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DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE - May 1, 2003
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To Subscribe For Free: http://www.digitalmediawire.com
o RIAA Settles Lawsuits Filed Against Student "Mini-Napster" Operators
o Apple Reports 275,000 Songs Sold Through iTunes in First 18 Hours
o File-Sharing Service StreamCast Networks Gets $1.2 Million
o German Soccer Player Gets EA Video Game Banned Over Unauthorized Likeness
o Gist Announces Layoffs, Ends Free Online TV Listings
o Digital Media Storage Provider Exavio Raises $14.3 Million
o Square Enix U.S.A. Announces Titles to be Featured at E3 Game Convention
> DMW Publications: April Law and Policy Report
> Featured Section: Special Offer from Discreet cleaner XL
o Briefly Noted: Microsoft - Artisan - "T2," Orange - Walt Disney Internet
Group, UrbanWorld Wireless - 2WayAlert, RCN Corp., Electronic Arts -
Michael Vick, Acclaim - "Burnout 2: Point of Impact - Developer's Cut,"
Konami - "Metal Gear Solid The Twin Snakes," PaletSoft - "Garfield,"
Copyright lawsuits - individual file-swappers?
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> Jobs: VP Technical Product Mgmt.
> Events: Streaming Media NY, May 6-8, NYC, Pipeline Safety & Security Expo
> Marketplace: Game Industry Report, iTV Chronicle,Interest-Based Navigation
Full Classifieds located beneath "Briefly Noted" section below.
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o RIAA Settles Lawsuits Filed Against Student "Mini-Napster" Operators
Washington -- The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
announced on Thursday that it has settled copyright infringement lawsuits
it filed against four college students accused of operating "mini-Napster"
campus file-sharing networks. The students -- two from Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute and one each from Princeton University and Michigan
Technological University -- will pay damages of between $12,000 and
$17,000 each over a four-year payment schedule, in addition to promising
not to knowingly infringe music copyrights. The damages are far less than
the maximum penalty of $150,000 per song that the RIAA initially sought in
its lawsuits. "We believe it's in everyone's best interest to come to a
quick resolution, and that these four defendants now clearly understand
the seriousness with which we view this type of illegal behavior," said
RIAA senior vice president Matt Oppenheim. "We have also sent a clear
signal to others that this kind of activity is illegal." One of the
defendants, 18-year-old Princeton sophomore Daniel Peng, denied any guilt
in the matter. "I don't believe that I did anything wrong," Peng said, in
a statement.
http://news.com.com/2100-1027_3-999332.html?tag=fd_top
http://makeashorterlink.com/?P67A42A64
http://news.com.com/2100-1027-995429.html?tag=nl
http://www.riaa.org
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o Apple Reports 275,000 Songs Sold Through iTunes in First 18 Hours
New York -- Apple's new iTunes digital music service has proven popular so
far -- as 275,000 tracks at $0.99 each were sold during its first 18 hours
of operation, major label sources told Billboard.com. The number gains
further importance when Apple's approximate 3 percent share of the
computer market is taken into consideration. Label sources told Billboard
that Apple plans to make iTunes compatible with the PC by the end of the
year, having already secured licensing deals with two major labels for the
PC version.
http://www.billboard.com/bb/daily/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1878475
http://www.apple.com/music/store/
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o File-Sharing Service StreamCast Networks Gets $1.2 Million
Los Angeles -- StreamCast Networks, distributor of the Morpheus
peer-to-peer file-sharing software, announced that it has received $1.2
million in new financing in the form of a convertible loan. A federal
judge last week ruled in a lawsuit filed against StreamCast by the
entertainment industry that the company's software -- which lets users
connect to one another's PCs and download music, video and other files --
does not infringe on copyrights. The company also announced this week the
launch of Morpheus version 3.0, as well as the return of former CEO
Michael Weiss as head of the company.
