Word: middelhoff
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...Thomas Middelhoff liked the Post House because the clubby Manhattan restaurant seemed just the place in which to persuade Shawn Fanning that the two men had a lot more in common than a lawsuit. It was early September. Middelhoff, 47, chairman of Bertelsmann, the world's third largest media conglomerate, had never met Fanning, 20, whose ingenious file-sharing program, Napster, had created the world's biggest online free-music community--one that was costing Middelhoff and the rest of the music industry many millions of dollars in lost sales. But by the time they tucked into their steaks...
...show begins," said Thomas Middelhoff, chief executive of Bertelsmann. "We have to evolve Napster and make it the best service available to people who love music." By "best," of course, he means "best one that doesn't rob record labels of their marketing investment and artists of their royalties" - heck, BMG's (and the other Big Four's) suit against the Napster site is still on; a San Francisco judge's ruling is expected...
...labels. But that seems entirely appropriate - while everyone seems to agree that some alliance between Big Music and the Internet is an inevitable future, a business model has yet to emerge. Napster, apparently, will be the laboratory. "This is a call for the industry to wake up," said Middelhoff, adding that BMG "couldn't ignore" Napster's 38 million users. "They can't all be criminals...
...Maybe. But if they're merely cheap, Gnutella and FreeNet are still in business - as is Napster, pending the lawsuit's outcome. With his legal department looking on, Middelhoff figures Bertelsmann's getting a speculative stake in the online music revolution. But as mp3.com can tell you, taking the "r" out of "free" can drive users away faster than yelling "directed by Kevin Costner" in a crowded movie theater...
Bertelsmann's chief executive officer, Thomas Middelhoff, said his company agreed to lend Napster a substantial amount of money to help finance the transition, and, in turn, will receive an option to buy a part of the company...