Alongside systems such as Spotify and Last.FM, FlowMusic is hoping to encourage listeners to keep it legal by making it as easy as possible to buy tracks – which I’d say is the right tactic to discouraging music piracy. Make it easy, keep it cheap.

However, there’s one area constantly throwing a wrench in the works: sorting out the rights.

At the FlowMusic launch, Pure’s CEO Hossein Yassaie shared a slide showing the complicated mess his company had to decipher when it came to paying out royalties to the various parties involved. He said this one slide took three hours to be explained to him. (Click image to enlarge.)

“I didn’t believe it at first… being an intellectual property company we understand licensing,” he said. “But I have to say I have never seen anything as complicated at this.”

And if that doesn’t make your eyes bleed and your mind start to leak, it’s worth noting that’s the dumbed-down, simplified version. As Yassaie said: “There were times along the way I almost gave up.”

Despite clearly trying — and getting PRS for Music onside — Pure couldn’t sort out all of the rights issues before launch, with debate remaining over who gets paid for streaming songs. Director of connected services Pete Downton said: “This is new ground in the industry… we’re trying to find a model that works for everyone. If we wait for the copyright legislation written in 1709 to be amended to reflect the reality of technology today, we’ll be waiting a long time to launch these services, but we start from a fundamental position that we respect copyright.”

And there’s the problem. Even if a company can figure out the tech side and come up with an appealing commercial idea, sorting out the licensing can knock the whole thing down. Ever notice how songs in your Spotify playlists quietly get greyed out and won’t play? That’s over rights issues.

The musicians, songwriters, and yes, even marketeers in the music industry deserve to get paid for their work. But somehow rights need to be simplified or the industry risks causing those music companies trying to encourage legal downloads – such as Pure – to give up and leave music distribution to the pirates.

All-in-one PCs and Phenomenal CPUs

The Mesh Matrix II was a traditional PC, but inside sat one of AMD’s brand new Phenom II processors. We put it through its paces and it blew the old Phenoms away; it’s not up there with the recent Core i7s from Intel, but the price makes it a real competitor. The Mesh PC it came in was pretty special too, earning six stars out of six in our review. The same could not be said of the Core i7-based Dell Studio XPS 435mt, which failed to impress us at all.

We had two PCs with integrated displays, both from PC World brand Advent, both interesting in different ways. The Advent AIO100 is the company’s net-top offering, with a bigger screen and a more grown-up design than the child-like Asus Eee Top. It’s Atom-powered, so not a speed-demon, but of the short list of net-tops we’ve seen it’s the best yet.

Then we had the Advent AIO200, a larger and dearer beast at £766 plus VAT, but with plenty more to offer. It had more style than we expected, a quad-core processor and a decent spec, so it actually surprised us by being really quite appealing. Whether it could knock our current A List champion from its throne was a different question entirely, though.

Peripherals and Google

Elsewhere we saw NEC go all green with its EA261WM monitor. With a 26in screen it might be a stretch to call it one for the environmentally conscious, but a gimmicky carbon footprint calculator encourages a lower brightness setting. It’s easily ignored – and probably will be by most people – but credit to NEC for trying something. As for the screen, we liked it but not enough to recommend.

We also got to play with Google Apps Premier Edition – is now the time to ditch your powerful apps and move everything online? Short answer: No. And we saw external hard disks from Memorex and Verbatim, as well as the stylish new Pure Avanti Flow internet radio.

In the current issue of PC Pro you’ll find a full Christmas gadget guide, with 41 products tested and reviewed, from photo frames to cameras to USB guitars. But to help you beat the rush this year, we’ve plucked out ten of the best from the feature and from our A List.

Samsung NC10 – £300

Hands-down the best netbook on the market right now. It feels as sturdy as a proper laptop, offers a hefty seven-and-a-half hour battery life and features an almost full-width keyboard. Stylish, strong and hugely portable – and all this for less than £300.

Sony Reader PRS-505 – £190

If any device is going to sway the eBook doubters, the Sony PRS-505 is it. The silver case is a joy to behold, and the E Ink screen perfectly replicates the experience of words on paper. There’s space for 160 eBooks, and 100 classics bundled free.

Creative Zen X-Fi 16GB – £140

As well as 16GB of space and superb sound quality, the latest Zen connects to Wi-Fi networks to download music and podcasts and stream audio. The controls are a bit fiddly, but the excellent user interface, SD-card slot and FM radio make this one of the best mp3 players around.

Sony Cybershot DSC-T70 – £150

A gorgeous camera with a body that feels almost like it’s hewn out of a single chunk of aluminium, the Cyber-shot DSC-T70 is also a capable eight megapixel snapper. Highlights include fast autofocus, Super Steadyshot image stabilisation and quick shutter response times – and a competitive price.

Pure Evoke Flow - £150

This is best internet radio, bar none, that we’ve reviewed, and adds DAB, FM and media streaming to the mix too. It’s not cheap, but if you want a quality radio, with great looks, sound and usability, there’s nothing that comes close.

TomTom Go 730 – £208

Satnavs may be ten a penny these days, with GPS receivers in mobile phones, but it’s still worth paying a premium for a quality navigation product. TomTom has a track record here and has laid siege to our A List satnav entry for what seems like forever. This model is a brilliant device: stacked with features yet extremely easy to use and effective.

Sony DPF-V700 – £112

With typically stylish Sony design, excellent picture quality and an impressive range of on-board features – including auto touch-up, 512MB of memory and a card reader – the Sony makes a convincing argument as the best digital photo frame around. It may cost £129 but, if you’re looking for the best way to show off your snaps, it’s worth every penny.

Panasonic SDR-S7 – £134

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to operate the new generation of low cost flash memory camcorders. This one from Panasonic is the best of the new breed – it’s small, light and easy to use yet boasts some impressive features – including image stabilisation – and decent image quality. 

HYmini Personal Wind Turbine – £40

Attach the HYmini to a handlebar or wing mirror and even a light breeze will charge its internal lithium-ion battery – which can then be used to charge your mobile phone, mp3 player or PDA. It’ll prove incredibly useful as a portable battery pack and is an ideal gift for the eco-minded gadget fan.

Sony Alpha A200 – £260

Apart from a live-view mode, the A200 has every feature you could want – in-body image stabilisation, nine autofocus points, a 10-megapixel sensor and an 18-70mm lens. And with a steadily falling price, it’s an absolute bargain of a DSLR.

*****

Read the full feature of 41 Christmas gifts – cameras, MP3 players, internet radios, camcorders, photo frames, green gadgets, hi-tech watches and USB musical instruments – as well as an in-depth look at eBooks, in the current issue of PC Pro, on sale now.