Manesar may resume work in two weeks

New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, the country’s biggest car maker, is likely to resume production at its Manesar plant in the next two weeks. An announcement to this effect is likely to be made next week, Maruti Suzuki chairman R.C. Bhargava said.
“We should be able to take a call on resuming production very soon. An announcement should be made next week. The details regarding the date, availability and security of workers, supervisors, and other production issues are being worked out,” Bhargava said in a phone interview on Friday. Maruti’s other plant at Gurgaon has been functioning normally.

The company had announced a lockout at its Manesar plant last month following violence at the factory, which left a senior company official dead and at least 100 injured. The riot followed an altercation between an employee and his supervisor. The injured included two Japanese executives who needed hospitalization.The company has also asked its vendors to be ready to boost production at their plants.
“We have not been told the date, but the company has asked us to gear up for production by next week,” said one of two Maruti Suzuki vendors who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The car maker was waiting for the investigation report into the violence, which is expected to be completed by Monday.
The company has also asked its engine and transmission unit Suzuki Powertrain India Ltd to boost production from 20 August.
“The production order for next week has come. We will be continuing with downsized production, but from 20 August, it will be slowly increased to optimum level,” said a senior plant official at Suzuki Powertrain, requesting anonymity.
In June, the Maruti Suzuki board approved a proposal to absorb affiliate Suzuki Powertrain in a move that will give it complete control over all its diesel car manufacturing operations. The process is likely to be completed by the end of this year.
Suzuki Powertrain is a 30:70 joint venture between Maruti and its Japanese parent Suzuki Motor Corp.
A senior Maruti Suzuki official said that while the car maker may resume production at Manesar soon, it will face problems in getting workers and supervisors. After the violence, most of the workers went underground fearing arrest. Mint reported on 1 August that Maruti may face resistance from its executives, who are reluctant to return.
“Considering all this, we will only be starting production from Plant B, where the requirement of manpower is minimal,” said a company official, requesting anonymity.
Maruti Suzuki has two assembly lines at Manesar, with a third under construction. The plant makes 550,000 vehicles a year, among them the Swift, the DZire, the SX4 and the A-star models. While its first assembly line is 70% automated, the second’s automation level is as high as 95%.
“We will begin with Swift and DZire. While the press and weld of these models will happen at Manesar, the assembly will take place at the Gurgaon plant,” said the Maruti Suzuki official. “To begin with,we may be producing around 300 cars per day for the first week.”
While the company may have suffered at least Rs. 1,700 crore of revenue loss since 18 July, according to analysts, news of the Manesar plant restarting has been welcomed by analysts.
“If production resumes in another couple of weeks, that would mean it will not have to face any cancellation in bookings,” said an analyst with a Mumbai-based brokerage firm. He requested anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to the media. “But they will suffer an Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) loss of at least Rs. 70-80 crore, which will impact its September quarter performance. We will have to wait and see how quickly the company can clear its backlog.”

Kingfisher Airlines net loss widens to Rs.650.78 cr

Mumbai: High jet fuel costs and grounded planes led to cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines Ltd’s net loss widening two-and-a-half times to Rs. 650.78 crore for the quarter ended 30 June 2012 against a Rs. 263.53 crore net loss in the corresponding quarter a year ago.
Curtailed network operations led to an 84.19% decrease in total sales at Rs. 301.38 crore for the reporting quarter against Rs. 1,907.01 crore for the corresponding quarter a year ago.

A media statement said the impact of high fuel costs, high interest rates, the depreciation of Indian rupee, and extraordinary expenses on account of the return of aircraft to lessors and costs associated with non-operating aircraft resulted in losses.“Kingfisher continues to believe it will get recapitalized and get on a path of sustained profitability. The airline is in discussions with several strategic and financial investors to bring fresh capital,” the media statement without disclosing names of the potential investors.
Parent company UB Group provided cash support of over Rs. 750 crore to the airline to meet its cash flow requirements, the statement said.
For the April-June quarter, the airline incurred redelivery (of airplanes) costs of Rs. 167.34 crore against Rs. 4.67 crore a year ago. It also incurred restructuring and idle cost of Rs. 208.69 crore for the June quarter; there was never such cost in the year-ago quarter.
Restructuring and idle costs represent a fixed cost associated with curtailment of operations during the period relating to aircraft on the ground.
The airline, however, did not disclose exact number of planes it is operating currently.
Sharan Lillaney, an analyst at domestic brokerage firm Angel Broking Ltd, said the losses has mainly come from fixed costs even in the context of non-operating regime.
“Kingfisher Airlines has employee costs, parking charges and other non-operating expenses. It is hard to make a profit at the operating level for Kingfisher Airlines,’’ said Lillaney, adding that Kingfisher will have to go for a complete restructuring to stay afloat in the current market conditions.
“In Q1 FY13, Kingfisher Airlines halved its operating losses to Rs. 204 crore from Rs. 429 crore in Q1 FY12. This was achieved by reducing the level of operations in this high cost environment through a 20-aircraft holding operation,” Kingfisher said in the media statement.
Kingfisher had introduced a temporary “holding plan” wherein it will fly only a little over 100 flights a day instead of the 350-plus flights it did a year ago.
The Kingfisher Airlines on Friday closed at an all-time low of Rs. 7.40 on the BSE, down 11.06% from previous close, while the 30-share Sensex closed nearly flat at 17,557.74 points. The Kingfisher stock has lost 97.66% in value since it peaked at Rs. 316.60 on 18 December 2007. The carrier has not made a profit since its inception.
The first quarter is a reasonably good season for domestic airlines. Significantly, airlines are heading into second quarter that is lean season adding further pressure on margins.
Kingfisher’s downsizing has helped rival carriers.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd, the country’s largest airline by passengers carried, posted a Rs. 24.7 crore profit in the quarter ended 30 June against a loss of Rs. 23.16 crore in the year earlier, performing better than expected as Kingfisher Airlines cut flights and fares rose, helping Jet end a run of five loss-making quarters.
India’s second largest low-fare carrier SpiceJet Ltd posted a profit of Rs. 56.15 crore for the June quarter, compared with a loss of Rs. 71.96 crore a year earlier, riding largely on other income from the sale and lease-back of its planes.
Meanwhile, Kingfisher Airlines has cancelled nearly 30 flights a day starting Wednesday from Delhi and Mumbai after a section of its employees, including engineers and pilots, reported sick, protesting a delay in payment of salaries. The airline has not paid salaries to its staff since February. The airline has total liabilities, including short and long term, of Rs. 1,4162.42 crore as of 31 March.
To add to it woes, the income-tax (I-T) department had directed online travel agencies to remit cash generated out of ticket sales of Vijay Mallya-controlled Kingfisher Airlines to the government to recover its dues from the carrier. This will further affect the cash flow of Kingfisher Airlines, which has been downsizing operations.
In May, minister of state for finance S.S. Palanimanickam told the Lok Sabha that Kingfisher Airlines owed Rs. 269.06 crore to the I-T department, and the government had initiated penalty and prosecution proceedings against the private carrier. Kingfisher Airlines owes money to various vendors including airports, aircraft lessors, caterers and oil marketing companies.

US Justice Dept drops Goldman financial crisis probe

Washington: The US Justice Department said it will not pursue criminal charges against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. or its employees related to accusations that the firm bet against the same subprime mortgage securities it was selling to clients.
The decision not to prosecute Goldman, a firm held up by critics as a symbol of the Wall Street greed during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, highlights the difficulty in prosecuting crisis-related cases.

