Apple and music label have high hopes that new music offerings will yield big profits.
There's some moving and shaking going on between Apple and the major music labels. Preceding the release of the new 3G iPhone, Apple is looking for new ways to cash in on its growing popularity. And music labels are hoping to get perks of their own, by haggling with Apple to loosen some of its long time policies which have irked the labels.
First, Apple and the labels are in talks for possible over-the-air downloads. Previously, the iPhone could not directly download songs via its cellular broadband network. However, thanks to faster speeds from the 3G networks, it should be possible at last to download songs on the go.
Standing in the way are the music labels who are arguing that Apple needs to pay a higher price for over-the-air downloads, as opposed to standard downloads. The labels current sell standard downloads wholesale for 70 cents, which Apple in turn resells on its iTunes store for 99 cents.
Both Apple and the labels are eager to cut a deal, though. Apple's recent deals have grown the total number of users reached by its carrier networks from 153 million to 575 million. Even if just a scant fraction of these users purchase the iPhone, it will represent an even more significant market to the labels as time goes on.
And Apple has concerns of its own. Many phone manufacturers are moving aggressively to push music compatible phones, many of which come with music packages. If Apple falls behind in its quality of offerings, it will likely pay the price in market share. Having already struggled with poor sales in the European market, Apple is eager to safeguard its back against competitors such as Nokia and Sony Ericsson.
Both Apple and the labels are also eager to expand their offerings for ringtones, a particularly lucrative market. Currently Apple offers a limited selection of ringtones via a 99-cent ringtone upgrade to various tracks on its iTunes store.
Apple also looks to expand its ringback selection. Ringbacks are like ringtones, except they play for the person calling your phone, in place of the standard "ring ring" noise. Ringbacks may command an even higher premium wholesale price than ringtones, raising the possibility of ring backs in the range of $2.49 or more. Some complain about the recording industry's creative pricing tactics for ringtones and ringbacks, but they keep selling relatively well.
The labels say that Apple is very eager to work towards a deal. Says one label executive involved in the talks, "They want a big launch in June."
Labels are taking the chance to use the negotiations as an opportunity to try to push Apple to let them adopt a more flexible price structure, as opposed to the current model, a flat price of 99 cents per song. Some fear this would lead to price gouging, but the major labels insist they would only charge more for new hit tracks, and would charge less than 99 cents for older tracks.
Apple does currently allow the labels to set their own prices for full album downloads. This allows the labels to employ a favored tactic, throwing in art, bonus tracks, and other content, in order to raise the price a few more dollars.
There is some evidence that Apple may consider loosening its price structure. It has allowed HBO to charge $2.99 for its TV episode downloads. All other TV downloads are priced at $1.99.
In a more unlikely side of talks, it is reported that Universal Music Group is pushing Apple to offer subscription music services. Such a plan could allow iPhone users with unlimited music from the labels for a one or two-year subscription period. Sources familiar with the talks say that the labels think the service is worth much more than Apple does, and they're unlikely to reach a compromise. However, if they did it could provide a competitor to the similar Nokia "Comes With Music" service that offers unlimited free downloads to keep. Apple will likely eye the success of this risky program, which has been criticized as unprofitable, before it makes any big moves.
5/24/08
Apple Hopes to Cash in With Ringtones, Music Downloads For iPhone
ASUS Looks to Tame Rivals With Atom-based Eee PC 901
ASUS readies yet another addition to the Eee PC family
Yesterday, DailyTech reported on MSI's new Wind notebook which will do battle with ASUS' Eee PC 900. The MSI Wind has a slightly larger footprint than the Eee PC 900, but adds such features as an 80GB 2.5" SATA HDD, 10" display, and Bluetooth (on the high-end version).
These features can all be had for the starting price of $399 according to MSI Director of U.S. Sales, Andy Tung. The pricing puts serious pressure on the 8.9" Eee PC 900 which is priced at $549.99.
With all the buzz on the internet turning towards MSI's Wind, it's not too surprising that pictures of a reinvigorated Eee PC 901 have "leaked" to the internet. Blogeee.net posted a number of new images depicting a more rounded and chrome-laden model.
As the name suggest, it appears that the Eee PC 901 will still soldier on with an 8.9" display instead of the forthcoming 10" display -- this would continue the precedent set by the Eee PC 701 (7" display) and the Eee PC 900 (8.9" display).
No other new information was provided other than the fact that the Eee PC 901 is equipped with Intel's Atom processor -- presumably the same 1.6GHz unit found under the hood of the MSI Wind. The pictures also show that ASUS finally wised up and moved the Kensington lock from directly adjacent to the VGA port to the opposite side of the machine unhindered. The dual-array microphone is now positioned under the screen (instead of on top like the Eee PC 900), and the machine also appears to have gained a few quick launch buttons above the keyboard.
Hopefully, the new Eee PC 901 will come with a lower price tag to compete with upcoming notebooks from MSI and Dell. However, ASUS may have to do some serious component and model shuffling to erase the $150 deficit between the current Eee PC 900 and the base $399 MSI Wind.
