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Archive for July 5th, 2007

SoundExchange Offers Internet Radio a Deal

SoundExchange, the company that collects royalties on behalf of music labels, is offering an olive branch of sorts to Internet radio broadcasters. But the overture is not being well received by groups that represent webcasters.SoundExchange proposed a $2,500 cap on the fees charged against royalties for recordings played on Internet Radio. Recently enacted regulations due to go into effect on July 15 require webcasting services to pay a $500 minimum fee “per station or channel,” regardless of the overall number of stations or channels they stream. The new offer is SoundExchange’s attempt to address webcasters’ concerns about their liability for per-channel minimums.

“There was a lot of misunderstanding out there about how the minimum fee would apply, and frankly some people were wrongly stating SoundExchange’s policy on this matter,” John Simson, Executive Director of SoundExchange, said in a statement. “We certainly don’t want anybody to get unduly hurt by the minimum fee, but there is a value to music and a cost to administering the digital royalty program, and we wanted to ensure that everyone was treated fairly — artists, webcasters, and record labels.”

Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.

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‘DVD Jon’ Cracks iPhone Activation

Hacker Jon Lech Johansen, known widely as “DVD Jon,” has cracked Apple’s iPhone activation, or so he claims, meaning that iPhone buyers will be able to activate and use the new handset without having to commit to an AT&T wireless contract. Johansen announced his feat in a blog post entitled “iPhone Independence Day.”The Norwegian cracker initially made a name for himself eight years ago when he cracked the encryption code on DVDs. And last year, he cracked the digital rights management code that prevents iPod users from playing songs purchased from competing online music stores.

In his latest effort, DVD Jon has detailed a Windows workaround that he claimed will allow the iPhone to be used as a widescreen iPod and Internet communicator. The cracked iPhone cannot be used to make calls.

Click here to read the rest of this story on NewsFactor.

Add comment July 5th, 2007