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APPLESOUP FOR THE SOUL: Somewhere between what the entertainment industry wants and what the people want lies Applesoup.com. The brainchild of former Napster VP of business development Bill Bales and consultant Adrian Scott, Applesoup.com hopes to offer "peer-to-peer" file sharing similar to Napster only with a way for content owners to "control and monetize their intellectual property." The startup has already earned some well-connected Hollywood interest, garnering investments from Frank Biondi's WaterView Advisors and Creative Planet's John Valenti (son of MPAA chief and Napster opponent Jack Valenti). Just how the company has managed to incorporate digital rights management into the file-sharing prototype is unclear so far, as is the company's plan for a solid business model. Of course, a solid business model didn't keep Napster from getting off the ground. Not that Applesoup wants to follow directly in Napster's footsteps, of course.

LAWSUIT LOCALE LABORED: The recording industry and MP3 search engine MP3Board.com are locked in a battle over whether their lawsuits against each other should be heard in federal court in California, where MP3Board's Santa Cruz headquarters are, or in New York, where many of the major labels' main offices are, Webnoize reports. Judge Ronald Whyte will hold a hearing on the motions on Sept. 1 in San Jose. "We don't really care about this suit, let alone where it might be heard," observers observed.

UNIVERSAL CLASSICS GOES ONLINE: Universal Music Group has launched UniversalClassics.com, a classical music guide that includes artists from classical labels Deutsche Grammophon, Decca, Decca Broadway, Phillips and ECM. The new feature offers artists' biographies, album information and tour dates. To draw in traffic, the site is sponsoring a promotional contest to produce a classical music compilation album. "If we attract a couple of fans, that more than doubles the consumer interest we now have," a spokesman said. "This is a contest that could possibly be won by anyone willing to take the time to fill out the application."

VIRGIN PREPS NEW ONLINE UNIT: richard branson',390,400);">richard branson',390,400);">Richard Branson's Virgin Entertainment Group has created Virgin Audio Holdings for its online audio business. The new Los Angeles-based company features 23 music "stations" offering various music styles delivered through radio free Virgin, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Virgin Audio's "stations" range from hard rock to soundtracks and from interactive games to music associated with major cities of the world. The company plans to increase the number of stations available through its Web site to 75 within the next three to six months, Bloomberg News Service reports. "If you don't join up, Branson will make you fly around the world in a hot-air balloon or scale Mt. Everest," a spokesman said.

CHANUKAH SONG 2000?: What's better than playing the party band in a Pauly Shore movie? Landing a tune on an Adam Sandler soundtrack. New Line Cinema and garageband.com is giving unsigned artists the chance to have a song on the "Little Nicky" soundtrack. Through July, artists can upload entries at garageband.com. The public will have the chance to vote in August for the top ten. The winner will then be selected by "Little Nicky" director Steven Brill-who's no relation to Brill's Content. A sister promotion with AtomFilms will give aspiring auteurs the opportunity to direct an accompanying video.

EXPERT ADVICE: What to get Grandma for her birthday: the new Too Short or an old copy of that classic Nielsen-Pearson 8-track? Musicmaker.com is simplifying the decision-making process. The site has gathered an advisory board of music journalists to help consumers peruse its 165-label music library. Musicmaker.com's stable of music scribes boasts a resume including The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Billboard, Rolling Stone, Vibe and the Los Angeles Times. Musicmaker.com wanted to hire hitsdailydouble.com staffers, but they were far too busy with charity work to contribute.

ARE HOOKERS AND BOOZE INCLUDED?: Want to go behind the scenes of Carlos Santana's world tour? Tour sponsor StarMedia Network is giving Spanish and Portuguese-speaking fans the bird's-eye view online. Fans can chat with Santana, send e-postcards depicting "Supernatural" cover art, view webcasts, and vote crew members off the tour.

SAVE THOSE PENNIES FOR BAIL MONEY: Forget the Democratic National Convertion. The party of the year will be at Digital Distribution and the Music Industry USA 2000, which is slated for Sept. 20-22 at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA. Movers and shakers, including Ice-T, ARTISTdirect, Emusic.com, MP3.com, Riffage.com and Liquid Audio will be on-hand to discuss the digital music revolution. If that fails, they'll dress up in historical garb and reenact the Battle of Bunker Hill.