A file photo of the Goldman Sachs headquarters in New York. Photo: Brendan McDermid/Reuters

Few expected the bank to face criminal charges, but in April 2011, US Senator Carl Levin asked for a criminal investigation after the subcommittee he leads spent more than a year looking into Goldman.The accusations were aired in a heated 2010 Congressional hearing in which Levin grilled Goldman chief executive Lloyd Blankfein for hours about whether it was morally correct for the firm to sell its clients products described internally as “crap”.
“The department and investigative agencies ultimately concluded that the burden of proof to bring a criminal case could not be met based on the law and facts as they exist at this time,” the Department of Justice (DoJ) said in a statement late on Thursday.
The DoJ does not typically make public statements when it concludes an investigation.
Neil Barofsky, a former watchdog for the US government’s financial system bailout in 2008, said the announcement was a stark reminder that no individual or institution had been held meaningfully accountable for their role in the financial crisis.
“Without such accountability, the unending parade of megabanks scandals will inevitably continue,” said Barofsky, who has been an outspoken critic of the government’s response to the financial crisis.
In a brief statement emailed to Reuters, a Goldman Sachs spokesman said: “We are pleased that this matter is behind us.”
A Levin aide had no immediate comment.
In a related civil case, Goldman settled with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for $550 million in July 2010, without admitting wrongdoing.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in one of its premier financial crisis cases, said Goldman failed to tell investors the Paulson and Co. hedge fund helped choose and bet against the subprime mortgage-backed securities underlying an investment product named Abacus.
The SEC is still pursuing a civil complaint against Fabrice Tourre, a Goldman vice-president involved in the Abacus deal.
Separately on Thursday, Goldman said the SEC had dropped an investigation into the firm’s role in selling a different $1.3 billion subprime mortgage-related deal arranged in 2006.
Tarnished reputation
The Abacus deal was a major focus of the televised hearings held by Levin’s subcommittee in 2010. The hearings and a following report from Levin’s permanent subcommittee on investigations weighed on Goldman’s shares as the firm suffered a reputational hit from the unwelcome spotlight.
Goldman—dubbed a “great vampire squid” in a 2009 article in Rolling Stone magazine—has continued to be dogged by criticism, including from its own ranks.
A Goldman Sachs banker in March published a withering resignation letter in the New York Times, calling the Wall Street titan a “toxic” place.
In its release on Thursday, the Justice Department said there was “not a viable basis to bring a criminal prosecution” against Goldman. If new or additional evidence emerged, it could make a different determination, it said.
Prosecuting financial fraud would continue to be a top priority and it highlighted other investigations, including its probe into banks’ alleged manipulation of Libor, a widely used benchmark for interest rates.
The SEC has brought a handful of high-profile cases related to the financial crisis, including against former Countrywide Financial chief executive Angelo Mozilo and its case against Goldman. But the Justice Department has struggled to bring criminal charges.
The frustration, in part, has been because such charges involve securing evidence that shows beyond a reasonable doubt a defendant intended to break the law.
For example, a federal jury in 2009 acquitted two former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers accused of continuing to push souring investments as sound.
Jurors said prosecutors did not prove the case, which relied on e-mail evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt. Since then, the Justice Department has brought few major prosecutions tied to the subprime crisis.
In January, President Barack Obama announced a new task force to investigate misconduct that fuelled the financial crisis, and the Justice Department has said it has issued more than a dozen civil subpoenas and has multiple inquiries underway.
So far, no cases have come out of that effort, and some critics have dismissed the task force as an election-year stunt. Reuters

Barclays hires City grandee David Walker as chairman

London: Barclays has named David Walker, a former Bank of England and Treasury official, as its new chairman in an effort to patch up its top management team and rebuild its reputation after it became embroiled in a rate-rigging scandal.

The British bank said on Thursday that Walker, a City grandee and corporate governance expert with extensive banking and investment banking experience, would become a non-executive director on 1 September and succeed Marcus Agius as chairman two months later.Barclays was fined $453 million in June for manipulating Libor interbank lending rates in a scandal which unearthed deep problems in its relations with regulators, who have accused the bank of frequently being too aggressive.
It is also seeking a new chief executive after Bob Diamond resigned under pressure from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Bank of England, which moved in response to a public and political outcry over the scandal.
Walker is currently a senior adviser to US investment bank Morgan Stanley, having previously been chairman of its international operations based in London.
In addition to stints at Britain’s Treasury and Bank of England he is also a former deputy chairman of Lloyds and vice-chairman of insurer Legal and General.
Since 2007, Walker has completed two independent reports and made recommendations regarding the private equity industry and corporate governance at financial institutions.
He also co-led the independent review of the report that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) produced into the failure of Royal Bank of Scotland.
In a letter to Barclays staff, Agius said Walker would join in the process to find a new CEO for the bank.
Shares in Barclays, which have lost 12% of their value over the last three months, closed at 179 pence, valuing the business at about £21.9 billion ($34.2 billion). REUTERS

Boeing 787 engine probe in US finds fractured shaft

New York/Seattle/Washington: Damage to a spinning shaft inside a General Electric Co. jet engine was uncovered by US investigators probing a malfunction that spewed hot shards of metal during a test run of a Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliner.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it’s looking for the cause of the fracture in an engine component called the fan mid-shaft. Tokyo-based IHI Corp., the supplier, is assisting in the inquiry along with specialists from GE and Boeing, Rick Kennedy, a GE spokesman, said on Wednesday in an email.
First-flight preparations were underway on a 787 due for delivery to Air India when the incident occurred on 28 July near Boeing’s Charleston, South Carolina, factory. The debris ignited a brush fire and shut Charleston International Airport for an hour, and NTSB began an investigation three days later.

First-flight preparations were underway on a 787 due for delivery to Air India when the incident occurred on 28 July near Boeing’s Charleston, South Carolina, factory.

“That’s an extremely rare problem,” said Hans Weber, a physicist and aviation-industry veteran who helped develop better part-testing techniques in the 1990s.“There will be a lot of pressure on GE to come up with a solid explanation very quickly of what the problem is, what they have to do to make sure it doesn’t happen again, and why this is a unique event and the other engines wouldn’t be affected,” said Weber, who now runs San Diego-based aviation consultant Tecop International Inc.
GE has about 80 GEnx engines in service on 787s and Boeing’s 747-8 jumbo jets, and those planes have remained in operation, Kennedy said.
Japan Airlines Co., the only operator of GE-powered 787s, is flying its four aircraft as normal, Sze Hunn Yap, a spokeswoman, said by phone. The carrier hasn’t received any directives from Boeing to check the engines and it isn’t performing any special maintenance, she said.
The engine in the Charleston case was taken off the plane, partially dismantled and sent to GE’s facilities in Ohio to be examined by an engine specialist and a metallurgist. Crash-proof recorders monitoring engine performance and pilot communications were taken to an NTSB lab in Washington.
Air India is still making plans to pick up its first Dreamliner after winning government approval for the delivery late last week, Boeing India president Dinesh Keskar said on Wednesday. The three 787s waiting for the carrier at the Charleston airport will be handed over in intervals of seven to 10 days so the senior pilots in charge get the required rest time between flights, he said. The fourth plane was the one involved in the incident.
“We are in continuous discussion with Air India to deal with the schedule for the delivery,” Keskar said in a telephone interview from Seattle.
An Air India spokesman said the airline is yet to receive the “technical report” from US authorities and will be able to assess the situation only then.
Doug Alder, a Boeing spokesman, said the company is working with NTSB and declined to comment further about the inquiry.
IHI has sent engineers to assist, Genki Yamamoto, a spokesman, said by phone from Tokyo.
“If it was a manufacturing error, it can be remedied, but if it’s a design problem, that’s a little more integral to the engine,” said William Storey, president of consultant Teal Group in Fairfax, Virginia. “That’s the crux of what the issues are moving forward. These engines are complex and to get to an actual cause will probably take a while.”
Ethiopian Airlines Enterprise plans to pick up its first Dreamliner, which will have GEnx engines, from Boeing’s delivery centre north of Seattle on 14 August. Only JAL and All Nippon Airways Co. have received 787s so far.
ANA fitted its 787s with Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc engines, the only alternative to the GE ones. The twin-engine aircraft entered service in late 2011. It is the first airliner built with composites, helping it cut fuel use and fly farther than other jets its size. The GEnx engine is more efficient and releases less carbon than earlier models. It reduces weight by replacing metal with carbon composite materials, according to Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE’s website.
Chris Cooper in Tokyo and Tarun Shukla of Mint contributed to this story.

Apple vs Samsung: courtroom tension boils

San Jose (California): It was the end of a long week in court in the Apple-Samsung legal war, and Samsung attorney John Quinn was trying to block his adversary, Apple attorney Bill Lee, from showing the jury a document.
As Quinn made his argument to US District Judge Lucy Koh, he slipped in a reference to Koh’s pre-trial order blocking sales of some Samsung products -- a subject Koh had forbidden the parties from discussing in front of the jury.
“That was improper,” said Koh.
“I apologize, your honor,” Quinn responded.
“I have a difficulty believing that was not intentional,” said the judge.