http://www.streamcastnetworks.com/04_30_03_morph30.html
http://news.com.com/2100-1032-999026.html?tag=fd_top
http://www.streamcastnetworks.com
http://www.morpheus.com
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o German Soccer Player Gets EA Video Game Banned Over Unauthorized Likeness
Hamburg -- GameIndustry.biz reports that a German court has ruled that
Redwood City, Calif.-based video game developer Electronic Arts must
remove its "FIFA World Cup 2002" title from retailers' shelves in the
country, as the company did not receive permission from German soccer
player Oliver Kahn to use his likeness in the game. Damages are as yet
undecided, although the prosecution claims that 300,000 copies of the game
have been sold in Germany, equating to about $17 million in sales, and
that that figure should weigh into any decision on compensation to Kahn.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/30445.html
http://uk.fifa2002.europe.ea.com
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o Gist Announces Layoffs, Ends Free Online TV Listings
New York -- Gist, a developer of electronic program guides for digital
television systems, has laid off all of the employees at its online unit
as well as two senior executives as part of a cost reduction plan,
itvt.com reported. The company also announced that it will no longer offer
its free online TV listings service. New York-based Gist said it will
continue to develop and market its electronic program guide for digital TV
operators, as well as its TV Mag video-on-demand service; the company's
guide is currently deployed on Canadian TV system Star Choice.
http://www.itvt.com
http://www.gist.com/tv
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o Digital Media Storage Provider Exavio Raises $14.3 Million
San Jose, Calif. -- After operating in stealth mode for the past year,
Exavio, a maker of digital media storage and IP-based switches, said on
Wednesday that it has raised $14.3 million in its first round of funding.
ComVentures, VantagePoint Venture Partners, Crystal Internet Venture Funds
and Enspire Capital each participated in the round. The company also named
Gary Law as vice president of marketing and Brian Bentley as vice
president of sales. Exavio's technology is designed for large-scale
digital media storage and the delivery of personalized on-demand video
services by broadcast, cable and broadband service providers.
http://www.newsalert.com/bin/story?StoryId=CpQ34WbWbtefuvta4nW
http://www.exavio.com
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o Square Enix U.S.A. Announces Titles to be Featured at E3 Game Convention
Los Angeles -- Video game publisher Square Enix U.S.A., the North American
publishing arm of Japan-based "Final Fantasy" developer Square Enix,
announced on Thursday the slate of video game titles it plans to showcase
at next month's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles. In
addition to the anticipated "Final Fantasy XI" for PlayStation 2 and the
PC, the company will introduce "Unlimited Saga," "Final Fantasy X-2,"
"Star Ocean Till the End of Time" and "Drakengard" for PlayStation 2;
"Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles" for Nintendo GameCube, and "Final
Fantasy Tactics Advance" and "Sword of Mana" for the Game Boy Advance.
http://www.square-enix-usa.com
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==========================================
DMW Publications: April Law & Policy Report
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Contact tinzar@digitalmediawire.com or call 323-464-0793 to order.
To purchase directly, go to:
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FEATURED SECTION
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Featured Section posting at:
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Briefly Noted:
(Santa Monica, Calif.) Microsoft announced on Thursday that Artisan Home
Entertainment will release "Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Extreme Edition),"
a two-disc DVD set that will feature a digitally re-mastered theatrical
version of the film in high-definition video and full surround sound on a
single DVD-ROM in Microsoft Windows Media 9 Series. Microsoft said that
the release will offer Windows XP-based computers nearly three and a half
times the resolution of standard DVD video.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030501/sfth028_4.html
(London) European mobile telecommunications network operator Orange said
on Thursday that it has signed a content distribution deal with the Walt
Disney Internet Group. Orange said more than 15 million Orange customers
in the U.K., Belgium and Portugal will be able to purchase Disney content,
such as logos, ringtones, wallpaper screens and games, using their mobile
phones. Orange is majority owned by France Telecom.
http://www.orange.com
(Los Angeles) Wireless entertainment distributor UrbanWorld Wireless
announced on Thursday that it has partnered with fellow wireless
entertainment distributor 2WayAlert. With a combined subscribership of
420,000, the two companies will jointly offer content including urban
entertainment news and lifestyle content, mobile marketing, exclusive
ringtones, multimedia messaging and music industry wireless applications.
