................................. To leave Commie, hyper to http://commie.oy.com/commie_leaving.html ................................. ===================================================================== THE STANDARD'S M E D I A G R O K A Commentary on What the Press Is Reporting and Why ===================================================================== | http://www.thestandard.com | Tuesday, April 3, 2001 TOP GROKS ~~~~~~~~~ Speak Into the Mic, MusicNet Yesterday, Media Grok read about a press conference where an actual product was unveiled, technical details were plentiful, and corporate execs spoke as plainly and honestly as a small-town bartender. Then we woke up. The MusicNet gang - RealNetworks, EMI, Bertelsmann and AOL Time Warner - hosted a typically uninformative press powwow on Monday. MusicNet will supply some of the big-label tunes that have so far existed online in only a less-than-legal manner, but only some of them. Two majors, Sony and Universal, haven't signed on to MusicNet, and they have a competing service called Duet. Some reporters missed this detail at first, but most latched onto it by Monday afternoon. "Three out of five isn't bad. But it's not necessarily good, either," wrote TheStreet.com's George Mannes. The Seattle Times quoted RealNetworks President and COO Larry Jacob- son talking about how hard it was to get even three majors on board. ("You have to start somewhere," Jacobson said.) When asked whether MusicNet would pursue the missing two labels, Real honcho Rob Glaser said, "We invited a number of folks to participate. ... It's logical to assume that we talked to all five." Could you be a little more vague? The mud didn't get any clearer on the technology front - not that press conferences are usually rife with gearhead details. "One of the biggest questions is whether MusicNet will support archrival Microsoft's Windows Media Audio technology for streaming and the secure downloading of music," said News.com. The Washington Post said Glaser expects the technology to work by late summer. Someone asked an AOL Time Warner exec why he'd join a venture before the technology got finalized, and according to the Post, he answered, "I am holding Rob's first-born hostage." PR lesson No. 83: If dodging the question doesn't work, try making a bad joke. Supposedly the timing of the MusicNet announcement - right before Napster's Senate Judiciary hearing - was a coincidence. The Washing- ton Post got an anonymous "industry source" to disagree, and Inside reported that the principals "pulled near-all-nighters the last two nights" to nail down the agreement. Timing aside, journos wondered about MusicNet's cost, selection, antitrust implications, digital rights restrictions and relationship with Napster. The Telegraph grumbled that MusicNet's initial launch won't include Britain - or anyplace else outside of North America. But isn't MusicNet principal Bertelsmann based in Europe? MusicNet could still be a big deal, so we'll give Rob Glaser a break: Inside reported that Glaser first approached the major labels about a subscription service back in 1995. He may mumble at press conferences, but he sure is prescient. - Jen Muehlbauer How MusicNet Heats Up the Digital-Music War http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,23296,00.html?nl=mg RealNetworks Signs 3 Majors to Subscription Service http://www.thestandard.com/article/display/0,1151,23279,00.html?nl=mg Record Giants Join With RealNetworks http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/SeattleTimes.woa/wa/gotoArticle?zsection_id=268448455&text_only=0&slug=realnetworks03&document_id=134280520 3 Music Firms in Net Deal http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29558-2001Apr2.html Music Industry Chases Online Dollar in the Napster Style http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=003329181426891&rtmo=0xei22Kq&atmo=tttttttd&pg=/et/01/4/3/cnap03.html RealNetworks Venture May Find a Majority's Not Enough http://www.thestreet.com/tech/internet/1374104.html After Years of Talk, Major Labels Pull All-Nighters to Form Subscription Service http://www.inside.com/jcs/Story?article_id=27662&pod_id=9 Record Labels Subscribe to Online Music Deal http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-5416207.html --------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2001 Standard Media International
