Sony BMG Joins Dada to Build Mobile Social Network
Just in case the world needs yet another Web site for sharing photos, videos and other assorted content, Sony BMG has joined up with Italian mobile-oriented social networking site Dada to build an entertainment service that works with both PCs and cell phones.
The two companies will form a joint venture in the United States with equal ownership; Sony BMG will provide its music and video content, while Dada offers the Web-based infrastructure. Both companies will provide support services, and revenues will be generated from subscription and per-download sales of audio, video and ringtones, as well as advertising.
Windows Media DRM Cracked, Again
The cat-and-mouse game continues between Microsoft and a group of hackers intent on breaking the copy protection technology on its Windows Media files. This time, an individual has cracked the latest DRM scheme employed by Microsoft.
The back and forth began last August when a Doom9 forum user by the name of "viodentia" released a program called FairUse4WM. The application was able to strip the copyright protection from both audio and video files, removing restrictions of where and when they could be played. Windows Media files could also then be converted into other formats as well.
AOL Paying $3 Million for Not Canceling Accounts
AOL has settled with 48 states and the District of Columbia over an investigation stemming from its previous cancellation policies in which some customers were unable to close their AOL accounts, or found themselves being billed for services after thinking they had canceled.
AOL will pay $3 million and has agreed to continue maintaining its online cancelation feature that went live last August; previously, customers had to call in to cancel, and AOL employees were encouraged to convince them otherwise. The company admitted no wrong-doing as part of the settlement.
Microsoft Patches 7 Critical Vulnerabilities
As part of its Patch Tuesday updates this week, Microsoft corrected 10 vulnerabilities in Windows and Office, 7 of which were deemed "critical." Three critical flaws were fixed in Excel that could allow for remote code execution, while one was fixed in Windows 2000 and Server 2003.
The final critical patch was for the .NET Framework, correcting three vulnerabilities - two of which affect client systems and one affecting Web servers running ASP.NET. Lastly, one "important" vulnerability was patched in Office and another in Windows XP; and one moderate flaw was fixed in Vista. Vista's firewall could allow incoming unsolicited network traffic to access a network interface and gather information.
Thousands in WVA Still Without Phone Service
After an outage Tuesday morning knocked out phone service to an estimated 20,000 locations in West Virginia, FiberNet -- the company whose systems failed -- is still working on the problem over 24 hours later. Hospitals and police departments have been given priority, however, and most had phone service restored early Wednesday.
The catastrophic failure occurred when both primary and backup equipment failed. A multiplexer that routes calls, which was 8 years old, was supposed to switch to a redundant path but did not, FiberNet says.
Xbox Live to Offer Disney Films in HD
Microsoft has forged an agreement with Disney to offer the studio's movies for rental via Xbox Live. High-definition films will cost 480 Microsoft points, while those in standard-definition run 320 points. Older films are priced at 360 points and 240 points. All films can be watched for 24 hours after downloading before they expire.
The Walt Disney Studios catalog includes titles from Walk Disney Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Hollywood Pictures and Miramax Films. New movies will become available on Xbox Live as they are released, much like Disney does through Apple's iTunes. Microsoft did not say whether the deal would include Disney-owned ABC television programs.
After Four Years, AOL 9.1 Enters Beta
After a four year hiatus, AOL has restarted development of its client software, seemingly to appease those customers who have moved onto broadband, but are comfortable with the AOL interface. AOL 9.1 entered beta testing Tuesday, and is available for download.
Although it's only a notch above AOL 9.0, which was released in July 2003, the update brings a number of major changes to the company's software that once dominated an industry. The majority relate to AOL's shift from Internet service provider to Web portal and its newfound reliance on advertising.
New Windows Server, Visual Studio, SQL Server to Launch in February
On February 27, 2008, Microsoft will jointly release Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server 2008, kicking off what it calls a "launch wave" with hundreds of events worldwide. Microsoft will pitch the products as a platform for next-generation Web service applications.
