Mergers for Music Giants?
Two years ago, music business insiders were predicting that the industry's "Big Five" would eventually become the "Big Four," or possibly the "Big Three."
News
Johnny Cash Dead At 71
Johnny Cash, the 71-year-old American icon, died September 12 of respiratory failure caused by complications from diabetes. The singer/songwriter had been released from the hospital the preceding day after a two-week struggle with an unspecified stomach ailment.
Added to the Archives This Week
We kick off three speaker reviews from the September issue with Brian Damkroger's assessment of the Audio">http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/919/">Audio Physic Virgo III loudspeaker. A perfect meld of minimonitor and full-range bass extension? BD reveals all.
Speaker Verdict Final
Audio companies create products that are based on a variety of technologies, provoking lawsuits every once in a while when patents are involved. One such lawsuit erupted earlier this year as Robert W. Carver, designer for and founder of Sunfire">http://www.sunfire.com">Sunfire Corporation, filed a US patent lawsuit against Audio">http://www.audioprods.com/">Audio Products International (API).
RIAA's Pyrrhic Victory
It's just about impossible to imagine a worse public relations campaign than the one being waged by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the nation's courtrooms.
BMG Restricts Discs
More compact discs that attempt to restrict how you use them are coming to a record store near you. BMG announced last week that its Arista Records division will be the company's first label in the US to release a commercial CD using copy-restriction technology.
DTS Gains European Foothold
Graham Nash and Frank Zappa will be DTS">http://www.dts.com">DTS Entertainment's first artists to debut in Europe on DVD-Audio, thanks to an agreement between DTSE and Cadiz Music, Ltd., a distributor in Greenwich, England. DTS Entertainment is the entertainment division of Digital Theater Systems, Inc., based in Agoura Hills, CA.
Added to the Archives This Week
Anthony H. Cordesman and John Atkinson tackle the classic Vandersteen">http://www.stereophile.com//loudspeakerreviews/914/">Vandersteen 2C loudspeaker in a review from 1986. "Whenever I think of cone speaker systems, I think of three brand names: Snell, Thiel, and Vandersteen," says Cordesman, prompting JA to add, "I must say that I just don't understand how Richard Vandersteen can sell the 2Ci at a hair under $1200/pair and expect to make any money."
TMA US Distribution Set
Embattled audio brand TAG">http://www.tagmclarenaudio.com">TAG McLaren Audio is showing more signs of life since hitting">http://www.stereophile.com/news/11701/">hitting the ropes earlier this summer. After completing "a full strategic review of its participation in the audio market," the company had announcedhttp://www.stereophile.com/news/11718/">announced; a re-focused effort to continue.
CD Price Drop
What can save the music industry? We've asked the">http://www.stereophile.com/showvote.cgi?241">the question on this website a dozen times in several different ways and your responses are pretty much always the same: lower CD prices—closely followed by better music.