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More Music Industry News: EU Pact, Yangaroo + CMJ, WeArePanel, Jelli & More

Sorry for the delay in getting this posted today. A house full of furniture just arrived at our new home in Roanoke, VA.

• Licensing pact a big step towards fixing EU music stores -  Music stores in the EU can be a byzantine mess, with each country's online stores having widely varying selections due to licensing issues. A new agreement between industry giants,—including some of the big labels, Apple, and Amazon—aims to change that for the better. (ars)
• Yangaroo, CMJ Partner to Service College Radio. (press release)
• Gracenote will provide mp3lyrics.org users in North America with access and search of song lyrics. (press release)
• In the UK, the Conservatives (Tories) are launching a bid to woo young, internet-savvy voters by advertising on digital music service Spotify. (UK PA)
• WeArePanel.com launches a site and iPhone app music recommendation service aimed at replacing the savvy record store clerk of yore.
• User-Controlled Jelli Radio expands fan choose the music radio broadcast model. (FMQB)
• Copyright Threats Against Compulsive Singer Withdrawn - A shop assistant has received an apology from the UK’s Performing Rights Society. The PRS had threatened the 56 year-old grandmother with a “four figure” bill for singing in her shop to customers, but has now backed down from its initial big-sticked aggressive stance, and is now brandishing a big bunch of flowers. (TorrentFreak)

Tunecore's CEO Responds To Widget Controversy

Last week Hypebot reported on some major upgrades that Tunecore had made to the widget it offers its users. One useful feature captured information from fans.

Data capture and use has gotten many internet companies from Facebook to iTunes in hot water with both users and privacy experts as they struggle to find the right balance; and one "concerned" Hypebot reader wrote passionately about their belief that Tunecore's policies did not offer sufficient protection. With capital leaders added for emphasis, the company's policy reads:  

"TUNECORE MAY USE PERSONAL INFORMATION and other non-personal information about you for the following general purposes: to fulfill your requests for products and services; improve our services; CONTACT YOU; customize advertising and content you see; conduct research; and provide anonymous reporting for internal and external clients.

TuneCore may provide your Personal Information directly to the artists that you select. You acknowledge and agree that any such artists that receive such Personal Information (a) may contact you directly from time to time and (b) MAY NOT TREAT YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION WITH THE SAME LEVEL OF CONFIDENTIALITY AS THE TERMS OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY."

A rather heated debate followed and Tunecore CEO and founder Jeff Price responded:

"We wanted to make a media player that artists could make at their discretion that showed videos, band photos, tour dates, twitter feeds, band bio, external link and allowed people to become "fans" of the band.

When someone wanted to become a fan of the band...

Your Digital Record Offers Alternative To ITunes LP

The album is not dead; it's just evolving. iTunes LP is one iteration, but it's not the only one. Recently launched Your Digital Record offers artists and labels another branch of album's evolutionary tree with a (currently) free platform that transforms albums from mere digital files into an interactive multimedia bundle.

Now in beta, artists and labels can:

• produce interactive digital albums by uploading tracks, liner notes, artwork, pictures, videos and other media in an online "studio."
• share digital albums through embedded code, links and email as a widget
• link users to any digital or physical music store for purchase 
• accept donations from fans directly via PayPal connect with fans and receive review. 

Several top indie artist like Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings have uploaded content and are using it virally. "iTunes’ work with iTunes LP and "Cocktail" is very similar to our idea," admits the site's Chris Connell, "but we expect that there will need to be a place for all artists to curate their own complete digital albums, not just those that are selected by iTunes or have the money to dish out."

Rhapsody's iPhone App Downloaded 500K

Rhapsody's iPhone app has been downloaded 500,000 time according to the company.  "Over 500K shrewd users have decided that unlimited access to practically any song, practically anywhere ain't such a bad idea," wrote Rhapsody's Garrett Kamps on the company's blog. Exactly how many are also paying $12.99 a month for a Rhapsody Unlimited subscription was not disclosed.

