Apr 25

Apple signs Warner Music to its cloud-based music service

Posted in: Apple, cloud, itunes, Music, stream, Today's Chili
Apple signs Warner Music to its cloud-based music service
Need another sign that iTunes will soon be floating your library up to the cloud? Look no further than confirmation of Apple signing Warner Music, a deal that should see the label’s music available in its upcoming streaming iTunes service. This is in addition to last week’s confirmation that two major labels signed on, though its unclear whether Warner is part of the pair or is, indeed, a third. That might leave only one of the major labels left unsigned — or maybe Apple’s already locked down all four but doesn’t want to kiss and tell. Yet.

Apple signs Warner Music to its cloud-based music service originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Apr 2011 08:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 22

Logitech’s Squeezebox Controller app makes the transition from Android to iOS

Posted in: app, Apple, ios, ipad, iPhone, ipod touch, IpodTouch, itunes, logitech, tablet, Today's Chili

After launching the Squeezebox Controller app on Android last month, what could Logitech do next other than release a version for your iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad. The features and interface appear to be identical, letting users control any or all Squeezeboxes on the WiFi network complete with metadata and album art. iOS equipped owners of the ‘boxes can get their AirPlay-free distributed audio lifestyle going by clicking the link below to download the free app (and see how it compares to the existing $9.99 third party iPeng remote app) from iTunes.

Logitech’s Squeezebox Controller app makes the transition from Android to iOS originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 Apr 2011 10:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 21

Reuters: Apple set to launch cloud-based music service ahead of Google (update)

Posted in: amazon, Apple, cloud, itunes, Music, rumor, streaming, Today's Chili
It’s the rumor that wouldn’t die, and Reuters is now reporting that Apple is finally set to launch a cloud-based music service — presumably putting its massive North Carolina data center to some real work at long last. Details are still fairly light beyond that, but Reuters says that Apple’s service will actually launch ahead of Google’s similar cloud-based option, which it reports is now “stalled,” citing “several people familiar with both companies plans.” According to Reuters, the service will let folks store their music (and only music, apparently) on Apple’s servers and then access it on any device with an internet connection — and a copy of iTunes, we presume.

Update: Peter Kafka, over at All Things Digital, backs up Reuters’ claim with some additional detail. Unlike Amazon’s approach with Cloud Player, Apple is actively seeking to license the music for its streaming service before launching. According to Kafka’s sources, Apple has already secured deals with two of the big four labels and plans to launch “pretty soon.” The deal would allow Apple to store a single master copy of a track on its servers and then share that track with multiple users. As Kafka describes the service, “The idea is that Apple will let users store songs they’ve purchased from its iTunes store, as well as others songs stored on their hard drives, and listen to them on multiple devices.”

Reuters: Apple set to launch cloud-based music service ahead of Google (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 16:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 17

New Poll: How Much is DRM-Free Music Worth to You?

Posted in: Apple, General, itunes, Microsoft, Music, Screenshots, Today's Chili, Web Sites

This article was written on April 02, 2007 by CyberNet.

DrmmusicDRM-free music will be coming your way soon! Apple and EMI (an independent music company based in London) have just announced their plans to sell songs that are DRM free to iTunes customers starting in May. EMI is taking their entire catalog of digital music and removing the DRM restrictions, giving iTunes the first opportunity to sell the music.

Not only will the music be free of the digital rights management, it will also be a better sound quality which will gives users an overall better experience.Could this be the start of the end for DRM restrictions? This issue has frustrated people for a long time because DRM places so many restrictions on what users are able to do with the songs that they’ve purchased.

Come May, iTunes will be selling each of the songs from the EMI catalog minus the DRM for $1.29 which is just 30 cents more than music with the DRM hold on them.  You’ll find songs from big names like The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Keith Urban, and many others.

Another incentive that Apple will be offering is that if you’ve purchased EMI content on iTunes before, you will be able to upgrade all of your songs for 30 cents each.  This also will include music videos.

