radio stations

Hulu Makes Its First Move Outside the U.S., Courtesy of a Reality Show You Don’t Know

Peter Kafka in Media on December 18, 2009 at 3:00 am PT

Hulu is a big hit in the U.S. But even though the video site has spent a year trying to gain a foothold in other countries, you still can’t see it anywhere else. This should change early next year, but in the most limited way. Hulu plans to let users in the U.K., and most likely, other countries, access its U.S. site to watch a single show: The made-for-the-Web reality series, “If I Can Dream.”

Voices

Grammy Judges Vet Nominees Online

Marisa Taylor, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on October 14, 2009 at 2:35 pm PT

Grammy judges will be listening to the upcoming award nominees online, thanks to a partnership with Yangaroo, a Canadian media-distribution start-up. The company’s technology encrypts music files with a watermark and lets record labels share them securely with radio stations and other destinations. The watermark allows Yangaroo to identify each person who has downloaded a track, so if a song is leaked, it can trace its origin.

Apple’s iTunes 9 Makes it Easier to Share, Organize

Walt Mossberg in Personal Technology on September 16, 2009 at 6:04 pm PT

Walt Mossberg reviews Apple’s free iTunes 9 update, which has two outstanding features: Home Sharing and an easier way to organize your library.

Surprise! Congress Helps the Britney Bailout Move Ahead.

Peter Kafka in Media on May 13, 2009 at 3:09 pm PT

I’m still skeptical that “The Performance Rights Act,” which would require radio stations to pay musicians–or at least, music labels–whenever they play one of their recordings, will ever get through Congress. Not because it’s a bad idea, mind you, but because the music business seems like an unlikely candidate for Washington aid. The bill, however, did take one big step forward today.