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Napster’s legally challenged song-swap service went dark last week and sentiment among many former users grew even darker. Napster suspended file-sharing July 2 for a self-imposed shutdown as it battled technical glitches related to its latest upgrade, which is intended to help it comply with a court order barring it from offering copyrighted material on its service. No time for a resumption had yet been given as of Sunday. Many habitual music downloaders seemed to agree that Napster’s latest technical woes were the nail in the coffin of the once phenomenally popular service. “Napster was dead six months ago. They… Read more »

With a new wife, new twin sons and even a new band, veteran pop troubadour James Taylor is spending most of the next few months touring the amphitheaters of North America, a summer ritual as dependable as sunscreen and inflated concession stand prices. “I’m kind of grooved in on that kind of evening and a sort of summer-night experience,” says Taylor, 53, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who in February this year married Boston Symphony Orchestra publicist Caroline Smedvig. The couple’s sons were born in early April, via in vitro fertilization of a surrogate mother. The veteran singer-songwriter… Read more »

Internet media network Yahoo! Inc. said on Thursday it plans to buy Webcasting company Launch Media Inc. for $12 million in an effort to boost its own music properties, which have failed to gain traction over the last two years. Yahoo is betting that Launch, which designed a Web service that tailors Internet radio playlists to the tastes of individual users, would provide key features to complement its music services. Yahoo already offers music CD sales, downloads of digital music files and its own Webcasting efforts. The company plans to pay 92 cents a share, which represents a 59 percent… Read more »

Napster has become so effective in blocking the trade of copyrighted material that the sharing of songs on the service has virtually ground to a halt, research firm Webnoize said on Wednesday. Webnoize said users of Napster’s latest software, which incorporates file identification technology, had an average of 1.5 song files to share at any given time as of Wednesday, down from a peak of 220 songs in February. The newest version of the once-phenomenally popular song-swap software includes audio fingerprinting technology, developed by Relatable, which helps Napster filter out copyrighted songs in order to comply with a court injunction.… Read more »

FullAudio today announced a licensing agreement with BMG Music Publishing as the company prepares to launch a digital music subscription service later this year. The agreement between FullAudio and BMG Music Publishing is the first catalog-wide license from a major publisher for a cache-download subscription service. The non-exclusive, three-year accord allows FullAudio access to all available titles from BMG. Nick Firth, president of BMG Music Publishing said in a printed statement, “BMG Music Publishing has been very aggressive in seeking new media opportunities and we’re proud to be the first major publisher to license our entire catalog to a download… Read more »

Showtime Event Television (SET) presents a concert extravaganza on pay per view when the nation’s hottest bands take the stage for ‘Stone Temple Pilots and Live at Rolling Rock Town Fair 2.0 with Deftones, Tantric and Oleander.’ The two-hour rock music pay-per-view event of the summer airs Saturday, August 11 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. The suggested retail price is $19.95. The Rolling Rock Town Fair 2.0 concert festival in Latrobe, PA is sold out but music lovers will still have an opportunity to catch their favorite bands on pay per view when top headliner Stone Temple Pilots (STP)… Read more »

Duet – a joint venture between music giants Vivendi Universal and Sony Corp – has quietly been lining up new leadership and negotiating with potential partners, including Microsoft Corp., sources close to the venture said Friday. Although rival online music service MusicNet stole the spotlight this week by striking a licensing deal with song-swap company Napster, Duet is expected to announce the appointment of Andy Schuon to head the year-old venture, a move that could come as early as next week, the sources said. Vivendi Universaland Sony Corpboth declined to comment on the expected appointment or on whether they are… Read more »

MCY today announced the signing of legendary rocker Dave Mason to MCY’s subsidiary, Pyramid Music. Pyramid will create a digital production from a June 2001 Dave Mason Band North American tour performance, which will be released on CD and DVD, as well as distributed through television and secure digital distribution channels. MCY CEO Bernhard Fritsch said, “We’re proud to help Dave bring his compelling, timeless rock into the digital era. He revolutionized rock-n-roll with Traffic and has been a powerful influence ever since.” Pyramid President Alan Jacobi concurred, adding, “Dave always pushes the limits to give fans an extraordinary experience.… Read more »

File-sharing service Napster has inked an exclusive pact to license the digital music technology of MusicNet, a nascent online distribution company backed by three of the five major record labels. However, the MusicNet founders – particularly Warner Music and EMI – stressed that none of their songs will come anywhere near Napster’s service until the file-swapper’s network includes iron-clad protection for their copyrights. Under the terms of the deal, users of the secure, next-generation Napster service will have access, for an additional fee, to the MusicNet platform, and will be able to trade files with other Napsterites who have signed… Read more »

Following his two SRO appearances at New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom (Saturday, June 9, 3pm/7:30pm), So So Def/Columbia Records will honor rap artist Lil Bow Wow with a star-studded party from 7pm-10pm on Monday, June 11, at a Manhattan location as-yet-undisclosed for security reasons. The exclusive party is to celebrate Bow Wow’s incredible on-going successes: Beware Of Dog, his debut album, has sold more than three million copies around the world while “The Scream Tour,” Bow Wow’s first national tour as a headliner, has sold-out across the country. The guest list for the party includes some of the biggest stars in… Read more »