archives

o DirecTV Targets Viewers With Anti-Piracy Campaign
o Japanese Govt. Charges Sony With PlayStation Price-Fixing
o Digital Editing Technology Firm Avid To Cut 8% of Workforce
o Video Game Publisher Crave Entertainment Gets $35 Million
> Note to Readers: Next edition - Monday, August 6
o Briefly Noted: Direcway, Kodak - APEX Digital, Thomson multimedia - free
e-books, Spiderdance - Princeton Video Image, Two Way TV - Energis
Interactive, LodgeNet - MeriStar Hotels, SRS Labs - Hughes Network
Systems, Non-profits - Web films, "Parasite software," Vitaminic
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> Job Postings: Sr. Business Development, Sr. Sales Director, iTV Producer,
Director of Sales, Sr. Director of Q/A

> Events/Services: "SHORTSPAN Film & Video Festival - Pacific Northwest
Tour," "Digital Rights Management," "New England Tech Wire -
Free Email News Service"

Full Job/Event/Services descriptions listed below "Briefly Noted" section
or at http://www.digitalmediawire.com/postings.html

To Post a Job: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/jobs.html
To Post an Event/Service: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/events.html
_____________________________________________

o DirecTV Targets Viewers With Anti-Piracy Campaign

El Segundo, Calif. -- Satellite-delivered digital TV firm DirecTV will
begin targeting ordinary viewers who steal its TV signals in a major
anti-piracy campaign, according to published reports. The company will
send "strongly-worded letters" to about 100,000 suspected pirates, culled
from the records of companies that DirecTV has sued for enabling piracy of
its programming. The letters inform home pirates that they face fines of
up to $10,000 per violation, and can avoid prosecution if they: give all
pirate equipment to DirecTV and promise not to buy such equipment again;
buy a year's worth of legal DirecTV and pay the company $500 in
restitution; and provide information on where they purchased their pirate
equipment. "We wanted to send a very strong message to consumers that they
are receiving DirecTV programming illegally," DirecTV spokesman Bob
Marsocci told the Associated Press.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/review/2001-08-01-directv-crackdown.htm
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200-6728079.html?tag=owv
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o Japanese Govt. Charges Sony With PlayStation Price-Fixing

Tokyo -- The Japanese FTC (Fair Trade Commission) on Thursday charged Sony
Computer Entertainment with fair-trade violations, saying the company
pressured retailers to adhere to set prices for PlayStation games, Reuters
reported. The charges also alleged that Sony told wholesalers only to sell
to retailers, and retailers only to sell to consumers. Sony did not
contest the FTC ruling, instead issuing a statement saying, "We respect
the FTC's stance and will make sure that our policy of not setting resale
conditions on wholesalers for PlayStation hardware and software is
observed."
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200-6753768.html?tag=cd_mh
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o Digital Editing Technology Firm Avid To Cut 8% of Workforce

Tewksbury, Mass. -- As part of a cost-cutting plan, Tewksbury-based Avid
Technology, a producer of digital editing equipment, said on Wednesday
that it will cut its workforce by about 8%. The layoffs will affect about
140 positions. "We're taking these difficult but important steps to
further improve our cost structure and profitability, while preserving our
investments in the future," said David Krall, CEO of Avid.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/010801/n01289496.html
http://www.avid.com
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o Video Game Publisher Crave Entertainment Gets $35 Million

Los Angeles -- Crave Entertainment Group, which operates video game
publisher and distributor Crave Entertainment, said on Thursday that it
has secured a $35 million credit facility with Heller Financial. The
company is currently undergoing a restructuring, and is now focused on
raising additional equity. Los Angeles-based Crave Entertainment publishes
video games for the PC as well as consoles made by Sega, Nintendo, Sony
and Microsoft.
http://www.cravegames.com
_____________________________________________

> Note to Readers:

Digital Media Wire will not be published tomorrow, August 3. The next
edition will arrive on Monday, August 6.
_____________________________________________

o Briefly Noted:

(Nashville, Tenn.) Hughes Electronics Corporation announced on Wednesday
that its DirecTV and Hughes Network Systems units will begin offering
bundled high-speed satellite Internet access to DirecTV subscribers. The
new Direcway service will require existing subscribers to acquire a new
dish that will enable both Internet access and TV signal reception. The
broadband service will be priced between $59.99 and $69.99.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010802/dcth040.html
http://www.hns.com/direcway/intro.htm

