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Report: U.K. Song Download Sales Reach 500,000

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:30pm.
London -- The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) reports that sales of digital music downloads in the U.K. have now surpassed 500,000 for the year. The lion's share of these downloads were sold by OD2, which powers the leading U.K. online music stores. Napster recently launched its service in the U.K., although its initial sales were not included in the report. "Investors are showing confidence in the future of music and putting their money into new download stores, and music consumers are voting with their wallets and buying in the hundreds of thousands," said BPI chairman Peter Jamieson. Apple also plans to soon launch its iTunes Store in the U.K.; by contrast, the U.S. version of Apple's store has sold over 70 million songs in just over a year.
tags: Reports | Sales | U.K.Music Downloads |

News.com: Labels Looking to Limit CD Burning Capabilities

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:29pm.
San Francisco -- Citing the unfettered copying of CDs enabled by CD burners, the major record labels are currently testing technology that would limit the number of times a CD may be copied, and eliminate the ability to make copies of copies, CNET News.com reported on Wednesday. Anti-piracy firms SunnComm and Macrovision are developing such technologies in cooperation with the labels, with SunnComm and BMG already testing a "secure burn" solution and Macrovision expected to release its technology within several months. "If there's somebody who's making 25 copies for the world and finds they can't do that, then few people will probably complain. But if someone finds they can't make a copy for their kid so he can play it in the car, you're going to have a lot of people returning broken CDs," Mike McGuire, an analyst with GartnerG2, told News.com. A Macrovision executive told News.com that the labels are also interested in further limiting the amount of copying that can be done with songs purchased from online services like iTunes and Napster.
tags: Labels | News.com | Limit CD Burning Capabilities |

Nintendo to Preview Next-Generation GameCube Console at E3 2005

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:27pm.
Kyoto, Japan -- Japanese video games firm Nintendo has announced that it will preview its next-generation GameCube video game console at next year's Electronic Entertainment Expo gaming industry convention. The company could then launch the console in Japan by Christmas 2005, with an eye toward a possible spring 2006 launch in the U.S. "Rather than offering a new edition of the same thing, we want to offer new ways of game playing," senior managing director Yoshihiro Mori said of the device. The company did not reveal any other details of the console as part of the announcement.
tags: Nintendo | E3 | Preview | GameCube Console |

McDonald's to Offer Free Song Downloads from Sony Connect Store

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:26pm.
London -- Fast food restaurant chain McDonald's has partnered with Sony Music on a promotion to offer free music downloads from Sony's new online music store, The Financial Times reported. Free downloads would be included when McDonald's customers purchase the restaurant's signature Big Mac sandwich. Sony launched its Connect online music store last month, to compete with rival services from Apple, Napster and others. Similar promotions have seen Napster downloads offered by Heineken and Energizer, and Apple offering songs on bottles of Coca-Cola.
tags: McDonald | Free Music Downloads | Sony Connect Store |

AG Interactive Acquires European Mobile Content Publisher K-Mobile

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:24pm.
Cleveland -- AG Interactive, a division of greeting card publisher American Greetings, announced on Wednesday that it has acquired European mobile content publisher K-Mobile. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Paris-based K-Mobile offers a library of 12,000 ringtones and 2,000 games under its Kiwee brand in Belgium, France, Spain and Germany. Ohio-based AG Interactive will add K-Mobile's offering to its network of sites, which includes eGreetings.com and BlueMountain.com.
tags: Acquires | AG Interactive | European Mobile Content Publisher | K-Mobile |

Digital Media Chipmaker Cradle Technologies Secures $12 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 2, 2004 - 3:22pm.
Mountain View, Calif. -- Cradle Technologies, a developer of multiprocessor components for real-time video, audio and imaging applications, said on Thursday that it has raised $12 million in a new round of venture funding. The round included a $7 million investment from Investor Growth Capital, as well as participated from previous investors Charter Venture Capital, East Gate Capital Management, Prodea, NeoCarta Ventures and Smart Technology Ventures. "This additional capital will allow us to ramp up our sales and marketing activities and more rapidly build our revenue stream," said Arthur Chang, the CEO and president of Cradle Technologies.
tags: Secures | Digital Media Chipmaker | Cradle Technologies |