Technology News

Obama Issues Crackdown on Illegal Streaming: Is It the End of Internet Piracy?

Source: Moses Supposes
March 21, 2011

What Really Happens if the Fed Makes Peer-to-Peer a Crime? It seems like the Fed is ready to level the playing field between America's newest major industry—Internet technology and one of its oldest—intellectual property, as Obama sets to put an end to piracy and torrent “streaming" of music. Here's one story you won't see going viral on a geek blog near you: the Obama administration is going to make torrent streaming, also known as P2P sharing of music, a felony. ...

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Indie Label Bridge 9 Launches Subscription Service

Source: HypeBot
March 19, 2011

Few indie labels have a brand strong enough to attract their own community and leverage it to market their subscription music service. Bridge Nine Records, a Boston-area label, is giving it a shot. For 4$ a month or $30 a year fans gain access to over one hundred albums, create their own site URL on the community site, and create playlists for others to stream. According to label owner Chris Wrenn, he's launching the subscription player because they want to ...

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How To: Make Fan Connections Via Yelp

Source: HypeBot
March 19, 2011

This post is by Alison McCarthy (@aliiimac). She's an intern at Hypebot. In a previous post, I explored potential ways artists can use Foursquare to engage their fans. Though Foursquare may not be a typical “go-to" social media service for musicians and artists, I suggested that the service could assist in the development of artist personalities—a key tool in engaging loyal fanbases. As I explained: As seen through Kanye West's Twitter account, we love seeing our artists as real people, and Foursquare ...

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RCRD Deals - The Direct-to-Fan, Woot of Music

Source: HypeBot
March 19, 2011

RCRDLBL and Topspin have partnered to create RCRD DEALS, which is like direct-to-fan combined with the daily deal site Woot, but for music. The new flash sales site will offer everything from great music products to concert packages at steep, limited-time discounts. The goal is to reintroduce new scarcities in an age of radical abundance. RCRDLBL has the e-mail list and trusted music influence. Topspin brings its knowledge of premium music offerings and backend support. Together, they will be able ...

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Cloud Music Expected to Boom in Next Five Years

Source: HypeBot
March 19, 2011

Subscription music services like Rhapsody and Spotify are expected to grow significantly by 2016 due to the increased ubiquity of smartphones and a possible lowering in price. According to a study released by ABI Research, the number of subscribers to streaming music applications is expected to top 5.9 million by the end of this year, and by 2016, that figure is expected to grow to more than 161 million subscribers. The problem with such lofty projections, however, is that they ...

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Earbits Makes Noise with #SXSW Channel, Babygrande's 10th Anniversary

Source: HypeBot
March 18, 2011

(UPDATED) The small team behind Earbits, the buzz-worthy Y Combinator startup that offers feature-rich interactive music streaming, is working almost 24/7 to get above the noise at both SXSW Interactive and Music. Later today, they're launching a SXSW channel that includes music, showcase info and more. If you've got a band at SXSW, email them music at [email protected] for review. But that's just a small part of the Earbits story. Why Earbits Is Worth Watching: Instead of putting themselves through ...

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Only 10% of Your Friends See Your Facebook Posts, and Only 1% Like It.

Source: HypeBot
March 18, 2011

Post by: Robin Davey, Head of Music and Film Development at GROWVision. How do I know this? Well I conducted a simple experiment that you are all welcome to replicate. I simply posted on my wall asking anyone who saw the post to like it. Of my 913 friends, 93 responded by clicking the like button. If you do try, I would be very interested to see your results, but my thinking is that around 10% is an accurate assessment. I ...

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The iPad 2 is Totally Great! ...Except for Music Subscription Services

Source: Digital Music News
March 17, 2011

If you've been milling around SXSW, you can't help but bask in the sleekness of the iPad 2. Apple even set up a pop-up store in Austin to cater to tech-savvy, moneyed attendees, and what a great move that was. But the latest craze goes far beyond Austin city limits, and bullish estimates are already pegging iPad 2 sales north of 2 milion.

This is looking like a repeat of the iPhone, and that means continued dominance of the all-important ...

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