Building An "Iron Man" Pt. II: Jet-powered, Winged Flight
"It's just my job five days a week, A rocket man, a rocket man"; New technology brings superstrength, can more new technology bring exoskeleton based flight to complete the "Iron Man"?
The summer's hottest blockbuster is the superhero flick "Iron Man" which stars Robert Downey Jr. as weapons designer turned superhero Tony Stark. In part one of this two part series, we looked at the advances made in building exoskeletons, particularly Sarcos Inc.'s new Sarcos suit which can lift over 500 lbs, is maneuverable enough to handle stairs, and can run 30 minutes untethered.
Having a super-powered suit is great, but aside from his power, the comic book character "Iron Man" had two other key attributes -- speed and flight. Without it, Iron Man would go from a superhero, to just plain super slow.
Fortunately there are some promising technologies to give the exoskeleton fighting suit of the future super speed and flight. This article, the second part of this two part series, seeks to examine a couple of them.
First in the category of super speed comes the "rocket boots" from Russia, which after decades is nearing perfection. Videos of the boots can be viewed here (in Russian language) [1][2][3].
The boots also go by the names "Power Boots", "Seven League Boots", "Quickwalker Boots", or commonly "Saigak Boots". Saigak is Russian for a fast kind of elk.
The boots allow the user to run at up to 22 mph, with little fatigue, yet are delicate enough to climb stairs quickly. They also get 70 MPG. The boots are powered by tiny diesel/gas burning pistons. They can carry 1/3 of a cup of fuel and propel the user 3 miles. Using the boots, you can also jump much higher than the standard man.
Viktor Gordyev, a Russian who attended the University at Ufa in the Southern Urals, originally got the idea for the boots when sweating out laps in his college's physical education requirement in 1974. It is unclear exactly when they were invented and perfected, except that Gordyev's work was classified by the Soviet government. In 1994 the project was finally declassified, and Gordyev was able to market his work.
Unfortunately, his company went under in 2006, after a lack of interest from investors. A demonstration at Disney World in 1998 went nowhere due to safety concerns. Says a woeful Gardyev, "They don’t have characteristics that would allow an ordinary person to use them.... [using the shoes involves] taking certain risks. They should work like a Kalashnikov. Reliable in anybody’s hands."
Still, hopefully the U.S. military and/or investors might find some promise in the shoes. The future remains wide open.
Next up is the rocket pack. The rocket belt was originally invented in the 1960s by researcher William Suitor at Bell Aerosystems. The pack had a 21 second fuel limit, as well as weight restrictions, rendering it mostly useless. The first test flight was made by pioneer aviator Herald Graham in 1961.
After decades of little progress, a new company, Go Fast Sports and Beverage Company, is designing and marketing improved jetpacks. Their latest model will retail at $200,000, will have a flight time of 9 minutes, a maximum speed of 85 MPH, a service ceiling of 250 ft, and a pilot weight limit of 180 lbs. It is estimated that it will allow you to fly 11 miles on its 5-gallon tank and is powered by a T-73 turbine engine. As pilot Troy Widgery says, who tested the pack at a recent arena show, "Not bad."
While the pack obviously would not be sufficient for flight and additional weight tolerance would be needed to handle the 100+ lbs from the exoskeleton and other apparatus (boots), it would at least get you in the air and allow you to briefly hover.
Need to really fly like a jet, like Iron Man? That's where the third and fourth inventions this article details comes in. French inventor Yves Rossy, a former Swiss jet fighter pilot, and current commercial pilot has invented a human-mounted mini jet, earning him the title "Fusion Man".
The jet features carbon fiber wings spanning 2.5 m, with four mini jet engines using kerosene fuel. The engines have reached speeds of 190 MPH over the Swiss Alps, after a 8,000 ft jump out a plane.
The wings helped him fly for over 4 minutes, landing by parachute. Rossy describes it in French stating, roughly, "It's like there's a big handle in your back, and the good Lord takes you by it and shoves you through the air, it's fantastic!!"
At a recent demonstration flight for CNN.com he elated, "It's one thing to do it on one's own, but to be able to share it live today that's extraordinary."
Rossy plans to use the wings to cross the English Channel next year.
Finnish inventors first developed the wing suit, allow men to glide along through the air. The company that produces the suits Birdman Inc. has launched a new project, the Birdman Rocket Team. Their lead pilot Visa Parviainen in 2005 and since has donned rocket boots for test flights. The two jet engines attach burn a butane/propane mix, at a rate of half a liter per minute. They provide 16kgs of thrust.
The engines allow level flights as well as climbing. Stalls are no problem to recover from for the skilled pilot, such as Parviainen, thanks to the agility of the human body. Flights could last half a minute or more at high speeds.
While the Russian Rocket boots, the Go Fast Jetpack, the Jet Man wings, and the Finnish Bird suit/rocket boots represent disparate inventions that would add extra weight and complexity, if combined, together perhaps their successors could combine to provide an exoskeleton with flight capabilities, much like Iron Man in the movies. It certainly wouldn't be cheap, and obviously the extra weight from the exoskeleton would be extremely difficult to compensate for but the rate of recent advances its look more and more doable. Here's hoping.