—New Poll!—

This leads us to our next poll — Is DRM-free music worth the extra cost? People have wanted this option but are they willing to pay for it?

I think it’s great that this will be an option, not only because it gives people freedom to listen to songs on multiple devices that they own, but also because the music will be at a higher quality that was previously not available. And hopefully it will open the door to other groups willing to offer their music sans DRM as well.

Give us your vote in the left side-bar. Are you willing to pay an extra 30 cents more per song?

Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com

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Apr 14

What is ‘ix.Mac.MarketingName’ and why is it listed as a supported device for iOS apps?

Posted in: Apple, apps, AppStore, ios, itunes, leak, Mac, Today's Chili

On today’s session of “things to ponder before lunch,” we have a strange new text string added to the iTunes preview of some iOS apps, which identifies an “ix.Mac.MarketingName” as one of the compatible devices with software designed for iOS. We’re seeing it listed alongside a whole bunch of apps, but importantly not all of them, which hints that it might not be just a stray piece of code or a bug in the system. The location-aware and voice-centric MyVoice Communication Aid and Microsoft’s Bing for iPad apps do not include that funky MarketingName code, suggesting that it’s there as a placeholder for a new supported device of some sort — could apps finally be coming to the Apple TV? For now, we’d rather not stack speculation on top of uncertainty, so we’ll just jot this down as another interesting development in the walled garden of Cupertino and wait patiently to see what (if anything) comes from it.

[Thanks, Daniel, Chris and Nick]

What is ‘ix.Mac.MarketingName’ and why is it listed as a supported device for iOS apps? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 07:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceiTunes, (MyVoice), (Bing for iPad)  | Email this | Comments

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Apr 11

ShairPort emulator cracks open the door for more unofficial AirPlay streaming options

Posted in: airplay, Apple, hack, itunes, streaming, Today's Chili

There’s already a few unofficial AirPlay applications out there, but looks like developer James Laird has now gotten right to the heart of the matter and enabled a whole host of new streaming possibilities. Here’s apparently managed to crack the private key used by Apple in the AirPort Express (literally by ripping one open and dumping the ROM), and he’s used that to build an emulator dubbed “ShairPort,” which will let you stream music from iTunes to any third-party software — or hardware, for that matter, if someone decided to go as far as to build a device that takes advantage of the private key. Have something in mind? You can download the emulator at the source link below.

ShairPort emulator cracks open the door for more unofficial AirPlay streaming options originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 11

Hack Allows iTunes Music Streaming to Any Device

Posted in: Apple, Hacks, Mods and DIY, itunes, Today's Chili

Deconstructing the Airport Express. Photo: Steve Jurvetson/Flickr

Programmer James Laird wanted to help his girlfriend stream her iTunes music in her new house, so he hacked away at Apple’s private key for streaming music, reverse-engineered the script, and made it available to the public.

Laird calls his open source Perl script Shairport, which lets hardware and software receive AirTunes music from iTunes.

Apple uses a public-key encryption scheme for AirTunes streaming. This lets anyone encrypt and stream audio to the AirPort Express (or other compatible device), but iTunes would only stream to Apple devices. Now, with Shairport, iTunes can be tricked into streaming audio to anything at all.

Laird did this by cracking open the AirPort Express (literally), dumping the ROM and then searching around for the private key. Apparently this was easy to find, as Apple had hidden the private key “in the ROM image, using a scheme that made the de-obfuscation code itself stand out like a flare.” He then cracked the crypto and now has the key.

This is combined with an ALAC (Apple Lossless Audio Codec) decoder to make a small package that can be installed on computer. It’s unlikely that hardware manufacturers will risk using this solution, but it’s easy to see how a home user could install it on an unused computer or even a Linux-based router.

That means we’ll likely see some third-party programs taking advantage of Shairport. For example, someone might make an app for the Xbox 360 capable of streaming music from iTunes on your PC. Or, say you have a MacBook Air and want to stream music to your friend’s iMac — Shairport makes this possible.

