Arlington, Va. – The U.S. Army said it has launched a new
iPhone app and mobile website as part of its Army Strong Stories blogging and
storytelling platform. The new tools, meant to engage potential recruits
through social media channels, offer portable access to site content, while
also allowing users to share their own Army stories, post comments and learn
more about Army service and careers.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4qhhroy

http://www.goarmy.com

New York – Indaba Music, a provider of online music
collaboration applications, announced on Tuesday that it has named former Sony
Music executive J.J. Rosen as its new chief executive. Rosen previously was
executive vice president of Sony Music Entertainment’s commercial music group,
joining Sony in 2002 after the label acquired his mobile entertainment
start-up, Run Tones. Indaba also said that last week it appointed artist Queen
Latifah as co-chair of its board of directors.

Related Links:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110301005449/en

http://www.indabamusic.com

Santa Clara, Calif. – Rovi announced on Tuesday that it will
combine its various music, TV and film informational databases onto one site,
to be called AllRovi.com. The site will include all of the content currently
available on AllMusic.com, which powers artist bios and album reviews for
services including iTunes and Pandora.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/47vjwf8

http://www.allrovi.com

New York – Canadian film studio Lionsgate is considering a
sale of some of its digital assets, including video ad network Break Media, its
share in pay-TV venture EPIX, TVGuide.com and FearNet, the New York Post
reported.

The assets could fetch as much as $800 million, with Break Media
potentially to be valued at $500-$600 million, a source told the Post.

The company said last month that it would seek to divest non-core assets.

In
related news, Lionsgate Digital on Tuesday announced that its first original
online series, "Trailer Trash," will debut exclusively on the Hulu
video portal on March 7.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/46eo6eg
(N.Y. Post)

http://www.lionsgate.com

New York – Publisher Random House has announced that it will
transition to an "agency model" for e-book pricing, whereby it will
now set prices for consumers, and provide a commission to third-party retailers
like Amazon and Apple’s iBookstore, Ars Technica reports.

The wholesale model,
still used for printed works, sees publishing houses sell a quantity of books
to retailers, who could then set their own retail price points.

"The
agency model guarantees a higher margin for retailers than did our previous
sales terms," Random House said.

"We are making this change both as
an investment in the successful digital transition of our existing partners and
in order to give us the opportunity to forge new retail relationships."

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4k9xf3y
(Ars Technica)

http://www.randomhouse.com

Tokyo – Japanese consumer electronics firm Panasonic has
halted development on a planned handheld game device, codenamed
"Jungle," which was first announced in October, Reuters reports.

"Panasonic decided to suspend further development due to changes in the
market and in our own strategic direction," the company said.

The device
was rumored to feature an HD display, touchpad, QWERTY keyboard and analog
controls, and support mainly Java- and Flash-based online games.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/6ba4wh4
(Reuters)

http://tinyurl.com/5w46htn
(DMW previous coverage)

Washington – The Motion Picture Association of America
(MPAA), the movie studio trade and lobbying group, announced on Tuesday that it
has named former U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd as its new chairman and CEO. "In
several important ways, taking this step represents a continuation of my work
in the Senate, from advancing the interests of children and families and
creating and safeguarding American jobs to the protection of intellectual
property and the expansion of international trade," said Dodd.

"Chris
Dodd not only has the political instincts and experience, but he’s the right
person to lead the film industry through its toughest challenges regarding
content protection and piracy on a domestic and global scale," said Barry
Meyer, head of Warner Bros.

Dodd will take over as head of the MPAA on March
17.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4ncdwt3
(PDF: MPAA statement)

New York – Since putting itself up for sale in January,
major record label Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) has received 10 offers from suitors for
its various music publishing and label assets, Business Week reported, citing
sources. Sony/ATV Music Publishing and KKR’s BMG Rights Management have
reportedly bid for Warner/Chappell, the company’s music publishing unit.

Business Week’s sources say a sell-off of Warner’s music publishing unit is the
most likely outcome, as the company has long sought a merger with fellow major
label EMI — which recently defaulted on debt payments and was taken over by
Citigroup.

Warner has also reportedly received an offer from former board
member and billionaire Len Blavatnik for "most of the company," while
Universal Music may seek to acquire Warner’s Japanese and other overseas record
label operations, or a U.S. distribution deal.

Sources told Business Week
Warner has received offers for both its U.S. and non-U.S. recorded music units.

The company’s board will reportedly narrow the list of suitors to 6-8 this week.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/5vwvbsa
(Business Week)

San Francisco – Apple (NASD: AAPL) is widely expected to unveil its new
version of the iPad tablet computer during an event Wednesday in San Francisco.

Until then, analysts continue to make educated predictions about what features
will distinguish the iPad 2 from its popular predecessor.

Goldman Sachs
predicted in a note to investors that the device, expected to be widely
available in April, will be significantly thinner than the original, which was
a half-inch thick.

Other additions, including front- and rear-facing cameras —
possibly in HD — an improved display better able to cope with bright sunlight,
more memory and a faster processor also are considered likely.

A version that
can take advantage of Verizon’s faster 4G wireless service also is possible.

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/4n77qgy
(Forbes)

http://tinyurl.com/4zx8lcl