Archive - Nov 29, 2006 | Digital Media Wire

BitTorrent Signs Deals With Movie Studios, Cable Networks

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:47pm.

San Francisco - BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing service that has been targeted with copyright infringement actions across the globe, announced on Wednesday a slate of partnerships with Hollywood studios including Fox, Paramount, Lionsgate, Palm Pictures and MTV Networks to distribute movies and TV shows on its network.

Russia Agrees to Shut Down AllofMP3.com, Clamp Down on Piracy

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:43pm.

Washington - Russia has agreed to shut down the controversial website AllofMP3.com -- which sold cheap song downloads without label permissions -- as part of an agreement designed to allay U.S. concerns about the country's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

U.S., Allies to Ban Sale of iPods, Luxury Items to North Korea

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:40pm.

Washington - The Bush Administration is proposing "luxury" sanctions against North Korea that would prevent the country's leader, Kim Jong Il, from obtaining items like iPods, plasma TVs, expensive cars, caviar and foreign liquors, the Associated Press reported.

Universal Music CEO Expects to Settle MySpace Copyright Lawsuit

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:38pm.

New York - Universal Music Group expects to reach a settlement agreement to resolve the major record label's copyright infringement lawsuit against News Corp.'s MySpace online social network, Reuters reported.

Study: Violent Games Have Lingering Effect on Brain Activity

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:36pm.

Chicago - Teens who play violent video games exhibit increased activity in "emotional" areas of the brain and decreased activity in "self-control" areas, according to a study presented at the Radiological Society of North America's annual meeting, Reuters reported.

DEMMX: Increasing Video Output is a Priority for New York Times Digital in 2007

Authored by Jay Baage on November 29, 2006 - 2:32pm.

From the DEMMX Conference: Martin N. Nisenholtz, SVP, Digital Operations for The New York Times (NYT), told the audience that getting more videos up on the NYTimes.com is crucial: “Increasing video output on our website is a priority for 2007.”

Publisher Houghton Mifflin to be Acquired for $3.4 Billion

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:30pm.

Boston - Houghton Mifflin, a Boston-based publisher of textbooks, instructional technology, assessments and other educational materials for elementary and secondary schools and colleges, has agreed to be acquired by Ireland-based HM Rivergroup for $3.4 billion.

Tribune Co. Extends Timeframe to Sell Assets

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:28pm.

Chicago - Tribune Co., the Chicago-based owner of newspapers and TV stations, said that it has extended its timeframe to sell either its whole company or individual assets to the first quarter of next year.

Time Warner's Sale of AOL Germany Approved by European Regulators

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:23pm.

Dulles, Va. - The European Commission has approved Telecom Italia's $856 million acquisition of AOL Germany from parent Time Warner, the Associated Press reported.

Verizon Wireless Adds User-Generated Mobile Videos from Revver

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:16pm.

Los Angeles - Online video-sharing site Revver announced on Wednesday an agreement with Verizon Wireless that will bring its user-generated videos to mobile phones.

Report: Mobile Adult Content Market to Hit $3.3 Billion by 2011

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2006 - 2:07pm.

Hampshire, England - The mobile adult entertainment content market is expected to grow from $1.4 billion in 2006 to over $3.3 billion by 2011, according to a report from U.K.-based Juniper Research.

Producer, Music - NPR Digital Media - Washington, DC

Authored by dmw on November 29, 2006 - 1:00pm.

Love music? Love NPR? Combine these loves and help us build and launch an exciting new music discovery site at npr.org. NPR Music is looking for an experience music producer with significant Web-based production and marketing skills. We're seeking a talented, creative, passionate music enthusiast to implement audio and visual programming for a large and loyal audience.

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Career Moves: November 29, 2006

Authored by dmw on November 29, 2006 - 11:34am.

Career Moves is made possible by @HIRE.
Comcast announced today that it has named Michael J. Angelakis to serve as the company's new Co-Chief Financial Officer. Angelakis is currently a Managing Director of Providence Equity Partners, a private equity firm that invests in communications and media companies around the world.

The Chart Behind The Demise Of Google Answers

Authored by Bill Tancer on November 29, 2006 - 10:48am.

I woke this morning to Danny Sullivan's blog entry regarding the demise of Google Answers which was announced yesterday. In his post Danny alluded to an updated Hitwise chart comparing Yahoo! Answers, Google Answers and the new Microsoft Windows Live QnA.

DEMMX: Yahoo Media Group Reveals Part of Its New Strategy

Authored by Jay Baage on November 29, 2006 - 9:51am.

From the DEMMX Conference: Vince Broady, Head of Entertainment, Games & Youth for Yahoo gave the audience a glimpse of their new “brand universe” strategy with a demonstration of the newly created Nintendo Wii site. “Yahoo Media Group under Lloyd Brown is now really coming into its own,” he said at the DEMMX 2006 Conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

NY Times Columnist on Online Video Competition

Authored by Scott Goldberg on November 29, 2006 - 6:48am.

"It is a strange juxtaposition: BitTorrent, with 35 employees, and the company whose dominance in video sales is so threatened by online file trading: 1.8-million-employee WalMart."

— Brad Stone, Columnist, New York Times

[Source: NYT, November 29, 2006]

tags: Quotes |

Morning Links: November 29, 2006

Authored by Robert Spears on November 29, 2006 - 6:30am.

BitTorrent Raises $25 Million, Bram Cohen is History (TC)
US and Russia Strike Deal to Close AllofMP3.com (MacW)
Universal Music Expects Settlement with MySpace (R)
Universal Chief May Badger Jobs for iPod Royalties (AI)
Paramount, 20th Century Fox Embrace BitTorrent (CNET)
Educational S/W Firm Riverdeep Acquires Houghton Mifflin for $3.4B
Verizon Wireless to Offer Revver Video Content (CNET)
Nokia Plans to Offer Email and IM from Yahoo (CNET)
AT&T, Wal-Mart Team to Sell DSL (USAT)
Chinese Firms Seek to Replace DVDs with Home-Grown Technology (AFP)
Time-Warner Plans 'Download-to-Burn' Movies (PCM)
Zune Music Player's Sales on Target, Microsoft Says (B)
HumWare Announces Boondoggle Sports Network Touch Screen Kiosks
Stamps.com Files Patent Lawsuits (SCT)
Super Bowl May Be a Buyers' Market for Advertisers (WSJ)
Detecting Video Forgeries (TR)
Violent Video Game Effects Linger in Brain (R)
To Web Fans, Peter Jackson Is the One True Director (NYT)
When Google Crashes, The Web 2.0 Bubble Bursts (SA)
Blockbuster CEO: “We think packaged media remains king for a long time” (R)