| Cult of Mac

Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine ordered to pay $25 million for Beats royalties

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Jimmy Iovine, Tim Cook, Andre Young, and Eddie Cue. Photo: Apple
Dre and Jimmy can afford it.
Photo: Apple

Beats co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre have been ordered by a court to pay over $25 million to their former business partner Steven Lamar.

The legal battle between the two parties has been going on since 2014 when Iovine and Dre first sued Lamar for falsely advertising that he was a co-founder of Beats. Now a jury has ruled in favor of Lamar’s claim that he should receive more royalties from the company’s headphone sales.

Apple Music loses top exec to Uber

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Bozoma Saint John
Bozoma Saint John is in charge of hyping Apple Music.
Photo: Apple

This story has been updated to include comments from Bozoma Saint John.

Bozoma Saint John, one of Apple’s most entertaining keynote presenters, is leaving the company to work for Uber as the ride-sharing startup’s chief brand officer.

Her task? Fixing Uber’s tarnished image in the wake of sexual harassment allegations and other recent turmoil

Suge Knight claims Dr. Dre tried to kill him over Apple money

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Dre's finally apologizing for his misogyny.
Suge Knight has not forget about Dre.
Photo: Beats

Beats co-founder and Apple employee Andre Young, aka Dr. Dre, allegedly hired a hitman to kill Suge Knight, according to a lawsuit filed by Knight.

The former hip-hop mogul who co-founded Death Row Records claims Dre tried to have him murdered because Knight was owed a $300 million payout after Apple’s $3.4 billion acquisition of Beats Electronics in 2014. That deal made Dr. Dre the first billionaire in hip-hop.

Beats Music subscriber, your time is almost up

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apple-is-killing-beats-music-this-month-image-cultofandroidcomwp-contentuploads201511beatsmusic_ios_combo-jpg
Apple is getting rid of your data next month.
Photo: Apple

If you’re still subscribed to Beats Music instead of Apple Music, your days are numbered. Until January 19, you have the opportunity to save all of your playlists and migrate your account data over to Apple Music if you wish to do so. But after that, Apple will discard of your current data.

A day with Beats 1: Eclectic, star-studded, but slightly meh

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Apple
Beats 1 Radio is live on Apple Music, but is it worth your time?
Photo: Apple

Open your iOS 8.4 Music app and start listening. Beats 1 radio went live today at 9 a.m. Pacific time or 12 p.m. Eastern time, one hour after the launch of Apple Music itself. But is it any good? I’m your fellow music lover here to answer that question in as much depth as possible based on some first impressions.

First, a little background: Apple’s own radio station billed as “programs from people who love music” will stay live 24/7, broadcasting in over 100 countries. The station promises interviews with A-list celebrities and even radio shows hosted by the celebrities themselves every so often. They’ll create their own playlists and mixes and broadcast some of their favorite tunes. Jaden Smith will have his own show, so prepare to have an existential crisis.

Apple Music coming to Sonos, but there’s bad news

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Soon you'll be able to blast Apple Music through your Sonos speakers.
Soon you'll be able to blast Apple Music through your Sonos speakers.
Photo: Sonos

There’s good news and bad news for Beats Music and future Apple Music users alike. Apple has confirmed that the new music service will arrive for Sonos apps and speakers, but unfortunately not right away. It turns out integration won’t be ready in time for the big launch tomorrow, June 30, but the two companies are working together to bring Apple Music to Sonos as soon as possible.

The one advantage Spotify has over Apple Music

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Apple-Music

Photo: Apple

Apple Music may come with a long list of advantages over rivals like Spotify — such as real radio and a super-affordable family plan — but there’s one thing it’s lagging behind on, and that’s music quality… or so it seems.

The highest bitrate Apple Music will offer is 256 kbps, which is lower than the 320 kbps offered by Spotify, Rdio, Tidal, and Apple’s own Beats Music service.

Apple Music puts a human face on the mess that music’s become

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Iovine
Jimmy Iovine talks up Apple Music at WWDC 2015.
Photo: Apple

Apple’s big idea for transforming the way we experience music is bringing a personal touch — and a simple, unified platform — to the tangled technological mess that music’s become in 2015. Apple Music is classic Apple: putting a human face on technology that threatens to overwhelm us.

Tim Cook brought out high-profile artists, and Apple’s team of industry insiders, to show off what he called “the next chapter in music” today at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco.

“I know your are going to love it,” Cook said, introducing Apple Music. “It will change the way that you experience music forever.”

Here’s what Apple Music will bring to your ears.