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DIGITAL MEDIA WIRE -- December 2, 2002
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o Judge Hears Summary Judgment Motions In Peer-to-Peer Copyright Case
o Sklyarov Visa Granted, Digital Copyright Case to Resume This Week
o Court Approves Roxio Purchase of Napster Assets for $5.1 Million
o Report: 82% of U.S. Consumers Believe Backing-up Music CDs Is Legal
o European Indie Labels Launch Trial of Online Music Licensing Service
o Nielsen, Ucentric to Develop Personal Video Recorder Usage Measurement
o Interactive TV Firm WorldGate to Effect 1-for-10 Reverse Stock Split
> DMW Publications: Special Rates for DMW Subscribers
> Featured Section
o Briefly Noted: Mforma - Activision - "Star Trek Nemesis," Digimarc -
patents, Nyko Technologies - "WormCam," Sony "EverQuest" - Qualcomm's
BREW, Airborne Entertainment - Berlitz Languages, "The Lord of the Rings:
The War of the Ring," Xbox Nation, "Toontown Online," Wal-Mart - video
game censorship
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> Jobs: Interactive Group Director
> Marketplace: eSubscriptions, Homeland Security Directory,
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Full Classifieds located beneath "Briefly Noted" section below.
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o Judge Hears Summary Judgment Motions In Peer-to-Peer Copyright Case
Los Angeles -- A federal judge on Monday will hear arguments for summary
judgment in the entertainment industry's copyright infringement case
against file-sharing services Grokster, Streamcast Networks' Morpheus and,
potentially, Sharman Networks' Kazaa. If U.S. District Court Judge Stephen
Wilson does not grant either side's motions for summary judgment, the case
will be the first against a file-sharing service to ever make it to the
jury trial stage. The now-defunct Napster service was shut down by virtue
of a preliminary injunction pursued by major record labels, which are also
suing Grokster and Morpheus in the current case. A separate trial to
determine whether Kazaa, which is owned and operated outside the U.S. by
Sharman Networks, may be added to the proceedings against Grokster and
Morpheus, has not yet concluded.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=1832682
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-975618.html?tag=fd_top
http://www.eff.org/IP/P2P/MGM_v_Grokster
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o Sklyarov Visa Granted, Digital Copyright Case to Resume This Week
San Jose, Calif. -- Dmitry Sklyarov, the Russian software programmer
arrested and charged with criminal violation of the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act for his software that can break copyright protection on
e-books, has been granted a special visa and will return to the U.S. for
the ongoing trial against his employer, Elcomsoft. The U.S. Justice Dept.
made a deal with Sklyarov to drop charges against him and let him return
to Russia in exchange for his testimony; the deal was jeopardized when
Sklyarov was temporarily denied a visa to return to the U.S. The case is
the first criminal prosecution under the controversial Digital Millennium
Copyright Act, which outlawed circumventing the copyright protections on a
digital device. Jury selection in the trial, taking place in federal court
in San Jose, Calif., began on Monday.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/28352.html
http://www.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/02/12/02/021202hnelcom.xml?s=IDGNS
http://www.eff.org/IP/DMCA/US_v_Elcomsoft
http://www.elcomsoft.com
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o Court Approves Roxio Purchase of Napster Assets for $5.1 Million
Santa Clara, Calif. -- Roxio, a provider of CD and DVD burning software,
announced that a Delaware bankruptcy court has approved its purchase of
the assets of defunct file-sharing service Napster for $5.1 million. Santa
Clara, Calif.-based Roxio will acquire Napster's name, trademarks, domain
name and technology portfolio but will not assume any of the company's
pending liabilities or litigation. The sale was accomplished in spite of
an objection from former Napster CEO John Fanning, uncle of Napster
creator Shawn Fanning. Roxio said in a statement that it will announce its
plans for the development of Napster, "in the coming months."
