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DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE -- January 7, 2003
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o Norwegian Teenager Johansen Found Not Guilty of DVD Piracy
o Online Movie Ticket Seller Fandango Raises $15.3 Million
o GameCube Beats Xbox for European Sales in 2002
o Island Def Jam to Offer Paid Downloads As Soon As Singles Hit Radio
o Report: Online Holiday Sales Grew 17% in 2002
o Nintendo to Release New Game Boy Advance Model With Backlit Screen
o Game Developer 3DO Gets $10 Million from CEO
o Report: Europeans Willing To Pay For Digital Content
o Virtual Ad Developer Princeton Video Image Delisted from Nasdaq
o Visual Messaging Developer FunMail Lands New Funding
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o Briefly Noted: Xbox Live sales, Rambus - PlayStation 3, Delphi - General
Motors, Singingfish - Microsoft, Sony Pictures Digital - Sprint PCS, HP -
DVD drives, Mobliss - "Nashville Star," Loudeye - Microsoft, Code Vault
Magazine, Sony Pictures Digital, Microsoft eBooks - "fair use" crack,
Future of Music Policy Summit
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o Norwegian Teenager Johansen Found Not Guilty of DVD Piracy
Oslo, Norway -- A Norwegian teenager on trial for his role in creating
DeCSS, a controversial computer code that can crack the anti-copying
technology on DVDs, has been found not guilty on all charges. Norwegian
prosecutors had asked for a suspended 90-day jail sentence for 19-year-old
Jon Johansen, who was sued in Norway after a complaint was filed by the
Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), which represents Hollywood
movie studios. "The court has made a very solid legal and factual ruling,"
said Halvor Manshaus, Johansen's lawyer. "It helped tremendously that the
lead judge was assisted by two expert judges who are computer
specialists." Several U.S. publishers have been sued by movie studios for
distributing the DeCSS code on the Internet, in several cases that are
being closely watched by both the entertainment and technology
communities.
http://www.eff.org/IP/Video/DeCSS_prosecutions/Johansen_DeCSS_case/20030107_eff_pr.html
http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article.jhtml?articleID=466519
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o Online Movie Ticket Seller Fandango Raises $15.3 Million
Hollywood -- Fandango, a provider of online advance movie ticket sales and
show time information, announced on Tuesday that it has secured $15.3
million in new funding from Technology Crossover Ventures, a $2.5 billion
fund and provider of growth capital to technology companies. Other TCV
portfolio companies include Expedia, Netflix and RealNetworks.
Hollywood-based Fandango, which offers online movie ticketing at nearly
7,800 screens in 40 cities, said it will use the new funds to facilitate
market expansion, extend alliances with movie studios and exhibitors, and
develop and enhance new products and services.
http://www.fandango.com
http://www.tcv.com
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o GameCube Beats Xbox for European Sales in 2002
London -- Japanese video game maker Nintendo announced that it sold 1.5
million of its GameCube video game consoles in Europe during 2002, edging
out Microsoft's Xbox for second place in the console wars there, where
Sony's PlayStation 2 continues to lead. Nintendo European managing
director David Gosen told Reuters the company plans to focus on games in
2003, while keeping the GameCube's $207 price tag in Europe steady. "We
intend to make 2003 a strong year for GameCube, in which we focus on new
games and we intend to build on our No. 2 position," said Gosen.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=2005548
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o Island Def Jam to Offer Paid Downloads As Soon As Singles Hit Radio
New York -- The Island Def Jam Music Group, a division of Universal Music
Group, announced on Tuesday that it will begin making songs available for
purchase and download online as soon as they are released to commercial
radio stations for airplay. The downloads are burnable to CD and
transferable to secure portable devices. In addition to a la carte, the
tracks will also be offered through subscription services including
Listen.com, MusicNet and Pressplay. The first single offered will be
American Hi-Fi's track "The Art of Losing," available online in the U.S.
on Jan. 7 for $0.99, before the album's release date on Feb. 25. "Our new
strategy, to provide consumers with the ability to purchase Island Def Jam
music online the day it hits radio, provides music fans with an immediate
opportunity to own music prior to album release dates," said Larry
Mattera, vice president of new media for The Island Def Jam Music Group.
