” I’d argue that the record industry is in trouble, and anything we can do to stay afloat should be condoned. If there are people out there willing to pay for the item, and there certainly are, then why not provide it to them directly and cut the “flipper” out of the picture? The artist and label put the work into the release, so they should profit from it.”
Tag: 12.02.10
Artist Ai Weiwei Stopped From Leaving China
“China’s best-known artist Ai Weiweihas been stopped from leaving the country minutes before he was to board his plane, he told the Guardian.”
ArtBasel Miami – Crowds Down, Money Not
“The extreme caution and modesty of 2008 and 2009, the hesitation to be seen spending, is gone, too. Pay in the financial world is roaring back to pre-crisis levels, and art is increasingly seen as a safe place to park money, like gold.”
World Book Night – A Million Free Books Chosen By You
“Between now and January 4, members of the public are being asked to choose one book they love from a list of 25 pre-selected titles. They – you! – fill in a form saying, in 100 words, why they would like to give this book to others. The recommendation must be personal, and passionate. Each of 20,000 “givers” will then be sent 48 copies of that book to hand out on the night of March 5 at the venue they have chosen, resulting in what promises to be a national, simultaneous frenzy of book-loving.”
Is The iPad Killing The Kindle?
“A survey by market research firm ChangeWave indicates that the iPad is rapidly catching up to the Kindle in the e-book reader market. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing for Amazon (yet). Amazon offers a free Kindle app for the iPhone and iPad to download Amazon e-books. Because of that move, Amazon saw a surge in e-book sales.”
Net Neutrality Advocates not Happy With Proposed FCC Rules
“The FCC is using the same shaky legal foundation set-up by the Bush administration, when it created the first net neutrality rules. Those were obliterated in a legal challenge by Comcast earlier this year, setting up the need for these rules, which don’t look to be on any firmer ground and could dissolve the first time the FCC tries to enforce them.”
Big Internet Companies Oppose Proposed Net Neutrality Rules
“On Thursday, the Open Internet Coalition, a diverse interest group that represents Google, Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, Skype, Amazon, eBay, and scores of other internet-dependent companies, will run ads in two prominent Washington, D.C., publications — Politico and The Hill — expressing their displeasure with Chairman Genachowski’s new compromise rules.”
Bill T. Jones Co. Merges With NYC’s Dance Theater Workshop
“In an unusual move that may alter the contemporary dance landscape in New York, the boards of Dance Theater Workshop and the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company voted unanimously Wednesday to merge their organizations, forming a combination producing and presenting entity to be called New York Live Arts.”
New Zealand’s Orchestras Face Major Funding Shakeup
“Despite standing ovations in Europe, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra faces a possible shake-up after one of the most difficult times in its 64-year history. Documents reveal that the NZSO has been in talks with government agencies about its future and its relationship with the four regional orchestras,” which are all worried about their own funding.
‘Augmented Reality’ Smart Phone Apps Revolutionize Museum Audio Tours
“Smartphones can overlay digital content, like images or movies, across real spaces.” With the most advanced apps, visitors can “use their phones as lenses, allowing them to see otherwise invisible images – like sleek computer-generated sculptures or floating interviews with artists – on the screens as they … point their phones’ cameras at objects.”