Month: December 2017

ISP Disclosures About Data Caps and Fees Eliminated by Net Neutrality Repeal

Jason Tate

Jon Brodkin, writing at Ars Technica:

Because advertised prices often don’t reflect the full cost of service, the Federal Communications Commission in 2015 forced ISPs to be more transparent with customers about hidden fees and the consequences of exceeding data caps. The new requirements were part of the net neutrality rules—and are therefore going to be eliminated when the FCC votes to repeal the rules next week.

While FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is proposing to keep some of the commission’s existing disclosure rules and to impose some new disclosure requirements, ISPs won’t have to tell consumers exactly what everything will cost when they sign up for service.

Sigh.

Brian Fallon Talks About ‘Sleepwalkers’

Brian Fallon
Jason Tate

Brian Fallon recently at down with Upset Magazine to talk about his new album:

Due for release in February, Sleepwalkers was recorded over the summer of 2017 with ’59 Sound producer Tedd Hutt. Despite the familiar faces, Fallon is still trying to push the way he writes songs in new directions. “I had these handclaps loops like drum loops. So I would start out with that kind of shuffle and look at it through the eyes of the punk rock that I grew up on and then add the Vox Continental [organ], writing riffs on that and almost using that riff as a loop, which I’ve never done before.”

“The record flipped a little bit from the more folk-oriented thing on Painkillers to a more R&B, punk-leaning thing. It’s such a drastic shift that you’ve got to get some different people and some new blood sometimes to do that because it requires a different finesse and a different perspective.”

Spoiler: I’m a fan, I think it’s a nice, confident step up from Painkillers.

Reports: YouTube to Launch New Music Subscription Service in March

YouTube
Jason Tate

Lucas Shaw, writing at Bloomberg:

YouTube plans to introduce a paid music service in March, according to people familiar with the matter, a third attempt by parent company Alphabet Inc. to catch up with rivals Spotify and Apple Inc.

The new service could help appease record-industry executives who have pushed for more revenue from YouTube. Warner Music Group, one of the world’s three major record labels, has already signed on, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private talks. YouTube is also in talks with the two others, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group, and Merlin, a consortium of independent labels, the people said.

YouTube is already the de facto music service for a pretty large number of people. Can you get them to start paying for their music consumption? Seems like it’s not a new service those people are looking for, they like browsing and listening to music on YouTube.