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=================================================== DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE -- July 6, 2001 =================================================== To Subscribe For Free: http://www.digitalmediawire.com o Authors Guild, Freelancers Bring Class Action Against New York Times > Job Postings: Product Specialist, Flash Programmer, Content Editor, Sales Associate, Senior Director > Events/Services: "Web Hosting Expo," "Diversity Expo" Full Job/Event/Services descriptions listed below "Briefly
Noted" section To Post a Job: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/jobs.html
o Authors Guild, Freelancers Bring Class Action Against New York Times New York -- The Authors Guild and a number of freelance writers have
filed a copyright infringement suit against the New York Times that seeks
class action status for all freelance writers whose articles have appeared
in the paper's digital archives without permission. The suit follows a
Supreme Court decision in favor of freelance writers that stated
publications must ask writers' permission before reprinting their works in
digital format. The Times said it would begin removing the articles in
question from its archives as a result of the decision. "The Supreme
Court didn't say the Times had to remove the articles, it said the Times
had to pay for them," said freelance writer and plaintiff Derrick
Bell. "The Court stressed that these rights issues could be resolved
through licensing systems, such as that operated by the Authors
Registry," Bell added. "The Times shakes its head about the
tragic loss to the public of parts of its archive, yet won't even begin to
negotiate payment for the works it wants to use in its databases." o BMG Laying Off "Hundreds" of Employees New York -- Major record label BMG Entertainment, a division of German
media firm Bertelsmann, said it will lay off hundreds of its 5000
employees as part of a cost-cutting initiative, the Wall Street Journal
reported. The company's executives will meet next week to focus on
"repertoire development, efficiency and stepping up our investment in
music," a BMG spokesperson told WSJ. The struggling label is expected
to report losses of over $150 million for the past year, in part due to
non-profitable Internet-related investments. o Napster Service Offline for Database Repairs Redwood City, Calif. -- Napster's music file-sharing service has been
down for nearly a week now, as the company attempts to fix what it said
are technical problems with its database as a result of implementing new
song identification technology. The company said that some of the 800,000
files that it has been ordered to block due to legal action by record
labels and music publishers were still available after adding the new
technology, and gave no expectation of when the service would come back
online. Napster also said that the current outage is not related to its
planned paid service, which is still slated to launch later this summer.
The new service will also use the song identification technology, which
was developed by Virginia-based Relatable. o Actors' Strike Averted with New Three-Year Contract Los Angeles -- Film and TV actors agreed to a tentative three-year
contract with the studios on Tuesday, ending the threat of an actors'
strike that could have crippled the entertainment industry in California.
Additional payments for appearances on Internet-based distribution outlets
-- such as video-on-demand -- were originally part of the discussions, but
both sides agreed to set the matter aside for the current term. The actors
and producers said that the current revenue generated for actors on the
Internet is still too small to factor into the complex negotiations. o Future Network Closes Business 2.0 European Editions Bath, England -- The Future Network, which publishes Business 2.0,
announced that due to the weak advertising market it is closing the
German, Italian and U.K. editions of its magazine. The closures will not
have any affect on the magazine's U.S. edition, which was recently
purchased by AOL Time Warner for $68 million. U.K.-based Future Network
also will close its entire German operations -- Future Verlag -- due to
losses of $9 million sustained last year and an estimated $4 million for
2001. IDG has agreed to fulfill the German division's subscriptions to
video game title PC Player with its own Gamestar magazine. o European Online Ticketseller Divento Raises $12.5 Million Paris -- Divento, a provider of online ticket sales and editorial
content for European cultural events, announced that it has raised $12.5
million from media and utilities conglomerate Vivendi Universal. The
investment -- which will be made over a three-year period -- will give
Vivendi Universal a 75 percent stake in the company. Paris-based Divento
offers editorial content and the ability to buy advance tickets to
museums, music, opera, dance and theater in the U.K., Spain, France,
Germany and Belgium. The company plans to increase its coverage to 40
cities by the end of the year. o SightSound Technologies Lays Off Staff, Focuses on Patent Litigation Mount Lebanon, Penn. -- SightSound Technologies, a provider of online
audio and video distribution, has laid off most of its staff and will
focus on pending patent-infringement litigation against Bertelsmann-owned
