News
Monday, July 18, 2005
Apple iTunes Podcast Directory Draws Criticisms In Early Going
The July release of an Apple’s iTunes software upgrade that included a podcast directory has produced a new groundswell of interest in the phenomenon, as amateur broadcasters pile on to the bandwagon and established (and startup) media companies wrestle with models for monetizing the nascent medium.
The traffic surge fit well into the capabilities of many established media outfits, like Los Angeles-area NPR station KCRW, which had to ramp up server capacity in the days following the iTunes release, but managed the upgrade smoothly, offset by a well-timed podcast sponsorship deal with Lexus dealers in the station’s broadcast area. The deal, reportedly in the six-figure range, is something of a holy grail scenario for most podcasters, particularly those in iTunes’ directory who are on bargain shared-hosting plans.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Apple’s iTunes To Incorporate Podcasting Features
Months after the ubiquitous iPod portable media player and its companion software iTunes enabled a phenomenon known as podcasting, Apple Computer has decided to formally embrace the podcasting world in a new version of its platform.
In a presentation at the Wall Street Journal’s technology conference this week, Apple CEO Steve Jobs previewed an upcoming version of iTunes that will serve as an aggregator and distributor of podcasts. iTunes users will be able to download Apple-approved podcasts through the iTunes service for free and then sync them to their iPods for portable playback.
Up to now, podcast listeners had to either manually download MP3 links of their chosen programs and manually add them to their iTunes playlists or use third-party software, such as iPodder, to grab the files from RSS feeds and import them into their iTunes or Windows Media playlists.
Friday, May 13, 2005
Yahoo Music Engine Adds Open-Source Twist With Open Plugin Development
Yahoo’s move into the music etail portal space this week fascinated technology-watchers and rattled competitors. As the dust on the announcement settles, Yahoo is making a public--and seemingly welcome--gesture to the open-source community to contribute to the service with the unveiling of a dedicated plugin development blog.
Noted in Yahoo developer Jeremy Zawodny’s blog, the plugin dev blog is a clearing house of widgets divided into two buckets: Those that alter the behavior of the YME application (which, like Napster or Rhapsody, must be downloaded and installed on the client system to access the YME music library) and those that change the behavior of a web browser to integrate data calls to the YME service via a public API.
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Yahoo Music Engine Squeezes Competitors
The announcement of the Yahoo! Music Engine portal and its low-ball price points sent the stock prices of competitors into a tailspin on Wednesday (5/11).
Yahoo!, Inc. unveiled its music retail portal, dubbed the Yahoo! Music Engine, on Tuesday evening. The service is a subscription-based music streaming service that allows users the option to purchase tracks at a small premium.
The service will launch with prices of $6.99 monthly and $4.99 a month if purchased as a year-long contract. Both of the service’s primary competitors, Napster and Real Networks’ Rhapsody, charge $14.95 a month for a similar product offering.
Monday, June 21, 2004
Universal Easing Back On CD Price Cuts
Universal Music Group’s CD price-cut plan, hailed as a hope to get music buyers back into stores, has hit resistance from retailers, all but killing the effort.
Nine months ago, Universal Music executives announced with great fanfare that the company was preparing to slash prices on CDs. The strategy was expected to breathe new life into the flagging offline retail sector, which has been hit hard by a combination of illegal online music trading, audience migration to online stores and a long-running sag in pop sales on the heels of the Jive Records-powered teen music boom of the late 90’s.
Today, Universal’s grand plan has been quieted by a combination of resistance from the very retailers the price cuts were expected to help and internal reconsideration of the program’s details.
Thursday, August 07, 2003
Revamped Doors lineup to perform ‘L.A. Woman’
The Doors 21st Century will perform the 1971 album “L.A. Woman” in its entirety for the first time in Wantagh, NY.
The group plans to film the performance and release it as a concert DVD in early 2004.Original Doors frontman Jim Morrison died before the band released the “L.A. Woman” album.
Read more at The Doors 21st Century website
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
Dave Matthews solo album to feature Phish’s Trey Anastasio
Dave Matthews’ first solo album, “Some Devil,” unites Matthews with Trey Anastasio, known to many a jam-band fan as the guitar wizard from Phish.
Anastasio performs on four tracks and co-wrote one song, Grey Blue Eyes,” with Matthews. Longtime Matthews collaborator Tim Reynolds appears on the album as well.
In a press statement, Matthews said that the album sprang from a few songs that just weren’t right for the full Dave Matthews Band treatment.
“The sessions grew into a sort of writing and recording experience—something I hadn’t really planned on,” Matthews said. “Eventually the tracks began to take on a personality and grew into an album. I’m really excited and I hope people like it.”
The 14-track collection is due in stores Sept. 23.
Monday, August 04, 2003
Aerosmith, Britney, Mary J. Blige perform at NFL event
Aerosmith, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, Aretha Franklin and others have signed on to perform at The National Mall in Washington, DC, on Sept. 4 as part of “NFL Kickoff Live 2003.”
The event--which ABC will air live from 8-9 p.m. ET--leads up to that night’s season-opening match-up between the Washington Redskins and New York Jets.Spears reportedly plans to perform a couple of new songs at the show.
Phish ends tour with a two-day party
An estimated 70,000 fans braved washed-out campgrounds and knee-deep mud to witness the return of Phish to the former Loring Air Force base in Limestone, Maine over the weekend. About 2 a.m. Sunday, the band launched into a surprise 4th set of the festival, performing atop the air traffic control tower as gymnasts in rappelling gear dangled, bounced and danced on the sides of the tower.
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Dwight Yoakam heads into cover territory again
Dwight Yoakam will release his second CD of cover songs Sept. 23rd. Songs on the set include the Grateful Dead’s “Truckin’,” “Mystery Train,” and “T For Texas.” A U.S. tour, in progress since June, will continue through October 10th.
Wednesday, July 30, 2003
Sting plots TV Special, pulls in Josh Wink for remix duties
Sting will follow the September release of his new album “Send Your Love” with a special on the A&E Network in October. According to Sting.com, the special will cover the making of the album and include musical performances. Sting has also lined up noted techno artist Josh Wink to remix “Sacred Love,” the leadoff single from the album. “Send Your Love” is due September 10th. The original mix of the single goes to radio the first week of August.
John Mellencamp to pair with Kenney Chesney for CMT Crossroads
On the heels of a whirlwind promo tour supporting his “Trouble No More” blues album, John Mellencamp is scheduled to tape an installment of CMT’s “Crossroads” program on August 6th. The series has in the past paired the likes of Travis Tritt and ZZ Top, Elton John and Ryan Adams and James Taylor and the Dixie Chicks. Mellencamp will perform with Kenney Chesney. Their pairing is schedule to air October 3rd.