GarageBand changing the face of music creation

�GarageBand is bringing music to the masses in a way that is very easy... �You feel that you are in a creative mode right away. There are always people that want higher-quality recording, but the basic fundamentals need to be delivered in a simple package and that's what GarageBand does.�

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Variety has posted an update on negotiations between Hollywood execs and Apple on the rumored iTunes Movie Store. According to the report, negotiations are still ongoing with Hollywood execs, who don't know whether to regard Jobs as a friend or foe.

"He came in with a lot of bravado and said, 'We set our mind to what we were going to do in the music business and revolutionized it, and now we want to do the same thing with film," recalls one studio person close to the talks for movie downloads.
Movie execs anxious to beat piracy are debating how much power to give Jobs, who recently was successful in strong-arming music executives into sticking to a flat $.99 (USD) pricing model per song. Movie execs are hoping to have a tiered model, whereas Jobs is insisting that movies be sold at an easy-to-remember $9.99 (USD).

On March 14th, Apple made its first full-lenth TV movie feature available on the iTunes Music Store at $9.99 USD. The movie seemed to indicate that much of the technical groundwork had been laid for iTunes movies, with only content left to be obtained.

Also complicating the deals: The studios are working out terms with a host of other distributors, including Amazon, Movielink and BitTorrent, in part to make sure that one company does not dominate. It seems that none of the studios wants to be first in making a deal with Apple. Disney would be the logical leader, but even they are cautious, fearing it will look like in-house synergy rather than a business decision.
Movie studios have been rolling out their own movie services in past months, including Starz's Vongo (subscription-based) and Universal's own download-to-own store.

By Daisuke Wakabayashi

REDMOND, Washington (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) founder
Bill Gates said on Thursday that over the next two years he will ease out of a day-to-day role at the company he built into the world's biggest software maker.
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His decision to step down immediately as chief software architect and to relinquish all managerial roles in July 2008 comes at a time when Microsoft, whose Windows operating system runs an estimated 90 percent of the world's personal computers, is struggling to find new sources of growth.

Gates, 50, passed the technical mantle to Ray Ozzie, who joined Microsoft last year and is at the heart of Microsoft's push to maintain its dominance by transforming software into services that generate an ongoing stream of revenue instead of just a one-time sale.

By July 2008, Gates said, he will be working full-time for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation -- which he has funded with his software billions to promote health and education projects around the world -- but will still be working "part-time at Microsoft."

The world's richest man, whose wealth was estimated at $50 billion in March by Forbes magazine, will remain as Microsoft's chairman and an advisor on key development projects past the 2008 transition.

"Obviously, this decision was a very hard one for me to make," Gates told a news conference. "The change we're seeing today is not a retirement, it's a reordering of my priorities."

Few expected the news would affect operations at the Redmond, Washington-based company, which employs more than 60,000 people worldwide. Gates began taking less of a role when he handed the chief executive reins to long-time deputy Steve Ballmer in January 2000.

"Bill Gates may step away from day-to-day responsibility but he will never, ever step away from Microsoft," said Anthony Sabino, professor of business at St. John's University.

Shares in Microsoft rose 0.9 percent to close at $22.07 on the Nasdaq, and fell 9 cents in extended trading on the Inet electronic brokerage after Gates' announcement.

Microsoft stock, whose stratospheric rise during the 1990s inspired a generation of tech entrepreneurs, has fallen 13 percent over the past year as investors question its ability to find new growth markets.

Microsoft has been trying to respond to threats from companies such as Internet search leader Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG - news) and Apple Computer Inc. (Nasdaq:AAPL - news), which built a lucrative business around its iPod digital music player.

The company has also stumbled in releasing the next version of Windows, delaying its shipping date several times and cutting out some highly anticipated features.

Its MSN network of online services has struggled to gain traction against Google and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news), and it has spent billions of dollars trying to unseat Sony Corp. (6758.T) in the video-game console market.