Koh allowed the document into evidence. But her admonishment provided the jury with a glimpse into the unusual tensions roiling beneath the lofty courtroom arguments about who might have illegally copied whose technology.Outside the jury’s presence, Apple and Samsung lawyers regularly accuse each other of unfair ambushes, dirty public relations tactics and even doctoring evidence.
Quinn took the extraordinary step of issuing a press release on documents that Koh barred from the trial -- an open display of defiance that suggested a legal strategy aimed at creating courtroom chaos. Quinn says he intended nothing of the sort.
Elite trial lawyers normally display a certain professional comity in court, but little of that is apparent in this case. An exasperated Koh has taken to managing the trial like a schoolmarm, regularly scolding her errant charges and resorting to tactics like deducting from the time they have to present evidence if they make superfluous arguments.
The trial, which will determine whether Samsung violated Apple patents in creating competing smartphone and tablet-computing products, is now in its second full week, and is expected to run through the end of August.
Despite some key pre-trial rulings Koh issued against Samsung, during trial itself the judge has given the jury no signals as to who she thinks is in the right.
Rather Koh, a 44-year-old appointee of US President Barack Obama, appears to take the view that if the two sides would just act like grown-ups and pursue rational self-interest rather than sling mud at one another, there wouldn’t be a trial at all.
This week, Koh wistfully returned to a idea she first raised at a pretrial hearing over one year ago.
“You didn’t file any objections yesterday, and I was hoping that maybe you had settled,” she said. But in a case that is more about professional pride and long-term market power than money, there appears to be little basis for a settlement before the verdict.
The two companies are close collaborators in many areas, as Apple is one of Samsung’s biggest customers for smartphone and tablet components. Yet in court they seem determined to fight to the death. Their executives pass one another in the hallways without making eye contact. Complex business litigation in front of a jury is sometimes approached as theater, or even sport, but in this courtroom no one is having a lot of fun.
Celebrity Trial, Silicon Valley Style
The trial has captured the attention of the technology world in part because the stakes are so high: Apple accuses Samsung of copying the iPad and the iPhone, two of the most successful products in the history of technology.
If Apple wins, it may be able to block whole categories of competitors and cement its dominance of next-generation mobile computing. The Korean firm, which is emerging as one of Apple’s most powerful global challengers, has counter-attacked by alleging that Apple infringed some of its key wireless technology patents.
But the trial is also titillating to the technorati because of the unusual up-close-and-personal look it has provided into the secret world of Apple.
Phil Schiller, Apple’s long-time marketing chief, stood in the hallway before testifying one day last week, making small talk as reporters looked on. Normally seen in blue jeans -- even during product launches-- one of Schiller’s handlers teased him about his dark suit and yellow tie.
On the witness stand, Schiller talked about how Samsung’s products impact ad campaigns; Apple has spent about $647 million on advertising for the iPhone since its 2007 launch, and over $457 million on the two-year-old iPad.
“If you’re driving down the highway 55 miles an hour, you have a split second to see a phone on a billboard,” Schiller said. “If it looks very, very similar and is copied, whose phone was that?”
Earlier, Apple industrial designer Christopher Stringer took the stand, looking every bit the part in a cream-colored suit and shoulder length hair. He offered trivial details about the Apple design process -- people work around a kitchen table! -- but in the information vacuum that surrounds Apple’s internal workings, trivia tops nothing.
The mountain of documents filed in the case -- over 1,600 docket entries and counting -- are anything but trivial, though. Detail about licensing negotiations between Apple and the South Korean company, early design ideas for the iPad, and even profit margins for the iPhone and iPad have been revealed. Reuters

Drop the pressure

Win guestlists for Ecstasy, Passion & Pain this Saturday

While Mylo's days as a dance music revolutionary maybe behind him, his legacy lives on. His LP 'Destroy Rock & Roll' may have changed the face of dance music in 2005, bridging the gaping chasm between the UK's indie kids and clubbers, but 2012 finds him still rocking the rave nippers of East London with his intergalactic disco night Ecstasy, Passion & Pain at XOYO. 

This Saturday (28^th July), he will be joined by ex-Aeroplane man The Magician, disco duo Mighty Mouse and a live set from The Penelopes, plus more to be announced. Promoted in allegiance with Scandalism, this seven-hour future disco romp is an Olympics special, so those lacking stamina need not apply.

Going for gold this weekend? We are giving away a pair of tickets to one lucky person who can send the answer to this question to adam.saville@djmag.com before 5pm on Thursday 26^th July... 

Mylo grew up on which Scottish island?

a) Isle of Lewis

b) Isle of Skye

c) Isle of Mull

ECSTASY, PASSION & PAIN feat MYLO & THE MAGICIAN

Saturday 28th July

9pm-3am

Earlybird Tickets £12.50

LINE UP

THE MAGICIAN

MYLO

MIGHTY MOUSE

THE PENELOPES (LIVE)

MORE TBA

Dance Music Triumphs At Olympics Opening Ceremony

Dance music featured heavily in the Olympics opening ceremony on Friday night in a show organised by renowned film director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire).

Boyle called upon his friends, dance titans Underworld – Karl Hyde and Rick Smith – to assist with the music in what proved to be an inspired pairing.

The show ranged from scenes of the industrial revolution – from when the UK was the engine room of the global economy – into a celebration of the National Health Service, children's storytelling (Harry Potter, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), and activism such as the Jarrow marchers against poverty in the 1930s and the suffragettes campaigning for women's votes a century ago. Comedy scenes with Mr Bean and the Vangelis-penned electronic 'Chariots Of Fire' theme, and Her Majesty the Queen greeting Daniel Craig's James Bond and parachuting out of a helicopter provided the comedy moments, but it was the music section that arguably stole the show.

In a spectacular celebration of the wealth of music to emanate from the UK in the last 50 years, snippets of tracks by The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, The Kinks, Mud, Queen, The Clash, The Specials, Eurythmics, David Bowie and the Pet Shop Boys soon segued into a rave section that included New Order's 'Blue Monday', 'Firestarter' by The Prodigy, 'Born Slippy' by Underworld, 'Surf Solar' by Fuck Buttons, Tinie Tempah's 'Pass Out', 'Bonkers' sung live by by east London grime star Dizzee Rascal...

There was also snippets of tracks by High Contrast, Wretch 32, Rizzle Kicks, Blur, Amy Winehouse, Happy Mondays, as well as 'Relax by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and live performances by the Arctic Monkeys, Paul McCartney, Emile Sande and Mike Oldfield. And as the long process of the athletes coming out to parade around the stadium began, the first track to be played was 'Galvanise' by the Chemical Brothers.

The reaction to the inclusive opening ceremony, celebrating Britain's radicalism, diversity and innovation, has been universally positive, apart from a couple of aberrations such as a Conservative Party MP branding it “leftie multi-cultural crap” and a particularly nasty article in the Daily Mail. The ceremony had a tenth of the budget and a tenth of the manpower of the Beijing Olympics, but was widely presumed to have been a triumph.

With the Games well underway, Boyle and Underworld have converted most Games cynics as London basks in sunshine and a feelgood Olympic haze.

Top 100 DJs Poll eBay Cheat Scam Exposed

Last week, on Wednesday 26^th July, it was brought to DJ Mag's attention that a posting on eBay Italy was claiming to be selling votes in the annual Top 100 DJs poll. This was posted in Italy by somebody trying to discredit the poll, and is no longer active as a live auction bid.

DJ Mag believes that this fake eBay posting was probably done by the same group of people responsible for the video last year that claimed to expose how people could cheat in the poll.

“I view this simply as an attempt to discredit the poll,” said Martin Carvell, Managing Director of DJ Mag. “DJ Mag takes the issue of cheating in the Top 100 DJs poll very seriously. As the guardians of the biggest poll in dance music, we do all we can to eliminate cheating in the poll so as to make this the most authoritative snapshot of a DJ's popularity and visibility at any one time.”

“Although there were no bids made, there was also nothing to suggest that the person behind the scheme would be able to provide the service he or she was advertising.”

By looking at the back end of the voting system, it's easy to spot who has been cheating. We are currently investigating a number of DJs with a succession of fraudulent votes, and will be making an announcement on this in due course.

There are a number of DJs that have been caught cheating, and DJ Mag will be naming and shaming them by the end of this week.

DJs Caught Cheating in DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs Poll 2012

DJ Mag’s  Top 100 DJs poll is widely regarded as the definitive annual dance music poll by music fans, promoters and industry figures the world over.
Many DJs legitimately campaign for votes, however, some DJs and/or their representatives have been found to use illegal methods to try to increase their voting share, and every year thousands of illegal votes are discounted. This has led to several exclusions from the Top 100 DJs Poll in recent years.
As guardians of the poll, DJ Mag takes the authenticity of the Top 100 DJs Poll very seriously.
Martin Carvell, DJ Mag’s Managing Director said: “This year, DJ Mag has discovered ‘blatant’ cheating and several high-profile DJs are currently under investigation. Our methods of analysis are sophisticated but time consuming, and DJ Mag has to be absolutely sure that illegal methods have been used to acquire votes before evicting DJs from the poll.”
Today, DJ Mag has announced the eviction of one DJ from the poll.
Carvell continued: “As of today (Friday August 3rd) DJ Mag are eliminating Miss Diamond from Switzerland from the Top 100 DJs Poll. Based upon our analysis, it is quite clear that Miss Diamond, or those working on her behalf, have cheated. We will be notifying her forthwith. Others will follow over the coming weeks.
“DJ Mag recognises how important the Top 100 DJs poll is to many people around the world. The promotional teams of many DJs realise how much of a boost it is for a DJ’s career to appear in the Top 100, but illegal methods must not be used to influence the poll and will not be tolerated. Those found to be bringing the Top 100 DJs Poll into disrepute will be excluded from the poll.”
Carvell also said: “Anyone aware of any suspicious activity being undertaken by anyone employed, hired, or affiliated with a DJ can contact the magazine in the strictest confidence.”

