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22-11-06 |
Universal sues MySpace for
copyright infringement
Universal Music Group has announced a copyright infringement lawsuit against
MySpace, shortly after the new Jay-Z album “Kingdom Come” was leaked on the
site. The leak was the last straw in an already tense relationship between the
music company and the popular social-networking site and its parent company,
News Corp. Universal filed suit against MySpace alleging that it encourages
infringement on Universal’s copyrights, seeking an injunction from future
infringement and $150,000 for each authorized song or video posted on MySpace.
Universal also claims that MySpace is well aware that many members have posted
illegal bootleg videos and pirated recordings of Universal acts. According to
experts, the suit is intended as part of a strategy to test parts of a federal
law that gives "safe harbor" to Internet companies that follow certain
procedures to filter out copyrighted works. The law requires that sites remove
such content after being notified by the copyright holder. MySpace responded by
saying that it provides users with tools to share their own work and that it
does not induce, encourage or condone copyright violation in any way. Around the
same time MySpace announced that it plans to launch a tool that will make it
easier and faster for copyright holders to remove content they allege is
unauthorized from the site by digitally flagging it, after which it will be
deleted by MySpace. |
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14-11-06 |
MP3.com to offer free
legal music downloads
After settling copyright infringement claims with major record labels some years
ago, and then being purchased by CNET Networks in 2003, MP3.com it has now begun
to allow users the ability to share music and videos with permission of
independent artists. No main big artists are available for download as its free
but a number of independent artists can be downloaded and shared with others.
Some tracks and videos from established artists can be played after viewing a
quick advertisement but cannot be download. |
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09-11-06 |
Kazaa also settles with
music publishers
After more than 2 months of negotiations, Kazaa has now also reached a deal with
the music publishing industry to settle its claims of copyright infringement.
Kazaa told a US District Court this week that it had reached a tentative deal
with the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA). Kazaa has agreed to pay
a substantial sum to compensate music publishers and songwriters for the
infringement of musical works on the Kazaa network. The settlement is subject to
final approval of the formal agreement by the board of the NMPA, which sponsored
the litigation on the publishers’ behalf. The agreement comes after the
settlement with music labels and movie studios for a reported $115 million USD
back in July. |
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24-10-06 |
New P2P program ToPeer1
ToPeer1 is the latest personal P2P program. It is a Windows browser plug-in that
assists in file transfer but also adds in layers of tools to manipulate and
manage digital content. ToPeer is currently in private beta, though you can sign
up2 for a public beta to be released this quarter. A Mac client is due next year. |
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14-10-06 |
Free P2P cable TV on PC
TVU and the TVU Player offer free P2P streaming of many cable TV channels, from
FOX to the USA network, from Comedy Central to the Cartoon Network. TVU uses a
central server to stream all TV broadcasts, but also relies on the TVU client
program to redistribute it to other PC’s. |
|
03-10-06 |
Morpheus loses US court
case
Morpheus was found guilty of causing copyright infringement. A US judge has said
the Morpheus software produced by StreamCast has broken the law. The ruling is
another victory for the entertainment industry, which has had a string of recent
victories and concessions. Some weeks ago Kazaa settled with the music industry
for $100 million,
MetaMachine was ordered to pay $30 million to settle a copyright suit earlier
this month over its eDonkey and Overnet file sharing programs and Grokster was
shut down. In 2003 a judge ruled that StreamCast could not be held responsible
for the actions of its software's users, a decision that was backed by the
appeals courts. Last year however, the US Supreme Court US ruled that file
sharing software companies were liable for the software's use because they
encouraged or induced users to commit copyright theft. |
|
08-09-06 |
Amazon launches digital
movie & TV show download service
Amazon has unveiled an Internet service offering movies and TV shows that can be
downloaded to personal computers. The service was named Amazon Unbox and offers
thousands of titles from 6 Hollywood studios, including 20th Century Fox and
Warner Bros., and TV networks such as CBS and Fox and cable channels Comedy
Central and E! Entertainment. The movie download business is a higher-margin
business. |
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01-09-06 |
Free Bob Dylan satellite
radio show to coincide with release of new album
Online radio destination AOL Radio will start simulcasting Bob Dylan's weekly
satellite radio show "Theme Time Radio Hour" on August 30. In addition, Bob
Dylan fans can catch 18 "Theme Time" shows back-to-back as part of a weekend
special, which will stream on AOL Radio this weekend. This is the first time
that the show is being made available to non-subscribers and free of charge.
