Spotify on Friday unveiled Spotify Radio, a new service similar to Pandora that will roll out as an extension to the company’s desktop client. The service allows users to create artist-based stations that will stream an unlimited amount of music similar to the artist selected. Spotify Radio users can also skip an unlimited number of songs and save tracks as they play for on-demand listening later as well. The app and associated service are a welcome addition to Spotify, which has had very limited discovery features until now. The free Spotify Radio app is currently available as a preview and it is expected to land in Spotify’s app catalog within the next few days. Spotify has not indicated whether or not its new radio service will make its way to the company’s mobile apps.

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Sonos released a new sibling in their audio lineup recently, and it’s called the PLAY:3. You can think of it as a smaller PLAY:5 (what used to be called the S5), and it is definitely up to par with the level of quality that Sonos is known for. There isn’t an actual subwoofer, rather a tweeter and a couple mid-range speakers, though the unit does offer decent bass and low-end performance. You can also create a stereo pair with two PLAY:3 units if you’d like, using one for a left channel and one for the right channel to fill your entire room with audio. The fact you can add all kinds of music services like Spotify, Pandora, Napster, Rhapsody, Rdio, Last.fm, iheartradio and many more, including your local iTunes library, is straight up mind blowing — all your music in true Sonos fashion is at your fingertips, and it just works. At $299, the PLAY:3 makes jumping into a Sonos setup relatively inexpensive, and a setup consisting of a few PLAY:3 units and PLAY:5 units can really create the perfect music listening experience in your home.

Popular European streaming music service Spotify could launch in the U.S. as soon as next week, AllThingsD’s Peter Kafka speculates. Spotify announced earlier this week that it would be taking its talents to the U.S., but it gave no indication as to how soon the launch might occur. AllThingsD says the smart money is on a launch next week, and the blog has historically been accurate with its coverage of the Stockholm-based music start-up. Kafka reaffirms that Spotify only has deals inked with three of the four major U.S. record labels, but he says a deal with Warner Music Group is close enough to being signed that it should be completed ahead of a launch next week. Like Microsoft’s Zune service or Rhapsody, Spotify allows users to stream music on demand, create playlists and more. The service uses a freemium model that permits ad-supported content to be streamed to desktop computers for free, and then offers mobile streaming, playlist sharing and sheds the ads for paid subscribers. Spotify has not yet revealed pricing for the U.S. market.

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Custom music steaming company Spotify on Wednesday announced that it will soon launch its popular service in the U.S. The company has been rumored to be in negotiations with major U.S. music labels for more than a year now, and it looks like those negotiations finally panned out. ”The award-winning music service that’s taken Europe by storm will soon be landing on US shores,” the company said in a statement on its website. “Millions of tracks ready to play instantly, on your computer and your phone.” In markets where the service is currently available, Spotify allows users to stream music on demand for free to PCs. For a monthly fee, the service adds additional features and supports more devices, such as the iPhone, iPad and Android devices. Pricing and other details for the U.S. market have not yet been announced.

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Pandora just announced that it has added a few comedy genres to its streaming radio offering. Much like you’d rate a song or artist, you can give each comedy track a thumbs-up or thumbs-down, and Pandora’s “Comedy Genome Project” will recommend different performers based on your tastes. Users can choose a specific comedian, or can select a specific genre such as “political comedy,” “working class comedy,” “PG comedy,” or comedy from the 60, 70s, 80s, 90s, or 2000s. Slacker Radio has had this feature for a while, but if you’re looking for some Lisa Lampanelli to spice up your lunch break, than Pandora should now have you covered as well. Hit the jump for the full release.

PANDORA DEBUTS PERSONALIZED COMEDY

• Just like music stations on Pandora, comedy stations can be personalized to each individual’s taste
• Powered by the Comedy Genome Project™
• Listeners can create comedy stations based on their favorite comedians, or on popular genres such as political comedy, working class comedy, PG comedy, or comedy from the 2000s, 60s and 70s, or 80s and 90s

OAKLAND, Calif. MAY. 4, 2011 – Pandora, the popular internet radio service, today announced that comedy is now available on the service where radio stations can be created and Personalized.

