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Introducing Billboard.biz, a 24-7 information-rich website geared
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March 4, 2004 --
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Main Stories
o
Disney Board Votes to Strip CEO Eisner of Chairman Role
o
Aussie Judge Denies Kazaa Motion to Exclude Evidence Seized by
Labels
o
Survey: 39% of Employees Still Using Office Networks for
File-Sharing
o House
Passes Copyright Royalty Determination Process Reform Act
o Eidos Acquires Danish "Hitman
2" Developer IO Interactive for $42 Million
o Scientific-Atlanta Developing
Hybrid Cable TV Set-top/Video Game Console
o SBC to Add EchoStar Satellite
TV to Roster of Telephone, DSL Services
o Satellite Radio Broadcaster XM
Eliminates $135 Million in Debt
o
Briefly Noted: Avril Lavigne -
"flash mob" concerts, Atari - "Unreal Tournament 2004," Activision -
"MTX: Mototrax," Quiet Tiger, Voom - NBC Cable Networks,
RealNetworks - company woes
>
Job/Event/Marketplace Classifieds:
--Product Management and Marketing Education Conference 2004
--New Business Analyst
--HireStrategy - Financial Manager
--Senior Manager, Corporate Public Affairs - Washington, DC
--Advertising Services CFO
--PricewaterhouseCoopers'
Entertainment and Media Outlook
--Reach Federal
Contractors Selling Technologies for Homeland Security
--IT Perm and Contract Placement Services
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o Disney Board Votes to Strip CEO
Eisner of Chairman Role
Los Angeles -- Following a vote of no confidence from 43% of the
company's shareholders, the board of directors of The Walt Disney
Company voted yesterday to strip CEO Michael Eisner of his
additional role as chairman of the company. The company named board
member and former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell as chairman in his
stead. Wednesday's vote of no confidence from shareholders came as
Disney has seen sagging profits in recent years, as well as the loss
of a lucrative partnership with digital animation studio Pixar and
Eisner's rebuffing of a takeover offer from cable TV operator
Comcast. "Today's unprecedented withhold vote by Disney's
shareholders sends a powerful message that Disney's board and
management need to focus more on shareholder interests," a Comcast
spokeswoman told CNN. "Consistent with this focus, Disney's
independent directors should immediately meet with Comcast so we can
directly present our full and generous proposal and the benefits of
the merger." Some of the shareholder groups are still hoping to see
Eisner's full departure from the company; his current contract is
set to expire in 2006.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-030404disney_lat,1,5870609.story
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/BUSINESS/03/03/disney.eisner
_____________________________________________
o Aussie Judge
Denies Kazaa Motion to Exclude Evidence Seized by Labels
Sydney -- Australia's Sharman Networks, distributors of the Kazaa
file-sharing software, have lost a legal motion to have evidence
seized by the Australian record industry in February raids on its
offices and executives' homes declared off-limits. Justice Murray
Wilcox ruled that, despite similar legal actions taken against Kazaa
in other jurisdictions -- in which the company complied with
subpoenas during copyright infringement investigations -- the Anton
Piller orders he issued to the record industry to conduct its
searches without prior warning were justified. The judge ordered the
two sides to meet and discuss the handing over of evidence seized in
the raids. "We remain outraged at the heavy-handed tactics that have
been used by the record industry to obtain information that we would
have provided through the normal, appropriate court process," said
Sharman CEO Nikki Hemming. In his ruling, Justice Wilcox noted that
the Anton Piller orders were necessary in order to provide a
"snapshot" of the inner workings of Kazaa while in progress. The
Australian recording industry's case against Sharman Networks is now
set to begin in earnest on March 23.
