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Dec. 22, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: More On Slate Sale; eHarmony Gets $110 Million From VCs; Not The End Of Free

2004-12-22T13:26:00.000-08:00

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Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 22,2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

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And I thought yesterday's issue was full. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
------------------------------------------------------------
-- Slate Sale: Audio: Cliff Sloan, WPNI
-- Slate Sale: Interview: Scott Moore, Microsoft
-- More On WaPo Purchase Of Slate
-- Myers: Online Spending Will Jump 30% in '05
-- Not The End Of Free After All
-- eHarmony Nabs $110 Million In VC Funds
-- Loudeye Raises $25.2 Million By Selling Equity
-- Fastclick Files For IPO
-- HMV, Microsoft Team Up For Digital Music Service
-- BlingTones Announces First Wireless Music Label
-- From MoCoNews: Revenue Assurance for Mobile Content
-- Buzz Machine Tops Sorgatz's List For Blog Of The Year
-- eBay Exec Arrested in India Allowed Out On Bail
-- Industry Moves: ECNext Inc. Promotes Pamela Springer To President, CEO

Slate Sale: Audio: Cliff Sloan, WPNI: In theory, Slate, which stuck out like the proverbial sore thumb at tech powerhouse Microsoft,is a natural fit for the Washington Post Company -- a premium property that adds dimension in content and ad avails to a choked inventory. As the new publisher of Slate effective sometime in mid-January,Cliff Sloan will be responsible for translating that theory into reality. Currently VP-business development and general copunsel for WPNI,Sloan will keep those titles and responsibilities but,as he told Executive Editor Staci D. Kramer by phone after the sale was announced,Slate will be at the top of the list.
The 17-minute interview audio can be downloaded as an .mp3(16.7 megs) and in Ogg Vorbis (3.5 megs). Here are some excerpts:
-- "Day one,the Slate user won't notice anything different about the site."
-- Sloan says Slate,which tried,then pulled back from a subscription model,will remain open access but won't rule going to registration like WashingtonPost.com in the future. "We certainly aren't contemplating any changes in Slate on the horizon. We want to keep it as an open site and we want to further improve the impressive audience." But,he adds,"Issues like that are always open."
-- "We're going to be very closely integrated on the business side; on the journalism side,completely independent."
-- The WPNI sales team will sell all three sites (washingtonpost.com,Slate and Newsweek.com) but advertisers will be able to buy just one or a mix.
-- "There can be a fallacy in looking at web sites in isolation from the broader media world,whether in terms of isolation on the journalistic side or on the business side. Slate is not just a great online magazine -- which it is -- it's a great magazine. Period. And we see Slate not just as a very attractive online only business -- which it is -- but as an attractive media opportunity."
-- Down the line the three sites may find ways to share their editorial but there are no plans for a common site or common front page that would pool all three. [Dec.22: Link] | Advertising |Biz/Fin |Magazines |Microsoft |Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Slate Sale: Interview: Scott Moore, Microsoft: Scott Moore, general manager of MSN Network Experience and former publisher of Slate, compares selling the online magazine to the Washington Post Company to watching a daughter go down the aisle to marry a handsome man Ã¢ÂÂ a burst of joy for the future and a dash of sorrow for the separation about to begin.
As he headed from Redmond into Seattle after the sale was announced, Moore spoke with Executive Editor Staci D. Kramer about the reasons for selling Slate and about MSN's future. No audio because of a recording glitch but here are a few of the highlights:
-- Moore dismisses the notion that the sale of Slate means Microsoft-NBC joint venture MSNBC.com and MSNBC is next. "I think that's a misperception. MSNBC is a very different animal than Slate, a huge interest category, a general news offering. Slate is a bit of a niche publication notwithstanding a monthly audience of 5 million."
-- Beyond that, Moore says MSN continues "to be committed to online content building." In fact, the portal is in the process of expanding its original content, starting with health and travel. MSN Money, being rebranded with CNBC Money content.
-- For Microsoft, says Moore, the goal in selling Slate wasn't merely to find a buyer -- it was to find the right buyer. The Washington Post Company, already working with Slate sibling MSNBC.com and rumored to be the most likely candidate, was an early favorite. "We thought it was a company that would maintain Slate's high-quality and journalistic standards and would appreciate the quality of the Slate brand."
-- MSN tried selling Slate a number of ways but never quite cracked the nut; it was just too different from its other content channels. Says Moore, "Slate is a tricky ad sale no matter how you slice it. it's a provocative publication, one that appeals to a desirable demographic but one reachable through other means besides Slate."
-- Moore sees a possibility for some organic growth but says the site has hovered pretty consistently between four and five million uniques a month.
-- As for maintaining its current editorial mentality Ã¢ÂÂ the one that scares off some advertisers, Moore says, "It better not change. I'll be seriously disappointed if Slate loses its edge." [Dec.22: Link] | Advertising |Biz/Fin |Magazines |Microsoft |Newspapers | [by staci]

-- More On WaPo Purchase Of Slate: Based on my most conservative estimate, Microsoft isn't close to being made whole when it comes to selling Slate. I'm hearing Slate sold for somewhere in the $15-20 million range -- just half or slightly less than half of the estimated $40 million-plus Microsoft put into it over its eight-and-a-half-year lifetime. That's pretty small compared to the per-annum burn rate for other Internet efforts or the amounts Microsoft has sunk into failed projects.
But Slate is far from a failure. It's a survivor that made it through the lean years thanks to a supportive parent and a lean mentality. It cost Microsoft a small bundle but it has either operated in the black or broken even in recent times -- and the media brand created from scratch brought its parent a kind of cachet and a lot of publicity. It gave the MSN portal sorely needed content in its early days and will continue to contribute to higher-end demographics under a multi-year distribution agreement.
-- Staci D. Kramer [Dec.21: Link] | Microsoft | [by staci]

-- Myers: Online Spending Will Jump 30% in '05: Ad maven Jack Myers predicts 30 percent growth for 2005, likening current online ad sales to "the late 1990s when the industry was emerging from a virtually non-existent base and was gaining legitimacy." (His forecasts are based on proprietary analysis of the Myers Advertising Confidence Index survey of ad executives.) In his final Jack Myers Reports of 2004, Myers writes:
"after several years of testing, most major national advertisers are now shifting budgets from website development, research & development, and IT infrastructure into marketing budgets targeted to online media, including search engine and behavioral targeting. Search engine growth will slow slightly to 25 to 30 percent, but even traditional banner and pop-up ads will experience 20 to 25 percent increases."
-- Popularly branded online content will generate the greatest share of online revenue growth in 2005.
-- the continued increase in broadband penetration will help provide up to a 40-percent boost in online video advertising and content sponsorships.
-- Yahoo, AOL and MSN will benefit from a significant share of these more targeted broadband revenues, but their "traditional" online advertising will be under 20 percent.
-- Advertisers will shift more funds to established media sites.
The numbers sound impressive but, as the detailed chart accompanying the report illustrates, the percentages are huge because online has so far to go. In 2004, Myers estimates that online advertising grew 25 percent but accounted for only 4.3 percent of the ad spending pie. For 2005, he projects 30 percent growth for 5.3 percent of the total. [Dec.22: Link] | Advertising | [by staci]

-- Not The End Of Free After All: So much for the death of free content. The Online Journal's Carl Bialik writes of ways that free content has taken root or is increasing buoyed by the surge in online advertising and by evolving strategies. "End of Free" blogger Oliver Travers tells Bialik, "Free is certainly making a huge comeback these last 12 to 18 months."
Bialik notes that a number of news organizations were pushing the "end of free" message in the post-bubble-burst era. In a nice touch, he includes the Journal, which ran two special reports in early 2002 "casting doubt on the business plans of ad-supported Web sites, with one lead article headlined 'No More Free Lunch' and another stating, 'The Web as store is a hit. The Web as billboard is a flop.'
So much for sweeping prognostication. Today, free content is often mixed with paid content in some way. For instance, the link to this story is free, part of the Journal's effort to draw in new readers by offering a public link that might get a lot of blog play. The Journal is about to be joined in the Dow Jones family by CBS Marketwatch, a mostly free service that also sells subscriptions to newsletters and data.
Some people believe strongly that all of it should be free; others are still into putting up walls. It doesn't have to be either or and, in many cases, it shouldn't be. Exclusive clubs create buzz. Exclusive sites don't. There's nothing wrong with mixing free content -- which of course isn't free to produce -- and some premium content available only to subscribers. [Dec.22: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- eHarmony Nabs $110 Million In VC Funds: Two Silicon Valley VC firms -- Sequoia Capital and Technology Crossover Ventures -- are banking $110 million on online matchmaker eHarmony's future in one of the four largest VC deals of the year. (TCV was involved in the TechTarget funding we reported on yesterday.) This is a real head scratcher. As Jupiter Research analyst Nate Elliott told the Mercury News, "That's a shocking amount of money to give to this company. ... They're doing well by all accounts, but they don't own the market by any stretch." In context, the entire online personals category is estimated to be about $450 million a year.
That market has been showing signs of slowing -- online personals spending had a growth rate of 4 percent for 2Q04 second quarter, compared to 60 percent in 2Q03 and 376 percent in 2Q04, the Merc reports using data from the Online Publishers Association and ComScore Networks.
But eHarmony claims to be profitable with almost 5.8 million registered users with sales in November up 264 percent from lastr year same time.
Related -- TechTarget's Acquisition Piggy Bank Just Got Fatter [Dec.22: Link] | Biz/Fin | [by staci]

-- Loudeye Raises $25.2 Million By Selling Equity: Loudeye has agreed to sell "certain insitutional investors" 16.8 million shares of common stock together with stock warrants covering approximately 5.0 million shares for $25.2 million toward working capital and the all-inclusive "general corporate purposes." [Dec.22: Link] | Biz/Fin | [by staci]

-- Fastclick Files For IPO: Online advertising and services company Fastclick filed with the SEC today for an IPO that could raise as much as $92 million for "general corporate purposes." The company reported $3.3 million in net income on $39 million for the first nine months of the year. Reuters reports that Credit Suisse First Boston and Citigroup would be the lead underwriters. The NASDAQ symbol would be FSTC. [Dec.22: Link] | Biz/Fin | [by staci]

-- HMV, Microsoft Team Up For Digital Music Service: HMV will invest around Â£10 million ($19.2 million)in a digital music service based on Microsoft software and slated to launch in the second half of 2005. (Press release.)Microsoft will develop a customized all-in-one "digital jukebox" based on WMA that mixes library management, downloads and listening. HMV will sell compatible portable players in its network of 200 stores; a la competitor Virgin's Virgin Digital, the software will be available online and in the store.
In the HMV press release, a Microsoft exec refers to the project as "leading edge" but from here it looks like HMV is reserving its seats at the party a tad late with Virgin's service well underway, although still in beta, and Tesco's holiday push for its own Tesco Downloads service.
Related -- Virgin Digital Goes Retail [Dec.22: Link] | E-commerce |Micropayments |Microsoft |Music | [by staci]

