Skip to Content

Massively has the latest Warhammer Online news, guides and analysis!
Holidash Blog
AOL Tech

Posts with tag netcaster

Filed under: Audio, Internet

Internet Radio is (almost) saved?

last.fm playerRemember how last year there was a big to do about the future of internet radio? The US Copyright Royalty Board imposed new, higher fees for online broadcasters, and web radio services like Pandora and Last.fm complained that the new fees would effectively put them out of business. A bill was introduced in Congress to work things out, but that never really went anywhere. But now, a year and a half later, the Digital Media Association, which represents a number of online music distributors, announced an agreement with copyright holders. It just doesn't exactly cover internet radio.

Here's the deal. If you're a company that provides limited music downloads or interactive streaming audio, you have to pay 10.5% of your revenue in royalties, less any amount owed for performance royalties. That covers subscription based services like Rhapsody which let you download music to your PC, so long as the music becomes useless when you stop paying up. It also covers interactive sites like Last.fm which let you select the songs you want to play.

What it doesn't cover are internet radio sites like Pandora or Radio Paradise which provide a stream of music for you selected by a human being (not yourself) or a computer algorithm. No agreement has been reached yet to cover these services.

The good news is that if the parties involved were able to work out a reasonable deal for certain types of online music services, there's hope that Pandora and other online radio companies can be saved... eventually.

[via Techmeme]

Filed under: Audio, Internet

Internet Radio lives - SoundExchange will not enforce new royalty rates

PandoraNew royalty rates affecting online radio stations are set to take effect Sunday. But SoundExchange, the group responsible for collecting those royalties now says it will not enforce the new rates.

The news came out of a Congressional hearing on Thursday, and follows months of heated discussions. Webcasters say the new rates are high enough to put almost every internet radio station out of business. A coalition of webcasters held a day of silence protest last month, and Congress is considering legislation that would change the way rates are calculated.

SoundExchange says it will not enforce the new fees until a new agreement can be reached that would let stations like Pandora, Last.fm, and Radio Paradise remain on the air.

Filed under: Audio, Internet

Internet radio's not dead yet

PandoraLater this month, new music royalty rates are scheduled to rock the world of internet radio. The rates are calculated in such a way that some online broadcasters say they would have to pay millions, or even billions of dollars in order to stay online.

While Congress is considering action that would change the way royalty rates are calculated, it looks like SoundExchange, the nonprofit acting on behalf of the record labels is willing to offer a compromise.

In a nutshell, the new rates include a minimum $500 payment per channel. That's fine if you've just got a single webstream. But if you're a company like Yahoo! or Pandora that operates by offering each user a customized music stream, you might have to pay $500 for each stream, to the tune of millions of dollars.

SoundExchange is offering to cap the minimum payment at $2500. But the offer's only good through 2008, while the new royalty rates don't expire until 2010. The Digital Media Association, which represents webcasters issued a press release stating that the group would accept the new rates -- but only if they are extended through 2010. And the beat goes on.

Filed under: Audio, Internet

June 26th: a day without internet radio

Day of SilenceNext month internet radio stations will have to begin paying new royalty rates that will be high enough in some cases to put the webcasters out of business. Of course, the implementation date has been pushed back a few times, and Congress is considering legislation that could help out the internet radio stations.

But advocates for independent radio are making their voices heard -- by shutting off their mics. On June 26th, a number of online radio stations, including Live365, AccuRadio, KCRW.com, and Radio Paradise are participating in a day of silence.

There's always a risk associated in this sort of silent protest. On the one hand, you're showing what the world will be like if internet radio is shut down (at least in the US). On the other, what if an internet station goes silent and no one's around to not hear it? Does it not make a sound?

Featured Time Waster

Forumwarz - a potentially offensive time waster

I pwn UAfter spending the better part of an hour on Forumwarz I still can't decide if it's just sick or if it's kind of fun. It's a bit like a car wreck on the highway. I know I shouldn't be looking but I can't quite turn away.

It's sick, it's twisted, it's the internet on it's worst level and darn it, it's kind of fun. At least for a little while.

Forumwarz is a parody role-playing game that takes place on the internet - or at least the Forumwarz version of it. Your goal is to complete missions that are given to you through a mock up of GoogleTalk called Sentrillion.

Your first "friend" is ShallowEsophagus who begins giving you missions to pwn various forums by being a troll. Depending on the character type you are assigned at start up, you have tools like drooling on the keyboard or bashing your head on the keyboard that you can use to destroy forum threads and eventually, pwn a forum.

Future missions involve buying illegal software from the Russians, pwning more difficult forums and other internet oddness.

Completing missions gives you cash, called Flezz in game, and items that you can pawn or use in other missions. The game is NOT for those easily offended. It's crass, coarse and there are frequent f-bombs in the fake chat sessions.

This is also a game for a more mature audience as it requires you to shop at the Drugs R Fun store to get various concoctions to improve your playing, engage in certain cyber activities to get more Flezz and just generally use a more adult perspective.

If you can get past that, here are the more enjoyable and time-wasting aspects.

View more Time Wasters

Featured Galleries

Defective by Design, London: Protest Pictures
Cooking Mama: Mama Kills Animals
Android First-look: Amazon.com MP3 Store
Android First-look: Twitroid
Google Reader Android
Android Hands-On
Twine 1.0
Photoshop Express Beta
SXSWi 2008 Schwag Unboxing
SXSWi 2008 Day 1
Mozilla Birthday Cake
Palm stuff
Adobe Lightroom 1.1

 


Follow us on Twitter!

Flickr Pool

www.flickr.com

BloggingStocks Tech Coverage

More Tech Coverage

Joystiq

TUAW

BloggingStocks

Autoblog

Xbox 360 Fanboy

Engadget

WOW Insider

Switched.com

FanHouse