Experience Hendrix and Sony Music Entertainment’s Legacy Recordings have released the monumental Valleys of Neptune, a newly curated album of 12 fully realized Jimi Hendrix studio recordings. Neptune features more than 60 minutes of music never commercially available on a Jimi Hendrix album, from the artist Rolling Stone magazine called the greatest guitarist of all time. Centered around tracks recorded during a pivotal and turbulent four-month period in 1969, Valleys of Neptune unveils the original Jimi Hendrix Experience’s final studio recordings, as the group lays down the foundation for its follow-up to Electric Ladyland, alongside the guitar superhero’s first sessions with bassist Billy Cox, an old army buddy he’d recruited into his new ensemble.

Valleys of Neptune provides an essential, compelling, and up-til-now largely unseen view of what Jimi Hendrix was up to musically in the critical period between the release of Electric Ladyland in October 1968 and the 1970 opening of his own Electric Lady Studios in Greenwich Village, the state of the art facility where he would begin his final project, the ambitious double album First Rays of the New Rising Sun.

Janie Hendrix, CEO of Experience Hendrix LLC, the Hendrix family-owned company entrusted with preserving and protecting the legacy of Jimi Hendrix, noted, “My brother Jimi was at home in the studio. Valleys of Neptune offers deep insight into his mastery of the recording process and demonstrates the fact that he was as unparalleled a recording innovator as he was a guitarist. His brilliance shines through on every one of these precious tracks.”

Valleys of Neptune is originality electrified, offering more than 60 minutes of previously unreleased Jimi Hendrix music, originally recorded, and newly mixed for this historic release, by Hendrix’s longtime engineer Eddie Kramer, who first worked with the guitarist on Are You Experienced? in 1967. Valleys of Neptune is produced by Janie Hendrix, John McDermott (who contributes detailed liner notes to the album) and Eddie Kramer.

“Valleys of Neptune” has long been one of the most sought after of any commercially unavailable Jimi Hendrix recording. The song was released as a single globally on February 2, 2010, nearly forty years after Jimi finished recording the track at New York’s Record Plant in May of 1970.

Other highlights on Valleys of Neptune include blazing studio covers of Elmore James’ classic “Bleeding Heart” and Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love” as well as premier performances of original Hendrix compositions like “Ships Passing Through The Night,” “Lullaby For The Summer” and the original un-dubbed Jimi Hendrix Experience rendition of “Hear My Train A Comin’.” Also included in Valleys of Neptune is “Mr. Bad Luck,” a Jimi Hendrix Experience track, produced by Chas Chandler during the 1967 Axis: Bold as Love sessions.

Here is the full tracklisting and information for Valleys of Neptune:

Stone Free
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, April 7, 9, 14, May 17,1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Billy Cox
Drums: Mitch Mitchell
Backing Vocals: Roger Chapman, Andy Fairweather Low

Valleys Of Neptune
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, September 23, 1969, May 15, 1970
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Drums: Mitch Mitchell
Bass: Billy Cox
Percussion: Juma Sultan

Bleeding Heart
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, April 24, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Billy Cox
Drums: Rocky Isaac
Tambourine: Chris Grimes
Maracas: Al Marks

Hear My Train A Comin’
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, April 7, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Mr. Bad Luck
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, May 5, 1967
Producer: Chas Chandler
Additional bass and drum recording, Air Studios, London, June 5, 1987
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Sunshine Of Your Love
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, February 16, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell
Percussion: Rocki Dzidzornu

Lover Man
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, February 16, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Ships Passing Through The Night
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, April 14, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Guitar, Vocals: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Fire
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, February 17, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass, Backing Vocal: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Red House
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, February 17, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Lullaby For The Summer
Recorded: Record Plant, New York, April 7, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Mixed By Eddie Kramer
Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Crying Blue Rain
Recorded: Olympic Studios, London, February 16, 1969
Producer: Jimi Hendrix
Additional bass and drum recording, Air Studios, London, June 5, 1987
Vocal, Guitar: Jimi Hendrix
Percussion: Rocki Dzidzornu
Bass: Noel Redding
Drums: Mitch Mitchell

Every year International Forum selects a number of manufacturer’s products for design and this year Sony scored 9 awards, out of which I am a proud owner of 3 – Bravia ZX1, Cybershot TX1 and VAIO X. If you never heard of iF, here is a little history about it:

Since their introduction in the year 1953, the International Forum (iF) design awards have been a reliable indicator of outstanding quality in design. The iF logo, awarded by international experts, is trusted the world over and denotes proven design quality. 1,016 companies from 39 different nations competed for an iF product design award 2010, submitting a total of 2,486 products for adjudication by an international panel of experts. 778 products merited an iF product design award 2010, with 50 of them also selected to receive an iF gold award.

iF Gold Awards

BRAVIA ZX1 Series, ‘Ultra-thin LCD television

Owing to the extruded aluminum frame, which doubles as both chassis and housing, the ZX1 is the world’s lightest 40V-format LCD TV at 12.2 kg. By thinning the edges to an acute angle (9.9mm at its thinnest point) the designer has created an exquisitely light look suggestive of a piece of paper floating in mid-air. Its wireless functionality provides flexibility when placing the TV in any interior.
The product’s minimalist design has been perfected to minute detail: sleek back panel, discretely hidden wires and connectors, and the arm of the stand. This is a truly inspiring design evocative of new lifestyles built around the TV.