-- BlingTones Announces First Wireless Music Label: Actually, BlingTones, the hip-hop ringtones division of Lagardere Active, announced it was forming the "first wireless record label" but I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around the idea of a wireless record. Time to leave the old terminology behind.
The label has signed some high-profile hip-hop producer/artists to create 30-second pieces of new music that will be available only theough BlingTones. Among those who've signed on: Q-Tip, Rockwilder (Missy Elliot, Jay-Z, DMX), Denuan Porter (50 Cent, Eminem), Salaam Remi (Nas), Hi-Tek (Talib Kweli, Snoop Dogg).
BlingTones has carriage deals with Sprint, Cingular/ATTW, Nextel, and Boost Mobile.
BlingTones is also launching BlingPix -- exclusive screen savers/wallpaper with urban themes.: next up: signing comedians to create original content for ringtones and ringbacks.(You wouldn't be able to play the Chris Rock version in public.) [Dec.22: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- From MoCoNews: Revenue Assurance for Mobile Content : MoCoNews colleague James Pearce pulls important points out of a look at mobile content revenue by Billing World & OSS Today. Among them:
"If subscribers purchase content, how long do they own it? And, as subscribers change their handsets, how do you migrate the content from one handset to another? What are the digital rights to the content in this instance?" [Dec.22: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Buzz Machine Tops Sorgatz's List For Blog Of The Year: "For being a spokesman against cultural censorship, Buzz Machine is my blog of the year." Sure, it's just one among many such lists or #1 claims but Rex Sorgatz does it so well. (This is where I should mention that paidContent is #15 on the list of 26 "for scouring a wide range of topics between business and technology." Thanks, Rex.)Of course, this is the same guy who predicted President Howard Dean when he put the Dean campaign blog at the top of last year's list.
He kicks off the list with a forceful argument about why 2004 was not "the year of the blog" -- "this was the year blogs grew up."
I've been avoiding Time magazine's version naming Powerline as number one, not because I disagree with the choice -- which I do -- but because it's only available online to subscribers. I think Time's strategy of making its archives and much of its magazine content available free to subscribers but not to everyone else makes business sense. But even though I'm a Time subscriber (we still get all three newsweeklies)and can access it myself, I think Time is making a mind-numbing mistake when it runs a high-profile story about blogging and walls it off -- I'd have no problem if Time made it available to subs first for a limited time. This was not a major subscription opportunity -- it was a major marketing test and Time is failing.
Time gets points for putting the whole archive online (even though I can't produce a complete list of my own Time contributions); demerits for a Pyrrhic policy. [Dec.22: Link] | Nanopublishing | [by staci]

-- eBay Exec Arrested in India Allowed Out On Bail: Avnish Bajaj, the Indian-born American who founded and sold to eBay the division he now runs, has been released on bail but the furor isn't close to dying down. Bajaj heads Baazee.com, the Indian auction site where a video clip of two minors having oral sex was offered for sale. News about the clip and the minors' behavior has created a social storm within India. The arrest -- using an ambiguous law for an item that wasn't actually on the site and a listing that was removed quickly -- made it international and the province of diplomats. eBay execs are threatening to reconsider doing business in India and other companies are spooked. [Dec.21: Link] | E-commerce | [by staci]

-- Industry Moves: ECNext Inc. Promotes Pamela Springer To President, CEO : ECNext Inc., which provides marketing, sales and distribution for online commercial content, promoted Springer to president from VP-sales suceeding Chris Skudder. Columbus Business First reports that the promotion actually was made Dec. 6 even though it was announced today. No press release on Skudder's departure.just announced it today.
Springer joined the company in March 2003 and is credited with increasing the customer sales base by more than 150 percent per quarter for the past six consecutive quarters. [Dec.21: Link] | E-commerce |Industry Moves |Micropayments | [by staci]

-------------------------------------------------------------
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-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
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>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
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Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager

In Case You Missed It:

-- Microsoft Sells Slate To Washington Post
-- What Diller Puts Together He Can -- And Will -- Tear Asunder
-- TechTarget's Acquisition Piggy Bank Just Got Fatter
-- BBCi Drops Sites, Cuts Budget Again
-- California Decides Newspaper Vs. Web Is Distinction Without A Difference
-- Musiwave Signs With All Four Global Music Companies To Deliver Mobile Downloads
-- Snocap's Shawn Fanning Disputes Contention That People Won't Pay For Content
-- Subscription Services Are Better Business Than Downloads
-- Gaming Google AdWords
-- 'Content value is exploding in electronic form'
-- The Many Faces of Google
--------------

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Dec. 21, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Microsoft Sells Slate to WaPo; Diller Unbundles Expedia; TechTarget's Piggy Bank Expands

2004-12-21T15:43:00.000-08:00

To view this newsletter in full-color: http://www.imakenews.com/alirafat/index000030699.cfm?x=b49GVwh,b2DgcH9d PaidContent.org

Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 21,2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

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I was getting ready to hit send when word came that the Washington Post Company is acquiring Slate from Microsoft. Check the site later for more details and at least one good interview. Hard not to wonder if MSNBC.com and MSNBC cable are next. I'll ask but I've been told before there are no such plans. Of course, that doesn't mean much in the canny corporate world.
Yesterday's edition may still be lurking in your spam folder because of "offensive" words. The words in questions -- "ad*lt" and "p*rn" -- were actually part of links that I didn't want to break even though I went through the newsletter and changed those words in the text. Instead of forcing broken links or visits to spam he**, it would help a lot if those of you creating the links -- either setting up the slugs or creating the automation -- would keep problems like this in mind and use inoffensive-to-spam slugs in the links. Some of these links are from news organizations whose own spam filters go into overdrive when one comes through via email. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Microsoft Sells Slate To Washington Post
-- What Diller Puts Together He Can -- And Will -- Tear Asunder
-- TechTarget's Acquisition Piggy Bank Just Got Fatter
-- BBCi Drops Sites, Cuts Budget Again
-- California Decides Newspaper Vs. Web Is Distinction Without A Difference
-- Musiwave Signs With All Four Global Music Companies To Deliver Mobile Downloads
-- Snocap's Shawn Fanning Disputes Contention That People Won't Pay For Content
-- Subscription Services Are Better Business Than Downloads
-- Gaming Google AdWords
-- 'Content value is exploding in electronic form'
-- The Many Faces of Google
----------------------

Microsoft Sells Slate To Washington Post: No financial details but Slate keeps its headline status on the MSN front page via a distribution deal. Editor Jacob Weisberg is part of the deal and most of the staff is staying on; publisher Cyrus Krohn, who contributed greatly to Slate's business success, will be replaced by Cliff Sloan, VP-business development and general counsel of WPNI. Krohn stays at Microsoft as part of the MSN Video team.
According to Nielsen NetRatings, Slate had six million unique users in November 2004.
Check back for more details and at least one good interview. [Dec.21: Link] | Microsoft | [by staci]

-- What Diller Puts Together He Can -- And Will -- Tear Asunder : After years of painstakingly piecing together the company now known as IAC/InterActive Corp., Barry Diller is dismantling part of it to re-create Expedia as a stand-alone travel company. The new Expedia will include all of IAC's travel-related businesses including TripAdviser.com, Hotels.com and Hotwire.
Diller remains chairman and CEO of IAC; he'll also be chairman of the new Expedia with Dara Khosrowshahi as CEO.
Diller is trying to unlock value while also removing the limiting categorization of IAC as a "travel company." In his letter to shareholders, he writes: "Those businesses ... now represent over 50 percent of IAC's earnings, and dwarf each of our other operations. Many of those, standing on their own, have real import and significance but are considered irrelevant in the current construct."
-- "... Outside travel, it hinders growth through acquisition because non-travel companies generally don't want to accept what they view as a travel stock. Inside travel, acquisition growth, already hindered without a pure travel currency, would amplify IAC's imbalance, making it even harder for us to grow outside of travel."
-- "... IAC, post-transaction, will be a diversified interactive commerce company, with a mix of established and embryonic businesses, united by a spirit of opportunism and entrepreneurship."
"We don't believe the interactive revolution is over, to say the least; we believe big opportunities will continue to be available to companies and management teams able to spot real potential for growth and seize it, and that playing with one hand tied behind our back as the next phase of internet growth and convergence unfolds would be intolerable."
Translated, that means giving some context to businesses beyond sharing the same ownership. Those businesses include HSN, Ticketmaster, Match.com, LendingTree, RealEstate.com, Citysearch, ServiceMagic, Entertainment Publications, and Evite.
Several years ago, I had the opportunity to sit with Diller in a small conference room off of his Carnegie Tower office and listen to his vision of the interactive future. Since then, he's zigged and zagged but he remains one of the most fervent evangelists of interactivity and ecommerce around. Those who criticize him for being enamored with the art of the deal may have a point but the deals stem from a flexibility that a lot of top executives don't have.
WSJ (sub. req.) [Dec.21: Link] | Biz/Fin |E-commerce | [by staci] Google | [by staci]

-- TechTarget's Acquisition Piggy Bank Just Got Fatter : It's true -- money does make money. IT media company TechTarget, which earlier this year pulled in a whopping $70 million in VC backing, today announces another $15 million in Series C funding from existing investors Palo Alto-based Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV) and Waltham-based Polaris Venture Partners. Polaris led TechTargetÃ¢ÂÂs $30 million Series A round and was part of the June funding round of $70 million led by TCV. This round brings the total funding to $127 million, with $85 million raised in 2004 alone.
Look for more acquisitions and an international expansion. TechTarget projects it will close this year with nearly $50 million in revenue and will surpass $80 million in revenue in 2005.
TechTarget says only two other U.S. companies have secured more funding this year.
Related -- TechTarget Ropes in a Whopping $70 Million in Venture Financing [Dec.21: Link] | Biz/Fin | [by staci]

-- BBCi Drops Sites, Cuts Budget Again: BBCi came out today with more details about how it will meet demands to change the way it does business. Among the changes:
-- Another 7.5 percent will be cut from the budget by 2006 for a total of Â£ 6 million.
-- The US Sports section of bbc.co.uk/sport and the local history site, bbc.co.uk/legacies will close. Funding for the cult TV site will be reduced but the Dr. Who section will remain intact. Funding for bbc.co.uk/lifestyle also will be reduced.
-- Multi-media content will be enhanced on BBC's Where I Live sites but less information will be provided on some sites.
bbc.co.uk/film will be "re-prioritised"
-- the whole report is laden with bureaucratic language
-- to focus on new talent and short-films. [Dec.20: Link] | BBCi | [by staci]

