The proposed changes to New Zealand’s Internet copyright laws in Section 92A which would consider file-sharers “guilty if accused”, were withdrawn for reconsideration by the country’s Government, as confirmed by an announcement made by Prime Minister John Key:
Read more...“Section 92a is not going to come into force as originally written. We have now asked the minister of commerce to start work on a replacement section.”
Amateur videos on featuring copyrighted songs on YouTube are being muted or removed, due to a failed deal between the video site and Warner Music Group. The disagreement revolves around the fees paid to Warner for the use of its music videos. Since YouTube uses an automatic process to find unlicensed material on its site, videos of amateurs covering songs and using copyrighted background music are targeted. Continue reading...
The Obama administration has sided with the Recorded Industry Association of America (RIAA) in a lawsuit against an alleged file-sharer for copyright infringement, in the same way the Bush administration intervened in a similar lawsuit last year. Read more...
Almost 40 years ago, Rolling Stone magazine was considered the cream of music journalism, sparking the careers of renowned writers such as Hunter S. Thompson, Cameron Crowe and Joe Klein, celebrating artists like John Lennon, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. It was the anti-status quo, and recognized as a political force in the media.
Since the 90’s, the magazine has focused on younger readers by publishing more sex-oriented content, pop music and television actors, with the Backstreet Boys, Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, Spice Girls, Christina Aguilera, and the Jonas Brothers gracing its cover pages. Continuing this downward spiral, the latest issue of Rolling Stone is hitting newsstands this week sporting a cover story on the TV show “Gossip Girl,” with female cast members seductively sharing ice-cream. The quality of service provided to readers must be scrutinized. Continue reading...
Financial problems suffered by major labels, brought about by plummeting album sales and piracy, are much worse for independent labels. On the “Indie Labels Keep the Faith” panel Nan Warshaw, co-owner of Chicago’s Bloodshot Records, lamented:
Read more...“The decline in indie retail has continued in a free-fall. Everything you’ve heard [about the troubles of major labels], it’s probably worse.”
The “Should Artists Be Paid for Radio Airplay” panel at the SXSW festival debated whether the United States should adopt the rest of the world’s practice of paying artists and labels when their songs play on the radio. The promotional value of music on the radio, as in free advertising, was deemed irrelevant, because 60 percent of music on the airwaves is at least two years old. Continue reading...
A study shows that happy, sad and fearful emotions in music are universally recognizable. Members of the Mafa, a native African ethnic group in Cameroon, were able to detect the three emotions in Western music without ever having listened to it, as published recently in Current Biology. Continue reading...
The newest film from Spike Jonze, an adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s children’s book Where the Wild Things Are, will feature Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Arcade Fire on its soundtrack. The story is about a boy who creates a forest inhabited by many large imaginary monsters, which is to be the background for compositions from Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Arcade Fire’s track Wake Up. Continue reading...
George Harrison’s son, Dhani Harrison, believes that starting a standalone website for digitally distributing The Beatles’ music is a practical option. Selling the Beatles back catalogue through iTunes isn’t satisfactory, and an online store could be revealed in the future. Read more...
Music games are combining, and contributing to, both of the former rival industry’s revenues; the NPD group shows that 22 percent of music buyers reported playing a music-based video game in the past three months. Game developers are also teaming up with music labels to promote music through their games, like the joint venture announced today between Electronic Arts and Cherry Lane Music, to create the new music publishing company, Next Level Music LLC. Continue reading...
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