"I bet to a certain degree he (Gates) might be getting tired of beating his head against the wall and trying to find other profitable revenue streams besides their Windows operating systems," said Shannon Reid, manager of Evergreen Strategic Growth Fund, which owns Microsoft shares.

At the same news conference as Gates, Ballmer, 50, spoke with his usual confidence and enthusiasm, saying Microsoft aimed to add another 1 billion customers in the next decade.

"We're really also announcing the transition we're making as a company to reach the next level of success and meet the needs of a world hungry for new technology," Ballmer said.

"We will continue his vision of thinking big and executing even bigger."

Gates said Ozzie -- who created Lotus Notes, which was one of the first popular corporate e-mail programs and is now sold by IBM -- will replace him as chief software architect. Craig Mundie, another chief technical officer, will take the new title of chief research and strategy officer.

Ozzie, 50, joined Microsoft last year as one of three chief technical officers after it bought his Groove Networks start-up focusing on collaborative software.

"Certainly, he's got the experience and respect within the industry, but he's not going to be able to take on all Bill Gates' roles because as the founder, Bill Gates had a kind of moral authority that no one else can really take on," said Matt Rosoff, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm.

So what does this really mean? I'm thinking Bill is going to be so embarrassed about further delays of Vista that he is going to just retire altogether from Microsoft. Thats my guess!

From www.Nintendo.com

Nintendo DS Gets a Makeover and Looks Better, Brighter than Ever

May 31, 2006

Let the cool look of the Polar White DS Lite brighten your day

         
This Lite is heavy on features. The new Nintendo DS Lite shines in the U.S. on June 11, and with it costing as low as $129.99, picking one up is a no-brainer.

Available in the Polar White color, Nintendo DS Lite sports two brighter screens with four brightness settings. The powerful backlight brings your DS games to life like never before.

In addition to the brighter screens, Nintendo DS Lite is two-thirds the size of the original Nintendo DS and more than 20 percent lighter. It's sleek and powerful. Although the DS has undergone some major changes with the Nintendo DS Lite, you'll appreciate the minor changes as well. The built-in microphone resides in the middle of DS Lite and not at the bottom. We've moved the Power button away from the Control Pad and placed it on the side of the machine. Also, we've added a larger stylus to give you a better grip on gameplay.

If that isn't enough, Nintendo DS Lite sports a longer battery life, up to 19 hours depending on the brightness setting you choose. Of course, the new handheld still plays all the Game Boy Advance titles available in addition to games made specifically for Nintendo DS. And the built-in Wi-Fi lets you play wirelessly against nearby friends, or you can play online against gamers from around the world with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

Awesome games, great enhancements and an incredible price makes Nintendo DS Lite will be your best acquisition of the year.

Looks pretty Neat! Don't like the obvious iPod theme rip off. I would want a Blue or Red one!

Mac OS X on playstation 3????!!!

PS3 Could Allow Users to Install OS X

by Brad Cook, 11:10 AM EDT, June 9th, 2006

Sony has determined to make its upcoming PlayStation 3 more programmer-friendly than previous iterations of the videogame console, even going so far as enabling users to install Mac OS X or Windows on it. According to Neoseeker, the PS3's hard drive will ship with a flavor of the Linux OS already installed.

Sony has also said that it wants to "follow Apple's suit," which reporter J. Micah Grunert believed means that the company wants to employ open standards in an effort to make developers more receptive to the console. While specifics aren't available yet, Mr. Grunert noted "the PS3 won't be just another set-top box."

This might be jumping the gun, but if i can get my OS X on a PS 3, I say sign me up!!!

Microsoft rumored to buyout Ebay??!!!

Microsoft Rumored To Be Planning eBay Buyout
Robin Arnfield, newsfactor.com Tue May 30, 4:50 PM ET
The latest rumor to sweep the world of high tech claims that Microsoft has its eyes on eBay for a possible buyout. Last week, a report in the New York Post said that Microsoft has engaged in preliminary talks with eBay about acquiring the online auction company and merging it with MSN.