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/federal_ct/2004/183.html
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/business/0,39023166,39116440,00.htm
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,62532,00.html
http://www.sharmannetworks.com
_____________________________________________
o Survey: 39%
of Employees Still Using Office Networks for File-Sharing
Sunnyvale, Calif. -- A survey of office workers has found that,
despite the threat of potential legal action from the recording
industry against their employers and themselves, 42% said they still
use file-sharing software like Kazaa and Gnutella, and 39% said they
do their trading on company networks. The survey was conducted in
late 2003 and early 2004 by Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Blue Coat
Systems, which markets software that can monitor employees' Internet
surfing habits. Nearly 60% of those surveyed said that they were
unconcerned about a potential lawsuit from the Recording Industry
Association of America.
http://www.bluecoat.com/news/releases/2004/030304_study.html
http://makeashorterlink.com/?L21932D97
____________________________________________
o House Passes
Copyright Royalty Determination Process Reform Act
Washington -- The U.S. House on Wednesday passed a bill that would
reform the current process used to determine the royalties that
webcasters must pay to stream music online, abandoning the current
governing body from an arbitration panel of several experts in favor
of a single copyright judge. If passed in the Senate, the bill would
replace the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP), which was
hotly contested for years as the recording industry and webcasters
battled over royalty rates. "We have found it very difficult to find
arbitrators who have sufficient familiarity with copyright law, let
alone the complex statutory licenses in the law and the unique
procedures for royalty distributions and rate adjustments," Marybeth
Peters, the Copyright Office's Register of Copyrights, told Radio
and Internet Newsletter.
http://www.theorator.com/bills108/hr1417.html
http://www.kurthanson.com/archive/news/030404/index.asp
____________________________________________
o Eidos
Acquires Danish "Hitman 2" Developer IO Interactive for $42 Million
London -- U.K.-based video game developer Eidos announced on
Thursday that it will acquire Denmark-based developer IO
Interactive, creators of titles like "Hitman 2" and "Freedom
Fighters," for $42 million. The purchase price could increase to $51
million, based on a four year, performance based earn-out. Eidos,
known for its "Tomb Raider" game franchise, said the acquisition of
IO increases its internally owned intellectual property and
strengthens its European creative base and resources for
development.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040304/45179_1.html
http://www.eidos.com
http://www2.ioi.dk/Frontpage/Welcome.shtml
____________________________________________
o Scientific-Atlanta Developing Hybrid
Cable TV Set-top/Video Game Console
New York -- Scientific-Atlanta, a manufacturer of set-top boxes for
digital TV services, has announced that it is developing a new
set-top that will offer high-performance video gaming of the same
quality of a PlayStation or Xbox, Reuters reported. "We have a
partner we are working with who has 250 engineers in Europe writing
software for the Explorer platform for games," said
Scientific-Atlanta CEO James McDonald, adding, "I can give (game
players) the same performance you get out of those game boxes …There
is no question that games is one ... market we will be in." The
company did not offer further details on the device or a proposed
release date. The set-top box game console would likely not be sold
separately in stores, but rather distributed into homes already
subscribing to digital cable that are also interested in gaming.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?B2D715D97
http://www.sciatl.com
____________________________________________
oSBC to Add EchoStar Satellite TV to
Roster of Telephone, DSL Services
San Antonio, Texas -- Telecommunications giant SBC announced that it
has partnered with satellite TV operator EchoStar to offer its
telephone and Internet subscribers the additional option to purchase
DISH Network satellite TV service. SBC will offer a promotional
bundle of services that includes local and long-distance telephone
service, as well as a wireless plan from Cingular, broadband
Internet access and 120 satellite TV channels for $125 per month --
which SBC says will give annual savings of $380 per customer over a
la carte rates. SBC and EchoStar also said they plan to develop
set-top boxes that combine the features of satellite TV, digital
video recording, broadband, home networking and telecommunications
services.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040303/25981_1.html
http://www.dishnetwork.com
http://www.sbc.com
____________________________________________
o Satellite Radio Broadcaster XM
Eliminates $135 Million in Debt
Washington, D.C. -- XM Satellite Radio, the D.C.-based provider of
nationwide satellite radio service, said on Thursday that it has
eliminated $135 million of its debt. The company said that it repaid
$81.2 million using the proceeds of an offering completed in
January, and converted another $45.7 million into stock. In
addition, XM said that General Motors has converted $7.8 million of
senior notes into stock.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040304/nyth067_1.html
http://www.xmradio.com
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> DMW Events:
2nd
Annual
GAMES & MOBILE FORUM
April 15,
2004
|
New York City
www.gamesandmobile.com
Overview
Games & Mobile Forum is 1-day executive forum focused on business
and technology developments impacting games and mobile
entertainment. In 2003, leading executives from entertainment
and technology companies including, Yahoo! Games, AOL Games,
Atari, Acclaim, Warner Bros. Online, AtomShockwave, CNET,
Creative Artists Agency (CAA), The Endeavor Agency, Mythic
Entertainment and Digital Bridges participated in a series of
panels on topics, including "Mobile Games: The Coming Wireless
Revolution", "Developing Games Based on Film, Television & Music
Properties and Visa-Versa"", and "Advergames: Recent Developments
& Opportunities".