-- California Decides Newspaper Vs. Web Is Distinction Without A Difference: The state of California won't challenge a federal court ruling that overturned a state regulation that treated web sites and newspapers differently. Until the Nov. 18th ruling, the state required web sites to have a real-estate broker's license to publish real estate advertising; newspapers faced no such requirement.
Public-interest law firm The Institute for Justice represented plaintiff forsalebyowner.com. Steve Simpson, one of the attorneys, told CNET News, "The Internet should be treated like traditional media. ... There's no justification for licensing publications of either type. We hope other states recognize this simple truth as well." [Dec.20: Link] | Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Musiwave Signs With All Four Global Music Companies To Deliver Mobile Downloads (sub. req.): WSJ says the deals will be announced Tuesday. Musiwave's new service will launch in the UK, France, Spain and four other European countries for delivery over Vodafone's new advanced network. The initial library -- 150,000 songs -- from EMI, Warner Music, Universal Music, and Sony BMG will be available on launch, expanding to 500,000 mid-2005 and 1 million by this time next year.
Related -- From MoCoNews.net: Warner Music puts catalogue on mobiles [Dec.21: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Snocap's Shawn Fanning Disputes Contention That People Won't Pay For Content: In a letter to the editor of the Mercury News, Fanning responds to a recent column by Mike Langberg, who predicted a poor future for download services.
Here's a taste of what Langberg had to say: "People like to get things for free that would otherwise cost them money. And they won't stop taking them for free just because there's a convenient legal alternative, if that alternative requires opening their wallets."
Fanning responds: "... I disagree with his belief that paid content can't compete with free. Video and audio are available at no cost through network television and FM/AM radio. But thriving and profitable cable networks and satellite radio companies show that fans are willing to pay for better, more comprehensive content. ... There will always be free content available to those who want to spend the time to find it, but there are many more people who want authorized access to a broad and competitive marketplace offering the largest possible catalog of music without the stigma and risk of using unauthorized file-sharing services."
paidContent's take? Fanning comes closest to being right but either he or a PR person can't help over-focussing on being legal as the reason for downloads. Yes, millions of songs are being downloaded legally, but in no small part because it's more convenient for the buyer than searching for a good copy of the same material via file-sharing. Legality is a primary factor -- as are quality, convenience and cost. Related -- P2P's Bad Boy Returns as Digital Music Cop [Dec.21: Link] | DRM |E-commerce |Micropayments |Music | [by staci]

-- Subscription Services Are Better Business Than Downloads: That sounds so blindingly obvious you wouldn't think it needs to be pointed out. It's rare indeed when one-time purchases outweigh the value of monthly income in the long run. I don't buy a lot of songs but I pay Real every month for the right to listen to anything in the Rhapsody library whenever I want. They get two revenue streams from me; one far more valuable than the other.
Despite the discussion over legal downloads and iTunes' 200 millionth download, the momentum for 2005 is with subscription services. Jefferson Graham (my colleague in the first Western Knight fellowship group at USC back in 2000) lays out Microsoft's newest contribution to the susbcription music effort, a new form of DRM that allows you to download and use music as long as you subscribe to a service. Relatively few of the portable players sold this season can handle the new copyright system but more are due out next month.
Napster CEO Chris Gorog is literally betting the business on the subscription biz, selling off software company Roxio to focus "100 percent" on Napster. The service's Microsoft option -- "Napster To Go" -- is now being tested, and should launch 1Q05. [Dec.21: Link] | Conferences |DRM |Micropayments |Microsoft |Music |RNWK | [by staci]

-- Gaming Google AdWords: Dave Pell thought people might head over to Google after last week's Geico decision to see who would pop up as an advertiser when the insurance company's name was invoked. Pell decided it might as well be him. "I became, for a brief and glorious moment, the Geico version of the Aflak duck," he writes in a case study of modern marketing.
As of Monday night, the message -- "It's Only Me, Dave Pell -- I'm taking advantage of a popular case instead of earning my traffic" -- was still the top sponsored link. Geico.com and related Geico links showed up right below Pell's sites during a Blogdex search.
In effect, Pell gamed Google's system, taking advantage of a moment of notoriety to boost his own numbers. But he also played the system the way Google has it laid out. It's not hard to imagine someone doing the opposite of the airlines, which remove their advertising during coverage of a plane crash, and sponsoring words that would pop up as people search for news and information about the disaster. It's the marketing equivalent of "it doesn't matter what they say as long as they spell my name right."
A corollary of sorts: advertisers are buying bloggers names in the hopes of cashing in on their popularity. (via Marketing Vox) Blogpulse's Pete Blackshaw explains why he bought Steve Rubel's name; read through the comments here. Blackshaw's biggest success -- a nearly 10 percent click-thru from Barack Obama. Rubel notched only 1.5 percent. [Dec.21: Link] | Marketing | [by staci]

-- 'Content value is exploding in electronic form': An interesting read from John Blossom at Shore Communications on the meaning of copyright when archives go digital -- and global. His kickoff point is Google's project to digitize some university and public library archives. (I have to agree with Blossom when he says this one was overblown by the media.)
-- "In the long run ... it's a huge warning sign to publishers and aggregators that have relied on the time-tested tool of copyright law as the basis for their profitability - not so much because of any direct threat to their domain but by highlighting the changing fortunes of a domain of content value whose time may have come and gone."
-- "Put simply the models for success in premium content are moving on, not waiting for those who'd rather salt away another round of quarterly or semi-annual returns on copyrighted chestnuts before breaking the bad news to their boards that they've been shaking the wrong branch of the money tree way too long."
-- "When copyright becomes viewed as a right to discuss a relationship on one's own terms rather than a demand to avoid relationships, copyrighted content will find its way into more useful venues more quickly - with monetization to follow."
Related -- Google Gets An Advanced Degree [Dec.20: Link] | DRM | [by staci]

-- The Many Faces of Google: Most of the time, Google coverage comes in bits and pieces as the company tries new initiatives. Making his second appearance of the day via a quirk in publishing, Jefferson Graham pulls it all together for USA Today. Some highlights:
-- Gmail: "Google co-founder Sergey Brin says Gmail will go public 'when I am totally satisfied with it. We're still looking at ways to improve the product.'"
-- Digital photography: "Google wants to be in the middle of how we manage this kind of content. ... We'll figure out how to monetize it later." -- Picasa general manager Lars Perkins

John Battelle adds his two cents: "I don't have the answer to this question, but it's worth raising - how long can this approach to the world stand? It's certainly a wonderful luxury to have - make a useful product, then figure out if/how it might make money. it reminds me of my preferred approach to publishing - make great editorial, then figure out how to sell it later. The only difference - with editorial, there was always a model to fall back on - advertising and subscription. As I've pointed out before, I'm not so sure that advertising alone can foot the bill for all of Google's innovations." [Dec.20: Link] |

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Newstex, Senior Sales and Account Managers
-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
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>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
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-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager

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Classified Jobs

-- Newstex, Senior Sales and Account Managers

-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager

In Case You Missed It:

-- MPAA Fallout? Two Top BitTorrent Sites Close
-- Sprint, Cingular: Bikinis Are Ok As Long As They're Not From Playboy
-- EMI Music Publishing, Sony BMG Join Digital Forces
-- Music Choice, Sprint Launch Mobile Music Service
-- EBay Exec Arrest In India Should Set Off Alarm
-- From MoCoNews: Apple, Motorola Circumvent Carriers
-- Boeing Will Add Live TV To In-Flight Broadband
-- Total Soccer Network Signs On With SmartSMS
-- AOL-Gazing: How The Time Warner Division Can Strike Advertising Gold
-- Hard To Get Excited About BT's Claim Of A Broadband Customer Every 10 Seconds
-- Declan McCullagh Speaks Truth To Power Over iCANN's Latest Brainstorm
-- Australian Search Engine Not Sweating Over U.S.-based Rivals
-- BBC Radio Podcasting Experiment Downloads Success
-- Industry Moves: Top Marketer McCaffrey Leaves Google
-- Where's Rafat? Laziness 1 & 2
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

For the latest news and archives, go to PaidContent.org

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Dec. 20, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: BitTorrent Sites Fold; Sprint, Cingular Say No To Playboy; Apple, Motorola Circumvent Carriers

2004-12-20T19:32:00.000-08:00

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Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 20,2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by eMeta

eMeta 's eRights Suite offers flexible access control, commerce, billing, and registration solutions to online content providers and publishers. We allow businesses to create, control, and commercialize their content offerings while managing the full customer experience - quickly, securely and profitably. Enjoy rapid time-to-market and increased reliability, allowing you to focus on creating and selling your digital assets while trusting us with your content infrastructure.
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Lots to think about in this issue plus new job listings and some photos from Rafat that leave me wondering about my own choices. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- MPAA Fallout? Two Top BitTorrent Sites Close
-- Sprint, Cingular: Bikinis Are Ok As Long As They're Not From Playboy
-- EMI Music Publishing, Sony BMG Join Digital Forces
-- Music Choice, Sprint Launch Mobile Music Service
-- EBay Exec Arrest In India Should Set Off Alarm
-- From MoCoNews: Apple, Motorola Circumvent Carriers
-- Boeing Will Add Live TV To In-Flight Broadband
-- Total Soccer Network Signs On With SmartSMS
-- AOL-Gazing: How The Time Warner Division Can Strike Advertising Gold
-- Hard To Get Excited About BT's Claim Of A Broadband Customer Every 10 Seconds
-- Declan McCullagh Speaks Truth To Power Over iCANN's Latest Brainstorm
-- Australian Search Engine Not Sweating Over U.S.-based Rivals
-- BBC Radio Podcasting Experiment Downloads Success
-- Industry Moves: Top Marketer McCaffrey Leaves Google
-- Where's Rafat? Laziness 1 & 2
----------------------

MPAA Fallout? Two Top BitTorrent Sites Close: Just days after the MPAA launched an all-out offensive against operators of BitTorrent servers, SuprNova.org and TorrentBits.org have turned out the lights.
BitTorrent reportedly represented 53 percent of all P2P traffic in June or 35 percent of net traffic.A Dr. Johan Pouwelse examines BitTorrent traffic in detail in a paper posted on The Register. (via SlashDot)
Related -- MPAA Files Suit Against Operators of More Than 100 File-Sharing Servers Across Four Continents
-- A Torrent of Traffic [Dec.19: Link] | Movies | [by staci]

-- Sprint, Cingular: Bikinis Are Ok As Long As They're Not From Playboy: Without really saying so, Matt Richtel describes a serious problem for the Playboy-Dwango deal. The service may be en route to the U.S. but major carriers Sprint and Cingular don't plan to be on the customer list based on their comments in the Times.
"We're not going to offer ad*lt content; we're not going to offer ultraviolent games. ... That is not compatible with the Cingular brand." -- Mark Siegel, Cingular
"A Playboy brand or Penthouse brand -- those do not meet our requirements. ...Sports Illustrated and Maxim do." -- Mary Nell Westbrook, Sprint
Playboy exec Randy Nicolau said content in the U.S. will be less explicit than the video stripteases and images that are popular in Europe.
This raises a host of questions, most important -- who controls what you do with your cell phone? It's one thing for carriers to pick and choose what they want to offer but do they have the right to keep content off the phone if it can be reached through third-party browsers or downloaded in other ways?
Related -- Managing Mobile ad*lt Content
-- Playboy Set to Steam Up North American Mobile Phones [Dec.19: Link] | Ad*lt |Wireless | [by staci]

