Vivendi Chief says music biz gloom and doom exaggerated: Speaking at the Midem conference, Jean-Bernard Levy says the music industry is going through a huge transition. He said there would still be a market for physical products including the CD and the future always depends on discovering great talent.

Record Labels Abandon Legal File Sharing Site: Music fans around the globe faced confusion today as the new digital upstart Qtrax, announced they would be able to download unlimited, free songs without breaking the law. Qtrax claimed it housed 30 million free songs that are compatible with portable music devices including the iPod, but record labels have denied they had granted permission to share the songs. The gamble is that fans will put up with advertising around the Qtrax website’s jukebox in return for free music. Still, Qtrax faces some big obstacles including licensing and song/device portability.

Addictive As Heroin: The NY Times says the autobiographies from GNR guitarist Slash and “The Heroin Diaries,” by the Mötley Crüe bass player and songwriter Nikki Sixx make good reading. That’s not surprising. I couldn’t put down Motley Crue’s ‘The Dirt’.

Valley Mag: 95 percent of music downloads are illegal. The RIAA says illegal music downloads outnumbered legal ones 20 to 1 in 2007.

The Big Payday: Warner Music CEO, Edgar Bronfman Jr, received a compensation package in fiscal 2007 valued at $3.4 million. He also received a salary of $1 million along with $2,419,855 in dividends paid on restricted stock.

New Music:

One Star Story – Springfield, Missouri. This female fronted quartet could fall between The Cranberries and Garbage if the tracks weren’t so passive. Their new record titled “The Empty Room EP” will be released in March on Transatlantic Records. Check out the track So Long. (contact the band)