New Service Sounds Like Phish

"Last month, Phish joined with Elektra Records and nugs.net -- a free live-music site -- to introduce a unique Web music service that coincides with the band's first studio album and tour in two years.

For a fee of $10 to $13, the service, called Live Phish, features specially designed cover art and provides soundboard-quality downloadable recordings of Phish concerts less than 48 hours after a performance.

Shows are available in both unrestricted MP3 and SHN files -- a compacted and so-called "lossless" format." [Wired News]

Here's the key statement, though:

" 'The service is so affordable and easy to use that it's easier to just download (the show) than to bother trying to get it from a friend,' said Jason Colton, an associate at Phish management company Dionysian Productions."

How long until the rest of the music industry comes to this conclusion and starts making money instead of losing it?

RIAA Chief to Step Down

"The chief executive officer of the Recording Industry Association of America said Wednesday she would step down as head of the organization at the end of 2003, after a controversial five years at its helm....

The outgoing chief executive said she wanted to spend more time with her family....

During the past several years, Rosen has served as a focal point for all the criticism and complaints levied by advocates of unfettered technology. Indeed, she was featured in the most recent issue of Wired magazine as 'The Most Hated Name in Music'--a bold statement in an industry notoriously rife with avaricious record producers and label executives....

More recently, Rosen has extended an olive branch to the technology industry, worrying that rhetoric on both sides had created an artificial gulf. Last week, she signed an agreement to work with counterparts in the Business Software Alliance and the Computer Systems Policy Project, each of which represent large technology companies on common goals." [CNET News.com]

Can't say that I really blame her. You have to wonder, though, if last week's "olive branch" was the first resignation on her part. Did she see the writing on the wall? Did a life of constant fighting and arguing become too much? I think she's probably being honest that this is motivated by family concerns. Who wants their kids to grow up and read about how mom helped eradicate fair use? She can explain to her kids that she was fighting for the rights and livelihoods of artists, but it gets harder when your organization starts subjugating the legal process, asks for legislation to hack into personal computers, and helps stamp out internet radio.

Sometimes when I'm blogging late, I listen to some of the music channels from my digital cable box. It's nice to have on with the background and there are no commercials. There are 36 channels, so it's almost like a pared-down satellite radio service. A particularly nice feature is that they show the artist and title when each song starts.

Tonight I had to go grab some clothes out of the dryer when a song I really liked was on and out of habit, I paused the music on the TV (thanks to my ReplayTV). It hadn't occurred to me to do this before, but I've been wishing for a pause button on my car radio, for my conversations with people, etc. and all this time I didn't realize I could do this with music channels on TV!

Technology and Music, Good Partners

"This is a recording studio, believe it or not. It's a four-track recorder and mixer. It stores MP3 data files on a Compact Flash card, and includes equalization and several useful audio effects.

I'm in Anaheim, and found this Pocketstudio in the Tascam booth at the International Music Products Association annual winter trade show. The device is an example of how music and technology have intersected to the benefit of musicians everywhere." [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]

PCWorld on the ever-proliferating number of ways you can wirelessly connect your stereo to your computer so you can listen to the MP3s trapped within.
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Onkyo's New Digital Music Server

"Speaking of connecting the PC to the stereo, the Integra NAS-2.3 from Onkyo has an Ethernet port and an embedded 80GB hard drive so it can both stream music off of your PC, or act as a digital music server in its own right. It can support up to 12 simultaneous streams, so people in different parts of the house can listen to different songs stored on the same box. And for the geeks, it runs on Linux." [Gizmodo]

Kazaa Owner Fights Back

"Sharman Networks Ltd., which distributes Kazaa software, on Tuesday said it would file a counterclaim following a recent court ruling enabling film and music companies to sue the file-swap service.

The company was 'disappointed' in the ruling issued on Friday and fully expects to 'prevail on the merits,' a Sharman spokeswoman said.

She said Sharman will file a counterclaim that will 'set forth the full story for the first time.'

The music industry in particular has been shaken by file-sharing, as CD sales in the United States plunged by nearly 9 percent in 2002." [Forbes, via TVC Alert]

Emphasis above is mine, because I think every other industry in the U.S. would be thrilled if their sales had plunged only 9 percent last year. I'm glad Sharman is going to continue the fight.