Technology News

Top 10 U.S. Music Sites

Source: HypeBot
January 15, 2010

(Updated) A launch week filled with technical problems did not stop new video hub VEVO from becoming the most trafficked music web site music in the U.S. according to data from comScore though 90% of that traffic came via it's YouTube channel. MySpace was #2 and music lyrics hub ToneFuse came in at #8. Last.fm just missed the Top 10 with 6 million unique visitors landing it at #11.

Gartner: Mobile Web Will Outstrip Other Platforms

Source: PC Magazine
January 15, 2010

New research from Gartner indicates that the mobile Web--as in cell phones and smartphones--will overtake PCs as the most common devices used for Web access sometime during the next three years. MediaPost reports that it's a more aggressive projection than the one Morgan Stanley issued, which had forecast five years as the time frame. To put some numbers on the whole thing, Gartner is estimating that the combined installed base of mobile devices (including feature phones and smartphones, but not ...

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Pandora Profitable, Chasing the "80% Opportunity"

Source: HypeBot
January 14, 2010

Only a year ago Pandora head Tim Westergren was warning users that it was on the brink of shutting down unless Congress enacted more favorable streaming rights. Now, the company has reached the holy grail of profitability. “We became profitable for the fourth quarter of 2009, and now we're shooting for profits for the entire 2010," says Tom Conrad, Pandora's chief tech officer.

Pandora did get slightly better royalty charges. But the major reason for its success lies in numbers ...

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Forecaster Says 2010 is Digital Music Tipping Point

Source: HypeBot
January 14, 2010

2010 is the year the total dollars spent on digital music will surpass the sale of physical goods according to a new forecast. Paul Verna, eMarketer senior analyst and author of the report, “Paid Music Content: The Answer Is Blowin' in the Cloud." forecasts that US consumer spending on digital music will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.04% in the next four years, reaching $4.56 billion in 2013, up from $3 billion in 2009.

As iPod ...

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Javascript Hack Enables Flash on iPhone

Source: All About Jazz
January 14, 2010

A rather clever programmer has managed to get the iPhone to run interactive apps created using Adobes Flash platform. And because it works inside the Safari browser, it isnt subject to the dictatorial rules of Apples App Store. The software is called Gordon, and it doesnt actually allow Flash itself to work on the iPhone. Instead, Gordon is a JavaScript runtime written by Tobias Schneider which allows the browser to play and display .swf files (the Shockwave Flash file extension). ...

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Freeallmusic Nabs Universal for Ad Funded MP3's

Source: HypeBot
January 14, 2010

FreeAllMusic.com has signed a deal with Universal Music Group to offer free ad supported digital music downloads. FAM will offer DRM free mp3 downloads in exchange for watching a brief video commercial. There is no software required and after the download the users' music selections and sponsoring brands are only promoted externally through an opt-in ad network.During the sites current private beta, users will be offered up to 20 free downloads per month.

In October, CEO Richard Nailling told Hypebot, ...

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Comcast Pushes Court to Reverse FCC Decision

Source: PC Magazine
January 12, 2010

Comcast on Monday continued its push for a reversal of a 2008 Federal Communications Commission enforcement action, but denied that the issue was related to net neutrality. A D.C. appeals court heard arguments from the FCC and Comcast on Friday. A final ruling has not been handed down, but Reuters reports the three-judge panel appeared critical of the FCC's decision to use its Internet Policy Principles as a basis for its decision. “It remains our hope that the court will ...

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Harvard Prof: Google Overcharges Advertisers

Source: PC Magazine
January 12, 2010

researcher Ben Edelman has released analysis showing that Google has continued to maintain certain advertising relationships that overcharge advertisers and violate their own policies. The main complaint is over relationships with WhenU, a vendor of spyware, typically bundled with other downloaded products. It monitors your computer usage and pops up ads, including Google ads, it claims are relevant to you. Edelman shows that WhenU will pop up ads for sites that the user is actually visiting, Continental Airlines in his ...

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