Pandora, known for pioneering personalized music listening and discovery, is broadening its array of content to include comedy in order to meet the requests of its listeners. A team of Comedy Genome Project analysts at Pandora has analyzed thousands of performances to capture their comedic style and content. Additional comedic material is being analyzed daily.

Pandora Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Tim Westergren said, “Pandora is about creating a great, personalized radio experience. Comedy is a natural part of that experience, and it’s something our listeners have been asking us to deliver for a while. We are delighted to now be able to give people a mix of familiar and new comic material that they’ll love to listen to.”

Starting today people can listen to comedy on Pandora in the same manner that they listen to music: by choosing a favorite artist or genre as a seed to start a station and then giving thumbs-up or thumbs-down feedback to shape the station to their individual taste. Like music stations on Pandora, comedy stations will play the seed artist and related material.

John Hyde, Vice Chairman of Image Entertainment, Inc. said, “Everyone knows Pandora – it’s unique in the entertainment industry for personalizing the radio experience for listeners and enabling talented artists to discover audiences that will love their music. Image is delighted that our comedy content is being included in the Comedy Genome Project and believe that Pandora’s reach with so many listeners offers an unprecedented opportunity for all comedians. It’s going to be fascinating to see how personalized radio tackles the comedy listening experience, it’s a new frontier and we’re excited to be a part of it.”

A new report filed by The Wall Street Journal suggests that New Jersey federal prosecutors are beginning to take a long, hard look at mobile applications. The publication writes that a grand jury will investigate whether iOS and Android applications distributed by Apple and Google “illegally obtain or transmit information about their users without proper disclosures.” Several application makers, including Pandora Media, informed the Journal that were issued subpoenas by the court, but have been told that they are not the target of the impending litigation.

“In early 2011, we were served with a subpoena to produce documents in connection with a federal grand jury, which we believe was convened to investigate the information sharing processes of certain popular applications that run on the Apple and Android mobile platforms,” Pandora noted in a regulatory filing on Monday.

The investigation aims to determine whether mobile application developers have violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by transmitting anonymized (read: not so anonymized) data to app makers and/or third-parties. The report notes that prosecutors could charge individuals or companies with a “felony or misdemeanor” or could “pursue civil charges.” Neither Google nor Apple responded to the WSJ‘s request for comment.

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Back in March of this year, Microsoft proudly announced that Pandora would be one of its big-name Windows Phone 7 launch partners. In an interesting turn of events last week, however, the popular Internet radio provider said on its Twitter account that it has no plans to develop an app for Microsoft’s new platform. Following reports of Pandora’s statement, the company reiterated its position:

I’m not sure if/when we will be available on [Windows Phone 7]. Appreciate everyone’s enthusiastic suggestions. I’m passing the feedback on.

We can’t imagine that Microsoft was lying when it boasted of Pandora’s imminent arrival on the Windows Phone 7 platform, but now Pandora is saying its future on the OS is uncertain. Pandora’s change of heart is yet another blow to Microsoft’s mobile platform as the company struggles to get popular apps on its new OS. Pandora Radio is one of several widely popular apps that would help ease customers’ transitions to WP7, though two of Pandora’s biggest competitors — Slacker and Last.fm — have developed and deployed Windows Phone 7 apps.

UPDATE: A Pandora spokesperson gave BGR the following statement with regard to the company’s plans for Windows Phone 7:

While we’re excited to see companies innovating and while we’re not ready to make an announcement specifically related to the Win 7 phone, we generally want to be everywhere our listeners want us to be.

