Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Wireless Guitar Controllers Hitting Retail Shelves in Early 2008

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Wireless Guitar Controllers Hitting Retail Shelves in Early 2008

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATVI ) today announced that standalone wireless guitar controllers for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock will be available at retail stores nationwide by early 2008. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock lets fans thrash and burn with new wireless guitar controllers available for each platform, including exclusive Gibson Guitar's Les Paul model for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo, and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. PlayStation®2 gamers will also get to shred on an exclusive shape, Gibson’s Kramer guitar, popularized by hard rockers and known for its body design, pickups, electronics and construction for furious finger fretting.

About Gibson:

Gibson is known worldwide for producing classic models in every major style of fretted instrument, including acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, and banjos. Gibson’s HD.6X-PRO Digital Guitar represents the biggest advance in electric guitar design in over 70 years. Founded in 1894 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and headquartered in Nashville since 1984, Gibson Guitar Corp.’s family of brands now includes Epiphone, Dobro, Maestro, Kramer, Steinberger, Tobias, Echoplex, Electar, Flatiron, Gibson Baldwin Music Education, Slingerland, Valley Arts, Oberheim, Sunshine Piano, Take Anywhere Technology, Baldwin, J&C Fischer, Chickering, Hamilton, and Wurlitzer. Visit Gibson’s website at www.gibson.com or www.gibson.com/press.

About Activision

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products. Founded in 1979, Activision posted net revenues of $1.5 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007.

Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands, Australia, Japan and South Korea. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's World Wide Web site, which is located at www.activision.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision’s expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. In this release they are identified by references to dates after the date of this release and words such as “will,” “will be,” “remains,” “to be,” “plans,” “believes”, “may,” “expects,” “intends,” and similar expressions. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, sales of Activision’s titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision’s ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision’s products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, vendors and third-party developers, international economic and political conditions, integration of recently acquired subsidiaries and identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, limitations on our ability to issue stock and options and foreign exchange rate changes. Other factors that could cause Activision’s actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, without limitation, the further implementation, acceptance and effectiveness of the remedial measures recommended or adopted by the special sub-committee of independent directors established in July 2006 to review Activision’s historical stock option granting practices, the board and Activision; the outcome of the SEC’s formal investigation and the derivative litigation filed in July 2006 against certain current and former directors and officers of Activision relating to Activision’s stock option granting practices, the possibility that additional claims and proceedings will be commenced, including additional stockholder litigation, employee litigation, and additional action by the SEC and/or other regulatory agencies, other litigation (unrelated to stock option granting practices), and the risks identified in Activision’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and recent reports on Form 8-K. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision as of the date of this release, and Activision assumes no obligations to update any such forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond our control and may cause actual results to differ materially from our current expectations.

Guitar Hero has expanded well beyond video games and is one of the biggest entertainment franchises in the marketplace today. The franchise has remained the #1 best-selling franchise in the U.S. through October, according to the NPD Group. The Guitar Hero franchise has sold more than 6 million units worldwide to date, according to The NPD Group, Charttrack and Gfk.



Contact:Activision/RedOctane, Inc.Ryh-Ming Poon, PR Director, 310-255-2226rpoon@activision.com
Activision, Inc.

How do you like them Apples?

Apple Reports Fourth Quarter Results
Quarterly Mac Sales Set New Record Quarterly iPhone Sales Exceed One Million

CUPERTINO, Calif., Oct. 22 -- Apple® today announced financial results for its fiscal 2007 fourth quarter ended September 29, 2007. The Company posted revenue of $6.22 billion and net quarterly profit of $904 million, or $1.01 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $4.84 billion and net quarterly profit of $542 million, or $.62 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 33.6 percent, up from 29.2 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 40 percent of the quarter's revenue.Apple shipped 2,164,000 Macintosh® computers, representing 34 percent growth over the year-ago quarter and exceeding the previous quarterly record for Mac® shipments by 400,000. The Company sold 10,200,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 17 percent growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone(TM) sales were 1,119,000, bringing cumulative fiscal 2007 sales to 1,389,000.

"We are very pleased to have generated over $24 billion in revenue and $3.5 billion in net income in fiscal 2007," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We're looking forward to a strong December quarter as we enter the holiday season with Apple's best products ever."

"Apple ended the fiscal year with $15.4 billion in cash and no debt," said Peter Oppenheimer, Apple's CFO. "Looking ahead to the first quarter of fiscal 2008, we expect revenue of about $9.2 billion and earnings per diluted share of about $1.42."

Apple will provide live streaming of its Q4 2007 financial results conference call utilizing QuickTime®, Apple's standards-based technology for live and on-demand audio and video streaming. The live webcast will begin at 2:00 p.m. PDT on Monday, October 22, 2007 at http://www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/earningsq407/ and will also be available for replay.

This press release contains forward-looking statements about the Company's estimated revenue and earnings per share. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ. Risks and uncertainties include potential litigation and government enforcement actions that may result from the matters investigated by the special committee of the board of directors and the restatement of the Company's consolidated financial statements; unfavorable results of legal proceedings; the effect of competitive and economic factors, and the Company's reaction to those factors, on consumer and business buying decisions with respect to the Company's products; war, terrorism, public health issues, and other circumstances that could disrupt supply, delivery, or demand of products; continued competitive pressures in the marketplace; the Company's reliance on sole service providers for iPhone in the U.S., U.K., Germany and France; the continued availability on acceptable terms of certain components and services essential to the Company's business currently obtained by the Company from sole or limited sources; the ability of the Company to deliver to the marketplace and stimulate customer demand for new programs, products, and technological innovations on a timely basis; the effect that product transitions, changes in product pricing or mix, and/or increases in component costs could have on the Company's gross margin; the effect that product quality problems could have on the Company's sales and operating profits; the inventory risk associated with the Company's need to order or commit to order product components in advance of customer orders; the effect that the Company's dependency on manufacturing and logistics services provided by third parties may have on the quality, quantity or cost of products manufactured or services rendered; the Company's dependency on the performance of distributors and other resellers of the Company's products; the Company's reliance on the availability of third-party digital content; and the potential impact of a finding that the Company has infringed on the intellectual property rights of others. More information on potential factors that could affect the Company's financial results is included from time to time in the Company's public reports filed with the SEC, including the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2006, its Forms 10-Q for the quarters ended December 30, 2006, March 31, 2007, and June 30, 2007, and its Form 10-K for the year ended September 29, 2007 to be filed with the SEC. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements or information, which speak as of their respective dates.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award- winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone.

© 2007 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iPhone and QuickTime are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.



UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(in millions, except share amounts)

September 29, September 30, 2007 2006 ASSETS: Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $9,352 $6,392 Short-term investments 6,034 3,718 Accounts receivable, less allowances of $47 and $52, respectively 1,637 1,252 Inventories 346 270 Deferred tax assets 782 607 Other current assets 3,805 2,270 Total current assets 21,956 14,509

Property, plant and equipment, net 1,832 1,281 Goodwill 38 38 Acquired intangible assets, net 299 139 Other assets 1,222 1,238

Total assets $25,347 $17,205

LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY:

Current liabilities: Accounts payable $4,970 $3,390 Accrued expenses 4,329 3,053 Total current liabilities 9,299 6,443 Non-current liabilities 1,516 778 Total liabilities 10,815 7,221

Commitments and contingencies

Shareholders' equity: Common stock, no par value; 1,800,000,000 shares authorized; 872,328,972 and 855,262,568 shares issued and outstanding, respectively 5,368 4,355 Retained earnings 9,101 5,607 Accumulated other comprehensive income 63 22 Total shareholders' equity 14,532 9,984

Total liabilities and shareholders' equity $25,347 $17,205



UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(in millions, except share and per share amounts)

Three Months Ended Twelve Months Ended September September September September 29, 30, 29, 30, 2007 2006 2007 2006

Net sales $6,217 $4,837 $24,006 $19,315 Cost of sales (1) 4,127 3,425 15,852 13,717 Gross margin 2,090 1,412 8,154 5,598 Operating expenses: Research and development (1) 207 179 782 712 Selling, general, and administrative (1) 823 625 2,963 2,433

Total operating expenses 1,030 804 3,745 3,145

Operating income 1,060 608 4,409 2,453

Other income and expense 170 113 599 365

Income before provision for income taxes 1,230 721 5,008 2,818

Provision for income taxes 326 179 1,512 829

Net income $904 $542 $3,496 $1,989

Earnings per common share: Basic $1.04 $0.63 $4.04 $2.36 Diluted $1.01 $0.62 $3.93 $2.27

Shares used in computing earnings per share (in thousands): Basic 870,881 854,187 864,595 844,058 Diluted 895,666 878,757 889,292 877,526

(1) Stock-based compensation expense was allocated as follows: Cost of sales $10 $5 $35 $21 Research and development $21 $13 $77 $53 Selling, general, and administrative $37 $22 $130 $89



UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED SCHEDULE OF DEFERRED REVENUE

(in millions)

September June March September 29, 30, 31, 30, 2007 2007 2007 2006 Deferred revenue-current: iPhone and Apple TV $346 $92 $10 $- AppleCare 430 399 373 333 Other 634 572 520 385 Total deferred revenue-current 1,410 1,063 903 718

Deferred revenue-non-current: iPhone and Apple TV 290 88 10 - AppleCare 495 435 392 355 Other 45 38 31 28 Total deferred revenue-non-current 830 561 43 383

Total deferred revenue $2,240 $1,624 $1,336 $1,101



Apple Inc. Q4 2007 Unaudited Summary Data

Q3 2007 Q4 2006 Q4 2007 CPU Rev CPU Rev CPU Rev Operating Segments Units K $M Units K $M Units K $M Americas 824 $2,680 781 $2,348 965 $2,928 Europe 393 1,160 342 988 499 1,339 Japan 81 258 62 286 72 255 Retail 330 915 323 884 473 1,251 Other Segments (1) 136 397 102 331 155 444 Total Operating Segments 1,764 $5,410 1,610 $4,837 2,164 $6,217

