Tag: UNIVERSAL

Making its first high-minded and forward-thinking move in recent memory, Universal Music Group has donated 200,000 master recordings to the Library of Congress. A boon to the Library's 3 million-strong collection of recordings, the discs and tapes, from the 20's through the 40's, will be digitized -- many for the first time. We foresee an exhibit at the Smithsonian: "For the Record: The Last Time ...

A California district court judge has issued a decision in a case filed by Stephanie Lenz against the Universal Music Group that will pave the way for her to recoup attorney fees and collect damages from the label. In 2007, Lenz posted a 30-second video on YouTube that included her then 18-month-old baby dancing to the barely recognizable strains of Prince's 'Let's Go Crazy.' The song's creator ...

In a constantly connected world, where our every embarrassing photo and unfortunate blunder can be quickly archived and disseminated throughout the Internet, the thought of cutting all our ties, disconnecting from the world and starting over is an enticing one. Universal Studios seems to think so as well. To promote its new film 'Repo Men' (sadly not a follow up to cult-classic 'Repo Man') ...

With Vevo, music bigwigs like Sony, Universal, and EMI Music are hanging their hopes on the idea that users more accustomed to getting their music videos off the Web than from the tube will make their profit-oriented site a success. On Tuesday, the Google-operated video-streaming service officially kicked off its launch with a New York City bash that included heavy-hitters like Rihanna, Lady ...

While it might sound like commercial suicide, a group of major record labels -- Sony, Warner, Universal, and EMI -- are planning to launch a new digital album format, without Apple's support. According to the Guardian, the project, codenamed 'CMX,' will launch in November and include songs, lyrics, videos, liner notes, and artwork. It's a push to revive the album in a time when digital singles ...

This week is finally the week, it's finally the week when Universal Studios releases its first Blu-ray Disc, and by the looks of the reviews, the big U is getting started with a bang. The biggest two titles from the new Blu studio are the first two installments of the Mummy franchise, released in preparation for the third movie due in theaters next week. We've seen over and over again this summer, ...

Universal Music Group has filed a rather ... interesting legal brief in a case against a man accused of re-selling promotional CDs he legally purchased used at a record shop. UMG has claimed that not only was the man breaking the law by selling the albums, even the act of throwing them in the trash would have been committing music piracy. The industry seems to be hoping to change the way you buy ...

Amazon recently moved into the number two online music retailer spot without much fanfare. Amazon's online MP3 store opened merely six months ago, and it appears to be gaining on the number one retailer -- Apple's iTunes Store, which commands 80% of online digital music sales. The trends towards moving away from music burdened with digital rights management (DRM) software created new ...

Shhh... you hear that? That's the sound of the record industry grasping at straws. The latest desperate attempt to lure in consumers is selling albums on USB drives. This isn't the first time artists have gone the digital drive route, but the move is getting a renewed push from the record industry. Universal, Warner and EMI have all announced plans to sell music on USB Flash drives. Details are ...

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal (subscription required) today, several major media and technology companies are joining forces to form the Masters of Evil! Wait... sorry, they are just joining forces to form an anti-piracy ring, no plots for world domination... yet. This coalition of super companies will be working together on copyright-related issues, including video piracy and ...

When you lose your phone charger or accidentally leave it behind while traveling, your options are limited to either buying a new one or finding a friend who happens to have a phone made by the same manufacturer – even then, it sometimes needs to be the same exact model. Thankfully, those days are drawing to a close now that the world's major phone manufacturers including Nokia, Samsung, ...

Wal-Mart is the latest store to jump into the DRM-free music sales game, offering the same digital-rights-management-free tracks from EMI and Universal that are sold through the iTunes Plus, Yahoo! Music Unlimited, and other online music stores. (DRM is a system of adding a small amount of data to an audio file, which puts draconian limitations on copying, burning, and playback of the material ...

Record labels looking to keep their property off of illegal file-sharing networks have begun experimenting with a technology called 'watermarking' as the successor to DRM, or digital right management. DRM is a system of adding a small amount of data to an audio file, which puts draconian limitations on copying, burning, and playback of the material. Customers dislike these restrictions and ...

Universal Music Group, one of the 'Big Three,' has made the leap to DRM-free tunes (tracks you can play on any MP3 player since they don't have digital rights management, or, DRM). Oddly enough, though, Universal has left the largest online music retailer, iTunes, out in the cold. Universal will be selling the unprotected MP3s through the online stores of Amazon, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Rhapsody, and ...

With his quick descent into complete irrelevance, Eminem has taken to stirring up controversy and attention any way he can. His latest tactic -- suing Apple... again. Last time Eminem took the company to court Apple still had 'Computers' at the end of its name. That case was over the use of the mega-hit 'Lose Yourself' in an iPod ad. Now Eminem is claiming that Apple is selling his music through ...