The company also announced that pending approval by Apple, a new version of Rhapsody's app will feature improved sound quality and stability. Future versions are also in the works.

VEVO To Launch Before Year's End

(Updated) YouTube is on the verge of getting its first real competition...or not.

Tucked inside yesterday's announcement that Universal and Sony backed music video channel VEVO had received major funding from the Abu Dhabi Media Company, was a mention that the investment was the "leading up to the launch of VEVO.com and VEVO on YouTube before the end of this year".

That's a tight timetable, and decisions like how the content on VEVO.com will vary from that offered VEVO on YouTube will be key to winning the race for viewers.  If the two largest major label groups and their partners reserve key content for their own off YouTube channel, as well as offer deep catalog, VEVO could cause some significant virtual channel surfing.

But topping YouTube's massive user generated content alongside videos from all the majors and thousands of indies to create a definitive music destination is a tall mountain for VEVO to climb.  Then again, being #1  has never been VEVO's purpose.  Capturing more revenue from each visitor is; and that's a very different and more achievable goal.

More Music Industry News: Apple Leaps, EMI vs. Robertson Takes Turn, EU Digital Deal & Morel

• Apple Dropping Hints (On Tablet?) During Very Happy Earnings Call (Channel Web)
• Apple iTunes seen hitting more EU markets in 2010. (Reuters)
• Judge allows EMI to personally sue Robertson -  The copyright lawsuit filed by major recording company EMI against Michael Robertson, founder of MP3tunes.com, took an unexpected turn on Friday. (CNet) This trial is going to become a soap opera.  Why can't this stuff be worked out without lawyers?
• EC Secures EU Digital Licensing Agreement (Billboard)
• Independent musicians set for windfall after YouTube deal - Dizzee Rascal, Travis, Speech Debelle and a host of other artists set benefit after group representing 200 smaller labels signs global licensing and marketing deal with online video giant. (Guardian) Will other indies finally follow suit?
• U2 to Play Free Concert on YouTube (Wired) Expect more if this as MySpace beefs up original content in an effort to become an entertainment hub.
  
• New feature: Search comments on YouTube in real time.

We're Having Technical Difficulties

Tuesday AM (Update 2)

Hypebot is having some technical difficulties this morning....

The last 5 days of posts disappeared. Most have now been reconstructed. Unfortunately:

• Many of your great comments over the last 5 days have been lost forever. Please consider re-posting.
  
• RSS and Twitter readers: My apologies but only the newest links will work.

My apologies to you all...

Minds for the Future: Why Digital Immersion Matters

"If we hope to head towards a bright future in the digital age, then, it begins with preparing Digital Natives and other young kids to help lead the way."

Kyle Bylin, Associate Editor

To be sure, the term “Digital Native” is misleading, because no two Digital Natives are created equal.  Each of them has varying degrees of access to digital technologies, literacy skills, and participation within their peer culture.  What’s more alarming is the “divide” opening up between those that have access to the network and those without.  But that in itself isn’t the whole problem, because havingaccess alone isn’t the solution.  While access speaks of the stark contrast amongst the haves and have-nots, digital literacy reveals the difference in those who have the skills to navigate this new landscape and those that don’t.

    Like many other crucial skills, digital literacy needs to be taught and learned through constant practice.  Naturally, this doesn’t explain why some Digital Natives will get more out of their sessions than others do.  But what about those who get much more practice?  Its estimated by Professor Urs Gasser that for kids who turn fifteen in 2016 or so, “they are likely to spend somewhere between 1,200 and 1,500 hours per year on digital technologies.”  Going onto say that, “Five years later, at age twenty, they will have accumulated at least 10,000 hours as active users of the Internet, if the current statistics still apply.”

"For these Digital Natives it will only have taken them five years."

