Archives

Virgin, MusicNet Partner on Digital Music Services

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:40am.
London -- Virgin Group announced on Monday that in August it will launch a digital music service in conjunction with MusicNet that will incorporate the company's Virgin Megastores, the Internet, mobile phones and portable devices. MusicNet, a joint venture between Time Warner, RealNetworks and labels Bertelsmann, EMI and Sony, has been offering an online music subscription service since 2001. The new Virgin Digital service will feature a download store and subscription service offering over 700,000 tracks. Virgin said that Zack Zalon, former general manager of the company's Radio Free Virgin online radio service, has been named president of Virgin Digital.
tags: Deals | MusicNet | Digital | Virgin | Music Services |

"Grey Tuesday" Protest Draws 100,000 Downloads for Remix Album

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:40am.
New York -- On Feb. 24, over 100,000 people downloaded copies of a remix album containing elements of the Beatles' "White Album," which was posted online against EMI's wishes in protest of record industry sample licensing practices, according to Downhill Battle, organizers of the "Grey Tuesday" event. "The Grey Album," from DJ Danger Mouse, mixes the vocals from rapper Jay-Z's "Black Album" with instrumental tracks sampled exclusively from the Beatles' "White Album." Major label EMI, which controls licensing for the Beatles, ordered physical copies of the album destroyed and sent cease-and-desist letters to several of the nearly 200 websites that offered the album for download. "In the visual arts you have people like Picasso or Rauschenberg who are creating artwork out of collage," Downhill Battle's Nicolas Reville told MTV.com. "For music, the rules are totally different and musicians that build a collage are treated like criminals. We need to find a way to change that to make sampling practical." For its part, EMI says it regularly clears samples and was never contacted by DJ Danger Mouse regarding the work.
tags: Downloads | Grey Tuesday | Remix Album |

Patent in $521 Million Judgment Against Microsoft Declared Invalid

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:39am.
Seattle -- Eolas Technologies, winner of a $521 million patent judgment against Microsoft over features in the company's Internet Explorer browser technology, has seen that award put in question after the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office last week said in a preliminary ruling that the Eolas patent is invalid, Reuters reported. Microsoft had started to make changes to its browser to comply with a federal judge's ruling last month upholding the $521 million jury award, but suspended the move to wait for the Patent Office's ruling. If the patent is ruled invalid after the full review process, Microsoft will not be forced to make changes to its Internet browsing software or pay the half billion-dollar settlement.
tags: Microsoft | Patent | Judgment | Invalid |

Report: Leading Cable, DSL Providers Count 24.6 Million Subscribers in 2003

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:37am.
Durham, N.H. -- The leading U.S. DSL and cable broadband Internet service providers reported a total of 24.6 million subscribers at the end of 2003, according to a report from New Hampshire-based market research firm Leichtman Research Group (LRG). The two competing access services added a combined 7.4 million new subscribers in 2003, with cable providers taking 60% of these new additions. Cable broadband subscribers now account for 63% of the overall market when compared to DSL. A separate LRG survey of 1,600 U.S. households found that 62% subscribe to an online service at home, with about one-third of these reporting a broadband connection. "Clearly the market for broadband has become more competitive in the past year, and competition will only intensify as the number of broadband subscribers in the U.S. doubles over the next four years," said LRG president Bruce Leichtman.
tags: Reports | Subscribers | Cable | DSL |

Microsoft to Dump Hard Drive for Flash in Next Xbox

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:37am.
Fremont, Calif. -- M-Systems, a maker of Flash memory storage products, announced that Microsoft has contracted the company to provide Flash memory for the next edition of its Xbox video game console. Several news outlets have reported that M-Systems CEO Dov Moran says that the Flash memory will replace the hard drive in the current generation Xbox, once touted as a feature that set the Xbox apart from competing consoles. "Microsoft has taken the hard disc out of its Xbox," Moran told Israeli business website Globes Online. "At some point, when users want to save their e-mail messages, copy music, or anything like that, the only storage they'll have is what we give them." Microsoft would only say that Moran's statements are speculation.
tags: Xbox | Microsoft | Flash | Hard Drive | Dump |

China Leads Worldwide DSL Market With 10.95 Million Subscribers

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:36am.
Fremont, Calif. -- China has become the world's largest DSL high-speed Internet market, with 10.95 million total DSL lines in 2003, according to a report from Fremont, Calif.-based DSL Forum, an industry trade group. The Asia-Pacific region accounted for 20 million of the world's 63.8 million total DSL subscribers, or 32% of the marketplace. Japan was second in total subscribers for 2003, with 10.27 million, followed by the U.S. with 9.12 million and South Korea with 6.43 million subscribers.
tags: Subscribers | China | DSL | Worldwide |

MTV, Motorola Sign Wireless Content Distribution Deal

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:35am.
Miami -- Cell phone maker Motorola and MTV announced on Monday a partnership that will see Motorola become the exclusive worldwide provider of MTV-branded wireless content. The deal includes a series of wireless games dubbed "Plastikulture," and a wireless version of MTV's "Exquisite Corpse" image campaign. Content will be pre-loaded on select new Motorola handsets and become available for download at Motorola's wireless portal HelloMoto.com by this summer.
tags: Deals | Wireless | MTV | Motorola | Distribution |

Video Game Developer Activision Faces Shareholder Class Action Suit

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 8, 2004 - 6:34am.
Santa Monica, Calif. -- Video game developer and publisher Activision said on Monday it strongly denies the allegations contained in a class action lawsuit filed against the company, alleging it overstated revenues and earnings during 2001 and 2002 in order to inflate its stock price. The lawsuit was filed on March 5 in California federal court by the Construction Industry and Carpenters Joint Pension Trust for Southern Nevada, and seeks unspecified damages. Santa Monica, Calif.-based Activision's games include the popular "Tony Hawk Pro Skater" and "Call of Duty" franchises.
tags: Activision | Video Game | Shareholder | Action Suit |