snapshot 9/19/07

Zune 2 "source" leaks launch date and specs
According to reports from a "source" inside Microsoft, a new batch of Zunes (AKA Zune 2, Draco, Scorpio, etc.) are due out on October 16th (just in time for the holidays), in both flash memory- and hard drive-based forms. The new, smaller, flash Zune (the Draco) will be hitting shelves in pink, red, black, or army green colors, will have a 4GB or 8GB capacity, and will feature a "squircle" (the source's term, not ours) for navigation, which won't have a center button but can be pushed, "From any side." The hard drive-based player (the Scorpio) will be available in 80GB, sports the soon-to-be infamous "squircle," and touts a screen which the source claims is "awesome" for video.


We7 vs. SpiralFrog. Exclusive Interview With We7's Steve Purdham

• We7 is DRM-free vs SpiralFrog which is Windows Media Player DRM only
• We7 tracks will play on iPods, Zunes, phones, in fact any MP3 device vs SpiralFrog’s which play only on limited devices
• We7 means you own the MP3 forever vs SpiralFrog where you lease the songs by renewing your membership every 30 days
• We7 download is fast vs SpiralFrog isn’t
• We7 graft a small (10s) targeted audio ad to each track vs SpiralFrog slows the download and shows a video
  

The AudioFile: basics of uncompressed digital audio
But what are those principles? When we talk about bits and samples, what do we mean? In this article, we'll take a look at the very basic process of turning audio into a digital file and the variables that affect it.


Goldman Sachs Communacopia: Edgar Bronfman, CEO, WMG: Labels Need Equity In ‘MTV Of The Internet’
At the Communacopia conference, Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman reiterated the message he sent Monday yesterday at Convergence 2.0: the music industry is not dying, but needs to develop new business models and get away from the simple sale of recorded music. Once again, he stated his company’s plans to do more in areas like touring, fan clubs and artist management. He was asked about the role of the music label in a world where social networks provide a ready-made avenue for artist promotion. In this regard, Bronfman contends labels are best positioned to manage an artist’s use of social networking channels.

As for recorded music sales, Bronfman is hopeful that iTunes will finally see some competition from the likes of Amazon.com and Wal-Mart; he also mentioned free music site LaLa, which has a relationship with WMG. He said that in retrospect, the labels might have been smart to demand an equity stake in the iPod/iTunes business and that it would be a mistake for the “MTV of the internet” to emerge without strong participation (an ownership) from the labels.


Album Buyers Show Up...And Buy CDs
A couple things stuck me about the first-week sales totals for Kanye West, 50 Cent and Kenny Chesney. First, like many people I was surprised by the quantity of sales. West's Graduation sold 957,000 units, an incredible amount in a year when album sales are down 14%. 50 Cent's Curtis moved 691,000. Obviously the manufactured rivalry between the two rappers spurred sales. Chesney's Just Who I Am: Poets and Pirates moved 387,000, a number that would be for #1 in a typical week.

Last week, Kanye West's digital sales represented 14% of total sales. For 50 Cent and Kenny Chesney, the numbers were 8% and 9%, respectively. What those numbers tell me is those artists' labels and distributors did an good job moving the CD and getting sell-through (though I don't know what was shipped on each title). The albums' digital shares were good but lower than I expected. As a point of comparison, Grey's Anatomy Vol.3 debuted at #16 with sales of 26,000 and a digital share of 43%. Maroon 5's It Won't Soon Before Long has sold 1.24 million units in 17 weeks and has a digital share of 18%.