Congress to Study XM, Sirius Merger
Congress plans to hold hearings into the merger of satellite radio providers XM and Sirius next Wednesday, with the House Judiciary Committee slated to ask CEO designate Mel Karmazin and others how the merger benefits consumers.
Most analysts agree that much of the political opposition will come from Democrats, and say that now is the best time to push through any merger. If Democrats take over the executive branch in next year's elections, such a merger may be near impossible.
Indie Films Added to iTunes Movie Store
IFC said Wednesday that it will initially add the movies that it received a nomination for the 2007 Independent Spirit Awards to the iTunes Movie Store, of which six have gained that nod. Another seven will also be added, which have been nominated in previous years. Among the films added are "American Gun," "Happy Here and Now" and "Land of Plenty," among others. All downloads would be priced at $9.99 USD.
New York based IFC Films is one of the largest independent distributors and garnered the most Spirit Award nominations of any one company. "By making IFC films available on the world's most popular online movie store we're giving independent filmmakers the exciting opportunity to reach a wider audience of movie enthusiasts," IFC's senior president of sales and devlopment Lisa Schwartz said.
FBI Offers $25,000 for Lost Hard Drive
The Birmingham, Alabama Veterans Administration Medical Center said this week it is seeking the return of an external Iomega hard drive containing personal information on at least a half-million people. The Center has brought in the FBI to help investigate and is offering a $25,000 reward.
The drive was reported missing by an employee who had used it to backup medical records. Although the sensitive data on the drive has not surfaced elsewhere, recent cases of identity theft have prompted the FBI to get involved in a number of similar stolen hard drive cases. A bill recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would hold IT managers responsible for such privacy breaches.
Opera Mini 3.1 Released for Phones
Opera on Wednesday updated the Java-based version of its Web browser for mobile phones, improving connectivity and adding support for more handset models. Opera Mini 3.1 offers one new feature: the ability to better manage RSS feeds.
Newly supported devices include T-Mobile's popular Dash and IDEN-based Motorola phones. Rendering fixes were also made for Samsung's BlackJack. Opera Mini 3.1 is a free download available from the company's Web site. Separately, Google recently released a Windows Mobile based version of its Google Maps application, removing the requirement of Java on Microsoft smartphones.
Intel CPU Price Declines Help it Retain Value Edge
Earlier this week, AMD's introduction of the Athlon 64 X2 6000+ processor at the $464 suggested price point signaled the start of CPU price reductions in its midrange segment. But since that time, pre-order prices for the 6000+ have risen, not fallen; and meanwhile, street prices for Intel CPUs have declined a tick or two, according to Pricewatch.
As a result, based on our latest computer models, you're likely to be able to purchase a better performing processor from Intel than AMD for purchases of about $375 and higher. For lower purchases, AMD will offer the better value. AMD has made some gains in pushing that mark higher, though Intel prices have responded almost in kind. Last November, the crossover point was closer to $350.
Gates to Keynote Microsoft MVP Summit
Microsoft on Thursday announced plans for its 2007 MVP Global Summit, its annual meeting of Microsoft enthusiasts and developers that the company has placed a "most valuable professional" tag on. This year the company plans to recognize some of the over 2,000 MVPs who helped the company get Windows Vista, its first major operating system upgrade in five years, out the door.
This year's summit will take place from March 12 to 15 at both the Washington State Convention and Trade Center and on Microsoft's main campus in Redmond. The keynote speaker would be Microsoft chairman Bill Gates. "The MVPs serve as an inspiration, sharing their expertise and passion for technology communities with an unyielding drive to help others," MVP program head Sean O'Driscoll said.
HP Brings British Film Archive Online
Through a two-year partnership with the British Film Institute, HP will assist the organization in creating a digital archive of more than 300 films and television shows. When it opens in March, the Mediatheque at BFI Southbank will have a catalog of films and videos spanning more than a century, it said. Another reason for the move is to digitize content to ensure it is preserved.
About 30 titles per month would be added to the digital archive, officals say. However, the groups will likely only put a small dent into the center's vast library, which includes some 230,000 films and 675,000 television programs - the biggest in the world.
