Just a few months ago, the situation appeared grim for the file-sharing community, at least from a mainstream point of view. During the latter months of 2005, the MPAA began shutting down eDonkey2000 and BitTorrent indexing sites in earnest. The RIAA was suing music traders left and right, and the Supreme Court decision loomed like Hurricane Katrina.

And finally the Supreme Court decision hit. On June 27, 2005, in a rare 9-0 decision the Supreme Court remanded the case back to the lower courts. Specifically, the Supreme Court ruled, “We hold that one who distributes a device with the object of promoting its use to infringe copyright, as shown by clear expression or other affirmative steps taken to foster infringement, is liable for the resulting acts of infringement by third parties.”

As is typical by the mainstream media, the Supreme Court decision was heralded as an RIAA/MPAA victory. But the coming months would prove a much different situation.

Outside the P2P and file-sharing world yields two very different realities; the reality anti-P2P entities such as the RIAA/MPAA wish to portray, and the reality the P2P/file-sharing world wish to portray. Very rarely, if ever, do these two realities ever agree.

The significantly better publicized message anti-P2P entities portray is readily swooped up by the mainstream media. Well-written press releases often provide a significant chuck to an article for journalists unfamiliar with the file-sharing world. Headlines such as “P2P Use in decline”, “iTunes More Popular than Most P2P networks” and “File-Sharing Companies Defeated by RIAA/MPAA” have become all too common.

Have you ever wondered what Opera has that other browsers don’t but you didn’t like the ads that go with the free version?

Now’s your chance to find out.

It’s Opera’s 10th birthday and for one day, it’s giving away free codes, the single qualification being you’re supposed to register with your email addie.

Get here Free registrations until August, 31 (PDT)

Via p2pnet.net
“P2P has become the driver of broadband, and for now there is nothing which can even come close.”

That’s the bottom line, quite literally, from a post on Om Malik’s Broadband Blog in which he says he was able to connect with Andrew Parker, cto of British ISP network service CacheLogic

CacheLogic is getting tremendous mileage out of its statements that Lo! File swapping remains a powerful force; and, that eDonkey appears to be overtaking BitTorrent as THE p2p app.

Parker, says Malik, was in the US promoting his report on the state of P2P nation, and a new service and apparently, the two ended with the “not-so-pleasant conclusion: that “P2P is driving consumer broadband demand….. and broadband is driving P2P uptake” and, “The symbiotic relationship between the two is reflected in this accompanying network traffic pattern graphic,” says Malik.

Malik goes on that he’s arrived at a few conclusions:

The service providers have a little or no reason to block P2P traffic in the near terms, because it drives growth. And since most service providers are in growth mode, well, you know…. ehm!

In the long term, however P2P traffic if not managed properly is going to become a big problem.

The explosion in P2P traffic is going to have an impact on the people who don’t use the P2P services as well.

Due to P2P’s symmetrical nature on average 80% of upstream capacity is consumed by P2P

Malik says Parker states many TV firms are looking at p2p for video distribution, with the BBC and Sky to the fore, but others are wondering if p2p might not attract more viewers. “I think on a more longer term, this is an interesting situation and brings up some niggling questions about Silicon Valley’s concept of the moment:.” he says. “The Long Tail. I guess, as niche content finds it footing, one has to wonder who is really footing the bill for the distribution.

“I mean be it P2P or iTunes or Rhapsody, we are simply shifting to cost of distribution over to the ‘pipe owners’ who are (whether they like it or not,) being reduced to ‘mere conduits,’ or utilities. For instance the distribution costs of a record used to be printing the CDs, and getting them into the stores, which the record label paid for. Now, if you take a song, put it on a server, and start selling it, the distribution cost is really the ‘IP transit,’ which someone has to pay for.

“And as the debate continues, one thing which is becoming increasingly certain: P2P has become the driver of broadband, and for now there is nothing which can even come close.”

Microsoft has released a beta of yet another delayed system - WinFS, which was to have been a key part of the seriously tardy Vista, now theoretically due out half-way through next year.

