Internet royalty wars...
Man your battle stations Viacom, Google & NPR. Billions of dollars are at stake in 2 key battles over Internet royalties. On Tuesday Sumner Redstone's Viacom filed a $1 billion lawsuit against YouTube and its parent company Google in an ongoing copyright infringement battle that has just begun. Redstone and new CEO Philippe Dauman, both lawyers by trade are the executives behind the suit. Their beef? They claim that 160,000 unauthorized clips of Viacom programming (from Comedy Central and MTV) have been viewed illegally on YouTube about, oh, about a billion and a half times. Google says yeah right! Google has a war chest of $200 million to defend YouTube with. Stay tuned...
Major web conflict #2 concerns the raising of royalties Internet radio stations are obligated to pay to performers of the music they play. NPR is the first radio group to take exception to the increase, calling it a "damaging decision for public radio" which enjoys a non-profit status. The new rates by the way, are at least 20 times more than what stations have paid in the past. NPR is filing a petition tomorrow for consideration with the *CRJ panel which will state "we ask that the online royalties be returned to their historic arrangement and that public radio can continue to provide its vital service to music discovery."...
Both of these actions will take years, maybe even longer than it will take for Pete Rose to be reinstated to baseball. Oh wait, that's never! Stay tuned...
*Copyright Royalty Judges
There are 2 video links, contained in the 'Recorded on this date' and 'American Hot Wax' timelines...A legendary New York radio disc jockey sends us an e-mail in today's Commentary...
Timeline Memories...
"Happy Trails": 1975] Aristotle Onasis, husband of former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, dies of bronchial pneumonia at 69...1998] Child care expert Dr. Benjamin Spock dies at 94 from natural causes...
"Beware the Ides of March": 44BC] Roman dictator Julius Caesar is assassinated by a group of nobles that include Brutus and Cassius...
"I'll be bahhhhk": 1493] Christopher Columbus returns to Spain concluding his 1st voyage to the Western Hemisphere. He brings back gifts to the Queen that include a seeded rye and Hebrew National salami...
Pay for play: 1869] The Cincinnati Red Stockings become the 1st professional baseball team (with each player receiving a salary with more for Pete Rose so that he'll be behind his team). To celebrate they beat Antioch College 41-7...
It just looks like a shower curtain: 1892] New York State unveils the new automatic ballot voting machine which we're still using until those new machines arrive any election now...
Going Up?: 1892] Jesse W. Reno of New York City patents the Reno Inclined Elevator - the escalator to you and I...
Parlez vous: 1919] The American Legion is founded in Paris. Huh? Was the French Foreign Legion founded in America?...
Recorded on this date: 1954] The record that many believe is the 1st Rock and Roll song, "Sh-boom" is recorded by The Chords (that version will reach the Pop Top Ten but the cover by the Crew-Cuts will go to #1)...1955] "Ain't That A Shame" - Fats Domino (Here's a clip of Fats doing the song from the 1956 movie "Shake, Rattle & Rock": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm8YpHd4_Is )...
This colonel doesn't sell fried chicken: 1956] Colonel Tom Parker becomes Elvis Presley's manager...
Grammy Gold: 1966] 'Record of the Year': "A Taste of Honey" - Herb Alpert, LP: "September of my Years" - Frank Sinatra and 'Best New Artist': Tom Jones...
Going to Hall: 1999] Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then lead a jam session on stage...
"American Hot Wax": 1978] The movie about Alan Freed premieres...(Here's a clip from the movie of Chuck Berry performing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CK3z8-yYqY )...
Debuted on this date: 1954] CBS-TV debuts it's "Morning Show" and any day now viewers will discover it...1956] Lerner & Loewe's "My Fair Lady" opens at the Mark Hellinger Theater on Broadway...1965] T.G.I.F.(Fridays) 1st restaurant opens in New York City...1977] "Eight is Enough" debuts on ABC-TV (Tom & Joan Bradford & the entire Bradford clan entertain us until August of 1981)...2002] Burger King adds a veggie burger to their menu (unfortunately they use trans fats to cook it in)...
Wedding Bells: 1964] Richard Burton becomes victim #5 for Elizabeth Taylor. These two lovebirds are married for 10 years (64-74) and for another year (75-76) before finally calling it quits...
An offer you can't refuse: 1972] "The Godfather" opens. The film will sweep the Academy Awards winning for 'Best Picture', 'Best Actor' (Brando) and 'Best Screenplay' (Coppola and Puzo)...
The immortal #4: 1970] Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins becomes the 1st NHL defensemen to score 100 points...
The Dean: 1997] North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith passes the legendary Adolph Rupp as the winningest college coach in history with his 877th win. Only recently was Smith's record broken by Bobby Knight...
"Guilty as Charged": 2002] In Texas Andrea Yates receives a life sentence for drowning her 5 children in June, 2001. In July, 2006 a jury ruled Yates 'guilty by reason of insanity' and she was committed to a state hospital in Texas where she is today...
Not 'a good thing': 2004] Martha Stewart resigns from the board of her own company, 10 days after being convicted in a stock scandal...
[To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...
Commentary...
An e-mail from the legendary Dandy Dan Daniel: "Enjoy your blog every day. Your RKO-Boston memories are special. Nothing is more magic and electric than knowing you own the city, you love the people you work with and nobody wants to go home. Everyone in radio should have that experience at least once. Thanks for a good read." - DDD3 (Thanks so much Triple D. Your kind words mean a lot to me. I hope you're enjoying life, regards to Rosemary - Mel)...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Eva Longoria (32), Mark McGrath (39), Terence "Wishing Well" Trent D'Arby (45), Fabio (46), Sly Stone (63), Mike Love (66), Jimmy Swaggart (72), Judd Hirsch (72) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (74)...
Timeline Countdown: "March Madness" starts today, good luck with your brackets, 6 days until spring and 17 days until Opening Day...
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