-- EMI Music Publishing, Sony BMG Join Digital Forces: Described as ground-breaking in the press release, this agreement covering mobile music, DualDisc and digital video products in the U.S. and Canada may live up to the hype. Initially, it paves the way for discussions that should lead to a wide range of new digital products, formats, platforms and services.
"An agreement that facilitates more consumer friendly and piracy-deterrent formats is a big step for our industry and a huge win for artists and music fans." -- Martin Bandier, chairman & CEO, EMI Music Publishing
"This agreement will enable us to rapidly expand into new markets as we distribute music and entertainment content over a broad variety of platforms, including innovative products for the traditional retail market, music services in the mobile space, and video on demand." -- Andy Lack, CEO, Sony BMG Entertainment [Dec.19: Link] | DRM |Music |Sony |Wireless | [by staci]

-- Music Choice, Sprint Launch Mobile Music Service: Billboard reports that Sprint users willing to pay $5.99 a month will have access to Music Choice Today, a new service including music news, video and streaming audio of Music Choice channels. It's the first all-music offering on Sprint's PCS Vision multimedia platform. The catch? At launch, only those with the Sanyo MM-7400 handset can get the multimedia service. No details on which other multimedia handsets will follow suit -- or when. (If music's the goal, keep the phone you have for now and use the money to buy a good MP3 player.)
This is an important piece of Sprint's multimedia puzzle; it's also significant for Music Choice, which recently announced a VOD deal with Comcast and is morphing into a multi-platform service.
The Raleigh (N.C.) News & Observer takes a look at another aspect of PCS Vision multimedia launching Monday-- a regional news/weather/traffic service with live pictures of traffic and Doppler weather graphics being offered with WRAL-TV as a partner. Cost:$3.99 a month.
NYTimes; press release [Dec.19: Link] | Music |Wireless | [by staci]

-- EBay Exec Arrest In India Should Set Off Alarm: eBay is "outraged" by the arrest of Avnish Bajaj, CEO of its Baazee.com subsidiary in India and it's hard not to agree or to wonder about the signal Indian authorities are sending to online operators. This time, it's about e-commerce but it might just as easily be about an editorial site that offers classifieds or allows comments.
In this case, which has gained a certain amount of noteriety in India, a Bazee.com user offered a p*rnographic video clip for sale. The clip wasn't posted; it was to be sent to buyers via email. As eBay explains it, the posting violated Baazee's policies and was removed from the site upon being discovered.
The attention to the case stems primarily from the clip's origin and the seller -- it's a video of the seller, a 17-year-old male student -- and a girl, also a minor, engaged in oral sex. It was transmitted by camera phone. He is in detention.
But Bajaj's arrest is unfathomable. According to eBay, the executive traveled to New Delhi voluntarily to help with inquiries and was then arrested and detained without bail until Dec. 24.
Is your company at risk? [Dec.20: Link] | E-commerce | [by staci]

-- From MoCoNews: Apple, Motorola Circumvent Carriers: While others carry on about the prospects of an iTunes' phone, our MoCoNews correspondent James Pearce cuts to the chase. It's all about content control ...
Apple and Motorola have hinted that iTunes may be available on some Motorola handsets as early as next January. The big thing about the deal is that it will bypass carriers altogether - which will annoy them as they want all content to be delivered over their networks, thereby generating revenue from bandwidth usage. TheyÃ¢ÂÂve blocked similar deals before, by simply refusing to allow the handsets onto their networks, but the same tactic may not work this time. AppleÃ¢ÂÂs iTunes is a huge (and more importantly, very popular) brand which boasts a large number of fans which companies like to call Ã¢ÂÂdedicatedÃ¢ÂÂ and other people like to call Ã¢ÂÂfanaticsÃ¢ÂÂ.
The upshot of this is that there is likely to be a large number of people who will buy the iTunes enabled handset irrespective of which network it will run on, removing the carriers' most potent leverage. (via textually.org)
Staci adds: Anyone else get the contradiction here? It's ok for Apple to circumvent someone else but it's not ok to do the same thing with an iPod.
Related -- Sprint, Cingular: Bikinis Are Ok As Long As They're Not From Playboy
-- State of the iPod [Dec.20: Link] | Apple |Music |Wireless | [by staci]

-- Boeing Will Add Live TV To In-Flight Broadband: While the FCC frets over how to make broadband happen on U.S. airliners, Boeing's Connexion broadband service will add four live TV channels in mid-2005. The live TV service -- no details on channels yet -- will launch first on Singapore Airlines. Stan Deal, Connexion VP - commercial airlines, tells IDG's Martyn Williams live sporting content is being eyed for 2006.
Connexion launched on Lufthansa last May and more recently was added to All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines and Scandinavian Airline Systems. (via Broadband Reports) [Dec.20: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Total Soccer Network Signs On With SmartSMS: The International Sports and Media Group soocer internet media division will work with interactive marketing firm SmartSMS to develop, host and deliver real-time soccer, news, scores, stats, trivia, video clips and other content to Total Soccer Network subs. TSN hopes to emulate the success of premium SMS for football in Europe.
The plan is to generate revenue with a per message fee for alerts and by billing advertisers to send coupons, promotions, etc. The timing is significant with the 2006 World Cup in Germany approaching. [Dec.20: Link] | Sports |Wireless | [by staci]

-- AOL-Gazing: How The Time Warner Division Can Strike Advertising Gold: The flood of AOL coverage continues with an in-depth piece by MediaPost's Tobi Elkin that pops up above the crowd.
"As more marketers place their bets with online advertising and sponsorship, AOL is poised to become a beneficiary of those dollars. If it proves it can develop and effectively manage audience segments and drive millions of eyeballs to its diverse properties, it just might become a model for other interactive media companies trying to do the same thing."
-- Jim Bankoff, EVP-programming, properties, and production, says one focus is segmenting the audience for products like AIM, where the same ads run for every user.
-- Women 25-54 spend 34 minutes a day within AOL's Life Management Network and average 13 usage days a month.
-- AOL has some 50 million credit card relationships. [Dec.20: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- Hard To Get Excited About BT's Claim Of A Broadband Customer Every 10 Seconds: when you know Adam Curry is still podcasting from the local Starbucks because they can't provision the customers they already have. In the latest personal report on the state of broadband in the UK, Curry takes on NTL for promising to install a cable modem today, taking his money and then telling him it can't be done until after Jan. 1.
From the BBC article on broadband UK uptick:
"The take-up rate for broadband is accelerating at a terrific pace. ... We will be in a very strong position to hit our five million target by summer 2006 much earlier than we had previously expected." -- Ben Verwaayen, BT's chief executive
From Curry.com:
"What is it with these companies, just like British Telecom, they promise and put install dates in writing, mind you only when you pay your install charges up front and your first month of service, and then they re-schedule. Needless to say I cancelled my subscription immediately and suggest you be wary when doing business with NTL. They are liars." -- Adam Curry
Related -- BT Can't Keep Up With Demand? [Dec.20: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Declan McCullagh Speaks Truth To Power Over iCANN's Latest Brainstorm: "Starting sometime in 2005, owners of .net domain names will have to pay a 75-cent additional annual fee to ICANN. There's nothing stopping ICANN from upping the levy in the future, and its executives have indicated that other top-level domains will be targeted as well.
Before deciding to play tax collector, though, ICANN should consider what happened back in 1999 that caused it to concoct and then abandon the idea." [Dec.20: Link] | [by staci]

-- Australian Search Engine Not Sweating Over U.S.-based Rivals: Greg Ellis, general manager of Sensis Search, tells The Age: "The winner in this market will be the organisation that can collect and organise the content most efficiently and be able to publish it in many forms - voice, wireless (for handheld wireless computers and mobile phones), PC internet and print."
But Sensis is in an unusual position of power compared to most competitors of the big U.S. search engines -- it owns the Yellow and White Pages databases and also operates Whereis, CitySearch and Trading Post.
"My competitors today - Yahoo!, Google and ninemsn are the top three - cannot do all that. They do not own the information the public seeks. ... I own the copyright to my information. I collect the listings and I put them in a database for print or digital (online) use, and that database is my book, my brand, my copyright."
Sensis users can opt for global answers or Australian sites only. [Dec.19: Link] | Google |YHOO | [by staci]

-- BBC Radio Podcasting Experiment Downloads Success: Users are taking advantage of the BBC's experiment in podcasting with more than 100,000 downloads of weekly show "In Our Time." (via Scripting News.) [Dec.18: Link] | BBCi |Broadband |Nanopublishing |RSS Etc. | [by staci]

-- Industry Moves: Top Marketer McCaffrey Leaves Google: SiliconBeat notes that Cindy McCaffrey, VP-corporate marketing, is the first top exec to leave Google post-IPO. McCaffrey is credited with Google's emphasis on marketing as opposed to high-cost advertising. Michael Bazeley writes "McCaffrey has been chugging away at the P.R. business for 20 years, including gigs at Apple Computer, E*TRADE and the 3DO Company. And that's after starting a career as a journalist. She's been at Google more than five years, which means that, post-IPO, she can comfortably go off and do nothing. And that's apparently what she intends to do for now." [Dec.20: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- Laziness 1 & 2: Rafat: I'm back (still in India, though) after the sunny confines of Goa and Kerela. That is what I was doing in Goa (first pic)and that is what I was doing in Kerela (second pic)...
Nothing much, really...

[Dec.18: Link] | [by rafat]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager

Â» DAILY NEWSLETTER:
To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
------------
paidContent.org's Generous Supporters
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IMN Inc

Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Audible, Online Editorial Director
-- m-Qube, Executive Producer - Online Merchanding Superstar
-- m-Qube, Sales Operations Manager - Mobile Content/Apps.
-- NewsBank, Online Marketing Manager
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager

In Case You Missed It:

-- Disney: Back To The Internet
-- Impressed by BitTorrent? Third-gen "Swarming" Technique Moves Faster
-- Four Words No One Wants To Hear: Acacia Increases Patent Power
-- FTC Workshop on P2P Wraps Up
-- Managing Mobile Ad*lt Content
-- JibJab Signs Short-Term Deal With Yahoo For Short Videos
-- When you get a chance to slip off the keeping-current treadmill and actually think
-- Industry Moves: Gary Kebbel Leaves AOL
-- IWantMedia.com Creates A Franchise
-- Where's Rafat? From The Southern Fringes
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

For the latest news and archives, go to PaidContent.org

To subscribe to this e-mail newsletter, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-|________________
POWERED BY: http://www.imninc.com/eletra/redirect.cfm?a=alirafat&x=b49msWK,b2DgcH9d
From Rafat Ali, 500 Nth 2nd Street, Unit C, Alhambra, CA 91801 US

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Dec. 17, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Iger On Disney's Digital, Mobile Plans; Double Trouble From Acacia Better Than BitTorrent?

