Worst idea ever? - MSN Mobile Music

OK here's a bright idea: 5 steps to disaster

1. If your parent company's been on the verge of abandoning a brand name for the last four years, make use of it. 
   
2. Slap it on a new music download store for mobile phones. Now make sure all the track are encrust with DRM, (OK so what if the rest of the music download industry is finally moving away from DRM?) 
   
3. Make sure that the downloads are tethered to the user's handset, so they can't keep them when they upgrade phones in a year or two. 
   
4. Charge more than the competition. 
   
5. Then, when anybody asks you what the heck you could possibly have been thinking, blame a business partner who's actually running the store for you!
   

Sounds stupid doesn't it? Surely nobody would do such a thing? Well..... 

On the exact same day Microsoft announces its first-ever major layoff,  a MSN-branded download site for mobile phones in the United Kingdom is relaunched  by the company! You had better believe it, that's what Microsoft has done with Thursday's launch of MSN Mobile Music, a new part of the U.K. version of its MSN Mobile portal. 

The MSN brand is old news--most of Microsoft's popular consumer online services (e-mail, instant messaging) got the Windows Live brand four years ago, and Microsoft abandoned its MSN Music download service in the United States when the Zune launched.

The Zune team is working on some sort of strategy for mobile phones. Digital rights management? Nobody's using it anymore, except for subscription-based services. And  DRM worked out for the original MSN Music--Microsoft said it was turning off the DRM servers, rendering songs nontransferable to new computers, then it reneged under public pressure.

But thebest part of this disaster has to be the price: 1.5 UK pounds (a little more than US$2), while Apple's iTunes, Amazon.com, and most other music stores start at .79 of a pound. 

Did somebody say something about a recession?

OK granted most of the time,  it's easy pickings poking fun at a poorly thought-out Microsoft initiative, it's par for the course and good-natured ribbing. But this comes at a time when the company has just announced its worst earnings miss ever and is looking to cut 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months. 

That makes this kind of incompetence sad, not funny.

Britney Spears’ “If U Seek Amy”, Angers Parents (Shock Horror!)

The Parents Television Council is livid that Britney Spears‘ cunningly titled “If U Seek Amy” is getting radio play, despite the fact that the title and lyrics essentially say “F-U-C-K Me.” 

Parents in Australia were the first to complained about the song’s content, and now that the track has become the third single off Britney's Circus album, American parents are lining up to demand radio stations cease playing the song during day time listening hours, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. as they claim it “violates the broadcast indecency law.”

PTC president Tim Winter said, “There is no misinterpreting the lyrics to this song, and it’s certainly not about a girl named Amy,” he continued “It’s one thing for a song with these lyrics to be included on a CD so that fans who wish to hear it can do so, but it’s an entirely different matter when this song is played over the publicly owned airwaves, especially at a time when children are likely to be in the listening audience.”

• “Parents need to be aware of this recording, and radio stations need to be mindful when making their programming decisions.  Program directors should envision parents driving with their children in the car and with the radio on; and use that scenario when deciding when, or even whether, to air this song.  Cable music channels should also consider the presence of young viewers before airing a music video
  

Radio stations continue to play the track, despite the PTC outcry, as evidenced by its Number 92 debut on the Billboard Pop 100. There are edited versions of the song  also being broadcast. A Jive-edited version of the song excises the “k” from “Seek,” thus “If You See Amy” (which is pretty much still “F-U-C Me.”) Some inventive DJs are throwing their own names over the “Me,” so for instance when the chorus plays, it’ll go “All the boys and all the girls are begging to if you seek George,” etc.

Meanwhile, it is still unclear why a Parents Television Council would complain about what’s on the radio.  All the chatter around “Amy” hasn’t stopped 107,000 people from buying the song digitally since it's release.

www.parentstv.org

UK Ministers consider file sharing 'broadband tax'

Households could face higher broadband bills to pay for the cost of illegal downloads from the internet, under plans being considered by ministers.

 

A new agency will be set up in the UK to look at how the issue of online "piracy" should be tackled suggests a major report to be released next week .

One of the proposals being studied is a universal levy on broadband bills, imposed at customers level, to compensate film and music companies for their losses from illegal downloads. 

Lord Carter, the Communications Minister, who is to unveil his new report setting out his vision for Digital Britain, is  considering the plan.

Lobbying for the fee to be introduced, the entertainment industry estimates it will lose £1 billion over the next five years due to piracy.

It is thought that Lord Carter, although said to be sympathetic to the proposals,  will stop short of explicitly backing the plan for fear of slowing his drive for universal broadband across the United Kingdom by 2012 . It is widely agreed, he will order the setting up the new "Rights Agency" to find a long term solution to the problem.

Representatives from the music and film industry, as well as consumer groups and the internet service providers (ISPs) will make up this new body, who will need to find a way of appeasing consumer groups who strongly resist the prospect of higher broadband prices.

• The BPI, the voice of the British music industry, claims that the sector lost £180 million to online music piracy in 2008.
  
• The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) estimates over 40 billion files were illegally file-shared in 2008.
  

Several inititatives have been launched to tackle the problem of the estimated six million plus illegal filesharers in Britain, most  who are under 24. 

Last year a scheme was announced which saw parents of teenagers who download music illegally targeted by Britain's six largest ISPs including BT, Virgin Media and Orange.

