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MP3 Player News & Headlines
Summary Box: OnLive game streaming to come in June
(AP)
AP - THE SERVICE: OnLive will let you "stream" popular high-end games over the Internet, using a mechanism similar to watching TV shows or listening to music online.
Griffin Intros Evolve iPod Speakers
Griffin Technology today announced the unveiling of its new lineup of powered speaker systems. Evolve is a speaker system with a flat charging base that holds your iPod in a Universal Dock.
iTunes Hits Two Billion Sold Milestone
Apple today announced that more than two billion songs, 50 million television episodes and over 1.3 million feature-length films have been purchased and downloaded from the iTunes Store.
Apple Intros iPod Phone
Apple today introduced iPhone, a new device that combines a state-of-the-art mobile phone, a widescreen iPod with touch controls, and an Internet communications device with desktop-class email, web browsing, searching and maps—into one small and lightweight handheld device.
Griffin Intros PowerBlock Travel, International USB Power Adapter
Griffin Technology has introduced PowerBlock Travel, a package designed to simplify charging your USB devices (including iPods) while traveling.
MP3 Tech Commentary
Universal Music Group Loses Legal Battle With Dancing Baby Even though Universal Music Group (UMG) has annouced an 8.4% increase in its digital music sales this week, this financial achievement has been somewhat eclipsed by news in the blogsphere that it has been defeated by a dancing baby. For those of you who aren't familiar with the case, Stephanie Lenz posted a video on YouTube in 2007 of her toddler which contained Prince's Lets Go Crazy song playing in the background. UMG promptly issued a takedown notice to YouTube who removed the 30-second video clip. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) then argued that the video was in the realms of 'fair use'. Over two and a half years later, the legal battle has now been resolved with Judge Jeremy Fogel granting Lenz's partial summary judgment. This will now enable Stephanie Lenz (and her dancing tot) to recover the appropriate fees and costs from UMG. Related Articles:
Universal Music Group Loses Legal Battle With Dancing Baby originally appeared on About.com Digital Music on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 07:19:34.
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Touchy Details on Microsoft Courier The iPad hogged even more attention last week after Apple revealed the official release date for its self-proclaimed magical and revolutionary device. But one potential competitor also managed to generate some buzz recently, thanks to some tasty morsels dug up by tech site Engadget. That would be Microsoft's clamshell tablet, the Courier, which is shaping up as a potential competitor for the iPad. According to Engadget, the tablet/eReader hybrid features a 5-inch by 7-inch touchscreen with a pen-based interface and handwriting recognition. Both screens also feature LCD displays, which means no E Ink a la the iPad. The "digital journal" will be powered by Nvidia's Tegra 2 processor and has the same operating system used by the Zune HD, Pink and Windows Mobile 7 Series. Microsoft has apparently been mum on this subject so far, which means no details yet on pricing or a drop-dead release date. Rumblings so far, though, indicate a release sometime in the second half of this year. Either way, it looks like the Old Evil Empire and the New Evil Empire might have new devices competing against each other soon (cue evil laugh). Photo from Engadget Touchy Details on Microsoft Courier originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Tuesday, March 9th, 2010 at 00:01:46.
Apple iPad Release Date Now April 3 Just updated the iPad Central and iPad Availability sections with the official release date from Apple, which is now April 3. According to Apple, folks can start pre-ordering the iPad from the online Apple Store or making reservations at retail outlets starting Friday March 12. With talk about a launch delay panning out, albeit by just a smidgen (the iPad Wi-Fi version was originally slated for a late March launch), does this mean that rumors of a May launch for the iPad Wi-Fi+3G version — originally slated for an April release — have some credence as well? Photo © Apple Apple iPad Release Date Now April 3 originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 13:12:14.
Free Music Albums: Pretty Lights to Release Trilogy of Free EPs Colorado-based Pretty Lights (aka Derek Vincent Smith), has announced a trilogy of EPs due for release in 2010. The first album, Making Up a Changing Mind, is already available (released March 2) and can be downloaded from the official Website. Even though Pretty Lights' albums can be downloaded for free, there's also a donate button for each EP should your conscience get the better of you. This isn't the first time that we've seen bands and artists offering their music to the masses in this way. In 2007, British rock band, Radiohead, offered music fans their In Rainbows album for whatever price they wanted to pay. Nine Inch Nails also offered fans an exclusive deal for its Ghosts I-IV instrumental collection rather than going through the traditional route of using a record label. As well as Pretty Lights' upcoming trilogy of new EPs, there are also other albums that can also be downloaded for whatever you deem as a fair price. Related Articles:
Free Music Albums: Pretty Lights to Release Trilogy of Free EPs originally appeared on About.com Digital Music on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 09:00:00.