Rev Rev Rev Units K $M Units K $M Units K $M Product Summary Desktops (2) 634 $956 624 $869 817 $1,195 Portables (3) 1,130 1,577 986 1,344 1,347 1,908

Subtotal CPUs 1,764 2,533 1,610 2,213 2,164 3,103 iPod 9,815 1,570 8,729 1,559 10,200 1,619 Other Music Related Products and Services (4) 608 452 601 iPhone and Related Products & Services (5) 270 5 - - 1,119 118 Peripherals and Other Hardware 308 297 346 Software, Service and Other Sales 386 316 430 Total Apple $5,410 $4,837 $6,217

Sequential Change Year/Year Change CPU CPU Operating Segments Units Revenue Units Revenue Americas 17% 9% 24% 25% Europe 27% 15% 46% 36% Japan - 11% - 1% 16% - 11% Retail 43% 37% 46% 42% Other Segments (1) 14% 12% 52% 34% Total Operating Segments 23% 15% 34% 29%

Sequential Change Year/Year Change Units Revenue Units Revenue Product Summary Desktops (2) 29% 25% 31% 38% Portables (3) 19% 21% 37% 42%

Subtotal CPUs 23% 23% 34% 40% iPod 4% 3% 17% 4% Other Music Related Products and Services (4) - 1% 33% iPhone and Related Products & Services (5) NM NM NM NM Peripherals and Other Hardware 12% 16% Software, Service and Other Sales 11% 36% Total Apple 15% 29%

(1) Other Segments include Asia Pacific and FileMaker. (2) Includes iMac, eMac, Mac mini, Mac Pro, PowerMac and Xserve product lines. (3) Includes MacBook, iBook, MacBook Pro and PowerBook product lines. (4) Consists of iTunes Store sales, iPod services, and Apple-branded and third-party iPod accessories. (5) Units consist of iPhone handset sales; revenue is derived from handset sales, carrier agreements, and Apple-branded and third-party iPhone accessories.

Source: Apple

you have to see this on Youtube - Glendah's dating tips

This is not about music- but its the funniest thing I have seen in a long time on Youtube
Glendah's dating tips - Not that's Glenda with an H- watch her face stencil make up tips on how to make a good impression

http://www.youtube.com/GlendaWithAnH

Digital Music ''Now Playing'' at Starbucks Stores

Digital Music ''Now Playing'' at Starbucks Stores with the Launch of the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store on Oct. 2

Starbucks to Celebrate by Giving Away an Unprecedented 50 Million Songs on iTunes Starbucks "Song of the Day" Offers 1.5 Million Free Songs Per Day from a Diverse Line-up of Artists Including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, KT Tunstall and John Mayer


On October 2, the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store, which features Starbucks exclusive "Now Playing" service, goes live in more than 600 Starbucks locations in New York and Seattle. In celebration of this historic launch, Starbucks announced today that it will introduce the digital music experience across all of its U.S. company-operated and licensed stores by offering its customers the "Song of the Day," an unprecedented free digital music promotion. From October 2 to November 7 at more than 10,000 Starbucks locations, customers may receive "Song of the Day" cards redeemable on the iTunes Store for Mac or PC (http://www.itunes.com/) for a complimentary song hand-selected by Starbucks Entertainment. Throughout the promotion, Starbucks will give away 1.5 million downloads on iTunes per day for a total of more than 50 million free songs.ADVERTISEMENT "This is a landmark moment for Starbucks," said Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment. "With the launch of the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks we can now provide the same classic coffeehouse experience and compelling music offerings our customers have come to expect from us through a new platform ideal for the digital music consumer. This is the first step in combining the power of brick and mortar retail and digital music."
"Song of the Day" kicks off Starbucks exclusive partnership with Apple, which lets customers use the T-Mobile HotSpot Wi-Fi Network at participating Starbucks to wirelessly download music onto their iPhone, iPod touch or laptop from the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store with no Wi-Fi connection fees or HotSpot login required.
Starbucks will also introduce a new "Now Playing" feature, which allows customers using the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks to instantly preview, buy, and download the music currently playing overhead. This is the only technology of its kind that allows customers to download the music they discover in the environment around them.
"Song of the Day" will offer hand-picked songs from top artists including Bob Dylan, Joss Stone, Dave Matthews, Bebel Gilberto, John Mayer, KT Tunstall, John Legend, Annie Lennox, Joni Mitchell, Keith Urban and Paul McCartney plus great music from up-and-coming artists such as Sia, Band of Horses, Hilary McRae, Frederico Aubele and Sara Bareilles.
Each morning and while supplies last, Starbucks customers nationwide can discover that day's complimentary download as part of their daily coffee routine. Upon receiving their complimentary download card at Starbucks, customers will have until the end of the calendar year to redeem the song on the U.S. iTunes Store.
Starting October 2, Starbucks company-operated locations in the U.S. will offer iTunes Digital Release Cards for sale, including KT Tunstall's "Drastic Fantastic" with bonus music videos, digital booklet and a behind-the-scenes documentary video, and music from the film "Into the Wild," featuring all new songs from Eddie Vedder with bonus tracks and digital booklet. Each iTunes Digital Release Card contains a full album's worth of music and features collectible artwork. After the card is activated upon purchase at Starbucks, customers can download the album and bonus material on the iTunes Store for Mac or PC.
Starbucks will also offer the Starbucks Card Plus Two, a limited edition re-loadable Starbucks card with added bonus value. When a Starbucks Card Plus Two is registered online the cardholder will receive two complimentary song downloads of their choice on the U.S. iTunes Store.
The iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks will continue its national rollout to 350 Starbucks stores in the San Francisco Bay area in early November; 500 stores in Los Angeles in early February 2008; 300 stores in Chicago in March 2008; and additional markets throughout the U.S. later in 2008. The iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks will run on the robust T-Mobile HotSpot Wi-Fi network, which is available at participating Starbucks locations across the U.S.
About Starbucks
Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq: SBUX - News) provides an uplifting experience that enriches people's lives one moment, one human being, one extraordinary cup of coffee at a time. To share in the experience, visit http://www.starbucks.com/.

Contact:Starbucks EntertainmentDoug Cavarocchi, 206-318-7100press@starbucks.comhttp://www.businesswire.com/cnn/sbux.shtmlorI/D Public RelationsAllison Elbl, 323-822-4851aelbl@id-pr.com

StompOutCancer.com new video featuring the "The Ranchhands - When Everything Changed" on YouTube.com

StompOutCancer.com new video featuring the "The Ranchhands - When Everything Changed" on YouTube.com

Sept 24,2007, StompOutCancer.com reports the new video featuring the "The Ranchhands - When Everything Changed" and photos of Steven with information about Ewing's Sarcoma and our efforts is currently on YouTube.com, StreetBlast.com, and StompOutCancer.com.

" I want to respectfully state that this may be a very emotional video for the family, and I hope that you will look at this video as a way for people to learn more about Ewing's Sarcoma, and the CD project. People are not informed enough." said founder Jake A. Wheat.

The video online is at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erMxK-5Pbu8

StompOutCancer.com is taking pre-orders for the "Stomp Out Cancer" CD, which will be released on October 28th, 2007. Buyers will receive a copy as soon as they come in stock, and for the first 50 orders will receive a special "Stomp Out Cancer" wristband.All proceeds go to the Ewing's Research Foundation to help find less toxic treatment methods, and early detection methods for Ewing's Sarcoma.

About Ewing's Sarcoma:

Ewing's sarcoma occurs in the bone or close to the bone, most often in adolescents between the age of 10 and 20. It occurs in about one teenager in 50,000 and accounts for about 30 percent of the bone cancers in young patients. This cancer most often is found in the arms and legs, particularly the thigh bone.

It also may involve muscle and soft tissues surrounding the tumor. Ewing's sarcoma cells can spread or metastasize to other areas of the body including bone marrow and the lungs.

More info, please visit: www.StompOutCancer.com

Apple and Starbucks Announce Music Partnership

Apple and Starbucks Announce Music Partnership

Wirelessly Find and Buy Music at Starbucks

Apple® and Starbucks today announced this week an exclusive partnership that lets customers wirelessly browse, search for, preview, buy and download music from the iTunes® Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks onto their iPod® touch, iPhone(TM) or PC or Mac® running iTunes while at a participating location. When a customer enters a participating location, their device will automatically recognize the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store using a high-speed Wi-Fi wireless network with no connection fee or hotspot login. Customers will be able to browse, search and freely preview millions of songs, including a new "Now Playing" service which displays the name of the song playing in the Starbucks store at that moment, then easily buy and download songs or albums directly to their device. Prices and selection on the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store are the same as on the regular iTunes Store. The service will make its debut at more than 600 Starbucks company-operated locations in New York and Seattle on October 2. "Getting free access to the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store and the 'Now Playing' service at Starbucks is a great way for customers to discover new music," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Imagine walking into a participating Starbucks, hearing a great song, and being able to instantly download it onto your iPod or iPhone. We think this is very cool."

"With this partnership, we're bringing Apple's leadership in digital music together with not only our retail footprint, but the unique Starbucks experience, to offer customers a world-class digital music experience," said Howard Schultz, chairman, Starbucks Coffee Company. "Introducing this new service is a natural extension of our music strategy which only enhances the retail coffee experience for customers by helping them discover and acquire new music instantly."

After its debut in New York and Seattle on October 2, the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store will continue its national rollout to 350 Starbucks stores in the San Francisco Bay area on November 7; 500 stores in Los Angeles in early February 2008; 300 stores in Chicago in March 2008; and additional markets throughout the US later in 2008.

The iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks will run on the robust T-Mobile HotSpot Wi-Fi network which is available at participating Starbucks locations across the US.