Simultaneously Bob Dylan's new album "Modern Times" will be out. |
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12-08-06 |
Bob Dylan debuts new album
on iTunes
Bob Dylan will make tracks from his new album “Modern Times” available via
iTunes.
“Modern Times” is Dylan’s first studio album since 2001’s “Love and Theft.” The
iTunes special edition will include five bonus videos. iTunes will also release
a Bob Dylan digital collection. “The Collection” will include every Dylan song
from every one of his albums plus 42 bonus tracks. Both “Modern Times” and “The
Collection” can be downloaded from August 29th.
Record Industry After LimeWire
The Record Industry Association Of America (RIAA) is targeting P2P file-sharing
program LimeWire. Following its cases against Kazaa, LimeWire is the latest
company that allows illegal sharing of music to be taken to court. A complaint
was jointly filed by major music labels in the US Supreme Court. They are
seeking $150,000 in damages for every song shared through LimeWire. Last month,
Sydney based Kazaa agreed to sttle the case and pay $100 million in damages as
well as set-up a legitimate business based on its technology. |
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29-07-06 |
Kazaa to become legit
File-sharing service Kazaa will become a legal following a series of high
profile legal battles. The peer-to-peer network has also agreed to pay $100
million in damages to the recording industry. The announcement follows the
release of a report that claims that more than 20 billion music tracks have been
downloaded illegally last year. According to the music industry, file sharing
and music piracy are key factors in the recent decline in record sales. |
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28-06-06 |
Napster adds
new MP3 player synchronizing functionality
Napster has upgraded its digital music service, announcing that its latest
version adds the ability to synchronize downloaded music with MP3 players. The
new feature automatically synchronizes subscribers MP3 players with Napster's
music library when the MP3 player is connected to a computer. The company also
has plans for a new Napster-branded MP3 player, featuring 1GB flash and support
for both WMA and MP3 files Napster already offers a free 256MB player for annual
subscribers. |
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15-05-06 |
Warner
to use BitTorrent technology for online movie and TV content
Warner has announced an agreement with BitTorrent to leverage the company's
peer-assisted delivery system for the electronic sell through of motion picture
and television content in the US. With this announcement, Warner Bros. becomes
the first major studio to provide legal video content via the BitTorrent
publishing platform. The announcement follows BitTorrent's agreement with the
Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) to prevent film piracy and promote
innovation in online digital distribution of content. Content published with
BitTorrent will be available on the BitTorrent.com website and feature
downloadable programming. The distribution channel will use BitTorrent's new
"file-swarming" technology, which enables the transfer of massive files from a
website to a PC with the speed and bandwidth efficiency of peer-assisted
transfers. This new method of delivery is the first peer-assisted network in the
U.S. that combines guaranteed availability, high-quality video and rapid
download rates. BitTorrent will offer US consumers legal content on both a
video-on-demand (VOD) and electronic sell through (EST) basis, day-and-date with
the DVD release. The service is intended to launch in summer of 2006 and will
feature new releases, catalog favorites and television series such as "Harry
Potter And The Goblet of Fire," "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride," "Dukes Of Hazzard,"
"North Country," and "Rumor Has It" as well as library titles such as "The
Matrix," "Dog Day Afternoon," "Natural Born Killers," and "National Lampoon's
Vegas Vacation." TV programming will include shows such as "Babylon 5" and
"Dukes of Hazzard."