Windows Server 2008 is still expected to be released to manufacturing before the end of the year, with November as the rumored timeframe. Microsoft took a similar tack with Windows Vista, making it available to businesses in November before its public launch in late January.
iPhone and the Death of the Mobile Web
PERSPECTIVE Regardless of whether or not you bought into the flash and hype that accompanied the iPhone's launch, Apple's newest device is important not for what features it brings, but for what it makes obsolete. The death knell has been rung for the mobile Web.
Since the late 1990s when cell phones began doing more than just making calls and sending text messages, the concept of easily browsing the Web while on the go has loomed large. But despite the efforts of numerous companies and support from the W3C Web standards body, the effort has largely failed.
Sun Releases Own ODF Plug-in for Office
Separate from Microsoft's efforts to create a translator that supports Office 2007's Open XML formats and OpenDocument, Sun has released the final 1.0 version of its own ODF plug-in for Office. However, Office 2007 is not yet supported due to what Sun calls a bug in Microsoft's newest suite.
Sun ODF Plugin 1.0 works with Office 2003, Office XP and even Office 2000. It fully supports Word, Excel and PowerPoint files - something the Microsoft-backed plug-in does not yet do. Office 2007 is not supported due to an issue in Word 2007 in which the application ignores installed filters and only opens documents with its own. And, of course, Word does not natively support ODF.
European Carriers Vie to Sell iPhone
With AT&T reportedly having activated over 600,000 iPhones as of Monday, it's no surprise that European carriers are eager to jump on Apple's bandwagon. Numerous reports have pointed to wireless carrier O2 being chosen as Apple's exclusive iPhone partner in the United Kingdom, but little concrete evidence has surfaced.
The BBC seemed to back the speculation this morning, saying the iPhone should arrive in the UK before Christmas. However, the story, which has been since referenced worldwide, pointed to unspecified "press reports" as its source.
AllofMP3 Shuts Down, Resurfaces as 'MP3Sparks'
Russian authorities last week put the final nail in the coffin of AllofMP3.com, the thorn in the side of United States and UK music industry groups that have attempted to shut it down for years. But the service quickly resurfaced under the name MP3Sparks.com, with the ability to take credit cards once again.
AllofMP3 was controversial because it sold unprotected (DRM-free) songs for pennies, far cheaper than services like iTunes or Napster. Record labels claimed the site had no licenses, nor paid royalties to artists. AllofMP3 parent company, Mediaservices, claimed to pay royalties to ROMS, the copyright holder service sanctioned by the Russian Parliament, and to FAIR (Rights holders Federation for Collective Copyright Management of Works Used Interactively).
BSA Offers Cash Rewards for Piracy Snitches
The Business Software Alliance, a leading software industry organization, has announced a new approach to fighting piracy in the workplace: up to $1 million in cash to those whistle-blowers who rat out their employers. But the reward is only paid out if the BSA receives a cash settlement from the company.
Previously, the maximum reward offered through the two-year-old program was only $200,000. The carrot-and-stick approach worked, but only secured $22 million in settlements from companies with unlicensed or pirated copies of software installed on computers.
Linspire Joins Microsoft Converter Efforts
Repeating an announcement it made last month when following Novell and Xandros in signing a patent agreement with Microsoft, Linux vendor Linspire said Monday it was working with the Redmond company in building translators for converting documents between Open XML and ODF.
Linspire and Freespire -- a free version of the Linux distribution that does not include certain functionality and technical support -- will now include bi-directional translators moving forward. This means OpenOffice.org users will be able to open and save in Microsoft's Open XML formats, while Office 2007 users can do the same with OpenDocument.
First Day iPhone Supply Exceeds Demand
In retrospect, Apple should have made a disclaimer before the iPhone went on sale Friday at 6pm: If you want an iPhone, don't go to an AT&T store. Hoping to avoid massive crowds, many iPhone buyers ventured to smaller AT&T stores, like the one in Asburn, Virginia. But it turns out the real stock was located at Apple's own stores, and standing in line was not a requirement.
With extra employees, free water and donuts, and even teaser demos to those waiting, Apple was well prepared to handle an onslaught of iPhone customers. Some stores had thousands of units on hand to sell, and after initial lines were satisfied, anyone could walk in and buy one without waiting. No Apple store was reported to have sold out Friday night. Where did they hide all those iPhones? Scroll down.
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