http://www.umusic.com/newformats/retailers
http://www.islanddefjam.com
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o Report: Online Holiday Sales Grew 17% in 2002
Darien, Conn. -- The anecdotal evidence last month that online retailers
were experiencing strong holiday sales is being validated by new research
from Connecticut-based Jupiter Research, which on Monday reported that
holiday sales for the season is expected to grow 17 percent over the
year-ago period. Free-shipping promotions proved to be a catalyst for the
robust increase, the technology research group said.
http://www.jupitermedia.com
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o Nintendo to Release New Game Boy Advance Model With Backlit Screen
Redmond, Wash. -- Nintendo announced on Tuesday a new video game device,
the Game Boy Advance SP. The handheld game, targeted at an older
demographic of gamers than Nintendo's traditional Game Boy, features a new
backlit screen and flip-screen design, and will go on sale in North
America on March 23 for $99.95. Nintendo said that its Game Boy Advance
has sold 11.5 million units in North America alone since its launch just
over a year ago.
http://www.gameboy.com
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o Game Developer 3DO Gets $10 Million from CEO
Redwood City, Calif. -- Video game developer 3DO announced that it has
reached an agreement with founder and CEO Trip Hawkins to provide $10
million in new financing to the company. Hawkins previously provided the
company with a $3 million bridge loan. "This agreement is a big step
forward on our goals of revenue growth and a return to profitability,"
said Hawkins. "Our confidence is growing from good previews from the
gaming press for our 2003 product slate, and promising purchase order
demand for our initial 2003 releases."
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/021227/sff009_1.html
http://www.3do.com
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o Report: Europeans Willing To Pay For Digital Content
London -- In a piece of bright news for Europe's struggling online content
providers, European online users are willing to pay for digital content,
according to a new survey by Jupiter Research. Jupiter said consumers are
more willing to pay for news online, but cautioned: "Subscriptions will
not replace online advertising as the largest revenue stream any time
soon." Jupiter interviewed 10,000 Internet users in Britain, Germany,
France, Italy, Spain and Sweden.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/cgi-bin/uk/e2f.cgi
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o Virtual Ad Developer Princeton Video Image Delisted from Nasdaq
Lawrenceville, N.J. -- Princeton Video Image, a developer of virtual ad
insertion technologies used in sports telecasts, announced on Tuesday that
its shares have been delisted from the Nasdaq National Market. The
company's shares will now trade on the SmallCap Market, unless Princeton
cannot raise the closing share price above the exchange's $1 minimum
requirement by March 10. The company said it is currently seeking new
financing, but that its shares will move to the OTC Bulletin Board if it
cannot satisfy the Nasdaq's requirements. New Jersey-based Princeton Video
Image developed the "virtual 1st down line" seen in many NFL football
broadcasts.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030107/62598_1.html
http://www.pvi-inc.com
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o Visual Messaging Developer FunMail Lands New Funding
Pleasanton, Calif. -- FunMail, a provider of visual messaging services,
said on Monday that it has received an undisclosed amount of funding from
Chicago-based Leo Capital Holdings, a private equity investment fund
focusing on the wireless and communication sectors. The company said that
it will use the capital to grow existing traffic and revenue from
customers including Vodafone, MSN, Globe Telecom and Smart Communications,
as well as close new wireless deals in Europe, Asia and North America.
FunMail, which launched in 1999, makes software that integrates with a
wireless operator's existing messaging infrastructure, upgrading it to
include intelligent visual messaging capabilities.
http://www.funmail.com/corp/news/pr_030106.html
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Briefly Noted:
(Redmond, Wash.) Microsoft said on Tuesday that in two months, it has sold
250,000 Xbox Live starter kits, doubling its expected sales goals. The
kits serve to connect the video game console to the Internet for online
play. The company plans to launch its Xbox Live service in Japan on Jan.
