Joost™ is a new way of watching TV on the internet, which uses new and established technologies to provide the best of both the internet and TV worlds. We’re in the process of making it as TV-like as we can, with programmes, channels and adverts. You can also see some things that we think will enhance the TV experience: searching for programmes and channels, for example, as well as social features like chat. There are many more new features to come!

Amie Street aims to make it easy and affordable for consumers to discover new independent music. What makes it unique? Every song sold at the ‘fly little music site’ starts off being free and the price increases to a maximum of USD 0.98 depending on how many people download it. The more popular a song, the faster its price will increase to 98 cents. Besides giving early buyers a better deal, the market price system gives them the added pleasure of seeing they’ve discovered a song or artist before everyone else has.

Members are also rewarded for recommending music. As explained by Amie Street: “We know music is social, and the process of music discovery is stunted by traditional digital music retail sites because they are not social (or fun). Music discovery is best catalyzed by communication between people, so we reward fans for recommending songs to their friends by giving them credit to buy more music.” If a member reviews or otherwise recommends a song, they’re credited with the song’s price increase. So, if you recommend a song while it’s priced at 10 cents, and the price goes up to 90 cents, you earn 80 cents worth of credits. Promotion isn’t left solely to the community, though. Amie Street does its part, from interviewing bands and posting their videos, to organizing showcase concerts in New York.

Artists maintain full ownership of their work and receive 70% of every sale after a first USD 5 to cover storage, bandwidth and transaction costs for that song. All MP3s sold through the website are DRM-free, so can be used on any music player, without restrictions. Combined with the knowledge that artists are getting their fair share of a song’s revenues, that should make consumers more willing to pay for music downloads. One to watch!

web site: www.amiestreet.com
via: http://www.springwise.com/

Like a customized online radio, Musicovery is a free flash-based site streaming a playlist of music dictated by an easily navigable set of criteria that the user chooses. Animated star-like graphics, in colors that correspond to genre, map the current lineup and an intuitive sidebar enables quick selection of different criteria. Organized into 18 genres, you can eliminate types you don’t like, choose between hits, non-hits and “discovery,” pinpoint mood and dance factors on a matrix, and define by era. Though the sound quality isn’t much better than FM, for €2 monthly you can get CD quality.

Agency: Leo Burnett, Milan.

South Korean artist Gwon Osang makes sculptures out of photos

A patent published today by the US Patent & Trademark Office details some brilliant new ideas from the most innovative computer company on the planet. Yes that’s right, Apple has a new patent and I must say I’m impressed, astounded, and excited.
The name of the patent is simply “Mechanical overlay” and the abstract describes the concept a bit further: “Mechanical overlays for placement over touch sensing devices…The mechanical overlays include one or more mechanical actuators that provide touch inputs to the touch sensing devices.”
Basically Apple has invented the concept for a device which instead of (or in addition to) possessing a keyboard, it has a touch sensitive surface on which mechanical parts overlay. The touch-sensitive surface reads the physical signals transmitted through the mechanical overlay. As seen in the picture above, some possible overlays are a traditional keyboard, a musical keyboard, and a mixing console. There is also a diagram which details different types of mechanical overlays for where a trackpad currently rests, allowing the addition of a clickwheel, joystick, number pad, and more.
Two other specific devices are mentioned in the patent with similar concepts: a portable handheld device and a touch screen tablet PC, both of which utilize similar mechanical overlays. This patent, if it ever sees the light of day, could mean great new specialized functions for laptop computers (think DJs, musicians, recording artists, video editors, and so much more).
via macuser

by TBWA\Paris

Designed to accommodate the many power adapters cluttering our living space, this ship powers our electronic devices with their cords in its wake. It also makes apparent the infrastructure behind all those power cords.
Most electronic devices in use everyday are manufactured in one province in China and are delivered to us by containership. What people often do not realize is the extreme scale of the infrastructure needed when a single geographic area becomes a primary manufacturing source; even for things that most people see as insignificant. The largest of these ships hold up to 9,000 40ft containers and are too massive for the Panama Canal. They frequently return to China empty. There is nothing to bring back.

Sauer Kids' Boggerdolls undress to reveal their gory innards. Unzip the tightie-whitie clad outer dude to hang out with his truly naked inner-self. These handmade, black and red silkscreened cotton dolls are limited to an edition of 40, each signed & numbered.

An everyday rug which incorporates a light hearted take of the classic dead body chalk outline. The shape mimics that of an unfortunate soul which may have come to pass right there on your living room floor with their silhouette remaining as evidence.