2004-12-17T09:59:00.000-08:00

To view this newsletter in full-color:
http://www.imakenews.com/alirafat/index000030699.cfm?x=b490mP0,b2DgcH9d

PaidContent.org

Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 17, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by UPI

United Press International has been a leading provider of critical news content and pictures to media, businesses, governments and researchers worldwide for almost 100 years. UPI offers outstanding news and feature pictures as well as stories in English, Arabic and Spanish. Our content is optimized for print and digital use, including dynamic Web sites, digital signs, wireless devices and broadcast news tickers.
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Job hunters with marketing experience might want to check out the new post from NewsBank. Meanwhile, we're getting ready for CES coverage. I'll be blogging from Las Vegas Jan. 4-7 plus we'll be scouring the 'net for additional news. I made the trip two years ago and while it's much easier to watch from home, nothing beats being there for a sense of all the different ways people get media and entertainment. Check out the last post for an update from Rafat. Have a great weekend and, in the case of many of you, a great holiday break. Cheers. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Disney: Back To The Internet
-- Impressed by BitTorrent? Third-gen "Swarming" Technique Moves Faster
-- Four Words No One Wants To Hear: Acacia Increases Patent Power
-- FTC Workshop on P2P Wraps Up
-- Managing Mobile Ad*lt Content
-- JibJab Signs Short-Term Deal With Yahoo For Short Videos
-- When you get a chance to slip off the keeping-current treadmill and actually think
-- Industry Moves: Gary Kebbel Leaves AOL
-- IWantMedia.com Creates A Franchise
-- Where's Rafat? From The Southern Fringes
----------------------

Disney: Back To The Internet : With failed portal "Go" firmly in its past, the Walt Disney Co. is moving rapidly into the digital future. Bob Iger, Disney president and COO, made that clear during his appearance at CSFB Media Week, when he called the world "one giant opportunity" and said Disney "is placing our bet on content." More important, he added, "we need to be at the forefront on a platform-agnostic basis."
That's the key for Disney. Every single piece of creative has to be thought of as viable in some form on any platform. That's made easier by the interest from all sides in Disney material; as Iger puts it, "We seem to be at the front of the line, near the front of the line ... you get the sense that anyone launching a platform is interested."
Disney has launched 265 different wireless offerings around the world. "You no longer call them cell phones -- they're mobile devices," says Iger. One on the way is ESPN's new MVNO, ESPN Mobile, slated for launch next year. During a press gaggle after his appearance, I tried to get Iger to confirm that other Disney MVNOs would follow but he wasn't ready to commit.
"We're launched on 25 different mobile platforms. Growth of delivery over wireless platforms is going to be dramatic. We want to position ourselves aggressively to take advantage of that growth. We've done that already and we going to continue to."
-- "We haven't announced we're going to do any more (MVNOs) in the Disney family although it's possible we will. There's nothing specific in terms of the investment but we're not talking hundreds of millions of dollars."
How is Disney going to take advantage of digital content? "It's endless. The list is so long -- wireless content for Disney/ABC and ESPN-branded services; digitally, we launched a news network (ABC News Now) not that long ago, which we're proud of, we think it's the right direction for that business. We've got a lot of broadband businesses that are cropping up both domestically and internationally. As I said at the beginning, what I think is important is we view the world as one great opportunity for a content player to distribute content to consumers in just about every market."
The FT reports that Iger will meet with online head Steve Wadsworth Friday to discuss investment plans and digital strategy. Iger told the FT: "We could invest substantial amounts of money in this area following a turnround in that business, which at its nadir with Go lost a couple of hundred million dollars. ... Today we are more poised to take advantage of growth opportunities than five years ago. It's time to invest." [Dec.16: Link] | Broadband |Disney |Movies |Wireless | [by staci]

-- Impressed by BitTorrent? Third-gen "Swarming" Technique Moves Faster: "If you're impressed by BitTorrent, you're going to be absolutely blown away by SwarmStream," promises Justin Chapweske, inventor of Swarmcast, the first swarming technology. It's a line he uses on his blob and in his presentation at JavaLobby. Here's how Chapweske explains it:
"The technology improves swarming by ensuring that the bytes that the user wants next are scheduled to be received next. So if they're playing back a video file, the bytes from the front of the file will be received first. If the user (or application) skips forward to the middle of the file, the bytes at the middle of the file will be prioritized. Thus, unlike first generation swarming systems like Swarmcast or Bittorrent, you don't have to wait for the entire file to download to do something useful with it!."
" It also provides Self-Healing Downloads, implements a full-blown, scalable, Web Proxy Cache, and actively works to ensure that the video playback never studders or buffers by constantly monitoring and adapting to changing network conditions." That's just the tip of the product.
The SwarmStream SDK, which claims to accelerate apps up to 900 percent faster or more over wide-area networks, was published this week by parent company Onion Networks. At a cool $25,000 for training, support and a full suite of supporting technologies, it's nowhere near open source but Chapweske says the new iteration of Swarmcast will be completely free with full functionality. (via NewScientist.com) [Dec.16: Link] | Movies | [by staci]

-- FTC Workshop on P2P Wraps Up: After two days of meetings, Wired News' Michael Grebbs says the two sides are willing to play nicely but have little common ground. Take the issue of filtering -- content companies say filtering out illegal material is doable; P2P companies say otherwise.
The biggest question emerging from the workshop may be what will the FTC do about P2P? Adam Thierer of the Cato Institute sees "a very good chance this will be the first step toward federal regulation of P2P players and the marketplace more broadly in the name of ending 'deceptive practices.' ... But the FTC could be opening a big can of worms here since most of the problems on P2P networks -- viruses, spyware, porn, etc. -- are common throughout cyberspace."
As Grebbs reports, Susan Creighton, director of the FTC's competition bureau, used her closing remarks to note P2P's "immense promise" and urged Congress "to proceed with caution" before contemplating any P2P regulation. [Dec.17: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Four Words No One Wants To Hear: Acacia Increases Patent Power: Acacia Research's power to disrupt business as usual gets a big boost with the acquisition of Global Patent Holdings, parent of TechSearch, which freqently tangles with Intel, Sony, Samsung, etc. Purchase price -- $7 million and approximately 3.9 million shares of Acacia. (Heck, the legal fees racked up by companies fighting Acacia patent claims could be more than that.) The move creates what CNET's John Borland describes as a "patent powerhouse, which would own small pieces of dozens of different technologies, many of which are fundamental components of everyday Internet and personal technology businesses."
Acacia doesn't plan to stop there as it steams toward CEO Paul Ryan's a stated goal of "becoming the leading technology licensing company."
TechSearch is suing ESPN, among others, over instertial ad technology. Other patents in the Global family could affect P2P communications, spreadsheet programs, image resolution or enhancement, encryption and product activation, broadcasting and data transmission.
Press release. [Dec.17: Link] | Patents | [by staci]

-- Managing Mobile Ad*lt Content: News that Australian authorities are moving to regulate p*rn on mobile devices reminded me of a quick, casual conversation with Playboy Enterprises Chairman & CEO Christie Hefner during CSFB Media Week. We chatted first about about the recently announced Dwango deal that brings Playboy to mobiles in the U.S. and Canada long after its availability in other countries.
Then I brought up something that had occured to me on the trip in when I walked by people watching mobile video on the plane before we took off -- what happens when people start watching Playboy on phones in public areas like planes in close quarters with other people? Hefner doesn't think it's any different than watching on a portable DVD player. True, but it's infinitely more portable with greater impulse potential and the ability to be viewed in places where DVD would be unlikely.
Music is usually private when you're wearing a headset but video is a lot more difficult to keep to yourself. As mobile content becomes more pervasive, social aspects of use will become more of an issue. [Dec.17: Link] | Adult | [by staci]

-- JibJab Signs Short-Term Deal With Yahoo For Short Videos : Yahoo will distribute JibJab's next two animated videos -- one holiday-themed, the other political a la the "This Land" video that made them famous. AtomShockwave hosted that piece and three others by Gregg and Evan Spiridellis, boosting viewership, so this could be seen as a loss for them even though it's very short term.
Maybe the holiday animation will spur sales of the JibJab X-mas merchandise. Harry the Hostile Wreath ($29.99, the Nasty Santa Doll and Holiday Beanies ($19.99) are already sold out but signed editions of "Are You Grumpy, Santa?" ($19.99)-- the duo's first book -- are still available.
Don't rush to the site, though -- the store works just fine but the main site appears to be having some problems.
-- Poking Fun At George And John Makes A Profit [Dec.16: Link] | YHOO | [by staci]

-- When you get a chance to slip off the keeping-current treadmill and actually think:
-- EPIC 2014 -- a history of the media in 2014 from the Museum of Media History with 2004 as the year when everything began
-- You Say Napster, I Say Grokster: What do you do when technology outpaces the law? -- Rod Smolla
-- The Digital Genie's Out of the Bottle -- Jim Austin
-- TV News in a Postmodern World: A Broadcaster's Christmas Carol -- Terry L. Heaton (and Charles Dickens) (via Doc Searls)
-- The top 1,000 things to know -- Seth Godin (via Joi Ito)
-- What's Next for Google -- Charles H. Ferguson (via Robert Scoble)
[Dec.17: Link] | [by staci]

-- Industry Moves: Gary Kebbel Leaves AOL: Turns out respected online journalism veteran Gary Kebbel was part of last week's AOL layoffs. As AOL News Director, Kebbel most recently was responsible for operations and new products. He joined AOL in 1999. If he's on the market long, it's a mistake.
[Dec.16: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- IWantMedia.com Creates A Franchise: It's not quite Time Magazine's Person of the Year but iwantmedia.com founder Patrick Phillips is generating some interest in his creation: Media Person of the Year. The 2004 edition -- the fouth will be announced Sunday on CNBC. The polls closed Dec. 12 but you can read comments here. [Dec.17: Link] | [by staci]

-- From The Southern Fringes: Rafat: I am in India's southernmost state of Kerela these days, enjoying a very relaxing bit of pre-packaged laziness...
On my way back to Delhi in a day, and will stay in India for the rest of the year. I am looking forward to being back in US and online...
Happy Holidays, ya all'... [Dec.17: Link] | [by rafat]

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-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
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In Case You Missed It:

