CNET

Greg Sandoval at The Verge and Paul Sloan at CNet both report that negotiation snags are delaying Apple's roll-out of its much-anticipated "iRadio" streaming service (Apple reportedly wants to debut this summer at the latest, and possibly by next month's Worldwide Developers Conference).

Part of the problem is apparently that Apple's service will be more like Pandora, and less like Spotify. Sandoval writes, "The record companies and music publishers don't want another web radio service that satisfies a lot of music consumption but doesn't pay them much... The widely held belief by industry leaders is that to stop the slide in music sales, consumers have to be offered unlimited access to deep pools of songs that are supported by either small, monthly subscription fees, or advertising sales."

According to The Verge, it's Sony/ATV -- that's a music publisher, not a label group (and administers copyright song compositions, not recordings) -- that's holding up the negotiations. BMG Rights Management, the fourth largest music publisher, is another hold-out.

But CNet says it's Sony Music (the label group) holding things up for Apple, "over how much Apple would pay for songs that people listen to a fraction of and then skip." Sloan writes, "That skipping has become an issue is frustrating executives at the other labels because they see Apple's free radio service as a potential boon for the music industry overall and are eager to help the company get it launched... While it's unclear what Sony is asking for... if Apple bends for Sony on this issue, it would cause problems with its deals with Warner and Universal."

Read The Verge's coverage here and CNet's coverage here.

Two noted technology writers today consider the likelihood of Apple launching an Internet radio service, and challenge the notion that it would mean death to competitors like Pandora.

Peter Kafka writes for All Things D, the tech blog of The Wall Street Journal. He suggests that because Apple can create great devices doesn't mean it'll be a slam-dunk for it to own the ad-supported Internet radio space.

"Selling Internet ads turns out to be a difficult, labor-intensive process — maybe even more so for Internet radio ads, which require lots of face time with local buyers," Kafka reminds us. "Pandora has been plodding away at this for years, with some success. But it seems hard to imagine Apple spending the same kind of effort."

Bloomberg's sources report that record labels want a cut of that ad revenue, and even some of the ad inventory itself to promote their artists (read more in our original coverage here). But Greg Sandoval at CNet spoke with other unnamed sources that say the labels aren't yet satisfied with what Apple's offering, which makes an Apple "iRadio" launch (that's the shorthand we've been seeing) anything but a done deal.

"Some decision makers at the big record companies want Apple to sweeten the offer," as Sandoval paraphrases the "music executives" with whom he spoke. "CNET's sources say that some of the sector's leaders don't believe the cut Apple put on the table is big enough."

Part of the problem may be that Apple expects not only relaxed restrictions on how it can use the music (see "sound performance complement" note in our Bloomberg coverage here), but also wants a discount on royalties.

"Sources said Apple has offered to pay a lower royalty rate than Pandora pays even though it wants to provide iTunes users with the ability to do more with the music than Pandora's customers enjoy," wrote Sandoval.

And even if Apple were to launch its own streaming radio, Kafka thinks keeping it within the Apple-verse leaves ample listening opportunities on other platforms for Pandora.

"It’s unlikely that (Apple's) going to make that one available for Android users. Which means Pandora will still have plenty of room to play."

Read Kafka in All Things D here and Sandoval in CNet here.

An interesting footnote: Regarding yesterday's news of the official launch of the Internet Radio Fairness Coalition to support the Internet Radio Fairness Act, Sandoval in CNet says "CNET has learned that the top record companies plan to quietly gather next week to discuss their strategy for fighting the legislation. In addition to the representatives from the top three labels, invitations were sent this week to some of the music industry's top music managers."

Back in August, Logitech released a new line of Internet radio-friendly audio devices, from Bluetooth boomboxes to the UE Smart Radio: a tabletop Wi-Fi radio that succeeds the earlier Squeezebox Radio (more RAIN coverage here).

The UE Smart Radio is definitely a step up over the Squeezebox Radio, says CNet in a new review of the device. "But that doesn't necessarily mean it's the right compact music system for your home." Sure, the UE Smart Radio offers Spotify, Pandora, MOG, Slacker, TuneIn, Last.fm and more. And its "great sound," compact size and rechargeable battery "make it an attractive compact music system, but you may be better off with a Bluetooth speaker."

CNet explains that with the UE Smart Radio, you're "reliant on Logitech to add support for new streaming-music services, rather than simply using the app already on your phone." Plus most Bluetooth speakers are cheaper than the UE Smart Radio's $180 price tag.

That said, if your life doesn't revolve around a smartphone, "it's a well-designed product and a decent value." Find CNet's full review here.

It's been over a year since enterpeneur Michael Roberston introduced DAR.fm to the world. The service aims to be like a TiVo for radio: it can record specific radio programs for on-demand listening later.

Since the service's debut in February 2011 (RAIN coverage here; VentureBeat coverage here), DAR.fm "has expanded the number of stations it offers listeners access to from 100 to 5,000," writes CNet. The service now offers more than 20,000 radio shows and can stream or download any of them to mobile devices, set-top boxes or PCs.

CNet can't help but ask, "can he [Robertson] do it without getting sued?"

Robertson's answer: "I think so. I've talked to some insiders and they get it. I can help them get their shows on new hardware: smartphones, PCs, and set-top boxes... DVRs have helped TVs. TV viewing has gone up 40% and radio's market share has fallen... they'll realize that it gives their listeners what they want, which is the ability to listen when and where they want."

You can find CNet's article here.

Michael Robertson will be a panelist at this year's RAIN Summit West in Las Vegas discussing "The Streaming Music Landscape." He'll be joined by Rhapsody's Brendan Benzing, Amazing Radio's Paul Campbell, TuneCore's Jamie Purpora and moderator Ted Cohen of TAG Strategic. You can find out more about the Summit here.

CNet reported yesterday that on-demand music streaming service Mog is struggling and for sale.

"Mog's representatives have contacted a varying range of companies about potential interest, according to numerous sources in the digital-music sector," writes Greg Sandoval in CNet.

Mog CEO David Hyman disputed the report to Reuters, saying the company is not struggling and that "we're not actively trying to sell this business."

Though the company -- founded in 2005 -- is not yet profitable, Hyman revealed Mog has more than 500,000 active users (though he did not say how many were paying subscribers). He points to the new integration with Facebook as a new source of growth: Mog attracts nearly 5,000 new users a day.

You can find CNet's report here and Reuters' coverage here.

Stitcher -- the news radio and podcast service "that is essentially Pandora for news radio" -- has launched new integration with Facebook's Timeline, CNet reports. (Timeline is the new profile interface from Facebook, which, as the name suggests, displays a user's activity in a sort of chronological "timeline.")

The integration will allow users to show Facebook friends what they're listening to in real-time, says Stitcher. That may help bring new users to Stitcher, or help others discover new content they may like.

"In order to do something right, you need to be laser focused," Stitcher CEO Noah Shanok told CNet. "That's where Pandora's been laser focused on music side [and] we're laser focused on spoken word."

You can find CNet's coverage here.