“A test of the technology was made available for download from Microsoft’s Developer Network Web site Monday,” says the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Microsoft decided in August 2004 to yank WinFS out of the main Windows Vista release to ensure the larger program would be completed in 2006. That led investors to worry customers would delay buying Vista until WinFS, which makes it easier to organize and find data, became available.

WinFS will be available as an add-on release sometime in 2007, Quentin Clark, WinFS director of program management is quoted as saying in TechWorld.

“The beta includes a set of APIs and schemas that allow developers to start working with the new file system and get accustomed to the new data model,” Clark said,

Via p2pnet.net
If you’re a member of the mainscream media, be there, or be square. Because, “Speculation on what Apple Computer Inc. will do next with its popular iPod rose to a fevered pitch Monday after the firm sent out invitations to a special event,” says the San Francisco Examiner.

Be where? San Francisco’s Moscone Center. Date? September 7. Time? 10:00 am.

So says AppleInsider, revealing the e-mail invites are headed up, “1000 songs in your pocket changed everything. Here we go again,” the slogan “1000 songs in your pocket” having been Apple’s intro to the the first 5-gig iPod in 2001.

“Sources had previously reported that Motorola and Apple would use the 7th of September to unveil the first of Motorola’s iTunes ROKR cell phones,” says the story. “The phones will be the first product of Motorola’s strategic partnership with Apple, aimed at enabling music fans to transfer their favorite songs from Apple’s iTunes jukebox software to compatible Motorola mobile handsets.”

“Roger Entner, a telecommunications analyst with Ovum, a market research firm, said he had been told by an industry executive that the new phone, to be made by Motorola, would be marketed by Cingular Wireless,” states The New York Times. “Mr. Entner said it would include iTunes software”.

We can see it now. Incidents of fatal collisions increase as users, feet tapping wildly as they listen to to Missy Elliot, hit the gas instead of the break pedal and lose control ; )

Meanwhile, iTunes never happened as far as the vast majority of online music lovers are concerned, and according to the NYT, Sprint says by the end of the year, it’ll be offering Wi-Fi music phones.

Via DarkVision Hardware
Filesharing over peer-to-peer (P2P) networks is one of the many popular Internet applications and a recent study from CacheLogic says P2P accounts for as much as 60 percent of all Internet traffic. Most of this comes from eDonkey, closely followed by BitTorrent.
At the end of 2004, BitTorrent accounted for 30 per cent of all Internet traffic. But after the Motion Picture Association of America’s moves to shut down BitTorrent tracking sites, centralized servers for locating distributed content, swappers began moving to other less-publicized services.

Today, eDonkey, a system that uses no centralized servers or tracking sites, consumes the most bandwidth of any application on the Internet, particularly overseas, according to Parker. In the US, Gnutella has seen resurgence in popularity among swappers.
About 62 percent of the files shared through P2P networks is video and 11 percent is audio. The rest are miscellaneous file types.

Via ZeroPaid
What if Google wanted to give Wi-Fi access to everyone in America? And what if it had technology capable of targeting advertising to a user’s precise location? The gatekeeper of the world’s information could become one of the globe’s biggest Internet providers and one of its most powerful ad sellers, basically supplanting telecoms in one fell swoop. Sounds crazy, but how might Google go about it?

First it would build a national broadband network — let’s call it the GoogleNet — massive enough to rival even the country’s biggest Internet service providers.
Business 2.0 has learned from telecom insiders that Google is already building such a network, though ostensibly for many reasons. For the past year, it has quietly been shopping for miles and miles of “dark,” or unused, fiber-optic cable across the country from wholesalers such as New York’s AboveNet. It’s also acquiring superfast connections from Cogent Communications and WilTel, among others, between East Coast cities including Atlanta, Miami, and New York.

Such large-scale purchases are unprecedented for an Internet company, but Google’s timing is impeccable. The rash of telecom bankruptcies has freed up a ton of bargain-priced capacity, which Google needs as it prepares to unleash a flood of new, bandwidth-hungry applications. These offerings could include everything from a digital-video database to on-demand television programming.