Building An "Iron Man" Pt. I: Military Grade Exoskeleton
Real life technologies mimics the comic books with breakthroughs in human exoskeletons.
The summer's hottest blockbuster thus far has been Iron Man -- not even the runaway hit Grand Theft Auto IV could slow it down. The movie centers around a super hero using a high tech suit to perform heroic feats no ordinary man could. What's intriguing is just how close real life technology is to creating a slightly less insanely overpowered "Iron Man" suit.
In the first entry of a two part series, this article examines the developments in exoskeleton technology from an enterprising startup recently acquired by a major defense contractor. The exoskeleton starts with a simple concept -- while large war machines like tanks and armored personnel carriers (APCs) are mighty weapons, they lack the maneuverability of ground soldiers and provide a large target. However, ground soldiers lack the strength to carry sufficient stopping power to take on heavy vehicles.
Sarcos Inc. has taken this concept and run with it, producing a mature exoskeleton design that may just possibly lead to the first real life "Iron Man" suit. Sarcos comes from a decidedly non-militaristic background of designing robots for "Jurassic Park" rides at the Universal Studios theme park. However, the contractor quickly morphed into a military contractor embarking on an exciting new project -- the Sarcos Suit.
While athletic, Sarcos engineer Rex Jameson, standing at 5'11" is no superman. While he can press a modest 200 lbs on a good day, his strength is by no means superhuman. Until he puts on the Sarcos Suit that is. Gripping the claw-like hand guides of the exoskeleton, Jameson recently ripped off dozens of 500 lb presses at a recent demonstration of the suit.
The stunned audience eventually got bored, because Jameson just wasn't stopping, it was far too easy. Says Jameson, "Everyone gets bored much more quickly than I get tired."
The experience proved an exciting demo of the 150 lb suit's potential to give the soldier of the future superpowers. The U.S. Army, which is funding Sarcos, hopes that the technology will be used on the battlefield. It has given Sarcos a $10 million, two-year contract to develop the suit. Initial applications will be off the battlefield and will include heavy lifting and cargo operations.
The suit works on a basic level by detecting the user's every movement and amplifying it. The suit currently has a rather impressive 30 minute battery life, and can operate indefinitely tethered to a power cord. Sarcos hopes to extend the battery life so that the suit can operate for longer periods of time on the battlefield. They also hope to bring down the cost, which is currently rather high.
Stephen Jacobsen, chief designer of the Sarcos suit, says that human muscle movement amplification, a frequent comic fantasy, has become a reality. He states, "Everybody likes the idea of being a superhero, and this is all about expanding the capabilities of a human."
While the army started exoskeleton research as early as 1995, the Sarcos suit is the first major success to date. The suit so impressed Waltham, Massachusetts-based defense contracting giant Raytheon, that it bought Sarcos Inc. this past November.
Jack Obusek, a former colonel now employed in the Army's Soldier Research Development and Engineering Center, foresees the suits initially providing invaluable support. From loading heavy ammo crates, to fixing tanks in the battlefield that would otherwise have to be scrapped to prevent American tank from falling into enemy hands, the potential is enormous he feels.
Jacobsen adds that the technology may also serve home-front uses, helping construction workers build, helping firemen carry gear inside burning houses, and helping disabled people move more freely. Jacobsen states, "We see the value being realized when these suits can be built in great numbers for both military and commercial uses, and they start coming down in cost to within the range of the price of a small car."
While Jacobsen declines to estimate an exact price for the mass-produced version of the suit, the "price of a small car" comment seems exciting indeed. However, certainly such a possibility would raise questions of restrictions, as having a host of super-power endowed citizens might lead to dangerous possibilities.
Meanwhile Sarcos is concentrating on the power issue. While noisy, Sarcos says a gas engine is one possibility. A small gas engine could fit inside the suits backpack, they say. Obusek states, "The power issue is probably the No. 1 challenge standing in the way of getting this thing in the field."
Obusek says that while fine-tuning is still needed, the good news is Sarcos seems to have overcome the challenge of amplifying muscle movements by pairing super-fast microprocessors to detect joint movement with powerful mechanics. The system processes its data in a central computer and then actuates powerful hydraulic valves, which mimics the human body's tendons in a natural, but powered up movement.
The suit lags slightly behind human response times. Obusek states, "With all the previous attempts at this technology, there has been a slight lag time between the intent of the human, and the actual movement of the machine."
In a demonstration, Jameson was able to bounce a soccer ball off his helmeted head, punch a punching bag (not as fast as a boxer, but at a reasonable pace), and slowly ascend a flight of stairs.
Jameson says the suit takes a bit of getting used to. He states, "It feels less agile than it is. Because of the way the control laws work, it's ever so slightly slower than I am. And because we are so in tune with our bodies' responses, this tiny delay initially made me tense."
However, he quickly adapted and has discovered that the human body uses the suit in unforeseen ways. He explains, "I can regain my balance naturally after stumbling -- something I discovered completely by accident. It takes no special training, beyond learning to relax and trust the robot."
While the suit can't fly, it could certainly lug some impressive firepower on the battlefield someday with a few modifications. As to the flying, stay tuned for part two of making a real life "Iron Man".