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Wal-Mart Moves Into Video With VUDU Deal Retail giant, Wal-Mart, has announced via its Website that it has inked a deal with the VUDU video service. Since its inception in 2004, the VUDU media technology company has specialized in developing devices like the VUDU Box to deliver on-demand video such as movies. With the likes of iTunes and Amazon already offering multimedia content, Wal-Mart who also provide digital music downloads are hoping to muscle into the increasingly popular on-demand video market too. Edward Lichty who is VUDU's executive vice president said, "We are excited about the opportunity to take our company's vision to the next level, VUDU's services and Apps platform will give Wal-Mart a powerful new vehicle to offer customers the content they want in a way that expands the frontier of quality, value and convenience." Even though the official announcement doesn't reveal the financial value of the deal, a report by The Wall Street Journal puts the sum at 'slightly more' than $100 million. Related Articles:
Wal-Mart Moves Into Video With VUDU Deal originally appeared on About.com Digital Music on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 06:27:22.
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BPI Study: ISPs Could Benefit By Offering Consumers a Bundled Music Service The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) has said via a press release on its Website that ISPs who embrace digital music could reap significant revenues. The recently commissioned report entitled, Is There A Commercial Argument For ISP Music Services, concluded that the top UK ISPs could generate in excess of $150 million (Ł100M) by 2013 if they bundled a digital music service with their broadband packages. The research which was conducted by independent industry analyst, Ovum, also found that providing consumers with a digital music service could also reduce 'subscriber churn' -- this means the number of consumers who change their ISP in a given time period. BPI Chief Executive, Geoff Taylor, said, "It's increasingly clear that it isn't smart to be a 'dumb pipe'. This report shows that the revenue potential of digital music services alone makes sound economic sense for ISPs." This study by the BPI certainly highlights the financial gains that can potentially be made by ISPs who offer some form of integrated digital music service with their broadband packages. However, the big question is, "will consumers who regularly use P2P file sharing networks be persuaded to sign up?" Related Articles:
BPI Study: ISPs Could Benefit By Offering Consumers a Bundled Music Service originally appeared on About.com Digital Music on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 15:46:03.
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Free Music Downloads This Week The free music downloads in our spotlight this week are: Artist/Band: Stacy B Artist/Band: Motor Artist/Band: The Asteroids Galaxy Tour Related Articles:
Genre: Pop / R&B / Club
Free Music Download: Do It Now (download Code: 1688).
Genre: Techno / Alternative / Electro
Free Music Download: Kick It (4:46)
Additional MP3(s): Kick It (Malente Remix) (4:25) via RCRD RBL
Album: Hyper Machine (Dim Mak Records) available from top digital music services.
Genre: Electronic / Pop
Free Music Download: The Sun Ain't Shinning No More (33 Hz Remix) (5:55)
Additional MP3(s): 2 more versions via RCRD RBL
Album: Fruit (Small Giants Records Ltd.) now available digitally
Free Music Downloads This Week originally appeared on About.com Digital Music on Thursday, February 11th, 2010 at 09:00:40.
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Sony Sets Sights on Apple's Turf Remember when Sony was the electronics company in terms of consumer mindshare? Fast forward to today and you have Amazon grabbing the reins of the eReader sector Sony pioneered while Apple's iPod has replaced the Sony Walkman as the music-playing phenomenon of this generation. (And we haven't even touched on the Playstation brand's fall from the No. 1 overall spot for video game consoles.) In fact, Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Companies list has Apple No. 1 while Sony is ranked 38th. Well, like Twisted Sister, Sony is apparently not taking it anymore, with the company setting its sights on countering Apple's rise as an electronics juggernaut. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Sony is planning to release two new portable devices — one aimed squarely at the iPhone and the other at the upcoming iPad. The first device is something Sony is working on with Ericsson, which is basically a phone that can download and play video games. The other is a hybrid device that incorporates features from netbooks, eReaders and handheld game machines (sounds like PSP content might feature prominently in both devices). Sony will also be launching sonyTunes, er, Sony Online Service — an "online media platform" that features music, video and, of course, games, later in March. Will Sony's latest moves be enough for it to regain its mojo? I guess we'll find out soon enough. Sony Sets Sights on Apple's Turf originally appeared on About.com Portable Entertainment on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 00:01:48.
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