creative deconstruction

Music News From Around the Web – June 4, 2010

Posted on 04. Jun, 2010 by refe in NEWS

Flava Flav may soon have to downgrade to some smaller bling.

I’ve compiled a selection of some of the most important music industry news and commentary the past week, along with a few of my own thoughts. Let me know in the comments section if you think I’ve missed anything notable.

Public Enemy Cut Their Sellaband Target to $75k

Hip-hop legends Public Enemy burst onto the crowd-funding scene a few months ago with an ambitious $250,000 target. Since then they’ve been having a bit of trouble reaching that goal…

“We have learned that the fan funding model is still not fully developed and, as a result, a $250,000 fund raising effort, while possible, will take too long to accomplish,” explains a new post on their SellaBand page. “We now believe that a $75,000 fund raising target will fulfill the needs for a new recording project and is much more appropriate for the strength of the existing SellaBand model and the current economic climate.”

The language of their announcement is careful not to accept too much blame for their failure to raise the amount of money they originally hoped for, but I also think they have a point. So far, fan-funding seems to be working most effectively with smaller projects and more reasonable goals.

Could it also be that fans are hesitating a bit to fund a legacy act like Public Enemy that has a) already seen much success and b) lacks relevancy for many of today’s hip hop fans? Read more at MusicAlly.

Canadian Copyright Laws May be Getting a Reboot

Ah, the endlessly complex world of copyright law. The Canadian government is debating a bill that would effect the way its citizens are allowed to interact with the digital music they have purchased.

The bill, which was introduced in Parliament yesterday (June 2), is intended to modernize copyright laws that were last updated in 1997. At present, it is illegal for Canadian citizens to copy CDs onto digital music players.

“Simply put, our law governing copyright has not kept pace with the breakneck speed at which digital technologies are moving,” Industry Minister Tony Clement told a televised news conference in Montreal.

Read more at Billboard.

More Details Surface About Google’s Music Services, Including a Really Creative Name

Google announced it’s second foray into the world of digital music a couple of weeks ago (the first being music streaming and download results within Google search.) In very Google-like move, they have apparently selected to call the service ‘Google Music.’ A little on the nose, maybe, but it certainly get’s the job done. The real question is, will their product be compelling enough to steal some of Apple’s thunder as they most likely reveal a seriously revamped iTunes next week? Read more at TechCrunch.

But is it worth the fee?

Rdio.com is Like Lala, but Without All the Fun?

Skype and Kazaa founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom unveiled more details this week about their cloud-based music service Rdio.com.

It compares people’s music collections to its own catalogue, then lets them stream the songs that match to any device, including web browsers and mobile phones.

Sounds a whole lot like my favorite music service Lala (RIP), except:

The service will cost $4.99 a month for web-only access, and $9.99 a month to include mobile access via iPhone, BlackBerry or Android handsets.

Also, no mention of anything similar to Lala’s 10 cent cloud-based music purchases, or what kind of recommendation engine it will feature, if any. So far it looks like the world may have to wait a bit longer for a real replacement for Lala. Will Apple deliver? Read more at MusicAlly.

More Music Industry Headlines:

The ‘Nuts and Bolts of Touring’ is a great case study from OneWorkingMusician.com.
Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber managers talk tech and social media promotion over at Hypebot.
Gorillaz replace U2 at Glastonbury festival via Billboard.

Tags: Apple, fan funding, google, Lala, MUSIC INDUSTRY, public enemy, rdio, sellaband, skype