music

Two new lawsuits for Apple: a photograph and an Avril Lavigne song

Apple may soon be facing some courtroom issues related to a snapshot by an accomplished photographer and a sugary song by pop singer Avril Lavigne, according to two recent sets of court documents that were reported by AppleInsider.

Both cases have yet to go to court.

The first suit, filed on May 25 in a San Francisco court, names Apple only peripherally. James Gangwer and Tommy Dunbar, the members of a 1970s band called the Rubinoos, allege that Canadian singer Lavigne's recent single "Girlfriend" borrowed a bit too liberally from their 1979 song "I Wanna Be … Read more

The Gizmo Report: Sennheiser's HD-280 headphones

I like to listen to music. I fell out of the habit for a while, but then I got an iPod, which got me interested again. Now I probably buy more CDs every three months than I did throughout the 1990s.

I'm addicted to New Music Tuesdays on the iTunes Music Store, mostly because of the "Free on iTunes" section. There's a lot of good music out there! And a lot of bad stuff, too, but when it's free, that's not so much of a problem.

Oddly, I can't seem to get interested … Read more

Universal Music is battling with Steve Jobs

We have been hearing some grumblings recently from the record labels about iTunes' strong hold on the online music industry. Apparently some of them are complaining about the uniform pricing across all songs and some are unhappy with the use of DRM (Digital Rights Management) on their songs. Well, today we are seeing some of those grumblings take center stage. The New York Times has the scoop that Universal Music Group has decided to not renew their annual contract with Apple to serve up their music on iTunes. Although the article does say that Universal may still offer music on … Read more

Internet radio compromise on the way?

It's looking ever less likely that Congress or the courts will act swiftly enough to save Webcasters from the doomsday that they argue will result from imminent new fees. But there are signs that Internet radio players and a group representing artists and record labels may be moving closer to a detente.

A few weeks ago, we reported that the increased royalty rates set to kick in July 15 were poised to create a burden not only for small major Webcasters but for the largest ones as well. Because the fee hikes also include a $500 minimum payment per &… Read more

'Dark Side of the Moon' shines on iTunes

Pink Floyd fans who may have thought that they had bought their last copy of The Dark Side of the Moon are helping to make the landmark album a best seller again--this time at Apple's iTunes.

The reason appears to be its availability in a new audio format--yes, again.

Thanks to generations of music fans wearing out copies of the album on LPs, 8-track tapes and cassette tapes, Dark Side has sold more 35 million copies worldwide since it was released in 1973 and has spent more than 1,550 weeks as one of Billboard's Top 200 best-selling … Read more

Hands-on: The Sonos Bundle 130

For the past month, I have been playing with (and enjoying) the Sonos Digital Music System (Bundle 130). Offering a sleek design and a surprisingly useful remote, the Bundle U130 raises the bar for other systems that take your music and transmit tunes throughout your home.

What's in the box

When you first open the bundle, you are immediately presented with a host of cords and the same products that you would find in the Sonos Bundle 100 or the Bundle 80 - the ZonePlayer 100 (ZP100), the ZonePlayer 80 (ZP80) and the CR100 controller. And while the same … Read more

Free music for your iPhone

Not that we at Download Music have actually acquired an iPhone yet, but we have been nagging our friends of friends of Apple to score us a freebie. In the meantime, we've been digging through our free MP3 collection to figure out which tracks would, in the event one does land on our desk, get iPhone honors first. We put together playlists which feature a mix of our favorite up-and-coming and popular artists such as Death Cab for Cutie, Jill Scott, Spoon, Daft Punk and many more. Stream now (while you work), then visit the artist pages to download … Read more

Capitol artists to appear in virtual world

Makena Technologies, which runs a teen-friendly online virutal world called There.com, has signed a deal with Capitol Music Group. Under this deal, artists like The Beastie Boys and Korn will appear in a virtual nightclub called The Tower, where fans will be able to meet lookalike avatars and ask questions. When the musicians aren't present (i.e., most of the time), the club will contain wall-sized videos of various Capitol artists.

Unlike the better-known Second Life virtual world, There.com keeps pretty tight control over user-generated content, in an effort to make it relatively appropriate for teenagers. This … Read more

Under the Radar: Music 2.0

This morning's presenters on music at today's Under the Radar conference are probably one of the most interesting groups. A few months ago, it would have been just another pitch session, but in light of radio silence day just a few days ago, music on the internet is a big deal--especially what happens to it when RIAA royalty rate increases go into effect next month.

iLike is a social network mixed up with online music. This morning they talked about their Facebook app, along with their integration with Apple's iTunes. iLike's CEO Ali Partovi considers Facebook'… Read more