-- Audio: Interview, Eric Nicoli, EMI
-- Yahoo Video Search Unveiled
-- Google Adwords Beats Back Trademark Claim
-- FCC Approves Wireless Internet Access on Planes
-- State of the iPod
-- Update on FTC P2P Conference
-- AOL Emerges From Accounting Debacle
-- New Online Music Store Mindawn Opens for Business
-- From MoCoNews.net: Warner Music puts catalogue on mobiles
-- "Creepy" Site Uses IM As Draw
-- First ZigBee Spec Ratified
-- Media Bloggers Association Expands
-- Industry Moves: Mediabolic Adds Gregory Smith, SVP/CFO
--------------

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Dec. 16, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: FCC OKs In-Flight Broadband; Yahoo Video Search Beta Unveiled;State of the iPod; Audio: Eric Nicoli, EMI

2004-12-16T07:56:00.000-08:00

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PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 16, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

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We still have some email tangles to unravel. For instance, yesterday I realized that the last few dozen messages to my account were stuck on a server. I've retrieved them and am working through the backlog. My apologies for any delays. Also, the address we gave for our new columnist Tolman Geffs isn't behaving. If you emailed him at paidcontent.org, he's not ignoring you -- he hasn't seen the message. He can be reached at tolmang@jegi.com.
Meanwhile, Rafat is still in Goa and lacks access to email on a regular basis so please be sure anything timely is copied to me at staci@paidcontent.org. Thanks for your patience and continued support. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Audio: Interview, Eric Nicoli, EMI
-- Yahoo Video Search Unveiled
-- Google Adwords Beats Back Trademark Claim
-- FCC Approves Wireless Internet Access on Planes
-- State of the iPod
-- Update on FTC P2P Conference
-- AOL Emerges From Accounting Debacle
-- New Online Music Store Mindawn Opens for Business
-- From MoCoNews.net: Warner Music puts catalogue on mobiles
-- "Creepy" Site Uses IM As Draw
-- First ZigBee Spec Ratified
-- Media Bloggers Association Expands
-- Industry Moves: Mediabolic Adds Gregory Smith, SVP/CFO
----------------------

Audio: Interview, Eric Nicoli, EMI: I finally had a chance to post the audio of the brief interview with EMI Chairman Eric Nicoli after his presentation at UBS Media Week. It's worth a listen, particularly for his take on the ramifications for iPod if Apple continues to go its own DRM way. Download audio. (4 min,.5MB)This fits in the the State of the iPod below.
-- UBS Media Week Interview: Eric Nicoli, EMI -- iPods Must Become Interoperable Or Risk Market Share [Dec.16: Link] | Music | [by staci]

Yahoo Video Search Unveiled : Jeremy Zawodny from Yahoo Search points to an early beta of Yahoo Video Search now up on Yahoo! Next, the company's preview site for new technology and applications. This search beta is based on using enclosures, RSS and metadata to reach more video than is currently possible. He offers a full explanation but here are a few highlights:
-- To kickstart collecting the metadata or "data about data" -- in this case, the details about the media being published -- Yahoo is proposing an optional set of metadata extensions called "Media RSS." The video search system will also support the Media RSS extensions along with video enclosures.
-- Yahoo is talking to "a lot" of its existing media partners about the difficulty of mining video masked by "non-crawler friendly obstacles."
-- Yahoo is working with AtomFilms, Creative Commons, Buzznet, Ourmedia, and Broadband Mechanics on the metadata issue. (via SiliconBeat.
Also from Yahoo, an enhanced mapping service that overlays local traffic data over routes. It's the first site to try this nationally. Email or phone traffic alerts with links to live maps are on the to-do list. [Dec.16: Link] | RSS Etc. |YHOO | [by staci]

-- FCC Approves Wireless Internet Access on Planes: In a move that eventually could have significant impact on in-flight content use, the FCC voted today(pdf) to allow wireless access on planes. Nothing's going to change any time soon, though, as a lot of details, including an auction, have to be dealt with before anyone can legally use wireless in flight. The probable turn-on date is sometime in 2006.
Verizon Airfone is the only one of three carriers still offering in-flight phone service; the company is arguing for a monopoly on the grounds that it will be easier to manage. Boeing and AirCell are among those who disagree.
FCC Chairman Michael Powell explained the decision and a still-underway discussion of cell phone use in flight: "If there is a theme for this meeting, it is that we want (new technologies) on the land, in the air, and on the sea." ... We are pushing the frontiers in order to bring the information age to all corners of the world." Mr. Chairman, personally, I'd consider it a victory if you'd just issue orders to allow electrical devices to remain in use from take-off to landing. [Dec.15: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Google Adwords Beats Back Trademark Claim: That was fast. Two days after the federal civil action began, the judge dismissed the major claim that Google was undermining Geico's trademark and confusing customers with the sale of Geico links to the insurer's competitors. But one aspect of the suit remains outstanding; AP reports that the judge has asked the parties to try for a settlement regarding the issue of trademarked terms used within the ads themselves.
Beyond Geico, the legal battles are far from over. Google faces other suits and appeals, and the question of whether search engines can auction off rights to someone else's trademark is still very much in play. [Dec.16: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- State of the iPod : Is this the last year iPod will own the market --- and the shopping list -- going into the holidays? Rivals are crowding the field, interoperability is a growing issue and the first-in-to-do-it-right advantage doesn't last forever. For now, the iPod minis and iPod 20s I saw in store after store in mid-Manhattan last week can't be found at Amazon (one mini color is left) or Best Buy.
As expected, Apple has finally blocked the Real Networks "hack" from working with iPods so Real Rhapsody tunes won't play on at least some models. Never fear. Real is already tweaking its "Harmony" technology that allows protected songs to play back on a variety of digital music players, including iPods. No ETA.
AudioGoGo provocatively suggests that Apple owns enough of the HD player market to be viewed in a Microsoft-Windows-like fashion and coule be vulnerable legally. "... if Apple continues to actively block others from supporting Fairplay DRM on the iPod AND continues holding close to 90% of the HD music player market, Virgin will not be the last one to sue, and Apple might actually deserve to lose." Not surprisingly, some folks disagree.
A mini-Apple store is opening here in St. Louis over the weekend. Estimated cost: a little over $1 million just to build out the space. (I can't give exact numbers but that puts it on the high end of square-foot costs.) The stainless-steel panels shipped in from Japan account for much of the cost. Given the holiday hype and mall crowds, the Saturday grand opening at the St. Louis Galleria could be even more of a circus than usual. Hard to imagine the other stores in the mall that carry iPods are thrilled. [Dec.16: Link] | Apple |Media Hardware | [by staci]

-- Update on FTC P2P Conference: Michael Grebbs reports for Wired News:
-- "You have had a great deal of deliberate, deceptive and misleading information. The parents and grandparents who run the companies in P2P United are not Darth Vader." -- P2P United Executive Director Adam Eisgrau to FTC staffers. P2P United includes BearShare, Blubster, eDonkey, Grokster and Morpheus.
-- "These purveyors have consciously not done anything to stop rampant infringement on their networks. ... Until courts properly provide recourse against illicit P2P services ... consumers will continue to find themselves liable.... Few appreciate how great the consequences can be." -- Stanley Pierre-Louis, SVP-litigation, RIAA.
-- "What's being communicated to (consumers) is that it's OK to download files, download copyrighted files," he said. "That's just outright deception." -- James Miller, chairman of CapAnalysis Group, an outside lobbyist for the RIAA.
-- P2P United plans to clarify for consumers that buying premium versions of P2P software (in order to avoid adware and spyware) doesn't provide an automatic license to download copyright works.
-- The commission also heard about file-sharing of child p*rn. [Dec.16: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- AOL Emerges From Accounting Debacle: More than two years after the accounting problems at AOL emerged, it looks like Time Warner will avoid corporate criminal or civil charges by the SEC and DOJ in exchange for about $510 million and promises to clean up the division's act while cooperating with civil and criminal investigations.
Once this is completely resolved -- the SEC has to issue final approval -- AOL will be able to focus on the future. As Time Warner CEO wrote in a memo to employees quoted in today's Washington Post: "While there are still challenges ahead, the steps we announced today will help to remove a cloud that has been hanging over the company for some time now."
-- UBS Media Week: Dick Parsons, Time Warner
-- AOL Restructures; Broadband Head To Leave [Dec.16: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- New Online Music Store Mindawn Opens for Business: New music store Mindawn, a division of software firm theKompany.com and a sister company of ProgRock.com, promises three major differences from other online stores: cross-platform compatibility, CD-quality song files, and virtually no digital rights restrictions (DRM). Mindawn, from musician, developer and indie label owner Shawn Gordon, is about new music, indie labels, unsigned artists and others looking for a way to make money for their music. Some details:
-- The client software works on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. is fully compatible with all three.
-- users can hear a full preview of the entire song before buying.
-- Files can be downloaded in two formats, Ogg Vorbis for "lossy" music that loses some quality in compression and FLAC for full CD-quality that can be converted to AIFF or WAV for portability.
-- Pricing is based on format: $0.99 per 10 minutes or $6.99 per album, Ogg Vorbis; $1.24 per 10 minutes or $8.99 per album, FLAC
-- Artists can sign up for $50 annually, upload and start selling without an approval process. Royalties -- 75 percent for exclusive; 55 percent for non-exclusive -- are paid monthly through PayPal.
As for DRM, the company's stance is far from police state. From the FAQ: "... We believe that in general people don't want to give away something that they paid for. We further believe that just because someone does happen to get a pirate copy doesn't necessarily mean that is a lost sale. We feel that having happy customers by giving them free rein with what they paid for is going to be better for all of us in the long run. We like to believe in the basic honesty in humanity, when people are treated fairly -- so why should we impose more restrictions than are available on a typical music CD?" [Dec.15: Link] | E-commerce |Micropayments |Music | [by staci]

-- From MoCoNews.net: Warner Music puts catalogue on mobiles : Melodeo has signed an agreement with Warner Music Group to offer access to its catalogue - although it doesn't indicate whether it's the whole catalogue or just a part of it. Customers of Melodeo or its telco partners will be able to download whole tracks to their phone, for an appropriate fee. (via Ringtonia) [Dec.16: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- "Creepy" Site Uses IM As Draw: PC Magazine's Lance Ulanoff details his experience with a new multi-platform IM client embedded in a "creepy" system. To get the client, users have to agree to be Imvite affiliates, who get rebates for shopping and referral fees for dragging in their friends. Getting the rebates or fees requires a prepaid ATM account, which in turn requires a social security number, around other things.
"Creepy" is putting it mildly. It's a Frankenstein version of social networking and the kind of effort that can cause marketplace confusion for those trying to do it right. [Dec.16: Link] | Micropayments | [by staci]