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Today, Panasonic announced that they will add Twitter to the list of built-in web entertainment technologies on their VIERA CAST enabled HDTVs and Blu-ray disc players. The company already offers Skype, Netflix, Pandora, Fox Sports, Amazon Video-On-Demand, YouTube, Picasa, Bloomberg, and weather services on VIERA televisions with the IPTV functionality built-in. Panasonic’s VP of corporate development had this to say:

Since we introduced Panasonic VIERA CAST IPTVs three years ago we have added more and more of the top entertainment and social networking sites in the world. The addition of Twitter to VIERA CAST further strengthens the interactive options Panasonic VIERA HDTV owners can now use to communicate with family and friends worldwide.   Consumers with VIERA CAST-enabled HDTVS can now tweet on Twitter, video chat via Skype, share videos on YouTube and digital photos via Google Picasa right from the comfort of their living rooms.”

Maybe the future of HDTV isn’t in 3D and ridiculous refresh rates… maybe it’s applications? We’ve got the full press release for you after the break. Let us know if functionality like this is something that interests you, or if you think it is just something that will get in the way of your television-viewing enjoyment.

PANASONIC LAUNCHES TWITTER ON VIERA CAST PLASMA HDTVs

Consumers Can Now Tweet – One of Many Ways to Communicate – On Their Panasonic VIERA® Plasma HDTV.

SECAUCUS, NJ (August 17, 2010) – Panasonic, a worldwide leader in High Definition technology and built-in TV web entertainment announced the activation of Twitter® on Panasonic VIERA CASTTM enabled HDTVs. Twitter will also be available on VIERA CAST-enabled Blu-ray Disc Players at a later date. The planned addition of Twitter, a real-time global information network, was announced in January at the International Consumer Electronics Show.

Twitter is the latest feature to be added to VIERA CAST, Panasonic’s proprietary IPTV function. Earlier this year, Panasonic added SkypeTM voice and video calling1, Netflix™, Pandora, and Fox Sports to an already robust list of popular entertainment and information sites including Amazon Video-on-Demand™, YouTube™, Google’s Picasa™ Web Album, Bloomberg and a weather service.

Twitter is an information network that enables its users to send and read other user messages called Tweets — text-based posts of up to 140 characters. Twitter has achieved enormous growth since its founding in 2006. Proof of that is evidenced by the fact that there are 70 million Tweets written per day by more than 145 million users worldwide.

For 2010 VIERA CAST-enabled HDTVs, Panasonic also introduced USB connectivity which enables the addition of a wireless LAN adaptor (802.11b or faster), a keyboard for more efficient site navigation and communication, and USB memory which supports AVCHD video and JPEG photos. VIERA CAST requires no external box or PC2 and is accessed via a single button on the television remote control. There is no fee to use the VIERA CAST functionality (some VIERA CAST services such as VOD have a separate fee structure).

“Since we introduced Panasonic VIERA CASTTM IPTVs three years ago we have added more and more of the top entertainment and social networking sites in the world,” said Merwan Mereby, Panasonic’s Vice President, Corporate Development. “The addition of Twitter® to VIERA CAST further strengthens the interactive options Panasonic VIERA HDTV owners can now use to communicate with family and friends worldwide. Consumers with VIERA CAST-enabled HDTVS can now tweet on Twitter, video chat via Skype, share videos on YouTube and digital photos via Google Picasa right from the comfort of their living rooms.”

Panasonic VIERA Plasma HDTV’s featuring VIERA CAST:
Ø VT25 and VT20 Series of Full HD 3D Plasmas:
Ø G25 Series:
Ø G20 Series:

Panasonic Blu-ray Disc Players featuring VIERA CAST (Twitter not yet available):
Ø DMP-BDT350 (Full HD 3D)
Ø DMP-BDT300 (Full HD 3D)
Ø DMP-BD85
Ø DMP-BD70V
Ø DMP-BD65
Ø DMP-B500 (Portable)

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You can’t get your hands on iOS 4 just yet, but rest assured that when you can, Pandora will be ready for you. In an app update released today, Pandora added the multitasking capabilities that the iLoving masses have been waiting for. Of course, Android, webOS, and BlackBerry users are unimpressed by this; having had it for what seems like years. But hey…try to be nice to those iPhone users out there, it is a big day for them.

UPDATE: iOS 4 is out in the wild. If you’re interested, and we can’t imagine why you wouldn’t be if you are an iPhone owner, go and grab it!