Cyber-shot DSC-TX1, Digital still camera

While maintaining the slimness of previous models, the DSC-TX1 achieves improved image quality and a movie recording function. Continuing the T series’ characteristic aluminum lens cover and stainless steel body, the model now features improved contour tapering on both ends, and a sleek front surface that curves up toward the lens, adding softness and appeal to the previous model’s thin, solid body. Available in five colors, the lens cover features a lustrous finish to beautifully enhance its distinctive smooth curved surface. The gold model in particular offers a metallic polish that shimmers along the curved surface.

iF Product Awards

X Series VAIO notebook PC

P Series VAIO mini notebook PC

CMT-DH70SWR / DH50R Micro Audio System

BDV-Z7 Blu-ray Disc Home Theatre System

HDR-CX520/CX505/CX500 Series Handycam camcorder

HDR-CX120/CX100/CX105E/CX106E Series Handycam camcorder

PCM-M10 Linear PCM Recorder

Winning products embraced all areas within Sony’s expertise including the HDR-CX520V Handycam camcorder, X Series VAIO notebook PC and PCM-M10 Linear PCM Recorder. Moreover, out of nearly 2,500 entries only 50 are given the coveted gold award for outstanding design. Highlighting the innovation and unique core of Sony’s design, the ZX1 Series BRAVIA television and DSC-TX1 Cyber-shot digital still camera were both awarded this year’s gold awards at today’s iF Design ceremony held at the CeBIT trade fair in Hanover, Germany.

Receiving the award on behalf of Sony Design, Tak Kawagoi, director, Design Centre Europe commented, “These iF Design Awards for our product design shows the innovation levels and ingenuity of our design teams across many product categories. Our designers always strive towards our corporate philosophy to ‘do what has never been done before’ and gold awards for the BRAVIA ZX1 TV and Cyber-shot TX1 digital still camera demonstrate the boundaries we are pushing for the integration of technology and lifestyle design.”

Sony product designers consider many elements when creating new products, from the edges of the materials, to the user-interface to the colours and finishes. Speaking of the choice in designing the colours for the gold award winning DSC-TX1 Cyber-shot digital still camera,  the designer commented, “The colours and textures you see on the DSC-TX1 enhance the beautiful curves of the camera body. That’s why the body is matte and the lens cover has a satin finish, for example. The surfaces gleam like jewelry and were designed with parties and glamorous events in mind.”

iF judges praised the winning gold award products, saying, “The Cyber-shot digital camera is extremely thin and delivers to the user not only pure photo-taking enjoyment with its minimally designed exterior, but also – thanks to the wide range of available colors – it is like a little piece of jewelery that you can wear and have fun with.” The BRAVIA ZX1 series TV was honored for its minimalistic appeal, “this flatscreen TV really does justice to its name. It is not only amazingly light, but it’s design is as minimalist as possible. Along with the sleek housing, the rear panel is a delight with all its cables and connectors hidden tidily away.”

Sony will be exhibiting at this year’s Milano Salone Internationale del Mobile, showcasing its future design vision at what is the most creative, lifestyle-oriented platform in the world. Kawagoi added, “The Milan exhibition will be a demonstration of the strength of our creative energy, so this timely recognition from International Forum Design perfectly represents the importance we bestow on our design and how forward-thinking we intend our designs to be.”

Source

The Spider-Man film series are superhero films based on the fictional Marvel Comics character of the same name, and unless you’re living in cave you’ve probably seen one of the movies. The rights to a motion picture based on Spider-Man were purchased in 1985 and moved through various production companies and studios, at one point having James Cameron to direct, before being secured by Sony Pictures Entertainment. The three films, produced on a total budget of US $597 million, grossed nearly $2.5 billion worldwide. Each film set several box office records, with all three included in the top 20 highest-grossing domestic films as well as the top 25 highest-grossing worldwide films. Sony Pictures just announced the release date for the next movie in the Spider Man series, but first, lets take a look as this huge franchise is going to be very different.

In 2007, Spider-Man 4 entered development, with Raimi attached to direct and Maguire, Dunst and other cast members set to reprise their roles. Both a fourth and a fifth movie were planned, and at one time the idea of shooting the two sequels concurrently was under consideration. However, Raimi stated in March 2009 that only the fourth film was currently in development and that if there were fifth and sixth films, the two films would actually be a continuation of each other. James Vanderbilt was hired in October 2007 to pen the screenplay, after initial reports in early 2007 that Sony Pictures was in contact with David Koepp, who wrote the first Spider-Man film. The script was subsequently rewritten by Pulitzer-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire, and rewritten again by Gary Ross in October 2009. Sony also engaged Vanderbilt to write scripts for Spider-Man 5 and Spider-Man 6.

In 2007, Raimi expressed interest in portraying the transformation of Dr. Curt Connors into his villainous alter-ego, the Lizard; the character’s actor Dylan Baker and producer Grant Curtis have also been enthusiastic about the idea. It was reported in December 2009 that John Malkovich was in negotiations to play Vulture, and that Anne Hathaway would play Felicia Hardy, though she would not have transformed into the Black Cat, as in the comics. Instead, Raimi’s Felicia was expected to become a brand-new superpowered figure called the Vulturess.

Sony Pictures announced in January 2010 that plans for Spider-Man 4 had been canceled due to Raimi’s withdrawal from the project. Raimi reportedly ended his participation due to doubt that he could meet the planned May 2011 release date while upholding the film creatively.

Simultaneous with the cancellation of Spider-Man 4, Sony announced that the franchise would be rebooted with a new director and new cast. The reboot film is scheduled to be released in summer 2012 and will focus on Peter Parker developing his abilities in high school. Sony also confirmed that James Vanderbilt will write the script for the new film and Marc Webb will direct the next Spider-Man film. Now things have finally come together, with Sony Pictures tweeting that the next Spider Man movie will come to theaters in 3D on July 3rd, 2012.

Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, said, “At its core, Spider-Man is a small, intimate human story about an everyday teenager that takes place in an epic super-human world. The key for us as we sought a new director was to identify filmmakers who could give sharp focus to Peter Parker’s life. We wanted someone who could capture the awe of being in Peter’s shoes so the audience could experience his sense of discovery while giving real heart to the emotion, anxiety, and recklessness of that age and coupling all of that with the adrenaline of Spider-Man’s adventure. We believe Marc Webb is the perfect choice to bring us on that journey.”

Arad and Ziskin added jointly, “Over the years, the Spider-Man comics have been told with bold and creative new writers and artists who have re-calibrated the way audiences see Peter Parker. Marc Webb will do for the new direction of the films what so many visionary storytellers have done with the comic books. He is an incredibly talented filmmaker and we look forward to working closely with him on this new adventure.”

