Looking back through centuries of history only a short list of communication technologies have fundamentally changed the way people and societies share information; things like written language, the printing press, the telegraph, the radio, and television.  Each, over years of evolution, utterly disrupted existing practices, pushing aside the antiquated and expanding the depth of possibilities.  Each, in developmental years, had critics predicting there’d be little long term value.    Each also has had champions who eagerly predicted the innovations would drastically reshape the world.

The Internet falls in to the same exclusive club but its functionality and contribution are still evolving.  It will take decades before the breadth of its impact and transformative power are fully understood.  Still, that won’t stop many  from predicting where things will go or how the Internet will continue to shape our world along the way.

Monday, Lehman Brothers took a stab at such a prediction.  Citing the disruptive power of the Internet, and its likelihood of changing business economics in the entertainment industry, they downgraded stock ratings on several companies.  The recent history of the music industry was cited as one partial justification.

The view seemed extreme.  This METUE review takes an in-depth closer look.

(more…)

Aerosmith has sold more than 150 million albums (66m + in the U.S.) over four decades of Rock but they haven’t released a new one since 2001.  In today’s music world, that may not matter much when it comes time to receive royalty checks.   Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, the first single-band specific version of Activision’s bestselling video game, released Sunday.  If it does well, the band stands to draw a sizable income without having to hit the studio anew.

(more…)

It takes money to make money sometimes.  Will $50 million be enough to steal some cash and market share from Apple’s dominant iTunes digital content store?  That is a question digital music service Rhapsody is hoping to answer.

Under a new strategy revealed Monday, Rhapsody will begin selling a la carte, single-song MP3 downloads without restriction.   All of the music will be offered at a variable bit rate of 256kb and it will have no digital rights management encryption (DRM).  Accordingly, it will be playable on any device, including iPods and iPhones. 

Music bought over an internet connection will be priced at 99cents a song, or $9.99 an album.  Music bought through a Verizon mobile phone via vCast will cost $1.99. The higher mobile premium will include one direct download and a second “master copy” sent to a home computer.

The changes break from what had long been Rhapsody’s approach to music sales. (more…)

The rumor mill has a funny way of repeating itself and moving in circles until gossip eventually transitions toward fact.  Back in March, the airwaves were abuzz with the prospect that the Beatles digital debut might come by way of Activision’s Guitar Hero video game and not, as widely expected, iTunes music store.   That news didn’t pan out.  Activision revealed their G.H. pipeline and the special release title in the current lineup turned out to be a Metallica special edition.

Now, a few months later, the Financial Times is reporting on a similar Beatles story.  A rumor repeat based on new disclosures.  According to the new reports, a licensing deal worth several million dollars is in the works and could be weeks away. The parties are talking.

Fact? Fiction? Full Beatles Edition? Just a few songs licensed for the next Installment of the Game? (more…)

iTunes has long been looked at as the loss leader, the bridge that links Apple’s assorted media products. It drives product sales and helps power iPods, iPhones, Apple TV and Mac multimedia.  But that role of servitude hasn’t stopped it from turning into a significant force. 

Apple announced today, the iTunes store crossed the 5 billion song barrier.  That’s 5 billion songs sold, up a billion from the 4billion announced in January.   

At 99cents a song, that means the store has generated nearly $5billion in music revenue. That’s $3.5billion to artists and labels and $1.5billion to Apple (based on widely estimated revenue sharing splits).  That’s not too shabby for an auxiliary program that helps promote hardware sales.

As this graphic shows, the escalation in pace at which songs are selling isn’t bad either:

Even more impressive, however, might be the story surrounding video sales.  (more…)

One of the first things that happens when a product like the iPhone 3G hits the market is someone breaks it.  For curiosity, for insight, to see what’s inside, or simply because they can – someone will crack it open and chronicle all the bits and pieces; who made what and where did they do it.

It won’t be until July 11th that such an official breakdown can happen (and it’ll probably be a couple days after before such a story is published) but that delivery day isn’t stopping insiders from “leaking” news about who won the the iPhone part-age lottery nor is it stopping the press from speculating.

As of Thursday, the Commercial Times, a Chinese language newspaper is claiming they’ve got the scoop on what’s in iPhone 3g.  Per their reports, and translations from Digitimes, the following companies will be inside come July 11: (more…)

Over the past couple of years it has been a recurring headline, a come and go promise that’s never been fulfilled.  Now, the news may finally match the rumor.  Multiple reports are suggesting Bertelsmann, the German media giant, is close to selling its 50% stake in the world’s second largest music label (Sony BMG) back to co-owner Sony.

(more…)