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It’s pretty incomprehensible that until about two weeks ago, I had never used a piece of Sonos equipment. Heard about it, and read about it? Sure, but never used it. What MP3s did for personal audio enjoyment 5 years ago, Sonos does for your home, office, or wherever you want today, ingeniously creating a seamless and practically unlimited expandable system. Sonos is literally one of the coolest things I’ve seen in years; not because they reinvented the wheel (even though they kind of did in some places), but because it works.

Our digital lives are consumed by software updates, OTAs, custom ROMs, and promised OS upgrades, and because of their absence in Sonos’ system the entire experience is completely refreshing. You literally, in the words of Ron Popeill, “set it and forget it.” Once you unbox the sucker you have access to potentially limitless amounts of music spanning dozens of genres and styles.

We were sent two Sonos S5s, which are incredibly powerful units, and include speakers, subwoofers, and the ability to transmit/receive data and signal in addition to a ZoneBridge and Sonos Controller 200. If you want your S5 in the room where your internet router is, great, you just plug it in, and off you go. If you don’t have Ethernet in the room you’d like to host the system in, you can simply buy a ZoneBridge ($99), which will bridge your wireless network to your Sonos base for you. From there on out it is as simple as pairing the additional components.

I started off setting up the ZoneBridge to my network, I then added a Sonos S5 in the kitchen two rooms away. Set up was a breeze. I ran the Sonos software, touched a button or two on the S5, and it paired immediately and connected to my network. Once networked, I had instant access to my Pandora account, Last.fm account, Rhapsody account, Napster account, and Sirius radio account, in addition to whatever music was on my network. Instantly. Before I got too excited and immersed in some music from Billboard charts from 1995, I decided to add the other S5 to the network; this time unit was headed for the living room. The second S5 also seamlessly connected in about one minute. I now had independent control over the music/volume in the kitchen as well as the music/volume in the living room from my computer. So wild. If you’re having a small get together, or raging party, and want the music to play all over your apartment or house, you can simply link the zones together — all your zones will play the exact same thing perfectly in sync. You can also control the volume of linked zones together or independently.

We’re not done…there’s more. Sonos’ new controller is so thoughtfully designed that I’m really not sure what to compare it to. It seems like it should cost $1,000 instead of $349; it even includes a capacitive screen. You have the ability to control the entire system — including changing your playlists, music queue, stations, volume, zones, and everything else — right from the controller. Computer not required. But, Sonos went even further. They basically replicated the entire experience they offered on the remote into an iPhone application. This transforms your iPod Touch or iPhone into another controller, complete control over everything, computer not required (you need to be in range of your WiFi network though, duh).

In terms of the actual music, the Sonos S5 unit itself sounds absolutely amazing and really packs a punch. For something that can be literally picked up and plugged in anywhere it’s pretty remarkable. During the tests I didn’t ever miss having my actual home speaker systems hooked up, the S5s sounded that good.

While it’s great that the hardware and wireless network side of things work so incredibly well, what good would all that be without quality music sources, right? Here’s how Sonos’ music breaks down:

• If you have a PC or Mac on your network, Sonos can make use of any existing library pending of course the music is DRM-free. This includes all of your iTunes music, ripped music, downloaded music — whatever is stored locally on your computer
• Rhapsody (subscription based access with free trial, streaming)
• Napster (subscription based access with free trial, streaming)
• Pandora (streaming)
• Last.fm (streaming)
• SIRUIS (streaming)
• Internet radio (25,000 stations, streaming)

All in all I loved listening to a seemingly endless catalog of music that I could tailor to my daily routines, activities, and moods. Times when you’d normally just forget about turning on tunes dissolve away when there’s a Sonos remote nearby — hopefully the neighbors aren’t too mad at me. Check out some more photos in our gallery, and definitely hit up Sonos directly to learn more!

Click on over to our Sonos Music System gallery!