(Rochester, N.Y.) Kodak announced on Thursday that APEX Digital will
manufacture a DVD player capable of viewing digital photographs stored on
Kodak Picture CDs. Ontario, Calif.-based APEX will release the DVD player
in August, which will retail for less than $200.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/010802/2160.html
http://www.apexdigitalinc.com
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/consumer/products/pictureCD/pc/index.shtml

(Indianapolis) In an attempt to spur sales of its RCA portable e-book
reader devices, Thomson multimedia said on Thursday that it will offer
$200 worth of free e-books and online newspapers to consumers who purchase
one of the devices and register with Gemstar. The promotion offers
bestsellers including Neil Gaman's "American Gods" and the Oprah Book Club
title "Cane River," classics from Shakespeare and Dickens, and temporary
subscriptions to the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post online
editions.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/010802/2087.html
http://www.ebook-gemstar.com/eb_dev/index.htm
http://www.rca.com/product/viewmodellist/browseproduct/0,2589,CI100005,00.html?

(Venice, Calif.) Spiderdance, a developer of interactive television
programming, and Princeton Video Image, a provider of virtual advertising
and images for TV, said on Thursday that they will combine and jointly
market some of their services. Princeton Video Image provides on-screen
digital elements such as the virtual "first down line" seen in NFL
football broadcasts. The companies' combined service will let TV viewers
interact with broadcasts in real-time using an Internet-connected PC.
Venice-based Spiderdance and New Jersey-based Princeton Video will market
their joint effort to award shows, sports telecasts and special event
programming producers.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010802/lath015a.html
http://www.spiderdance.com
http://www.pvi-inc.com 

(London) Two Way TV, a provider of games for interactive television
channels, said on Thursday that its games channel will be featured on
Energis Interactive's new iTV service. The brightBlue service will be
offered to 5.25 million digital satellite households when it launches on
Sky Digital in the U.K. this September. The games channel will initially
offer games based on popular TV shows and eventually will add enhanced TV
programming and pay-per-play games. London-based Two Way TV said its games
are now offered on every major digital TV platform in the U.K.
http://www.twowaytv.com

(Sioux Falls, S.D.) LodgeNet, a provider of interactive TV services to
hoteliers, announced on Thursday that it has signed a long-term agreement
with independent hotel management company MeriStar Hotels and Resorts to
provide iTV to 55,000 guest rooms in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. The
deal will place interactive TV features -- including Nintendo 64 games,
email, on-demand digital music and video-on-demand archived episodes of
HBO's "The Sopranos" and "Sex and the City" -- into Marriott, Hilton,
Doubletree, Radisson, Sheraton, Westin, and Wyndham hotels.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010802/mnth008.html
http://www.lodgenet.com
http://www.meristar.com

(Santa Ana, Calif.) SRS Labs, a developer of audio and voice technologies,
said on Thursday that it has licensed its TruSurround technology to Hughes
Network Systems, which will incorporate it into DirecTV set-top boxes.
Santa Ana-based SRS Labs' TruSurround creates "virtual surround sound" for
standard two-speaker TVs by taking six-channel audio programming such as
Dolby Digital or Dolby Surround and converting it to attain "virtual"
surround sound for a two-speaker system.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010802/lath046.html
http://www.srslabs.com

(San Francisco) Wired News reported on Thursday on how non-profit
organizations are increasingly hosting short films on their websites and
sending them in email campaigns to increase knowledge of their various
agendas. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence recently sent an
animated e-mail parody to 14,000 subscribers that featured NRA president
Charlton Heston hijacking a plane, while PETA (People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals) have a pro-spay and neuter cartoon called "Sex and
the Kitty."
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,45628,00.html
http://www.bradycampaign.org/activism/heston/movie.asp
http://www.fixcats.com

(San Francisco) Salon.com featured an article on Thursday that examined
the "parasite software" that companies such as file-sharing service KaZaa
are bundling with their own software downloads as a new source of revenue.
Many of these parasite software programs are criticized for being
"spyware" that reports back to corporations on users' Web use. The
parasite software companies pay in the neighborhood of 10 or 20 cents each
time a user downloads a program like KaZaa, and many say that a large
percentage of their "users" are derived from such deals.
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2001/08/02/parasite_capital/index.html

(San Francisco) Wired News published an article Thursday on European
digital music site Vitaminic, which currently offers services similar to
MP3.com for nine countries, and is the largest portal for independent
music in Europe. The company will soon be facing competition from
conglomerates including AOL Time Warner, which hopes to tie its digital
music initiatives like MusicNet with Internet access services in the
European market.
http://www.wired.com/news/mp3/0,1285,45544,00.html
http://www.vitaminic.com

