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Mix Tape: More Money for Eminem, More Football for Faith Hill

Faith Hill on Sunday Night Football-Eminem’s publishing company is owed money by Universal Music Group, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals. It was ruled that UMG needs to pay royalties for iTunes purchases and ringtone sales.

-Musical performers will help kick off the official start of football season. On September 9, Taylor Swift and the Dave Matthews Band will perform in New Orleans prior to the Minnesota Vikings/New Orleans Saints game. The pregame show will air on NBC and the NFL Network.

-Speaking of football, a familiar voice will sing us into the Sunday evening battles. Country star Faith Hill has been chosen to once again perform the “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night” theme song. Faith has had that gig since 2007.

-The boys of New Jersey may soon take over Las Vegas. Bon Jovi is reportedly “excited” by a multimillion-dollar offer to take up residency at one of the area hotels.


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YouTube and UMG to Create Vevo

Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Corporate News, Internet, Music,

VevoThe Universal Music Group and YouTube are working on a new media service. Vevo will feature all of UMG’s videos on one site by using YouTube’s “leading edge video technology and user community.” Launching later this year, there will be access to UMG’s catalog of music videos and will include professional, artist and user generated content. Tunes can be accessed through the Vevo channel and a branded embedded player.

Read More | Pocket-lint

Zune Pass now includes 10 keeper songs per month

Zune PassWow. The best deal in music just got a whole lot better, as Microsoft has announced that the $14.99 per month will now allow subscribers to download and keep 10 tracks per month, which is a $10 value. Those tracks are yours, permanently, even if your Zune Pass subscription comes to an end. Participating labels include EMI Music, Sony BMG, Universal Music, Warner Music, and independents like INgrooves, Independent Online Distribution Alliance, and The Orchard. Tracks downloaded from Sony BMG and UMG will be DRM-free MP3s, which tracks from EMI and Warner also include MP3 files, there are also some WMAs still hanging around. The guys say that soon, 90 percent of the music in the Zune Marketplace will be in the MP3 format.

So when you break this down, if you subscribe to the Zune Pass, and download 10 tracks a month, you are really just paying $5 for unlimited access to the huge catalog of music available in the Zune Marketplace. We can’t think of a better, legal deal in music than what Microsoft is offering with Zune right now. Can you? At this point, we see no reason to fire up iTunes to do our music purchasing.


Sony BMG Joins UMG Subscription Service

Nokia MusicNokia must be pleased that Sony BMG has teamed up with the Universal Music Group to allow their subscribers to have access to their music catalog. They join companies such as A&M, Geffen Records, Decca, and Motown Records. The company’s “Comes With Music” program, which started up last December, allows some users, depending on the model of phone, to download any of their songs on their cell phones or computers. Those phones should become available in the 3rd Quarter of this year at as yet undisclosed prices. The UMG subscription service will allow downloaders to own the tunes after a year.

Read More | examiner

Got the Fever for the Flavor of a Ringle?

RinglesAs if releasing a new dancing MP3 Player isn’t enough, Sony BMG has also teamed with the Universal Music Group and devised the Ringle, which contains 3 tunes and a ringtone in a slip-sleeved cover CD. At this point, Sony is the only company that will be offering them at retail outlets. They figure that if we can download tracks and ringtones individually, we will rush right out to purchase them for a $5.98 or $6.98 list price. Excuse our naivety here, but isn’t downloading the way to avoid overcrowded shopping malls?

Read More | Reuters

UMG Jumps to the Beat of SpiralFrog

Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Corporate News, Internet, Music,

SpiralFrogNew company SpiralFrog has just signed an agreement with UMG (Universal Music Group) to include them in their catalogue. SpiralFrog’s service is a no-cost alternative on the net that allows users to legally download music. Included in this service are quick-loading legal digital files with no worry of spyware or viruses.

Robin Kent, SpiralFrog’s CEO claims, “SpiralFrog will offer those (young) consumers a better experience and environment than they can get from any pirate site.”

How can they do this? SpiralFrog is ad-supported and you have to log in to their service at least once a month, or your music files cease and desist. Scheduled for a December beta launch, the company is currently talking to other major record labels for inclusion. Their target audience is the 16-34 crowd, but that’s good news for all of us former Napsterites. We really dig the logo, too.

Read More | SpiralFrog Press Release

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