UMG Says Throwing Away Promo CDs is Illegal
,----[ Quote ]
| In a brief filed in federal court yesterday, Universal Music Group (UMG)
| states that, when it comes to the millions of promotional CDs ("promo CDs")
| that it has sent out to music reviewers, radio stations, DJs, and other music
| industry insiders, throwing them away is "an unauthorized distribution" that
| violates copyright law. Yes, you read that right -- if you've ever received a
| promo CD from UMG, and you don't still have it, UMG thinks you're a pirate.
`----
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/04/umg-says-throwing-away-promo-cds-illegal
File Sharing Confusion in Courts May Lead to Internet Tax
,----[ Quote ]
| This is essentially the same scheme currently used around the world as
| compensation for radio play. Canada has a similar system in place for
| recordable media such as blank CDs and DVDs.
`----
http://ostatic.com/158869-blog/file-sharing-confusion-in-courts-may-lead-to-internet-tax
Related:
Microsoft may pay Zune tax twice
,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft's private deal with Universal Music to pay the record
| label a voluntary royalty of $1 for every Zune player it sells
| has raised eyebrows across both the technology and music
| industries. But it might not be the last payment Redmond owes
| from Zune, we've discovered.
`----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/12/14/microsoft_zune_royalties/
Universal to seek money for each iPod sold
,----[ Quote ]
| "It would be a nice idea. We have a negotiation coming up not too
| far. I don't see why we wouldn't do that... but maybe not in the
| same way," Morris said. His "same way" comment is a reference tot
| he Zune, which Universal already gets $1 from after signing a deal
| with Microsoft.
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061128-8309.html
A Legitimate Reason to Hate the Zune (And Microsoft Too)
,----[ Quote ]
| Here's the situation: Microsoft has agreed to pay a portion of
| the profits from the sales of the Zune to a record company
| (Universal) because the Zune will undoubtedly be used to
| store unpurchased songs.
|
| [...]
|
| Here it is important to remember a few simple things. The
| money goes to the Universal, not to the artists.
|
| [...]
|
| Microsoft's move sets a bad precedent and turns all consumers into
| thieves without evidence.
`----
http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/comments/a-legitimate-reason-to-hate-the-zune-and-microsoft-too/
Mom Sues Universal Music for DMCA Abuse
,----[ Quote ]
| The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed suit today against Universal
| Music Publishing Group (UMPG), asking a federal court to protect the fair use
| and free speech rights of a mother who posted a short video of her toddler
| son dancing to a Prince song on the Internet.
`----
http://www.linuxelectrons.com/news/general/10869/mom-sues-universal-music-dmca-abuse
Music industry attacks Sunday newspaper's free Prince CD
.----
| The eagerly awaited new album by Prince is being launched as a free
| CD with a national Sunday newspaper in a move that has drawn
| widespread criticism from music retailers.
|
| The Mail on Sunday revealed yesterday that the 10-track Planet
| Earth CD will be available with an "imminent" edition, making it
| the first place in the world to get the album. Planet Earth will go
| on sale on July 24.
|
| "It's all about giving music for the masses and he believes in
| spreading the music he produces to as many people as possible,"
| said Mail on Sunday managing director Stephen Miron. "This is the
| biggest innovation in newspaper promotions in recent times."
|
| The paper, which sells more than 2m copies a week, will be ramping
| up its print run in anticipation of a huge spike in circulation but
| would not reveal how much the deal with Prince would cost.
|
| One music store executive described the plan as "madness" while
| others said it was a huge insult to an industry battling fierce
| competition from supermarkets and online stores. Prince's label has
| cut its ties with the album in the UK to try to appease music
| stores.
|
| The Entertainment Retailers Association said the giveaway "beggars
| belief". "It would be an insult to all those record stores who have
| supported Prince throughout his career," ERA co-chairman Paul Quirk
| told a music conference. "It would be yet another example of the
| damaging covermount culture which is destroying any perception of
| value around recorded music.
|
| "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince should know that with
| behaviour like this he will soon be the Artist Formerly Available
| in Record Stores. And I say that to all the other artists who may
| be tempted to dally with the Mail on Sunday."
|
| High street music giant HMV was similarly scathing about the plans.
| Speaking before rumours of a giveaway were confirmed, HMV chief
| executive Simon Fox said: "I think it would be absolutely nuts. I
| can't believe the music industry would do it to itself. I simply
| can't believe it would happen; it would be absolute madness."
|
| Prince, whose Purple Rain sold more than 11m copies, also plans to
| give away a free copy of his latest album with tickets for his
| forthcoming concerts in London. The singer had signed a global deal
| for the promotion and distribution of Planet Earth in partnership
| with Columbia Records, a division of music company Sony BMG. A
| spokesman for the group said last night that the UK arm of Sony BMG
| had withdrawn from Prince's global deal and would not distribute
| the album to UK stores.
`----
http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2114557,00.html
Net radio "compromise" hinged on DRM adoption
,----[ Quote ]
| As we reported Friday, the looming royalty crunch on Internet radio that
| would have begun today (July 15) was narrowly averted last week by a
| temporary reprieve from SoundExchange. Now it appears that a lasting
| compromise is indeed possible, but such a compromise will likely mean
| mandatory DRM (Digital Rights Management) for Internet radio.
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070715-net-radio-compromise-hinged-on-drm-adoption.html
Defendant: RIAA abusing courts to shore up "failing business model"
,----[ Quote ]
| After the lawsuit was filed, Njuguna said she boxed up the PC reportedly used
| for infringement and purchased a new one. She then filed a series of
| counterclaims to the RIAA's lawsuit in an attempt to have the lawsuit
| dismissed and her name cleared. One of those accuses the record labels of
| failing to negotiate in good faith.
|
| [...]
|
| Njugana also accuses the RIAA of engaging in deceptive and unfair trade
| practices, arguing that the record labels have demonstrated repeated behavior
| that has an "adverse effect on the public interest." She also cites former
| RIAA defendant Tanya Andersen's lawsuit (which seeks class-action status) as
| evidence that, unless the courts step in at some point, the RIAA will
| continue its campaign.
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070913-defendant-riaa-abusing-courts-to-shore-up-failing-business-model.html
Mark Cuban to ISPs: block all P2P traffic; Ars to Cuban: um, no
,----[ Quote ]
| Of course, there are many legitimate uses for P2P that Google Video can't
| replace, like distributing Linux ISOs. Furthermore, the notion that the only
| ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
| people who benefit from P2P technology are the distributors is wrong. If I
| have the option of grabbing a download from a distant single server or from a
| torrent with hundreds of users, I'm going to opt for the torrent. Why? It's
| almost guaranteed to be faster, and let's face it: most BitTorrent software
| is quite adept at managing large downloads. Perhaps I want to throttle it
| while playing a game; perhaps I want to encrypt my transfers. If I'm
| distributing video or audio, perhaps I don't wish to be bound by the terms of
| Google Video.
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071122-mark-cuban-to-isps-block-all-p2p-traffic.html
|
|