http://www.2wayalert.com
http://www.urbanworldwireless.com
(Princeton, N.J.) RCN Corp., a provider of bundled phone, cable television
and high-speed Internet services, announced on Thursday that it has
expanded its video-on-demand service area to an additional 350,000 homes
in the Boston, Mass. and Lehigh Valley, Penn. areas. New Jersey-based
RCN's service delivers content from TVN Entertainment via servers provided
by SeaChange International.
http://RCNC
http://www.rcn.com
(Redwood City, Calif.) Game developer Electronic Arts said on Thursday
that it has signed All-Pro quarterback Michael Vick as the cover athlete
for its "Madden NFL 2004." Vick, who plays for the Atlanta Falcons, also
will be a spokesman for the game, which is now in its 14th year. Last
year's version sold more than 4 million units on six different platforms.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030501/15227_1.html
http://www.ea.com
(Glen Cove, N.Y.) Video game developer Acclaim Entertainment on Thursday
shipped its "Burnout 2: Point of Impact - Developer's Cut" title for
Microsoft Xbox to retailers. Developed by U.K.-based Criterion Games, the
game features an online worldwide leaderboard functionality available
through Microsoft's Xbox Live online gaming service.
http://AKLM
http://www.acclaim.com
http://www.criteriongames.com
(Tokyo) Japanese game developer Konami said on Thursday it will publish
"Metal Gear Solid The Twin Snakes" for Nintendo GameCube, a sequel in the
popular Metal Gear franchise, in the fall of 2003 in North America and
Europe. Developed by Konami and Ontario-based Silicon Knights, the game
will also be published in Japan in early 2004.
http://www.konami.com/usa
http://www.siliconknights.com
(Kansas City, Mo.) Wireless entertainment developer PaletSoft and
newspaper comic syndicator Uclick announced on Thursday they will soon
launch GoComics, a daily service offering the "Garfield" comic strip to
Sprint PCS Vision and Verizon Wireless subscribers. Four additional comics
-- "Fox Trot," "Stone Soup," "The Duplex" and "Red & Rover" -- will also
soon become available to PCS Vision subscribers.
http://www.uclick.com
http://www.paletsoft.com
(San Francisco) Wired News on Thursday reported on how two recent court
decisions in the file-sharing legal saga may compel the music industry to
step up its efforts in targeting individual users with charges of
copyright infringement. In addition to a ruling ordering Verizon to turn
over the identity of an alleged file-swapper to the Recording Industry
Association of America, a ruling that absolved Grokster and Morpheus of
copyright infringement also affirmed that users of the programs are indeed
infringing copyrights.
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,58687,00.html
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CLASSIFIEDS - JOBS
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VP, Technical Product Management
Interested in creating cutting edge financial service products and
bringing them to market? The VP Technical Product Management will be a key
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experience required.
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Visit http://www.foliofn.com
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CLASSIFIEDS - EVENTS
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To Post Events: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/eventpostingpage.htm
Streaming Media NY, May 6-8, New York City
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leaders from all over the world will gather to learn about and explore the
latest trends, products, and services in streaming and digital media
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brightest minds in the business.
For more information, or to register to attend, go to
http://www.streamingmedia.com/NY
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Protecting Energy Infrastructure - Pipeline Safety & Security Expo
May 22-23, 2003 at the Crystal City Marriott in Crystal City, VA. Top
Keynotes presented by government officials; Middle East Oil Security,
Reconstruction, & Legal Issues; Terrorism Table Top Simulation Exercise by
Naval Warfare College; Environmental Rules & Guidelines for Pipeline & Oil
Companies. For more information please contact Cory Capps at
capps@ejkrause.com or call 301-493-5500.
http://www.pipelinesecurityexpo.com
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CLASSIFIEDS - MARKETPLACE
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Game Industry Law & Policy Report
Special industry report covering law & policy matters impacting the game
industry. The 15-page report includes case summaries, news and analysis,
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President, Interactive Digital Software Association. Price: $19.00
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For those who believe in ITV - "Interactive TV: The Definitive Chronicle"
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issues that helped shape the industry. Key research and industry
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