    This amount of time, in turn, is equivalent to what Malcolm Gladwell argued to be the magic number for true expertise in Outliers.  Whether you take into consideration world-class violinists, concert pianists, chess grandmasters, star athletes, Bill Gates, the Beatles, and what have you, 10,000 hours appears again and again.  “It seems,” neurologist Daniel Levitin writes, “that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery.”  Ten years, Gladwell says, is roughly how long it takes to put in 10,000 hours of hard practice.  For these Digital Natives it will only have taken them five years.

Pledge Music Launches Latest Fan Funding Platform

Move over Sellaband and Slicethepie.  New UK based Pledge Music has launched the latest platform to help artists raise cash for a new recording project from fans.  There's not much new in the Pledge pitch except a nice option to donate a portion of the proceeds to charity.  The particulars:

1. The fan is only charged once the pledge target is reached. 
2. Pledge takes a 15% commission of funds raised.
3. Artist retains 100% of their rights.
4. Artist chooses where to record and with whom
5. Artist can opt in to making a charitable donation.
6. Pledge recommends third party services to help complete the release process.
7. The second time you use Pledge our fee reduces to only 10%, provided your first project was successful.

What services have you used to or are thinking about using to fund a recording project?

Live Nation Ticketmaster Merger Faces Hurdles

(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) While negotiations between Ticketmaster, Live Nation and the Justice Department continue, sources close to the matter are reporting that the two companies may need to make major concessions to get Justice to sign off on their proposed merger. 

According to a story in the Wall Street Journal, sources close to the negotiations say that Justice Department officials have expressed concern that a merger between the two companies would have potentially adverse effects on artists as well as consumers.

LEGO Rock Band: Why???

I admit that the allure of using a controller to interact with animated action on  a screen holds limited appeal for me.  Perhaps its my age or the fact that a potato rolling down a hill has better hand-eye coordination than I do. But the latest incarnation of Rock Band which brickifies rock stars into claw handed stumps just mystifies me.  Nevertheless LEGO Rock Band has attracted David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Queen. (Full track list after the jump.)

Here's video of Blur (or as Joystiq so abtly put it, the band best known for that one song with all the "Woo-hoos" in it") in LEGO Rock Band:

Do You Follow We Follow?

First, a big thank-you to all of our Twitter followers who collectively made Hypebot the #1 "Most Influential" Music Industry News Twitter stream and #3 in the overall Music Industry category according to Digg owned Twitter ranking site WeFollow.

Do you follow We Follow? You probably should.  Not only should you see how you measure up to others in your categories or location, you can discover others worth following measured both by number of users and influence.

You can join the 4367 other Hypebot Twitter followers here and get updates on new posts plus exclusive info and links.  Also, here are 5 top music industry leaders and thinkers that I've found worth following.

More Music Industry News: Vevo Investor, Spotify Mobile, Chrysalis, Pias + YouTube & More

More Music Industry News: Vevo Investor, Spotify Mobile, Chrysalis, Pias + YouTube & More

by Bruce Houghton

•  Vevo Gets Its Investor: Abu Dhabi Media Joins “Hulu for Music Videos” (MediaMemo)
• Spotify to launch UK mobile offering with carriers 3, HTC. (Reuters) and Forrester'sMark Mulligan declares it a real threat to Nokia's Comes With Music. 
• Bat for Lashes lifts Chrysalis with Beatles boost to come. -  The music publisher is anticipating full-year results will top boardroom expectations.
• Amazon, Wal-Mart battling over book pricing. (CNet) Does this mean that they think that music isn't even worth battling over?
• Pirate Bay Takes Bias Claims to Supreme Court - Two of the main judges appointed to the upcoming Pirate Bay appeal have been accused of a conflict of interest, since they have both been members of pro-copyright groups. The appeal court decided that the judges are not biased, but the defense has announced that it will take the case to the Supreme Court, which is likely to delay the trial. (TorrentFreak)
  
