Copyright security has been a major focus in the music industry…
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Yet another major music company has joined the digital downloading stampede, in the wake of the Secure Digital Music Initiative's (SDMI) recent progress toward formulating copyright standards. On July 19, Universal Music Group announced its intention to make its titles available for downloading to the coming generation of portable audio players. New devices from Diamond Multimedia, Toshiba, and Panasonic—all expected to hit the market by the winter holiday season—will play encrypted tunes from Universal and other big labels.
Satellite radio goes high-end: Beginning early next year, Krell Industries will enter the booming market for satellite radio receivers with an XM Radio tuner. The $4000 unit will reportedly also receive traditional AM and FM broadcasts; an optional module will let it stream Internet audio via 802.11g wireless connection to a broadband modem, according to the September 27 edition of This Week in Consumer Electronics (TWICE). The tuner will join Krell's line of custom installation products. In a similar but less expensive vein will be new Sirius tuners from Russound. At $699 and $999, the two…
Historically, radio stations have only partially cooperated with record label attempts to control when and where an important new record is first aired. It's not unusual for a new album or single to be "embargoed" until a specific date by the labels, with stations often competing with each other to find ways to get around this restriction and be first to air a hot new song.
The accepted ways to break a new record include running midnight spins or sneak peaks to gain listener attention, but there will always be the renegades who jump the gun. Once the disc is mailed (sometimes via…
In his review of the Music Reference RM-200 power amplifier, Michael Fremer claims, "Reviewing a vacuum-tube power amplifier is like having your pants pulled down in front of a large crowd of people." MF explains why he reviewed the RM-200 despite the inevitable public humiliation.
Where to jump next when it comes to a digital source component? SACD? DVD-Audio? CD? Nothing? Sam Tellig runs down the options and offers advice in his review of the new Musical Fidelity A324 D/A processor. "In my October 1989 report on the Digilog, I questioned the wisdom of sinking much dough into digital.…
Like the companies in most high-tech industries, audio businesses are a volatile lot, with startups, mergers, acquisitions—and the occasional bankruptcy or flame-out—not uncommon. In that ongoing tradition, at the 2002 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Ultralink Products announced on January 7 its intention to purchase the assets of cable manufacturer XLO Electric.
Last week, Ultralink, which itself manufactures audio and home-theater cables and interconnects, revealed that it has finalized its operating plans in light of its purchase of the assets of XLO Electric. Ultralink says it…
Now there are four. The music industry's "Big Five" record labels officially became the "Big Four" on Thursday, August 5, as Sony Music Entertainment and Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) finalized a merger months in the making. The partners are the music divisions of Sony Corporation and German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG, respectively.
The new venture, Sony BMG, will be based in New York City and will be owned 50/50 by the two partners. Excluded from the deal are the parent companies' music publishing operations, as well as their disc manufacturing and distribution businesses. Sony's…
National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) president C. Michael Greene has abruptly resigned in the wake of sexual harassment allegations by female executives at the nonprofit organization, which produces the annual Grammy Music Awards show.
Greene's resignation took place Saturday evening, April 27, during an emergency meeting of the organization's board of trustees at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, attended by 38 of the board's 42 members. At issue were the results of an extensive investigation into Greene's behavior by Los Angeles private investigator Jack Palladino. The…
Visit any major metropolitan city, and chances are you'll eventually stumble upon vendors selling pirate CDs from outdoor tables, often for as little as $5 each. But for the suburban resident in the US, flea markets are where the pirate action is.
But are flea-market operators responsible for knowing which vendors' CDs are pirated and which are legitimate? Yes, says the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which has taken an aggressive stance, suing the owners and operators of the markets for copyright infringement. The trade organization adds that this move is taken only…
After months of wrangling, the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) has announced its first set of standards for portable digital music devices. Manufacturers can now incorporate these standards into the designs of new products. Many industry observers believe that portables will be the next big wave in consumer audio, expected to hit the market by the winter holiday season.
In a July 13 announcement, the SDMI, a cross-industry consortium, emphasized that the standards are "voluntary." New SDMI-compliant devices will play all types of digital music, including "legacy" MP3 files. As…
Kalman Rubinson didn't expect to complete a full review of the Revel Ultima Studio loudspeaker, planning instead to investigate only the company's F30 (also available in the online archives). But after the Studios ended up spending several months in his home, there was only one honorable option available: 'fess up and submit his true feelings.
Brian Damkroger says he has happily listened to the evolution of the fabled Magnepan loudspeakers for two decades, and was eager to get his hands on the company's Magneplanar MG3.6/R. But does this latest Magnepan loudspeaker hit as high a mark as…