-- First ZigBee Spec Ratified: Never imagined ZigBee could show up here twice in one week but the first ZigBee specification has been ratified making it possible for the first commercial products to ship in the next few months.
Just When You Thought You Understood Bluetooth, Meet ZigBee [Dec.16: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Media Bloggers Association Expands: Here's one place where media bloggers of all feathers flock together -- the recently formed Media Bloggers Association. I had the pleasure of meeting some of the founders, including organizer Robert Cox of The National Debate and now of OlbermannWatch.com, at the BloggerCon III journalism dinner and it's safe to say any gathering of this group would be energetic, at the very least.
The biggest points of agreement may be their desire to bring together media bloggers under one online roof for greater exposure and to find other ways to work for the common good. For media watchers, there's a meta feed of most of the 30 member blogs (it would help if the feed identified which comment is from which blog) and a blog of coverage of, well, media bloggers.
You may think you'll recognize everyone on the list; you'll be surprised. [Dec.15: Link] | Nanopublishing | [by staci]

-- Industry Moves: Mediabolic Adds Gregory Smith, SVP/CFO; Robert Selzler, VP-Marketing: Mediabolic, Inc., a startup focusing on networking entertainment software, is adding Gregory H. Smith, a management veteran with 20-plus years of experience as SVP/CFO. He was a managing director of View Lodge Ventures, an investment firm specializing in private technology companies, and served as CFO for a number of start-ups and turnarounds.
Robert Selzler, another start-up veteran, signed on as VP-marketing. Most recently, president and co-founder of 3P Marketing, his responsibilities include marketing strategy, branding, marketing communications, and public relations. [Dec.15: Link] | Industry Moves | [by staci]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

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-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
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Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- It's Official: Sprint, Nextel To Merge in $35 Billion, 38-Plus Million Customer Deal
-- MPAA Files Suit Against Operators of More Than 100 File-Sharing Servers Across Four Continents
-- Estimate: Search Ad Rev Will Top $4 Billion
-- Content, Broadband, Rich Media, Online Ad Momentum
-- ESPN, FootLocker.com Partner in Online Store
-- Loudeye, MTV Expand Online Store Pact to Spain, Italy
-- SBC Pushes Blogs and RSS
-- From MoCoNews: A Closer Look at ICANN's Mobile Domain Decision
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

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Dec. 14, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Google Goes to College & Court; Microsoft Keeps Searching; AOL Canada Adds VoIP

2004-12-14T07:46:00.000-08:00

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Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 14, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by Entriq

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Job hunting? Know anyone who is? Be sure to check out the job listings. I just added a new one from NPR for a director of digital media. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Google Gets An Advanced Degree
-- Microsoft Joins The Desktop Search Fray
-- Sprintel is far from a done deal -- or is it?
-- ICANN Committee Recommends New ".MOBI" and ".JOBS" Domains
-- Search Ads Are Worth Hundreds of Pennies Now, Not Just A Few
-- More Free P2P TV On The Way
-- FTC Examines P2P Competition, Consumer Protection
-- Geico Goes To Court Over Google AdWords
-- AOL Canada Going Into VoIP Business
-- Amplifying A Story Can Cause Problems
-- Just When You Thought You Understood Bluetooth, Meet ZigBee
----------------------

Google Gets An Advanced Degree: Google Scholar isn't the company's only program with an academic tinge. Google will announce officially today a program to digitize part or all of the library collections at Harvard, Michigan, Oxford, and Stanford, as well as the New York Public Library. The news seeped out early after Harvard circulated a letter explaining the project. Google will carry the direct cost of pilot programs at Harvard and the New York Public Library.
The Washington Post (reg.req.)-- Michigan's entire collection will be digitized. Books under copyright will be searchable, but not entirely accessible. Older books will be available in full but not for printing.
The NY Times(reg. req.)-- the cost is estimated at roughly $10 a book. Each agreement is slightly different. The library materials will be available through Google and gthe company would sell advertising. The libraries get copies of the material and the use of Google technology.
-- John Battelle, who is writing a book on search, reflects: "The implications here are significant. First, the idea that the world's knowledge, as held through books and libraries, is opening up to all via a web browser cannot be understated. It's one thing to have an original copy of The Origin of Species on the shelves, where students and interested parties have to travel to find it. It's another to have it available to everyone via a search index and your web browser. Second, this move clearly puts Google in the category of innovator when it comes to adding information to their index. But it also raises significant business model questions, one that are both exciting and unanswered." [Dec.13: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- Microsoft Joins The Desktop Search Fray: If you're feeling whipped around by all the announcements from Microsoft, Yahoo, Google and about-to-be-announced Ask Jeeves, just think of the average user being bombarded with services that consume chunks of her browser and desktop. Microsoft launched the beta of its extremely Microsoft-centric MSN Toolbar Suite Beta Monday with a heavy emphasis on the ability to use it with Outlook and Outlook Express. Forrester's Charlene Li reviews.
Ask Jeeves doesn't launch its desktop search until Wednesday but Search Engine Lowdown has a sneak preview.
Related -- Yahoo Joins Google In Fight For the Desktop
--Google Unveils Desktop Search [Dec.13: Link] | Microsoft | [by staci]

-- Sprintel is far from a done deal -- or is it?: At least, that's the the Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street says with a report that wireless partener Vodaphone will back a Verizon bid for Sprint, which is currently in discussions with Nextel. Both Verizon and Sprint have been very active in the mobile content arena as was the case with recentl;y merged AT&T Wireless and Cingular. Further consolidation could make it harder for competing content services to gain traction. A Sprint-Nextel deal shouldn't change the content opportunities very much, only broaden the potential consumer market.
Motorola faces problems if single-largest customer Nextel is sold. [Dec.14: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- ICANN Committee Recommends New ".MOBI" and ".JOBS" Domains: The ".Mobi" domain is sponsored by mobile and tech companies looking for a way to denote sites customized for mobile phone use. ".Jobs" is for human resources to help separate job listings from a company's main site. ".Post" and ".Travel" were announced in October. This is just one more step in the process. Now ICANN starts commercial and technical negotiations with the sponsors of the four potential top-level domains.
If ".Mobi" takes off how about the ability to set a default domain for a phone browser so users would only have to type in the site name. Anyone from Opera listening? [Dec.13: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Search Ads Are Worth Hundreds of Pennies Now, Not Just A Few: The search engine search terms sales market is booming to the tune of $2.6 billion this year, according to AdAge Online. The price for premium search words and phrases is reportedly up as much as 80 percent over last year. AdAge's Kris Oser says prices start at $.10 a click (Google AdWords has $.05 as a start) but, spurred by the holiday season, some advertisers are paying premiums of $18 and more for certain words. [Dec.13: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- More Free P2P TV On The Way: German company TC Unterhaltungselektronic plans plans to launch Cybersky, a P2P TV file-sharing network at the end of January or early February. Inventor Guido Ciburski claims his new service will allow broadband users to easily share TV shows in near real-time. Based on the description in The Independent, it sounds like it emulates a combination DVR and server, using a television attached to a computer. Ciburski thinks he can beat legal challenges because P2P isn't technically distribution. He's already been to court over an ad-skipping device -- and eventually won.
You've got to like a company with a FAQ that starts with "What t.f. is Cybersky-TV?"
(via Om Malik) [Dec.14: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- FTC Examines P2P Competition, Consumer Protection : The Federal Trade Commission's holding a no-charge, public two-day workshop Dec. 15-16 in Washington D.C. Here's the agenda (pdf). No word yet on a webcast. According to InfoAnarchy (via Broadband Reports), a new study about BitTorrent will be released.
The FTC is also taking public comments on P2P/file-sharing through Jan. 18, 2005, as it formulates policy.
If you're going to the conference and want to guest blog, drop me a line at > staci@paidcontent.org [Dec.14: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Geico Goes To Court Over Google AdWords: The trial began in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., Monday, with the insurance company arguing for an injunction to stop Google from allowing competitiors to gain references from searches for Geico. It's the first major legal test of the ad service. From David Vise's story:
"Computer users are looking for Geico and an insurance quote and instead they end up with a company that is not affiliated with Geico. Geico wants a ruling that Google's sale of its trademark creates a likelihood of confusion." -- Geico attorney Charles D. Ossola
"Geico wants you to decide the Internet is different. That is based on an incorrect assumption that when people type 'Geico' into Google's search engine, the only thing they want is Geico's Web site. That is wrong." -- Google attorney Michael Page
"Google is the publisher. The advertiser writes the text. Geico's argument might support a claim against an advertiser, but not against Google." [Dec.14: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- AOL Canada Going Into VoIP Business: AOL Canada will be the first AOL unit to sell VoIP. The Globe and Mail reports the sales will begin in Toronto this month and throughout Canada by the end of March. The base package called TotalTalk will run $30 (Cdn.) after a three-month discount and includes features competitors sell as premiums. The pricing is also a tad higher. AOL's premium package includes 1,000 minutes anywhere in North America and will sell for $45 after a rebate period.
As the paper notes, the company's far from the first to offer VoIP in Canada but has some advantages like a known brand and an existing customer service operation. Also, major providers are being held back by regulations.
Plans call for integration with AIM buddy lists, parental controls and presence indicators. [Dec.14: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- Amplifying A Story Can Cause Problems: Former CableWorld colleague Alicia Mundy has a piece in the Washington Post about the problems that can face reporters talking about stories after publication. Her example is a Boston Herald story involved in a libel suit; the story itself may be defensible but broader comments the the Herald reporter made on "The O'Reilly Factor" may not. This could just as easily be about blogs or chat rooms or discussions. [Dec.14: Link] | Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Just When You Thought You Understood Bluetooth, Meet ZigBee : No, it's not the latest craze in holiday toys or a new party game, although the ZigBee Alliance does sound like something out of the next Star Wars prequel. ZigBee, based on 802.15.4, is a low-power, low-cost wireless protocol you'll be hearing more about as the standard is set and products emerge. A major target is home automation based on devices using alkaline batteries that can last for years, unlike Bluetooth devices that require constant charging. ZigBee can support unlimited nodes and has a range of 100-plus feet but it's too slow to transmit large chunks of data. A wireless ZigBee phone that can control household actions debuted a few days ago.
I don't see any immediate impact on content distribution within the home but I can see how a ZigBee network could mix in. [Dec.13: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

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-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
------------
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Valeo
BroadcastPC.tv
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eMeta
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Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- NPR, Director, Digital Media
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- Spidey and Friends Go Mobile Worldwide With Mforma
-- Betamax Revisted: Supreme Court to Hear File-sharing Case
-- Internet Radio, Not Satellite, Is The Greater Threat To Traditional Radio
-- More on AOL's Brave New World
-- Viacom's Acquisition of Sportsline Finalized
-- iTunes Shoppers Can Use eBay's PayPal
-- Google Gets Suggestive With Newest Beta
-- Yet Another Google Move That Bears Watching
-- For All The Hype, Advanced Mobile Services May Be Even Slower To Catch On In The U.S.
-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City / Take Two
-- Where's Rafat? The Remote Goa
--------------

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To subscribe to this e-mail newsletter, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

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Dec. 13, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Marvel-ous Deal With Mforma; Betamax Revisited; Google Can't Sit Still

