September 2, 2010
Mobile ringtones, camera flashes disturb Grand Mosque tranquility
As hundreds of thousands of pilgrims throng the Grand Mosque in pursuit of blessings in the last 10 days of Ramadan, the growing phenomenon of irritating mobile phones is disturbing the worshippers. Arab News reports.
Ringtones from thousands of mobile phones have reached the level of spoiling the pious and spiritual air at the holy mosque. It has almost killed the tranquility of worshippers. Moreover, on a tour of any nook and corner of the holiest shrine in Islam, worshippers are also encountering the flashes of cameras, Al-Riyadh Arabic daily reported.
The moment when the obligatory prayers are over, a tsunami of ringtones from tens of thousands of mobile phones seem to befall on the ears of the faithful. Various musical ringtones compete with the chanting and supplication of the faithful. The most unfortunate aspect of this phenomenon is that a large number of Umrah pilgrims are using mobile phones while performing the lesser pilgrimage. It seems that some pilgrims cannot finish the ritual without making mobile phone calls. There are some others, who are not at all concerned about the extent of annoyance and inconvenience they are causing to other pilgrims.
Related:
-- Kenyan Mosque jams mobile calls
-- Turkish imam to fine owners of ringing mobile phones during prayers
Apple unveils Ping, a social network for iTunes
The Los Angeles Times on Apple's unveiling of Ping, a social network that's part of the dominant iTunes application.
Jobs said that, out of the box, Ping will have 160 million potential users who can automatically begin following each other (or not -- the service is optional). Got a friend whose tastes are impeccable? Start following her and see what she's listening to. Is one of your friends plugged in to the jazz scene? Follow him and discover what his favorite albums of the month are. If you have an obsession and want to turn friends onto it, all you have to do is post the track along with your review. Friends can listen to it and, in a single click, buy it -- from the iTunes store, of course. The service will also offer tailor-made concert listings that will match your playlist with upcoming gigs.
Artists will have their own pages too.
Read full article.
August 31, 2010
Your cremated ashes made into vinyl records
One of the odder offers to come around.
Rest In Vinyl offers to press your cremated remains into vinyl records with your choice of audio. "Life from beyond the groove" so to speak.
[via boingboing]
iTunes song samples may double in length
Think 30 seconds isn't enough to decide whether or not you like a song? Sources tell CNET that Apple is making changes.
Michael Jackson Is Nokia’s Most-Downloaded Musician
According to data collected by Nokia’s Ovi music store, Michael Jackson has surpassed Elvis Presley, Lady Gaga and a horde of the world’s most popular recording artists to achieve this title.
Jackson’s “Beat It,” a popular 1982 single, is the most popular track in the Nokia Ovi store, with “Billie Jean” and “Thriller” close behind.
[via Mashable]August 30, 2010
Is the album of the future going to be an app rather than tracks?
With Apple preparing updates to iPods on Wednesday, the music industry needs something to boost digital music sales. The Guardian reports.
"At a time where we're asking if digital is a replacement for the CD, as the CD was for vinyl, we should be starting to see a hockey-stick growth in download sales," said Mark Mulligan, an analyst at Forrester Research who specialises in music and digital media. "Instead, we're seeing a curve resembling that of a niche technology."
And as Mulligan notes, for a world of apps, a plain piece of music seems a bit limited. "You can download a song from iTunes to your iPhone or iPad, but at the moment music in that form doesn't play to the strengths of the device. Just playing a track isn't enough."
Read full article.
Fake iTunes reviews row settled
The FTC as ruled against a marketing firm that posted favourable reviews of its clients' gaming applications on iTunes.
The ruling is the first under new FTC guidelines, introduced last year, that cover bloggers and celebrity endorsements as well as online reviews.
[via the BBC]
Related: - Twelve accused of '£400k iTunes scam'
August 27, 2010
Torture Classics Collection
Spotted on Guerilla Innovation, Torture Classics, a collection of music that has been used as instruments of torture by US government interrogators.
According to the publishers: "Torture Music is the kind of music that’s perfect for sitting in the Afghan or Iraqi Desert, sharing a prisoner for a night, or relaxing in a military barrack or a CIA black site in some godforsaken country on a lazy afternoon. It's music thats just makes you feel free and drives others crazy. '
Read full article.
Related: - Music Stars Demand Records on Bush Administration^s Use of Music for Torture.
August 26, 2010
Apple sets music event for Sept. 1
Apple didn't disclose the information about the event, but a guitar featured in press invitations raised expectations that the company will unveil revamped iPod digital media players. Some believe Apple will launch an iPod Touch with sharper screen and front- and rear-facing cameras. A revamped TV device may also be in the works.
[via Investors Business Daily]
CERN Choir Sings “The Particle Physics Song” in the CERN Control Center
Spotted on GearFuse, Cern physicists singing The Particle Physics Song in a Cern choir.
August 23, 2010
Twelve accused of '£400k iTunes scam'
Twelve people are to face court in the UK accused of using stolen credit cards to buy their own songs on iTunes. The BBC reports.
They are alleged to have used stolen or cloned credit cards to buy songs worth £469,000 ($731,000) and cream off the royalties.
Read full article.
August 22, 2010
Gaming overtakes downloading music and films says Ofcom
Online gaming is now more popular than downloading music and films when it comes to things to do online according to a new report out by Ofcom.
[via Pocket-Lint]
August 20, 2010
Vevo Brings Music Videos to the iPhone
Vevo released its first mobile app yesterday, making all of its music videos available on the iPhone and iPod Touch. The release makes those music videos available for the first time on the iPhone, where users previously didn’t have access to them without purchasing and downloading them from iTunes.
[via NewTeeVee]
Premiership footballer claims iPods ruining the sport
Premiership footballer Dave Kitson, a striker with Stoke City, said iPods are ruining football because players listen to them before games rather than interact with team-mates. Ridiculous.
[via The Telegraph]
August 19, 2010
A federal mandate that all new cellphones come with a built-in FM radio chip?
A long-running dispute in the U.S. between radio broadcasters and the recording industry over music royalties has taken an unexpected turn with a proposed settlement that threatens to drag the mobile phone industry into the ring. Canadian Business reports.
Read full article. Image from Technabob.
August 18, 2010
1 in 5 US teenagers has slight hearing loss
According to a new study, one in five teens (i.e 6.5 million teens) has a slight hearing loss, and the problem has increased substantially in recent years. the AP reports.
Some young people turn their digital players up to levels that would exceed federal workplace exposure limits, said Brian Fligor, an audiologist at Children's Hospital Boston. In Fligor's own study of about 200 New York college students, more than half listened to music at 85 decibels or louder. That's about as loud as a hair dryer or a vacuum cleaner.
Habitual listening at those levels can turn microscopic hair cells in the inner ear into scar tissue.
Read full article.
August 15, 2010
Crackdown on Tibetan Ringtones
Students and teachers at a high school near the Tibetan city of Shigatse have been told to delete certain popular Tibetan-language songs from their cell phones after they were designated "unhealthy" by local education officials, reports Cellular News.
"Staff and students must not have any of the above songs as their mobile phone ringtone," an April 21 statement posted on the school's Web site, but since removed, said.
Read full article.
