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Rather than pulling the plug after MTV’s Urge music failed to catch on, Viacom (parent of MTV Networks) withdrew from the music subscription business by merging Urge with Real Networks’ Rhapsody and retaining 49percent of the joint venture.  Now, on a smaller scale, Yahoo is doing similar with their Music Unlimited subscription service. Yahoo Music Unlimited, will now be managed by Rhapsody America. Yahoo Music will refocus on providing features for their web traffic.

The strategic relationship announced with Real Networks today will be implemented over the next few months. During that time, Yahoo Music Unlimited subscribers will be converted over to Rhapsody. Click to Read More

Amazon was a pioneer in establishing internet based e-commerce.  Now, in their second act, they look like they are trying to blaze a similar trail in the sale of digital goods.  Today, in line with those efforts, Amazon announced they will buy spoken word (audiobook) publisher Audible for $11.50 a share in cash. 

At the $11.50 a share price Amazon is paying a 24% premium over Audible’s Wednesday closing price of $9.33 a share.   Two months ago Audible traded upwards of $14 a share.  Last quarter they did sales of $27m and lost $192k.  Those metrics may make the purchase look like a bargain (and it probably is), but views on that are likely to be divergent.  Part of the reason: last month, Audible’s largest shareholder, Apax, signaled a lack of confidence in the company when they (and affiliates) began selling off their 23% stake in the company. 

Probably the best near term gauge for valuing this deal as an Amazon shareholder lies in measuring the strategy it reflects rather than the approximately $300m purchase price.

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Move over Amazon and iTunes, here comes Yahoo with the volume blaring.   At least that’s a rumor that circulated late last week.  Citing anonymous music industry executives, several reports claimed Yahoo is negotiating to begin selling DRM-Free music later this year.   

A few days looking for more info has yielded no substantive confirmation and little further detail.  From what’s available, it appears talks are real but early in process and delicate enough that nobody wants to compromise the discussions by sharing information.    Still, as for logic, a deal makes sense for both Yahoo and the labels.  There’s incentive for both sides to reach agreement.   There’s a good probability something will be announced between the two; possibly by June, or sooner.

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With markets in panic mode, the “R” word being used at the water coolers and the Fed pulling the ripcord on an emergency parachute, it was a bad day for any company to release earnings.  It was an especially bad day to share any comments that were cautionary, ambiguous, or anything but outrageously optimistic.  Apple shareholders paid the short term price.

Not five minutes into Apple’s earnings conference call After Hours traders, seizing on cautious, conservative lowered guidance, drove the stock down another ten percent.  The unfortunate thing is, the response is extreme, more a consequence of the economic climate than the actual news.

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Last year, private equity firm Terra Firma acquired struggling number four music label EMI for about $6.4b (including debt).  A few days ago, an internal email from Terra Firma’s CEO Guy Hands leaked.  It hinted at major house cleaning. 

Ahead of Tuesday’s EMI staff meetings, early reports on the wire services and from the Wall Street Journal are citing insiders that those changes may include job cuts for  as much as one third of EMI’s six thousand person global staff. 

Even as sources suggest the cuts may be smaller, the number of jobs lost is expected to be substantial.

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2007 was a banner year.  There was the iPhone, a new (and very successful) iPod family, a new and improved  iMac, the Leopard update to the OS X operating system and a stock price that’s accelerated like a Ferrari on a track.  Now it’s 2008 and Macworld, the trade show that is “Apple’s State of the Union” is just a blink away.  Last year’s show revealed the iPhone.  “What can we expect this year?” is the question on the minds of many.  We all want to know: what promise and surprise does the 2008 product pipeline have in store for us? 

Nobody’s talking, which is usual, and as usual, that has everyone talking.  Steve Jobs and his team guard their secrets as tightly as a Vegas magic act, and like the elite illusionists, they enjoy misdirection just as much.     That’s fueled a constant stream of predictions and forecasts.  Analysts with inside sources, press and fans alike all have a perspective.  Handicapping Apple product announcements is rarely a wise endeavor, nevertheless, below are some rumors, and odds of their likelihood:

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Something was missing. When Sony BMG revealed Platinum Music Pass, their first step into DRM-Free waters, it didn’t make sense.  It wasn’t the Amazon partnership expected.  It was a weird retail experiment.  Logic seemed lost.  There had to be more.  Fortunately, there is. 

Amazon announced Thursday that the Sony BMG catalog will, in fact, soon be available at the Amazon MP3 store without digital copyright protection.  There hasn’t been confirmation whether the entire catalog will be included or if it will be a more limited “experiment.”  However they proceed, the news is a significant win for Amazon, and for music fans.

Amazon owes significant thanks to EMI.  Though the smallest of the Big 4, Click to Read More