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Music Labels Working On Digital Album Format

Nerdfest writes to mention that just weeks after Apple announced their new "Cocktail" digital album project, the four big record companies are moving forward with their own project dubbed "CMX." The new digital album will feature songs, lyrics, videos, liner notes, and artwork. "However, this may be of little interest if CMX isn't compatible with iTunes, the default music software for iPods, iPhones and Apple computers. Whereas labels are eager to resuscitate the album format in an age of singles, Apple is concerned with selling hardware, including a tablet computer rumored to be launching this fall. The major labels plan to launch CMX, which is just a working title for the format, in November. It will reportedly be 'soft-launched' with a few select releases."

16 of 250 comments (clear)

  1. Open formats by Nerdfest · · Score: 2, Funny

    Here's hoping that any format battle leads to an open format. We don't need another format that must be licensed or a fragmented market. There's no word in the article about whether or not either format supports or requires DRM.

  2. Really?!?! by Spewns · · Score: 3, Funny

    "songs, lyrics, videos, liner notes, and artwork". Brilliant! Although I think I found a better technology for this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tar_(file_format)

  3. My digital album format by RDW · · Score: 5, Funny

    Sounds like both Apple and the Major Labels are infringing on my patented Digital Album Format. The working project title is 'Directory', but it looks like I'll now need a TLA to compete with Big Media - 'DIR'? DIR can hold any reasonable number of 'tracks', or even multiple albums and movies, each of which is 'tagged' with all the relevant data and album artwork, and all of which are already compatible with iTunes! Recently I've also implemented 'a brand new look, with a launch page and all the different options.' Like CMX, 'When you click on it you're not just going to get the 10 tracks, you're going to get the artwork, the video and mobile products'. Obviously I can't give away too many details at this point, but I can tell you that I'm thinking of calling the DIR launch page 'index.html'.

    1. Re:My digital album format by Kratisto · · Score: 5, Funny

      Your technology sounds extremely promising, but how do you plan to keep track of multiple DIR files? I've invented a technology that we're calling "Folder" around the office. With it, we can create complex trees of digitally organized music, video, and even ebooks. The major advantage here is that you can use "Folder" to create repositories for all your digital media ranging in specificity from artists down to albums. You can even launch the media directly from your "Folder" viewer with two clicks! We expect the major bugs to be worked out fairly soon, and you might see "Folder" on your computer in the first quarter 2010.

      --
      Conscience is the inner voice which warns us that someone may be looking.
    2. Re:My digital album format by TheGreenNuke · · Score: 5, Funny

      I like your idea for the technology you call "Folder". Mind if i expand on that an create what I'll call a "Library"? This "Library" will be a user-defined collection on files portraying the data independent of your "Folder" tree. the User will be able to group and flatten the tree however they desire by aggregating multiple physical locations into a single view. If you can get your "Folder" technology together in time I'd like to go for an official release in late October 2009 for my "Library" technology.

    3. Re:My digital album format by snowdropper · · Score: 2, Funny

      Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

  4. Just curious... by danwesnor · · Score: 3, Funny

    ... but was the Apple tablet dragged into this article just because Slashdot is the only site not spreading that rumor?

  5. Leaked CMX details! by Jugalator · · Score: 5, Funny

    The music track will use the Ogg Vorbis format, included videos using Ogg Theora, liner notes and lyrics being XML formatted with various included XSLT stylesheets for 10 different attractive layouts as chosen by the artists, as opposed to the music label! The CMX sales will be supported by donations and revenue reaped from immense sales of concert tickets, thanks to naked girls performing in the pauses as they serve Ubuntu Cola!

    --
    Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
    1. Re:Leaked CMX details! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      +1 Arousing

  6. Re:cant wait... by corychristison · · Score: 3, Funny

    I've got a feeling it will all be Compressed Win32 Binaries.

    Because _nothing_ can go wrong with that... right?

  7. Re:A few predictions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    1..n) Numerous ways how CMX will used to annoy the consumer unnecessarily.
    n+1) CMX will be a failure.
    n+2) Years later, labels realize that CMX is a failure.
    n+ever) Labels get why it is so and correct their behavior.

  8. There's already a digital album format... by Entropius · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... it's very popular and easy to use, has an open specification, and allows users to convert easily into formats playable on all popular music players.

    The spec is at http://www.aboutthescene.com/images/scenerules_mp3_2007_v2.png .

  9. Re:A few predictions by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 5, Funny

    Unfortunately, to a music industry exec, your post looks something like this:

    "Blah, blah, geeky whinging, blah blah, yada yada Mandatory 30+ Second Anti-Piracy Video kids these days.... iTunes... foo blah, etc Album.

    Branded Experience!

    Blah, blah, mumble, blah. foo winge"

    They'll definitely fuck this one up.

  10. Re:A few more predictions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    CMX will:

    - require an "evil bit permanently on" secure audio path to the secure cranial speaker implants, available only under Windows 7 SP19 or later;

    - use a new lossy audio coding technique developed with the express purpose of producing an ear-splitting 6 kHz square wave tone and sounding as hideous as possible when transcoded to another format (still, some tin-eared audiofools will still say they can't hear the difference);

    - require that the playback device be permanently on-line with RIAA servers via rootkit for user biometrics validation every 20 msec and reporting of usage statistics

    - only be available as super-compressed re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-re-remasters with 4 dB dynamic range;

    - cost a minimum of $14.99/track/minute;

    - sound like shit;

    - be nothing but a bad memory by 2012...

  11. Re:A few predictions by grub · · Score: 2, Funny

    You forgot:
    n+3) years: RIAA blames piracy for the failure of CMX and contributes heavily to politicians for new laws.

    .

    --
    Trolling is a art,
  12. Re:Still failing to grasp their audience by tygerstripes · · Score: 2, Funny

    LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!!!

    --
    Meta will eat itself