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Reclusive pop star Michael Jackson took the witness stand Wednesday in a $21 million lawsuit by his longtime promoter that accuses the singer of backing out of two millennium concerts. Jackson spoke softly while testifying, saying yes or no or asking for questions to be repeated. He paused frequently when asked about his business relationship with the plaintiff, concert promoter Marcel Avram. The German-based promoter alleges he was left with hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses after Jackson dropped out of the performances, which were to take place Dec. 31, 1999, on both sides of the international date line… Read more »

Vivendi Universal said third-quarter revenues for Vivendi Universal, excluding its utilities unit Vivendi Environnement, grew by 1 percent to $7.4 billion, despite revenue declines in its publishing and music divisions. The report, released Monday, comes as the media, entertainment and utilities conglomerate faces continuing pressure to improve its balance sheet and convince investors that its business is sound. For the three months ending Sept. 30, Vivendi’s Canal Plus subscription television group showed some improvement, with revenue growing 4 percent to nearly $1.2 billion in the third quarter. But Vivendi’s Universal Music Group saw revenues fall 9 percent to 1.3 billion… Read more »

Universal Music, the music arm of Vivendi Universal and the world’s largest record company, will decide in coming weeks which of its Web music properties are worth keeping as the French media giant seeks to downsize, sources close to the company said on Thursday. Company representatives declined comment, but people familiar with the company said such a move was in line with Vivendi chairman and chief executive officer Jean-Rene Fourtou’s overall mandate to sell about $12 billion in company assets to reduce debt. “One of the things that will be happening in the next few weeks is that Universal Music… Read more »

Heavily indebted Vivendi Universal said Tuesday that it had secured an extension of a $1.62 billion credit line from its banks. In a statement, the company said it had received commitments from JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America to extend the credit facility from Nov. 1 to June 30, 2003. An initial short-term credit facility was put in place by the group’s media unit, Vivendi Universal Entertainment, in May 2002 as part of its acquisition of the entertainment assets of USA Networks Inc. The company indicated the extension would provide Vivendi Universal Entertainment with breathing space before it is able… Read more »

Battered file-swapping pioneer Napster has signed a nonbinding letter of intent to sell substantially all of its assets to an as-yet-unnamed party in a move that should help the online company skirt a bankruptcy liquidation. Creditors’ attorney Rick Antonoff said the letter resulted from one of several bids that Napster has received as part of its Chapter 11 proceeding, with offers hovering “on both sides of the $10 million mark.” Creditors are seeking an equity stake in whatever entity acquires the assets, plus debtor-in-possession financing of at least $200,000 to keep Napster running while the paperwork goes through. Antonoff said… Read more »

Fans don’t have to worry about the Rolling Stones’ 40th-anniversary tour being their final performances. As long as the music sounds good, the legendary band’s keyboard player told The Associated Press, why stop? As for their advancing ages, Chuck Leavell said bluesman B.B. King and “Godfather of Soul” James Brown still perform, and no one thinks twice about whether they should leave the spotlight. Leavell did acknowledge that even singer Mick Jagger has expressed his doubts in the past. While on 1997’s “Bridges to Babylon” tour, Jagger said he never thought people would want to see them 35 years after… Read more »

Napster Inc. said on Monday it filed for bankruptcy protection, as German media giant Bertelsmann AG prepares to take over what remains of the once dominant Internet music-swapping service. Napster listed $7.9 million in assets and about $101 million of debts as of April 30, according to papers filed with its voluntary Chapter 11 petition at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The filing is part of a comeback plan for three-year-old Napster, which became one of the Internet’s hottest properties by allowing millions of people to swap music online for free. Though Napster was wildly popular, attracting nearly 60… Read more »

The world’s next would-be space tourist, Lance Bass of boy band ‘N Sync, said Friday that Russian space doctors have cleared him for a flight to the International Space Station aboard a Russian rocket, a journey he hopes to make this fall. Bass, 23, shrugged off questions about the dangers of space flight. “I like to be positive, I’m an optimist,” he told reporters in Moscow. “I know physically I can do it, I know mentally I can do it.” The Russian Aerospace Agency said earlier this week that it hadn’t yet received commercial proposals from Bass or his representatives… Read more »

U2 singer Bono is set for a tour of Africa next month with U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill. O’Neill is set to visit Ghana, South Africa, Uganda, and Ethiopia starting May 20, reports the Associated Press. Bono has long championed the cause for Third World countries. First the vocalist urged rich countries to forgive the debts of impoverished nations, now he’s championing the cause of fair trade with those same countries. “Away from calamity and physical circumstances, there’s often a structural aspect to poverty in the developing world,” said Bono. “We’ve had some success raising awareness about the burden of… Read more »

Sure, his much hyped comeback album Invincible proved anything but-that’s not stopping Michael Jackson from dusting off his moonwalking shoes and gearing up to launch what will be his first North American trek since 1993’s Dangerous tour. Jackson-who has done one-off shows in recent months, including a two-night tribute to himself at Madison Square Garden last fall and a September 11 benefit concert-apparently hopes the tour will goose his flagging album sales, according to the New York Post. The singer has not publicly announced any tour, although the music world has been abuzz for months with the prospect. In January,… Read more »