“Doesn’t it seem odd that these fully automated online e-commerce systems, with software that ought to be able to track and respond to customer behavior instantly, unimaginatively mandate the same fixed price across the board? One of the Internet’s supposed strengths is its ability to let supply and demand drive prices up and down in real time. Couldn’t the music companies use the Internet as a way to introduce popularity-based pricing, meaning that the songs with the highest demand would cost the most? Compared to eBay, charging 99 cents for every song is price fixing. And while 99 cents for my favorite song seems fair, what about my not-so-favorite songs?”
Tag: 11.04.03
French Police Find 250 Stolen Paintings In Van
“More than 250 stolen paintings have been recovered from a parked van in Paris, French police have said. The haul includes one Picasso, two works by French painter Raoul Dufy and one by Dutch artist Kees van Dongen.”
CBS Considers Dropping “Reagan”
BBS is apparently considering dropping the airing of a mini-series on Ronald Reagan, after conservative groups protested that they believe the program to be biased against the former US president. “The possible cancellation of the mini-series was first reported on Monday in Daily Variety. A CBS spokesman declined to comment, and it was unclear why the network would consider bowing to pressure.”
Who Will Pay To Run Miami PAC?
Construction delays and budget overruns are only part of the problem facing Miami’s new performing arts center. How will the facility find money to stay open once it debuts? “At this point $15.2 million a year in expenses has been identified but only $12.5 million in revenue, leaving a $2.7 million yearly deficit. With the collapse of the Florida Philharmonic Orchestra, the PAC is left with only four resident companies. They’re scheduled to fill only 125 nights a year of the combined total of 730 nights available in the PAC’s two biggest performance halls. That’s less than 20 percent.
Teenage Classical Superstar
What is it about 16-year-old Hayley Westrena? Her 13-song medley of ballads sold more than 290,000 copies in Britain in seven weeks, installing ‘Pure’ at the top of Britain’s classical music charts. (The album will be released in the United States on April 9.) Now, with Ms. Westenra signed up for a $4.5 million five-album contract, Decca may well be tingling with the feeling that salvation is nigh.”
The Art World’s Most Important Doorman
On a list of the world’s most influential art people, Gil Peretz ranks No. 50, according to Art Review Magazine. And who is Gil Peretz? “He’s a 52-year-old Puerto Rican who lives in Queens with his wife, his 22-year-old daughter and 19-year-old son. And what does he do? Are we soon to be favoured with one of his installations in Tate Modern’s turbine hall? Not even close. Has he got an unexpectedly large collection of hitherto unseen Breughels in his house in the Hamptons? Hardly. No, Perez is arguably the world’s most important doorman. He stands at the door of the Christie’s Rockefeller Plaza headquarters in New York greeting clients and helping to organise auctions.”