Manuel De La Mare vs. Lissat & Voltaxx - Club Around The World The Remixes

The decision was hard but the winner in the Club Around The World contest is one of the best, it is Xavier Santos` House version of the well known banging collaboration between the world wide recognized Dj`s and Producers – Manuel De La Mare, Lissat & Voltaxx.
We are happy to give you an amazing remix by The Black Project. These guys definitely know how to make people move, adding this into their impressive Dance music experience. Enjoy the renewed image of the high-class tune that has been a frantic demand for quite a long time and seems to remain one hereafter. You can catch the unleashed wave of the Club Around The World remixes on August, 6th 2012 on the Italian House music imprint Hotfingers run by Manuel De La Mare, Luigi Rocca and Alex Kenji.
The Remixes are supported by Camilo Franco, Christian Cambas, Etienne Ozborne, Niels Van Gogh, Mark Knight, Yves Murasca, Spartaque, Dj Dan and more…

Manuel De La Mare vs Lissat & Voltaxx - Club Around The World (The Black Project Remix)

http://soundcloud.com/303lovers/manuel-de-la-mare-vs-lissat

Manuel De La Mare vs Lissat & Voltaxx - Club Around The World (Xavier Santos Remix)

COMPETITION - BCM Mallorca & Easyjet team up for Super Competition

Being home to Europe’s biggest nightclub, BCM, Majorca certainly is a great destination for music lovers. Every summer you’ll find the island comes alive with some of the best new tunes and international DJs and artists playing to the crowds. Magaluf is at the centre of this as it's where you'll find the largest range of clubs and bars. BCM & Easyjet have teamed up to offer someone the holiday of a lifetime. Be inspired and find out how to win a clubbing holiday to Magaluf.

 

Are you the biggest fan of Majorca clubbing? Win a holiday!

If you’d like to be part of the audience on your very own holiday in Majorca, now’s the time to say why you’re a fan of Majorca clubbing, as your answer could win you and up to two friends a week’s break in the September sun. Not only this, but the two lucky winners will get exclusive extras from BCM in Magaluf, which is hosting the Mallorca Live festival this summer, including free entry to the club every night. The easyJet Holidays blog will then feature the winners as roving reporters, right in the heart of the action and going out to thousands of readers, making them official Magaluf clubbing experts.

 

How to Enter

There are two ways to enter the competition, and remember: the bigger your entry, the bigger the prize. That’s why there will be one Twitter winner and one blog entry winner, with the lucky blogger getting to take an extra friend with them on holiday. It is a condition for both prizes that winners and their guests are all at least 18 years old.

 

Tweet to win

If you think you can sum up in Twitter’s 140 characters why you and a friend should go clubbing in Majorca, just send a tweet starting with the following phrase: ‘I’m the biggest #MajorcaClubbing fan’ and ending with the following link to the easyJet Holidays Majorca page: goo.gl/z6KaE.

Blog and win bigger

 

Want your entry to be bigger and better, with the chance to win the holiday alongside two of your friends? You’ll need to create a blog post about why you’re the biggest fan of Majorca clubbing, either on your own blog or as a guest post on someone else’s blog, with their permission. Get creative and tell us why you want to win, then just add in a link to the easyJet Holidays Majorca page:http://holidays.easyjet.com/spain/majorca-holidays.htm and a link to the Majorca clubbing page:http://holidays.easyjet.com/majorca-clubbing-holidays.htm in the body of your post, then get creating a buzz about your entry. Simple!

However you decide to enter, don’t forget to keep it clean, be inventive and original. Judging your entries is Jo Harrison, editor of the entertainment website Contactmusic.com, who certainly knows a music lover when she sees one.

 

What’s Up for Grabs?

You could be jetting off to sunny Magaluf in Majorca this summer to experience an adults-only BCM clubbing holiday during the Mallorca Live festival, either with one friend as a Twitter winner or two friends if you create the winning blog post. Both the Twitter and blog winner will get return flights from London to Palma Airport, with 7 nights’ accommodation for themselves and their guests at the popular 3* Marina Barracuda Hotel, which is just five minutes’ walk from BCM nightclub and 100 metres from the gorgeous sandy beach.

 

During your holiday you can enjoy free entry and free drinks (from 10pm to 6am) at BCM, which is hosting Mallorca Live, and the two winners will take home a goody bag crammed full of club merchandise. Don’t forget to take your camera, as highlights of your trip will be posted on the easyJet Holidays blog, spreading the word about your amazing clubbing experience on the island. This really is a money-can’t-buy prize.

Markus Schulz – Scream

The world’s biggest music festival” – The Huffington Post

 

“The biggest, most popular and most comprehensively staged music festival of its kind in the world” – LA Times

 

“It's rather difficult to imagine a festival getting any more momentous” – GQ India

 

The gates of De Schorre have closed again for another year on Tomorrowland, with 180,000 revellers all safely returned to their 75 respective countries – and what a year it was! Not only did people flock from all over the world to witness musical highlights from David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia, Skrillex, Avicii, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and 445 others, they were also treated to the most jaw-dropping stage designs ever seen.

 

The colossal main stage, which stood at almost 150 metres long and weighed more than any other stage in the world at 138 tonnes this year, represented a giant fairy-tale bookcase. Complete with intricate detail, giant movable LED display book and surprises hidden in every sleeve – the main stage surpassed all expectations! In addition to this there were waterfalls, the world’s tallest portable ferris wheel, performers, fireworks and 75 hectares of custom-made props to explore across the festival site.

 

Another new addition for 2012 was the much-lauded Tomorrowland TV, which launched for the first time ever to overwhelming demand! Broadcasting for 7 hours a day from each day of the festival, the live stream clocked up an astonishing 7,933,661 views! This makes Tomorrowland TV the most watched electronic music event EVER on YouTube and one of the highest viewed music events in the world. In addition to this the YouTube page alone attracted over 600,000 separate comments via Google+, Facebook and Twitter.

TOMORROWLAND 2012 CLOSES ITS DOORS ON MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR EVER - OFFICIAL TOMORROWLAND TV FIGURES RELEASED

Jaytech’s second full-length Multiverse, available August 13 on the renowned Anjunabeats imprint, is a lush journey through multiple styles of electronic music, progressive vibes mixed with classy, peak-time anthems. Following up on 2008’s classic Everything Is OK (“a crossover gem” - DJ Mag), Multiverse takes his sound into the main room, while still retaining all the melodic flair and refined production that his prolific career has been built on.

 

Jaytech has also release a special mini-mix and promo video to celebrate the album. You can check those out now on the Anjunabeats SoundCloud page and the Anjunabeats YouTube page. 

 

 

 

Listen to Jaytech's Multiverse Mini-Mix now. 

Watch the Multiverse promo video now. 

 

Revered as the warm-up DJ of choice for stadium-fillers Above & Beyond, Jaytech has stealthily risen as a headline prospect in his own right in 2012. With tours of Japan, Australia, Europe and the USA already under his belt, and appearing at some of the world’s largest festivals including the iconic Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas, Tomorrowland in Belgium and New York City's Electric Zoo Festival – he’s truly made his mark on the EDM scene. 

Both classy and club focused, Multiverse represented a natural juncture for Jaytech to elevate from Anjunadeep to the more main-room energies of Anjunabeats; a label responsible for hits like Above & Beyond’s “Sun & Moon,” Arty’s “Around The World” and Mat Zo’s “Bipolar.” 

 

Introducing tracks like the bleepy groove bomb "Epsilon" and the big vocal anthem “Stranger” (featuring regular Dirty Vegas collaborator Steve Smith), "Multiverse" sees Jaytech explore higher tempos than ever before; never losing the attention to detail and musicality he is loved for. Moments like the sun-soaked opener "Everglade" and the dramatic, piano breakdown of the album’s title track "Multiverse" offer impeccable updates of Jaytech's classic sound, while an updated rework of last year’s piano house anthem "New Vibe" brings a new groove to the tune. Rounding out the album are tracks like the light-and-dark musical breakbeat growler "Blue Ocean" and Vitalic-esque "Diode," which offer a further journey into Jaytech’s own musical space.

 

As a producer, Jaytech’s pedigree has long been recognized. Producing from just 14 years old and releasing his debut track at 16, the Australian’s unique melodic blends have been supported by DJs like Sasha, Armin, Tiësto and, of course, Above & Beyond. As a DJ, he remains a respected selector of new sounds, with his Jaytech Music podcasts regularly showcasing the best in modern progressive and his mixes for the “Anjunadeep” compilation series hitting number one twice in the iTunes dance chart, both with his Anjunadeep 02 compilation in 2010, ("Compilation of the month ****” -Mixmag) and again in 2011 with Anjunadeep 03.

