Clear Channel Buys Patent For Instant Live CDs

An anonymous reader writes "According to this Rolling Stone article, and this article at P2P, everyone's favorite monopolist, Clear Channel, is bullying DiscLive and other companies in the available-after-the-concert live CD business by forbidding them from operating in their venues. Looking at the actual Clear Channel patent itself, it's obvious that, unlike what is said by their Instant Live program head Steve Simon, their patent is very specific, and doesn't cover all media types and all onsite production, so isn't CC just standing behind a bogus patent to continue to act like a monopolist? Anyone have prior art to invalidate their patent?"

Comments

The myth of the Clear Channel monopoly

[Anonymous Coward]

Once you look at the facts, you will see that there is nothing to the claim of Clear Channel's monopoly or dominance.

They control about 1,200 radio stations. That seems like a lot until you realize that there are around 20,000 radio stations in the U.S. This means that they control around 6% of stations. 6% is nothing like a monopoly. If Microsoft controlled 6% of computer desktops, who would be complaining?

Second, they don't even control radio in major markets. If you check, market by market, they sometimes have as many as 1/4 or 1/3 of the stations in major cities. Again, this is well short of a monopoly.

If you don't like Clear Channel, turn the dial.

Re:Hello? Microsoft?

[b-baggins]

A massive, monopolistic radio conglomerate with a staggering 17% of all radio stations in the country. They use their ovewhelming market share of 17% to dictate policy and totaly throttle the business practices of the remaining 83% of the market.

They are able to do this because liberals have given them the title of MONOPOLIST, which, of course, as we all know, is a magic word that immediately endows the entity upon which it is bestowed with god-like political and market powers.