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Senate Approves Bill Enabling Federal Civil Lawsuits Against File-Swappers

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:25am.
Washington -- The U.S. Senate on Friday approved the "Pirate Act," which would expand the authority of the Attorney General and Justice Department to pursue civil lawsuits against copyright infringers. Previously, the Justice Dept. has only been able to prosecute criminal copyright cases, while the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has launched its own campaign of civil suits against music file-swappers, with a total of 3,429 sued thus far. "These acts will provide federal prosecutors with the flexibility and discretion to bring copyright infringement cases that best correspond to the nature of the crime and will assure that valuable works that are pirated before their public release date are protected," said RIAA chairman Mitch Bainwol. The bill will now be sent to the House for approval. "This turns the Department of Justice into a civil law firm for the industry's benefit," Adam Eisgrau, executive director of file-sharing trade group P2P United, told CNET News.com.
tags: Bill | Senate | File-Swappers | Federal Civil Lawsuits |

European Commission Suspends Sanctions Against Microsoft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:23am.
Brussels -- The European Commission said on Sunday that it has suspended its ruling that Microsoft must offer a new version of the Windows operating system without its media player software. Microsoft appealed the decision earlier this month. Last weekend, the Commission said it would not enforce the sanctions until the Court of First Instance in Luxembourg decided whether to suspend them pending the outcome of Microsoft's appeal. In its prior ruling, the Commission fined the U.S. software giant 497 million euro ($605 million) and ordered it to share information with rivals and start selling a new version of Windows without the Windows Media Player. On Sunday, the Commission said it was inappropriate to enforce the sanctions before the court had made its decision on the appeal, which analysts say could drag on for several years.
tags: Microsoft | Sanctions | European Commission | Suspends |

Report: PC-TV Tuners, Set-tops to Generate $3.8 Billion in 2008

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:22am.
Scottsdale, Ariz. -- Sales of devices that enable PCs to tune into TV stations and record programs will grow to more than $3.8 billion in 2008, according to a report from Arizona-based market research firm In-Stat/MDR. These products include entertainment-focused PCs, as well as digital terrestrial set-top boxes, which are increasingly popular in Europe and are projected to do well in Asia. The firm predicts that current PC-based add-on tuners will evolve into tuners that come built into computers. "In the next step for this market, [entertainment-focused] PCs will define a class of PCs that include a PC-TV tuner and a hard disk drive, and then evolve to include multiple PC-TV tuners, different types of tuners (analog, digital, cable TV, satellite), massive disk storage, DVD recording capabilities, High Definition (HDTV) video and surround sound audio outputs, HD-DVD recording capabilities, in-home network capabilities, and broadband external network capabilities," predicted In-Stat/MDR senior analyst Gerry Haufhold.
tags: Reports | Set-tops | PC-TV Tuners |

Cable TV's Fuse Launches Daily Top Song Downloads Countdown Show

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:19am.
New York -- Fuse, a cable TV music network operated by Rainbow Media Holdings, announced on Monday that it is doing away with its daily music video countdown show and replacing it with one that measures the daily most downloaded songs from legal Internet services. The show's data on the daily most-downloaded songs will be culled from sources including iTunes, BuyMusic.com and SoundScan. "The Daily Download" will also offer free legal downloads of songs of videos aired during the show, provided by Blue Mountain and Tower Records, in addition to ringtones and other content. The show, which launched on Monday, will in debut episodes feature interviews and live performances from artists including Metallica, The Streets, The Darkness and Jet.
tags: Launches | Downloads | Music | Fuse | Cable TV's | Countdown Show |

Clear Channel Live CD Service Signs Jewel, Plans MP3 Distribution

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:17am.
Boston -- Instant Live, a division of Clear Channel that records and distributes live concert CDs at venues following performances, announced on Monday that it will provide its service on summer concert tours from Jewel, KISS, Peter Frampton and the Cowboy Junkies. Atlantic Records artist Jewel, the service's first major label participant, will only sell Instant Live CDs in limited edition at concert venues, while other artists plan to also make their shows available at retail locations, including Newbury Comics, Virgin, FYE, Amazon.com and CD Baby. Boston-based Instant Live said it is also "close to announcing an agreement with a leading online music store to distribute Instant Live recordings as MP3 files."
tags: MP3 | Deal | Clear Channel Live CD | Jewel |

RealNetworks Gets Support From Linux Developers for Media Software

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:16am.
Kristiansand, Norway -- RealNetworks, a provider of media delivery technology, announced on Monday an agreement with Linux software developer Red Hat, to ship its open source Helix Player with Red Hat's desktop PC software. The company signed a similar deal with Linux developer Novell, and also said that it will soon add the GNU General Public License to the Helix Player, allowing developers to freely build upon the software without paying royalties. Seattle-based RealNetworks also said that on Wednesday it will release its free RealPlayer 10 software for Mac OS X.
tags: RealNetworks | Support | Media Software | Linux Developers |

Telenor Mobile Interactive Acquired by Telenor Venture

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 28, 2004 - 7:13am.
Rockville, Md. -- Telenor Mobile Interactive USA, a maker of mobile applications and messaging services, said on Monday that it has been acquired by Telenor Venture, the venture capital company within the Telenor Group. The company, to now be called Telenor Interactive, said that it plans to continue expanding its operations within the U.S. messaging and mobile content market. Steinar Svalesen, the CEO of Telenor Interactive, said that the acquisition "provides the company with added resources to execute our current strategy," both financially and through Telenor Venture's relationships with telecomm and media companies. Last July, the company launched cross-carrier messaging services with Disney's ABC Television group. Since then, Telenor Interactive has facilitated numerous text-to-screen, text- to-radio, text alert and text-based games services with companies such as Walt Disney Interactive, 20th Century TV, Univision, Telemundo, and ABC.
tags: Acquired | Telenor Mobile Interactive | Telenor Venture |