Webb said, “This is a dream come true and I couldn’t be more aware of the challenge, responsibility, or opportunity. Sam Raimi’s virtuoso rendering of Spider-Man is a humbling precedent to follow and build upon. The first three films are beloved for good reason. But I think the Spider-Man mythology transcends not only generations but directors as well. I am signing on not to ‘take over’ from Sam. That would be impossible. Not to mention arrogant. I’m here because there’s an opportunity for ideas, stories, and histories that will add a new dimension, canvas, and creative voice to Spider-Man.”

Stan Lee, co-creator of Spider-Man, added, “I’m excited that Sony has chosen a director with a real penchant and understanding for the character. This is a brave, bold direction for the franchise, and I can’t wait to see what Marc comes up with next.”

The annual 52nd Grammy Awards, the biggest music award show in the USA, was last night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Sony Music Entertainment and its various artists is one of the largest recorded music companies in the world and of course won really big – a total of 31 awards. But it wasn’t just about who won and who lost – there is so much more to the Grammys.

There were many interesting artists, fashions (check it all out at daylife), live performances, and also tributes, including one for Michael Jackson and his amazing Earth Song.

The sequence featured a 3D mini movie that was designed for his This is It Tour of his song Earth Song. Celine Dion, Jennifer Hudson, Smokey Robinson, Carrie Underwood, Usher all performed during various parts of the song.

Michael’s children Prince and Paris Jackson received the Michael Jackson Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of their father.

Here are some of the Sony artists who won big (courtesy of Sony’s Facebook page). Beyoncé won a total of six awards breaking the record for most wins by a female artist in one night.

Beyonce – I Am… Sasha Fierce

• Song Of The Year – Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
• Best Female Pop Vocal Performance – Halo
• Best Female R&B Vocal Performance – Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
• Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance – At Last
• Best R&B Song – Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
• Best Contemporary R&B Album

Kings Of Leon – Only by the Night

• Record Of The Year – (Use Somebody)
• Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals – (Use Somebody)
• Best Rock Song – (Use Somebody)

Maxwell – Blacksummers’ Night

• Best Male R&B Vocal Performance – Pretty Wings
• Best R&B Album

Bruce Springsteen – Working On A Dream

• Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance – Working On A Dream

AC/DC – Black Ice

• Best Hard Rock Performance – (War Machine)

Judas Priest – A Touch Of Evil (Live)

• Best Metal Performance – Dissident Aggressor

Jamie Foxx & T-Pain – Intuition

• Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals – Jamie Foxx & T-Pain – Blame It

Carrie Underwood – Play On

• Best Country Collaboration With Vocals – Carrie Underwood & Randy Travis – I Told You So

Mary Mary – The Sound

• Best Gospel Song – God In Me

Best Latin Jazz Album: Bebo Valdés And Chucho Valdés – Juntos Para Siempre

Best Gospel Performance: Donnie McClurkin Featuring Karen Clark Sheard – Wait On The Lord

Best Rock Or Rap Gospel Album: Third Day – Live Revelations

Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album: Israel Houghton – The Power Of One

Best Latin Pop Album: La Quinta Estación – Sin Frenos

Best Latin Rock, Alternative Or Urban Album: Calle 13 – Los De Atras Vienen Conmigo

Best Regional Mexican Album: Vicente Fernández – Necesito De Ti

Best Contemporary Blues Album: The Derek Trucks Band – Already Free

Best Musical Show Album – West Side Story

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical: Imogen Heap, engineer (Imogen Heap) – Ellipse

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical – Brendan O’Brien

• Black Ice (AC/DC) (A)
• Working On A Dream (Bruce Springsteen) (A)

Producer Of The Year, Classical – Steven Epstein

• Yo-Yo Ma & Friends: Songs Of Joy And Peace (Yo-Yo Ma & Various Artists)

Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without Orchestra): Sharon Isbin (Joan Baez & Mark O’Connor) – Journey To The New World

Best Classical Crossover Album – Yo-Yo Ma & Friends: Songs Of Joy And Peace

Dear John is an upcoming 2010 romantic drama/war film starring Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried and Scott Porter. Directed by Lasse Hallström, and distributed by Screen Gems (a Sony Pictures company), the film is an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ novel of the same name. Some of you may remember Sparks’ last novel, The Notebook.

Dear John tells the story of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a young soldier home on leave, and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried), the idealistic college student he falls in love with during her spring vacation. Over the next seven tumultuous years, the couple is separated by John’s increasingly dangerous deployments. While meeting only sporadically, they stay in touch by sending a continuous stream of love letters overseas – correspondence that eventually triggers fateful consequences.

The film will be released theatrically in North America on February 5, 2010 – other international release dates can be found on the official website. It was rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some sensuality and violence.

If anyone is wondering, the song in the trailer above is Set The Fire To The Third Bar by Snow Patrol. Check out some other Dear John clips at Sony Pictures YouTube.

Simon Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment have announced the creation of a new long-term global venture to focus on the production and exploitation of music, television, film and digital content. The new venture will own all of the existing Syco television and music assets, which include the global TV franchises “The X Factor” and “Got Talent”, as well as superstar artists such as Leona Lewis, Susan Boyle and Il Divo. The new venture, which will continue to use the “Syco” name, will be co-owned by Sony Music and a Simon Cowell-owned company. Syco will be based in London and will also have offices in Los Angeles.

As the first project under the new Syco banner, Fox Television announced (seen above from January 11th) that it will launch the U.S. version of the worldwide hit TV show, “The X Factor”, in the fall of 2011. Cowell will serve as both executive producer and judge on the U.S. version of the show.

“The X Factor” is a Syco-owned television format, which currently airs in 17 countries and has been the #1 UK entertainment show for the last three years, reaching record UK audiences in 2009 of 20 million with 60% audience share. “The X Factor” is the No.1 music- entertainment format in Europe.

In addition to “The X Factor”, Syco is also the owner of the “Got Talent” TV format which currently airs in 27 countries and is the UK’s most successful TV format export. In 2009, “Britain’s Got Talent” launched the global music career of Susan Boyle, whose debut album, “I Dreamed A Dream”, sold over 8 million albums in six weeks, making it the world’s biggest selling album of 2009 and the fastest selling album in history.

