Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) is trying to close the loop between music discovery and iTunes Store’s music purchasing, by injecting a brand new social network in to iTunes itself. Integrated in to new iTunes 10 and in to the iTunes Store app on iOS, “Ping” lets users “follow” friends to see…

Sony’s long-held ambition of providing a content service available to its game console and other devices is finally coming together. At the IFA show in Berlin on Wednesday, CEO Howard Stringer said the cloud-based *Sony* Online Services (SOLS) platform, which was hinted at in November, is being christened Qriocity, and…

There’s a comfortable routine with an Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) announcement. A week before the press conference, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company sends out invitations to the press. Reporters then work furiously to scour the internet to find a reasonably priced flight given the short notice. Next, the speculating begins as to…

It’s wrestled with legal issues, on-off label licenses and low income. Now in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the Playlist.com music service formerly run by Owen Van Natta owes $27.7 million to the major and indie labels for use of their songs. The figures are in a list of creditors obtained by…

Some of the stories people are talking about this morning:»  Dish Network (NSDQ: DISH) is launching a video portal, DishOnline.com, as part of its own “TV Everywhere” push. [NYT] »  TiVo (NSDQ: TIVO) is promising advertisers new measurements that combines traditional TV and online viewing audiences. Think TiVo’s service is…

Music video site Vevo has released a free app for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch—but a similar treatment for the iPad and Google’s Android is still in the works. The launch of the app is done with sponsorship from AT&T (NYSE: T), which is placed prominently on a social net…

EMI again isn’t detailing how much money it’s making from digital in latest earnings, but it is saying estimates for digital growth were too high and labels must ween themselves off iTunes Store…

Pink Floyd, which was fighting EMI in court to have only its full albums sold online, has now seen most of its material pulled offline anyway, after its EMI contract expired. Billboard says the contract expired on June 30.

Spotify’s partnerships SVP Paul Brown is leaving after 18 months with the music startup, saying his exit’s on good terms. “I wasn’t looking to leave. But this was an opportunity that came along and which I had to take,” Brown tells MusicWeek.

Songkick, a website that lists music gigs old and new and which lets attendees share their experiences, has struck an arrangement to syndicate concert listings to YouTube and Vevo. YouTube is using Songkick’s API to show upcoming nearby gigs to users of its music section and its Vevo music videos…

Ten years ago, three brothers in Germany founded Jamba, jumping head-first into the global fad of selling ringtones, which ultimately grew to be a billion-dollar industry. Since then, the well-known mobile content company has taken a number of twists and turns. Long story short, Jamba was acquired by News Corp…

Vevo and MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) are having difficulty coming to an agreement over whether Vevo can sell advertising around the Viacom network’s online music player, according to interviews with sources in both camps. As a result, UMG, one of the founding partners of Vevo, has pulled its artists’ videos…

He may still be declining specific comment on yet-to-be-announced future services, but Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. has gone further than ever to confirm reports Google (NSDQ: GOOG) will launch a mobile music offering. Asked by analysts specifically about the recent Google Music rumors, Bronfman Jr.…

Digital income is now only creeping up at Warner Music Group. For its Q3 ending June 30, group digital revenue grew only two percent since last year, to $179 million, and is a tenth down on the preceding three months.

		EPS*	Rev. vs Q210	Net Inc. vs Q210
WMG	Release		16%	48%

* vs. Analysts' Estimates: Beat Met Missed

Online music “club” eMusic has hired Adam Klein as its new CEO. Klein is a long-time digital media executive, who has overseen EMI’s digital strategy and also served as president at VideoEgg. He’s replacing current eMusic CEO Daniel Stein, who is staying on as chairman of the company and also…

Despite trying for over a year, Spotify has been beaten to U.S. launch by Rdio, the comparable online music start-up backed by Atomico Ventures’ Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, who earlier in their careers founded Skype and Kazaa.

Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM) has agreed to pay $111.6 million for the remaining 65 percent interest in PacketVideo that it did not already own to create new services that would allow users to share content easily between phones and other consumer electronics.

Some of the stories people are talking about this morning:»  The Washington Post Co. (NYSE: WPO) is desperate to unload Newsweek magazine—but not desperate enough sell to Avenue Capital Group because of worries related to the hedge fund’s plans to partner with the publisher of the National Enquirer. [WSJ] » …

Apple’s iTunes Store gave labels much-needed succor after its launch in 2003, slowing down big losses by replicating physical’s per-track purchase paradigm in digital. But now, even after many such services have abandoned copy locks, growth in downloads has largely flatlined, or even worse.