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/021127/sfw030_1.html
http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/021127/1854000742_1.html
http://www.roxio.com
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o Report: 82% of U.S. Consumers Believe Backing-up Music CDs Is Legal
Stamford, Conn. -- A survey of U.S. consumers found that 82 percent
believe making backup copies of music CDs and software is legal, despite
vague laws governing the practice, Connecticut-based research firm
GartnerG2 reported. Additionally, the survey found that 75 percent of
consumers believe backing up video games is legal and 73 percent think
backing up videotapes and DVDs is legal. "The reality is that current laws
are vague and content companies are pushing for strict control over
consumer copying behavior," said GartnerG2 research director Mike McGuire.
"Until laws are passed allowing consumers the right to back up files
legally, the uncertainty about lack of basic archiving and backup
capabilities will stunt growth of the online media distribution market for
the next three to five years. Amending the [Digital Millennium Copyright
Act] to allow consumers to backup all their digital content is a
reasonable compromise between consumer expectation and the reality of
copyright law."
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/021202/22032_1.html
http://www.gartnerg2.com
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o European Indie Labels Launch Trial of Online Music Licensing Service
Brussels -- IMPALA, a trade organization of 1,800 European independent
record labels, has announced the trial launch of a one-stop shop for
licensing music from its artists for use in interactive online services.
The service will license tracks for use on peer-to-peer networks and other
interactive services collectively for a number of European countries at
once, eliminating the need to seek licenses in each individual country.
Musicindie, a non-profit set up by U.K. independent labels, will provide
negotiation and management services for the IMPALA Interactive service.
"Independents want to be at the forefront in enabling new interactive
markets for music, and believe that through aggregation they can make
their music available, and on the right terms, in a way that is impossible
for most companies individually," said Hein Van der Ree, managing director
of Epitaph Europe and co-chair of IMPALA Interactive.
http://www.impalasite.org/html/press/impinteractive.htm
http://www.musicindie.com
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o Nielsen, Ucentric to Develop Personal Video Recorder Usage Measurement
New York -- Nielsen Media Research, a provider of television audience
measurement services, announced on Monday it has partnered with Ucentric
Systems to create television audience measurement software that will track
the usage of personal video recorders on multiple television sets.
Massachusetts-based Ucentric develops multi-TV personal video recorder
software. Under the agreement, Nielsen will add its own software that
collects tuning, recording and playback information from every TV set in
the home connected to the Ucentric system. The software will remain
inactive on devices in non-Nielsen homes. "The goal is to fully credit PVR
and other 'time shifting' usage by integrating the data into our
syndicated reports -- the currency for more than $60 billion in
advertising spending in the United States," said Scott Brown, senior vice
president for strategic relationships at Nielsen Media Research.
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?day0/223360125&ticker=
http://www.nielsenmedia.com
http://www.ucentric.com
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o Interactive TV Firm WorldGate to Effect 1-for-10 Reverse Stock Split
Trevose, Pa. -- WorldGate, a provider of interactive TV hardware and
software to cable TV operators, announced that it will seek shareholder
approval for a one-for-ten reverse stock split, looking to boost its share
price above the Nasdaq's $1 minimum requirement for continued listing. In
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),
Pennsylvania-based WorldGate said it will address the proposed stock split
with shareholders at a meeting on Dec. 30.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=wgat
http://www.wgate.com
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DMW Publications: Special Rates for DMW Subscribers
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FEATURED SECTION
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Featured Section posting at:
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Briefly Noted:
(Kirkland, Wash.) Video game publisher Activision and wireless game
developer Mforma announced that they will jointly publish wireless games
for J2ME, BREW and SMS based on the upcoming Paramount Pictures film "Star
Trek Nemesis." Washington-based Mforma subsidiary NGame will develop the
game for the film, which will premiere in theaters on Dec. 13.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/021202/20293_1.html
http://www.mforma.com
http://www.ngame.com
(Tualatin, Ore.) Digimarc, a developer of digital watermarking technology
for audio, video, print and digital images, announced that the U.S. Patent
Office has granted the company 13 new patents over the past four months,
growing the Digimarc patent portfolio to 77. "These new patents
significantly extend the range of patented digital watermarking techniques
and methods we offer to potential licensees in the audio, video, print and
digital imagery spaces," said Reed Stager, vice president of Digimarc
Global Licensing.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/021126/260027_1.html
http://www.digimarc.com
(Los Angeles) Nyko Technologies, a manufacturer of video game accessories,
announced on Monday its WormCam, a digital camera accessory for Nintendo's
Game Boy Advance handheld. The sub-$40 device connects to a Game Boy and
lets users capture, view and edit up to 22 color pictures directly on the
screen; the WormCam also features a link for uploading the pictures to a
PC.
