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DMW Daily, August 10, 2007

Top Stories
o Universal to Test Sale of DRM-Free Tracks Everywhere but iTunes
o "Second Life" Entrepreneur Sues User Over Theft of Virtual Sex Code
o Epic Games, Silicon Knights Trade Lawsuits Over Video Game Engine
o Survey: Two-Thirds of U.K. Says Technology Ups Music Listening
o Gannett Launches More Than 100 Localized Mobile News Sites
o Internet TV Broadcaster JumpTV Acquires Cycling TV for $4.95 Million
Opinion & Analysis
o Review: HBO’s Flight of the Conchords
o Guy Kawasaki: Fafarazzi.com is the Celebrity Gossip World's Answer to Fantasy Sports
Briefly Noted
o Apple Introduces "My iTunes" Widgets
o BayTSP Using Humans to Aid Web Copyright Filtering System
o Spock Launches Public Beta Version of Search Site
o Electronic Arts to Publish Games Based on Hasbro Properties
o Take-Two: Irrational Games Studio Renamed 2K Boston, 2K Australia
o Game Developer Codemasters Establishes New U.K. Studio
o Global Kids Gets Grant to Study Use of Virtual Worlds for Public Good
o Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to Publish "Speed Racer" Game
 Top Stories
o Universal to Test Sale of DRM-Free Tracks Everywhere but iTunes 
New York - Universal Music Group announced on Friday that it plans to experiment with selling a portion of its catalog free of digital rights management (DRM) restrictions from a number of online retailers, including Amazon.com, RealNetworks' Rhapsody, Best Buy and Walmart -- with the notable exception of Apple's iTunes Store. [more..]
o "Second Life" Entrepreneur Sues User Over Theft of Virtual Sex Code 
Tampa, Fla. - An online entrepreneur who devised code that allows avatars in the virtual world "Second Life" to have sex has filed suit against another anonymous Second Life user for allegedly copying and selling the code, the Associated Press reported. [more..]
o Epic Games, Silicon Knights Trade Lawsuits Over Video Game Engine 
Los Angeles - A legal skirmish has emerged between video game developer Epic Games, which created the Unreal Engine 3 game development engine, and Silicon Knights, a fellow developer that licensed the engine for use in its own titles. [more..]
o Survey: Two-Thirds of U.K. Says Technology Ups Music Listening 
London - A recent survey of 900 U.K. music consumers found that two-thirds said technology has helped them listen to more music than ever before, with 73% of 13-15 year olds and 20% of those over 40 reporting they use MP3 players at least four times a week. [more..]
o Gannett Launches More Than 100 Localized Mobile News Sites 
McLean, Va. - Gannett, the publisher of USA Today, said on Friday that it has launched localized mobile news websites in more than 100 markets. [more..]
o Internet TV Broadcaster JumpTV Acquires Cycling TV for $4.95 Million 
Toronto - JumpTV, a provider of live Internet TV channels, said this week that it will acquire U.K.-based Cycling TV for $4.95 million in cash and stock. [more..]
 Opinion & Analysis
o Review: HBO’s Flight of the Conchords 
Scott Goldberg reviews HBO's newest comedy, Flight of the Conchords, a show about two Kiwi musicians trying to get a break in the US. [more..]
o Guy Kawasaki: Fafarazzi.com is the Celebrity Gossip World's Answer to Fantasy Sports 
I am going to feature a Facebook app every Friday—“Facebook Friday.” (An evangelist never rests.) Today’s app is Celeb Heads from Fafarazzi.com. [more..]
 Briefly Noted
o Apple Introduces "My iTunes" Widgets 
Cupertino, Calif. - Apple this week introduced three Flash-based widgets that users can embed on any website to display their top-reviewed iTunes tracks, recently purchased music, movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store, and the artists whose music they've purchased the most. [more..]
o BayTSP Using Humans to Aid Web Copyright Filtering System 
Los Gatos, Calif. - BayTSP, a provider of online copyright monitoring and enforcement services for the entertainment industry, this week announced the launch of a platform that lets content owners add digital fingerprinting and watermarking technologies to their properties. [more..]
o Spock Launches Public Beta Version of Search Site 
Redwood City, Calif. - Spock, a company developing a search application that organizes information about people, said that it has launched a public beta version of its site. [more..]
o Electronic Arts to Publish Games Based on Hasbro Properties 
Redwood City, Calif. - Electronic Arts announced on Friday that it has signed a licensing deal with Rhode Island-based game and toy manufacturer Hasbro. [more..]
o Take-Two: Irrational Games Studio Renamed 2K Boston, 2K Australia 
New York - Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive said on Friday that it has changed the name of its Irrational Games studio to 2K Boston and 2K Australia. [more..]
o Game Developer Codemasters Establishes New U.K. Studio 
Burbank, Calif. - U.K.-based game developer Codemasters said on Friday that it has established another studio in Surrey, Codemasters Studios Guildford. [more..]
o Global Kids Gets Grant to Study Use of Virtual Worlds for Public Good 
Chicago - Global Kids, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to education students in underserved communities about international and public policy issues, announced this week that it has received a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, to accelerate the exploration of virtual worlds. [more..]
o Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to Publish "Speed Racer" Game 
Burbank, Calif. - Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announced this week that it plans to publish a game based on the upcoming "Speed Racer" film, which is being written and directed by "Matrix" creators the Wachowski brothers. [more..]