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DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE -- Sept. 12, 2000
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To Subscribe For Free: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/

o Warner Music Outlines Internet Distribution Strategy
o Media Metrix: Napster Used By 6% of Internet Households
o Digital Music Player FullAudio Raises $15 Million
o Zomba Files Suit Against MP3.com
o NBA and WNBA Form Alliance With Yahoo
o Briefly Noted: Foveon - Digital Photography, Traditional
Media vs. Start-up Media, MP3.com - Universal, ARTISTdirect -
Neil Young, Bluetorch, SprocketRadio.com, Bluetorch,
Wink - Space.com
_____________________________________________

o Warner Music Outlines Internet Distribution Strategy

New York -- After months of speculation, Warner Music Group announced on
Monday the details of its online music distribution service. Warner, which
will sell its digital music through leading online retailers, is the last
of the five major record labels to announce its Internet distribution
plans. Following the rapid growth of music file-sharing services such as
Napster, the major record companies have quickly developed Internet
strategies in recent months. Starting in November, Warner said it will
begin offering "Internet only" songs from artists including Paul Simon and
Manhattan Transfer. Seattle-based RealNetworks will run the technical
aspects of Warner's online downloading service.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20000911/tc/time_warner_digital_music_1.html
_____________________________________________

o Media Metrix: Napster Used By 6% of Internet Households

Los Angeles -- Napster, the controversial online music exchange service,
is used by more than six percent of home Internet users, according to a
report released on Monday by Media Metrix. The report also showed that the
number of Napster users has grown by nearly 350% over the last six months.
Media Metrix said the use of Napster climbed from 1.1 million unique users
in February to 4.9 million unique users in July.
http://www.mediametrix.com/press/releases/20000911.jsp?language=us
_____________________________________________

o Digital Music Player FullAudio Raises $15 Million

Chicago -- FullAudio, a developer of technology for digital music
subscription services, today announced that it has raised $15 million in
its second round of financing. Venture Strategy Partners led the
investment; New Enterprise Associates and Kettle Partners also
participated in the round. Chicago-based FullAudio has developed portable
wireless devices that allow users to play digital songs on existing
stereos and radios. "FullAudio addresses the two fundamental issues in the
adoption of digital music: it encourages labels to embrace delivering
legal access to high quality digital music in a secure platform; and it
significantly extends consumers' music experience through higher quality
listening," said Tony Conrad of Venture Strategy Partners. FullAudio said
it expects to launch its product early next year. FullAudio raised $4.5
million in its first round of private financing in December.
http://www.fullaudio.com/release_09112000.html
_____________________________________________

o Zomba Files Suit Against MP3.com

New York -- Zomba Recording Corporation and Zomba Music Publishing, member
companies of the largest independent group of music companies, today filed
separate lawsuits against MP3.com for copyright infringement. Last week, a
federal judge ruled against San Diego-based MP3.com in a copyright
infringement brought by Universal. Zomba Recording Corp. owns the Jive
label, which features artists including the Backstreet Boys, Brittany
Spears and NSYNC. Zomba claims in the lawsuit that the My.MP3.com service
misappropriated the labels' songs. The five largest record companies were
part of an earlier lawsuit against MP3.com; four of the record companies
have settled with MP3.com.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/000911/n11570164_4.html
_____________________________________________

o NBA and WNBA Form Alliance With Yahoo

New York -- The NBA, the WNBA and Yahoo today announced an alliance that
includes content and e-commerce exchanges. The deal will also give Yahoo
sponsorships and promotions at NBA and WNBA games and television
broadcasts. "By establishing this agreement with Yahoo, we believe we can
considerably enhance NBA.com and WNBA.com as full-service destinations for
everyone interested in basketball," said David Stern, NBA commissioner.
http://www.yahoo.com
http://www.nba.com
http://www.wnba.com
_____________________________________________

o Briefly Noted:

(San Jose) The Associated Press reported on Monday that Santa Clara-based
Foveon, a company founded by legendary Silicon Valley chip designer Carver
Mead, has developed an image-sensing chip that can produce photos of
extremely high resolution at a fraction of the current cost. The AP
reported that the chip can capture digital images with a resolution of
4,096 by 4,096 pixels -- about twice the resolution of 35mm film. "This
shows that very, very quickly, we're going to blow past the benchmarks of
quality that consumers have internalized with 35mm cameras,'' said Alexis
Gerard, president of Future Image Inc., a digital-imaging research
consulting firm.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20000911/tc/digital_photo_chip_1.html

(New York) The stock of video game developer Electronic Arts Inc. had a
two-for-one stock split on Monday. The company's stock closed at $50.625.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/000911/n11535625.html

(San Francisco) A recent CBS Marketwatch article argued that traditional
media companies are increasingly looking like the winners in their battle
with start-up digital media companies. "When it comes to digital
entertainment, bright lights and big business don't always go together,"
the article said. "Just ask MP3.com, Scour, Pop.com and Shockwave.com, all
of which suffered major setbacks (last) week in their efforts to lure
entertainment consumers onto the Net."
http://cbs.marketwatch.com/archive/20000909/news/current/thatsentertainment.htx?

(San Diego) ZDNet reported that MP3.com is still in negotiations with
Universal Music, which was bolstered last week by a ruling from a federal
judge. http://www.zdii.com/industry_list.asp?mode=news&doc_id=ZE2626372

(Los Angeles) ARTISTdirect today announced that an unreleased version of
the Neil Young track "Razor Love'' will be available for download over a
24-hour period beginning on Thursday morning. ARTISTdirect said the track
is about one-minute longer than the CD version, and will "time out" after
14 days. ARTISTdirect said the song is the first Neil Young song to be
legally available for download on the Internet.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/000911/ca_artistd.html
http://www.artistdirect.com

(Irvine, Calif.) Broadband Interactive Group's Bluetorch, a provider of
sports content, today announced a content agreement with Earthlink and
Sprint, two of the largest Internet service providers.
http://www.bluetorch.com

(Marina Del Rey, Calif.)  WorldNet Resource Group Inc., today announced
the development of SprocketRadio.com, an Internet-based radio station.
http://www.sprocketradio.com

(Memphis, TN)  Creative Forces, an Internet-based motion picture
entertainment company, today released a preview of its first producation
called "Paper Clips."  The film highlights the life of a paper clip, whose
view of the world is dulled after leaving his box.
http://www.creativeforces.com

(New York) Reuters reported today that many online publications are
increasingly creating print publications. Reuters cited a number of
examples of the phenomenon including Wink, an online multicultural fashion
magazine, which recently launched a print publication, and Space.com, run
by former CNN anchor Lou Dobbs, which has launched Space Illustrated, a
bi-monthly magazine.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/000911/n29357512.html
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