Pink Floyd members reunite to slam Pandora

PCWorld - Call it another brick in the wall. The surviving members of the band Pink Floyd have slammed Pandora for its support of an Internet radio bill that the rockers say would lead to an huge pay cut for musicians.

“It’s a matter of principle for us,” the musicians wrote in an editorial published over the weekend in the USA Today newspaper. “We hope that many online and mobile music services can give fans and artists the music they want, when they want it, at price points that work. But those same services should fairly pay the artists and creators who make the music at the core of their businesses.”

The editorial was signed by Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and Nick Mason—the surviving members of the band. Vocalist Syd Barrett died in 2006 and keyboardist Richard Wright died in 2008.

Background

The bill, called the Internet Radio Fairness Act, has been promoted as a way to fix inconsistencies in the royalty rates paid by Internet radio providers. The legislation was put on hold following its introduction before Congress last year but is expected to be revived in this year’s session.

With each new form of radio, including cable and satellite, legislation has been passed to address royalty rates for the new medium, but proponents of the bill say the law hasn’t yet caught up with Internet radio, putting it at a disadvantage.   More

Spotify, Slacker, or Pandora: Which Streaming Music Service Is Right For You?

PCWorld - There are numerous venues by which entertainment seekers can listen to free music online that won’t incur the wrath of the RIAA. Spotify, Slacker, Pandora and a sea of other streaming music services serve up a mix of quality audio that lets you tune into your favorite bands. With the sheer number of options available, selecting a streaming music service can prove quite a difficult task.

We’ve taken it upon ourselves to help guide you toward the streaming music site that bests suits you. On the surface these streaming music sites simply deliver audio through the internet, but if you dig a little deeper you’ll discover that the various services each have their own unique traits that appeal to the different segments of the listening population.

If you’re curious about which streaming music service bests fits your needs, check out our guide which will point you in the right direction. We highlight which streaming music services are best for music downloaders, station tweakers, passive listeners, social networkers, and our core audience—nerds.

From Spotify to Jango, we’ve got you covered. All of these stations play music, but depending on the selected station, you can fire up comedy if you’re in the mood for stand up, and news channels if you want to stay on top of global happenings. Those with more eclectic tastes can even dive into anime and video game soundtracks . Feel free to chime in with streaming music station suggestions of your own in the comment section below.

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