Italy is negotiating with American museums over artifacts that may have been stolen. “The strategy is part of a broader offensive to crack down on stolen antiquities. Italy has gained additional clout – at least in terms of public awareness – from the current criminal trial of Marion True, a former curator at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, and of antiquities dealers with ties to top American museums. There has been a real change in the last year or so in how the Italians deal with the antiquities issue. They have become very creative.”
Tag: 12.26.05
NY Attorney General Takes On Recording Studios Over Downloading
New York’s attorney general has filed subpoenas against music recording studios in an investigation of price fixing for music downloads. “Music industry sources said the current probe appeared to center on whether the Big Four music studios — Warner, Sony Corp’s Sony BMG Music Entertainment, EMI Group and Vivendi’s Universal Music — colluded to set wholesale pricing for song downloads.”
Mom Fights RIAA Downloading Lawsuit
A New York mom is standing up to the recording industry which wants to sue her for illegal downloading. She says she hasn’t. “The woman from Wappingers Falls, about 80 miles north of New York City, is among the more than 16,000 people who have been sued for allegedly pirating music through file-sharing computer networks. The industry is demanding thousands of dollars to settle the case, but Santangelo, unlike the 3,700 defendants who have already settled, says she will stand on principle and fight the lawsuit.”
Who’s Buying Recordings? Older People!
“The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) report found 59% of over-50s had bought an album in the previous three months and 29% bought at least six CDs a year. Favourite artists include Il Divo, Rod Stewart, Tony Christie, Katherine Jenkins, G4 and Ronan Keating. The BPI said older music fans were driving a growth in sales. Nearly a quarter of all albums are bought by older music fans, and that percentage is set to grow as the UK population ages.”