Tag: music business
-
Rob Lewis on MusicStation
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
MusicStation, the service that aims to give unlimited mobile access to music worldwide for a small weekly fee, finally went live today. The success of the venture, from British start-up Omnifone, will tell us a lot about whether punters are prepared to pay for digital music, rather than scoop it up for free. MusicStation is…
-
Free music has never looked so cheap
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
For the major record labels, yesterday’s deal between EMI and Apple doesn’t herald a new beginning, but the beginning of the end. From next month, EMI will distribute much of its repertoire without DRM through Apple’s iTunes store. Independent labels have been distributing DRM-free songs for three years, avoiding the lock-ins created by competing hardware…
-
Orb turns MySpace into a personal radio station
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
Just as you thought the MySpace phenomenon was running out of steam, tomorrow will see the biggest innovation to the site since it launched. This one doesn’t come from MySpace itself, however, but Orb Networks. Orb already allows you to listen to or view media stored on your home PC (music, playlists, photos or TV…
-
“The biggest attempt at recording theft ever attempted”
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
The husband of the late classical pianist Joyce Hatto has apparently admitted to “doctoring” sound recordings issued on his own record label. William Barrington-Coupe issued over 100 CDs of his wife, who hadn’t performed in public for 30 years, on his label Concert Artists Recordings. Recently Hatto, who died last year, had been rediscovered to…
-
‘Hoax’ stuns classical music world
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
Gramophone magazine has unearthed what one sound recording expert describes as “the biggest attempt at recording theft ever.” Thanks to the internet, the formerly obscure British classical pianist Joyce Hatto had become a critical favorite shortly before her death last year. In 2005, the Boston Globe described her as “the greatest living pianist that almost…
-
Unlimited mobile music for £1.99 a week
by
Andrew Orlowski
–
In what may prove to be the most far-reaching digital music launch since iTunes, Omnifone today took the wraps off its MusicStation service. The service gives mobile phone users access to the big four labels’ music catalogs on-demand for £1.99 (€2.99) a week, using a player that runs on mid-range feature phones and GPRS or…