Last.FM defined the "social music revolution" when they launched several years ago with hopes of becoming the world's largest social music platform. After being acquired by NBC last year, I was unsure what was going to happen to such a great site and service. Who would have thought that it would get even better by providing the ability to play full-length tracks and entire albums free of charge. Read the entire article from the official Last.FM blog below. "Something we’ve wanted for years—for people who visit Last.fm to be able to play any track for free—is now possible. With the support of the folks behind EMI, Sony BMG, Universal and Warner—and the artists they work with—plus thousands of independent artists and labels, we’ve made the biggest legal collection of music available to play online for free, the way we believe it should be. Full-length tracks are now available in the US, UK, and Germany, and we’re hard at work broadening our coverage into other countries. During this initial public beta period, each track can be played up to 3 times for free before a notice appears telling you about our upcoming subscription service. The soon-to-be announced subscription service will give you unlimited ...

Maybe I've been living under a rock, because I have never heard of the "Black Cab Sessions" before today. But when I got word that The Kooks jammed a new song freestyle in the back of a cab I had to give it a look. "A challenge has been laid down. Forget chart positions, forget ticket sales, or brand-extending toiletries or myspace friends or any other measure of success. From here on in, it's all about how well you can rock in the back of a cab." "The Sessions are all about great music and the venue strips this to its essence. We aren't picky about genre and will happily open the cab door to anyone who blows us away" Click here to see Black Cab Sessions Chapter Twenty-Five featuring The Kooks, and head over to blackcabsessions.com for more great bands performing unplugged in the back of some random taxi cab.

If you already subscribe to HBO's award winning programming, your service is just about to get much better. HBO of all companies is jumping on the download bandwagon and is ready to offer live feeds as well as full show downloads on their new service called "HBO on Broadband". On Broadband will offer unlimited downloads of HBO shows and movies for subscribers which means you now have the freedom to enjoy your favorite HBO programming whenever and however you want. Starting this month, several episodes from HBO's original series will be available including: "The Wire", "In Treatment", "The Sopranos", "Sex and the City", "Curb Your Enthusiasm", "Entourage", "Six Feet Under", "Big Love", "Deadwood" and many more. Similar to NBC's service (NBC Direct), HBO will require you to download and install their proprietary media player which also serves as a download manager. However HBO's application is highly interactive allowing users to rate and hold discussions on their favorite shows. Check back soon for more info about "HBO on Broadband".

Last but definitely not least on the list of updates from Apple today is the stunning MacBook Air. I never thought I would say this, but I might actually have to switch to a Mac just to get my hands on the Air. This thing is .16 inches thick at the bottom and .76 inches on the top. Continue reading below for the full feature list or head over to apple.com for more details. "MacBook Air is ultrathin, ultraportable, and ultra unlike anything else. But you don’t lose inches and pounds overnight. It’s the result of rethinking conventions. Of multiple wireless innovations. And of breakthrough design. With MacBook Air, mobile computing suddenly has a new standard. MacBook Air includes an oversize trackpad with multi-touch technology. You can pinch, swipe, or rotate to zoom in on text, advance through a photo album, or adjust an image. This gesture-based input so successful on iPhone and iPod touch now comes to MacBook. The innovative now-you-see-it, now-you-don’t port hatch flips down to reveal (and closes to hide) all the ports you really need: a USB 2.0 port, a headphone jack, and a micro-DVI port that supports DVI, VGA, composite, and S-video output. Even the MagSafe power connection ...

No computer? No Problem... The all new Apple TV "Take 2" works just as well without a computer as it does with one, plus you get HD movie rentals and 5.1 digital surround sound to boot. Click here for more info or continue reading below for the entire press release. Apple Introduces New Apple TV Software & Lowers Price to $229 Rent High Definition Movies Directly from Your Widescreen TV MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today unveiled all new software for Apple TV(R) that allows movie fans to rent movies on the iTunes(R) Store directly from their widescreen TV, and lowered the price of Apple TV to just $229. With iTunes Movie Rentals and Apple TV, users can just click a button on their remote to effortlessly rent movies from a catalog of over 1,000 titles by the end of February, including over 100 titles in stunning high definition video with 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound, with no computer required. DVD-quality iTunes Movie Rentals are $2.99 for library titles and $3.99 for new releases, and high definition versions are just one dollar more with library titles at $3.99 and new releases at $4.99. Apple will provide the new Apple TV ...

It's no secret that Apple had to have been planning movie rentals through iTunes for a long time, but now it's a reality. Every major movie studio you can think of including Fox, Warner, Disney, Paramont, Universal, Sony, Miramax and more are all on board to provide their movies for rent via iTunes 7.6 and the new and improved Apple TV. More than 1000 films are already available to rent starting at $3.99 for new releases, $2.99 for older movies and $4.99 for HD movies. After renting a movie, you have 30 days to start watching it and 24 hours to finish watching it once you have started it. All rentals are transferrable to your iPod or iPhone as well. Continue reading below for the official press release or head over to apple.com for more info. Apple Premieres iTunes Movie Rentals With All Major Film Studios New Apple TV Software Lets You Rent Movies Directly from Your Widescreen TV MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today announced iTunes(R) Movie Rentals featuring movies from all the major movie studios including 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Lionsgate and New ...

As if you haven't heard by now, the Macworld 2008 Keynote was this morning and there were several interesting new updates and products that were discussed which we will cover within the next few posts. For starters, the iPhone just got a new firmware update that gives users several new features including the ability to send SMS messages to multiple recipients at once, location triangulation on google maps, hybrid map view on google maps, and the ability to fully customize your home screen. The iPod Touch is also getting a new firmware today including email, Google maps, web clips, stocks, weather and even notes. iPhone users can update their firmware for Free but current iPod Touch users will have to pay an extra $20 for their updates. Read the full press release below or head over to apple.com to see these update in action. MACWORLD SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today announced a free software update for its revolutionary iPhone(TM) that allows users to automatically find their location using the redesigned Maps application*; text message multiple people in one message; create Web Clips for their favorite websites; customize their home screen; and watch movies rented from the new iTunes(R) ...

DivX is probably one of the more popular formats for video distribution and the PS3 is finally DivX capable thanks to the latest firmware release. And now it seems the relationship between Sony and DivX is getting stronger according to latest DivX press release. Basically, there is a new agreement between the two companies that "enables online retailers to offer Sony Pictures titles for secure download in the high-quality DivX format for playback on DivX Certified consumer electronics devices" which includes the PS3 for starters. "This milestone agreement lays the foundation for Sony to offer high quality video content in the DivX format to its retail partners for playback on next-generation DivX Certified devices," said Kevin Hell, CEO of DivX, Inc. "Consumers want the flexibility and choice to enjoy high-quality video content from a range of retailers across a variety of devices. We are very pleased Sony Pictures Television recognizes the value of the DivX digital media solution and look forward to working together to offer a great experience to consumers." "We are dedicated to finding legitimate outlets for our content and to that end are excited to be working with DivX to provide retailers with an expanded ecosystem for the digital ...