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The RIAA has been suing, appealing, and re-suing file-swapper Jammie Thomas for years - that is, since 2006. Thomas, a mother of four, uploaded 24 songs on Kazaa back in 2005, and over three trials has had penalties ranging from $54,000 to $1.92 million.  A fourth trial from the RIAA now seems likely (yes, in 2012).

This is a blog post from 2009, which offers a little more behind-the-scenes than you might care to see (it somehow popped into our RSS feed this morning).  The name of the post, 'for some added flavor,' is a name of a swapped song.

Jammie Thomas-Rasset Part Deux, Day 1. An encouraging first day. After a morning of jury selection, the jury was seated by lunch (five men, seven women) and opening arguments kicked off the afternoon. We’re very pleased with the jury.

As for the opening arguments, Tim Reynolds did an eloquent and thorough job laying out our side and the vast amount of evidence in this case that proves Ms. Thomas-Rasset’s liability.

The other side focused on the claim that she didn’t do it and used astronomical numbers to illustrate the amount we are seeking in damages.   Let us quickly take a moment to repeat this:  we have NEVER asked for maximum statutory damages in these cases and we are not starting now. We have ALWAYS let courts and juries decide the amount of damages to award for any case that reaches this far stage.  

Several witnesses gave testimony today – Wade Leak from Sony Music Entertainment (who testified to the thousands of individuals that have lost their jobs in the music community primarily due to online theft), Chris Connelly from MediaSentry (who testified that his company detected Ms. Thomas-Rasset’s KaZaA account – tereastarr@kazaa.com – distributing more than 1700 music files on Feb. 21, 2005 and subsequently sent her two instant messages to warn her about copyright infringement), and Heather Nessler from Charter Communications (who testified that upon receipt of a court-approved subpoena, Charter verified and re-verified that the Internet account used to engage in copyright infringrment was Ms. Thomas-Rasset’s account). We’re beginning to see how the defense is attempting to take shape – by tediously objecting (more than 20 times!!!) mostly to suppress evidence which clearly proves Ms. Thomas-Rasset downloaded and distributed music files illegally.   We are hopeful the jury will see these attempts as desperate and diversionary.  

Perhaps the richest moment of the day probably came when the defense counsel attempted to strike the certifications of copyright we procured and provided to prove ownership of the songs at issue on the grounds that it was "too late."  Given the defendant entered a brand new, affirmative defense only two weeks ago, her attorney’s insistence that our timing was bad induced a few eye rolls among members of the media that have followed this case and our legal team. Suffice to say, the Judge allowed the certified copyrights.

Next up for Tuesday: testimony from our expert witness, music company executives, and the defendant herself.  It will surely be an interesting next couple of days. Stay tuned…

(p.s. – for some added flavor, the title of this post is one of the songs Ms. Thomas-Rasset was caught distributing through her KaZaA account…)

Cara Duckworth

Also, a good recap of today’s events in the Minneapolis Star Tribune."

The original post, on riaa.com, is here.

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/digitalmusicnews/~3/4kCbHrbDbHs/120205riaa

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These are the stories and developments we're tracking over the weekend. Check back for ongoing updates. 

Add disco queens Sister Sledge to the list of legacy artists suing their major labels.  Sledge is filing suit against Warner Music Group to re-categorize digital sales as licenses, a not-so-subtle difference that accounts for millions.

Sony Music sales dropped 11.7 percent during the third quarter to $1.582 billion, while profits slipped 21.7 percent to $196 million.  The music stats were shared in a broader financial review by Sony Corp.

I'm worth it, goddamit.  Think that $300 is a lot for a Madonna show?  "So start saving your pennies now," Madonna told Newsweek. "People spend $300 on crazy things all the time, things like handbags. So work all year, scrape the money together, and come to my show. I'm worth it."  Separately, Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino confirmed that ticket sales will happen directly after the Super Bowl.

Two, three years, max?  It may just be a matter of time before a DJ rocks halftime at the Super Bowl...

On that note, it's unconfirmed, but rumors now surround a DJ-focused iteration of Spotify.  The sketch version would feature multiple 'decks,' fades, cues, and of course, a great selection of tracks, according to a pair or sources. 

