Sony to pay 10 million and halt "pay-to-play" service

Today New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer announced that Sony has agreed to pay $10 million and halt its "pay-to-play" service in order to resolve a state investigation of payola in the music industry. Spitzer stated, "our investigation shows that, contrary to listener expectations that songs are selected for airplay based on artistic merit and popularity, air time is often determined by undisclosed payoffs to radio stations and their employees." according to the report. Sony acknowledged it engaged in "improper conduct" according to a statement issued today by Spitzer's office. Radio station advertising is expected to drop less than one percent this year due to satellite-radio and iPods hurting prices for traditional advertisements, according to TNS Media Intelligence.

Apple lacks "economic ecosystem" for iPod

Apple will inevitably lose its hold on the digital music player market, as competitors slowly bring their features up to par with the iPod, and leverage their "economic ecosystem," says FastCompany. While the iPod, like most Apple products, is a "closed" platform, Apple's competitors are "a set of companies, cooperating and competing at once, that together deliver a product or service by providing different components that share some critical capabilities." The iPod "has not changed much since its debut four years ago," and "no one can improve on an iPod except Apple." A so-called ecosystem is better than a single product "because its collective of competitors can explore and invest in many more ideas than any single company can muster," the article explains.