With Apple's legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as Cover Flow(TM), integrated podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod and iPhone, and the ability to turn previously purchased songs into completed albums at reduced prices, the iTunes Store is the best way for PC and Mac users to legally discover, purchase and download music and video online.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award- winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market this year with its revolutionary iPhone.

Starbucks Coffee Company provides an uplifting experience that enriches people's lives one moment, one human being, one extraordinary cup of coffee at a time. To share in the experience, visit http://www.starbucks.com.

Supporters and Partners of Live Earth - Gibson Guitar

Gibson Guitar, the world's leading manufacturer of musical instruments and worldwide supporter of environmental causes, proudly supports the Live Earth event and its cause marketing efforts to protect our world and encourage awareness of climate change. As an innovator and leader in musical instrument manufacturing and music technology Gibson Guitar has been commited to the protection of the environment for years by adhering to a strict policy of certified wood usage in all of its instruments and by financially supporting numerous global efforts. Gibson is known worldwide for producing classic models in every major style of fretted instrument, including acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, and banjos. Gibson's HD.6X-PRO Guitar System represents the biggest advance in electric guitar design in over 70 years. Founded in 1894 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and headquartered in Nashville since 1984, Gibson Guitar Corp.'s family of brands now includes Epiphone, Dobro, Kramer, Steingberger, Tobias, Slingerland, Valley Arts, Maestro, Baldwin, Chickering, Hamilton, and Wurlitzer. Visit Gibson's website at www.gibson.com

Live Earth-Music to Save the Planet

Tieing in 2 major sectors on Investorideas.com- music and renewable energy-

VOLLER ENERGY SUPPLIES FUEL CELL SYSTEMS TO LIVE EARTH, WEMBLEY

A wide array of the world's top artists will perform at Wembley Stadium on7th July 2007 to help promote action to confront global climate change


Voller Energy Group PLC, the leading developer of portable fuel cell systems, is pleased to announce that the Company has been asked by the organisers of ‘Live Earth’ to supply four of its "ABC" fuel cell systems for use at the event, which takes place on 7th July.

Live Earth will use the global reach of music to engage people on a mass scale to combat our climate crisis. Live Earth will bring together more than 150 of the world's top musicians for 24-hours of music from 7 concerts across all 7 continents.

Fuel cell technology offers great benefits over the conventional generators that are normally used at music events. The Voller ABC units provide mains power output, but the only emissions are pure water. Stephen Voller, Chief Executive of Voller Energy said: "We are very proud to be supporting Live Earth, which is a tremendous event to help promote action to confront global climate change. The use of fuel cell technology at the event, demonstrates how we can all help reduce emissions. “ www.voller.com
Live Earth will bring together an audience of more than 2 billion at the concerts and through television, radio, film, and the Internet. That audience, and the proceeds from the event, will create the foundation for a new multi-year global effort to combat the climate crisis led by former Vice President Al Gore. Kevin Wall, Worldwide Executive Producer of Live 8, is producing Live Earth.
Confirmed artists so far include Beastie Boys, Black Eyed Peas, Bloc Party, Corinne Bailey Rae, Damien Rice, David Gray, Duran Duran, Foo Fighters, Genesis, James Blunt, John Legend, Keane, Madonna, Paolo Nutini, Razorlight, Red Hot Chili Peppers & Snow Patrol.

“MP3 Musicgrams” Free Online Music Service for New Artists and Music Fans of Downloadable Music Reaches over 1400 Songs in Database and Growing…

“MP3 Musicgrams” Free Online Music Service for New Artists and Music Fans of Downloadable Music Reaches over 1400 Songs in Database and Growing…

Featured MP3 Artist of the Week: Saxophonist Plunky Branch with “Drop”

For Immediate Release:

Delta, B.C. – June 13, 2007, www.MP3Musicgrams.com, a free MP3 music promotion site for indie artists and labels, adds to the growing data base of indie artists and labels and currently has a database of over 1400 songs for online users to choose from and send to friends and music fans.

MP3 Musicgrams offer artists and bands in all musical genres from blues to rock, rap or country an opportunity to upload their song, photo or image, band or artist description and a link to their web site. Bands and artists can also submit their info to the directory at: http://www.rockandrolldream.com/artist_submit.aspx.

The site also selects “Featured MP3”, currently at the site’s discretion. The current featured MP3 Musicgram is Saxophonist Plunky Branch with "Drop". Previously featured MP3 Musicgrams have included Ayla Brown, well known American Idol 5 Contestant, with "Forward", Double Deal Brand Records. The site archives all featured MP3 artists of the week for music fans to browse and select from.

“Our Musicgrams are really just a preview to the artist’s work, so MP3 Musicgrams encourage fans to buy or download the music in a manner that benefits the artist or label directly. Fans can also buy CD’s at http://www.mp3musicgrams.com/BuyCD.aspx," noted website designer Jeremy Green.

Fans can select an MP3 Musicgram by artist, song, genre or label and download the music, an image of choice or the artist’s image, add in a personal message and send out to other music fans. Fans now also have the added option of uploading their own photo/image into the MP3musicgram, making it more personal!

About MP3Musicgrams.com
http://www.mp3musicgrams.com/about_Us.aspx

MP3Musicgrams.com is a new unique free online music promotion service designed to let artists and record labels promote their music in an immediate preview format featuring their MP3, image, and band description that can be sent in a viral format, similar to a greeting card. Music fans can preview and send music without effectively downloading the MP3 and have the ability to forward the Musicgram to other friends and fans once received and opened up.
MP3 Musicgrams is owned by Munch Music Inc.

music business will total $26.5 billion in 2011

eMarketer reports on the growth potential and ongoing changes in music industry-
According to the report -"CD sales will continue to decline sharply, the music industry as a whole is healthy, and growth in many other areas will more than make up for the shortfall.
Growth will come from online and mobile music, the live concert industry and the licensing of music for public performance, commercials, TV shows, films and video games, according to eMarketer's report Global Music: Tuning in to New Opportunities.
...
In North America, the music business will total $26.5 billion in 2011, growing at an average annual rate of 2.8% from $23.1 billion in 2006. Recorded music revenues will remain flat as declining CD sales cancel out the sharp gains in digital sales. Music publishing and live music, however, will grow."

I have said many times- nothing compares to a live concert - and as a fan I see I am paying more and more each time - so the industry must be cashing in !

100 Million ...No its Not Dr. Evil - Apple sold its100 millionth iPod.

News out that Apple announced the sale of its 100 millionth iPod- sinces its launch in 2001 has everyone talking in the music industry. 100 Million...
Followed by more impressive stats that iTunes has sold 2.5 billion songs, 50 million TV shows and over 1.3 million movies

Music to Apple, Inc. (AAPL) investor ears that have seen a 52 week range of 52wk Range: 50.16 - 97.80

Technorati Profile

The Police, The Who, The Stones, Genesis, Clapton, Dylan Tours remind us of Decades of Great Music

Ah, the times they are a changin’ - or are they just coming back? If you grew up in the 60's and 70's and 80's and loved some of the greats - and missed them you get one of those rare gifts in life called a second chance. The tours in the past year and coming year of The Who, The Stones, The Police, Clapton, Genesis is music to my ears . The only thing that would make me happier is if Bruce Springsteen did a tour with his band again and sang "Glory Days" for me. Not that I didn’t love his acoustic performance tour- I did – I just want to rock with him before I am too old to care.

A second chance to see the greats of music that wrote lyrics and played music that will be a part of us forever. Maybe I am wrong or maybe I am just a rock music lover to the core- but I just can't see that happening with some of the music created in the past few years by rap or hip hop artists.

With all the debate over the fate and destiny of music its ironic that a die hard Police fan can't get tickets because they are sold out immediately. I was lucky to see the Who, the Stones, Bruce Springsteen and may have to travel to see Genesis- if I can get tickets . I'm old , by teenage standards, barely know how to use the camera on my cell phone, still look with awe at old record album covers and still love The Who as much today as I did when I was 17. And yes- I bought their latest CD. I buy CD’s at music stores, online occasionally and yes- at Starbucks. I have caught myself grabbing the odd Blues or Jazz CD with my coffee just because music and a good cup of coffee do “blend”…

I finally figured out how to use iTunes, but use it mostly for business Podcasts

So the times they are a changin’- but not so much that we have lost site of what is at the heart of the industry- great music with longevity whether its an undiscovered indie band that writes great lyrics that touch you or an old rocker that lives and rocks on!

music and the environment - something to ponder

as issues of environment and global warming are fast becoming a major part of a company's and investors consideration - a few things to think about in this interesting article on digital music and the environment and what is better - CD's or digital music


stay tuned for some insight -
" The advent of digital music and other forms of entertainment downloaded over the Internet has staggering repercussions for not only the music industry and the consumer experience, but also for the environment. "
read the full article

http://environment.about.com/od/earthtalkcolumns/a/digitalmusic.htm

Music stock for the technical traders

How about a music stock to check out based on stricly technical charts

Guitar Center, Inc. (GTRC) http://www.guitarcenter.com

Bullish 50/200-day MA Crossovers (NASDAQ) at www.stockcharts.com

Guitar Center, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer of guitars, amplifiers, percussion instruments, keyboards, and pro-audio and recording equipment in the United States.

