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Broadcasters vs. Web Royalties

On Wednesday, September 11, the National">http://www.nab.org">National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) filed a brief with the U.S. Copyright Office seeking relief from the implementation of a webcasting royalty schedule announced this summer by the Librarian of Congress, James Billington. In June, Billington determined that commercial stations streaming their musical programming on the Internet should pay a rate of .07 cents per song per 1000 listeners, a rate less than half that suggested by the music industry–backed Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel.

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In his recent review of the Thiel">http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/663/">Thiel CS1.6 loudspeaker, John Atkinson pointed out that while expensive speakers "do indeed provide great sound for the tens of thousands of dollars they demand from their owners, they are out of reach of the majority of audiophiles." Ever the populist, JA tackles this reasonably priced Thiel to see how it measures up to the big boys.

Sonic Solutions Ships DVD-Authoring System

DVD-Audio may have gotten a boost on the production end with the impending release of DVD-Audio Creator LE, an authoring system developed and marketed by Sonic">http://www.sonic.com">Sonic Solutions. Available October 15, the authoring system will sell for $5999, a price that could enable many small recording studios and mastering houses to begin working with the format. "DVD-Audio Creator LE puts powerful tools in the hands of professional mastering studios at a very low cost," said Dietrick Hardwick, DVD-Audio product manager at Sonic Solutions. "This enables facilities to significantly expand their service offerings by providing their clients DVD-Audio title creation at an affordable price."

Secrets To Success

Audio retailing has been a tough business in recent years, but two just-released surveys are suggesting that with the right combination of economic factors and dealer preparedness, things could turn around for smart retailers over the coming holiday season.

Retailing Roundup

The US economy took a severe downturn last year following the terrorist attacks of September 11, and this year has been hit by the stock market's decline in the wake of the accounting scandal–fueled collapse of Enron and WorldCom, Inc. Electronics retailers have ridden out the slump fairly well, buoyed by a consumer trend toward "cocooning," or putting their disposable income into their homes. For most retailers, the popularity of DVD and home theater has offset diminishing sales of stand-alone audio.

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For his review of the Nagra">http://www.stereophile.com//amplificationreviews/658/">Nagra VPA monoblock power amplifier, Jonathan Scull lived a life of danger, noting that readers should "Respect the VPA as the hot-running, high-voltage device it is and It Will Provide. Cold-nosed pets and curious little fingers have no business around these Swiss Guards of quality sound engineering."

Home Entertainment 2003

San Francisco, California will open its Golden Gates to welcome the Home Entertainment 2003 Show, June 5-8, 2003. The event will take place at the Westin-St. Francis Hotel in the heart of downtown San Francisco. HE2003 marks the fourth time this event has been held in San Francisco. Previous events were held in 1989, 1993, and in 1997.

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