archives

o Jailed Russian Programmer to be Released on Bail
o WSJ: DOJ Launches Anti-Trust Investigation of MusicNet, Pressplay
o Congressmen Introduce "Music Online Competition Act"
o Court Says Radio Stations Must Pay Same Fees as Webcasters
o Games Site TheGlobe.com Lays Off Half of Staff, Will Close Sites
o Digital Media Delivery Firm Kontiki Launches with $18 Million
o Report: New Game Consoles Will Sell 60 Million Units in U.S. by 2005
o Digital Rights Management Firm InterTrust Lays Off 12% of Staff
o Google Names Novell Chairman as New CEO
o Audio Software Developer Octiv Gets Investment from Intel
o Streaming Software Firm HelloNetwork Forms Japanese Unit
o Briefly Noted: InterTrust - DataPlay, Streamwaves - Universal Music
Group, Yahoo - overseas porn, High Speed Net Solutions - Qualcomm, EnReach
- BlueWave, AOL install discs, Fired over MP3s, Assembly '01
_____________________________________________

> Job Postings: Sr. Sales Director, iTV Producer, Director of Sales,
Sr. Director of Q/A

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

Full Job/Event/Services descriptions listed below "Briefly Noted" section
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_____________________________________________

o Jailed Russian Programmer to be Released on Bail

San Francisco -- Dmitry Sklyarov, a Russian programmer who has been
detained by the U.S. government since his arrest for allegedly violating
the Digital Millennium Copyright Act was released on bail Monday. The
Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital civil liberties organization,
took up Sklyarov's case after Adobe Systems asked the Justice Department
to investigate his work for Russian software firm Elcomsoft, where
Sklyarov developed software that could circumvent the security on Adobe's
e-book reader software. Elcomsoft posted a $50,000 bond for the release of
Sklyarov, who has received support in the form of protests around the
country. The U.S. government is holding on to Sklyarov's passport, and a
pre-trial hearing has been scheduled for August 23.
http://www.eff.org/temp/20010806_eff_sklylarov_annouce.html
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o WSJ: DOJ Launches Anti-Trust Investigation of MusicNet, Pressplay

New York -- The U.S. Department of Justice has launched an investigation
into "possible anticompetitive problems" created by the major record
labels as they join together to form online subscription services MusicNet
and Pressplay, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Two groups of
record labels and their technology partners have banded together, and both
have said they will launch their services -- which will let consumers
stream and download digital music to their PCs -- later this fall.
MusicNet is composed of Warner, EMI and BMG as well as technology provider
RealNetworks and AOL; Pressplay pairs Sony's and Universal's record labels
with partners including MP3.com and Yahoo. The DOJ is reportedly
interested in learning about the services' relationships and licensing
deals with marketing and distribution partners such as AOL and Yahoo.
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB99705423498635089.htm
http://www.thestandard.com/article/0,1902,28485,00.html
http://www.musicnet.com
http://www.pressplay.com
_____________________________________________

o Congressmen Introduce "Music Online Competition Act"

Washington -- Two U.S. congressmen on Friday introduced a bill called the
"Music Online Competition Act," legislation that would make changes to the
controversial Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to create a level
playing field for small and large online music ventures and ensure direct
payment of royalties to artists. Reps. Rick Boucher and Chris Cannon
drafted the bill, which was hailed by online music companies and
criticized by the recording industry. "It is essentially a solution -- a
very bad solution -- in search of a problem," said Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA) CEO Hilary Rosen, adding, "Many in the
industry will fight this bill aggressively." The bill would also clear up
some technicalities in the DMCA, and relax rules on temporary copies of
digital music files as well as allow consumers to make back-up copies of
songs they purchase. "This bill has something for everyone, and it also
has a provision that will give various members of the music industry
heartburn," said bill co-author Rep. Chris Cannon.
http://www.house.gov/boucher/moca-page.htm
http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,45813,00.html
http://www.msnbc.com/news/609263.asp?0nm=T13O
_____________________________________________

o Court Says Radio Stations Must Pay Same Fees as Webcasters

Washington -- A recent federal court ruling will make traditional radio
stations pay the same royalties that webcasters must pay to record
companies and music publishers for the right to stream their music online.
Radio stations had argued that they should not have to pay for streaming
because collectively they already pay the recording industry over $300
million annually to broadcast music over the airwaves. "Broadcasters,
record companies and consumers have long enjoyed a symbiotic relationship
whereby airplay on radio stations benefits all parties, along with
generating enormous revenues for the record labels," said National
Association of Broadcasters CEO Edward Pitts. "We're disappointed that
this unique relationship will be disrupted by the court ruling." A royalty
arbitration proceeding is currently underway in Washington between the
recording industry and online music companies that will determine what
rate webcasters will pay to stream music online. Once a rate is
determined, webcasters will have to pay for the music they have streamed
retroactively since 1998. "We are pleased that the court upheld the rights
of artists and record companies, said RIAA CEO Hilary Rosen. "We now look
forward to working with the broadcasters for a smooth transition into this
marketplace."
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-6765199.html?tag=cd_mh
http://www.nab.org/Newsroom/PressRel/statements/S1201.htm
http://www.riaa.org/PR_story.cfm?id=441 
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o Games Site TheGlobe.com Lays Off Half of Staff, Will Close Sites