Syco is also the record label home for such diverse international recording stars as Leona Lewis and Il Divo. Cowell has worked with artists selling more than 180 million albums and delivered more than 150 No.1 records. In 2009, Cowell was named No. 1 in Hollywood Reporter’s Top 50 Most Powerful in Reality TV and one of Entertainment Weekly’s Top Entertainers of the Year.

“I have had a fantastic relationship with Sony for many years and I’m delighted we are launching this venture together,” Cowell said.

“Over the past 20 years, Simon Cowell has been a great partner and is an integral part of the Sony Music global family. We are extremely excited to be able to continue and further develop our relationship with Simon, and significantly grow the Syco venture,” said Rolf Schmidt-Holtz, CEO, Sony Music Entertainment.

“Simon Cowell is one of the most prominent and successful creative music and television executives in the entertainment business today. This new venture will allow Sony Music and all Sony divisions to develop and pursue a host of new opportunities with this supremely talented individual,” said Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, CEO and President, Sony Corporation.

“I am absolutely delighted that we have been able to extend our long and mutually beneficial partnership with Simon. He is an inspiring and stimulating business partner and working with him closely over the last 10 years has been an absolute pleasure. With the launch of “The X Factor” in the US, we look forward to replicating the unprecedented success the show has had in the UK globally,” said Ged Doherty, Chairman and CEO, Sony Music Entertainment UK.

Want a job? Sony Ericsson USA wants you. They’re looking for disruptive, show-stopping ideas. NBD – never been done. They’ve got an exciting energetic brand, great products and great parent companies with Sony and Ericsson. Come partner with them. Read the assignment below. Get your “Two-Pager” to (Kevin.Marrazzo at sonyericsson dot com) by noon ET Monday February 1, 2010. Please also attach a page or two about your company, HQ, years in operation, year incorporated, top 5-10 clients, Sr. Staff bios, URL, and the rest of the good stuff. They’ll let you know by Feb 15th if you are one of 3-5 finalists invited to come pitch to our team. Under NDA, they’ll give you a budget, launch calendar and more information.

Assignment:
• Two pages, describe why you want to be Sony Ericsson’s digital agency of record for 2010?
• Provide your best idea on what you would do to help Sony Ericsson be successful in 2010 within the digital space
- Demonstrate your creativity
- Show how you will execute
- Provide an evaluation tool

Goals:
• Increase Sony Ericsson’s brand/product awareness with the digital space
• Provide a digital platform to expand
• Build SE’s digital consumer database for eCRM to drive increased sell through activities.
• Utilize multiple digital tools including Social Media
• Teamwork is key, collaborate with our agency partners

Questions? E-mail (Kevin.Marrazzo at sonyericsson dot com)

Play.me – the newest music platform where users can stream ad-free music on demand from virtually anywhere at any time – has officially launched. Play.me’s browser-based service gives users instant access to over 2.5 million songs to create playlists and customize radio stations to share and stream through social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Play.me enables music fans to quickly find and play all the songs they love from a comprehensive, continually updated catalog and find new artists with Play.me’s discovery tools, including similar artist suggestions, new releases, and dynamic commercial-free radio stations which can be instantly created based on genre, artist, and decade.

For the music listener on-the-go, Play.me’s pioneering Android app — the first of its kind in the US market — allows users to temporarily save playlists directly to their phone. This new feature enables users without a signal to enjoy uninterrupted listening while “off the grid,” such as being on a plane or in a subway tunnel where you don’t have cell phone reception or wi-fi access.

Play.me offers consumers both a premium monthly subscription service ($9.99) and a free trial version with limited streaming capabilities and complimentary downloads.

Play.me has licensing deals with major music companies including Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music, IODA, The Orchard and Beggars Group. In addition, Play.me is actively working to add more content providers, and is in the latter stages of negotiations with the other major labels. From mainstream hits to buzz-worthy indies and everything in between, Play.me provides over 10 million minutes of non-stop music.

“We believe that our easy-to-use navigation and extensive catalog — combined with the trial and paid offerings — makes Play.me the ultimate destination for music enthusiasts to hear and discover music the way they want, when they want,” said Massimiliano Pellegrini (Chairman, Play.me Inc.).

“We are pleased to make our unparalleled roster of music available through the Play.me platform. We think well-built, easy-to-use services that provide a compelling consumer experience to fans have a huge opportunity to meet consumer demand for legitimate digital solutions,” said Michael Paull, Executive Vice President, Global Digital Business, Sony Music Entertainment.

In the coming weeks, Play.me will launch new features, including the release of its mobile application for iPhone and Blackberry; and Play.me News featuring artist interviews, special promotions, and the latest music news. Developers are also encourage to check out Play.me Labs, and be sure to check out Play.me blog for the latest updates and company news.

Congratulations to Ryan Palmer on winning the 2010 Sony Open in Hawaii. Ryan won his third career PGA Tour title Sunday January 17, 2010 on the 72nd and final hole of the tournament outlasting Robert Allenby in an exciting back-and-forth day-long duel on the Seth Raynor designed Waialae Country Club. Ryan’s dreams became a reality on the final green when his approach chip struck the pin and settled inches away from the cup, leaving a tap in birdie to secure his 1-shot victory. Sunday’s exciting conclusion marks another great beginning to the PGA TOUR season the Sony Open in Hawaii has been delivering for the past 12 years.

Here are some clips from Ryan’s win courtesy of OttawaGolfBlog.com/Golf Channel:

Don’t miss the action at the 2011 Sony Open in Hawaii, the first PGA TOUR event planned to be shot in 3D.

