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Sudden outbreak of democracy baffles US pundits
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Andrew Orlowski
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Something very spooky happened in the United States last week. The chances are you noticed it too, many days before it was reported. Tuesday found me in New York, on my first stateside visit in a couple of years. The details of the Bailout plan had just been revealed and the slow burn of outrage…
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Nokia’s free music offer isn’t so free
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Andrew Orlowski
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Few music business people expect Nokia’s unlimited free music giveaway to be repeated, or even last very long. There simply aren’t enough large consumer companies prepared to take such an expensive gamble . And Nokia’s richest partners aren’t interested in helping out. But it’s a radical and interesting offering that merits some serious analysis: certainly,…
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Songwriters pal with IT to counter the Google lobby
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Andrew Orlowski
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There’s a new lobby group in town – but unusually, this one unites traditional adversaries from tech, telecoms, and media companies. Backers include the American Songwriters Guild representing creators, Microsoft, Cisco, and AT&T, and media companies including Viacom and NBC. Everyone but Google, it seems. The launch in New York today was well attended by…
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MySpace Music hears the antitrust song
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Andrew Orlowski
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News Corporation and the major record labels are facing antitrust questions about the blockbuster MySpace Music venture – even before the site has launched. MySpace Music is billed as the biggest music retail launch of the year. It’s a one-stop shop backed by the cross-media muscle of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire, with the three biggest…
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Peak oil: postponed
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Andrew Orlowski
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Oil supplies will actually last for far longer than our politicians think, the scaremongers fear, and the oil companies tell us. So says Dr Richard Pike, head of the Royal Society of Chemistry, and someone who isn’t afraid to stir controversy. Whither, then, Peak Oil?… Read More
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Freytards, fanbois and feudalism
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Andrew Orlowski
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British digital music company 7Digital claimed a coup yesterday by becoming the first online music store to carry DRM-free catalog from the “Big Four” major record labels. Calling it a coup is misleading, however. It’s really further confirmation that the top of the music business is run along feudal lines: closer to the 12th century…