16 and in Europe on Mar. 14.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030107/sftu084_1.html
(Los Altos, Calif.) Rambus, a developer of ultra high-speed interface
technology, said on Tuesday that Sony and Toshiba have licensed technology
that will likely be used in a future version of Sony's PlayStation video
game console. The companies licensed Los Altos, Calif.-based Rambus'
"Yellowstone" and "Redwood," two high-speed interfaces that will
complement the power of a new microprocessor called "Cell," being
developed by IBM, Sony and Toshiba for the next PlayStation console.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030106/60445_1.html
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-979340.html?tag=fd_top
http://www.rambus.com
(Las Vegas) Car audio developer Delphi announced on Tuesday that General
Motors will offer its MP3 radio as a late-year option on GM's 2003
Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire models. Delphi's MP3-capable
radios, which support CD-ROMs containing MP3 files, will begin production
in the first quarter of this year.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030107/detu008_1.html
http://www.delphi.com
(Seattle) Singingfish, a division of consumer electronics firm Thomson
that provides audio and video search engine services, said on Tuesday that
Microsoft will incorporate its technology into Windows Media-based digital
media delivery offerings, including WindowsMedia.com and Windows Media
Player 9 Series, as well as down-level versions of the Windows Media
Player.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030107/70263_1.html
http://www.singingfish.com
(Culver City, Calif.) Sony Pictures Digital said on Tuesday that it will
create original mobile Java games, as well as offer ringtones and
screensavers, based on Sony Pictures franchises for subscribers to
wireless network operator Sprint's PCS Vision service. Titles will include
"XXX: Triple Threat", "Q*Bert," "Stuart Little 2: Air Adventures," "Wheel
of Fortune," "Jeopardy" and "Pyramid."
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030107/cgtu002_1.html
http://www.sonypictures.com/mobile
(Palo Alto, Calif.) PC manufacturer HP on Tuesday introduced two new
recordable DVD drives, offering recording speeds that double those
available on previous models. The HP 300i internal DVD writer and 300e
external DVD writer offer DVD write-speeds of up to 4X, allowing users to
burn a DVD in as little as 15 minutes.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030107/70216_1.html
(Seattle) Mobliss, a developer of wireless entertainment content, said on
Tuesday that it will provide text-messaging voting services for the
upcoming reality TV show "Nashville Star." The USA Networks series, airing
beginning March 8, will allow viewers to join the show's judges in voting
on country music singer contestants vying to be named "Nashville Star
2003."
http://www.mobliss.com
http://www.usanetwork.com/specials/nashvillestar
(Seattle) Loudeye Technologies, a provider of streaming song samples and
webcasting services, announced on Tuesday that it will re-encode its music
samples catalog using Microsoft's Windows Media Audio 9 and begin offering
the samples to its online music retail site partners in the new digital
media delivery format.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030107/sftu087_1.html
http://www.loudeye.com
(Oakland, Calif.) IDG Games Media Group, a publisher of magazines
including GamePro, announced on Tuesday that its Code Vault title will
increase its publication from bi-monthly to monthly status. The magazine
provides video game cheats, tricks and codes for all major gaming
platforms.
http://www.idg.com
(Culver City, Calif.) Sony Pictures Digital announced on Tuesday the
appointment of Steve Banfield as senior vice president of technology, a
newly-created position. Previously, Banfield served as vice president of
strategic relations at RealNetworks. Culver City, Calif.-based Sony
Pictures Digital oversees Sony's digital production and online assets
including SoapCity, Screenblast, the studio's online promotional arm SPiN,
and the U.K. interactive television service GoPlayTV.
http://www.spe.sony.com
(London) U.K. news site TheRegister on Tuesday reported on the efforts of
a programmer to strip away digital rights management technology on
Microsoft eBooks, so that they may be read on older devices and converted
to different formats. The effort is strikingly similar to a product
released by Elcomsoft, a Russian software firm that was sued and later
acquitted under the U.S. Digital Millennium Copyright Act on charges of
e-book piracy. Developer Dan Jackson said he believes his project is
perfectly legal. "As far as I am aware, it is, as the Berne Convention
appears to explicitly allow fair use," Jackson states on his site.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/28736.html
(Washington) Wired News on Tuesday provided coverage of the Future of
Music Policy Summit, taking place this week in Washington, D.C. The event
serves as "a forum for musicians, lawyers, academics, policymakers and
music industry executives to come together to discuss and debate some of
the most contentious issues surrounding digital technology, artists'
rights and the current state of the music industry," according to a
description on the website. "I think we're looking for a kinder, gentler,
more equitable model where more people can make a living off of this
stuff," said Jenny Toomey, executive director of the Future of Music
Coalition, which organized the event.
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,57104,00.html
http://www.futureofmusic.com/events/summit03/index.cfm
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