Merely two hours after I got off a plane and arrived at CES 2010, I sat down in a private meeting room with Stan Glasgow, COO/President of Sony Electronics USA. The interview took place about a hour before the CES 2010 press conference. It was the first time I’d ever interviewed someone on this level, and while mainstream press enjoy such exclusives, these types of interactions are still relatively new for bloggers. It didn’t take long for Stan’s warm demeanor, infectious smile and cool personality to make things comfortable and soon enough we were laughing together during some of his answers – it had turned from an interview into a simple conversation. It became quickly apparent to me how this is one of the best businessmen and speakers I’d ever encountered, and why he is perfect for the title he currently holds. Read on and you’ll learn some interesting things about Stan’s path to his current position, his daily routine, predictions for 2010, his favorite Sony product, how the BRAVIA Internet Video Link service is coming to the PS3, and no new OLED in 2010.

SI: Why don’t you tell us how you got started at Sony, and eventually became the Chief Operating Officer and President today?

Stan: I had built a company, Capetronic Computer Products Holdings Ltd., a global display manufacturing company primarily centered in Asia with factories in Taiwan, China, Thailand, and in California. I started that company in the beginning of computers with the original Apple Macintosh, the original PS1, and worked with Steve Jobs, Rod Canion and other beginning people (in computing). I helped design and and build power supplies, deflection technology, and other products for them. Eventually I took Capetronic public when it was close to a billion dollars.

I had worked with Capetronic for close to 20 years, and was 46 at the time; I hadn’t spent much time with my family. I said, “Now is the time to truly retire.”

I got bored in about three months – the retirement lasted about two and a half years. I wasn’t good at retirement. I started doing some consulting work with several Asian companies, and said to myself, “At this point in my life, I am not motivated by money anymore, but I am motivated to work with great people, and to make a significant contribution that would excite me personally.”

With this in mind, I thought about all of the companies I had worked with in my career, and Sony came to the top of my list since they have great people. I had the fortune of having meetings with Akio Morita and other people on that level over the years. I called up people I knew inside Sony, and asked “Can I help you guys? Consulting? Anything?”

So they gave me a consulting deal in display marketing, and I did that for about six months and after that they wanted me to formally join, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to work again. I said, “Let me think about it,” and we negotiated for several months. The salary they offered was about a tenth of what I used to make. It wasn’t a money thing – so we negotiated a little more and I finally joined Sony and took over as VP of Display Marketing in June 2001; it was in the transition phase between CRT and LCD. I was very happy doing that.

I did that for about a year – meanwhile, Hideki (Dick) Komiyama (seen above accepting the Best Mobile Handset Award at the 2008 Global Mobile Awards) came over from Japan to take over the President and COO role at Sony Electronics USA. Dick and I worked together at my prior company; I bought products from Sony, and negotiated some deals with them. He took a look at me and I took a look at him, and it was like old friends of course.

He said, “What are you doing for the company?”

I said, “I am running display marketing for you.”

He responded, “That’s ALL your doing at this company?”

I said, “I don’t need a senior position anymore in my life.”

The next thing I knew I was SVP of Information Technology Division, running VAIO and several other products at the time. Less than a year after that, the move took place from Park Ridge, NJ to San Diego, CA and Dick asked me to take over consumer sales. It was typical – I get a call on a Friday, and on Monday I take over the new job. I got a call from Dick again on a Friday in 2006 and said he was, “leaving back to Japan and take another position, and everyone wants you to take over.”

I said to him, “Dick, I don’t really know this time if I really want that in my life right now.”

He said, “Just do it and help us out.” So I did, and that’s how it happened.

What is the average day for you like at Sony, from start to finish? I understand it varies greatly, but if you can, something detailed for our readers.

Every day is very different. I have a program – every night, I plan out what I want to accomplish the next day – it takes me ten minutes, and is not a huge exercise – I know the tasks, certain e-mails I haven’t responded to, or projects I need to check on and follow-up. I build all of that into it, and then I get interrupted constantly; emergencies, phone calls, and whatever else goes on – Sir Howard will call..

The day usually starts very early, I get up at five and take a walk; I used to run most of my life, but at my age I don’t run anymore – the knees don’t hold up to well, so I walk for about 45 minutes to a hour. At 6 o clock, I get ready, and I’m in the office from 7:00 to 7:15. I start my day – I originally try to get through e-mails very quickly (several hundred per day). Joan, my main assistant helps me as well as Debbie in Park Ridge, who starts earlier. They sort out the junk, and things they can take care of. I dig into my e-mails, and get that going – I speak to the East Coast initially, because no one is in our office that early. And then the office starts coming in at 8:30 to 9:00, people start rolling in.

Generally, meetings are heavily booked; 50% of my schedule is already in meetings. Some of that is due to SOX, and the new rules we have where I have to be involved on at least a monthly basis, in all major activities of the company. It has to be formal and documented and in meetings – every step of the way. I get the complaints about so many meetings, but a large portion of them today are not done because we want to do them, or because we think they’re 100% necessary..they’re done because there is compliance issues now. We’re going to be changing accounting systems in the future to a new worldwide system, rather than the US system we have today. That will also make us do some further changes. I think they’ll be better though – those changes.

So the day is interesting – it usually ends somewhere between 6 and 8 PM, half the nights I probably have dinner with somebody, such as guests in town, or some customers, or something. Then the phone calls from Japan will start – because they’re waking up. So that’s a typical kind of day.

How often do you travel to Japan for Sony in an average year? Tell us about your most recent trip there.

Because of the economic meltdown, it was more over the last year. About a year and a half ago they made me group executive of the Sony Corporation. That gets me involved in a little more activity in Japan than I was previously. I probably go about 6-7 times a year, for about a week to ten days. Maximum is two weeks. Usually in a week I can get everything accomplished.

Tell us about your most recent meeting with Sir Howard Stringer, or the Sony Board of Directors in Japan.

Let me tell you a funny thing that just happened – we had CES all programmed for this press conference, and there’s always timing issues of people, etc. We have Taylor Swift performing – she’s on a deadline because she has to get to LA tonight for the People’s Choice Awards. She was sorta at the end of the program, but the program was running long and we were trying to figure it out, so we had to turn the whole program on its ears. Sir Howard was working on it out there, and we ended up changing everything instantly – they’re all rewriting it right now. Poor Dave (Migdal, SVP of Corporate Communications), he’s going crazy.