Settlement Secures 'Apple iPhone,' 'Linksys iPhone' Uncertain
While an agreement reached between Apple and Cisco over the use of the iPhone trademark allows both companies to continue to use it, Cisco spokespersons have been non-specific this morning with regard to whether its Linksys division will continue to use "iPhone" with regard to its VoIP products.
Last December, just weeks ahead of Apple's iPhone announcement at Macworld -- which was easily the worst kept secret in consumer electronics -- Linksys re-christened some of its voice-over-IP products that had carried the CIT and WIP model numbers as "iPhone." Linksys claims ownership of the iPhone trademark, having gained those rights through an acquisition of original trademark older Infogear in 2000.
Revver Videos Coming to Verizon DSL, FiOS
Verizon said Thursday it had penned an agreement with Revver, the user-generated video site that pays its users to submit content. Videos would be made available through the telecommunications company's broadband service by the end of March, and on FiOS TV by the end of this year.
Revver already had signed a similar deal with sister company Verizon Wireless in November of last year.
Google Treads Further on Microsoft's Turf
Although it has repeatedly denied it has any intention of taking on Microsoft Office, Google on Thursday introduced Google Apps Premier Edition, a fee-based version of its free Web-based word processing and spreadsheet applications for businesses.
For a $50 yearly fee per account, customers will receive the entire Google Apps package with additional business centric features, plus access to APIs, conference room scheduling for calendar, 10GB of e-mail storage, extended phone support, and mobile access to e-mail on BlackBerry devices.
Charter Debuts SiteFinder-like Service
Charter has apparently implemented a feature that is similar to that which both VeriSign and EarthLink have instituted in the past to redirect unused domains to a company-produced page with advertising, its customers report.
According to users of the Web site broadbandreports.com, customers are sent to a search page that includes several advertisements across the top half of the page, with a search results page powered by Yahoo! Search.
Supreme Court Debates Patentability of Software
A seemingly simple case regarding whether Microsoft had the right to replicate speech recognition software it had licensed -- or rather, thought it had licensed -- from AT&T, and then sell that software abroad as a component of Windows Vista, has exploded into what is now extremely likely to become a landmark case in US patent and copyright law.
The US Supreme Court today took up oral arguments in Microsoft's appeal of a judgment against it in AT&T v. Microsoft, which has now become Microsoft v. AT&T in view of the appeal.
NPD: Wii Outsells Xbox, PS3 in January
The Nintendo Wii continues to be a consumer favorite, according to sales data for January released by the NPD Group Wednesday. Meanwhile, the aging PlayStation 2 edged out the Xbox 360 for the number two spot.
Nintendo's next-generation console remains a big hit, selling some 436,000 units during the month in the United States, and had two titles in the top ten bestselling games. That number isn't too far off from its December sales -- traditionally the highest selling month -- when it sold some 604,000 units.
National Geographic Offers Cell Phone
Wednesday marked an unusual entrant into the mobile phone space: National Geographic. The organization launched what it calls the "Talk Abroad Travel Phone," which is designed for individuals circling the globe. But worldwide roaming doesn't come cheap at 90 cents per minute.
National Geographic joined up with Playa del Rey, Calif. company Cellular Abroad to provide the service that works across borders by picking up local cellular carriers in over 100 countries. The phone number will stay the same in all locations, and the handset utilizes GSM technology, which is prevalent throughout South America and Europe.
UK Rejects Citizens' Anti-DRM Petition
An electronic petition of the UK Prime Minister’s office that garnered 1,414 signatures calling flatly for a ban on the use of digital rights management techniques in all digital content, was not as flatly - though quite clearly - rejected on Monday. A December report commissioned by Her Majesty’s Treasury may have prompted the rejection, having assessed the state of the global intellectual property system, and having acknowledged its fitness for purpose with “a qualified ‘yes.’”
Clearly taking a stand on behalf of content rights holders, the PM’s office stated, “Many content providers have been embedding access and management tools to protect their rights and, for example, prevent illegal copying. We believe that they should be able to continue to protect their content in this way. However, DRM does not only act as a policeman through technical protection measures, it also enables content companies to offer the consumer unprecedented choice in terms of how they consume content, and the corresponding price they wish to pay.”
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