Changing music industry online and mobile

Reading through the industry headlines in the past few days- a few articles show the trends and changing face of the music industry and where it will have to adapt to succeed-

Mobile phones set to propel music industry into online age
by Audrey Stuart Wed Jan 24, 2007
CANNES, FRANCE (AFP) - Mobile phones are proving the saviour of the struggling music industry and could be the vital springboard needed to propel the business finally into digital sales, industry experts have said.
"I believe a lot of the new revenues for the music industry will definitely come through mobile phones," said Dominque Leguern, director of MIDEM, the premier trade fair for the world's music industry that closes its doors on Thursday.
With the number of cellphone users predicted to hit the three billion mark in 2007, and 90 percent of the world's population expected to have mobile access by 2010, this could prove a powerful shot in the arm for the music industry.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070125/bs_afp/afpentertainmentmusicmidemfrance_070125021110

here is another one worth reading-

Music Industry Eyes Digital Age With Growing Optimism
Consumers and sellers mingle with the movers and shakers at Midem 2007 in Cannes At the 2007 Midem music fair in Cannes, artists and executives from the music and media industries come to discuss and promote the latest fads and trends. One forum tackled the digital age with much optimism.
All the talk at the Midem international music market's Net Forum in Cannes on Monday was of the digital age and whether artists were getting what they deserved in terms of money and exposure. Most of the participants in the discussion agreed that the advances in technology had done much to secure theirs and music's future.
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,2322771,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf

MP3Musicgrams.com - “Say I Love You with Music” with New Valentines Music Ecards

MP3Musicgrams.com - “Say I Love You with Music” with New Valentines Music Ecards

Artists can Upload Music and Fans can choose an MP3, Valentines Graphics or Upload their own Photo and Send out to that Special Someone

MP3Musicgrams.com, a free music MP3 site featuring music uploads, graphics and Musicgrams, presents new Valentines ideas to encourage music fans to spread the love, and of course music, online. Music fans can choose an MP3 of any artist, band or label and select a new Valentines graphic or upload a Valentines photo of their own, add it to the MP3 audio file and send it out to 10 friends at once. This new user friendly Musicgram ecard makes music sharing the ideal way to send that special someone personalized and customized messages from the heart. What better way to say I love you than with music?

MP3 Musicgrams offer artists and bands and labels in all musical genres from blues to rock, rap or country, an opportunity to upload their song, photo or image, band or artist description and a link to their web site. Both the artist and their fans can send out and share the Music in the form of a personalized “Musicgram”.

Fans can choose an MP3 of their favorite artist, select an image or add one of their own and then add in a message and send out to ten friends at once.
The site profiles MP3 Musicgrams for music fans to review as most recent downloads, most downloaded and featured MP3 of the week. The featured MP3’s are then archived on file for online visitors to see and hear some of the best musical uploads.
About MP3Musicgrams.com
http://www.mp3musicgrams.com/about_Us.aspx
MP3Musicgrams.com is a new unique free online music promotion service designed to let artists and record labels promote their music in an immediate preview format featuring their MP3, image, and band description that can be sent in a viral format, similar to a greeting card.

music industry numbers 2006- Digital Track Sales Increase 65%

so where did the music industry numbers land for 2006 in the midst of change?
here is the report from Nielsen SoundScan released January 4th -
2006 U.S. Music Purchases Exceed 1 Billion Sales


Growth In Overall Music Sales Exceeds 19%, Digital Track Sales Increase 65% from 2005
Nielsen Music 2006 Year-End Music Industry Report


Nielsen SoundScan, the entertainment industry's data information system that tracks point-of-purchase sales of recorded music product, Nielsen BDS, the music industry's leading music performance monitoring service, and Nielsen RingScan, which tracks mobile ringtone purchases, have announced their 2006 U.S. year-end sales and airplay monitoring data for the 52-week period January 2 through December 31, 2006. OVERALL MUSIC SALES (01/02/06 - 12/31/06)
(ALBUMS, SINGLES, MUSIC VIDEO, DIGITAL TRACKS - IN MILLIONS)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % Chg.
1,198 1,003 19.4%
TOTAL ALBUM SALES (01/02/06 - 12/31/06)
(INCLUDES CD, CS, LP, DIGITAL ALBUMS - IN MILLIONS)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % Chg.
588.2 618.9 -4.9%
DIGITAL TRACK SALES
(01/02/2006 - 12/31/2006 - SALES IN MILLIONS)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % Chg.
581.9 352.7 65%
OVERALL ALBUM SALES (01/02/06 - 12/31/06)
(INCLUDES ALL ALBUMS & TRACK EQUIVALENT ALBUMS - IN MILLIONS)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % Chg.
646.4 654.1 -1.2%
INTERNET ALBUM SALES (01/02/06 - 12/31/06)
(Physical album purchases via e-commerce sites, In Millions)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % Chg.
29.4 24.7 19.0%
DIGITAL ALBUM SALES
(01/02/2006 - 12/31/2006 - IN MILLIONS)
UNITS SOLD 2006 2005 % CHG.
32.6 16.2 101%
2006 GENRE ALBUM SALES REPORT
(01/02/06-12/31/06)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Genre 2006 2005 % Chg.
------------------------------ ---------- ---------- --------
Alternative 109,672 120,797 -9.2%
Christian/Gospel 39,715 39,211 1.3%
Classical 19,447 15,875 22.5%
Country 74,886 75,327 -0.5%
Jazz 15,720 17,139 -8.3%
Latin 37,774 35,907 5.2%
Metal 61,557 64,473 -4.5%
New Age 3,412 4,412 -22.7%
R&B 117,005 143,392 -18.4%
Rap 59,534 75,062 -20.7%
Rock(a) 170,726 NA
Soundtrack 27,177 22,849 18.9%
(Note: Titles may appear in more than one genre.)
(a) Rock was a new genre in 2006.
CURRENT VS. CATALOG ALBUM SALES
(Sales In Millions: 01/02/06-12/31/06)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall Albums 2006 2005 % Chg.
------------------------------------ ------------ ---------- ---------
Current 363.9 389.4 -6.5%
Catalog 224.2 229.5 -2.3%
Deep Catalog 158.2 157.5 0.4%
Physical Albums: 2006 2005 % Chg.
------------------------------------ ------------ ---------- ---------
Current 345.3 379.8 -9.1%
Catalog 210.2 222.8 -8.1%
Deep Catalog 148.4 152.7 -2.8%
Digital Albums: 2006 2005 % Chg.
------------------------------------ ------------ ---------- ---------
Current 18.6 9.6 93.7%
Catalog 14.0 6.7 108.9%
Deep Catalog 9.8 4.8 104.2%

to see album and song results - take a look at the full release -
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/070104/20070104005813.html?.v=1

The Rolling Stones Live

It was the best of times, the worse of times Saturday night as the snow fell and made driving conditions frightening as we white knuckled our way into Vancouver to see what may be the last time the Rolling Stones play live on tour in our area or anywhere….
It was worth the cost of hiring someone else to drive as I turned back and admitted my lack of skill in the driving category

For those of us who grew up to great rock, it is one of the few things we can genuinely share and bond with our teenagers. The stadium was full of other parents also having that rare experience of true bonding with a teenage child.

As I have said many times- I hear my son speak the same thoughts ‘nothing is better than a great live performance… it makes you want to go buy the music”... Music to the industry’s ears. SO once again – it’s not about CD’s vs. MP3’s – it’s about the artist compelling you to listen and buy their music – in whatever format your generation chooses. I will find my way to a CD store and still talk about my record collection I gave away to an old boyfriend and my son will use his ipod and talk MP3 code.
But both generations love the music and will always remember that snowy evening we made it in to see the Stones!

The future of Myspace

With The News Corporation (NWS), purchase MYspace.com - maybe the $$ numbers of the transaction and the recent purchase of YouTube invites the interest of the wrong kind of fan.
Myspace has had recent hacker’s attacks with emails directing users to login pages not associated wit Myspace to gain access to user’s login and passwords. Feedback from users - site frozen, pages not working, "friends dropped to zero" and so on...
Then recent headlines like the WSJ- Myspace- Byespace talking about market saturation and users leaving the heavily populated community makes you wonder about - 1. The direction of online community- the security of online community and where will the online music industry shift and move to?

Service and security will be issues...

MP3Musicgrams.com Announces Contest Winner for Week Oct 16 - Oct 22 Hip Hop Artist Spotrusha, with MP3 “Mary Warner”

MP3Musicgrams.com Announces Contest Winner for Week Oct 16 - Oct 22 Hip Hop Artist Spotrusha, with MP3 “Mary Warner”

Featured MP3Musicgram this week: Alternative Rock Artist, Gentry Morris with “Rene”

For Immediate Release:

Delta, and B.C. – October 25, 2006, www.MP3Musicgrams.com, a free music promotion site featuring free MP3 music uploads and Musicgrams, announces the artist winner for the most sent MP3Musicgrams for the week of Oct 16 - Oct 22, hip hop singer Spotrusha, with song “Mary Warner “.

The MP3Musicgrams.com Music Fan and Artist contest officially started October 16, 2006 and runs through to December 11, 2006. Artists and bands in all musical genres from rock to country to hip hop can upload a promo MP3, image, artist description and add their website link to direct users back to their site. The contest will feature monthly prizes for the most sent MP3 Musicgrams by artists, with a grand prize of an electric or acoustic guitar to be awarded at the end. More importantly, artists and bands that upload their music get a chance to be heard by new fans and have their MP3 spread virally for global exposure.

Contest page: http://www.mp3musicgrams.com/contest.aspx

music can change the world...buy an iPod nano (PRODUCT) RED™

music is an international language and now Apple has joined Bono and his new venture to raise money for drugs in Africa as one of the products for sale -iPod nano as part of the (PRODUCT) RED™ branding . Apple contributes $10 from the purchase price to the Global Fund, to help fight HIV/AIDS in Africa.

From the GAP to iPods t Motorola red cell phones - you can buy what you were going to buy anyway- but in "red"
http://www.joinred.com/products.asp

The Who Tour 2006- they still rock

Being a Who fan my entire adult life, if that starts at 16, I was amazed to see the two 60 year old standing members Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey perform for hours with the endurance of young men when they first broke into the music scene, but the performance polish of true rock stars.
In my opinion, one of the best rock bands of all time, they did not disappoint me last night as I sat in the audience at GM Place and screamed until I lost my voice, while they still sang and played effortlessly.

With classics like My Generation and Teenage Wasteland bringing down the house , with a room full of all generations , it made the event one of my top musical experiences to finally see them and hear them live.

