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Submitted by: Unknown
We must be smack-dab in the middle of audio week, because even GSM giant AT&T is bestowing the fantastic phonic prizes for your possible procurement, with four Beats Bundles up for grabs. What is this bundle of Beats? It's a set of wireless over-ear headphones (on the right) alongside your very own Beatbox portable audio player (left). Of course, AT&T is putting this all together to celebrate the launch of its five-episode web miniseries, "Daybreak," which debuts tonight immediately following the finale of "Touch" on Fox and runs for five weeks. So make sure you hook us up with a comment below and check out the show tonight. Good luck!
Continue reading Engadget Giveaway: win one of four Beats Audio bundles, courtesy of Daybreak!
Engadget Giveaway: win one of four Beats Audio bundles, courtesy of Daybreak! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 May 2012 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Via: PEW Global
Daniel Ek (co-founder of Spotify) and Sean Parker (Director at Spotify) just took the stage here at D10, with Walt Mossberg asking the two about the company's impact in America, negotiations with record labels and -- perhaps surprisingly -- its links with Apple. Outside of confirming that there's still around 10 million Spotify users in the States (with around three million of those being of the paid variety), the duo also confirmed that it's working daily to improve the catalog. Said Ek: "We're up to 18 million songs, growing at 10,000 or 20,000 songs per day -- it's very much a growing catalog." Walt was curious as to why iTunes had upwards of 30 million tracks, and why all of the services simply don't have the same library, but both players were quick to brush off the topic and pivot directly to the importance of playlists.
Ek stated: "If you look at iTunes, the vast majority of songs haven't been purchased by anyone -- it's driven by hits. We see 80 percent of our whole catalog listened to." Following that, Parker contributed: "The playlist is now the CD. It used to be a few songs were wanted by the consumer, and the rest of it was garbage. It's the new mixtape, but accelerated on a massive scale." As it turns out, Spotify actually sells "bundles" (which are glorified playlists) as pay products in Europe, and when Walt asked why these weren't available in America, Parker obliged: "We just haven't released it yet." In other words, they're coming soon.
Continue reading Spotify director Sean Parker: Apple tried to keep Spotify out of the United States
Spotify director Sean Parker: Apple tried to keep Spotify out of the United States originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 May 2012 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | CommentsAfter being released by Strikeforce, former light heavyweight champion Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal has signed with both TNA professional wrestling and Bellator. Both groups have a partnership with Spike, making this deal possible.
"This deal is a dream come true for me," Lawal said. "Bjorn [Rebney, Bellator CEO] and Dixie [Carter, TNA president] have given me the opportunity to engage in my two great loves, mixed martial arts and professional wrestling, at the same time.� And, to have it all on Spike TV is really Buttercream icing on a big ole cake ? not that whipped cream stuff either!"
He will begin appearing with TNA Impact this summer. When Bellator moves from MTV2 to Spike in 2013, Lawal will return to mixed martial arts.
It's a perfect fit for Lawal, who has world-class amateur wrestling credentials and enough showmanship to fit in well among the pro wrestling world. His fight entrances often used props and dancers, and he wore a crown and a cape to the cage. Lawal also showed off his pro wrestling chops with Strikeforce heavyweight Daniel Cormier in November of 2009.
This contract is a bright spot for what had been a turbulent 2012 for Lawal. He contracted a life-threatening staph infection after knee surgery. His victory over Lorenz Larkin was overturned by the Nevada Athletic Commission for a positive drug test, and he was suspended from MMA for nine months. After the hearing to appeal his suspension, Lawal called a commissioner a racist [expletive], and was cut from Strikeforce. Though he apologized personally to the commissioner, he was still not invited back to the Zuffa-owned promotion.
He doesn't see a scenario where he will return to Zuffa through Strikeforce or the UFC:
"I'm not going to wait for nobody. If somebody comes to me with something that is good and a great deal, I'm going to take the best deal. And right now, the Bellator deal is the best deal you can possibly get. With Bellator and Impact Wrestling, that's the best deal you can possibly get, and I took it."
How will "King Mo" do as a pro wrestler and fighter? Tell us in the comments, on Facebook or Twitter.
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The UFC is billing this weekend's bouts as literally the biggest main card of all time because a whole lot of big dudes are fighting on the main card. It will answer these six questions.
1. Who is the best heavyweight in the UFC?* Of course this question will be answered. With the UFC heavyweight belt on the line, the main event is designed to answer that question. However, it has to have an asterisk on it because of the Alistair Overeem shenanigans before the bout. He was suspended from fighting for nine months because of abnormally high levels of testosterone, and his own actions kept him from fighting on this card. Through no fault of their own, Frank Mir and Junior dos Santos' bout will have an unsatisfying "what if" hanging over it.