Howard is very engaging, decisive – he really understands the world of entertainment, PR, and communications better than anybody I’ve ever seen or worked with in my life. It’s very cool. The interactions with the Senior Japanese Executives – they’re good. These are a whole different group than we’ve ever had before, they’re younger, they’re a lot more aggressive. Good backgrounds – it’s much more fun now than it was, quite honestly. They’re willing to try new things, and really be open to ideas. It’s a lot of fun.

The other thing I do that’s really interesting is we have an advisory council, where we look at the future of Sony. For some reason they’ve asked me to be a part of that, I don’t know why I was selected – I don’t ask questions anymore. I go to the meeting, and there’s some interesting people – Louis Gerstner (the Ex-CEO of IBM), Nobuyuki Idei (the past chairman of Sony), past chairman of IKEA, Peter Peterson and some of the outside directors of the board are on this advisory board – we look at future business opportunities, what major things we could do, we have people come in and present to us, and it’s fun being a part of that.

In November 2009, Sony held an investors/analyst meeting in Japan that outlined a new Sony Online Service, where any Internet connected Sony product could access a vast library of applications, music/video content, services and the ability to buy products. Sony labeled this as a new business model, and said that it would create TV’s that would “evolve even after point of sale.” Can you please tell us your thoughts on this evolution, and what your impressions were of it so far?

I think we’re making good progress – to date, I believe we have 33 million users of the Playstation Network. We’re beginning to port that network to other Sony products. We’re doing BRAVIA Internet Video Link – which is more of a streaming service than a downloading service. We’ve got that growing at a fantastic rate in our televisions right now, we added it to Blu-ray players, and we’re adding it to the PS3. We have two different delivery systems of content now ongoing. I think consumers will make the choice what’s easier for them, and then we have to also understand the business models of each of them and decided which is better for the company also. That is ongoing and going very well.

What does make.believe mean to you?

To me, it has a couple of meanings – the main meaning is that we have not had a worldwide project, a worldwide branding effort inside Sony in probably decades. Every region does its own advertising promotion, we’ve had a few things certain regions have done, other regions have not done. It was time to unite the company, from a branding perspective. Make.believe is an interesting way to do it because it gives our engineers the ability to look at creating consumer experiences that are very unique. It gives us the ability to rally our people around something new, a tag line that’s simple, yet very inspiring. The more we can personalize that for consumers in addition to our own people, I see that being a huge win for Sony around the world.

It’s got multifacets that people inside the company to rally together, getting our technical community a little more active – they’re a good community, and I’m not putting them down, but activating them because that’s a core resource of Sony.

What are your major consumer electronic predictions for the second half of 2010?

I think the adoption of 3D may be a surprise in the second half. I think the excitement of Avatar, it’s success, and the 13 other 3D films slated over the balance of the year. I believe that 3D is going to take off possibly more quickly than we’re all thinking. That could be a surprise. I think a product like Dash could be a surprise product. The Reader and our strategy of being totally open, and not having a proprietary type of software system and the fact that we’ve got a broad line moving forward positively being strong in the second half. I believe Blu-ray, now that it’s got a 3D spec, now that the prices have calmed down, I see that potentially surprising us in the second half. I like some of our digital imaging projects, I like Transfer Jet technology, I like being able to proximity – just by putting two cameras together and move pictures from one to another. And eventually move that technology to Televisions, VAIO’s, and other products.

There could be a hope that the US economy is a little better than we think in the second half.

How many 3D channels do you predict there will be by the end of 2010?

I’m aware of one network slated for 2011, one slated for 2010 – this is not easy stuff. This is complex, we don’t have it all figured out yet. I think ESPN’s going to be a pioneer in the world of sports in figuring out camera placement and what to do there. I think it’s going to take some time. I don’t think we’re going to have a lot of broadcasting of 3D in 2010; I think it will start heavily in 2011. We’ll have some that begins, but I don’t think it’s going to be pervasive.

The theatrical side is moving well, but now we’re working on the TV side of this, broadcasting, and the personalized content, getting camcorders that work in 3D, getting digital still cameras that can take a 3D picture. There’s a lot of work to be done there.

What is your favorite Sony product of all time (perhaps one you used when you were younger)?

I would have to say only because of my interest and engineering background in TV, I think the 55″ BRAVIA XBR8 that we introduced about 18-24 months ago was the best LCD TV in the world at that point, and remains the best LCD TV in the world. We did a very special type of back-lighting technology in that product that was super expensive – it was Triluminos, 3 color back-lights, directly into the back of the screen’s back-lighting. A lot of the LED back-lighting today, nearly all of it is Edge-lit, so you’re using LED’s, but you’re firing across the back of the screen and you’ve got some uniformity issues, hot spots, and cold spots. That 55″ XBR8 sits in my main family room, it’s the TV I watch most of the time, and I still gawk at how good that picture is. It was a strong seller; we’re running out of it right now, and we didn’t anticipate the final demand as well as should have because it’s a really expensive product.

Sony is releasing several 3D capable televisions featuring a new Monolithic design – what would you say to the consumer who is skeptical about this new line of 3D display products?

We’re offering consumers an option, I’m not sure how companies many are doing what we’re doing – we’re fully integrating 3D TV’s to 60″ that we’ll sell. We’re also selling a line of 3D capable TV’s, with basically no increase in price. You can add the emitter later on, and the glasses later on. So we give the consumer the option of buying a capable set that they can then make the investment later on to bring it up to full 3D.

Many television manufacturers added support for SkypeHD, and Toshiba promised some sort of video communication for its TV’s. Can we expect Sony to offer this capability as a BRAVIA add-on in 2010?

No comment.

Can we expect to see 3D Cameras (point and shoot or DSLR) from Sony in 2010?

I can’t answer that. You can see them, but when, I don’t know.

Can we expect any new OLED televisions from Sony in 2010?

