By guest writer, industry analyst David Keppelmeyer. David is CEO of The Keppelmeyer Group

Apple and EMI's announcement of DRM-free music downloads may look like a win for consumers, but looking underneath the hype shows the seedy underbelly of businesses with a monopoly share of the music download market.

It's been a busy week at the rumor desk, with insiders claiming Apple Inc. will be hosting an event to announce the unveiling or pending release of a new or updated Apple product or service.

SEOUL, Korea - January 13, 2006 -- Samsung Electronics releases the world's first HD-VHS player/recorders, the VHS-HD600 and VHS-HD800. Just one year after announcing its intention to extend VHS technology, Samsung proves its technological prowess again with these revolutionary products.

A San Jose man gave away a free iMac computer destined for hard rubbish collection, but ended up with a costly paperweight and legal action after the recipient found it more trouble than it was worth.

By guest writer, industry analyst David Keppelmeyer. David is CEO of The Keppelmeyer Group

In the last few years Apple has been the darling of the gadget press. Profits and sales are reported to be sailing higher than ever, and at a glance, the company's success would seem to be assured. Under the surface however, there is little to be happy about for followers of the Macintosh, Apple's aged platform, and the iPod. While the iPod is a solid if limited music player, it's an offering without the backing of Microsoft, and missing several killer features of the Redmond giant's new Zune music player.