2. How did Cain Velasquez recover from his first loss? From the second Velasquez stepped into the cage, he was a freight train. He started his career with nine straight wins, topped off by a TKO of Brock Lesnar for the title. Dos Santos stopped that train with a 64-second knockout, and this is the first time fans will see Velasquez since then. Will he be able to fight back to get a win over Antonio Silva, or will Velasquez suffer his second loss?
3. Can Dan Hardy stop his epic losing skid? "The Outlaw" has four losses in a row in the UFC, which is an unheard of number. Fighters have been cut for much less. After losing to Chris Lytle in August, Hardy took time away from the sport. He doesn't have an easy fight in Duane "Bang" Ludwig. We'll find out Saturday night if he can finally right the ship.
4. Is Jason Miller more than a TV star? "Mayhem," and his awesome dog Gator, starred on both "The Ultimate Fighter" and "Bully Beatdown." He is engaging, funny, and knows how to be the star of a show. However, that didn't help him in his first fight back in the UFC in six years, as Michael Bisping manhandled him. Miller's bout with C.B. Dollaway will give him a chance to prove he belongs in the UFC.
5. Can an all-heavyweight card be exciting? The UFC is taking a gamble with this card. Though the idea of an all-heavyweight card is good in theory, in practice, it's dicey. Heavyweights can provide great knockouts, but they can also provide wheeze-fests like Travis Browne's bout with Rob Boughton or Frank Mir's with Mirko Filipovic. The pressure is on these 10 men to deliver.
6. Who will Daniel Cormier fight next? The newly crowned Strikeforce heavyweight champ will supposedly have another fight in Strikeforce, but his best tests will be in the UFC. UFC 146 is chock full of heavyweights who could test Cormier's wrestling and striking. Who will his next opponent be? See the main card for the answer.
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The sea of budget-friendly slates just keeps on comin' -- and hey, we're certain you won't mind it in the least. This time around it's Kogan bringing its own sub-$200 Agora tablet to folks living in the land of Oz. Those near 200 bucks will give Aussies a taste of Android 4.0, as well as a 10-inch, 1024 x 768 display, one rear 2-megapixel shooter, a 1.2GHz Cortex A8 CPU under the hood and 16GB of built-in storage (expandable via microSD). Meanwhile, those looking to keep spending to a minimum can look towards the lesser-priced $179 slab, which is identical in every bit, save for the lower 8GB of internal storage. Barring any major mishaps, Kogan says it expects to start shipping the new Agora on June 25th, with pre-orders being taken as we speak at the source link below.
Kogan intros 10-inch Agora tablet with ICS in Australia, ships next month starting at $179 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 May 2012 07:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
PermalinkUFC president Dana White is done with Jason "Mayhem" Miller. After losing to C.B. Dollaway in a bout that was booed for being less than thrilling and an unknown backstage incident, White said Miller is no longer with the UFC.
White wouldn't say what the incident was except to say it was nothing physical.
"Mayhem's done. He's gone," White said, adding that the incident was "just some bulls--t that I don't want to talk about. We're on a crazy string here of dumb bulls--t."
Miller fought in the UFC early in his career but then moved to Japanese promotions and to Strikeforce. He returned to the UFC with a coaching stint on "The Ultimate Fighter" that was followed by a bad loss to Michael Bisping.
White also was not happy with Miller's playful entrances for the weigh-in and his fight. Miller brought a pink boa and boom box to the weigh-in, and he wore a paper bag out to the Octagon on Saturday.
"When you get embarrassed the way he did against Michael Bisping, then you show up in that pink whatever that thing was, I'm not into that stuff," said White. "It's not my thing. I guess I don't really care if guys do it because you see it at weigh-ins all the time. Just take this thing serious. If you want to be a clown do that stuff on your reality show."
[Also: Junior dos Santos defends belt, celebrates with 9-year-old boy]
Miller is the host of MTV's "Bully Beatdown," a show that allows bullied teens to get their comeuppance against their tormentors via a trained fighter. He leaves the UFC with an overall record of 23-9, and no wins in the UFC.
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Donald Cerrone is used to walking away from fights with fight night bonuses. Stretching back to his days in the WEC, "Cowboy" has picked up nine Fight of the Night, Submission of the Night, or Knockout of the Night bonuses.
For tonight's UFC on Fuel 3 fight against Jeremy Stephens, it's not surprising that Cerrone already has plans for the next bonus he will try to win.
"You name it, the post-fight bonuses, I'm going for it," Cerrone declared through his informal drawl. "I've got [expletive] to buy. I'm thinking (of getting) 10 or 12 girls to come out on a pontoon boat."
Since he has picked up so many bonus checks, perhaps the UFC needs to think of different ways to motivate Cerrone. Much as Lincoln Hawk arm-wrestled for a new tractor/trailer in "Over the Top," Cerrone could fight for a boat, or a new horse for his ranch, or a lifetime supply of cowboy hats. It's not too much to ask for.
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