New York -- TheGlobe.com, a provider of video game industry news and
information as well as Web hosting services, announced that it will lay
off 49 percent of its staff, or 60 employees, and shut down two sites in a
restructuring effort to conserve funds. The company will shut down its
TheGlobe.com online community business as well as its WebJump.com Web
hosting unit. Operations will be scaled down while seek a buyer for its
video games properties, which include Happy Puppy, Kids Domain, Computer
Games Online and the print magazine Computer Games Magazine. New
York-based TheGlobe.com relies heavily on online advertising to generate
revenue, and has suffered through the current market downturn. "We
continue to believe in the long-term power of online advertising and like
several leading industry analysts, we believe that the current spending
slump is a temporary pause in market's overall growth," said TheGlobe.com
CEO Chuck Peck. The company was also served with two shareholder class
action lawsuits Friday, in connection with its November 1998 initial
public offering of stock.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/010803/2248.html
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010803/phf056.html
http://www.theglobe.com
http://www.happypuppy.com
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o Digital Media Delivery Firm Kontiki Launches with $18 Million

Mountain View, Calif. -- Kontiki, a provider of digital media delivery
technology, announced on Monday the launch of the company and a first
round of venture financing totaling $18 million. Investors participating
in the round included The Barksdale Group, Benchmark Capital, Angel
Investors and Netscape co-founder Marc Andressen. Mountain View-based
Kontiki said its technology -- which it is currently beta testing --
offers secure and cost-efficient delivery of video, music, games and
software by tapping into the unused bandwidth of users' PCs on a
distributed network.
http://www.kontiki.com
_____________________________________________

o Report: New Game Consoles Will Sell 60 Million Units in U.S. by 2005

San Diego -- Next-generation, 128-bit video game consoles -- including
Sony's PlayStation 2, Microsoft's Xbox and Nintendo's GameCube -- are
forecasted to sell over 60 million combined units in the U.S. by the year
2005, says a report published Monday by research firm DFC Intelligence.
The firm predicts record sales for the industry in the next few years,
with total U.S. revenue from interactive entertainment estimated to exceed
$12 billion by 2003. Additionally, DFC says that Sony's PlayStation 2 has
the potential to be "the best-selling game system ever," and predicts that
Nintendo's less-expensive GameCube will fare better than Microsoft's Xbox
when the two are released in November.
http://www.dfcint.com
_____________________________________________

o Digital Rights Management Firm InterTrust Lays Off 12% of Staff

Santa Clara, Calif. -- InterTrust, a developer of digital rights
management technologies, said it will lay off 12 percent of its staff as
part of an effort to cut costs. The company did not say in what
departments the layoffs will fall. Santa Clara-based InterTrust is
currently suing Microsoft for alleged infringements of several of the
patents it holds; the company has asked a court to prevent Microsoft from
distributing its Windows XP operating system, because it claims the
Windows Media Digital Rights Management system is based on InterTrust
technology.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010802/sfth054.html
http://www.intertrust.com
_____________________________________________

o Google Names Novell Chairman as New CEO

Mountain View, Calif. -- Search engine provider Google announced on Monday
that it has named Eric Schmidt, chairman of the company's board of
directors, as the company's new CEO. Schmidt will also continue his role
as chairman of networking software provider Novell. Schmidt replaces
Google's founding CEO Larry Page, who remains with the company as
president of products.
http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/ceo.html
_____________________________________________

o Audio Software Developer Octiv Gets Investment from Intel

Berkeley, Calif. -- Octiv, a developer of digital audio software,
announced on Monday that it has received an undisclosed investment from
Intel Capital. The company raised $6 million in its second round earlier
this year from FG II, Novus Ventures and 3i. Berkeley-based Octiv will use
the funds to develop software that improves the quality of digital audio
over networks and in portable devices.
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?bw.080601/212180013
http://www.octiv.com
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o Streaming Software Firm HelloNetwork Forms Japanese Unit