CDNow, Webnoize reported. The three-year-old lawsuit says that technology
used on CDNow.com to offer consumers downloadable music infringes on
patents held by Pennsylvania-based SightSound. Film studios such as
Miramax have used the company's technology to distribute films online. o Briefly Noted: (Los Angeles) TV network CBS said that it has partnered with
Seattle-based RealNetworks to provide 24-hour live video streaming from
the location that will house the contestants of its second edition of
"Big Brother." The three-month-long streaming webcast will only
be available through a paid subscription on RealNetworks' GoldPass service
or CBS.com, the first such offering from a network. Viewers can pay $19.95
for full access on CBS.com, or $9.95 at Real.com -- which also includes
the company's other premium content, such as Major League Baseball
webcasts. (Seattle) Amazon.com has ended its short-lived offer of free shipping
on music, books and movies, the Associated Press reported. The company was
then criticized for raising prices on many of the items included in the
free shipping offer. Rival Barnes and Noble.com soon after announced it
would also offer free shipping for multiple orders, while keeping prices
static. Seattle-based Amazon.com said the free shipping offer was only a
test. "We completed two weeks of it and feel we've got enough data
that we can make sense of it," said Amazon spokesman Bill Curry. (Culver City, Calif.) Film and TV production resource FilmStew.com said
that it has partnered with Faredata Online Travel to add travel
arrangements to its list of offerings. Culver City-based FilmStew.com
provides services such as online casting, contact directories and a
virtual film market to movie and television show producers. (Redwood City, Calif.) Liquid Audio, a provider of software and
services to deliver music on the Internet, said that the company's chief
technology officer, Philip Wiser, has resigned. Wiser is leaving to spend
time with family and investigate new opportunities. Leon Rishniw, vice
president of engineering, and Matt Smith, vice president of product
marketing at Redwood City-based Liquid Audio, will assume Wiser's
responsibilities. =================================================== > XM Radio, Product Specialist - Washington, D.C. Reporting to Director of Product Development, this position will manage
radio equipment for demos & tradeshows, in addition to serving as 2nd
tier technical resource for customer care. Work w/ retailers,
manufacturers & marketing to identify operations issues. 3 years exp.
in consumer electronics field, excellent organization & communication
skills and Associate's degree in technology or equivalent experience. Send
resumes to: jobs@xmradio.com > The Illusion Factory, Flash Programmer - Los Angeles Flash expert needed for entertainment/multi-media design company
specializing in websites for film/television/multimedia, as well as
specialty e-mail for various clients. You will work w/ art directors in
developing sites translated into various languages. Candidates should have
strong skills in Flash, Photoshop & Illustrator. Experience in
Director, GoLive a plus. Send resumes to: tara@illusionfactory.com
> Law.com, Content Editor - New York City Well-funded Internet service for lawyers seeking Content Editor to work
on New York Web site and other products. Position requires evening hours.
Salary to mid-30s. One to three years writing/editing experience required.
Legal and/or HTML experience helpful. > Walt Disney Internet Group, Sales Associate - Los Angeles Join the ABCNEWS.com/ABC.com sales team. Responsibilities: creating
Powerpoint proposals; prospecting for leads; managing active programs;
providing tracking for existing ad campaigns; quantitive & qualitative
research; & handling clients while all sales reps are out of the
office. 1 year experience at an interactive agency. Media background
preferred. Send resumes to: hr.recruiting@dig.com
>Dittus Communications, Senior Director - Washington, D.C. Working with the Vice President, this individual will be responsible
for developing and implementing communications programs for our high-tech
clients. Creative writing, strong media pitching, management experience,
solid marketing background as well as 5 to 8 years agency experience
required. Send resumes to karine.elsen@dittus.com
=================================================== > Web Hosting Expo, August 20-22 - Washington, D.C. Web Hosting Expo is the conference and exhibit dedicated to business
& technology of Internet infrastructure. It brings together web hosts,
ASPs/MSPs, colo/data center players for 3 days of deal making, idea
exchanges and marathon networking. Learn from 70 industry leading
exhibitors and 50+ conference sessions and panels delivered by industry
experts. Send inquiries to techwire@infotonic.com
http://www.whexpo.com > Diversity Expo, July 18 - New York City NYC's premier hiring event for Equal Opportunity Employers to recruit
Business & Information Technology Professionals: Sales, Management,
Marketing, Retail, Administrative, Programming, New Media, Telecom,
Engineering Professionals meet directly with hiring managers for immediate
interviews. This annual event draws approximately 70 companies and 3,000
candidates! For more information contact: jpicone@techexpousa.com
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