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Date

Bertelsmann Settles Napster Investment Suit With Small Record Label

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:55am.
New York -- German media conglomerate Bertelsmann has settled a copyright infringement suit filed by Bridgeport Music, a small Michigan-based record label, stemming from Bertelsmann's $85 million investment in the Napster file-sharing service in 2000 and 2001, The New York Times reported. Bertelsmann paid about $50,000 to settle the claims of contributory copyright infringement from Bridgeport, paying only the label's legal fees. But the agreement may signal to larger record labels like Universal and EMI, with pending claims against Bertelsmann, that they may yet see compensation for what they see as lost CD sales due to the original, free Napster service. "The decision to settle the case was not based in any way, shape or form on the merits of the case," Bridgeport attorney Richard Busch told The Times. Bertelsmann said it would entertain similar settlements where it would reimburse legal fees for the major labels and publishers suing for contributory infringement. "We would hope that one or more of the other remaining plaintiffs would also reassess the viability of this litigation," Bertelsmann lawyer Bruce Rich told The Times. A federal judge recently denied Bertelsmann's motion to dismiss the charges brought by the major record companies, who are not deterred from their lawsuits. "[The labels and publishers] truly believe there are billions of dollars of damages they will ultimately be entitled to at the end of the process," Universal Music president Zach Horowitz told The Times.
tags: Law | Bertelsmann | Napster Investment Suit | Small Record Label |

WSJ: Game Developer Take-Two in Talks With MLB for Exclusive Rights

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:53am.
New York -- The Wall Street Journal recently reported that video game publisher Take-Two Interactive, known for its blockbuster "Grand Theft Auto" franchise, may be in talks with Major League Baseball to secure exclusive rights to use official players, teams, uniforms and stadiums in its baseball video games. News of the negotiations follows on Electronic Arts' landmark five-year, $50 million deal with the NFL for exclusive NFL football game rights for its "Madden NFL" franchise, and its deal to replace Take-Two as the licensee of the ESPN brand for use in video games. While those deals could sink Take-Two's "ESPN NFL" game franchise, an exclusive deal between Take-Two and MLB would likely negatively affect Sony's baseball game franchise but not Electronic Arts', which does not make use of official MLB branding.
tags: MLB | Take-Two | WSJ | Deal | Game Developer | Exclusive Rights |

Leaked Sony PSP Update Hints at Web, Office Applications for Handheld Game

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:51am.
Tokyo -- A software update for Sony's new PSP (PlayStation Portable) handheld video game system that was inadvertently leaked onto the Internet contains details on potential new applications for the device, including Web browsing, e-mail, text-to-speech, word processing and calculator functions. While Sony confirmed that the leak was genuine, it warned that the update may in fact damage PSP hardware if installed by owners. The addition of such non-gaming functions to the PSP -- which can already play music and movies pre-recorded on its proprietary Universal Media Disc format -- would set it apart from the more gaming-centered DS handheld recently released by rival Nintendo. Separately, Sony has hinted that it may open up its Universal Media Disc, a 2.4-inch, 1.8GB format, so that outside companies can publish music and movies that can be played back on the PSP.
tags: Web | Handheld Game | Leaked Sony PSP | Update Hints | Office Applications |

Activision Acquires Video Game Developer Vicarious Visions

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:50am.
Santa Monica, Calif. -- Video game publisher Activision announced on Thursday that it has acquired New York-based developer Vicarious Visions, including the company's Alchemy game development middleware technology. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Vicarious Visions has developed titles including "Spider-Man 2" for the Nintendo DS and "Tony Hawk's Underground 2" for PlayStation 2, and is currently co-developing "Doom 3" for the Xbox with id Software. Santa Monica, Calif.-based Activision said it signed long-term employment contracts with the company's management team and key employees. "Vicarious Visions' talented development team and proprietary technology combined with our internal systems and capabilities will play a key role in Activision's continued leadership on the next-generation platforms," said Activision Publishing president Kathy Vrabeck.
tags: Activision | Acquires | Video Game Developer | Vicarious Visions |

Mobile Music Download Service Chaoticom Licenses EMI Tracks

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:48am.
Andover, Mass. -- Chaoticom, a provider of mobile music download services, announced on Thursday that it has signed a license agreement with major record label EMI, to offer full-length song downloads of 200,000 tracks from EMI artists to cell phone users. The deal now gives Massachusetts-based Chaoticom's agreements with all the major record labels for mobile music delivery. The company's service is currently available to 24 million European wireless subscribers through carriers Eurotel, Orange, Pannon and Telenor.
tags: Mobile Music | Download | Chaoticom | EMI Tracks |

America Online Expands Search Capabilities

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:45am.
Dulles, Va. -- Hoping to capture a larger share of the rapidly expanding paid search market, America Online on Thursday said that it has launched a new, enhanced version of its search tool The company said that it has teamed with several technology partners to add features such as an updated design that moves away from a tabbed interface, a new sorting feature designed to help users more quickly narrow searches and "snapshot" results that present information such as local movie times and current events at the top of results pages. At the heart of the upgrade, however, are features geared toward paid search and e-commerce, such as shopping results that allow users to quickly purchase products for which they've searched. AOL also said that it is working with Ingenio to add a new advertising system that will only charge advertisers after a phone call is made to their business as a result of the ad.
tags: America Online | Expands | Search Capabilities |

Games Firm Sega Merges Management Teams at U.S., European Units

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:42am.
San Francisco -- Japanese video games firm Sega Corporation announced on Thursday that it has integrated the management teams of its Sega of America and Sega Europe units, in a bid to collectively drive growth in Western markets. The company appointed former Sega Europe COO Naoya Tsurumi to CEO of Sega of America; former LucasArts president Simon Jeffery to president and COO of Sega of America; Mike Hayes to COO of Sega Europe; and Sue Hughes to vice president of sales for Sega of America. "Integrating the management of our US and European organizations will allow SEGA's Western regions to aggressively develop and pursue products that appeal to Western consumers," said incoming CEO Tsurumi.
tags: Games | Sega | U.S | merges | Management Teams | European Units |

Report: Affluent Adults Rely More Heavily on Internet

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2005 - 7:38am.
New York -- Affluent adults rely more heavily on the Internet as their first source of information than the average person, according to a new report from market research publisher Packaged Facts. According to a survey of nearly 30,000 respondents, 32% of adults overall use the Internet as their primary source of information, compared with 42% among the mass affluent (two-or-more person households with an income of $100,000-$149,000) and 50% among the highly affluent (households with incomes above $150,000). Also, 34% of adults said that they have made an online purchase in the past 12 months, compared with 57% of the highly affluent.
tags: Internet | Reports | Rely | Affluent Adults |