• UK based digital music distributor Pias has signed a deal with YouTube. The global deal covers audio and video releases, as well as user-generated content that features repertoire owned by labels that Pias distributes, giving them a share of ad revenue. (Brand Republic)
• YouTube’s Bandwidth Bill Is Zero. Welcome to the New Net. (Wired)
• Digital distribution and management platform FUGA signed 5 new labels and distributors last week and is opening a Berlin Office. (mi2N)
• INgrooves expands is distribution roster with the addition of With Hopeless Records, Suburban Noize and Independent Label Collective. (press release)

•  Vevo Gets Its Investor: Abu Dhabi Media Joins “Hulu for Music Videos” (MediaMemo)
• Spotify to launch UK mobile offering with carriers 3, HTC. (Reuters) and Forrester'sMark Mulligan declares it a real threat to Nokia's Comes With Music. 
• Bat for Lashes lifts Chrysalis with Beatles boost to come. -  The music publisher is anticipating full-year results will top boardroom expectations.
• Amazon, Wal-Mart battling over book pricing. (CNet) Does this mean that they think that music isn't even worth battling over?
• Pirate Bay Takes Bias Claims to Supreme Court - Two of the main judges appointed to the upcoming Pirate Bay appeal have been accused of a conflict of interest, since they have both been members of pro-copyright groups. The appeal court decided that the judges are not biased, but the defense has announced that it will take the case to the Supreme Court, which is likely to delay the trial. (TorrentFreak)
  
• UK based digital music distributor Pias has signed a deal with YouTube. The global deal covers audio and video releases, as well as user-generated content that features repertoire owned by labels that Pias distributes, giving them a share of ad revenue. (Brand Republic)
• YouTube’s Bandwidth Bill Is Zero. Welcome to the New Net. (Wired)
• Digital distribution and management platform FUGA signed 5 new labels and distributors last week and is opening a Berlin Office. (mi2N)
• INgrooves expands is distribution roster with the addition of With Hopeless Records, Suburban Noize and Independent Label Collective. (press release)

Umphrey's McGee Encourages Fans To Inspire Their Live Improvisations

Chicago jam rockers Umphrey's McGee are know for their loyal and engaged fans; and the band has always gone out of their way to hold up their end of the relationship. At select shows, the band is taking fan interaction to a new level.

Ideas were submitted from fans by texting descriptive words, phrases, and pop culture references ("pretty much whatever came to mind") to the Umphrey's Mozes mobile interface. The suggestions were then filtered by Umphrey's "sound caresser" and projected on a screen for the band to digest and turn into the next phase of a live jam. The music took off based on varied suggestions ranging from afternoon bus ride in Jamaica to drinking pina coladas in a hurricane. 

Here's a video glimpse of fan interaction 2.0 Umphrey's McGee style:

Indie And D.I.Y. Music Coming Soon To Rock Band

Making your music available on Rock Band is about to get a lot easier as the game maker nears its launch of its Rock Band Network.  Details are still a little sketchy, but we do know that you'll be able to use their tools to author playable tracks and submit them for review by the Rock Band Creators community. Approved tracks become available in the Rock Band Store and on the Xbox LIVE Marketplace with the artists getting paid per purchase. This video explains more:

The 'Unofficial' Hypebot Reading List

Kyle Bylin, Associate Editor

As anyone could’ve guessed by perusing through my essays, I read quite a bit.  It wasn’t always this way, but, if you’re looking for a way through the clutter, here’s a look at both books I’ve read and would recommend.  Or, am simply interested in.  By all means, if you have a book and would like me to read it, feel free to send it my way.

Also, recommend some books you've liked lately in the comments.

