by paul
Just some of the stories we're tracking this weekend...
The declining details at Dangerbird keep mounting, with huge questions on what happens next at the once-hot LA indie. Most are still fairly surprised that label founder Jeff Castelaz is ditching his baby to focus entirely on management, though this is a story that's been worsening since last year. Rumors that Castelaz is preparing to assume a position at a bigger label persist, all part of a bad commentary on the plight of indie labels. Meanwhile, word is that Dangerbird darlings Fitz & the Tantrums are contemplating an exit; others could follow suit depending on contract specifics and discussions.
Village Voice music editor Maura Johnston is now leaving, according to multiple posts from the author. "The decision to leave was not mine," Johnston told the New York Times. "I prefer to analyze the ways that people migrate to certain pieces of content rather than engaging it myself. I guess doing it gets more traffic than looking at it from a critical point of view."
James Taylor is the latest legacy giant to challenge his major label over royalty calculations. Taylor is now suing Warner Bros. Records and Warner Music Group for $2 million, based largely on the way digital download royalties are calculated. Taylor, like a raft of other artists, is contending that digital downloads should not be paid as sales, but rather at a higher percentage as licenses.
European regulators are now widely expected to deliver an approval on Universal Music's proposed acquisition of EMI next week. A Federal Trade Commission (FTC) green light could soon follow suit, though the wildcard in the US comes from a cadre of concerned Congressmen. Notwithstanding, most are expecting an approval with very sizable divestitures. Earlier, word leaked that UMG parent Vivendi had already transferred the cash on the deal, based on earlier agreements and deadlines.
And, the Pirate Bay is now 9 years old, though this is one complicated birthday party. The site was founded September 15th, 2003, and the tracker site is still live - in fact, it remains one of the top 100 trafficked sites.
