July 16 - 3:45pm EDT   eMusic will try to improve its standing against iTunes and fellow web-based store Amazon MP3 soon by adding a social component to the music, the music service's chief David Pakman tells Fortune. Taking advantage of the need to buy music through the web portal, eMusic hopes to draw in buyers by providing deeper and constantly changing artist info through Web 2.0 sites. Musicians will frequently have Wikipedia pages for their biographies as well as relevant Flickr photo albums and YouTube videos. [full story]

June 30 - 7:20am EDT   Real this morning opened a test version of the Rhapsody MP3 Store, its first store to go without copy protected files. The MTV co-owned outlet is web-based and, unlike the company's subscription service, promises to work with any computer or device, including iPods; a Mac download manager is available to let users download all their songs as a complete package, Real says. The company has also successfully secured the catalogs of all four major music labels. [full story]

June 11 - 4:30pm EDT   Microsoft's Office Labs division is testing an internal Facebook-like social network, today's reports say. The company's TownSquare social site, still in prototype form, has already been used by about 8,000 Microsoft employees and provides updates about colleagues, including major occasions and promotions. The software works in conjunction with MS SharePoint to get public information on employees, and can notify employees when files are modified. Employees can also check which other employees are accessing their information. While employees aren’t required to use the site, about 700 use it daily. [full story]

May 21 - 2:50pm EDT   Americans browse the web on their cellphones almost twice as often as their British counterparts even without the help of web-friendly devices like the iPhone, according to a new study by M:Metrics. Despite the reputation of Europeans as more openly embracing smartphones, Americans in March were known to spend an average of four hours and 38 minutes per month on websites using their phones versus almost exactly two and a half hours for British users. The difference is largely attributed to the prevalence of flat-rate data plans in the US, which give customers either a block of data or unlimited access instead of the metering that more often exists in Europe. [full story]

May 9 - 6:30pm EDT   Facebook is preparing to launch Facebook Connect within the next few weeks, a service designed to compete with MySpace Data Availability. According to TechCrunch, this is Facebook's first attempt at creating a new version of its API for third party websites, allowing users to link to their Facebook profile, friends, and privacy to a website. The website can also use features from the Facebook Platform to enhance functionality and personalization. [full story]

May 7 - 1:45pm EDT   Microsoft has been exploring the possibility of buying out Facebook, journalist Kara Swisher claims. Her report cites sources who allege that Microsoft is delivering "subtle signals" to the social network via bankers to gauge if the company is interested in a takeover. No talks have been reported between the two, though some at the companies believe Facebook is likely to remain on its current track to becoming a publicly traded company rather than accepting a private deal. [full story]

April 3 - 11:00am EDT   MySpace's frequently rumored music download store could launch as early as today, according to a rumor put forward by CNET. The publication claims to know sources who say that an initial announcement is planned that will expand the site's currently hands-off music section into a service that offers a combination of downloads and streams. Mirroring past stories, the feature would allegedly let users either pay to download full MP3 songs and ringtones or else stream songs for free on the web. Users could also buy their concert tickets directly from the site. [full story]

March 25 - 12:00pm EDT   Yahoo today said it would both join Google's OpenSocial and that it would help found the OpenSocial Foundation, a new collaboration that involves Google as well as MySpace. The move would see Yahoo ensure that any social networking elements it develops can be ported between any OpenSocial-based social network and that the platform will be protected in the future. The Foundation will ensure that OpenSocial remains neutral and dictated by the public rather than controlled by any one company, according to its launch partners. [full story]

March 5 - 8:35am EST   Facebook is investigating the possibility of its own music store, say reported insiders. While the social network recently launched its Music on Facebook service for following artists and buying their music through iTunes, the company is reportedly in talks with major labels to offer content of its own. While no aspects of the deal have been finalized, label officials reportedly say that a deal would most likely include free, ad-backed streaming audio similar to MySpace's profile pages but allow paid MP3 downloads usable on any operating system and portable player. [full story]

February 29 - 1:45pm EST   Facebook yesterday unveiled a section dedicated to musicians, designed to allow them to create profiles that demonstrate their music, videos, photos, and miscellaneous data. According to The Hollywood Reporter, artists can provide songs for streaming, a full discography, and sell tickets or merchandise, the latter of which is made available by Musictoday. Music that is posted in this manner also includes a link to allow users to buy tracks from the iTunes store. [full story]

February 20 - 8:45am EST   MySpace is currently in talks to create a music service that would offer both free and paid service, according to alleged leaks from those familiar with the negotiations. The social networking site is reportedly securing rights from all four major music labels for a simply-titled MySpace Music service that would allow it both to provide free, streaming music from its pages as well as paid MP3 tracks; the cost of the former would be offset by the advertising that already forms a staple of the company's web pages. [full story]

February 19 - 4:05pm EST   Best known for his DeCSS routine that bypassed DVD encryption, Jon Lech Johansen and his startup company doubleTwist today launched a new utility they hope will all but eliminate the restrictions that normally block transferring music and videos between devices. Just referred to as doubleTwist Desktop, the app is designed to share and sync media regardless of the format and uses intelligent converters to produce more universal formats out of sometimes proprietary files. [full story]

February 12 - 10:35am EST   Yahoo today used Mobile World Congress as the platform for the release of oneConnect, a new service both for its mobile website and for its Yahoo Go 3.0 mobile portal. The front-end is designed to eliminate the isolation that often exists between most forms of communication on cellphones and online services: a widget interface provides access to multiple common webmail services such as Gmail or Yahoo's own service, while both instant messaging and SMS text messaging across multiple networks can be merged into a single, iChat-like interface that boasts threaded conversations. [full story]

February 6 - 9:05am EST   In the wake of yesterday's 16GB upgrade announcement, Apple has released two new TV commercials for the iPhone. Both concentrate not on the device itself, but rather on popular websites that have been given customized iPhone interfaces. The first is dedicated to Facebook, and shows a person browsing news, profiles and pictures; it claims that the iPhone is perfect for people who cannot stop checking Facebook at their computer, since they can now check it anywhere. [full story]

February 1 - 9:20am EST   Microsoft has been discussing the possibility of buying out Yahoo for a year and a half, the company has confirmed during a conference call discussing its proposed $44.6 billion deal. Confirming longstanding rumors, company PSD president Kevin Johnson says that Microsoft has been in an "off and on" discussion with Yahoo for 18 months. The search engine giant simply said roughly a year ago that it was not a good time to discuss an acquisition, Microsoft claims. The latter says it continues to believe a deal would be important to boosting the importance of search and expanding social platforms. Search is not just about "ten blue links" anymore, Johnson explains. Notably, ... [full story]