THOMAS IN THE MIDDEL...

Fingers are pointing to the possibility of no-goes for both the Napster and EMI high-profile deals, so what's next for the German topper?

All this nay-saying goes down amid increasing chatter of both Disney and Jive being active participants in the disposal of some of the assets of a combined BMG/EMI, particularly Virgin.

Despite skepticism that the cost-conscious House of Mouse would never spend the goofy bucks to acquire Virgin, others insist it would provide the Mickey with a worldwide musical kingdom, without having to shell out $6 billion for the entire EMI. There's also some question whether EMI's Ken Berry would pull the trigger on a Virgin deal, the label where founder Richard Branson gave him his start in the record business.