An even more compelling reason for Google to build its own network is that it could save the company millions of dollars a month. Here’s why: Every time a user performs a search on Google, the data is transmitted over a network owned by an ISP — say, Comcast (CMCSK) — which links up with Google’s servers via a wholesaler like AboveNet. When AboveNet bridges that gap between Google and Comcast, Google has to pay as much as $60 per megabit per second per month in IP transit fees. As Google adds bandwidth-intensive services, those costs will increase.

Via ZeroPaid
Cambridge, England - CacheLogic, Ltd. – a world leader in Peer-to-Peer traffic management and network intelligence solutions – today published an updated analysis of worldwide Peer-to- Peer (P2P) traffic detailing the worldwide breakdown of P2P file trading networks. The study confirms that eDonkey 2000 has overtaken BitTorrent™ to become the world’s largest P2P file trading network. The data for this study was obtained through CacheLogic’s Streamsight Analysis Network Program, which enables analysis based on actual packet data and traffic levels obtained from ISPs (Internet Service Providers) worldwide.

Using the advanced Layer-7 technology found in both its Peer-to-Peer Management Solution and Deep Packet Inspection products, CacheLogic analyzed data from monitoring probes located around the world. The data shows that while BitTorrent remains extremely popular in Asia (with the notable exception of South Korea, where 92% of all P2P traffic is eDonkey), European, North American and Latin American users have shifted to eDonkey for the vast majority of file trading. Specific details of the worldwide geographic breakdown of P2P are available to qualified press and analysts and may be obtained by emailing media representative Jonathan Hirshon at jh@horizonpr.com, subject line ‘CacheLogic Study’.

“CacheLogic has noted a significant shift in the balance of traffic levels assosciated with the main P2P protocols through our unique access to actual Web traffic data throughout the world,” said Andrew Parker, Chief Technology Officer for CacheLogic. “Over the last six months, the traffic levels for the eDonkey protocol have grown to a level greater than that of BitTorrent. Such file-sharing applications continue to be the single largest traffic burden on ISP networks.”

To further enhance its ability to offer unique commentary and insight regarding Internet traffic patterns, CacheLogic also announced the free expansion of its Streamsight Analysis Network to a range of new ISPs around the globe. ISPs interested in obtaining a unique window into the data crossing their networks can sign up for the program by visiting http://www.cachelogic.com/san. Upon acceptance (subject to the outlined terms and conditions and at CacheLogic’s sole discretion) program members will receive a free CacheLogic Layer-7 packet analyzer that will provide immediate and specific details on all data types traversing the ISP’s network, including P2P, Instant Messaging, VoIP and other popular protocols and applications.

“CacheLogic is committed to assisting ISPs as they deal with the ever- changing dynamics of Internet traffic - the global expansion of the Streamsight Analysis Network is a significant step forward in providing the necessary insight into the protocols that define the most popular applications in use by subscribers,” noted Parker.

Company Background

CacheLogic is a technology company that provides a suite of complementary products that deliver traffic management and network intelligence solutions to the Internet Service Provider and Telecommunications sectors. In January 2004 CacheLogic set up its analysis network to provide traffic analysis from within ISP networks across the Globe. The network ensures CacheLogic maintains leadership in understanding the changing nature of traffic across the Internet and, in particular, its impact upon Service Provider networks.

Today through its proven track record, market-leading P2P management solution and its commitment to research and development, CacheLogic is considered the leading authority in its field. CacheLogic provides regular analysis and expert opinion to leading press and analyst organisations.

Further information can be found at http://www.cachelogic.com

Via p2pnet.net
The movie studios’ John G. Malcolm and his merry band have been busy, this month.

Malcolm, an ex-US Justice Department deputy assistant attorney general, is now gainfully employed by the major movie studios’ MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America), which has just released a flurry of new ‘gotcha’ fluff titles as part of its ever-popular ‘click’ flics.

The first, on August 25, is, MOTION PICTURE INDUSTRY TAKES ACTION AGAINST PEER TO PEER MOVIE THIEVES HANDED OVER BY SEVERAL TORRENT SITES.

