News Archive for 07/01/22

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European groups join Norway vs. iTunes

01/22, 6:35pm

France, Germany vs. iTunes

A Norwegian official today revealed that French and German consumer groups have joined several Scandinavian countries in their efforts to pressure Apple to open its iTunes Music Store, thereby enabling customers to purchase, download, and play tracks from iTunes on their non-Apple portable players. In June of 2006 consumer agencies in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden charged that Apple was violating contract and copyright laws in those countries, and provided Apple with a deadline to respond to those claims. Norwegian Consumer Ombudsman Bjoern Erik Thon said French consumer lobby UFC-Que Choisir and its German counterpart, Verbraucher, joined the movement late last year, according to the Associated Press, and that other European countries are considering joining effort. "This is important because Germany and France are European giants," said Thon. "Germany, in particular, is a big market for digital music."

Music labels ponder removing copy protection

01/22, 4:40pm

Music labels may axe DRM

Major music labels are considering removing the copy protection that currently applies to most online music stores' content, according to a report by the International Herald Tribune. Spokespeople for music organization leaders at the Midem expo in France, while officially dedicated to DRM, said that they were investigating the possibility of releasing vast portions of their music offerings in unprotected MP3 format, pointing to slower growth of online music stores in relation to the drop in physical album sales. Organization leaders said the increased interoperability may actually serve as a benefit rather than a piracy risk. "We could release our products without digital-rights management restrictions on [download stores] in the way that consumers want and still make a lot of money," Consumer Electronics Association head Gary Shapiro told reporters.

MS to unveil flash-based Zune before 2008

01/22, 12:05pm

Flash-based Zune in works

Microsoft's Chris Stephenson this weekend at the Midem music expo in Cannes revealed that the company will introduce its first flash-based Zune music player, directly challenging Apple's top-selling iPod nano. While no details of the player are available, the new Zune should ship in time for the holidays this year, according to Stephenson. The as-yet unnamed jukebox will likely closely resemble the Gigabeat P player, offering increased storage as well as a double-shot designer casing and the Zune's signature Wi-Fi sharing feature. Stephenson said Microsoft is also planning to expand its wireless functionality, expressing a desire to add Wi-Fi browsing and downloading through the Zune Marketplace that would allow owners to add new music to the Zune without first linking to a PC. The player will ideally include "filling stations" at existing Wi-Fi hotspots such as Starbucks, but the executive noted that Microsoft can't commit to a launch window for the feature.