Culture and Society

A number of reviewers really like the new Apple Music Service. I wouldn’t know myself, not being an Apple-head, but the huzzahs are not universal: The dismal little online music shop that Steve Jobs opened on Monday has already received its share of lukewarm reviews. One reader, describing the paucity …

Seeking to utterly alienate millions of customers, and enter into a real tech war with enraged geeks, the RIAA is sponsoring research into methods to debilitate file sharer’s computers: The record companies are exploring options on new countermeasures, which some experts say have varying degrees of legality, to deter online …

Having sought billions from four college students who created “mini-Napsters,” the RIAA has settled with each for between $12-17.5K: The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sued four students separately last month for running services that searched computers connected to their college networks for MP3 song files. The students also …

I still feel pretty left out because I am not an Apple-head, but the rave reviews keep coming in about the new Apple music service. A point I missed in the initial release is that while tracks are $.99 each, most albums in the catalogue are available for $10. The …

Iraq? Afghanistan? No, movie theaters.

FTC says 2/3 of spam fraudulent: Two out of three “spam” e-mail messages contain false information of some sort, according to an analysis of unsolicited e-mail pitches collected by the FTC. Of a random sample of 1,000 spam messages, 44 percent used a false return address to hide the sender’s …

Is it coincidence that a) a judge ruled in favor of Grokster against the RIAA regarding copyright liability on Friday b) Apple announced its new music service Monday c) the RIAA sent out threatening messages to Internet file sharers yesterday? No, it is not: RIAA President Cary Sherman said the …

I though we wre trying to FOSTER tech investment: Venture capitalists didn’t need another reason to avoid high-tech investments – but two major record labels have given them one anyway. Still seeking retribution for Napster’s online file-swapping system, industry giants Universal Music and EMI are trying to break new legal …

In all of the media frenzy over the new Apple Music Store, let us not forget a service that people actually seem to use and like: EMusic, whose only problem seems to be that its catalogue is largely confined to the indie label world. Note BJ Johnson’s review from last …

Diabetics beware: Devin Leonard’s feature on the new Apple iTunes Music Store is so larded with sugar and honey it might induce seizures: The real buzz in the music trade is that Steve has just created what is easily the most promising legal digital music service on the market. “I …