One of our favorite set-top boxes, Roku, has just announced that it is launching the Roku Channel Store. The good news for you couch potatoes is that the first 10 channels are free. The open platform for sharing content on TV will allow you to share pictures and video, and listen to Internet radio and podcasts. New channels available to add right now are Pandora, Facebook Photos, Flickr and TWiT (This Week In Tech). Plus, since this is an open platform, developers can jump on the Roku bandwagon to add in getting more channels out.

But here’s the best part: Anthony Wood, CEO and co-founder of Roku, says, “Now content producers and distributors – from single person shops to billion dollar corporations – can deliver their content directly to consumers without having to go exclusively through cable operators, satellite networks or TV affiliates.” Less restriction could mean more of the content you want without paying premiums. When is it available? Existing customers will get a free and automatic upgrade and new Roku customers will get the upgrade as soon as they get their box going. If you own a Roku box and are currently subscribed, let us know what you think of the new channels.

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First and foremost, Internet radio lovers have some serious cause for celebration as Pandora announces a somewhat workable resolution to the ongoing royalty dispute that nearly drove the company into the ground. By somewhat workable, we mean it’ll keep them in business but it’s still paying the highest royalty rate in radio. What does this mean for Pandora users? Well it means they can keep using Pandora of course, and 90 percent of users will experience no changes whatsoever. For the other 10 percent though — users who don’t pay for Pandora One but stream more than 40 hours of music per month — the free ride is over to an extent. Any non-subscriber who goes over 40 hours in a month will have to cough up $0.99 in order to continue streaming during that month. $0.99, as in less than a dollar… We’d say that’s pretty fair. In all seriousness though, if you’re listening to 480+ hours of Pandora per year and not supporting the company by forking over $36 for a year of Pandora One, well, you should definitely consider it. So congratulations to Pandora on ending a 2-year fiasco. It might not have been the best possible outcome but hey, if it keeps the company afloat it’s not all bad.

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You won’t see it on the dedicated BlackBerry page just yet but rest assured, Pandora has launched the highly anticipated BlackBerry Storm version of its mobile streaming application. When we told you about initial BlackBerry availablility last month, there were two main caveats: 1) No T-Mo. 2) No Storm. Resourceful as our readers are, it was quickly discovered that the whole no T-Mobile thing could be circumvented pretty easily. The lack of a Storm-compatible build however, would prove to be a slightly tougher nut to crack (obviously). No matter, as Pandora unveiled an official Storm build via its Twitter feed last night. Enough talk — time to get streaming. Hit www.pandora.com from your Storm’s browser or look for it in App World to get your hands on Pandora Radio and let us now how it goes.

So, check it. There’s something called the Palm Pre. We linked up with our friendly Palm rep, and he gave us a walkthrough of some of the brand new third party applications. Things like Pandora, Sprint TV, Palm’s Classic OS emulator, and Flight View all got shown off on Palm’s sexy Pre hardware. We also got a brief hardware walkthrough too, just for you guys.

That’s all we got for now, but hopefully the video quenches your thirst for some Pre hotness!

BlackBerry users rejoice, Pandora has finally released v1 of it’s custom internet radio streaming application this morning and long story short, it’s everything we’ve been waiting for. It’s… About… Time! We tested the app out on a Bold via AT&T 3G and it worked perfectly — no hiccups and no pauses or stutters. We also tested the various basic functionality such as song skipping, giving a song a thumb’s up or thumb’s down, pausing and creating a new station. Everything worked as it should, though skipping to the next track often took a tad longer than we would have liked. The fact that’s our biggest complaint should give you a pretty good idea of how happy we were with the app though. There’s some more popular Pandora functionality packed in of course, such as the ability to bookmark a song or artist, but we trailed off into a state of bliss before we could get into all that. At this point, after only a short time with the app, we would definitely call it the greatest thing to happen to music on a BlackBerry since, well, music on a BlackBerry. There is some bad news however… No (official) T-Mobile love and no support for the Storm for the time being. Ouch. If you’re a Pandora user with a non-T-Mobile ‘Berry though, hit the read link or go to pandora.com from your mobile browser and get streaming.

[Via Zatz Not Funny!]

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