In it, Malcolm tells the tale of 286 people it’s victimizing, claiming their names were “given to the MPAA by torrent site operators who were shut down earlier this year”.
(more…)

Via
First there was Tim Berners-Lee’s WorldWideWeb browser released at CERN in March, 1991. Two years later, there came Mosaic as Marc Andreessen and the NCSA’s Eric Bina introduced the first version for X-Windows on Unix computers. In October, 1994, Netscape’s beta version of Mozilla 0.96b went online, then on August 23, 1995, Bill and the Boyz turned their Windows 95 OS loose, and with it came Internet Explorer.

As we all know, today Microsoft pigs it with browsers as well as just about everything else, but as the company’s unpopularity spreads, its grip weakens and Firefox is now giving it a run, albeit a not very threatening one at this point.

Now meet Flock, a new browser built on Firefox.
(more…)

Via p2pnet.net
File swapping remains a powerful force online around the world.
Like you didn’t know ; )

This comes from British ISP network service CacheLogic which says file swappers around the world are leaning away from BitTorrent and towards eDonkey as their preferred means of sharing.

“That seems to be the trend most of the way around the globe, apart from Asia where there is a lot of BitTorrent,” CNET News has CacheLogic cto Andrew Parker saying, noting the application has also been translated into many languages, aiding its spread overseas.

“eDonkey’s rise comes after highly publicized Hollywood legal campaigns against BitTorrent hubs, which have resulted in the disappearance of many of the most popular sites using that technology,” says the story, reiterating earlier reports. “The Motion Picture Association of America is also targeting eDonkey users, but that network has gained less publicity.”

Overall Mix of peer-to-peer traffic by volume, across the four major p2p networks:

Audio: 11.34%
Video: 61.44%
Other: 27.22%

Microsoft video formats represent 46% of aggregate worldwide p2p traffic, says CacheLogic, adding that 65% of all audio files by volume of traffic are still traded in the mp3 format, “but a surprising 12.3% are in the open-source OGG file format (almost all exclusively traded on the BitTorrent network, particularly in Asia)”.

Meanwhile, as tothbenedek posts below, “Why is eDonkey more popular now? Not because of legal wars or anything… It’s only because of the differences between them.

“Bittorrent is mainly for downloading new, popular items, while eDonkey is mostly used for downloading older, rare files.

“It was summer when much less new, popular thing comes out, so people download older stuff and at this eMule is better than Bittorrent. I think a month or two and the situation will change…”

Via p2pnet.net
In a CYA deal, Apple has signed a new contract with Freescale Semiconductor which makes the PowerPC G4 chip used in Apple notebook computers and lower-end desktop models such as the Mac Mini.

Apple spokesman Steve Dowling wouldn’t explain the agreement, “But he said the company has not changed its plans to start delivering Intel-based Macs by ‘this time’ next year or its schedule to complete the transition to Intel processors by the end of 2007,” says The Street.

“Under terms of the new deal, Apple has the right to buy - and Freescale has the obligation to supply - PowerPC chips through the end of 2008.

“That’s a full year after the date when the company plans to move its entire line of Macintosh computers from PowerPC to Intel processors.”

Dated August 22, the contract, calls for Freescale to fill any orders Apple places over the next three years, says MarketWatch.

Via www.filesharingblog.com
The “I’m a musician and I support filesharing” project (link) has gained some attention from different media outlets. [Boston Phoenix] Basically it a is a project for musicians to literally speak out for filesharing. Halsey Burgund is asking you (if you want) to send in a recording of you reading the text. He will then do the following: (from the project page)
First of all, I will release all music under a Creative Commons license such that anyone can copy, distribute, sample etc. it for their own purposes. I will also let Downhill Battle do whatever they would like with the music.
Secondly, I plan to (with permissions, of course) post all the recordings I get for other musicians to use within their own music. It would be amazing if together we could produce a whole album of songs created from the voices of musicians speaking out for cultural freedom, artistic progress, and fairness in business practices.
Thirdly, who knows? You tell me. This is a communal project, and I am all ears.

If you know any musicians, let them know so this project can grow.

Via p2pnet.net
Unnerved by imprecise ruling in Grokster vs MGM, venture capitalists are abandoning investments in file sharing technologies for “more sedate arenas,” says the Guardian Unlimited.