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Job Postings:
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To Post Jobs: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/jobs.html

> Roxio, Inc., Sr. Business Development Position - Silicon Valley, CA

Hey… are you a closer? Can you cut a great deal? If you answered yes to
these questions and you are an experienced dealmaker, we have the dream
job waiting for you at Roxio, Inc., the leading digital media software
company. The ideal candidate will have a solid understanding of the
digital media industry and is a self-starter capable of identifying,
analyzing, developing and closing new businesses opportunities. The ideal
candidate will possess a JD or MBA from a top school and have 5+ years of
deal-making experience. Send resumes to: opportunities@spencerstuart.com
http://www.roxio.com
______________________

> Mapcom Systems, Senior Sales Director - Richmond, VA

Small and growing software company seeks Senior Sales Director with
telecom background to develop and maintain overall sales plan. Position
requires 7+ yrs. sales exp., extensive knowledge of telecom industry
products and services, as well as exceptional communication, phone and
presentation skills. Knowledge of facilities management, GIS mapping,
client billing, work order management or customer relationship software
products desired. Bachelor's degree required, advanced degree preferred.
EOE. Send resume, letter and salary history to jobs@mapcom.com
http://www.mapcom.com
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> Sony Pictures Digital Entertainment, iTV Producer - Los Angeles

Develop interactive content concepts; create product requirements,
functionality UI and design documents; manage design and technology
vendors for creating user interfaces and applications; and manage ongoing
production of interactive content. Must have experience working in the iTV
industry or experience in Internet or television production or experience
in producing games in the iTV, on-line or PC games.
Send resumes to: resumes@spe.sony.com
http://www.spe.sony.com
______________________

> H2O Networks, Director of Sales - New York City

Must have the ability to sell products & services ranging from a twenty
thousand dollar fixed price solution sale to a several hundred thousand
dollar integrated services sale. Background in Web Development,
Advertising, Affinity Marketing, Agency experience or other related fields
is a necessity. Ideal candidate will have a network of contacts that can
be leveraged to effect immediate sales. Steady commission possible.
Send resumes to: jon@h2onetworks.net
http://www.h2onetworks.net
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> Aether Systems, Sr. Director of Quality Assurance - McLean, VA

Provide leadership and mentoring in component based, mobile and wireless
enterprise-wide software development environment. Proven track record to
lead several QA teams in various geographic locations. Member of core
development team responsible for Object Oriented, iterative, use-case
driven rapid software development. Manage 60+ and integrate QA initiatives
throughout the development organization.
Send resumes to rcronin@aethersystems.com
http://www.aethersystems.com

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Events/Services Postings:
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To Post Events/Services: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/events.html

> 9th Annual SHORTSPAN Film & Video Festival - Pacific Northwest Tour: Aug. 3-13

SHORT MOVIES! Dreamspan presents the 9TH Annual Short Attention Span Film & Video Festival. Shortspan is a non-stop two hour program of ALL NEW
two-minute-or-shorter films, including Michael Moore's "Testify," Canadian
David Weir's collaboration with Douglas Coupland, "Night Shift"-- and 57
more shorts! The tour kicks off in the Pacific Northwest and will travel
to 30 North American cities! Pac NW tour dates are:

VANCOUVER, B.C.: The Blinding Light Cinema - August 3rd and 4th - 8:30PM
SEATTLE, WA: 911 Media Arts Center - August 9th and 10th - 8PM
PORTLAND, OR: Northwest Film Center - August 12th and 13th - 7:30PM
http://www.dreamspan.com/shortspan
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> Digital Rights Management, September 20-21 - New York City

DRM for Sports, Media & Entertainment -- Learn How To Monetize & Protect
Content, Digital Assets & Intellectual Property. Featuring Forecasts, Case
Studies & Strategies from: AOL Time Warner, Sony Music, NY Times, National
Hockey League, A&E Networks, Microsoft Corporation, BET, Artisan,
Reciprocal, IBM, NASCAR Digital Entertainment and many more!
Contact dmitry@worldrg.com -- mention this ad for a special discount!
http://www.DRMconference.com
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> New England Tech Wire - Free Email News Service

New England Tech Wire is a free daily email service that summarizes the
most important technology, venture capital, and Internet stories from
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and
Vermont. Every business day, readers rely on us for a quick, objective
briefing of the region's top technology and venture capital stories.
Sign up for free at http://www.newenglandtechwire.com
______________________

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Copyright 2001 Digital Media Wire