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MP3 Player News & Headlines
Griffin Intros 2007 Line Up
Griffin Technology today announced their 2007 lineup that will debut next week at the MacWorld Conference & Expo.
Gemini Announces iTrax iPod DJ Mixer
The iTrax joins the Numark iDJ, to allow users to mix the output of two iPods, with basic dj functionality.
Apple Intros New Mac minis; More Expensive, More Powerful
Apple today unveiled two new Mac mini computers with the Intel Core Duo processor. The new models are more powerful, and at $599 and $799, more expensive than ever.
Michael Jackson sales surge expected to last months
(Reuters)
Reuters - In the days following Michael Jackson's June 25 death, fans flocked to record stores and digital music outlets to purchase one last memory. And merchants say they expect the Jackson sales surge to last for weeks -- maybe even months.
8 Rockin' YouTube Remixes
(PC World)
PC World - Video upload sites like YouTube provide the perfect platform for the creatively twisted to add their own unique spin to music videos and Internet memes. From parodies to remixes of single songs to mashups of many, you can find some pretty innovative stuff out there.
Apple's iPhone and iPod Monopolies Must Go
(PC World)
PC World - With a year and 1.5 billion downloads under its belt, maybe its time for Apple's App Store -- and Music Store -- to get some competition. Whether Apple likes it or not.
Universal teams with TuneCore to discover talent
(AP)
AP - Universal Music Group's distribution arm is teaming up with digital track distributor TuneCore, a move it says will give it a leg up in signing up-and-coming artists without a recording deal yet.
MP3 Tech Commentary
Michael Jackson Fans Pay Ultimate Tribute Via Digital Music Services After the sad news yesterday of the untimely death of Michael Jackson, fans on digital music services have paid tribute to the king of pop by purchasing his albums in their droves. At the time of writing, 7 out of the top 10 albums on the iTunes Store are Michael Jackson compilations. Currently, the Essential Michael Jackson album is number one followed by:
The other albums in the top 10 include, Thriller (25th Anniversary), The Ultimate Collection, and Bad.
This shows the far-reaching effect that Michael Jackson has in the music world and his fans have paid the ultimate respect by purchasing his music.
R.I.P. Michael Jackson, 1958-2009
Related Articles:
- Top 7 Music Services
- Before you choose a digital music service
- Digital music service comparison chart
Free Music Tracks This Week Here's another selection of free digital music tracks that you can either download, or listen to via streaming audio. In the spotlight this week we have:
Even though this first song isn't an MP3 download, you can have great fun by remixing it! It Don't Move Me by Peter Bjorn and John is an interactive track that enables you to use presets to change the way the song plays. The song is split up into 6 channels (vocals, drum, bass, keyboards, guitar, and percussions) which you can manipulate to create your very own remix. There's also a competition (closes Sept. 12) that you can enter for a chance to get your mix on the bands MySpace page.
- Pre-party Jamz Mixtape (28:07)
- Domino (3:01)
Related Articles:
Publisher Hearst said to be preparing "periodicals" ebook reader Now comes word today, via the magazine Fortune, that mega-publishing empire Hearst is planning to launch a wireless e-reader of its own. What is reportedly different about this reader from other ones already offered is that it will be around the size of a standard piece of paper and targeted towards publishers like Hearst. The end result? A specialized, larger screen format reader which lets you subscribe to magazines and newspapers for wireless delivery.
It is said this new ereader, perhaps available by the end of this year, will be able to serve up ads mixed amongst the print content you are reading on the display. This may help throw a lifeline to print publications, most of which are seeing sharply declining revenues in the changing economy as well as how people look for information today. A number of well known publications have already folded, or are close to folding, so any additional ways for them to reach readers might be worth consideration.
Ebook readers continue to draw interest in the news and among consumers, mostly because of Amazon's newest model now available for purchase. The Kindle 2, which was previewed here recently, is drawing some early praise from consumers and reviewers alike. It has highlighted this product category so much, in fact, that we now have a buying guide for related products and features to consider.
Buying Guide: Before You Buy a Portable Ebook Reader
The age of the portable ebook reader is upon us. Though nothing will ever replace fully the beloved paperback, the idea of being able to take hundreds of digital paperbacks with you on the road has lots of appeal. A growing number of ebook readers are being released for your purchasing consideration. You should ask yourself first, however, which features are most important to you. Battery life? Screen size? How many books a reader can hold? Read Before You Buy a Portable Ebook Reader for must have ebook reader features.
Forget Portables, Why Not Wear Your Music? If there's something that gets people's attention, it's news that you can now carry music around with you on a T-shirt! Now, before you get too excited, it will come as a big disappointment to learn that the said T-shirt...doesn't actually play any music?!? At this point, you may be wondering if it's all just a gimmick? Not so. When you buy the T-shirt, a hang tag will provide you with a unique code that you can use to download the full album.
The Music Tee which has been created by Invisible DJ and LnA is an innovative merge of fashion and music. The hip hop artist, Mos Def, is the first to launch his new album, The Estatic, in the new 'fabric format' which will go on sale from July 7th. The T-shirt's design will feature the album's artwork on the front and a list of songs on the back. The cost of the Mos Def T-shirt will be $39. If you're a fan and want the new album via a more traditional route, then you can still purchase The Estatic from digital music services, and on physical media (audio CD, vinyl). Related Articles:
Michael Jackson Song Downloads Top 1.9 Million In a Week Following on from Michael Jackson's death almost 3 weeks ago, digital sales of his music continue to be buoyant. According to the latest sales figures by Nielsen SoundScan, over 1.9 million songs were downloaded in the U.S. this past week. Overall, global digital sales have exceeded 8.1 million tracks since Michael Jackson's passing. Another interesting analysis of Nielsen SoundScan's sales figures is how quickly sales of his digital albums eclipsed physical ones shortly after his demise; 57 percent of albums purchased were in the digital form. However, this has now shifted back this past week to 90 percent physical sales versus 10 percent digital. These figures highlight the important role that digital music services play when consumers want to instantly own music. Even though physical sales remain strong there is a growing trend for music fans to turn to digital tracks for their on-demand needs. Data Source © Nielsen SoundScan Related Articles:
Last.fm Founders Announce Their Departure One of the largest music streaming services on the Internet, Last.fm, is to lose its founders two years after it was bought by CBS. Last.fm was purchased by CBS Interactive in 2007 for $280 million and now has 37.3M monthly unique visitors. Even though their blog doesn't go into detail on why all three founders are leaving the company, the rumor that circulated earlier this year about Last.fm allegedly passing user data onto the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), is still being talked about in the blogsphere as a possible reason. However, the chief executive of CBS Interactive, Quincy Smith, has been eager to deny any private data has been shared with the RIAA, and has said that the rumor, published by TechCrunch, isn't the reason for their departure. There's no word at the moment who will be replacing them, only that they will be staying on as consultants until September. Image © Last.fm Ltd. Related Articles:
The announcement was made via a Last.fm blog in which the founders (pictured from left to right: Martin Stiksel, Felix Miller, and Richard Jones), thanked all its users for 'scrobbling' over the years to make Last.fm what it is today. In the blog, Felix Miller wrote, "Being a part of CBS, and the recently formed CBSi music group, continues to open up many opportunities for Last.fm. Recent product releases such as the new visual radio, and the Last.fm on XBox announcement, are an indication of how much more Last.fm will achieve".
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