In the record industry's <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11261/">ongoing battle</A> against its customers, score one for the consumer. Amid recent industry rumors that Universal Music Group has retreated from its position of adding restrictions to all of its new CDs, a <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11134/">lawsuit</A> over a Charley Pride release has been settled in California, paving the way to alert the public to playback restrictions on discs.
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. This is especially true for music lovers who have begun to fear that record companies <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11261/">purposely corrupt</A> the data on audio CDs in an effort to restrict their use as a source for copies or MP3 files.
It's a brave group of souls who run today's audiophile music labels. Sane business minds would likely deem it foolhardy to start a new specialty label these days, but sometimes one's passion for music overrides the rational impulse to try something a little bit more secure (like perhaps an Internet company?).
Recent moves by record labels to add restricted-use technology to their compact disc releases has raised the ire of many a consumer, leading some to call for boycotts or worse (see this week's <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/soapbox.shtml">Soapbox</A>). Late last year the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11221/">issued a statement</A> saying that the major labels have gone too far in restricting consumers' "fair use" of copyrighted material.
After more than ten years in development, <A HREF="http://www.siriusradio.com">Sirius Satellite Radio</A> announced last week that it will be officially launching its service with two events in Jackson, Mississippi beginning February 13. Sirius' competitor XM Satellite radio was able to get its service up and running <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/11148/">last September</A>.
It's hard enough for established record labels both big and small these days. With the high-resolution audio formats SACD and DVD-Audio still fighting each other and struggling to launch, picking sides is an even bigger gamble for a brand-new record label's first releases.
In the fall of 1999, a couple of Canadian high-end audio companies got together to pool resources with the idea that two heads were better than one when it came to certain new products. <A HREF="http://www.simaudio.com">Simaudio</A> of Boucherville, Quebec and <A HREF="http://www.magnumdynalab.com">Magnum Dynalab</A> of Brampton, Ontario formed a strategic alliance with the purpose of sharing various technologies to further enhance each company's product lines.
One of the more compelling live demonstrations at last year's 2001 Consumer Electronics Show was in the room at the Alexis Park hosted by Australia's <A HREF="http://www.clarityeq.com">ClarityEQ</A>. As <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/news/10969/">reported last year</A>, using a $350 pair of NHT Super One speakers driven by mass-market consumer gear, the company's PDC-6.6 DSP correction system noticeably improved the midrange tonality and imaging we were hearing each time it was switched into the circuit. This prompted us to give the company the "proof of concept in a hotel room" award for that year.
In the crush of new products and technologies scrambling for attention at every Consumer Electronics Show, some intriguing announcements can get buried in the noise and require a closer look than is afforded by a quick listen and chat in a demo room. One such technology on display at the 2002 CES was <A HREF="http://www.gibsonmagic.com">MaGIC</A>, a new high-resolution audio connectivity standard.
The major record labels may put out most of the world's music, but they're doing so on a format first created by Philips and then further developed by Sony: the Compact Disc. In addition to the underlying technology, Philips and Sony established a strict standard for the format, insuring compatibility with all players around the world, which came to be known as the Red Book standard.