— The proposed Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger was sharply criticized in a report by the American Antitrust Institute, a not-for-profit advocacy group. The report was written by a retiree of the Federal Trade Commission. An excerpt: “If the combination is permitted, Live Nation Entertainment will have a powerful or dominant position in virtually all of the industry’s markets. Viewed in combination, the merger will give Live Nation Entertainment unarguable control of most competition within the industry, including the capacity to foreclose or discipline rivals that seek to compete vigorously in any individual market.” (Ticket News)
— Passalong Networks is closing its doors, according to a report. The digital service provider is looking to sell its business units, which include the white-label platform StoreBlocks and direct-to-consumer provider Speakerheart. (Digital Music News)
— Microsoft is shopping for ad agencies and the guess is a Zune Phone may be on the horizon. Ads should roll out this summer. (Digital Noise)
— Warner Music Group is said to receive no per-song streaming royalties from MySpace Music. A report says the company gets a share of advertising revenue related to its music’s streams. (TechCrunch)
— U.S. Cellular customers now have access to mSpot’s Make-UR-Tones application and catalog of 400,000 songs. (GoMo News)
— Berlin-based SoundCloud has raised €2.5 million ($3.3 million) in Series A funding. SoundCloud allows musicians to record, share, distribute and collaborate on songs. (Private Equity Hub)
— Online radio company Goom Radio announced it raised more than $16 million in venture capital funding. The New York-based company plans to launch a U.S. service later this year. (Press release)