P2p application firms can sometimes be held responsible for what users do with company software, ruled the US Supreme Court, saying it was OK for Grokster to stand trial, but failing to give advice on what punishment might be meted out should it be found guilty.
(more…)

Via p2pnet.net
“VA Software describes itself on its Web site as sitting ‘at the center of the open source technology revolution.’ Seems to make sense. After all, the company operates SourceForge.net, a site where developers collaborate on open source projects. It also runs Web sites, like Slashdot and NewsForge, where the anti-Microsoft crowd rails against the evils of proprietary, closed source software.

“So there’s no way that VA Software would have anything to do with software that wasn’t free and open source, right?
(more…)

Via p2pnet.net
Intel has unwrapped a “home entertainment” PC powered by a dual-core processor, chipset, platform software and TV-like capabilities it hopes will hook potential buyers.

But although it has wired networking, Wi-Fi it ain’t. And with Bill and the Boyz supplying the OS, the entertainment and software cartels won’t have to worry about DRM (digital rights management) or CC (consumer control) systems.

Called Viiv-es (it “Viiv rhymes with five”) Chipzillas ‘Digital Home PCs’ will range from “small, sleek consumer electronic-type designs (similar to a stereo component or DVD player), to more traditional desktop or tower designs,” it says.
(more…)

Via www.filesharingblog.com
A topic that has been popular in file sharing ever since it become popular is how is it going to end up, what is in store for the future of file sharing networks, especially after the Supreme Court ruling. There has been a wide variety of opinions on how it could end up, over time I have come to notice there are mainly two ways to think about the future of file sharing and I have written this to really describe the two. I think the Supreme Court ruling is too recent to really tell what kind of effect it will have and so I have left that out until the future.

The most common view of the state of file sharing that I see, is that file sharing is ultimately doomed to failed and must go “underground” and actively try to obscure the source of files on a network to survive. This is really nothing new, I remember people back in the days of Napster talking about encryption, moving the servers offshore, and etc. With the basic idea of trying to obscure the source of where the files are coming from.

I think the problem with this approach is that it assumes the only future file sharing has is with warez, and there is a presumption of illegal activity which is unfair and kind of narrow-minded, in that it doesn’t acknowledge the potential of file sharing. Given all the legitimate content that is available like Linux distros, independent artists, and even more companies for example, ADV Films has recent begun to distribute promos for upcoming anime releases using Bittorrent.

The other problem I that there is no fool proof way to do this, simply obscuring a source may lessen potential risk but it does not eliminate that risk completely. Because it may be hidden or someone else may be used as a proxy, either way there is still a computer hosting files publicly on a network. If there is a system that does work, since some of the modern day ones are based on a proxy system, it will likely use up a lot of resources, way too much to make mainstream file sharing practical on such a network.

In the end I think it’s more likely that people would just migrate to other non p2p sources for the kind of content that they are looking for. However there are uses for such networks even if it can not distribute large files efficient, it could be used as a way for people in countries with oppressive governments.

The other possibility for the future of file sharing, I believe is the growth of legitimate uses to the point that it becomes embraced as another way to reach consumers and plenty of free content willingly released that it is able to sustain a good size p2p community. The upside is that it would allow anyone to distribute a lot of content cheaper than traditional means of distribution, and it’s much easier than trying to prevent content in the wild from spreading or stopping that spread. There are many file sharers that would be more than happy to support the content providers given that they aren’t getting ripped off with crippled DRM formats, or high prices, and the success of iTunes is a great example of this.

The problems with this approach is convincing companies to actually support file sharing which can be a tough sell because they may be skeptical. Support from some content providers distributing files on file sharing networks, has been increasing within the past few years and I think it’s only a matter of time before it becomes more commonplace especially as the technology that drives file sharing becomes better.

In the end I think there is still a long way to go, even if something completely different than the two scenarios that were discussed, I wouldn’t be worried about the fate of file sharing itself. Because file sharing is extremely flexible and able to meet many different means and has been able to adapt to the current environment pretty well. I think it is safe to say that file sharing isn’t going anywhere for a long time.

Via www.filesharingblog.com
There appears to be a fog around the Xbox 360 and its HDTV cable connections. Let me go on record to say that Microsoft should seriously reconsider how they intend the console to connect to digital TVs. Four years ago, it was acceptable to provide an “HD A/V Pack” with component cables. In 2005 and beyond, that option simply is not acceptable for several reasons.