I have said a few times in this Blog, as the music industry undergoes massive change with MP3's and online availability, there is no replacement for seeing a good band or artist perform live.

The Who sang new material from their new album set to be released October 13

I am sold- I am a buyer - and I will buy the CD to play in my car and in my home. I think I owe it to them ...

Apple sings ...to the tune of Starbucks

I'll have a coffee with my apple, no I will have an apple with my coffee, nope I will have...

The Starbucks Hear Music catalog will now be available in the iTunes music store under an agreement with iTunes owner Apple Computer Inc.
from the news:
Starbucks (SBUX ) and Apple (AAPL) announced the availability of the Starbucks Hear Music catalog on the iTunes® Store (www.itunes.com), giving iTunes users the ability to preview, buy and download a wide variety of Starbucks popular Hear Music titles. Hear Music produces a wide range of albums showcasing new and classic artists including the well-known Artist's Choice(TM) series, Opus Collections, Debut Series releases by emerging artists, as well as new works from major artists. Starbucks Hear Music offerings will be available in a special new Starbucks Entertainment area within the iTunes Store and will include a wide variety of popular content as well as playlists created specifically

The rush of finding a new unsigned band -meet "Oswald"

Sometimes on this Blog I talk about stocks or new technology - today it’s just the excitement of finding a new unsigned band from Glasgow Scotland. That is the magic of the online music industry- you get to discover great unsigned talent all over the world.

"Oswald” has a sound similar to U2, but is no copy cat version. They are original and their lyrics and vocals are memorable. They have released free MP3's of their songs
Love, Nothing Left to Win, Home and Tumbling Down. I would recommend them to anyone that likes this genre of music .
check them out at : Artist : Oswald

http://www.mp3musicgrams.com/createGram.aspx

music resources online

I have spent the last few weeks building lists of resources for online music and have to say that I am amazed by the bottomless supply of sites to submit and post news to. At Investorideas.com we follow a lot of sectors - and I have built a lot of industry sector lists- but nothing has come close to what I have found in music. The online music industry is full of small independent sites trying to get a piece of the action - trying to be the online destination of choice- providing multiple services to artists-
From uploading their music, to directories of artists and bands, to profiling, to message boards to submitting and posting press releases.

I am impressed, but have to wonder where this is all going to land and how some of the smaller sites are going to make money

Comments and ideas appreciated-

Canada's first online commercial music service

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, - After establishing MPE security technology as the industry standard for digitally delivering new music releases over the Internet to radio broadcasters ( http://www.promoonlympe.com/ ), Destiny Media Technologies (OTC Bulletin Board: DSNY.OB) and partner Promo Only, today launched Canada's first online commercial music service, Promo Only Digital Download Service ( http://www.podds.ca/ ).
This is the first and only commercial online music service to be approved by the Canadian Audio-Video Licensing Agency (AVLA), which represents virtually every Canadian record label including Universal Music Canada, Warner Music Canada and EMI Music Canada. PODDS will include rare remixes, extended mixes and other hard-to-find content from major and independent labels that is often required for commercial and industry professionals.

more info- Web site: http://www.dsny.com/

Famous Van Zants in music

Its great to have a music blog and be fortunate enough to have a name linked to some of the greats -

http://www.vanzantmusic.com/

http://www.thevanzants.com/

http://skynyrd.com/

Steve Van Zandt http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005523/

http://www.townesvanzandt.com/- Townes Van Zandt

music stocks -follow the money in music

With small cap stocks going thru a complacent if not quiet period this past few months, as commodity stocks lost luster, it was interesting, but not surprising to me to see a few music industry stocks showing some momentum. With all the buzz in the industry with acquisitions and new market entry in the online music industry - the music stocks sector is an interesting watch.
To check out some of the small and large players in the sector –

http://www.musicindustrystocks.com/MIS/Stock_List.asp

a couple of small/micro caps I was looking at today- EDGETECH INTL INC (Other OTC:EGIL.PK) and FREEHAND SYS INTL (Other OTC:FSYI.PK)- both up today at time of posting

disclaimer- http://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp

MySpace to sell Indie band downloads

What's next for MySpace ?- selling digital downloads for an estimated three million unsigned indie bands. Competing with iPod in the digital music industry- MySpace will offer unsigned artists the chance to sell their music and they decide how much to charge for each song after factoring in MySpace's distribution fee

SpiralFrog and Universal Music Group Partner in Advertising-Supported Legal Music Download Service

SpiralFrog and Universal Music Group Partner in Advertising-Supported Legal Music Download Service

www.spiralfrog.com News:

New York, August 29, 2006SpiralFrog, the new music download destination, has signed an agreement with Universal Music Group (UMG), the world's leading music company, to make UMG's extensive catalog available for legal downloading in the US and Canada via SpiralFrog's advertising-supported service.
SpiralFrog will offer users of its no-cost web-based service the ability to legally download music by many of the world's most popular and award-winning artists.
"Offering young consumers an easy-to-use alternative to pirated music sites will be compelling," said Robin Kent, SpiralFrog's CEO. "SpiralFrog will offer those consumers a better experience and environment than they can get from any pirate site." Kent highlighted some key factors - legal digital files with no viruses or spyware in a controlled client-server architecture, quick downloading, and quality songs and music videos by great artists as among the primary benefits users will gain.

MP3 Music Grams

still working the bugs out - check it out
www.mp3musicgrams.com
MP3 MUSIC GRAMS are the ultimate way to send MP3 files to fans and friends. You can choose from submitting your own MP3 file and photo with a message. Our MP3MusicGrams.com give you and your fans the tools to help you spread your music around the world!OR simply choose from our current list of available MP3 and photos and add a personal message. It's simple and easy to use and is a great way for new artists to get their music out.

YouTube plans to post music videos online

YouTube http://www.youtube.com/says they are in negotiations with major record labels over plans to post music videos online

The site has users that watch more than 100 million videos a day and now is in discussion with record labels to feature music videos

about Youtube:
YouTube is a place for people to engage in new ways with video by sharing, commenting on, and viewing videos. YouTube originally started as a personal video sharing service, and has grown into an entertainment destination with people watching more than 70 million videos on the site daily.

Yahoo! Music Jukebox

Yahoo! Music Engine Upgraded and Renamed Yahoo! Music Jukebox


New Offering Includes Audio and Performance Enhancements and Introduction of Premium Plus Software

SANTA MONICA, Calif.--Aug. 2, 2006--Yahoo! Music, the leading music destination online, today announced the latest upgrades to the Yahoo! Music Engine and its renaming to Yahoo! Music Jukebox. The new Yahoo! Music Jukebox gives consumers an optimal music listening experience by utilizing popular features from both Yahoo! Music Engine and Musicmatch Jukebox. The seamless integration of these music applications represents the beginning of migrating Musicmatch Jukebox users to the media player of choice for all Yahoo! Music users.
"This new version of the Yahoo! Music Jukebox enables our users to take advantage of the combined strengths of the Yahoo! Music Engine and the Musicmatch Jukebox in one fully-integrated experience," said Dave Goldberg, vice president and general manager of Yahoo! Music. "The merged product reflects the hard work of our engineering and product teams in building a best-of-breed media player for digital music fans."
The new Yahoo! Music Jukebox offers a new audio equalizer, and improved playlist and usability enhancements. In addition, Yahoo! will be offering Yahoo! Music Jukebox Plus for $19.99 for premium features such as faster ripping and burning, custom CD printing and audio enhancements for imported MP3 files. The free Yahoo! Music Jukebox gives consumers the ability to rip, mix, and burn CDs, as well as to import and manage music, and transfer music to portable devices.
Highlights of the upgraded Yahoo! Music Jukebox include: -- New Audio Equalizer: A new 5-band equalizer allows users to
adjust the sound of their favorite music in a convenient
fashion.
-- Usability Enhancements: An overall new look of Yahoo! Music
Jukebox has made key functions more accessible through
consistent right click and tick menus. Users can quickly play
a selection of an artist's top tracks with just one click. The
improved application makes moving the Yahoo! Music catalog -
to a users' music collection - to Messenger Music and back
again for a seamless experience.
-- Shared Playlist Improvements: Playlists created using the
Yahoo! Music Jukebox will be automatically stored for users to
access from any PC. In addition, searching for playlists
becomes more efficient to help users find other music fans
with similar tastes and preferences.
-- Introduction of Yahoo Music Jukebox Plus - For a premium fee
of $19.99 consumers can enhance their music experience with:
-- Audio Boost - Optimize the sound quality of your imported
music files to enjoy them at the highest fidelity.
-- Enhanced CD Ripping & Burning Ability: Maximum ripping and
burning speeds for audiophiles.
-- SmartSplit: When users want to burn a large number of
tracks, SmartSplit automatically organizes multiple tracks
for users across as many CDs as necessary.
-- CD Label Creation: Users can create fun and exciting CD
labels for their newly burned discs using a very simple
program.
More information on the Yahoo! Music Jukebox is available at: http://music.yahoo.com/jukebox/
The Yahoo! Music Jukebox gives consumers access to the Yahoo! Music Unlimited subscription service which allows users the opportunity to play music from a catalog of more than 2 million songs, transfer tracks to portable devices, as well as enjoy the unique ability to share and discover music with other subscribers through Yahoo! Messenger. Yahoo! Music Unlimited is available for an annual fee of $59.88 (equates to $4.99 per month) or a monthly subscription price of $6.99. Yahoo! Music Unlimited To Go is available for an annual fee of $119.88 (equates to $9.99 per month) or a monthly subscription price of $11.99.
About Yahoo! Music
Yahoo! Music (http://music.yahoo.com) offers the most comprehensive music-related content, features and information available online. Yahoo! Music provides a wide selection of streaming audio, the Web's largest collection of music videos, Internet radio, exclusive artist features and music news covering all genres of music to Yahoo! visitors
About Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is a leading global internet brand and one of the most trafficked Internet destinations worldwide. Yahoo! seeks to provide online products and services essential to users' lives, and offers a full range of tools and marketing solutions for businesses to connect with Internet users around the world. Yahoo! is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.
Contact:Yahoo! Media Group
Charlene Fitzgibbon, 310-907-3119
cenglish@yahoo-inc.com
or
Bender/Helper Impact
Melisa Rodriguez or Stephan Pechdimaldji, 310-473-4147
melisa_rodriguez@bhimpact.com
stephan_pechdimaldji@bhimpact.com
Source: Yahoo! Inc.