When up and running, the Shairport machine shows up as a regular AirTunes share in iTunes, or on your iPad or iPhone, and works just as you’d expect, so Laird’s girlfriend can use it just like her old AirPort Express.

I wonder: Will Apple will close this hole? It seems pointless to do so, as this hack will likely only be used by intrepid hackers such as you, dear Gadget Lab reader. Still, with Apple, you never know.

ShairPort 0.01 released [Mafipulation via Hacker News via Apple Insider]

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Apr 10

Google snags PushLife, will probably use it to push music to your Android phone

Posted in: Android, canada, cloud, content, Google, itunes, mobile, Music, streaming, sync, Today's Chili, video

At last year’s Google I/O we were tantalizingly teased with the idea of music streaming to our mobile devices. Since then, there have been hints and leaks, but nothing official from Google on when or how this new service would be rolled out. Well, now we can add a big piece to that puzzle with the news that Google has acquired mobile entertainment company PushLife, which has been developing a music app of its own for the Android and BlackBerry platforms. PushLife offers one-click purchases from an integrated music store, an overview of tunes you have both on your smartphone and on your computer (with the ability to access both sets on the phone), and automatic playlist syncing with iTunes or Windows Media Player libraries. There’s even more fanciness, such as recommendations based on the song you’re playing, artists bios and photo galleries, plus the inevitable Twitter and Facebook integration. The Canadian startup is believed to have cashed in to the tune of $25 million and will soon be shutting down its independent operations. Also soon: Google I/O 2011. Hint, hint, Google! Demo video after the break.

Continue reading Google snags PushLife, will probably use it to push music to your Android phone

Google snags PushLife, will probably use it to push music to your Android phone originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 10 Apr 2011 16:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 03

ContourGPS Connect View app hands-on

Posted in: app, Apple, AppStore, bluetooth, feature, Features, hands-on, ios, itunes, Today's Chili, Wireless

The $350 ContourGPS sits among the top-tier of consumer-friendly helmet cams, but it’s always posed one major problem: you can’t really tell where it’s pointing. Sure, it shoots a pair of wicked lasers out of the front, but it’s always a challenge to gauge the extents of its 135 degree lens. We knew there was a secret trick in there waiting to be unleashed, which we got to play with at CES, and now here it is. Contour has released its Connect View functionality for iOS, letting you view live footage from the camera right on your phone. Keep reading for our full impressions.

Gallery: Contour Connect View

Continue reading ContourGPS Connect View app hands-on

ContourGPS Connect View app hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 30

Digital Music Sales Will Overtake CDs in 2012

Posted in: itunes, MP3, MP3 Digital Audio, Music, Today's Chili

iTunes Gift Cards

According to a recent study by Strategy Analytics, a market analysis firm that helps companies identify trends and market data, next year will be the first year that digital music sales will overtake CD music sales in the United States. If you’re asking yourself “people still buy CDs?” you’d be surprised to know that traditional CD sales in the US brought in $3.8 billion in revenue last year, and is expected to drop to around $2.7 billion in 2012. 
Clearly there are still people buying CDs, and lots of them: the market isn’t going anywhere. At the same time, digital music sales are on the rise and have been for years, but the firm predicts that next year digital music sales – with Apple’s iTunes Music Store leading the way – will top $2.8 billion. 
The report also notes that for all of those billions of dollars, music labels are still “struggling,” as the overall music market is still shrinking overall. Fewer people are buying music in general, and the report notes that the entire industry will shrink from $6.2 billion in total sales in 2010 to $5.5 billion in 2012. They note that digital sales, while growing, aren’t growing as fast as music labels would like. 
The cause of the overall shrinking is up for debate: the RIAA and industry groups claim piracy is to blame, while other groups note that streaming services that offer free ad-supported music on demand are taking the lead, and still other groups blame the death of the traditional album: more people are spending $0.99 for individual songs they want instead of spending $20 for the entire album because the individual song wasn’t available on its own. 
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