We’re working on all sorts of prototypes, but I don’t see production of product in 2010. There’s a wonderful 3D OLED prototype here at CES; that’s the real way to do 3D and TV – because you’ve got direct transmission, rather than back lighting and all the other reflective ways of doing it. But getting it to be commercially reasonable in price, we’ve got a long way to go. That’s the whole problem in OLED, great technology, great feature set, but it’s really hard to get the costs down. Smaller form-factors are easy to do.

Thanks to COO/President Stan Glasgow for sitting down with us and entertaining our questions, and a special thanks to the Sony Corporate Communications team.

Sony’s presence at CES 2010 was quite memorable and they demonstrated a wide variety of new strategies for their product lines. Stan and I had a really good time covering some of the products, meeting with old Sony friends and meeting new ones. I cannot express to you enough how well we were treated by Sony, and I hope that through this pictorial and video you will feel like you were right there with us. I do want to express that these pictures and the video do not do the entire booth justice, as it was simply massive and had many more products than what you see here. Nonetheless, I still think you’ll enjoy some of the extra pictures that we couldn’t really fit in with any other entries.

And don’t worry, we still have a lot more to post. Here’s a video showing off Sony’s booth a little more:

I thought it was really neat how Sony had these looming displays of their latest 2010 Television line overlooking the entire booth.

Sony also had an interactive EyePet display, where one could sit down with a Playstation rep and learn about the augmented reality experience. The game should be coming to the USA very soon, which is long overdue as it has been available elsewhere (such as the UK, Asia Pacific) for a little while now.

Here’s the Alpha area, where two specialists helped visitors with their queries. They didn’t have the A450 on display and said that it would most likely never come to the USA.

A general area nearby -

I couldn’t resist..

Sony also had some props from District 9 in a glass case, such as this enormous gun and one of the alien hands and canister that started the whole mess in the colony.

Here is the NX series BRAVIA that sat in front of a couch – they had three separate couches with configurations like this in front of them. Sometimes you could catch people sleeping on the couch at various times, or simply taking a break from the stresses of a convention.

Here is the inside of a Ford Taurus SHO that had special Sony custom lettering and one of their latest head units.

This is the exploded view of a DSC-HX5V – I love it when Sony Japan puts something like this together for conventions. I’d love watch the whole process sometime.

This is the exploded view of the latest Wide Angle G Lens found in many 2010 Sony Camcorders.

This is a luggage tag being made for myself by a machine they had near some VAIO’s. It was pretty random, but attracted attention and was thoughtful. On the other side it mentioned VAIO, CES 2010 and Sony.

I just love everything about Hot Shots and had to take this picture, plus, the PSP Go won an Innovations award (amongst many other Sony products as well).

Stan had no problem working the desk. One of the most amusing pictures I’ve ever taken.

An outtake from the video above – there were many outtakes.

Sony’s Social Media Evangelist Sukhjit Ghag and I right before I left the show floor for good.

CES 2010 is nearly over but lucky for you I’m just starting to post some of the amazing content captured during our time at the show. CES was far different this year for Sony Insider than last year, as the site has matured dramatically since then and the level of respect and treatment we receive from Sony reflects that. We were allowed to use a 24.6 megapixel Alpha A900 DSLR and other tools to ensure that Sony Insider’s content stays at the high level in which you’ve become accustomed to. Sony’s CES 2010 press conference was quite impressive this year, and here are some pictures I took that I think you’ll enjoy. I wanted to make sure that you, the fan, could feel like they were right there with me.

Before you get to sit down at the press conference though, you usually check in with the Press Relations desk first. As we can see, Sony’s Social Media Evangelist Sukhjit Ghag and crew were busy making sure that the press were taken care of and that there was substantial updates on the various Sony social media pages for the online fans. The anticipation was building amongst the crowd.

Things were similar to the setup they have had in years past, and basically they slide the door open right before things start and you try to take any open seats within. Somehow, fortunately, there was one special seat wide open just for me right in front of the main stage. I looked over to my left and saw most of the Sony Corporation Executives (not USA, the overall Sony), and Chairman/CEO of Sony Pictures Michael Lynton. It was pretty amazing to be sitting amongst these people who run various aspects of Sony.

Sir Howard Stringer came out to kick things off..

..and it wasn’t long until Taylor Swift came out and played to the press and to the fans watching online.

After Taylor’s performance, COO/President of Sony Electronics USA Stan Glasgow came out and whisked everyone through the various products that Sony was debuting at CES. Stan is an excellent public speaker.

I remember that when the Dash was revealed that many people seemed surprised. Sony really hasn’t done anything like this before, but my appetite rests on a VAIO tablet.

Sir Howard Stringer would come back into the presentation at various points, and somehow I captured this unique angle of him while he was speaking. I promise you it was not a prolonged pose on his part by any means.

Professional Photographer Nigel Barker also came out on stage to demonstrate Transfer Jet with COO/President Stan Glasgow.

I liked Sony’s VAIO line-up announced at CES for the most part. The W Series Eco is a truly revolutionary “green” offering, hopefully it will start a trend amongst other manufacturers. I also am so thankful Sony put a Core i7 processor in one of their PC’s, as they did with the F Series.

To the right of the stage there was also a nice 2010 Sony BRAVIA setup.

Glitter was strewn about all over the floor from Taylor Swift’s performance. Unfortunately, the glitter reflected heavily on the mainand also made lighting rather odd on the speaker’s faces at times.

I really enjoyed COO/President Stan Glasgow’s face on this picture when he announced Sony’s most advanced TV’s to date.

Sir Howard Stringer always has such a warm, friendly demeanor that really invites you to listen, plus he simply knows how to have fun – he reminds me of Akio Morita at times.

It was interesting to observe the photographers on the floor -

Here is the moment right after the press conference, one of my favorite things in the world for some reason.

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American country pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. At one point in 2009, Taylor had 8 songs on the Billboard Top 100 chart along with CMA wins for Album of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, Video of the Year, and Entertainer of the Year. Not only did Taylor sell out her 52-city tour in 2009, but her 2010 tour dates sold out within minutes of being onsale. Her multi-platinum album, Fearless, is nominated for Album of the Year at the 2010 Grammy Awards, along with 7 other nominations. Forbes ranked Swift 2009’s 69th-most powerful celebrity, earning $18 million.

