Science and Technology

Let us carefully distinguish between two meanings of the word “pirate,” something the RIAA and MPAA do not do, to the detriment of their respective credibility. There is file sharing a la Kazaa where nothing physical is created or transacted – this is technically illegal but is clearly different from, …

Having killed the horse, record labels are now suing those who fed it: Two major record labels filed suit Monday against venture capital firm Hummer Winblad Venture Partners for its investment in Napster, alleging that it contributed to rampant music theft through the former file-swapping network. Universal Music Group and …

It’s hardly a pogrom, but apparently RIAA letters, threats, legal action and a “complaint” has spurred Penn State to take action against file sharers: Penn State deprived 220 students of high-speed Internet connections in their dorms after it found they were sharing copyrighted material, the university said yesterday. “Basically, we …

It is the American way: turn the news into an action figure and make some scratch: Herobuilders.com owner Emil Vicale said he wanted to take advantage of the craze and built the doll of al-Sahaf dressed in trademark army fatigues and black beret to be sold for $35.95. “We were …

CNET confirms rumors that Real has bought Listen.com: RealNetworks has agreed to buy Listen.com for about $36 million in cash and stock, a deal that could alter some key alliances in the online music business. The two companies announced an agreement Monday, under which RealNetworks will pay $17.3 million in …

What is Apple announcing on the 28th? Reuters thinks it knows: Apple Computer Inc. is readying to launch an online service that will cut straight to the core of digital music distribution, winning the praise of some record executives who see it is as a weapon against online piracy. Music …

Apple has SOME kind of blockbuster announcemnt in the works for April 28: Apple Computer Inc. informed MacCentral by special invitation Monday morning of an event the company will hold in San Francisco on Monday, April 28, 2003. While the invitation was not specific on exactly what the company would …

We mentioned last week Madonna’s attempt to thwart file sharing of songs from her forthcoming American Life album (out tomorrow) by placing “dummy” song files in P2P networks like Kazaa. The files are the same length as the songs being “spoofed” but are blank other than the charming 44 year-old …

It’s very easy to look at large corporations as impersonal monoliths, but often the business they transact is very personal. Take the relationship between AOL’s Steve Case and Bertelsmann’s Thomas Middelhoff: Mr. Case, 44, who formally departs next month as the company’s chairman, still communicates often by e-mail and instant …

Understanding Napster is essential to a grasp of how we got where we are now with P2P, the hysterical flapping of the music industry, and the various possible entertainment-delivery futures. We ran an excerpt from Joseph Menn’s All the Rave: The Rise and Fall of Shawn Fanning’s Napster from the …