Three years in the making, inspired by countless international adventures, Jaytech’s Multiverse is an expansion of musical horizons, and you’re invited to join him for the trip.

Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012

Originally released in 2003, Who's The Starter was one of the biggest Trance records of that year.

It is remembered as the opening track Tiesto played on his first Tiesto In Concert 2003 in The Netherlands and further supported by a wide range of House and Trance djs all through that summer!

If you listen back, you can very easily hear why; the original bassline, the atmosphere, the strings and especially the break with that killer lead synth, the "Who's The Starter" hook and the drums (played by a session drummer) that united all the elements.

Bastian decided to dust off the old tapes and rework the Classic into 2012 vibe.

Who's the Starter 2012 is the third release on Bastian's label Audentity Recording and it's out on August 6

The package includes massive remixes from Paul Trainer, Raneem, Jonas Stenberg, Davey Asprey and the Original Revised mix from Bastian

Early support from Markus Schulz that have played Paul Trainer's mix already five times on his GDJB Radio show!
1.     Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012 (Paul Trainer Remix)     
2.     Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012 (Original Revised)     
3.     Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012 (Jonas Stenberg Remix)     
4.     Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012 (Raneem Remix)     
5.     Ernesto vs Bastian - Who's The Starter 2012 (Davey Asprey Remix)

iO & Goshva - Loire

After one year of publishing music and having supports of Darius Syrossian, Nick Curly, Tube & Berger and more artists who played its music, Ukranian label Sex Panda White run by Marcato & Tiny Toon makes one step ahead with releasing their first vinyl EP.

Label is proud to introduce the debut one by Ukranian artists - iO & Goshva - called 'Loire'.

Two talented house fans and DJ's are behind Ukrainian act 'iO': Alex Voznichenko and Artem Zhovtobriukh. Goshva is a man who is making and contributing guys progress everywhere makes a collaboration with them. Their style is best described as sexy and groovy tech-house and they get their inspiration from mother nature: the sun, the sky and the weather. iO's release Cabaret on Diynamic reached the 2nd place in the Resident Advisor september chart, and Beatport's top 10 best selling tech-house tracks, their music is played by Solomun, Joris Voorn, Dirty Culture and many more artists on a line.

Rodriguez Jr. is a project behing Olivier Mateu real name who recently released his album 'Bittersweet 'at Anja Schneider and who had the album tour along more than 20 countries all over the world, brings his deep house remix for considering.
Rodriguez Jr. reveals a different incarnation of OlivierMateu's musical psyche, one that strides ahead, guided only by his kaleidoscopic vision; moving through shimmering, contemplative electronica, to deep and urgent techno, leftfield melodic accents and quirky pop refrains, Rodriguez Jr. is the by-product of an untamed brand of creativity and a thirst for the new and unexpected. Drawing inspiration from artists as diverse as Stockhausen, LFO, Carl Craig, Eric Satie, Kraftwerk, and Michael Polnareff, Rodriguez Jr.'s spirit of adventure translates as soaring creativity, and music that cannot be pigeonholed.

'Loire' is a classic summer house tune with a great build up full of swinging hats, glitchy sounds and trumpets used there. French acapella used here makes it more smoothy and perfect for warming up.

Mobilee Records host Rodriguez Jr. delivers his unique style into his remix of 'Loire' with arpeggios and melodic notes, thats the one for finishing sunset mixes either playing at lounge parties.

'Blanca Primavera' with its Spanish sound is a funny house fantasy gives a nice journey along the best memories of this hot period.

'Primo Amore' is a soulful tech sound exciting since first seconds and nice for gathering people. You definitely must have this one in your bag.

House

iO & Goshva - Loire (Original Mix)
iO & Goshva - Blanca Primavera (Original Mix)
Tech House
iO & Goshva - Loire (Rodriguez Jr. Remix)
iO & Goshva - Primo Amore (Original Mix)

ALY & FILA meet ROGER SHAH ft. ADRINA THORPE FOR “PERFECT LOVE”

After a welcoming world premiere by tens of thousands of trance lovers at A State of Trance 550 in Den Bosch, we are proud to present a new masterpiece from the production studios of two of EDM’s biggest names in dance music. In their first collaboration as a duo, Aly & Fila and Roger Shah team up with the voice of Adrina Thorpe, to bring you Perfect Love.
“It was a real honor to work together with my longtime friend Fila on this collaboration. Sometimes after you finish a collab, each of the producers will do their own mix which is like their own version of the song but more in their own direction. After we finalized Perfect Love, I was speaking to Fila and he said even there’s no need to do a different version, the original is just amazing! I couldn’t agree more.”

– Roger Shah

With the unmistakable sound of the voice behind “Who Will Find Me” and “Back to You”, United States based Adrina Thorpe signs up to deliver a taste of sweet bliss on her fourth collaboration with German based Magic Island producer Roger Shah. Melted neatly with the Future Sound of Egypt’s Aly & Fila, Perfect Love is a true international sensation that assimilates talent from across three world continents. Fall into a Perfect Love with a melody and vocals that will grasp your heart even before you finish the first listen!

Sydney Blu & Christian Falero - Chemistry (Paul Thomas Remix)

Black Hole is proud to present the first Sydney Blu single on the Dutch imprint, entitled Chemistry. Chemistry is a full blown collaboration with Christian Falero and Lea Luna, and even moreso a perfect track made by three very talented EDM personalities. UK Producer and DJ, Paul Thomas delivers a peak time main room progressive edge to this hugely A List supported track. The seductive vocals remain in Paul Thomas's remix bringing captivating moments to this record whilst his signature sound remains prominent.
Release date:  20/08/12

Emma Hewitt – Burn The Sky Down - Launch Party in LA

Since the release of her debut album, the world has become a little more colorful. Blossoming with every tune, Emma Hewitt’s ‘Burn The Sky Down’ fuses ambient and pop with electronic dance music, all shining the unique talents of the songstress. Emma Hewitt’s warm voice lights the sky, in both the original and remix versions. For those craving for the electronic side of her songs, there’s now the ‘Remixes’ pack of ‘Burn The Sky Down’.
Including remixes by some of EDM’s finest producers, ranging from trance to electro, house and progressive, these are the interpretations of Armin van Buuren, Cosmic Gate, Morgan Page, tyDi, Venom One, Shogun, Arnej, Dabruck & Klein and many more. The sky burns down once again, in bright, vivid colors.

Sylvia Tosun Nominated in "Best Vocalist" Poll by Beatsmedia

 There’s no instrument more intriguing than the human voice. A good vocal can make, break or turn a track into a worldwide hit, transforming it from a song into an everlasting classic. More often than not people forget the big influence a vocalist has on the success of a song, and the amount of popularity polls for DJ’s and producers keeps rising.

Beatsmedia decided to give vocalists their much-deserved respect, by opening this year’s ‘Best Vocalists’ poll.

Sea to Sun Recordings owner Sylvia Tosun is recognized in this year’s poll, having both penned, and sang some of dance music’s most recognized and beloved anthems; "An Angel's Love", "Antara (The Circle), and "World Keeps Turning" just to name a recent few. As a classically trained opera singer, and graduate of the prestigious Julliard, Sylvia’s vocal and lyrical power extends through every facet of dance and pop music today. Her passion for music and live performance is unmatched, Sylvia Tosun is truly gifted universal diva!

There’s no instrument more intriguing than the human voice. A good vocal can make, break or turn a track into a worldwide hit, transforming it from a song into an everlasting classic. More often than not people forget the big influence a vocalist has on the success of a song, and the amount of popularity polls for DJ’s and producers keeps rising.

Beatsmedia decided to give vocalists their much-deserved respect, by opening this year’s ‘Best Vocalists’ poll.

Sea to Sun Recordings owner Sylvia Tosun is recognized in this year’s poll, having both penned, and sang some of dance music’s most recognized and beloved anthems; "An Angel's Love", "Antara (The Circle), and "World Keeps Turning" just to name a recent few. As a classically trained opera singer, and graduate of the prestigious Julliard, Sylvia’s vocal and lyrical power extends through every facet of dance and pop music today. Her passion for music and live performance is unmatched, Sylvia Tosun is truly gifted universal diva!

Avicii & Ralph Lauren Debut Exclusive Remix of Silhouettes in Brand New Music Video

New York, NY - Today Denim & Supply Ralph Lauren and the rising global superstar, Avicii, released their co-produced music video which includes an exclusive remix of his latest hit, “Silhouettes,” depicting a captivated crowd enthralled by the heart-pounding music from the GRAMMY®-nominated DJ. The music video and remix are part Avicii’s collaboration with the Denim & Supply Ralph Lauren Fall 2012 campaign. Featuring a powerhouse vocal from fellow Swede Salem Al Fakir, “Silhouettes” is yet another flawless musical showcase from one of the biggest EDM stars in the world. The video was shot in New York City with lucky Avicii fans in the crowd.