BearShare to go legit
BearShare has been ordered to pay $30 million dollars to avoid potential
copyright infringement lawsuits from the recording industry. Free Peers Inc.,
which distributed the BearShare software, also agreed to cease as a business and
not operate any unlicensed online music services. As part of the settlement,
Free Peers agreed to sell all technology, BearShare.com and data on users of the
software to subsidiary of iMesh Inc., which closed its online business in 2004. |
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28-04-06 |
RIAA files 235 more copyright infringement lawsuits
The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) has filed 235 more lawsuits
against alleged copyright infringers. While no names were released, the only
details in legal complaints are that 10 of them were filed against residents in
North Carolina. It has been reported that over 18,000 lawsuits have now been
filed with only a fraction of them resulting in settlements. Many lawsuits were
dropped with only one known case of someone defending the suit. Many chose to
settle as they are financially unable to pay the legal fees of a court battle
against the RIAA.
The Doors make concerts available for download
As part of the Doors' 40th anniversary celebration, the band will soon make more
than a dozen concerts from 1967-1970 available for download from their Web site.
Consumers can pick and choose from the selections, many of which are previously
unreleased, rather than having to buy a complete show. Among the shows is a run
at New York's Felt Forum and a 1967 performance at the tiny San Francisco club
the Matrix, just a few months after the release of the Doors' first album. This
live performance will also be released on CD. The band's 40th birthday will also
be marked with a 12-disc box set due this fall. |
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16-04-06 |
Russian music services
AllofMP3 remains online
AllofMP3.com is one of the top "legal" download music services around. AllofMP3
is a semi-legal Russian mp3-download service as they operate with no agreement
from any music indusrty organisation. Russian laws do not actually apply to
digital media and currently only affect physical media. The RIAA has already
attempted to shut down AllofMP3, but that resulted in no response from Russian
prosecutors. Russian music charges only about 10% of non-DRM protected music, in
many cases you can purchase a full music album, in digital format, for under $2.
The new Pink album is selling for only $1.63, while on iTunes it sells for no
less than $9.99. Not only are prices betters with services like AllofMP3 than
iTunes, but all songs can be purchased in various formats, ranging from WAV (highest
quailty), to MP3 and in formats like OGG. |
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06-04-06 |
File-sharers hit by new lawsuits
The International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry (IFPI) have launched
new legal action against illegal file-sharers. 2,000 song-swappers are being
targeted across ten countries. A new report suggests however that illegal
downloads are continuing to grow despite the threat of lawsuits, with research
showing that downloads have increased by 12% since September 2005. |
|
21-02-06 |
NTL and BitTorrent
sign content file-share deal
Major UK consumer broadband providers NTL are teaming up with
BitTorrent, the developers of a leading peer-to-peer (P2P) web application. The
download service will offer a large variety of licensed video content for
purchase in the UK, including popular films, music videos and TV programmes.
BitTorrent has already established itself as a tool for downloading pirated TV
and movie files, with BitTorrent traffic estimated to take up around one third
of all internet bandwidth. |
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11-02-06 |
France rules in favour of
P2P file-sharing
A French court has ruled that using peer-to-peer (P2P) networks is legal,
providing that users are doing so for personal rather than commercial reasons.
The decision comes just as the French Parliament is planning to discuss whether
internet users should pay a voluntary tax or surcharge of €5 a month to use P2P
networks. The decision was made back in December already but has only just been
made public. |
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27-01-06 |
RIAA raise issue over
new digital radio devices
The music industry has raised an issue over new devices that can record and save
high-quality digital copies of tunes as they're being broadcast by new satellite
radio networks. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is worried
that consumers might increasingly choose to make such copies instead of
purchasing the music on a commercial CD or from a download store. The RIAA has
started negotiations with satellite radio companies and is opening discussions
with radio broadcasters over their specific products. In long term, the music
industry wants to have regulation for these new digital radio networks so labels
can get paid when consumers keep copies of songs. |
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20-01-06 |
Traditional radio
aiming for multi-channel radio
Competition between traditional and satellite radio has been furious from the
start and has intensified with the January 9 debut of a channel for shock jock
Howard Stern on Sirius. But now, the battle for subscribers is about to get even
more heated up as traditional radio companies are making a major push into
high-definition radio, a new technology that will let them better compete for
listeners with a greater range of channels and higher sound quality. What's
more, wireless broadcasting networks as well as services that let you listen to
radio on your PC or download radio wirelessly are rushing into the market,
offering consumers many new listening options. |
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