Laura Sydell

Songwriters' Group Calls Pandora's Radio Station Buy A Stunt

Laura Sydell — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 09:28:00 +0000

This week, the Internet radio broadcaster Pandora made what seems like a backward move — technologically speaking. Pandora purchased a local radio station in Rapid City, S.D. The company says it's aiming to get the more favorable royalty rates given to terrestrial broadcasters, but the move has songwriters and composers up in arms.

Blake Morgan is an independent musician whose "Better Angels" was among a number of his songs that got some 28,000 plays on Pandora.

Apple's Music Streaming Service Smaller Than Anticipated

Laura Sydell — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 21:25:00 +0000

Transcript

MELISSA BLOCK, HOST:

Now to another topic in tech. Today, Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference launched in San Francisco. The company made a slew of announcements: new MacBooks, a new operating system, and the most anticipated announcement - Apple's entry into the streaming music market with iTunes Radio. But as NPR's Laura Sydell reports, many analysts are underwhelmed.

LAURA SYDELL, BYLINE: The hype around Apple getting into the Internet radio biz was so intense that it sent rival Pandora's stock plunging.

Apple: Price-Fxing Charges 'Not True'

Laura Sydell — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 09:30:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Lawyers for Apple will be back in court today, defending the company against government charges that it conspired with publishers to fix eBook prices. All the major publishing houses settled months ago with the Justice Department.

But as NPR's Laura Sydell reports, Apple's lawyer told the court the company won't settle because it did nothing wrong.

LAURA SYDELL, BYLINE: In his opening statement, a very poised Mark Ryan, the Justice Department Attorney, brought in Jobs' statements and emails before and after the opening of the iBook store.

With New Xbox, Microsoft Makes A Bigger Play For Living Room

Laura Sydell — Mon, 20 May 2013 21:28:00 +0000

Microsoft hasn't exactly had a great couple of years.

Its new Windows 8 operating system was held responsible for the drop in PC sales last quarter. Sales of its Windows Phones lag far behind both the iPhone and Google's Android phones.

The light in the darkness for Microsoft has been the Xbox 360, which has been the top-selling game console for over two years — beating out both the Nintendo Wii and Sony's PlayStation.

Google Launches A Streaming Music Service

Laura Sydell — Wed, 15 May 2013 21:32:00 +0000

The competition for your ears — and dollars — just got a little tougher. On Wednesday, Google launched a paid music subscription service that will put it in direct competition with other streaming services like Spotify and Pandora. The announcement may just be the beginning for Google.

As it gets easier to access the Internet, more fans are streaming their music — not downloading it.

Consumers Facing Subscription Service Overload Will Only Get More Choices

Laura Sydell — Thu, 09 May 2013 07:33:00 +0000

YouTube is expected to announce in the coming days that it will launch paid subscription channels, a first for the online video platform that's been around since 2005. But, with the growing number of subscription services available for entertainment, shopping and news, some consumers say they're reaching digital subscription overload.

Mary Gaughan and her husband get near that point when they think about what movie or TV show they want to watch on free evenings at home. "Where do we get it?

Blazing The Trail For Female Programmers

Laura Sydell — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 07:25:00 +0000

This story is part of our series, The Changing Lives of Women.

Sarah Allen has been the only woman on a team of computer programmers a few times in the more than two decades she has worked in the field.

Crowdsourcing Creativity At The Cinema

Laura Sydell — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 06:57:00 +0000

These days, if they can't find a producer to fund their latest film, a lot of artists turn to crowdsourcing sites like Kickstarter to raise money for production.

But here's a new twist: a project headed up by director Ron Howard that is crowdsourcing the inspiration.

Directors get a lot of credit for great films. Hitchcock, Goddard, Scorsese, Bigelow — they're auteurs, creative visionaries. On that list, some might also include Howard, who directed such films as Apollo 13, The Da Vinci Code and A Beautiful Mind.

'Bioshock Infinite': A First-Person Shooter, A Tragic Play

Laura Sydell — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 21:17:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRjNMQZ1qBk

T-Mobile: Adds iPhone Ditches 2-Year Contracts

Laura Sydell — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 08:40:00 +0000

T-Mobile announced Tuesday that it's eliminating its two-year contracts in an effort to make its plans more transparent. Subscribers can pay off their phones in two years, and the cost of their plans will go down. T-Mobile is currently the No. 4 carrier.