“There are so many ideas that come up when you’re crafting a new track. It’s exciting to be able to go back and remix a song like ‘Silhouettes’, to find a whole new direction to take the creative energy,” said Avicii. “And filming the video was a blast. I think we were able to stay true to the spirit of the song, as well as the inspiration behind the Denim & Supply Ralph Lauren brand.”
The premier of the video comes on the eve of Avicii’s Lollapalooza performance, part of his impressive festival headline run around the globe. Watch the video on DenimAndSupply.com/Avicii and across VEVO, the world’s leading all-premium music video and entertainment platform, which includes VEVO.com, mobile & tablet apps, connected TVs and syndication partners: AOL, Facebook, Yahoo! Music and YouTube.

In addition, to celebrate Denim & Supply Ralph Lauren’s one year anniversary and their collaboration, Avicii will perform in Union Square in San Francisco on Tuesday, September 4th at 6pm. The following day, fans have access to a free download of Avicii’s exclusive remix “Silhouettes” for a limited time. For further details, check out DenimAndSupply.com/Avicii.

Amsterdam Dance Event bigger than ever

Revealing first festival names: Afrojack (NL), Chris Liebing (DE), Chuckie (NL), Fatboy Slim (GB), John Digweed (GB), Joris Voorn (NL), Maceo Plex (US), Richie Hawtin (CA), Paul van Dyk (DE), Pete Tong (GB) and many others.

This year the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE), the world's biggest club festival and leading business platform, will be even bigger than previous years. With the addition of up to 15 new venues, the brand new program ADE Playground, the addition of an extra festival day and a program with over 800 international artists, the ADE confirms its position as the figurehead of the Electronic Dance Music scene. The organization expects more than 6,000 conference and 200,000 festival visitors from around the world during the seventeenth edition of the five-day event, which takes place from 17 to 21 October.

Today the ADE reveals an initial selection of artists, from a total of over 800, who will perform at 350 different events within the festival program. The first names are: Adam Beyer (SE), Adana Twins (DE), Afrojack (NL), Agoria (FR), Âme (DE), Anja Schneider (DE), Bassjackers (NL), Blawan (GB), Boris Werner (NL), Brodinski (FR), Carl Cox (GB), Carl Craig (US), Ceephax Acid Crew (GB), Chris Liebing (DE), Christian Varela (ES), Cinnaman (NL), Crookers (IT), Danny Krivit (US), Dave Clarke (GB), Deetron (CH), Derrick May (US), DJ Deep (FR), DJ Harvey (US), DJ Sneak (US), DJ T. (DE), DJ+ (NL), Drumcell (US), Dubfire (US), DVS1 (US), Eats Everything (GB), Ellen Allien (DE), Eric de Man (NL), Fatboy Slim (GB), Ferry Corsten (NL), François K (US), FS Green (NL), Gesaffelstein (FR), Giles Smith (GB), Green Velvet (US), Gui Boratto (BR), Guti (AR), Guy Gerber (IL), Hardwell (NL), Henzel & Disco Nova (NL), James Priestley (GB), Joe Claussell (US), John Digweed (GB), Joost van Bellen (NL), Joris Voorn (NL), Joseph Capriati (IT), Josh Wink (US), Junkie XL (NL), Karotte (DE), Kevin Saunderson (US), Kölsch (DK), M.A.N.D.Y. (DE), Maarten Mittendorff (NL), Maceo Plex (US), Makam (NL), Marc Romboy (DE), Martin Buttrich (DE), Mauro Picotto (IT), Max Cooper (GB) live, Michel de Hey (NL), Mightyfools (NL), Miss Kittin (FR), Nervo (AU), Nina Kraviz (RU), Nobody Beats The Drum 333" (NL), Noir (DK), Objekt (DE), Oliver Koletzki (DE), Palmbomen (NL), Paul van Dyk (DE), Petar Dundov (HR), Pete Tong (GB), Planetary Assault Systems (GB), Presk (NL), Ricardo Villalobos (CL), Richie Hawtin (CA), Rodriguez Jr. (FR), Sander Kleinenberg (NL), Sander van Doorn (NL), Sandwell District (DE), Seth Troxler (GB), Simian Mobile Disco (GB), Simon Dunmore (US), Sinjin Hawke (ES), Steve Bug (DE), Steve Rachmad (NL), Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano (NL), Surgeon (GB), Tale of Us (DE), The Advent (GB), The Flexican & Sef (NL), The Magician (BE), Tom Trago (NL) en Tommie Sunshine (US). A second selection of big names will follow soon!

The ADE is traditionally the time of the year at which the internationally vibrant dance scene alights in every corner of Amsterdam. With an extra day and fifteen new venues, the capital city is now even more emphatically at the center of this economically and culturally influential music. New venues that have been added to the exhaustive list of festival locations at ADE include old and new gems of the city such as the Ziggo Dome, de Gashouder (Westergasfabriek), Het Concertgebouw, Het Sieraad, North Sea Jazz Club , Stanislavski (Stadsschouwburg), the Amsterdam Studios and the Convention Factory.

The ADE is an ever-growing global platform for the dance scene. For visitors worldwide, the festival has become the place to spot developments in the dance scene: from the latest musical trends and emerging talents to the most recent work of the pioneers and superstars. At night, the capital of the Netherlands becomes the scene of the biggest club festival in the world, where at 65 locations and at least 350 different club nights visitors can dance to the most diverse electronic music of all the major names in the genre.

In seventeen years, the ADE has grown into an extensive and leading platform in which all facets of electronic music culture are discussed. The business part of the event is widely regarded as the most important of its kind and offers a day program at six different locations on a wide range of conferences and networking opportunities that focus on music and technology, VJs & visuals, harder dance styles, new talent and education of students. The essential function of the ADE is to be the main network place in the world for this economically and culturally thriving sector. The plans, contacts and projects created during the ADE, dominate that the global dance scene in the year to follow.

An important addition to this years program is the ADE Playground. This program offers visitors to the festival a huge range of activities during the day such as exhibitions, shop promotions, pop-up stores and film screenings taking place at many locations in the city. The Amsterdam Dance Event thereby underlines the ambition of the festival to present visitors from around the world a broad, exciting and productive program during the five days that our capital is the center of the international pop culture.

The ADE will take place from 17 to 21 October and is organized by Amsterdam Dance Event Foundation, an initiative of Buma.

Robert F.X. Sillerman Continues EDM Expansion With Dayglow Acquisition

New York – (August 2, 2012) – Robert F.X. Sillerman, the entertainment mogul whose business acumen revolutionized the concert industry, today announced the acquisition of Dayglow productions, (Life in Color) – the “World’s Largest Paint Party.”  Dayglow joins previously announced Disco Donnie Presents as the initial assets of his newly created holding company, which is poised to make significant forays into electronic dance music (EDM).

Dayglow, founded by Sebastian Solano, Paul Campbell, Lukasz Tracz and Patryk Tracz, is a six year old production and promotions company which stages more than 125 concerts annually in the United States and international dance capitals such as Warsaw and Melbourne. It’s renowned for its mix of high energy music, theatrical acts and its famous paint blast known as the “World’s Largest Paint Party.” Dayglow entertains more than 500,000 people annually and has featured live performances by some of the genre’s most revered DJs such as Axwell, Alesso, Benny Bennassi, Chuckie, R3hab and resident DJ David Solano.

“Dayglow has become one of the leading brands in EDM and developed a winning formula,“ said Sillerman. “We’re looking forward to working together to further leverage the Dayglow brand in the U.S. and abroad, and expanding their offerings.”

Dayglow marks the second acquisition for the company which announced the purchase of Disco Donnie Presents in June. Sillerman plans as many as 30-50 additional deals to come to fruition in the coming months, creating a vast network of EDM producers and promoters.

In addition, as a differentiator, Sillerman would develop unique products to connect people after they attend EDM events. “Most EDM fans attend three to five events a year.  There are 360 other days in a year.  We want to extend the experience well past the time they are attending an event and enjoying it.”

 “We believe that this partnership will give us the tools to continue to expand our brand worldwide and take our show to a whole new level, where our fans will experience something never seen before in EDM,” said Dayglow President Sebastian Solano.

The model for the current company is SFX, a company Sillerman founded and ran in the 1990s, which transformed the concert industry.

Sillerman had founded SFX Broadcasting in 1992, which eventually purchased and operated more than 120 radio stations.  He then sold the company’s radio business for $2.1 billion in 1997.  But as part of the deal, he retained control of the company’s live entertainment business, which he spun off and called SFX Entertainment.

