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Industry observers have long debated the ultimate fate of satellite broadcaster Sirius Radio. Front-runner XM Radio, with more than two million subscribers, is already above the break-even point, but for many months Sirius struggled against technical problems and overwhelming debt. Would the fledgling survive, get devoured by its larger competitor, or worse, get picked up in a fire sale by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.?

From the October 2004 issue, John Atkinson reviews the Halcro">http://www.stereophile.com/amplificationreviews/1004halcro">Halcro dm38 power amplifier, noting, "When Halcro's affable US distributor, Philip O'Hanlon, asked me if I would be interested in reviewing the company's first two-channel design, the $18,790 dm38, I didn't need much persuading."

Skyrocketing ticket prices kept summer concertgoers away in droves, according to reports in the entertainment industry and financial press in mid-October. The summer 2004 concert season was one of the slowest ever, with some superstars canceling shows and others moving planned arena or amphitheater events into smaller venues. Previously one of the summer's most popular events, the Lollapalooza tour was cancelled due to slow ticket sales.

Stereophile readers may wonder why we regularly report on a low-fi music distribution service like iTunes. The reason is simple: What becomes popular in the mass market today, is what audiophiles will have to squeeze high-end music out of tomorrow.

Both Macrovision and Sunncomm have been releasing technologies aimed at restricting how consumers can use their legally purchased music and movies. Add Dynamic">http://www.dmsNT.com/">Dynamic Media Solutions to the pack.

The entertainment industry is going the last mile in its war against file sharing. On Friday, October 8, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAAhttp://www.mpaa.org">MPAA;), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAAhttp://www.riaa.com">RIAA;), and the National Music Publishers Association (NMPAhttp://www.nmpa.org">NMPA;) appealed to the US Supreme Court to overturn a lower court's ruling earlier this year that peer-to-peer (P2P) file-trading networks can't be held liable for copyright infringement.

Tyll Hertsens is on a mission. He strives to transform the ugly duckling bleat of portable audio into music that sings to an audiophile's heart.