The firms agreed to write to hundreds of thousands of customers whose accounts were being used to download or share pirated songs.

This led to letters beinging sent to many unsuspecting parents, of a generation of children who, have come to see music as a free commodity,  thanks to illegal filesharing services

The report is expected to say that attempts to stop file transfers of illegal file from unathorised website, many of which are offshore, have largely failed. It will point to the lacklustre nature of a pilot scheme in which ISPs were told to order websites using its platform to sell illegal downloads to stop cease their activities. As a result Lord Carter will say that internet service providers will have to pass on a customer's information if there is legal action against pirates. However, the ISPs will not be liable for what they have done.

A report this week disclosed that the digital music industry is now worth £2.5 billion after growing by an estimated 25 per cent in 2008. However illegal file-sharing accounted for 95 per cent of all downloads last year.

The industry it is likely to back the new plans, but they fear they do not go far enough, insisting that a premium added to the broadband packages, which would then be distributed to the industry to cover the losses, would be the way forward. That objective will be central to Carter's  report. He believes that the country is at a "turning point" and needs to fully embrace the broadband revolution. Lord Carter is expected to call for universal access in time for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

"We know that Lord Carter is sympathetic, but he is also very keen not to jeopardise his stated aim of ensuring every household in Britain has broadband." Quoted one industry insider.

 

Album Sales Fall (Again)

US album sales have fallen for the third week in a row,  to a new low, with SoundScan (which has logged the market since 1991)  reporting just 5.9m units sold last week, which represents a decline of 5.7% week-on-week, and 15.4% below same week 2008 sales of 7m.

The top of the chart is where the deepening recession hits hardest , with country singer Taylor Swift’s Fearless holds on to the top spot for a seventh straight week, albeit with sales of just 63,000, which is the fourth lowest number one tally of the SoundScan era.

It is also the first album to spend more than six weeks at number one since 2004, when Usher’s Confessions spent a total of nine weeks there.

There were16 new entries to the Top 200, but only one to dent the Top 10, the soundtrack to the new Notorious B.I.G. biopic, "Notorious", with sales of 43,000, it entered at number four. The album itself doesn’t quite qualify as a Biggie chart entry, as two of its 17 tracks are by other acts. Notorious is one of four soundtrack albums in the Top 20, the others being: Twilight , dropping from 5th to 6th on its 10th week in the Top 10; Mamma Mia, down from11th to 15th and Slumdog Millionaire, which leaps up from 55th place to16th  following its Golden Globe success.

Still the top British act on the chart, is Coldplay , with Viva La Vida Or Death & All His Friends slipping 31-34 but maintaining its lead over Seal’s Soul (down 39-43) and Adele’s 19 (34-44). Leona Lewis’ former number one album Spirit joins them in the Top 50, climbing 57-49.

The Fireman’s Electric Arguments album Paul McCartney new project  , has responded well as a result of Macca giving TV and radio interviews, climbing from 184  to 166 to 91 in the last fortnight. Although the album debuted and peaked at number 67 eight weeks ago.

Julia Fischer, theGerman violinist’s Bach Concertos album debuts at number 143, and also credits The Academy Of St. Martin In The Fields, who are arguably the UK’s leading chamber orchestra.  This marks their first credited appearance on the chart, although they lent their talents to the chart-topping Titanic soundtrack, amongst others, and are regular visitors to the Classical chart.

The sale of singles appears to be holding up better than albums but it’s still a fairly quiet period, with Lady GaGa’s Just Dance, despite suffering a 10% dip in downloads to 192,000, continuing to top the Hot 100 .

The All American Rejects  and their song Get You Hell, jumped from 10th to 6th  behind a completely stationary top five, thanks to both increasing airplay and download sales 12% higher week-on-week at 169,000. It becomes the highest charting single to date for the Oklahoma band, simultaneously eclipsing their 2005 number nine hit Dirty Little Secret and It Ends Tonight (number eight in 2006).

www.billboard.com

Buddy Rich 'most influential drummer ever'

It's offical, the late Buddy Rich, is the most influential drummer ever. Rich already holds the title of the greatest jazz drummer of all time, world's greatest drummer, all-round drum hero, etc but can now add this new  moniker to his list of impressive monikers: .

The drumming legend has topped the 100 Most Influential Drummers Ever list,  in a  poll conducted by Rhythm magazine. the magazine asked over 50 professional drummers and contributors for their top picks. Rich beat (pardon the pun) the likes of Led Zep's John Bonham and The Beatles' Ringo Starr. 

Apart from pipping John Bonham (the 'perennial-poll-topper') to the top spot, it's no great surprise to see Buddy Rich at the top. During his illustrious career Buudy Rich accompanied the likes of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong and was admired for his virtuoso technique and speed.

High praise came from fellow jazz legend and third-placed sticksman Gene Krupa who referred to Rich as "the greatest drummer ever to have drawn breath." 

Rhythm Magazine's Top 10 Most Influential Drummers Ever

1. Buddy Rich

2. John Bonham

3. Gene Krupa

4. Ringo Starr

5. Steve Gadd

6. Stewart Copeland

7. Tony Williams

8. Keith Moon

9. Elvin Jones

10. Billy Cobham

Will a whole new generation of drummers will feel the Buddy Rich influence? Sara, a 13-yrs girl, certainly has learnt a thing or two from somewhere as she plays RUSH - YYZ