Link-O-Rama …

U.K. music industry asks tech companies for money to compensate for fans ripping CDs – PC Pro U.K.

Why doesn’t hip-hop sell as many concert tickets as it does CDs? – Contra Costa Times

Organizers cite lack of major sponsor for canceling New Brunswick’s SaltyJam Festival – CBC

West Virginia’s Marshall University butts heads with RIAA over subpoena ordering school to name names – Huntington Herald-Dispatch

How did we get here? A quick and easy primer on technology used for music piracy – TechRadar.com

eMusic surpasses 200 million download mark – eMusic / Marketwire / press release

Dates, Dates & More Dates …

Church-man Marty Willson-Piper hits the clubs in May, playing both coasts and destinations in between. Stops include May 4 (San Francisco), may 8 (Seattle), May 11 (Minneapolis), May 13 (Chicago) and May 21 (New York).

L.A. Guns keep on building that perfect tour itinerary. Today’s new dates include July 24 in Green Bay, WI; July 31 in Farmingdale, NY; and August 22 in Hermosa Beach, CA.

Bonnie Raitt updates today with new listings for August, September and October. New dates include August 15 (Elizabeth, IN), September 2 (Livermore, CA) and October 4 (Murphys, CA).

And we have a couple more dates for Bret Michaels doing the solo thing before Poison’s summer tour kicks off. Today’s Brett update includes May 31 in Waterloo, IA; and June 28 in Fort Pierce, FL.

During the last couple of hours we also updated the schedules for BulletBoys, Clay Walker, Clint Black, Dethklok, Drowning Pool, Joey Belladonna, Hurt, Hank III, Judge Jackson, Larry Keel And Natural Bridge, Lipbone Redding, Lou Gramm, Rev Theory, Randy Travis, Rod Piazza & The Mighty Flyers, Tantric, Taj Mahal, Tab Benoit, The Nighthawks, The Dickies, The Bobs and Tinsley Ellis.

And that’s the skinny at the halfway mark. Don’t miss Your Latest Update, scheduled for around 3 pm (PDT), from Pollstar.com!