Books I've Read:

• Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy
• Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives
• Free Culture: The Nature and Future of Creativity
• Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide
• The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less
• YouTube: Online Video and Participatory Culture
• Curious?: Discover the Missing Ingredient to a Fulfilling Life
• Everything Bad is Good for You

Tunecore's Widget Gets An Upgrade

Tunecore's signature widget has gotten a major upgrade with many new features:

• Streams up to 100 tracks in full.
• Has an optional Donate To The Band link.
• Links to the iTunes Store from each track.
• Join button collects fan emails and other information.
• New menu offers a band bio and tour dates.
• Streams video clips tied to YouTube and contains photo gallery via Flickr.
• Can be shared on any website, including Facebook, MySpace, Blogger, etc.
• Publishes Twitter feeds automatically.
• Pops out from page on which it's embedded.
• All data input by fans is sent back to the band.

The original comments to this post we're deleted in error on Tuesday morning.  You can read them here and follow the controversy surrounding the widget's privacy policy and Tuncecore CEO Jeff Price's response here.

Tunecore's signature widget has gotten a major upgrade with many new features:

• Streams up to 100 tracks in full.
• Has an optional Donate To The Band link.
• Links to the iTunes Store from each track.
• Join button collects fan emails and other information.
• New menu offers a band bio and tour dates.
• Streams video clips tied to YouTube and contains photo gallery via Flickr.
• Can be shared on any website, including Facebook, MySpace, Blogger, etc.
• Publishes Twitter feeds automatically.
• Pops out from page on which it's embedded.
• All data input by fans is sent back to the band.

The original comments to this post we're deleted in error on Tuesday morning.  You can read them here and follow the controversy surrounding the widget's privacy policy and Tuncecore CEO Jeff Price's response here.

Why Amanda Fucking Palmer Is Never Afraid To Ask For A Fan's Money

Taking A Stand As A Virtual Street Performer

Excerpted from Amanda Palmer's blog:

 listen.

artists need to make money to eat and to continue to make art.

artists used to rely on middlemen to collect their money on their behalf, thereby rendering themselves innocent of cash-handling in the public eye.

artists will now be coming straight to you (yes YOU, you who want their music, their films, their books) for their paychecks.

please welcome them. please help them. please do not make them feel badly about asking you directly for money...

...i am shameless, and fearless, when it comes to money and art.

i can’t help it: i come from a street performance background.

Rdio: Kazaa, Skype Execs Tackle Subscription Music

 Is there room for one more in the stream?

The founders and tech geniuses behind Kazaa and Skpye are work on their own entry into the crowded streaming and subscription music sector. Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis have created and financed a secretive start-up called Rdio, with offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Chief Executive Officer Drew Larner told Bloomberg only, “The idea is to create a subscription streaming service that’s between desktop and mobile. For someone who’s interested on a subscription basis, the notion of ownership becomes less important than the idea of streaming on-demand.”

Tell us something we don't know. Like why people will prefer to use your service? Or how you're going to make money to pay right holders?

Apple Denies $10K iTunes LP Production Fee

Apple is denying reports that it charges a $10,000 "production fee" to become part of the new iTunes LP platform designed to add value and revitalize falling album download sales..

Brian McKinney of Chicago indie Chocolate Lab Records had done some digging and been told by his distributor that "Apple was charging a fee of $10,000 to produce them, but aside from the cost, they were not being opened up to indie labels."  But UK tech site Electric Pig says it was contacted by an Apple spokesperson who said, "“We’re releasing the open specs for iTunes LP soon, allowing both major and indie labels to create their own. There is no production fee charged by Apple,”  and others are confirming the story.

The roll out of any new format often begins with restrictions and then is spread to the broader industry. But too much delay - or any excessive fees - returns to the major labels some of the competitive advantage that iTunes and digital distribution took away.

Tunecore's Widget Gets An Upgrade

Tunecore's signature widget has gotten a major upgrade with many new features:

• Streams up to 100 tracks in full.
• Has an optional Donate To The Band link.
• Links to the iTunes Store from each track.
• Join button collects fan emails and other information.
• New menu offers a band bio and tour dates.
• Streams video clips tied to YouTube and contains photo gallery via Flickr.
• Can be shared on any website, including Facebook, MySpace, Blogger, etc.
• Publishes Twitter feeds automatically.
• Pops out from page on which it's embedded.
• All data input by fans is sent back to the band.

