Oslo, Norway - Ezmo, a Norway-based developer of online music storage and sharing technology, has been shut down by owners Fast Search and Transfer (FAST), according to a post on the company's blog. The service let users upload their music collections to its servers, and access it from any Internet connection -- as well as share their online music libraries with up to ten friends. Ezmo said on its blog that the revenue model for its free service was to be music sales and promotion, but repeated meetings and contact with the major labels did not result in licensing deals. "Their terms were not compatible with the conditions a small start-up operates under," the company said.

New York - Recording artist Jill Sobule ("I Kissed a Girl") has in a month raised nearly $68,000 online from her fans, after asking them to help finance the recording of her upcoming album, the Associated Press reports. Sobule, who is seeking $75,000 in total to record and market the album, is offering incentives such as a free download of the finished recording for a $10 contribution; free concert tickets for $200; a concert at your house for $5,000; and a cameo on the album itself, for $10,000. "The old kind of paradigm, where you've always waited for other people to do things, you'd have your manager and your agent," Sobule told AP. "You'd wait for the big record company to give you money to do things and they tell you what to do. This is so great. I want to do everything like this."

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Seattle - Social music discovery service iLike said on Wednesday that more than 200,000 musicians, including half of the top 500 acts in music, are using its service to manage their profiles on social networks including Facebook, hi5 and Bebo. Artists including Radiohead, Linkin Park, 50 Cent and Herbie Hancock use the iLike Universal Artist Dashboard to post songs, videos, tour dates and other information across the various social networks. iLike, which claims 23 million registered users for its own service, said its Artist Dashboard also soon support MySpace and Orkut, following the launch of Google's OpenSocial.

San Francisco - Delivery Agent, a provider of shopping-enabled programming for 125 entertainment properties, said on Wednesday that it partnered with The Weinstein Company to auction off over 35 original garments designed by the final three contestants on Bravo's "Project Runway" fashion designer reality show. A portion of the proceeds from the final collections will go to benefit New York-based The HOPE Program, a career-development program helping homeless and welfare-dependent adults.

London - How-to video site VideoJug on Wednesday announced a deal with MySpace to launch its own branded channels on MySpaceTV, initially offering a library of 100 short how-to and expert advice videos on topics including food, beauty, cars and sex. VideoJug features more than 38,000 professionally-produced videos.

New York - Marc Ecko Entertainment, the fashion designer's video game studio, on Wednesday announced a deal with CBS-owned (NYSE: CBS) Showtime Networks, to develop a game based on the cable network's "Dexter" series. The companies say they are currently in talks with a handful of development studios about the project. Ecko's other major game release was the graffiti-based title "Getting Up."

Muze is a leading innovator and provider of media information products and services for the media and entertainment industry.

Tokyo - Japanese video game developer Sega announced on Wednesday that its "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games" title for Nintendo Wii and DS has sold five million copies worldwide in just over three months. The game features familiar Sega and Nintendo characters competing in a variety of Olympic events.

Los Angeles - uWink, the "interactive dining experience" company launched by Nolan Bushnell, founder of both Atari and Chuck E. Cheese's, said on Wednesday that its previously announced uWink location at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles will open in early May. Each table at the restaurant, which will occupy the 7,200 square foot space where Wolfgang Puck's Brasserie Vert was located, will have touch-screen terminals that are used for both gaming, and to order food and beverages.

Boca Raton, Fla. - Penthouse Media Group, the publisher of Penthouse magazine and provider of other "adult entertainment and lifestyle" content, announced on Wednesday that it has filed for its initial public offering of stock to raise an estimated $250 million.

Luxembourg - European music-focused social network MusicMakesFriends.com announced on Wednesday that it has signed licensing deals with major record labels Universal Music, Sony BMG and EMI, to make their entire catalogs available for streaming on its service.

New York - Publisher and event producer Ziff Davis Media announced on Wednesday that it plans to file for Ch. 11 bankruptcy protection, and will set aside $24.5 million to fund operations during and after it emerges from the process, expected to conclude this summer. The company, which publishes PC Magazine and Electronic Gaming Monthly magazines, and websites including 1UP.com, said it has also reached an agreement with investors on a restructuring plan to reduce its funded indebtedness.

San Francisco - Casual games developer Three Rings has raised $3.5 million in new funding, led by True Ventures, VentureBeat reported.

Mountain View, Calif. - Skyrider, a developer of monetization technology for peer-to-peer networks, has raised $5 million in new financing, from previous investors Sequoia Capital, Charles River Ventures and Velocity Interactive Group, VentureBeat reports.

The 2008 Millennials Canada Conference, co-produced by Digital Media Wire and Canadian Music Week, is taking place today as an integral part of the Canadian Music Week. The youth focused one-day event brings together leading international entertainment, media and technology executives and consumer marketers to focus on how to connect with the much sought after Millennial Generation (those born between 1982 and 2000), which will outnumber both Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers by 2010 to become the most significant consumer sector for the media and entertainment industries. Here are some early take-aways from the conference:

Dulles, Va. - Still searching for ways to fend off a $41.2 billion hostile takeover by Microsoft (NASD: MSFT), Yahoo (NASD: YHOO) has stepped up its talks about a possible merger or joint venture with AOL (NYSE: TWX), The New York Times reported on Wednesday. Citing "people close to the company," the paper said that Yahoo is desperately attempting to avoid a proxy fight for control of its board, which Microsoft could launch next week by nominating several new directors.

Los Angeles - Taltopia, an online social network that aims to connect aspiring talent with industry professionals, said on Wednesday that it has raised $800,000 in its first round of funding, led by angel investor Go4Funding.

Los Angeles - Generate, an independent production and management studio "creating professional entertainment properties targeted at Millennials across all media platforms," announced on Wednesday that it has raised $6 million in its first round of financing, led by Velocity Interactive Group and MK Capital.