Component video is certainly needed for the Xbox 360; digital sets that are a few years old were built before DVI and HDMI became mainstream inputs. There’s no issue with including component video connections for that reason alone. But why be shortsighted or require add-on connectors for the future?

If one of the biggest selling points of the Xbox 360 is the “all games in HD”, why not showcase those games with a pure digital connection? Pumping the video output though either DVI or HDMI will only enhance the razor sharp gaming experience that Microsoft is touting. Why limit the experience with component video?

What about the potential for high-definition DVDs? Microsoft recently indicated they were considering an HD-DVD drive for the console. The add-on would likely be an external drive because HD-DVD requires an HDCP-compliant connection for copy protection reasons. Sorry folks, you can’t use component video for that. Sure, Microsoft will likely provide any HD-DVD drives as an external add-on, so the required output jack will be on the drive itself. If they put the right output jack on the console in the first place, however, they could retool and add an internal HD-DVD drive for less.

What a shame that the “forward thinking” department in Redmond took a vacation. Instead of truly innovating as a market leader, Microsoft seems content to use old technologies for now and provide expensive add-ons later. If you want to become a dominant force in the overall home entertainment space, don’t you think you would try to lead the pack?

Via p2pnet.net
Google’s latest gee-whiz could be the one that puts it above the crowd.
It’s a beta version of GoogleTalk, a combined IM and VoIP service and right now, at least, it’s ad-free.

“They say talk is cheap,” says the company on the launch site. “Google thinks it should be free. Google Talk enables you to call or send instant messages to your friends for free - anytime, anywhere in the world.” GoogleTalk currently only works on Windows 2k and up and under privacy: As a condition to using the Service and, if applicable, the Client, you agree to the terms of the Google Talk Privacy Policy (http://www.google.com/talk/privacy.html), which may be updated from time to time, as expressed in the most recent version that exists at the time of your use. You agree that Google may access or disclose your personal information, including the content of your communications,

if Google is required to do so in order to comply with any valid legal process or governmental request (such as a search warrant, subpoena, statute, or court order), or as otherwise provided in these Terms of Use and the Google Talk Privacy Policy. Personal information collected by Google may be stored and processed in the United States or any other country in which Google Inc. or its agents maintain facilities. By using Google Talk, you consent to any such transfer of information outside of your country.

Moreover, Google, it’s not a telephony Service - “You understand and agree that Google Talk is not a telephony service and that neither the Service nor the Client is capable of placing or receiving any calls (including emergency services calls) over publicly switched telephone networks.”

At the moment, it’s straight WYSIWYG – what you see is what you get. No smilies, for example.
“The IM elements are based on the open sourceJabber project,” says PC Pro. “Although this allows Google to say that users can exchange messages with other services, there are not many that most people will have heard of, such as Trillian, GAIM, iChat, Adium, and Psi who also use the XMPP protocol on which GoogleTalk is based
“The major services from Yahoo, MSN and AOL are conspicuously absent from the list. Similarly, it would have been nice if the VoIP element could have worked with the popular Skype service.”
The Google Talk download is 900K for Windows 2000 and above and Google says Mac or Linux versions are on the way.
Download Google Talk from google.com

For monthly membership customers: added free access to www.AEBN.net (62 video-sites, hundreds streaming DVDs, unlimited volume, enjoy!!!)

Also added 27 cool fresh DVDs!

Via p2pnet.net
More than half of US college and university students think it’s OK to swap or download digital copyrighted files, says the BSA (Business Software Alliance).

Owned by major corporations such as Adobe, Apple, Autodesk, Avid, Bentley Systems, Borland, CNC Software/Mastercam, Internet Security Systems, Macromedia, McAfee, Microsoft, PTC, SolidWorks, Sybase, Symantec, The MathWorks, and UGS, the BSA is to the software industry what the RIAA and MPAA are to the entertainment cartels.

Canadian BSA clone CAAST (the Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft) recently used an “independent survey” to suggest that (you guessed it) half of Canada’s university and college students are hard-core thieves who are “stealing” music, movies and computer programs.