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/f_headline.cgi?day0/223360144&ticker=
http://www.nyko.com
(San Diego) Sony Online Entertainment announced on Monday that it will
release "EverQuest: Hero's Call," a version of its popular massively
multiplayer online roleplaying game, for Qualcomm's BREW platform. The
single-player version of the game for cell phones and wireless devices
will debut in January 2003.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/021202/lam032_1.html
http://www.station.com
(Montreal) Wireless entertainment distributor Airborne Entertainment said
on Monday it has partnered with Berlitz Languages to launch a mobile
text-message service. Berlitz Mobile Alerts will consist of brief, daily
language lessons and cultural facts adapted from Berlitz's best-selling
pocket guides. The SMS service will initially be available for fourteen
languages to Verizon Wireless customers.
http://www.pocketboxoffice.com/web/news/pressrelease.cfm?id=28
http://www.berlitz.com
(Los Angeles) Vivendi Universal Games' Black Label Games studio said on
Monday that it has contracted with Agoura Hills, Calif.-based Liquid
Entertainment to develop "The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Ring," a
real-time strategy game for PC. The title, due for release in early 2004,
is part of VU Games' long-term licensing agreement with Tolkien
Enterprises.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/021202/lam025_1.html
http://www.vugames.com/vu
http://www.liquid.to
(San Francisco) Publisher Ziff Davis' Media Game Group said on Monday that
its Xbox Nation magazine will increase its publishing schedule from
quarterly to bimonthly status. "With Xbox's growing installed base,
Microsoft's purchase of game developer Rare, and the launch of Xbox Live,
this segment of the industry is taking off like a rocket," said Lee
Uniacke, Group Publisher.
http://www.ziffdavis.com/products/index.asp?page=xboxnation
(Los Angeles) The Los Angeles Times recently published a feature on
"Toontown Online," Disney's recently launched massively multiplayer online
for kids. The $5.95 per month game features no death, rewards cooperative
play and restricts chat areas so that only children may message one
another, with a parent's permission. "Coming from a background of
designing theme parks, we have our eyes on the mass market. We realized
pretty quickly by playing [online games] with kids in mind what the
problems were. We made a list of things we needed to avoid," Disney's Mike
Gosselin told The Times.
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-toontown1dec01,0,7902340.story
?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dtechnology
http://www.toontown.com
(San Francisco) Wired News on Monday reported on the conservative policies
of giant U.S. retailer Wal-Mart, and how they affect the content of video
games that may be sold in its stores, which annually account for 25
percent of all U.S. video and PC game sales. The company's censoring goes
beyond the industry's established Entertainment Software Ratings Board
ratings, and has prompted developers including Acclaim, Activision, 3D
Realms, Planet Moon Studios and GT Interactive to alter either the content
or packaging of their games in order to ensure space on Wal-Mart shelves.
http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,2101,55955,00.html
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CLASSIFIEDS - HOLIDAY GIFT IDEAS & RED HOT DEALS
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CLASSIFIEDS - JOBS
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To Post Jobs: http://www.digitalmediawire.com/jobpostingpage.htm
Interactive Group Director
The Interactive Group Director should have at least 10 years of management
experience, with at least five years focused on managing the interactive
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Resumes: k-keene@pacbell.net
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