Here's a sample widget:

MySpace Enhances Executive Team

There were more appointments at MySpace as new CEO Owen Van Natta puts together his team.

• Nada Stirratt has joined as Chief Revenue Officer. She was EVP of Digital Ad Sales at MYV
• Dustin Finer has come on board as Chief People Officer 

The integration of the staff of the recently purchased iLike picks up steam:

• Ali Partovi, former CEO of iLike, will serve as Senior Vice President of Business Development based in San Francisco.
• Hadi Partovi, former president of iLike, will serve as Senior Vice President of Technology based in Seattle

Spotify Improves Music Purchase Features

Part of making money for Spotify and for the record labels its licensing from is its buy feature; and that got an upgrade this week:

• Buy without leaving Spotify: Previously users needed to complete a number of steps before being directed to purchase music from download partner 7digital's site.
• Better visibility: Before the upgrade users had to right-click on a track/album to discover if the music was available to buy. They can now see exactly what music is available, with special  'buy' buttons visible either underneath the album cover or next to a track. 
• Playable within Spotify: All Spotify MP3 purchases will also be available to play on the service and can be transferred to any other MP3 player, program or transferred to a CD.

Video of the new purchase features:

More Music Industry News: RIAA Can't Stop BitTorrent, Spotify Thinks Big, Scholl To NBC & More

• RIAA and MPAA Can’t Stop BitTorrent, Study Finds - For years RIAA and MPAA members have hired companies to attack popular BitTorrent swarms in an attempt to interfere with their downloads. According to a recently published paper by New York University researchers, these attacks are highly ineffective. At best, they slow downloads for a few minutes, something most users don’t even notice.  (TorrentFreak)
• Spotify’s Ek Thinks Big: Packaged Service Promises ‘A Trillion Transactions’ - Ek communicated his desire to “package” music with mobile tariffs, ISP bundles, cable plans and with devices including TVs - a broad long-term vision that’s often overlooked amid the current Spotify hype. (paidContent) “The key for us is getting music in to people’s existing billing habits,” he told Screen Digest’s Future of Online Media Distribution seminar. 
• Greg Scholl, the president and CEO of independent digital music distributor The Orchard until he resigned a week ago, has been named president of local media platforms for NBC Universal, PaidContent reported. (DMW) Congrats Greg!
  
• Rumor: Apple To Switch On Sleeping FM Radio in iPhone, iPod Touch (Wired)
• Sony Premieres New 'Club Dates' Series of Music Concerts in Digital Cinema Theaters. (press release)
• Concert Vault: Free live recordings from Wolfgang's Vault on the iPhone. (CNet)
• Music Attorney Steve Gordon interviews Nettwerk's Terry McBride. (audio)

Michael Jackson Download To Be Album Only

(UPDATE 2)  CONFIRMED: Peter Kafka of Media Memo has confirmed that as our sources (below) hinted, Michael Jackson's new album will be available on iTunes, as well as, other download services.

(EARLIER) The Michael Jackson soundtrack to the posthumous concert film "This Is It" will be released as an album only download, according to sources. Fans who want to purchase the single, which is already making noise at radio, will be have to purchase the entire album.

Digital Music News is reporting that Amazon MP3 will have an exclusive on downloads of the release because iTunes requires that individual track sales be made available, as well. But sources contradict the DMN story, telling Hypebot that the other major digital services will also make the download available on its Oct 26th (world) and 27th (North American) release dates.

iTunes is also rumored to still be considering selling the Jackson release. Which, if it does, will mark an exception to Apple's policy that has previously seen only multi-artist albums made available without a single track option.