REGISTRATION
Early Bird Special: $ 195 (until March 12)
Pre-Registration: $ 295 (until April 9)
Registration: $ 395 (after April 9)
Online :
http://kb.digitalmediawire.com/register.php?eventid=1060
Phone: 323-464-0793
To
submit speakers for the 2004 conference, please send a bio and
photo (optional) to Tinzar Than, VP, Marketing & Events, Digital
Media Wire, Inc. at
tinzar@digitalmediawire.com.
Past Events
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Sponsorship Materials
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> Featured Advertisement:
Digital
Media Law Report
New Featured Section
- Volume
1 - 2004
We are pleased to announce that we have added a "Featured
Section" to Digital Media Law & Policy Report. This month's
featured coverage includes reports on the oral arguments held
before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in MGM v. Grokster and a
"Post-Conference Report" from MidemNet 2004. We will use this
section to provide in depth coverage of certain cases, events and
policy developments each month. Subscriptions
-
Order
Available Now - Volume 1 - 2004 Report - 30 pages
-
Order
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o Briefly Noted:
(Baltimore) Arista Records recording artist Avril Lavigne will play
shopping mall concerts in 21 U.S. cities that will be organized via
"flash mobs," or brief, impromptu gatherings organized via email,
message boards and blogs. Fans in the cities Lavigne will visit can
sign up on her website to participate in the flash mobs, but will
not be informed of the time or location of the performances until 48
hours prior. However, the Baltimore Sun noted, the concerts will
also be announced on radio stations and on AOL's Digital City
websites.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?W21752D97
http://www.avrillavigne.net
(Los Angeles) Atari announced on Thursday that North Carolina-based
developer Epic Games' PC title "Unreal Tournament 2004" has gone
gold, and will go on sale March 15. Developed in conjunction with
Canada-based Digital Extremes, the game's free demo was downloaded
over 1.5 million times in a single week.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040304/45484_1.html
http://www.epicgames.com
http://www.digitalextremes.com
http://www.unrealtournament.com
(Santa Monica, Calif.) Video game publisher Activision on Thursday
released its "MTX: Mototrax" title for PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The
title features top riders including Travis Pastrana, and online
multiplayer gaming elements. Westlake Village, Calif.-based Left
Field Productions, creators of "Excitebike 64," developed the title
for Activision.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040304/lath042_1.html
http://www.activision.com
http://www.left.com
(Phoenix, Ariz.) Quiet Tiger, a marketer of digital content security
products, announced on Thursday that it has been approved for
trading on the Berlin Stock Exchange. Quiet Tiger's main product is
Phoenix-bases SunnComm's CD copy-protection technology, used by
labels including BMG. "The Berlin Exchange should make obtaining
shares less problematic for our German and European shareholders and
should provide substantially improved liquidity in our common stock
overall," said Quiet Tiger CEO William Whitmore.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040304/45218_1.html
http://www.sunncomm.com
http://www.quiettiger.com
(Jericho, N.Y.) Voom, the HDTV network created by cable TV operator
Cablevision, announced on Thursday the addition of programming from
a number of NBC Cable Networks properties. The nationwide service
will now include high-definition programming from Bravo HD, in
addition to standard definition broadcasts from Bravo, MSNBC and
CNBC. The service now offers over 30 HD channels and over 75
standard definition channels.
http://www.voom.com
(San Francisco) CNET News.com on Thursday profiled RealNetworks, the
provider of media delivery technology that recently filed a $1
billion antitrust lawsuit against rival Microsoft. However, News.com
writes, "Microsoft's opposition is only one of a remarkable string
of hardships faced by RealNetworks. The Seattle-based Internet
pioneer has endured years of internal and external challenges,
including new technologies, strategic mistakes and old-fashioned bad
luck, that weren't caused by its crosstown rival."
