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Social networking services from MySpace to Bebo continue to increase in popularity, and as they do, for many in the music industry their kinds of service offerings represent a significant marketing opportunity. 

According to a recently published survey by Entertainment Media Research (and OLSWANG) two in five social network users have music embedded in their site profile, and on Bebo and MySpace that number jumps to 65 and 63 percent respectively.  27 percent of respondents in the same survey also indicated their social network services were regular sources for discovering new music.

Armed with this kind of data, and more, Blue Note, the venerable Jazz label owned by EMI,  has planned to relaunch their promotional website as a branded social network and music store of their own later this month (According to a Billboard report) .

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In early July, just when Apple was riding the wave of the iPhone, the tides got a little tough with news that Vivendi’s Universal Music Group (the biggest of the Big 4 music labels) had decided not to renew a long term contract allowing the sale of their catalog.  Instead, they announced they would go month to month, giving them the power to withdraw from iTunes on short notice.

Rumored to be at issue was both Apple’s unwillingness to open its Fairplay Rights Management technology to other vendors (which would allow other music stores to sell music playable on iPods)  and, also,  Apple’s desire to offer the music at fixed prices.  (Universal, and other labels, have long wanted to be able to price music at their discretion to influence sales and maximize profits)   

A month has passed and the plot’s  thickened.  Today, Universal announced it would join EMI on the DRM-Free express.   Breaking with the music industries hard line anti-piracy position, Universal announced they would offer the majority of the catalog without Digital Rights Management restrictions.   The catch is, they will not offer (at least for now) DRM free music on iTunes. It will be available through rivals like RealNetworks Rhapsody service , Wal-Mart, Amazon,  Passalong Networks and , in some case, artists’ Official Web sites. Many of these services are also working with EMI. Click to Read More

Over the years, the courts haven’t always been kind to Microsoft.  Monday, the technology giant had their day in court, and this time the day was good: $1.5 billion good. 

Back in February, a jury found Microsoft guilty of infringing on two patents held by French telecom giant Alcatel-Lucent relating to MP3 technology. The patents, which focus on MP3 Compression, date back to when Lucent was known as Bell Labs.   For the violation, the jury awarded Alcatel damages in the amount of $1.52billion.  It was the largest patent verdict in US history (and not a good day at Microsoft).

Microsoft, needless to say, appealed that verdict, especially the assessment and calculation of damages. Yesterday, in San Diego, U.S. District Court Judge Rudi Brewster, after spending about two weeks deliberating, gave the damage ruling a toss to the circular file.  Click to Read More

National Geographic is largely known for its visual images. Its magazines, TV channel, and Internet sites have connected the dots between faraway and divergent way of life. On Friday, National Geographic Ventures, the media arm of the organization, announced they’ll be expanding their audio offerings to add more soundbytes, songs and stories to go with the pictures that are so easily recognized.

In a partnership with distributors including Clear Channel and National Public Radio ("NPR"), the company will launch a radio venture with programs syndicated to over-air and Internet based stations. Reportedly, hundreds of hours of programming are planned. Click to Read More

There are two predominant schools of thought when it comes to distributing music online.   One side advocates a steady and measured deployment of titles with careful command and control of how and where songs are sold; and in what format.  In bed with only a few partners, this Cautious Advocate sells exclusivity to their distribution partners and negotiates aggressively on fees and  revenue sharing (even at times trying to wrangle for a royalty fee from the sale of hardware that can play their music).  To police their position and defend their partnerships, this camp uses Digital Rights Management technologies to encrypt songs.  They’re deathly concerned about piracy. They’re also vigilantly concerned about controlling access to their products. Click to Read More

Scan the register of bands on iTunes and you aren’t likely to find many famous names unrepresented.   From Johnny Cash to Beyonce from B.B. to Bono, from Eric Clapton to Queen, there’s a sampling of music across generations and genres.

But if you’re of the generation that, when you picked up a guitar, the first song you wanted to learn how to play was Stairway to Heaven? Going to iTunes might leave you calling out “Houston, we’ve got a problem.”

Besides the Beatles, classic rock legends Led Zeppelin have been among the few major holdouts that’ve refused to go digital and go Apple.  It’s ironic in a way, the two bands, (along with fellow famous holdout, Radiohead), represent music’s British Invasions but so far when it comes to digital, they’ve been strictly isolationist. That’s reportedly soon to change.

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With the iPhone, AT&T may be in bed with Apple for the next five years but that doesn’t mean they can’t have other partners to make music with.  Yesterday, in a joint press release, AT&T and number two digital music retailer, eMusic, announced a new over-the-air (Internet to Mobile) music service for AT&T cellular customers (iPhones, not included).

The service allows AT&T wireless customers to access, preview and buy songs from eMusic directly through their handsets.  In going “over the air,” the offering diverges from AT&T’s earlier music download service deals (with Napster and Yahoo) that allowed customers to buy music online and download it to music playing phones. It also gives them a product to compete with offerings from other wireless providers.

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