$100 million dollars

No its not Dr Evil ...
Kazaa has agreed to pay $100 mln in music industry settlement

Content Industries and Sharman Networks Settle All Global Litigation
SYDNEY – Sharman Networks Ltd. announced today that an historic turning point has been reached for both technology and content industries...
SYDNEY – Sharman Networks Ltd. announced today that an historic turning point has been reached for both technology and content industries with the global settlement of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc, et al., v. Grokster, Ltd and the Universal Music Australia Pty Ltd & Ors v. Sharman License Holdings Ltd & Ors copyright cases.
The global settlement of all legal disputes between Sharman, which owns and distributes the Kazaa peer-to-peer (P2P) software application, and the major entertainment content providers and trade groups, clears the way to enable distribution of the broadest range of licensed content over Kazaa.
full release : http://www.sharmannetworks.com/content/view/full/321/

Microsoft's Zune

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)

Microsoft is entering the music and entertainment arena with competition to the Apple iPod with Zune. Zune will be available at the end of 2006 Microsoft tells the industry-
Zune , both a hardware and software product line , in combiantion with MSN Music give Microsoft a growing presense in the ever changing music industry.

Lyric jeans- Music and denim industries converge

While doing some research today, I ran across a small company with big ambitons in the music/clothing industry
Lyric Jeans, Inc. (Other OTCPK:LYJN)
according to their recent press release :
"Lyric Jeans is a music driven premium clothing line involving lyrical content on jeans, denim wear and accessories. Each pair of jeans reflects the personality, style and flare of the artist and song through its design. With the vision of fusing the world of music with fashion, Lyric Jeans employs a cutting-edge design strategy allowing consumers to express themselves stylishly through song lyrics. Lyric Jeans recently announced licensing deals with Warner/Chappell Music and Universal Music Publishing Group. The company's manufacturing partner is American Garment Sewing, one of the leading U.S. companies in premium denim production."

more info - http://www.lyricjeans.com/

The Recording Industry Association of America VS. XM Satellite

The Recording Industry Association of America
http://www.riaa.com/ is suing XM Satellite Radio for “massive wholesale infringement" because of Inno, a $400 iPod-like product that lets XM listeners to record up to 50 hours of music and automatically parses recordings by song and artist.The "Inno," which is manufactured by Japan's Pioneer Corporation, is sold by XM under the slogan, "Hear it, click it, save it."The lawsuit seeks $150,000 in damages for every song copied by XM Satellite customers using "Inno"

XM Satellite intends to fight the lawsuit vigorously and said the labels are using the court systems as way to influence business negotiations.

Apple - profit increases 41% on iPod sales

Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL) announced earnings of $410 million, 47 cents , up from $290 million,34 centsfrom the previous year, with sales of its iPod portable music players continuing to increase .
Profit increased 41% with sales of its iPod portable music players contributing . For the fiscal second quarter ending April 1 over 8.5 million iPod portable digital music players were shipped.

The Doobie Brothers -Great 70's rock

Tonight I went and heard the Doobie Brothers http://www.doobiebros.com/ live in concert and it brought back memories from when I was 16- 17 (yes I am that old). Great music stays embedded in your memory, in your cells and comes to life when triggered. I guess it’s like an MP3 file download always ready to play.

A room full of old rockers like myself all became young again as the music rebooted cell after cell. We all forgot how old we were for two hours and that we have teenage kids at home . One fan yelled enthusiastically- "You are the greatest rock band of all time”. They were definitely one of the best of my time.

I never got to see them live when I was 17, but in some strange way I came full circle tonight. As much as technology improves and impresses us, nothing can take the place of a live musician on stage playing to your heart, your soul, embedding themselves into your personal history.

Oh , oh, oh -
Listen to the music....

Free MP3's of New Young Musical Artists Creating New Original Sounds from Pop/Folk to Alternative Rock

Free MP3's of New Young Musical Artists Creating New Original Sounds from Pop/Folk to Alternative Rock
Munch Music Delta, B.C. http://www.rockandrolldream.com a digital recording studio and music centre has added new recording artists and MP3 downloads for avid music fans searching for new, raw musical talent. The young artists featured all write their own music and create original sounds and lyrics. Munch Music is excited about a new artist that walked in and recently completed a demo, Chelsea Patricia Ganeff, musically comparable to the next "Jann Arden" or "Jewel". The online site Chelsea Patricia Ganeff's single "Walk Away" click here: http://www.rockandrolldream.com/downloads_CPG.htm "Chemical Dream" consists of John Simpson on guitar, Alex Won on guitar, Doug Bourks on bass and Connor McIlvenna on percussion. The Dream's music is a very hooky mixture of riff based classic rock with melodic guitar melodies. Sample "Rock Song" single from Chemical Dream click here: http://www.mymunchmusic.com/downloads_ChemicalDream.htm Taylor Van Zant's alternative rock band is called "Van Paul and the Forever Red". The band consists of Max Konyi on piano and guitar, Patrick Snape on guitar and bass, Nate Konyi on drums, and Taylor Van Zant on bass, vocals, and rhythm guitar. "Van Paul and the Forever Red" has been together for one year and play in a variety of styles, including: classic and modern rock. Sample "And Air" single from Van Paul and the Forever Reds: http://www.mymunchmusic.com/downloads_VPFReds.htm Munch Music: Founded by 16 Year old artist Taylor Van Zant

The Temptations , Otis Williams

March 18th in Vegas I had the extreme pleasure of seeing the only living original member of The Temptations, Otis Williams , perform. The Temptations and the Four Tops put on a show to remember. To see Otis dance and sing to a level of excellence that would exhaust a 20 year old was amazing. I brought my 17 year old son, who is an avid music fan, with me and he had no idea all the songs they sang were the Temptations songs. I told him he was seeing a musical legend in front of him.
Mr. Williams- we salute you!
http://www.otiswilliams.net/

Post Music industry news and articles

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the new "iPhone."

iPod fans may now have a new choice with the recent buzz that Apple is working on a a new cell phone that is capable of playing music and fielding calls .The new "iPhone" as it is called is being sourced with potential Taiwanese contract manufacturers

Xbox 360 and Epic Records will showcase 12 up-and-coming artists through the Artist of the Month

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT : Microsoft Corporation) & Epic Records announced an agreement to offer a full year of exclusive artist content and music video downloads free for all Xbox 360(TM) gamers. Over the next year, Xbox 360 and Epic Records will showcase 12 up-and-coming artists through the Artist of the Month program through the Xbox Live(R) service, a unified global online entertainment network. Millions of Xbox Live members can enter a monthly sweepstakes with a prize of gaming against some of the hottest musicians through the Xbox Live Game with Fame(TM) program.

Music Industry and the Justice Department

Just as the industry has been buzzing about online music sales growth- now comes the bad news- music companies are the subject of the scrutiny of the U.S. Justice Department for possible collusion in the setting of prices for online downloading.

Digitial music in Canada

Following stats that showed Canada was lagging in participation in the booming music download industry - news on a deal that may accelerate that growth came out. Bell Canada announced it has acquired a Majority Interest in Puretracks, Canada's Premiere Online Digital Music Service.
The company said in its press release - "By investing in Puretracks, Bell is better positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for online digital entertainment among Canadian consumers," said Charlotte Burke, Senior Vice president, Bell Canada Consumer Internet Services. "Working closely with Puretracks and their leading music industry partners will reinforce Bell's proven track record of offering original and exclusive online content."
www.puretracks.com

Digital Music Conference - The Who's Who

Music Industry's 6th Annual Digital Music Forum and Mobile Music Leadership Summit (www.digitalmusicforum.com) being held at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City on Tuesday, February 28 through Wednesday, March 1, 2006 participants include record labels, music publishers, producers and distributors, technology companies, wireless companies, rights organizations, industry bodies, radio, advertising, attorneys, artists, investors and venture capitalists.

The conference will discuss the role of digital and mobile technologies in the future of music with
topics to be discussed being :
-- Mobile Music –- Metrics, Predictions, Provocations and Analysis &
Mobile Music Leadership Roundtable
-- The State of the Online & Mobile Music Markets: How are record labels
(major and independent), music and mobile companies, telephone carriers and
technology providers positioning their businesses to take advantage of
opportunities in the digital music market?
-- The Growth of The Indie Sector: The role of the Internet, mobile and
digital technologies in the recent success of the independent sector
-- Reaction to RIAA Lawsuits
-- Selling Music to the College Market: The Challenge to Convert Students
Into Paying Customers
-- The MySpace Phenomenon
-- Digital Commerce Opportunities for the Music Industry
-- What are the likely catalysts to creating a vibrant digital music
market?
-- The Future of Radio: What are the "killer apps" that are changing
traditional radio?

Amazon and Google enter music sector

The buzz in the Music industry - apparently industry executives have confirmed they are in discussions with Amazon and Google to create new music services to compete against Apple's share of the digital music market

American Idol draws larger audience than Grammys

28.3 million people watched "American Idol" Wednesday, versus the Grammy Awards with 15.1 viewers. Apparently it was the least-watched Grammy Awards in Nielsen records dating back to the 1970s.

Does that say the music fans are more interested in new emerging talent versus the mainstream?

American Idol plays to the hopes and dreams of the average person, while the Grammy's are a venue for elite, established successful performers dressed in designer clothes .