Quoting from another “independent survey” it had commissioned from Ipsos Public Affairs, the BSA, “reveals that 52 percent of the student respondents and 25 percent of academics believe that, even in the workplace, it is okay to download and swap files, no matter the software value. The survey results also show that two-thirds of students see nothing unethical about swapping or downloading files illegally without paying for them.”
(more…)

Technology and entertainment companies need to work together on new online business and content protection plans, exec says.
by Grant Gross, IDG News Service
Technology and entertainment companies need to put aside past differences on how to address file-sharing using peer-to-peer software and work together on ways to protect digital content such as music and movies, the head of a major music label says.

Edgar Bronfman Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Warner Music Group, announced a new “e-label” his company is planning to launch that would sign new and niche artists and release their music only online. Artists who don’t have mass market appeal could release small groups of songs every few months and Warner Music Group will avoid the large cost of producing an album-length CD, he said.

Artists signing with the e-label will retain ownership of recording masters and the copyright to their music.

“An artist is not required to have enough material for an album, only just enough to excite our ears,” Bronfman said during a speech at the Progress and Freedom Foundation’s Aspen Summit here. The conservative think-tank focuses on promoting free-market solutions for technology and other industries.
(more…)

Via BBC NEWS
The first net service provider aimed at people who want to share music legally has struck a significant deal with global music giant Sony BMG.

Playlouder MSP, launching at the end of September, will let its customers share Sony licensed music with others on its network.

In return, Playlouder will pool some of its broadband subscriptions to share with music rights owners.

The deal is seen as a groundbreaking move to use file-sharing legally.
(more…)

Via SearchEngineJournal
Om Malik spills the beans that Ask Jeeves is looking into acquiring Grouper the peer to peer file sharing social network. Om sees the acquisition as a channel for Ask Jeeves to bundle its download offerings as well as show its new sponsored search advertisements. Ask Jeeves acquired Bloglines last year in an attempt to corner the blog reading aggregation and search market. Like Bloglines, Grouper is an established cutting edge network of savvy users.

My sources tell me that Ask Jeeves has struck up a deal with P2P social sharing company, Grouper. Apparently, a co-branded Grouper client will be made available by Ask Jeeves. (Here is what I wrote about Grouper back in the day!) This client will embed Ask Jeeves desktop search, and web search. Ask Jeeves will also be able to show text-ads in this client, making it a possible revenue generator.

From what I understand, the client will also have the ability to do search local folders not on your desktop, but also on the folders that are shared by those in your network. This would be a nice way to leap-up in the desktop search business for Ask Jeeves, especially if News Corp decides to buy Blinkx and put its resources behind the tiny company. I am yet to hear back from both companies.

With Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp planning on buying up web properties (MySpace.com) and search engines such as Blinkx (rumored), what we may see developing is a second tier search property acquisition war as IAC and News Corp fight hand over fist to secure the interest of a oung and web active audience.

by Owen Gibson
Online music fans will for the first time be able to legally share tracks by big names such as Oasis, Beyonce, David Bowie and Elvis Presley after the artists’ record label signed a ground-breaking deal with a new internet service provider.

In what some see as signalling a dramatic shift in the way consumers buy music, the provider, Playlouder, has licensed acts from SonyBMG, the world’s second largest record label, and is confident that the other two big record labels, Universal and EMI, will follow suit.

(more…)

Via ZeroPaid
Andrew Lack wasn’t like the other record label honchos, file-swapping maverick Wayne Rosso thought as he left Lack’s swank office in a midtown Manhattan skyscraper.

That Lack, the chief executive of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, was even talking to Rosso showed he was more open-minded than most industry executives. That he was talking up the benefits of working together–even schmoozing with the man who used to run controversial peer-to-peer service Grokster–was downright amazing. “‘I’m going to make you a millionaire,’” Rosso remembers Lack telling him.

“So I told him, ‘I’m all ears.’”
There was no more an unlikely pair in the music and technology business in early 2004. But behind the scenes, their growing camaraderie became one of the most important bridges between the warring recording industry and peer-to-peer companies.

Via ZeroPaid
The Recording Industry Ass. of America has acknowledged that P2P file-sharing is less of a threat to music sales than bootleg CDs.

