Apples faces another iTunes lawsuit

Another day, another lawsuit appears for Apple related to its iPod-iTunes music universe. The digital media giant is facing a class-action lawsuit over its "walled garden" system, in which the digital rights management (DRM) technology that Apple uses prevents some music downloaded in iTunes from playing on anything but an iPod. The strategy has long been credited for helping Apple retain customers, and although Apple has significantly expanded its DRM-free catalog through its iTunes Plus offering, some consumers remain upset.

The latest 19-page filing was originally submitted to a Florida court in August, but the case is just now seeing the light of day after having been moved to the US District Court for the Southern District of California. The venue change was requested by Apple, which argued that similar cases have been pending in the California court for more than two years. The lawsuit was filed by Florida resident Frederick Black, who alleges that he and other state residents have been damaged by Apple's iPod-iTunes system.

Black claims that the "walled garden" system violates Florida's Antitrust and Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practice Acts, given that people looking to upgrade their iPods must either buy another or repurchase their music collections elsewhere. Apple should open its FairPlay DRM to other companies, the lawsuit argues, which would allow other MP3-player makers to make products compatible with iTunes. Black seeks damages of at least $15,000, plus legal fees.

Radiohead disputes sales-data claim

One day after a ComScore report claimed that 62 percent of the people who bought Radiohead's In Rainbows chose to pay no money at all through the name-your-price system, the band's management attacked the report.

"In response to purely speculative figures announced in the press regarding the number of downloads and the price paid for the album, the group's representatives would like to remind people that, as the album could only be downloaded from the band's website, it is impossible for outside organizations to have accurate figures on sales," the band said in the statement. The statement called the data "wholly inaccurate and in no way reflect definitive market intelligence or, indeed, the true success of the project."

The ComScore report also claimed that only 22 percent of the people who downloaded the album in the first 28 days paid more than $4 for the album. The CD and vinyl versions of the album will hit stores outside of North America on Dec. 31, with details about the US release forthcoming. The album's ninth track, "Jigsaw Falling Into Place," will be the album's first single and will be released Jan. 14.

Tattooed Zune fan seeks to change name

MSZunefan, the man who apparently felt such a strong allegiance to Microsoft and its Zune digital music venture that he tattooed its logo on his arm, is now looking to change his name to show even more love to the Seattle-based conglomerate. In a forum post on the ZuneScene fan site, Steven Smith said he wanted to change his name to Microsoft Zune.

After some research into the possibility, Smith said he can legally change his name to a trade name if no profit is made from the name change. Smith promised to post documentary evidence if and when the feat is accomplished.

In other Zune news, Microsoft is dropping the "social" aspect of the Zune MP3 players from its marketing campaign. The move is perhaps a realization that Wi-Fi music sharing between Zune users, which Microsoft touted as a distinguishing feature versus the iPod, is a tough sell because there are so few Zune users.

Warner Music sits out Nokia Music Store

If the Nokia Music Store is to make any dent in the dominance of iTunes, it's got its work cut out for it. The mobile phone giant's music service was dealt a swift blow this week when Warner Music Group, which boasts Madonna, Led Zeppelin, and Green Day in its catalog, refused to license that catalog to Nokia in protest of Mosh, a separate file-swapping site that Nokia runs.

Despite Nokia's claims that it uses both humans and software to police the site for unlicensed content, Warner alleges that Mosh is a hotbed of copyright infringement. Legal action could follow, and the two sides are far apart in talks to license the Warner catalog to the Nokia store, as reported by Billboard. Nokia's store has secured licenses for content from the other three major labels: Universal, Sony BMG, and EMI.

The Nokia Music Store allows music downloads, directly or via a computer, to a range of compatible phones worldwide.

NPR launches music site

More than a year after it announced its intentions to launch a music site, National Public Radio did just that this week. A beta version of NPR Music is being launched along with 12 member stations, and will have on-air and online content gathered from NPR and the participating stations, as well as original content including interviews, reviews, blogs, and live performances.

The site includes an NPR media player, which lets users create a playlist for video and audio content from NPR dating back to May 2005. NPR Music also links to the live-broadcast music streams of all participating stations. Additional stations and producers will join in the coming months.

Pandora expands offering with Extras

Continuing its efforts to build on its Music Genome Project-powered music-recommendation system, Pandora unveiled a series of "Pandora Extras" this week, adding social networking and content elements to its service.

The Extras include real-time song and artist information that lets users pick from similar songs, and also connects you to other Pandora users that are listening to similar music. The latter function looks to tap the social-networking element that has dominated online music for the past few years, a move Pandora noted earlier this year with its Facebook widget.

Pandora has also added 100 preset stations based on various genres for users who want to discover new types of music. Finally, it added a series of original audio and video programming called "Pandora Presents," including profiles of landmark concert venues and hints for learning how to sing intervals.

"What's most exciting about this for me is that it represents the beginning of a much larger vision for our product and company," Pandora founder Tim Westergren said in an email. "This design will allow us to add literally dozens of new options to compliment [sic] listening in an integrated way--all towards the goal of a unified music experience. In the long run, I think this is where the digital ecosystem is heading--everything wrapped around a good personalized radio."