New York -- HelloNetwork, a developer of Java-based streaming media
software, announced on Monday that it has formed a joint venture with
Marubeni Corporation and Spiralstar to form HelloNetwork Asia (HNA), a
company that will sell HelloNetwork's streaming media software to
businesses in Japan. The deal includes a multi-million dollar investment
from Marubeni to license HelloNetwork's software in Japan. Tokyo-based HNA
will offer Japanese companies the ability to stream live and on-demand
content to any Java-enabled device without plug-ins, downloads or
installed players.
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?day0/212180038&ticker=hni
http://www.hellonetwork.com
http://www.marubeni.co.jp
http://www.spiralstar.com
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o Briefly Noted:

(Santa Clara, Calif.) InterTrust Technologies, a developer of digital
rights management technologies, said on Monday that it has partnered with
portable digital media storage developer DataPlay to create the
proprietary security format for Colorado-based DataPlay's quarter-sized
discs. Major labels including Universal, EMI and BMG have said that they
will release music on pre-recorded DataPlay discs.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010806/sfm031.html
http://www.intertrust.com
http://www.dataplay.com 

(Dallas) Streamwaves, a developer of digital music subscription systems,
said on Monday that Universal Music Group has licensed a substantial
amount of its Christian and gospel music catalog to the company for its
HigherWaves Christian music subscription service. Dallas-based Streamwaves
has also licensed Christian music from EMI Recorded Music and EMI
Christian Music Group Publishing. The company said it will launch
HigherWaves this month, and has plans to launch other genre-based
subscription services.
http://www.higherwaves.com/IE4/framesetIE.htm

(Santa Clara, Calif.) Yahoo has been receiving complaints from right-wing
groups unhappy with its policy of accepting ads from pornographers on its
overseas sites, CNET reported Monday. In April, the company removed adult
entertainment-related ads from its U.S.-based sites, in part due to
complaints from groups with names like the Traditional Values Coalition
and American Family Association. The company said its April decision did
not include the sites it maintains in countries like Germany and France,
which have different cultural ideals about sex. "Each international Yahoo
affiliate strives to honor the laws and the values of its host country and
evaluates its approach to determine what is appropriate in that country,"
Yahoo spokeswoman Nicki Dugan told CNET.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-6773373.html?tag=mn_hd

(Raleigh, N.C.) High Speed Net Solutions, a developer of wireless
multimedia technology, announced on Monday that it has developed a
wireless streaming video technology that is compatible with wireless firm
Qualcomm's BREW (Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless) platform. North
Carolina-based High Speed Net Solutions said its technology -- which will
be used for cellular phones equipped with small video screens -- is
currently being demonstrated to a number of mobile operators.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010806/lam011.html
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1004-200-6774407.html?tag=mn_hd
http://www.summus.com

(Alviso, Calif.) EnReach Technology, a developer of software for
interactive television systems, said on Monday that it has partnered with
Beijing-based BlueWave, a provider of broadband access, to provide
streaming and interactive TV services to subscribers in Beijing. BlueWave
will deploy set-top boxes that run EnReach's iTV software -- which enables
email, Web browsing and video and music-on-demand.
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?bw.080601/212180339
http://www.enreach.com

(San Francisco) Wired News on Monday featured a story on collectors who
are interested in trying to amass all of the myriad free AOL installation
discs that the company has distributed around the world to generate new
subscribers. Virginia-based AOL would not disclose how many total discs it
has put in mailboxes, cereal boxes and other places in the eight years it
has used the promotional tactic. One man, who claims to have one of the
largest collections, has found over 1,000 unique CD-ROMs.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45585,00.html

(San Francisco) CNET recently reported on how some employees are being
fired for downloading music and other copyrighted material to their work
computers. Recently a secretary at Northwestern University in Illinois was
reportedly fired under a policy that bans use of office computers for
personal use; she had some 2,000 music files on her computer. Northwestern
was apparently tipped off by George Harrison's music company that the
woman had downloaded copyrighted material.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-6775251.html?tag=mn_hd

(San Francisco) Wired News ran a feature story on Monday covering
"Assembly '01," a competition in Helsinki where creators of "demos," or
"small self-contained programs of cutting-edge computer-generated audio
and visual effects, usually created by small groups of programmers,
artists and musicians to demonstrate, or 'demo,' their skills." The
competition has historically been a fertile ground for video game
companies looking to hire talented developers.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45824,00.html
http://www.asmparty.net/

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

> 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
______________________

> 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
______________________

> 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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> 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
______________________

> Free Web Demonstration: Learn How A Federal Agency Saved $36 Million

Leading organizations are saving millions by more effectively managing
their company's diversified operations and scarce resources. With Pacific
Edge Software's project portfolio management solution, you'll get a clear
snapshot of your business, enabling you to balance strategic and tactical
requirements, so you can make informed business decisions. For more
information on how you can better manage your business, please visit
http://www.pacificedge.com/campaigns/digitalmedia
______________________

> 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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