The RIAA’s chief executive, Mitch Bainwol, last week said music fans acquire almost twice as many songs from illegally duplicated CDs as from unauthorised downloads, Associated Press reports.

According to Bainwol, in turn citing figures from market watcher NPD, 29 per cent of the recorded music obtained by listeners last year came from content copied onto recordable media. Only 16 per cent came from illegal downloads.

Legal downloads accounted for four per cent of music acquisitions, while official CDs accounted for almost 50 per cent of the total.

The RIAA’s favoured solution appears to be copy-protected CDs, which are gradually spreading throughout the music CD market. This approach “is an answer to the problem that clearly the marketplace is going to see more of,” Bainwol told the news agency.

Over the last few months, we’ve seen a growing number of stories published by the mainstream media that highlight the growing number of copy-protected CDs in the market and, in particular, those that have become big sellers. If we didn’t know better, we’d suggest this was all part of a scheme to attempt to ease consumers’ concerns that the music industry is out to make it a darn sight harder to listen to music on a computer. But they wouldn’t do that, would they? Ahem.

Via www.slyck.com
Many in the P2P world have become familiar with the June 27 Supreme Court ruling. Although remanded to the lower courts, P2P developers are already beginning to adjust their business practices in an attempt to persuade the lower courts they are not encouraging their users to violate intellectual property rights.

One P2P company that has perhaps gotten off on the right foot (at least in the eyes of the copyright industry) is Peer Impact. Unlike many other P2P companies that are transitioning to legitimate content, Peer Impact was released as a so-called “legal” P2P network. Of course all P2P networks are legal, however the question on their marketing is what determines whether they will become the next RIAA or MPAA target.

Peer Impact reports they have already scored licensing deals with all 4 major recording companies and with independent labels. Peer Impact also has a catchy little marketing scheme that allows those who share authorized music to earn “Peer Cash.” Some have taken well to this program, while others have heavily criticized it as little more than a cheap marketing ploy. Regardless, Peer Impact has carved a niche for itself in the growing P2P world.

When Peer Impact launched, there was a disparity in the payment structure to the 4 major labels and independent’s. However, today Peer Impact announced they will bring balance to this, as the closed network P2P company will pay both independent and major labels equally.

“A number of the major digital music services, including Peer Impact - have correctly concluded that the previous pricing structure, which benefited the major label oligopoly, was fundamentally flawed and unfair.” said Greg Scholl, Chief Executive of The Orchard and Managing Director of Dimensional Associates, Inc. “We are pleased at the leadership Peer Impact has shown in leveling the playing field, and allowing all music to rise or fall on its own merits. It will be forward-thinking companies like Peer Impact leading the way to a new, fair future - that’s the promise of digital music, and we’re proud to stand beside Peer Impact as we hasten in the day.”

Whether or not one agrees with the existence of “pay P2P”, the fact remains it’s now with us and will most likely continue to proliferate. Greg Scholl is right…if this method of distribution does continue, it would be unfair for only the major labels to benefit, while independent’s only get the scraps left behind.

Via p2pnet.net
Music burned onto CDs is becoming a bigger threat to both Big Music and record stores than p2p file-sharing.

This observation comes from RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) boss Mitch ‘The Don’ Bainwol, speaking for his masters and the RIAA’s owners, the members of the Big Four record label cartel.

Home-made CDs accounted for 29% of all recorded music obtained by fans in 2004, compared to 16% attributed to downloads from online file-sharing networks, says Bainwol, quoted in an Associated Press story.

However, the source of these new data is none other than the NPD Group, a market research firm which appeared almost overnight in late 2003, claiming to be an authority on music and file sharing.

It doesn’t say how it was able to come up with such remarkably precise percentages.

As we wrote in another story, “When we first came across it [the NPD] adidas International, International Flavors & Fragrance and Wrigley typified its client base, but it was nonetheless churning out ‘studies’ and ‘reports’ bolstering entertainment cartel party lines. We emailed NPD wondering how many years’ experience it had in the music research field and asked about the team of interviewers/statisticians we thought it must boast given the nature and number of its outpourings.
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