obsolete for most people, and its main advantage should be convenience. A commercial system would be able to freely offer content authentication (searching for a track returns that track listed only once, and where possible, a verified or ?authorized? version of it) and would therefore immediately be far more convenient for any user. In addition, links to related merchandise (concert tickets, artists? web sites, giveaways, etc.) would create a far superior overall shopping experience. This superiority to free exchanges is critical considering that deep catalog music is one of the primary areas where the recording industry is particularly uncompetitive. When it becomes technologically possible for all users to store every song ever recorded on their individual hard drives (only a few years away), where users go to obtain new music will determine where the industry can obtain its revenues.
Why Open File Formats?
The goal of digital rights management is to prevent one user from giving their content to another. Nearly all DRM providers acknowledge that, in the case of audio tracks (and other commoditized sensory information goods), absolute prevention of replication is technologically impossible. In addition, when one looks at the above cited example of a single disc in the future being able to hold most of the music ? in a DRM-free format ? that anyone would ever want to purchase through other means, DRM becomes irrelevant for previously released tracks. For new tracks, which users obtain incrementally, the difficulty in copying from a friend or finding a single working copy of the track on a free exchange is generally minimal. Finally, DRM protected tracks are simply inconvenient to use relative to their unprotected MP3 counterparts, and user-hostile technologies are always at a natural disadvantage in being adopted.
Why Open Membership?
The owners of content must be compensated for their work. The number of unique users downloading a given single would be easily tracked by the system, and content owners could be commensurately compensated. The system would allow for any content owner to follow a simple procedure to prove ownership of a given track and claim all compensation associated with it.
Why Open Payment?
Credit card payments offer access to a certain segment of society, but teenagers without credit and individuals without bank accounts still purchase CDs for cash in stores. Teenagers are, of course, one of the primary markets for new music. Currently, the only way they can obtain music online is through free exchanges. In addition to allowing these groups access, subscriptions purchasable with cash could provide anonymous access ? similar to buying a CD with cash in a retail store ? to those who desired it.
Why Open Competition?
Several commercial exchanges would offer access to the same file sharing network, similar to how there are many Gnutella and FastTrack (Kazaa) clients. They would offer different front-end interfaces, pricing models, and other features, with the same content. This would create competing overall shopping experiences, much the same way different retail stores offer the same CDs for sale. Open competition would also ensure maximum innovation and benefit to consumers (not to mention that any monopoly system would likely be deemed legally in violation of antitrust statutes).
Conclusion: Is this Legal? How much money can be made from this?
Whether this is proposal is legally viable is unknown, and there are certainly hundreds of arguments on either side. Unfortunately, most of the major issues relating to file sharing have yet to be tested in any court of law, let alone by the US Supreme Court. Its realization depends upon the cooperation between industry groups and a possible reform of the copyright system. But it does fairly compensate content owners for their intellectual property, so the legal maneuvering required may not be as difficult as the industry consensus building and education required.
However, the financial prospects are compelling. 84% of existing file sharers say they would pay $10 per month for such a system, without even seeing how much more powerful it would be than any free exchange they?ve used. At the current estimate of 60 million file sharers, at $5 per month, this would mean over $3 billion per year ? approximately 30% of the industry?s current US revenues from pre-recorded music. In reality, the 60 million figure is probably high, but competing systems priced between $5 to $10 would be able to generate more revenue for the industry overall. In addition, online distribution is far more profitable than traditional means.
The recording industry clearly has a great deal to gain, and even more to lose. Unless such a commercial system is embraced very soon, its hostile tactics against its own consumers will lead to the development of hackerware-supported systems which offer far more functionality than the free exchanges of today, making switching to a commercial system less attractive than it would be at this moment in time.
(Monday 17 November 2003)
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United Airlines Completes Verizon Airfone JetConnect Installation on Entire Domestic Fleet
Posted: 11/11/2003 10:08:21 PM
News Release
Fleet Serves More Destinations than any other U.S. Commercial Carrier
CHICAGO, Nov. 10 - United Airlines and Verizon Airfone today announced that the first U.S. commercial carrier to offer Verizon Airfone JetConnect(SM) service has completed installation of this inflight email and instant messaging connectivity. United Airlines now has the largest installed fleet, serving more destinations than any other U.S. commercial carrier.
"JetConnect Service is another example of United serving the inflight needs of our customers," said John Tague, executive vice-president - Customer, United Airlines. "Regardless of where our customers and passengers happen to be, they increasingly expect the information and entertainment choices available to them inflight to be as instantaneous as they are on the ground."
With nearly 1500 domestic flights a day, thousands of passengers are already using JetConnect to stay connected while inflight. Customers access JetConnect by plugging their laptops into jacks on the Verizon Airfone handsets. No software downloads or changes to connection procedures are required. Customers just use their standard dial-up routine to link to JetConnect.
"By focusing on the business traveler's productivity, JetConnect is the smart communication choice that meets the needs of frequent travelers. Feedback from passengers has been positive," said Bill Pallone, President, Verizon Airfone. "For example, a recent passenger sent this email:
'Wow. What an amazingly useful service. I've been chatting with my
employees throughout the flight and getting valuable work done from 30,000
feet. JetConnect completely changes what I can accomplish while on a cross
country flight.'
Business travelers have come to expect this level of connectivity while inflight and JetConnect is delivering it for a great value," added Pallone.
JetConnect gives customers access to a wide variety of email accounts, including all Microsoft Exchange 5.5 and 2000 Outlook Web-Enabled Accounts (OWA), POP3, Yahoo, AOL, and Hotmail accounts. Inflight e-mail is enabled by software provided by Seattle-based Tenzing Communications.
United Airlines participated in service trials of JetConnect's email feature in May of this year and has offered JetConnect service on select 767 domestic aircraft since December 2002.
Product Overview
JetConnect with Email
$15.98 per flight
Send and receive an unlimited number of e-mail messages per flight. Data
in excess of 5kB (kilobyte) per message and attachments incur a cost of
ten cents per kB. Includes all JetConnect features.
JetConnect:
$5.99 per flight
Instant Messaging, one-way text messaging, updated weather, national,
international and business news, sports, and stock listings, games, over
100 city guides and airline information
About United Airlines
In 2002, United's employees broke 35 company records and achieved the best overall operational performance in the company's 77-year history. United Airlines finished 2002 ranked No. 1 in the industry in domestic on-time performance, according to the official U.S. Department of Transportation's Air Travel Consumer report. United operates more than 1,700 flights a day on a route network that spans the globe. News releases and other information about United can be found at the company's website at www.united.com.
About Verizon Airfone
Verizon Airfone, a subsidiary of Verizon Communications, began offering commercial service in 1984 with the introduction of the first cordless air-to- ground telephone system. Airfone installed the first seatback telephone in 1987, and the company deployed a nationwide, end-to-end digital system starting in 1993. Verizon Airfone introduced JetConnect(SM) - the inflight Email, instant messaging and text messaging service in 2002.
Is there an echo in here....LOL?