Who else will be at the most blown-out game of the year (at least in the US)?  That'd be Shazam, which is now incorporating its identification technology into a substantial number of advertisements.  That includes unlocking features for Toyota, Cars.com, and Pepsi, who will be featuring X-Factor winner Melanie Amaro.  As part of that ad, viewers can unlock an exclusive Amaro video.

MegaUpload claimed to serve 4 percent of the entire internet, though Facebook probably eclipses that.  According to a stat just released by Hitwise, Facebook.com accounts for 1 in 5 of every US-based internet view.

Looks like Bon Iver is bailing on his Grammy performance.  "We kind of said 'fuck you' a little bit, and they sort of acted like they wanted us to play, but I don't think they wanted us to play," Justin Vernon told Billboard. 

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  WTF?
  Saturday, February 04, 2012

  More bubble gum bullshit. Please, Digital Music News, upgrade. Get better. Give us real news. Enough with this crap.

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/digitalmusicnews/~3/ZlQ0v18GPyw/120204latest

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What's another thing that has little or nothing to do with sports? That would be indie music, which is why Sports Illustrated is making it a major part of its upcoming Swimsuit Issue.  But this  is more than just an artist profile here and there - according to information shared byBillboard this morning, a total of seventeen different indie artists will be featured side-by-side with swimsuit models.    

Taking it a step further, these artists will be paired with specific models for both the print magazine and accompanying videos.  "Each artist will be paired with a different model in the magazine and online, with new or previously unreleased tracks from each respective artist," explains Billboard's Andrew Hampp.

Taking it even another step further, Sports Illustrated will be hosting a two-day music festival called Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Beauties Beats in Las Vegas, specifically the recently-erected Cosmopolitan.  

The Black Lips will be headining Beauties Beats, also according to Billboard, with Delta Spirit, Elan Atias White Elephant, J. Roddy Walston The Business, Little Hurricane, Maluca, Nick Waterhouse, Vonnegutt, Selebrities, White Denim.  

Other editorially-featured artists include Bosco Delrey, DJ A-Trak, Hanni El Khatib, Kito Reija Lee, New Look, Rhye, Toro Y Moi and The newno2.

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  Visitor
  Friday, February 03, 2012

  THOSE GLASSES ARE HUGE!!!! LOL LOL

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  Me
  Friday, February 03, 2012

  They're fake, you know.

  Reply

  Visitor
  Friday, February 03, 2012

  I'm not sure fake matters!

  Reply

  gaetano
  Friday, February 03, 2012

  We're witnessing the Indiefication of the Bro-rena. 

  Perhaps Animal Collective will play the half time show at the superbowl next year. 

   

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  zFriday, February 03, 2012

  How much money are the bands getting for this operation? Oh, yeah, I forgot. What the hell am I talking about? Money! Ha! They are getting "exposure", which is like $100,000 these days. Sure.

  Keep wasting your time on this shit, we will see where you are standing, ten to fifteen years from now.

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  agent gomez
  Friday, February 03, 2012

  Sometimes money isn't everything ! Just look at the size of her "glasses"

  and yes I'm a musician !

   

   

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/digitalmusicnews/~3/kfH5R6d23AE/120203sports

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All that plastic was supposed to save the music industry! Instead, it's now melting down the balance sheets of companies like Viacom...

According to financial details just shared by Viacom, the ill-fated acquisition of Rock Band creator Harmonix Music Systems cost the media conglom another $383 million last quarter.  That in turn contributed to a 65 percent decline in net income last quarter (complete SEC financial filing here).  Viacom still reported profits of $212 million, and broader advertising revenues were also softer during the period.

About the point (in 2009) when things went south.

But wait: isn't this game cooked, at least as far as Viacom is concerned?  After all, the acquisition was 'handed back' in 2010, after a 2009 meltdown in rhythmic gaming that featured too many titles, the Great Recession, and bored gamers.

Well, the answer is 'not exactly,' thanks to some heavy corporate acquisition baggage.  This is another long story, though after selling the company back to its founders, Viacom was successfully sued for not paying on certain performance benchmarks. 

Viacom is appealing the charge, though they've now categorized the charge as a loss.

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/digitalmusicnews/~3/tK8LSze8ZJQ/120203rockband

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