jimmy iovine

DANA POINT, Calif.--Jimmy Iovine has worked as a producer with everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Lady Gaga over his 40-year career, and is currently chairman of Interscope Geffen-A&M. As a second, or companion, act he cofounded the popular Beats by Dr. Dre headphone company in 2006 because he thought the iPod earbuds were terrible.

"If Beats did anything, it got kids interested in audio again. We turned an entire generation on to sound," Iovine said in conversation with Walt Mossberg at the AllThingsD Dive Into Media conference here.

But his third act is even bolder … Read more

Jimmy Iovine, a bigwig at Universal Music Group and co-founder of Beats Electronics, says he tried to sell Steve Jobs on a music-subscription service years ago but couldn't quite make it happen.

Speaking to All Things Digital in an interview posted yesterday, Iovine said he approached the late Apple co-founder in "2002, 2003" to pitch him on the idea of launching a music-subscription service. For three years, he tried to push Jobs into saying yes, but Apple's then-CEO didn't like the idea of paying record companies so much.

"And he wasn't keen on … Read more

HTC's abrupt change in course on Beats Electronics is more about HTC's internal troubles than anything involving the audio company, sources close to the negotiations told CNET.

Last August, Beats, a maker of popular headphones that was co-founded by rapper and music producer Dr. Dre and music impresario Jimmy Iovine, sold 50.1 percent of the company to the Taiwanese manufacturer of smartphones and tablets for $300 million. On Saturday, HTC said in a prepared statement that it was selling half of that stake back for $150 million.

But in the year since taking majority control of the … Read more

CNET's Steve Guttenberg goes by a couple nicknames like "The Gutman," "The Audiophiliac," and "Sphere," but today we'll hear from the more tender side of our favorite audiophile as he tells us the story of how his life changed on this day back in 1972.

After he accepts our challenge to explain leap year in three sentences or less, he'll tell us why he can't stop laughing when hears the phrase "Mastered for iTunes," and we're both surprised to hear that he has a special thank-you message for Jimmy Iovine, Dr. Dre, and Monster Headphones.… Read more

HTC is hoping a different tune may reverse its recent flagging fortunes.

The smartphone vendor is working on its own streaming music service, according to a report from GigaOm. The service would purportedly become the default music client on HTC phones and tablets, and pricing and plans are getting worked out.

An HTC representative wasn't immediately available to comment to CNET.

This wouldn't be HTC's first foray into the music scene. Last summer, the company acquired a majority stake in Beats Audio, the headphone business started by rapper Dr. Dre and music industry executive Jimmy Iovine. While … Read more

Monster and Dr. Dre spearheaded the trend of celebrity-endorsed headphones, starting with the eponymous Monster Beats by Dr. Dre and Lady Gaga's own signature earbuds. But an increasing number of artists are partnering with other manufacturers for their own collaborations.

Signeo announced the Soul by Ludacris headphone series at CES 2011, and 50 Cent stopped by the CNET stage this year to demo his own wireless cans, but does a celebrity shout-out mean that those devices sound better than the competition?

Check out the following list to get the real scoop on all these new headphones supported by famous musicians.… Read more

LAS VEGAS--The Beats and Monster brands are so synonymous that it's hard to believe the relationship is over. After a five-year lovefest that spawned dozens of headphones including the eponymous Beats by Dr. Dre and Lady Gaga's own Heartbeats, Beats is cutting ties and refusing to renew the partnership contract.

According to a report from Businessweek, two anonymous sources confirmed that Noel Lee's Monster Brand and Jimmy Iovine's Beats label severed ties after an irreconcilable dispute over who should get more credit for last year's 53 percent headphone marketshare.

Dre and Iovine remain adamant about their aim to educate young listeners on the value of accurate sound reproduction seemingly lost in this era of awful-sounding Apple ibuds, and they even brought names like Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, and Miles Davis into the fold to help drive sales with cameos in music videos and live DJ sets.… Read more

HTC's acquisition of a majority stake in Beats Electronics amounts to nothing but a lot of white noise.

The Taiwanese smartphone maker said yesterday that it would acquire a majority stake in the famed headphone manufacturer--best known for its partnership with Dr. Dre--for $300 million. Sources told CNET's Greg Sandoval that the deal could eventually be worth more than $500 million.

HTC Chief Executive Peter Chou and Beats Chairman Jimmy Iovine touted the opportunity to integrate Beats' sound technology into HTC's mobile devices. But HTC, typically savvy when appealing to its customers' needs, may be missing the … Read more

Lady Gaga, the singing sensation and heir to Madonna's club-queen throne, is proving to be quite the technology fan.

Beats by Dr. Dre--the brand of headphones and electronic gear from rapper Dr. Dre--along with Monster and Universal Music Group producer Jimmy Iovine announced Tuesday that Lady Gaga would appear at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on Thursday.

This follows the Lady's appearance at last month's launch party in New York for music-video start-up Vevo and a performance last year at DLD Starnight, a gathering of European techies. In addition, Gaga also has her own headphone … Read more