Maybe it is a statement of the current state of the music industry

future music industry trends

According to research issued by http://www.strategyanalytics.net/ North American conventional music will remain dominant between 2005 and 2010, but revenues from this channel will decline slightly from $11.4 billion to $11.0 billion. Online music will be the biggest gainer, with revenues more than doubling in the five-year window.

On another note...

Loved the Grammys seeing my two favorite men- Bruce and Bono . I personally would have liked to have seen Bruce win best song with "Devils and Dust" . I think its his best album to date and I have loved his work from the beginning

Even Prince offers MP3's

The digital music age is changing everything and artists and industry change or goes the way of the dinosaur. Prince has seen the light and is offering Mp3’s to compete with the new age of emerging talent that understands the power of MP3's online and going mobile
Another big trend going back to the roots of music sales -" singles" - where music lover can buy one song for $0.99 instead of whole CD

mobile viewers can now watch the latest music videos

SmartVideo Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: SMVD) announced mobile viewers can now watch the latest music videos on all Internet enabled devices, such as cellphones, PDAs, and laptops connected via cellular, Wi-Fi, and DSL networks. SmartVideo in partnership with the Digital Music Video Network (DMVN), today launched its groundbreaking, advertising-supported channels featuring videos by the music industry's top artists. A unique feature of this service is SmartVideo's use of an advanced Digital Rights Management (DRM) system that protects the copyright and security of the music.

Wal-Mart Soundcheck

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. http://www.walmart.com (WMT) has launched an online music video and audio service featuring exclusive studio performances as part of their market strategy for the music industry

Called "Wal-Mart Soundcheck", the new service includes studio performances and interviews with new and established artisits and bands ranging from rock, pop, punk, country, hip-hop and R&B

The artist's music will play for free on http://www.walmart.com as well as television screens in the Wal-Mart electronics departments. . Acts will be updated monthly.
This should draw in the demographics of the MTV audience and the music fans that search online as part of the explosive trend for free or alternative music

Starbucks from music coffee house to MP3's

Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) , www.starbucks.com has entered new markets as the company's ventures extend into motion pictures with its new deal with Lionsgate and expands the Hear Music™ Coffeehouse they say in a press release " The new stores represent the full integration of a classic coffeehouse experience with an extensive digital and physical music inventory and underscore the Company’s steadfast commitment to extending its Entertainment initiative. The unrivalled combination results in a compelling third place destination for customers to connect over coffee as well as explore, discover, personalize and buy quality music in a warm and inviting environment."
Now the company is talking about entering the MP3 market as the industry changes to that direction

Digital Music Group IPO

Digital Music Group - http://www.digitalmusicgroupinc.com/Home.aspx
listing for NASDAQ - pending symbol - DMGI

The company provides digital music recordings to online music stores for purchase by consumers, with rights to sell over 200,000 music recordings in digital format

The estimated price range for the pending IPO has increased to $9 to $11 per share from $8 to $10.

Digital music expands globally-new report says

New Digital Music Report - Digital music expands worldwide
http://www.ifpi.org/site-content/library/digital-music-report-2006.pdf
If you want to know the details on the digital music industry and how it is transforming the music industry and the digital economy - this 24 page report will tell you all the details

A few hi-lites-

In 2005 the number of legitimate music download sites reached 335, up from 50 two years ago. In just two years the volume of music made available online by record
companies has increased to over two million songs.
Digital & mobile sales of $1.1 billion for record companies - up from $380 million the previous year, and making up 6 percent of all music sales.

read the report and find out how this influences you and the music industry moving forward

Music Group International digitizing 100,000 recordings

The ongoing changes in music - its all about the downloads -

Universal Music Group International (UMG.XX), the world's largest music company by market share, Wednesday said it was digitizing 100,000 previously deleted European recordings in order to make them available over the Internet.
Universal will take recordings from what it claims is the music industry's largest archive, including music from Marianne Faithfull, Fairport Convention, Nirvana and Jacques Brel.
The global music industry has been hit over the past five years by illegal downloads over the Internet but sales of legal digital downloads in 2005 showed huge growth in the U.K. and U.S.
The global music trade body, IFPI, reported last October that the value of digital download sales have now overtaken the value of the global singles market.
Global sales of recorded music fell 1.9% in the first half of 2005, the latest period for which figures are available, while physical music sales fell 6.3% over the period, however digital music sales tripled over the period to 6% of total record industry sales.
full story: http://www.thebusinessonline.co.uk/DJStory.aspx?DJStoryID=20060118DN005920

Digital Music in China

Digital Music in China - Recent Research report issued by instat.com
http://www.instat.com

Summary
This past year in 2005 saw strong take-off signals from China’s digital music value chain. The online original-creation music market is booming, while most of the 120 local Chinese publishers license their songs online without a flat royalty guarantee. Piracy is still the key blocking issue to developing China’s digital music industry, but online piracy is being attacked both by the government and industry music labels. The end of 2007 will be the turning point for China’s legitimate digital music market. Unauthorized music companies are now in the process of, or have already made their services legitimate. Also, with the emergence of mega online music stores, legitimate online music will become a dominant service for users. By 2008, China will be one of the most important digital music markets worldwide, with an estimated online service revenue of US$222 million, the equivalent of an annual download of 1.8 billion songs. Installed portable music devices will exceed 150 million units at the end of 2008. Growth of the legitimate digital music market will be strong over the forecasted period, with a CAGR of 317% from 2005–2008, which is unsurprising in an emerging market. This In-Stat report focuses on China’s new online value chain and emphasizes market drivers and barriers. Three year forecasting shows decision makers the best timing for investment.

Time Warner Restructuring Rumors

Major shareholders (led by financier Carl Icahn) of Time Warner (TWX), the world’s largest media company, are reportedly (by the Financial Times) planning to push for the company to be restructured into its constituent parts – cable, internet, publishing, and movie studios/television networks.

Icahn and his supporters – who together own 3% of Time Warner - plan to win a majority of the board seats through a proxy fight. Icahn has said that he believes that a divided Time Warner will function better and more efficiently. Icahn is reportedly speaking with the investment bank Lazard to develop restructuring strategies.

Shares of the company closed last night at $18.16 – having traded in the $15 to $20 range for the past two years.

Warner Bros Settles Payola Investigation for $5 Million

Warner Brothers (NYSE: WMG) has agreed to pay $5 million to settle the Payola (bribes paid by record companies to radio stations in return for airplay) probe that NY Attorney General Elliot Spitzer has been spearheading for the past few months. Warner is the second music industry corporate to settle, in July Sony BMG Music Entertainment (NYSE:SNE) settled by paying $10 million. The money will be used by the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors to fund music education in New York State.

Traditional Music Outlets Take a Back Seat to iTunes

The NDP Group (a research company that tracks digital downloads as well as music purchases through retail outlets) has just released a report stating that Apple’s iTunes now sells more music than both Tower Records and Borders. In 2005 iTunes also got 70% of the legal music download business. The big box retailers however still outsell iTunes – these include Wal-Mart, Circuit City, Best Buy, and Target.

Music Industry Ups and Downs

The company Nielsen Soundscan has released a report revealing that while digital music downloads tripled in size by May of this year – to 6.6 million downloads a week – by the end of October, that number had remained relatively stable at 6.7 million downloads per week. This news is alarming for the fact that the digital download business was expected by analysts to offset the fall in CD sales. Global music industry profits have been shrinking for the past six years falling by 6.7% in the first half of 2005.

Shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) – manufacturers of the iPod – have however skyrocketed – from $9.50 in 2001 to $64.95 at close of business today. Apple shares reached an all time high this week after an analyst at Bear Stearns upped his earnings estimate for Apple based on the thriving demand for iPods and the fact that the holiday gift buying season is coming up around the bend.

EMI Group PLC, (EMIPY.PK) just announced that revenues are on an upward swing for the first time in five years due to an increase in the company’s legal downloads and the fact that the groups Coldplay and Gorillaz released profitable CDs this year. Sales for the six months ended September rose by 5.8% to $1.6 billion.

Virtual Record Deals on Virtual Record Labels

Further to the news in my blog of a few days ago that MySpace.com was launching its own record label, news came out today that Warner Brothers is launching an “online label”. The company, called “Cordless Recordings” will be run by Jac Holzman (the guy who signed The Doors to Elektra back in the Sixties). Groups signed to this label will release music in three song ‘clusters’ that will be available for download at iTunes and Rhapsody. If the music becomes profitable as a download, then physical CDs will be manufactured and released. Cordless Recordings will be employing a person whose job it will be to troll the web looking for popular online bands and music.

An announcement was also made by Lycos, to the effect that they would also be launching an online record label. It looks like the music industry is experiencing a shift in how music and musicians become popular and produce recordings. It’s about time!

A Cultural Shift - The Firsthand Account

In speaking with Dawn Van Zant, the president of Econ Corporate Services, this morning (the owner of MusicIndustryStocks.com and InvestorIdeas.com) she described what she called "a cultural shift" after seeing a Rascal Flatts concert last night. What Dawn described ties in perfectly to the current integration of cell phones into every facet of daily life, including music. All of the major telecommunications companies have introduced cell phones with downloadable music players. What Dawn described from last night's show brings home the point of just how integrated cell phones have become into the mainstream of society.

I asked Dawn to write down her first hand observations for our blog readers:

"Last night I attended the Rascal Flatts performance at GM Place in Vancouver and felt like I was a witness to a cultural shift. I am a 46 year old avid fan of country and rock music and attended concerts frequently throughout my teens and twenties. I now make a point of seeing a concert every now and then when I feel like I can handle the crowds. My last concert previous to Rascal Flats, was Bruce Springsteen's acoustic tour this fall. At his concert, I sat quietly with my peers listening to a legend sing out his life story. There were moments of complete silence as we soaked him in. It did not prepare me for last night's concert at all.