http://news.com.com/2009-1023_3-5168648.html
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>
Classifieds:
> Product Management and Marketing Education Conference 2004
The Association of International Product Marketing and
Management presents a remarkable opportunity on March 21-23 to
expand your skills and knowledge plus receive career enhancing
certification. This show-how event will cover value proposition
creation, best practices, launch, product life-cycle strategies,
market and competitive assessment, financial acumen, product
positioning, cross-functional teams and features Guy Kawasaki of
Garage Technology Ventures as keynote speaker. Info:
conference2004@aipmm.com
http://www.aipmm.com/html/pmec/conf_home.php
___________________
> New Business Analyst
John Hancock Financial Services, Inc. requires a self motivated
individual that has an eye for detail. The primary responsibility
include, processing of all new business for LTC, working with
vendors to request underwriting requirements, supporting case
management, registering applicants into our administrative system
and being able to meet department standards for quality and
quantity of work. Other responsibilities include: issuing
business on administrative platform, producing, binding, and
mailing policies; verifying quality of data entry and issuance.
Apply online at
http://www.jhancock.com/jobs Click on Search for Open
Positions at JH. Enter Job Code: 2299 in the Job I.D. Field
___________________
> HireStrategy - Financial Manager
Join a progressive health care firm seeking an analyst to assist
with valuation and due diligence of health care clinics to assist
with corporate growth initiatives. The right candidate must have
four plus years of experience with a Big-4 background and
exposure to modeling in Excel, or a Wall Street background with
exposure to generating discounted cash flows. The manager will
oversee a team of five analysts, while providing hands-on deal
support. If interested please email resume to
mmolinas@hirestrategy.com or visit
http://www.hirestrategy.com/quicklinks/hire170.asp
___________________
> Senior Manager, Corporate Public Affairs - Washington, DC
Come work with a dynamic and talented team committed to providing
the industry's best online grassroots and constituent management
applications. Applicant will be responsible for managing the
entire sales cycle from lead generation, to account strategy, to
closing; should have demonstrated experience and success selling
software or services to government relations, public affairs
and/or public relations professionals; or have significant agency
experience working with Fortune 1000 companies. Send resumes to
salesjob@getactive.com
___________________
> Advertising Services CFO
Our client, a leading New England based Advertising Agency, is
seeking a CFO. All candidates must have Financial Services
experience working within a creative driven marketing services
firm. Also, all candidates require a CPA and at least 10 plus
years of professional experience. This marketing services firm
has roughly 200 people and three, multi-state satellite offices.
The CFO will have financial responsibilities for all and a small
team of reports. This position is located in New England, not
Boston, and will require 100% company paid relocation. Send
resumes to
info@market-search.net
___________________
> PricewaterhouseCoopers' Entertainment and Media Outlook
Purchase the book every entertainment and media executive must
have. The PricewaterhouseCoopers' Entertainment and Media
Outlook: 2003-2007 analyzes key trends and forecasts spending in
the U.S. and Canada across 14 industry segments, including a
Global Overview that forecasts spending and analyzes trends
worldwide (also sold separately).
More
Information
___________________
> Reach Federal Contractors Selling Technologies for Homeland
Security
The 2003-2004 Directory of Homeland Security has complete
listings for 532 companies selling technologies and services
devoted to homeland defense. Nearly all major federal contractors
are included in the section, which includes company names, key
personnel, addresses, phone and fax numbers, urls, annual
revenues, number of employees, business sector, general
descriptions and homeland security relevance. To order the
2003-2004 edition,
click here.
___________________
> IT Perm and Contract Placement Services
Technical Staffing Solutions specializes in recruiting the hard
to find candidates with or with high level DoD security
clearances. We can provide your firm with solutions ranging from
1 permanent employee to a team of consultants for the duration of
your short/long term engagement. Send inquiries to
skearnes@techstaffsolutions.com or call 703-451-3882 for more
information.
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Digital Media Wire, Inc. is a news organization, publisher and
events company serving the digital media industry since May 2000.
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