Taylor’s rise to superstardom might seem at times to have happened in the blink of an eye, but in reality it has taken a decade of hard work. Her family recognized Taylor’s talent and determination at an early age, and they started taking regular trips to Nashville to shop her music around. She began writing with local songwriters, and after a few years, during which the family made the decision to move to nearby Hendersonville, Tenn., a showcase at the Bluebird Cafe caught the eye of music-industry veteran Scott Borchetta, who was planning to launch a new label. What he saw on that stage was a young girl with an innate ability to entertain and a true gift for writing great songs.

Taylor Swift surprised onlookers with her unannounced performance of “Love Story” at Sony’s CES 2010 press conference (starts at 1:40). Briefly before that she spoke to Sony’s Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President Sir Howard Stringer about how she will use Sony products in 2010 to share her “beautiful experiences” online and also mentions her upcoming tour. The screen behind her was showing the performance live in 3D, too. I think we both can agree that 3D isn’t necessary to enjoy this, though.

Three of the world’s leading media, technology and entertainment companies – Discovery Communications, Sony Corporation and IMAX Corporation – today announced a joint venture to be established to develop the first 24/7 dedicated 3D television network in the U.S. The partnership brings together three leaders with an extraordinary collection of award-winning 3D content, technology expertise, television distribution and operational strength to deliver a high-quality three-dimensional viewing experience to home television audiences.

“Discovery’s business strategy has always focused on delivering groundbreaking content through new platforms, including the first suite of digital channels launched in 1996 and the first 24/7 basic cable HD channel in 2002,” said Discovery Founder and Chairman John Hendricks. “Now, as Discovery celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2010 as the world leader in satisfying curiosity and bringing audiences the most realistic viewing experience, we continue to change the face of television with the launch of the first-ever 24/7 dedicated 3D television network.”

“Sony is the only company with expertise in every part of the 3D value chain,” said Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, CEO and President, Sony Corporation. “We are delighted to be partnering with Discovery and IMAX, two premier companies also dedicated to leadership in 3D, in this groundbreaking new venture. It is clear to us that consumers will always migrate to a better and richer entertainment experience, and together we are determined to be the leader in providing that around the world.”

“By partnering with Sony and IMAX on 3D, Discovery will lead the way in revolutionizing the next-generation home viewing experience in the U.S. and around the world,” said Discovery Communications President and CEO David Zaslav. “Today’s announcement is the next step in fulfilling Discovery’s mission of providing groundbreaking content for our affiliate partners and enlightening viewers with the most immersive and realistic viewing experience available anywhere.”

“IMAX has been a pioneer and recognized leader in 3D technology for more than twenty-five years, delivering the premium in-theatre experience to audiences around the world. We’re reaching more and more consumers with the recent expansion of the IMAX® theatre network and the growth of 3D movie content,” said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond. “This new business venture is the first step in our strategic effort to take 3D into the home and extend the IMAX brand. We’ve already had strong collaborations with Discovery Communications and Sony in the past on IMAX event film titles, and we are thrilled to work with such strong partners to be the first to make in-home 3D a reality.”

Discovery, Sony, through its U.S. affiliate, Sony Corporation of America, and IMAX each will be equal partners in the joint venture. It will be launched in the U.S., with a goal of driving consumer adoption of 3D televisions and giving the network long-term leadership in the 3D home marketplace. In the future, the companies also will explore international distribution opportunities in selected markets.

The new 3D network will feature high-quality premium content from genres that are most appealing in 3D, including natural history, space, exploration, adventure, engineering, science and technology, motion pictures and children’s programming from Discovery, Sony Pictures Entertainment, IMAX and other third-party providers.

Discovery will provide network services, including affiliate sales and technical support functions, as well as 3D television rights to Discovery content and cross-promotion across its portfolio of 13 U.S. television networks. Sony will provide advertising/sponsorship sales support, and will seek to license television rights to current and future 3D feature films, music-related 3D content and game-related 3D content, while providing cross-promotion at retail stores. IMAX also will license television rights to future 3D films, promotion through its owned-and-operated movie theaters across the U.S., and a suite of proprietary and patented image enhancement and 3D technologies.

Governance for the joint venture will be handled by a board of directors comprised of members from each of the three companies, with the day-to-day operations run by a separate staff and management team that will report to the board. A search for the venture’s general manager will begin immediately.

The parties have signed a non-binding Letter of Intent. Specific financial terms of the venture were not disclosed. The parties will work towards prompt execution of definitive agreements, subject to any necessary regulatory approvals.

VEVO is an online music video website owned by Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, EMI and Abu Dhabi Media Company. It is developed and hosted by YouTube, Sony, and Google. Google’s YouTube video service will host Universal content on the satellite website, making this the first time that YouTube hosts content off its main website. Through this partnership, Google and Universal will split ad revenues. It is expected to become the largest music oriented website on the Internet. Vevo is currently offering content from Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music, Hollywood Records, Walt Disney Records, CBS Interactive Music Group, Big Machine Records, Concord Music Group, Lyric Street Records, ABKCO, Caroline Distribution, Fontana Distribution, INgrooves, IODA, RED and The Orchard, among many others.

A possible major reason behind the project is the competition that music videos have on YouTube. Warner Music Group apparently removed its content from YouTube in March 2009 for just this reason, but is said to be considering hosting its content on this new service. The concept for the site is described as being a Hulu for music videos and the plan may have arisen from the goal of attracting more high-end advertisers. Currently, it is believed that many advertisers are ambivalent to hosting advertising on YouTube’s site alongside user-generated video. In the future, the site could host more than just music videos, such as editorials, other types of videos, and user-generated content.

VEVO also has a nicely organized and often updated company blog featuring new content.

The photo above is CEO of Sony Music Entertainment & Co-Chairman of VEVO Rolf Schmidt-Holt speaking onstage at the launch of VEVO at Skylight Studio on December 8, 2009 in New York City. Check out dozens of other pictures from the VEVO launch at daylife featuring numerous big stars and major players in the music industry