At SFX Entertainment, he purchased and consolidated the operations of regional promoters and his company became the world’s largest producer, promoter and presenter of live entertainment.  In 1999, more than 60 million people attended over 27,000 events promoted or produced by SFX.  In 2000, SFX was acquired by Clear Channel Communications, Inc., in a merger valued at $4.5 billion.  The promotions business eventually became what is now Live Nation.

ABOUT ROBERT F.X. SILLERMAN
Sillerman is also currently the Executive Chairman and CEO of Viggle Inc., which he launched in 2010.  Viggle is a loyalty program that gives people real rewards, such as gift cards, coupons or merchandise, for watching television. Viggle, which is available on iOs and Android devices, was created to develop products and services to encourage consumers to engage in different ways with entertainment, and uses its proprietary audio recognition technology to identify and reward its users for their television preferences.  More than one million registered users have downloaded Viggle and have been rewarded for watching television and interacting with “Viggle Live” and “My Guy” programs that enhance viewer experience through real time polls, games and quizzes.

Prior to the formation of Viggle, Sillerman focused on iconic entertainment properties.  In 2005, he founded CKX, Inc., which acquired the rights to the name, image and likeness of Elvis Presley and the operations of Graceland.  It also purchased similar rights in a deal with Muhammad Ali in 2006.  CKX’s largest purchase was its 2005 acquisition of 19 Entertainment, the company that created and owned the television show American Idol and all its international versions, which air in more than 100 countries.  Sillerman stepped down as Chairman and CEO in 2010 and subsequently formed Viggle. 

Steve Aoki Releases Exclusive Track & Video for Nitto Tire

Electro house DJ and producer Steve Aoki released today an exclusive streaming track and music video for Nitto Tire, a performance tire manufacturer for racing, off-road and street vehicles. Fans must “Like” the Nitto Tire Facebook page to stream the brand new track, “Come with Me (Doorly Remix) Fueled by Nitto.” The streaming track is only available through Monday, August 20^th and can only be heard on the company’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/NittoTire.
The promotional Facebook campaign is a series of fun programs leading up to the grand finale: Steve Aoki’s “Birthday Bash” fueled by Nitto, celebrating the DJ’s birthday with special musical performances, on November 21, 2012 in Los Angeles. Before the celebrations begin, fans can access the “Cake Maker” Facebook app and create a birthday cake in the shape of a Nitto tire for the chance to have their dessert presented to Aoki at his “Birthday Bash.”
It’s not over yet … Five lucky winners will be flown to Los Angeles for VIP access to Aoki’s birthday concert. One grand prize winner will drift with Aoki and acclaimed Nitto drift driver Matt Powers on a set of Nitto ultra high performance street tires.
Nitto’s partnership with one of the world’s most sought-after DJ’s today will deliver fans exclusive content and innovative ways to connect to both the brand and DJ on Facebook. Through its creative collaboration, Nitto hopes to draw the attention of Aoki’s passionate fan base in an effort to bridge the music enthusiast and tire communities.
For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/NittoTire.

Indian weddings too big, says government

Indian steel billionaire Lakshmi Mittal holds a speech at the Palace of Versailles, which was used for part of his daughter's £30m wedding ceremony. Photograph: Sipa Press/Rex Features

The big, fat Indian wedding is about to lose weight, if the government has its way.
Aware that the soaring price of onions, flour and other basic foodstuffs is causing serious political damage, ministers have suggested restricting "wastage" at the gargantuan feasts that typify matrimonial festivities.
Food and consumer affairs minister, KV Thomas, said that close to 15% of all grains and vegetables in India are wasted through "extravagant and luxurious functions", according to the Mail Today newspaper.
The government wants to introduce legislation to "curb profligacy" to preserve stocks for the poor, the newspaper reported.
Weddings in India have become more extravagant in recent years as the newly rich look to show off their wealth. The most spectacular ceremonies – such as those of the hotelier Vikram Chatwal or the daughter of the steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal – have seen astonishing displays of opulence. Expensive gifts accompanying invitations, tonnes of imported flowers, top chefs flown in from New York or Tokyo and festivities spread across multiple cities have become almost commonplace.
India's booming upper middle classes have been inspired to create their own displays. No wedding is now complete without at least three different cuisines offered to guests: north or south Indian, "continental" or European and a third, selected from Mexican, Japanese and Chinese, or chinjabi, as the local version of the latter is known.
"It's true that people waste a lot because there's a huge variety of dishes and they take a bit of everything to try it. There's a limit to the amount anyone can eat though," said Neeti Bhargava, who runs Mystical Moments wedding organisers in Delhi. "You can't really control it. There are people who really don't know how to spend all the money they've got."
The ostentation goes well beyond food. One new trend is the use of helicopters instead of the traditional white horse or decorated coach for the bride and groom.
Subhash Goyal, who runs an air charter business, said: "It's mainly people like farmers around the outskirts of Delhi or other cities who have made millions simply because their land has suddenly got to be worth so much money.
"Some people want to propose on a flight. Some people want to go in a helicopter to pick up the bride instead of going on a horse."
Fees for the helicopters start at £2,000. There are currently no plans to restrict expenditure on aircraft.
The people hit hardest by the food inflation – the poor – are the core constituency of the current government, led by the centre-left Congress party. However, the ambitious food security bill aimed at eradicating hunger in India is proving difficult to draft. It would guarantee more than two-thirds of the population had enough to eat, its supporters claim. About half of India's children under five are malnourished.
Opposition politicians attacked the plan to restrict wedding expenditure as a throwback to the 1960s when India's economy was centrally planned on a Soviet socialist model. Other critics argued that tackling corruption and wastage in India's deeply inefficient subsidised food distribution system, the biggest in the world, would do more good.
However, Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, a Congress MP who has previously tried to introduce a private bill curbing extravagant weddings, said he welcomed the government's move. "Extravagance in weddings should be controlled," he told the Mail Today. " It's a vulgar display of wealth."

Indian Wedding

Short essay on An Indian Marriage for students (free to read). It is said,” Marriages are decided in heaven though arranged on earth.” Accord­ing to Indian traditions, the two should unite into one; only physically they remain two.
Last month the marriage of my elder brother was celebrated. The auspicious day had been fixed after prolonged consultations with the priest. Although, we, the young­sters, want to move with times and consider all days auspicious, yet the elders are still steeped in superstition. We have to obey them. However, in one thing my brother and I were triumphant. It was that we succeeded in convincing out elders that dowry was an evil and it should not be accepted.
In every other respect, the marriage was celebrated according to tradition. All our relatives and friends were invited to accompany the marriage procession. It was a cavalcade of a bus and a number of cars and hired taxies. We wanted to include only a few members in the Bart, but the bride’s parents considered it a point of prestige to have the marriage celebrated with great pomp and show.
A large team of bandsmen preceded the marriage party to the girl’s house which was tastefully decorated with flower-garlands, outings and lights. At a short distance from the girl’s house, my brother was made to sit on a mare with huge Sera hanging from his head. Hoe girl’s relatives were already there to receive us. We were given a red carpet reception. Then there was “Milne” i.e. embracing of relative counter-parts from both sides. At the “Milne” all our close relatives were given gifts and money by the girl’s parents. Then there was “Shaman” ceremony, during which we were also served cold drinks and then sweets with tea and coffee. Again, we were given gifts, packs of sweets and baskets of fruits. Our request not to be given any dowry only as dowry was accepted with a trick!
After that we were treated to sumptu­ous dinner. Then there was the main mar­riage ceremony – “the pears” – which was performed by the priest. The boy and the girl both had to take several vows. It was almost dawn when the ceremony was over and the marriage party returned with the bride and the gifts. We had our own photographers to prepare a movie of the whole marriage func­tion from beginning to end.
Thus an Indian marriage is a noisy and expensive affair.

Is Arranged Marriage Really Any Worse Than Craigslist?

