This morning Canon finally updated its long overdue EOS 5D camera with the 5D Mark II. The Mark II retains the full-frame sensor format, and adds expanded ISO capabilities (50 - 25,600), more megapixels (21.4), the ability to capture 1080 HD video in 4 GB clips, and Canon’s DIGIC 4 image processor. The rear LCD screen has also been up-sized to 3” and adds Live View.

The 5D Mark II is long overdue — Canon usually updates their camera models every 18 months or so, but the 5D has been on the market since 2005. The 5D is one of the best digital cameras around though, so its age never bothered me… in fact, I bought one just 8 months ago and have been using it non-stop. Hopefull the Mark II retains (or improves upon) the original 5D’s superb image quality and low-light performance.

I was recently very impressed with the band O.A.R.’s approach to distributing their live performances, and then equally disappointed by Live Nation and Jones Beach’s choice to ruin the fun.

O.A.R.’s USB Wristbands

Last weekend’s O.A.R. concert at Jones Beach in Wantagh, NY was promoted along with the availability of a special USB wristband that would contain a recording of that very night’s show, along with the band’s new album and a few other goodies. The band’s official website states:

At select shows on The All Sides Tour, concert-goers will have the chance to bring home a live recording of that evening’s show along with a copy of the band’s new album, All Sides. The performances and the new album will be packaged together on a USB flash drive wristband and will be available at all venue merchandise locations.

The following quote from front man Marc Roberge illustrates the band’s fantastic attitude towards their live music, and ultimately their commitment to their fans:

For us, performing live is about sharing experiences. Technology is all about convenience and being able to offer our shows on a USB flash drive? That’s all about the memories. What a fantastic thing to be able to give back to our fans.

The official list of shows at which USB wristband recordings would be available includes “August 2^nd - Wantagh, NY - The Nikon at Jones Beach”.

For this author, music doesn’t get much better than a good live show — I enjoy going to concerts, and I collect recordings of all the shows I have attended. Being both a live music fan and avid technology enthusiast, I love to hear about stuff like this. $30 for a USB drive with a soundboard-quality live recording, a copy of the band’s album, and a bunch of photos? I’d reach for my wallet without a second thought.

Sorry, tonight’s show isn’t available

The staff at O.A.R.’s merchandise booth at the August 2^nd was very busy informing fans that a recording of the night’s show would not be available on the USB wristbands. They explained that the band was told upon arrival at the venue that they would not be permitted to record and sell that night’s performance. Instead, fans could choose wristbands from one of four recently recorded performances.

Let’s get this straight — the music business is losing money left and right these days. Young people are not interested in traditional media. Live performances are a top money-maker for any act. A band like O.A.R. puts a great idea to work — give the fans instant access to a high-quality recording of the very show they just enjoyed, and include the new album and a few extras in order to round out the package. Wait… is that? Yes, it is! A business model adapted to keep up with the changing pace of music in the digital age!

But someone in an office somewhere thought it would be a good idea to say no.

Fans get their recordings anyway, but keep their money

The Internet has done wonders for the live music-trading community — dedicated tapers bring advanced audio gear to shows, and their recordings are available online within days. So now, many fans will still obtain a copy of O.A.R.’s show at Jones Beach. The venue prohibits taping, but as of today recordings from more than one source are available for download. The sound will be good… not as good as a soundboard recording, but still very good. And it will be free.

Something tells me that PayPal will eventually realize they botched an investigation involving one of the most popular tech bloggers on the Internet, and they will take another look at it soon.

My hat is off to Yahoo! for choosing the high road and taking care of their customers. I only hope that Microsoft follows their lead, since the MSN Music store is involved in a similar controversy.

Link via Ross McKillop.

Content from the Yahoo! Music store is crippled with DRM software intended to prevent piracy. In order to legitimately transfer music to new computers and other devices, the software must download a license key from the Yahoo! Music servers. Yahoo! plans to shut down this licensing system on October 1^st.

Yahoo! representatives state that they have been encouraging customers to backup their music to discs for the last six months, however that method results in a sound quality reduction.

Microsoft made this very same announcement with regards to their MSN Music Store in April, and eventually agreed to leave their licensing servers online for a further 3 years. We will soon see if a public outcry forces Yahoo! to make the same compromise.

Whether the deadline is extended for 3 years or 30, a compromise is not good enough — at some point, the licensing servers will be shut off and customers will be left out in the cold… customers who did the right thing and paid money for their digital music. None of this music should have been crippled with Digital Rights Management in the first place. A recording industry waging an all-out-war against piracy should be ashamed of itself for showing such disrespect to people who choose to open their wallets in lieu of illegally downloading free MP3s.

There are a number of online music retailers who sell DRM-free content: Amazon MP3 deals in DRM-free music, and many of the tracks available in the iTunes Music Store do not have DRM.

Link via Daring Fireball.

Link via Daring Fireball.

Getty images has a post regarding the deal on their blog, written by Flickr general manager Kakul Srivastav. A shorter but equally detail-barren post is up on the Flickr blog, and there is some discussion going on in the Flickr help forum.

A Q&A with Flickr and Getty confirms that Flickr members who enter into deals with Getty will be paid, but has a bit of disheartening news for Flickr contributors looking to quit their day jobs:

From our perspective, on the Flickr side, we’re not expecting this will be a huge stream of monetization for our members. For some it might be, but that’s not really the driving force. The driving force is we really feel we want Flickr to be a place where photos can be all that they can be.

This pretty vague statement could mean the licensing fees won’t be much, but it could also mean that since it sounds like Getty will be making individual selections on the image level, one photographer will probably not contribute more than a few photos to the Flickr/Getty collection. Photographer Thomas Hawk mentions to a Seattle PI article that claims contributors will be paid in the same manner as professionals.

Whatever the case may be, the Flickr blog makes light of the fact that their members produce some truly remarkable photos — which should rightly translate into competitive licensing fees.

My own photography is quite casual so I have not been chomping any bits — in fact, I was quite happy to purchase a brand new 5D at a significant discount — but I can definitely feel the tension in the air when it comes to the subject of a 5D successor. If Canon ever had any intentions to abandon that niche and push its users up into the 1-series bracket, then the Nikon D700 has certainly changed that game plan.