Microsoft and eBay declined to comment. "The information out in the public is speculation and the company does not comment on rumors," said an eBay spokesperson. A spokesperson for Microsoft said much the same thing.

But bloggers, industry analysts, and others have been speculating about what a move on Microsoft's part might mean.

Improving MSN

"[Microsoft] can either improve MSN to make it more of a real competitor to Google, or it can take a different approach, for example by buying eBay," said Martin Reynolds, an analyst at Gartner. "Google is quietly creeping up on Microsoft, and eBay would take Microsoft in a whole new direction."

Reynolds also said that eBay's acquisition of Internet telephony firm Skype last year would be an added bonus for Microsoft. "But buying eBay would be an expensive acquisition for Microsoft," he warned.

Stacey Quandt, an analyst at Aberdeen Group, agreed with Reynolds that acquiring eBay would transform Microsoft.

"If Microsoft purchases eBay, it would certainly invigorate MSN and create a stronger community due to the growing use of Skype and PayPal," she said. "A dramatic gesture of this sort is needed to achieve the promise of MSN to be a leading content- and services-delivery model."

'No Natural Synergy'

Avivah Litan, an analyst at Gartner, warned of the possible downside. "I can understand MSN's motivation in potentially acquiring eBay, but it would be a major negative for eBay shareholder value," she said.

"Microsoft has no expertise in actual commerce and transactions, and there is no natural synergy between the two companies other than that they both have a major Internet presence," she said. "Surely, there are less painful ways to improve the stakes for MSN."

The eBay-Microsoft merger rumors follow last week's announcement that eBay has agreed to a wide-ranging partnership with Yahoo. Under the terms of that deal, Yahoo will become the exclusive provider of all graphical advertisements on eBay, and will deliver sponsored search listings for products on some eBay pages.

At the same time, Yahoo is putting eBay's PayPal platform in its online-wallet system so customers can pay for the Web portal's services through their PayPal accounts.

My take on this is..whereever M$ can get more money..they will go for it. I think this could easily happen. If M$ buys E-bay, it would be a cash cow that would require little work unlike Vista. Sure you have some upkeep (not that MS would do it..) in running E-bay, but in the big picture, E-bay's prices and commission and services only get wider and the prices only go up more and more. So MS really could jump on this.

Sony Playstation 3...OVERPRICED??!!

Survey says: PS3 too darned expensive
May 30, 2006 6:13 PM PDT
Given that the Xbox 360 tops out at $399 and that Nintendo's Wii probably won't cost more than $250, it's kind of a logical leap to feel that Sony's $599 price tag for its high-end PlayStation 3 is a bit hefty.

But now, according to Ars Technica, that suspicion has been confirmed, thanks to the good folks at the Japanese-language game and entertainment magazine, Famitsu.

They conducted a survey and discovered that 88 percent of readers said the PS3 will be too expensive. Even worse for Sony, the survey reported that 69 percent are most anticipating the Wii this holiday season.

This is not good news for Sony, which is hoping that it can ride a PlayStation love-fest to dominance in the next-generation console wars--admittedly not this year, but by 2007 or 2008. That's going to be a lot harder if folks are going to be shelling out their hard-earned ducats for the lower-cost Wii instead of the pricey PS3.

Of course, the survey seemed to be for the Japanese market only, so there's no telling what these figures portend for the U.S. or Europe. But if they are even a little bit similar, Sony is facing a serious uphill battle as it asks people to pay $599 for its machine.

Posted by Daniel Terdiman

I think this very well could be the case that the PS3 will be overpriced. Sony is playing catch-up to the Xbox 360...and if they aren't careful they could lose many many sales to the 360 and the Nintendo DS and the Nintendo Wii. (isnt that fun to say?? weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!! Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! hahaha)