Despite the cheap cowboy hats, drunk girls and too many people, the musical performance was great. The phenomenon that made me stand back as an observer and pause, was that instead of an audience that I remember in my twenties holding up their lighters in the air, I saw thousands of cell phones with cameras being held up by fans.

I had no idea that every teenage girl and everyone under 30 had a cell phone with a camera. I have to say I had one in my purse too, but I don't know how to use the camera.

The wireless wave took on a whole new meaning for me last night as I saw cell phones waving rhythmically in the air to Rascal Flats, taking photo after photo."

MySpace Starts Record Label For Independent and Unsigned Artists

The website www.MySpace.com has launched its own record label in connection with Universal’s Interscope Records. The label will concentrate on unsigned and independent artists as well as compilations by artists from other record labels. The new label’s first release will be a compilation of tracks that have become popular among visitors and users of the MySpace.com internet phenomenon. MySpace Records has already signed its first act called Hollywood Undead, a band that has been listed on MySpace.com since June of this year.

According to the Hollywood Undead’s blurb on their MySpace page, “After 1 day of dropping their sound onto Myspace, their account exploded like TNT. The Hollywood Undead space grew in size in a matter of hours—starting out with an audience of 10 and blowing up into one that included several thousand users just in their first day of entry into the space. Thousands of adds per day on average. Tens of thousands of profile views. Close to 4000 DOWNLOADS PER DAY.” The band reached number one on the MySpace top bands chart after only 1 week, beating out bands like Nine Inch Nails, Coldplay, and System Of A Down.

Sad Songs Say So Much for the Music Industry

Year end music industry sales totals look set to be about 7% behind 2004 numbers. This disappointing result has been blamed on poor album sales, which has in turn been blamed on both legal and illegal downloads, and competing entertainment delivery systems. The truth is that 2005 hasn’t had any blockbuster sellers like 2004’s LPs by U2, Shania Twain and Eminem (and what a sad state of affairs when Eminem is considered a blockbuster… but that’s another article entirely).

Time Warner Increases Share Buyback, Posts 80% Increase in Third Quarter Earnings

Time Warner announced today that the board of directors had voted to approve raising their stock repurchase program from $5 billion to $12.5 billion. This news was hot on the heels of a third quarter earnings report showing an 80% increase over the same quarter last year. The increase in earnings was attributed to strong cable TV business – especially with syndications of “Sex and the City” and gains in advertising. Time Warner shares have been on the decline – share prices are still 75% lower today than they were in 2000 prior to the company’s agreement to be bought out by AOL.

October Music Industry Update

RealNetworks Inc. (RNWK) shares rose 44 percent in October after reaching a $761 million settlement with Microsoft Corp. (MSFT). The settlement closed RNWK’s antitrust case against MSFT and created a new partnership to distribute Real's music and digital-game services through the MSN network.

Clear Channel (NYSE:CCU) recently reported that their third quarter profits were down by 21% to $205.5 million. Lower third quarter profits were stated to be the result of shorter radio ads – the company is focusing on 15 to 30 second ads - and CCU’s restructuring costs.

Canadian company, Corus Entertainment Inc (Toronto: CJR-NVB.TO) announced that their fourth quarter profits were down to $9.7 million (22 cents per diluted share) from $14 million (33 cents per share) at the same point last year due to new copyright costs and the integration of several of its radio stations. On the TSX, shares in Corus fell 50 cents, or 1.51 per cent, to $32.69 in late afternoon trading.

Activision, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products, announced on October 26 a four-for-three stock split. Activision posted net revenues of $1.4 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2005.

Two Terminated At Clear Channel Following Payola Investigation

Clear Channel (NYSE: CCU) announced today that two individuals had been dismissed following allegations of illegal ‘pay-to-play’ activities. The company also uncovered other instances of inappropriate conduct and those employees have been placed under disciplinary action. Clear Channel did not reveal the names or the positions of the terminated employees. The illegal activities were uncovered during a legal settlement between the New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and the music company, Sony BMG.

Music Download Market Triples

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) released a report on Monday stating that the digital music downloads market has tripled in the first half of this year. Downloads now account for 6% of total record industry sales, rising from $220 million at this time last year to $790 million today.

The increase in downloads neatly offsets declines in the retail sales of physical CDs and DVDs, which fell by 6.3%. The decline in physical sales was reported to be due to illegal downloading, CD burning, and lower retail prices for CDs and DVDs.

The increase in downloads is a result of faster broadband internet connections and more and better portable music players, including 3G mobile phones.

Apple’s iTunes accounted for 82% of the legal download market having sold more than 500 million single track downloads and 22 million iPod players. The recording industry is aggressively attacking illegal downloads, having pursued litigation against over 14,800 individuals in the US.

‘Thanks But No Thanks For The Music’ At Microsoft

Stating that the major labels want too big a cut of digital music sales revenues, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have announced that Microsoft has “postponed indefinitely” plans to launch their own subscription based music service.

The industry's decline in physical CD sales has been bolstered by the increased popularity of digital music downloads, sales of which have more than tripled in the past year (to $790 million) which amounts to 6% of the industry's total sales of $13.2 billion.

Chinese Search Engine Baidu In Illegal Music Download Battle

China’s biggest search engine, Baidu.com, was today in the first day of mediation in a copyright trial brought against the company by seven global music corporations. The music companies (including Warner, Universal, EMI, and Sony BMG) allege that the search engine provided links to sites that allows users to illegally download music. The search engine Baidu has of course stated that their service does not provide the illegal downloads, but merely points users towards the illegal sites. In an attempt to come to a mutually beneficial resolution, Baidu has agreed to proceed with mediation, if the mediation however is not successful then the case will go to trial. MP3 searching accounts for 22% of Baidu’s traffic. Netease, another of China’s major search engines recently stopped their MP3 search facilities in order to curtail similar legal action against them.

A Sign Of The Times

Is it a sign that classic rock is back in the spotlight when Oprah Winfrey opens her season with classic rockers Bon Jovi? I'd say so. And the worldwide success of shows like "Rockstar: INXS" makes so much more sense than the whole American Idol craze - finally singers with soul, showmanship, groove, and more importantly - who ROCK! Eagle eyed viewers of Rockstar: INXS will have noticed that the PA system used on the show comes from manufacturers SLS International (SITI.OB) - who just started selling their Q Line speakers in WalMarts across the country.

And for those of you who have unrequited Rock & Roll aspirations - check out www.RockAndRollDream.com - the classic rock themed digital recording facility whose goal is to help you, "Live Your Rock And Roll Dream".

iTunes Captures 80% of UK Digital Downloads Market

iTunes just released news that in the UK they have captured 80% of the downloadable music market. This feat was accomplished in less than 18 months of being in business. The news was released on the heels of a report by the Official U.K. Charts Company which stated that the UK had generated 13 million digital downloads so far this year, compared to 5.7 million for all of 2004.

The Dream Is Over For DreamWorks Nashville

It has now been officially announced that DreamWorks Records Nashville (DRN) is to be shut down by its parent company, Universal Music Group (UMG). DreamWorks SKG was purchased by UMG in 2003 for $100 million, and part of the deal was that UMG would have one year to use the DreamWorks name before being required to phase it out. Another factor in the company’s closure is that artist Toby Keith has left the label to form his own record company, Show Dog Records. Label mate and artist Scotty Emerick has also left DRN to sign with Keith’s new label.

Toby Keith has had great success in his music career up to this point selling 25 million albums, with 10 going platinum, and 21 No. 1 singles. Keith has sourced help in running Show Dog Records in the form of former DreamWorks Nashville executive, Scott Borchetta, who will also be running his own label, Big Machine Records.

Music Industry Update

In his opening remarks at this year’s NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers) convention, President Jim Donio spoke about his concern over poor CD sales, the growth of the digital music industry, and the effects of piracy on the industry. His concern over CD sales centered on the fact that at the same time in 2004 sales had grown by 9% over the previous year, while at the present sales were down by 7% over last year.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry provided a quantitative snapshot of the worldwide music industry in their August report. The report revealed that over 100,000 album titles were released in 2004. The UK had the highest per capita album sales with an average of 2.9 albums purchased annually by every man woman and child in the country. The US was reported to have the highest percentage of households with DVD players, at 94% of the population. Canada had the highest broadband uptake in North America, and Singapore placed first for the country with the highest number of CD players per household (390%). The US placed second in this category with 257%.

The growth of digital services reached a landmark as over 180 legitimate musical download services launching in 2004. The total number of legitimate services now totals over 300, with over 200 of those located in Europe. In the world of record companies, Vivendi Universal was the biggest with a worldwide market share of 25.5%, followed by Sony BMG with 21.5%, EMI at 13.4%, and Warner at 11.3%. Warner’s highly publicized IPO at the beginning of 2005 was overshadowed this past month by the release of the company’s third quarter results. Warner reported a net loss for the quarter of $179 million, or $1.41 per diluted share. This compares to a net loss in the ‘same time last year’ period of $91 million.

Also in August, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin began an investigation into allegations of ‘payola’ violations (the practice of bribing radio stations to air specific songs from major label catalogues – historically bribes have consisted of cash, drugs and prostitutes) between record companies and radio stations. Sony BMG, the second largest music conglomerate, recently made a $10 million settlement with the New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer for their alleged involvement in ‘payola’ violations. It has been reported that EMI Group, Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group, Clear Channel Radio, Cox Radio, Infinity Broadcasting, and Entercom have been subpoenaed in the industry wide investigation. It is expected that fines to each company found guilty of violations will follow the Sony BMG example and will also be based upon the company’s market share.

Clear Channel Registers For Spin Off IPO

Clear Channel’s plans to spin off their outdoor entertainment division as well as the concert division were officially announced yesterday as the company filed with the SEC for IPOs. Clear Channel Entertainment (CCE Spinco, Inc.) will be a completely separate entity from Clear Channel, while Clear Channel Outdoor (Ticker symbol “CCO”) will still be 90% controlled by Clear Channel.