Recently, i was cc’d on an e-mail addressed to my father. It read, “We liked the girl’s profile. The boy is in good state job in Mississippi and cannot come to New York. The girl must relocate to Mississippi.” The message was signed by Mr. Ramesh Gupta, “the boy’s father.”
That wasn’t as bad as the time I logged on to my computer at home in Fort Greene and got a message that asked, forgoing any preamble, what the date, time, and location of my birth were. Presumably sent to determine how astrologically harmonious a match with a Hindu suitor I’d be, the e-mail was dismayingly abrupt. But I did take heart in the fact that it was addressed only to me.
I’ve been fielding such messages—or, rather, my father has—more and more these days, having crossed the unmarriageable threshold for an Indian woman, 30, two years ago. My parents, in a very earnest bid to secure my eternal happiness, have been trying to marry me off to, well, just about anyone lately. In my childhood home near Sacramento, my father is up at night on arranged-marriage Websites. And the result—strange e-mails from boys’ fathers and stranger dates with those boys themselves—has become so much a part of my dating life that I’ve lost sight of how bizarre it once seemed.
Many women, Indian or not, whose parents have had a long, healthy marriage hope we will, too, while fearing that perhaps we’ve made everything irreparably worse by expecting too much. Our prospective husbands have to be rich and socially conscious, hip but down-to-earth.
For some Indians, the conundrum is exacerbated by the fact that our parents had no choice for a partner; the only choice was how hard they’d work to be happy. My father saw my mother once before they got married. He loves to shock Americans by recounting how he lost sight of her at a bazaar the day after their wedding and lamented to himself that he would never find her again, as he’d forgotten what she looked like. So while we, as modern Indian women, eschew the idea of marrying without love, the idea that we’re being too picky tends to nag even more than it otherwise would.
Still, for years, I didn’t want to get married the way my brother did. He’d met his wife through a newspaper ad my parents had taken out. He’s very happily married, with a baby daughter, but he also never had a girlfriend before his wedding day. I was more precocious when it came to affairs of the heart, having enjoyed my first kiss with cute Matt from the football squad at 14.
Perhaps it was that same spirit of romantic adventurism that led me, shortly after college, to go on the first of these “introductions,” though I agreed to my parents’ setup mainly with an eye toward turning it into a story for friends.
At the time, I was working as a journalist in Singapore. Vikram, “in entertainment,” took me to the best restaurant in town, an Indonesian place with a view of the skyscrapers. Before long, though, I gathered that he was of a type: someone who prided himself on being modern and open-minded but who in fact had horribly crusty notions passed down from his Indian parents. I was taken aback when he told me about an Indian girl he’d liked. “I thought maybe she was the one, but then I found out she had a Muslim boyfriend in college,” he said. I lodged my protest against him and arranged marriage by getting ragingly intoxicated and blowing smoke rings in his face. Childish? Maybe, but I didn’t want to be marriageable back then. Indeed, I rarely thought of marriage at the time.
But for Indians, there’s no way to escape thinking about marriage, eventually. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that shaadi, the word for marriage in many Indian languages, is the first word a child understands after mummy and papa. To an Indian, marriage is a matter of karmic destiny. There are many happy unions in the pantheon of Hindu gods—Shiva and Parvati, Krishna and Radha.
At a recent dinner party, when I was trying to explain how single-minded Indian parents can be, my friend Jaidev jumped to the rescue. “Imagine you are on a safari in Africa with your parents,” he said. “A lion strolls by, and then perhaps a tiger. Your mother turns to you and says, ‘Son, when are you getting married? You have a girl in mind? What are your intentions?’”
The pressure on me to find a husband started very early. A few days after my 1st birthday, within months of my family’s arrival in the U.S., I fell out the window of a three-story building in Baltimore. My father recalls my mother’s greatest concern, after learning that I hadn’t been gravely injured: “What boy will marry her when he finds out?” she cried, begging my father to never mention my broken arm—from which I’ve enjoyed a full recovery—to prospective suitors out of fear my dowry would be prohibitively higher. (A middle-class family can easily spend $100,000 these days on a dowry in India.) Much savvier in the ways of his new country, my father laughed it off. “But there is no dowry in America!”
Fulfilling his parental duty, my father placed matrimonial ads for me every couple of years during my twenties in such immigrant newspapers as India Abroad. They read something like, “Match for Jain girl, Harvard-educated journalist, 25, fair, slim.” I took it as a personal victory that they didn’t include the famous Indian misnomer “homely” to mean domestically inclined.
Depending on whether my father was in a magnanimous mood, he would add “caste no bar,” which meant suitors didn’t have to belong to Jainism, an offshoot of Hinduism with the world’s most severe dietary restrictions. Root vegetables like carrots are verboten.
Still rather prejudiced against meat-eaters, my father immediately discards responses from those with a “non-veg” diet. There is, however, a special loophole for meat-eaters who earn more than $200,000. (This is only a little shocking, since my last boyfriend was a Spanish chef who got me addicted to chorizo. Once, I was horrified to discover, he’d put a skinned rabbit in my freezer.)
This desultory casting around to see what was out there has become much more urgent now that I’m in my thirties, and in their quest, my parents have discovered a dizzying array of Websites: shaadi.com, indiamatrimony.com, etc. Within these sites are sub-sites for Indian regions, like punjabimatrimony.com. You might be surprised at who you’d find on them: the guy in the next cubicle, your freshman-year roommate at NYU, maybe even the cute girl you tried to pick up at a Lower East Side bar last night.
Far from being a novel approach to matrimony, these sites are a natural extension of how things have been done in India for decades. Even since well before the explosion of the country’s famously vibrant press in the fifties, Indians were coupling up via matrimonial ads in national papers (“Match sought for Bengali Brahmin, wheatish complexion,” etc.).

Love-seeking Indians head online

India's rapidly growing economy has led to a transformation in the lives of its middle-class - but how well have the country's long-standing traditions stood the pace of change?
The city of Bangalore is India's Silicon Valley, home of the country's booming IT industry and employing hundreds of thousands of young Indian graduates from across the country.
It is one reason why it is also India's most cosmopolitan city, a buzzing metropolis dotted with bars, cafes, trendy restaurants and glitzy shopping malls. But scratch under the surface and you still find traditional India.
Sowmya and Sandeep Kulkarni represent the face of modern India. They are both software professionals, IT graduates in their 20s who, nevertheless, found it natural to get married the traditional way - and have it arranged.
"I don't see any flaw in arranged marriage - it was good enough for my parents and so it is good enough for me," says Sowmya.
Online matches
Like many Indians, Sowmya's parents wanted her married to a groom of their choice - one drawn from the same community of high-caste southern Indian Brahmins.

There is no way my family would accept an outsider, and I value them far too much to go against their wishes Fashion designer Savitha, 26

But while Sowmya was willing to accept a partner from the same community, she wanted to select the partner herself and choose him herself. So she went online and found Sandeep through an Indian matrimonial website.
"We e-mailed each other, exchanged photographs, realised we had a lot in common and that our frequencies matched," she recalls.
She told her parents her internet choice. The parents got in touch, met him and approved the match.
"I was the last person to meet Sandeep - after all my family members had met him," says Sowmya.

With more and more young Indians deciding to emulate Sandeep and Sowmya, it is a boom time for India's online matrimonial services.
One of them is Bharat Matrimony, which operates out of a network of offices across India and even overseas - in North America, the UK and the Middle East.
"At the end of the day, every Indian wants to marry someone from the same community - someone who speaks the same language, eats the same food and shares the same culture," says Murugavel Janakiraman, the founder of the portal.
"We chose to provide a website which addresses these concerns."
The company, and many others like it, provide walk-in centres for young Indian singles, where they are met and guided by counsellors.
Smart and brightly-painted, with rows of desktop computers in little cubicles, they have the appearance of one of India's many call centres.
They also draw a wide range of people, from traditional as well as liberal family backgrounds and from a range of professions.
Secure environment
Fashion designer Savitha, 26, owns a small boutique in Bangalore. Tall and attractive, she has decided to use the online services to find a partner of her choice.
"I come from a very conservative family and it is very important for me to marry someone from the same community," she says.
"There is no way my family would accept an outsider, and I value them far too much to go against their wishes."

Astrologer NS Murthy's predictions have entered the digital age

At the same time, she is very clear in what she is looking for. "He has to be supportive, financially sound and a good friend - and he has to be tall and good-looking," she adds, giggling.
She spends the next hour searching the internet, finds as many as 40 matches and zeroes in on three that she would like to contact.
"I find this a very secure environment, one that allows me to express myself freely," she says.
Savitha had also met several prospective grooms the more traditional way - from a line-up of partners picked by her parents and then brought home for tea with the family - but does not like this way of selection.
"It's a very controlled environment; you are so nervous and shy, you can hardly get to know each other," she says.
"This way, I can find out more about him, we can build up a relationship online and I can keep my parents happy."
New thinking
And many other traditional services have also had to change to keep pace.
No Indian wedding can even begin without a visit to the astrologer, who for centuries, read the charts and mapped the planetary alignments to pick the best matches.
Now, even they have had to adapt.
"Many of my clients have very specific requests," says NS Murthy, one of the city's top astrologers.
"Last year, I saw more than 6,000 horoscopes. My clients want to know about the prospects for the future, their prosperity, happiness, the number of children they'll have, and even their sex life.
Increasingly, he says, parents want to know if their daughter is likely to meet a software engineer or some other similarly prestigious profession.
For many young Indians, it is a challenge to adapt to the rapid pace of change while holding on to their traditions.
New challenges in the workplace has thrown up new ways of thinking, modern lifestyles.
But in a country that is still deeply conservative, many are able to find a happy middle ground.