A prospective settlement to class-action lawsuits filed in New York over music company Sony BMG’s use of surreptitious code to enforce copy protections will likely result in consumers getting free music and, perhaps, a small amount of cash, according to a news report. U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald approved a proposed settlement, after attorneys outlined the deal, which included a commitment by Sony BMG to stop making CDs that carry the copy protection software made by SunnComm and First 4 Internet, the Associated Press reported on Friday. Full Story