2004-12-13T07:31:00.000-08:00

To view this newsletter in full-color: http://www.imakenews.com/alirafat/index000030699.cfm?x=b47JMDb,b2DgcH9d

PaidContent.org

Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 13, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelled to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by BroadcastPC

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Back from Media Week and getting ready for an intense exercise in notebook emptying. In the meantime, there's plenty of news and a slew of new job posts, including a fascinating listing from Microsoft. We also have a travel report from our most remote correspondent -- Rafat's in Goa on his honeymoon but managed to find an Internet cafe. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Spidey and Friends Go Mobile Worldwide With Mforma
-- Betamax Revisted: Supreme Court to Hear File-sharing Case
-- Internet Radio, Not Satellite, Is The Greater Threat To Traditional Radio
-- More on AOL's Brave New World
-- Viacom's Acquisition of Sportsline Finalized
-- iTunes Shoppers Can Use eBay's PayPal
-- Google Gets Suggestive With Newest Beta
-- Yet Another Google Move That Bears Watching
-- For All The Hype, Advanced Mobile Services May Be Even Slower To Catch On In The U.S.
-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City / Take Two
-- Where's Rafat? The Remote Goa
----------------------

Spidey and Friends Go Mobile Worldwide With Mforma : According to Variety, Marvel Enterprises, home of Spiderman et al, has entered a multi-year, global mobile publishing partnership (excluding Japan) with Mforma Group. Content from the online/mobile Marvel Mobile site will be available via subscription or per item. Marvel Mobile won't be ad supported but Mforma hopes to create marketing partnerships with studios releasing films featuring Marvel characters.
Update: The official announcement provides more details.
-- Mforma will co-publish Marvel-based mobile games with Activision, which already had some licensing agreements with Marvel. Mforma claims "The MFORMA/Marvel multi-year global product plan identifies mobile entertainment applications of every kind and represents one of the most far-reaching publishing programs seen in the mobile industry."
-- Marvel content will be distributed through Mforma's 100-plus provider network but also through Marvel Mobile, "a branded wireless and online website featuring informational, promotional and transactional links to all Marvel Mobile content." It will be embedded within Marvel.com.
--Subscribers to Marvel Mobile will have access to all Marvel Mobile products, plus unique community applications and features, special collectible items, Marvel news alerts and chat rooms, fan clubs and mobile commerce options
If deals could be judged by the length of the press release (1,600 words) and the number of press contacts (six), this might really be as important as they think it is. [Dec.12: Link] | Biz/Fin |Wireless | [by staci]

-- Betamax Revisted: Supreme Court to Hear File-sharing Case: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal from Time Warner, Walt Disney and other media companies arguing that an appelate court was wrong when it ruled in favor of Grokster and StreamCast Networks. Bloomberg notes that the companies, in a brief, call this " one of the most important copyright cases ever to reach this court."
From AP (reg. req.) -- "The Supreme Court said Friday it will consider whether Internet file-sharing services are responsible for their customers illegally swapping songs and movies, a multibillion-dollar case testing the limits of copyright law in the digital age."
(From Napsterization via Scripting News)
More details: The case, known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios v. Grokster Ltd., No. 04-480, will be heard in March with a decision in late June. The NY Times' Linda Greenhouse writes that "friend-of-the-court briefs were filed on the industry's behalf by the attorneys general of 40 states; a group of 130 recording artists; and 15 national organizations, including professional sports leagues, that described themselves as dependent on "meaningful copyright protection." Grokster and StreamCast's allies include the Computer and Communications Industry Association and the Internet Archive.
From the tech journalism perspective, CNET's John Borland brings up another decision that changed the music landscape -- "all MP3 player makers, including Apple, owe their recent history to a 1999 decision in which a judge said MP3 players were capable of playing legally purchased music, and were therefore legal."
Morrison & Foerster attorney Jonathan Band tells CNET, "It's completely unpredictable. ...It could well be that the entertainment industry will rue the day when they went to the Supreme Court."
The EFF is keeping an archive of the case. [Dec.10: Link] | DRM | [by staci]

-- Internet Radio, Not Satellite, Is The Greater Threat To Traditional Radio (sub. req.): Or so the The Wall Street Journal suggests in its latest magazine-like special section on technology. Some 19 million listeners tune in to Internet radio weekly compared to roughly 3.4 million satellite listeners; traditional radio swamps them both with an estimated weekly audience of 277 million.
The article suggests the lines "may soon blur." Actually, they've been blurring for quite some time. Hundreds of traditional radio stations are streamed online while Sirius satellite radio provides subscribers with streams of its commercial-free channels. One possible difference could be the creation of Internet-only "stations" by traditional radio owners like Clear Channel.
I listen to regular radio doing errands, Sirius on the road and various Internet options while online. Next step, activating the no-extra-charge Sirius streaming option. [Dec.13: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- More on AOL's Brave New World: This just in from AOL vice-chair Ted Leonsis: "Having two revenue streams inoculates you from the vagaries of the industry." Well, yeah, and having three is even better. Some other nuggets from the AP story:
-- "Leonsis insists the change is less fundamental than it seems, given that AOL already has thriving 'untethered' properties it acquired, including Moviefone and MapQuest. Leonsis estimates AOL will need to grow its monthly audience of unique visitors, to all the sites it owns, by only 25 percent within five years."
-- Analyst Rob Enderle: "AOL is left looking like the race car in a race that nobody wants to run in anymore. ... AOL's dead as it exists. It has to find a way to become relevant again." (via Susan Mernit)
AP also reports that AOL is working on a proprietary browser based on IE "so users won't have to make 'a leap of faith.'" It's supposed to be out in early '05. Not sure whether to laugh or cry as I think about AOL's browser history -- and today's news that Firefox has shipped 10 million copies. [Dec.13: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- Viacom's Acquisition of Sportsline Finalized: The Internet venture Viacom managed to acquire becomes a division of CBS Sports, reporting to Sean McManus, president, CBS Sports. Viacom tried earlier to bring MarketWatch in house but chose not to match the stiff $18 price offered by Dow Jones. One of the whispers I heard during Media Week was that Viacom was indeed the second-highest bidder for MarketWatch but stayed in the mid-$17 range. It got off a lot more lightly with SportsLine, whose public shareholders will get $1.75 a share in a deal valued at $46 million. In addition to the sports news and information site, SportsLine is the official host of the NFL, PGA TOUR and NCAA Sports sites.
One minus for those who were following SportsLine's financial trajectory -- no more public filings. In fact, the contribution to Viacom's bottom line will be so small it won't be material enough to merit broken out. A plea to CBS Sports -- please continue to report traffic, subscription and advertising stats.
Related -- Viacom to Buy Rest of SportsLine.com [Dec.13: Link] | Sports | [by staci]

-- iTunes Shoppers Can Use eBay's PayPal: Still no interoperability but at least iTunes' shoppers can use PayPal. The online pay service gets a much-needed boost in its effort to grow the non-eBay segment of its revenues. For incentive, the first 500,000 to pick PayPal as the primary payment option get five free songs -- which may be the only five songs I download until iTunes goes truly portable.
Can the iTunes' a-la-carte download model outlast subscription services? MacWorld's Philip Michaels comes away from Music 2.0 sounding pretty confident that Apple can continue to succeed. [Dec.13: Link] | Apple |Music | [by staci]

-- Google Gets Suggestive With Newest Beta: Yet another in the seemingly endless supply of Google tools -- Google Suggest (Beta), which literally suggests ways to narrow your search as you type. Starting with a little ego-surfing, as I typed in "Stac," it offered a lot of variations, adding the "i" narrowed the field, adding the middle initial "D." went straight to "staci d. kramer" as the only option. I had more fun with "Google Suggest" -- when I got to "Google Su" the first option was "Google Sucks" and "Google Suggest" didn't show up.
Anyone want to start the over and under about how long it stays in beta. I'd love to hear from someone at Google about how they decide to create a new tool rather than aimply add functionality to big Google.
Update: Darren Barefoot does a little sleuthing and finds a host of words Google won't suggest. [Dec.10: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- Yet Another Google Move That Bears Watching: A new patent filed by Google offers a tantalizing glimpse of one way the company could find to finally make money off frozen-in-beta Google News. As Susan Kuchinskas painstakingly reports:
"U.S. Patent Application No. 20040122811, filed by Google co-founder Larry Page, has a deceptively simple name: 'Method for searching media.' But the application illuminates possible plans by the Mountain View, Calif.-based search leader to enable search of printed material, offer pay-per-view documents, scanned documents with clickable ads and even the ability for print publishers to swap out ads in digital copies of their printed pages.
There are two key elements of the patent: a method for executing a permission protocol so that the publisher could authorize Google to display more text from the relevant publication; and storing scanned versions of printed documents along with data sets representing the ads that went with them."
Put into practice, the idea could open up financial vistas for both Google and print publishers who so far have been limited in their abilities to make money off static print publications.
Related -- Google Print Opens Widely To Publishers
-- Google Gets Suggestive With Newest Beta
-- Google Joins the Digital Video Search Pack [Dec.13: Link] | Google | [by staci]

-- For All The Hype, Advanced Mobile Services May Be Even Slower To Catch On In The U.S.: The NY Times' Ken Belson takes a look at the U.S. wireless market and suggests it nmay be mostly about voice for a long time to come. He notes that even though data services contribution to revenue is up about two-thirds to 4.7 percent from last year, it's still a far cry from the money being spent in Europe and Asia. Cost is one contributing factor -- data is still expense-account expensive in most cases -- and culture is another -- the U.S. preponderance of car commuters versus train and bus commuters.
As usual, he makes a good case but I'm not so sure his projections are on target. People will still want their phones primarily for voice but as wireless providers add more content to sell, I think they'll make the data access itself less expensive to encourage more commerce. [Dec.13: Link] | Wireless | [by staci]

-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City / Take TwoGuest blogger Robert Spears found a lot of energy and some interesting takeaways at iHollywoodForum's Music 2.0. Some quick hits from "The Download on Downloads":
David Pakman, president, eMusic: The economic driver and vision behind digital music has been to expand industry revenue by offering something new and different. However, there is frustration that there is an emerging 'offline' influence, such as wanting to promote a small set of pop hits.
-- eMusic competes on selection and programming, not price ÃÂproviding unique packaging and service for music aficionados that are willing to pay.
-- Their new site emphasizes 'music discovery' and subject expertise; their independent-label partners have huge libraries, but have always suffered from a lack of exposure. (They plan and expect to experiment with a couple of major labels in 2005 but with an approach to help uncover more unique offerings).
-- From the enthusiastic compliments from subscribers in the audience, eMusic warrants further study by even non-music propertiesÃÂ as they are doing something right to keep their customers happy.

Zack Zalon, president, Virgin Digital: Having access to a huge library of music is becoming a commodity ÃÂfuture success will be based on.
-- how selections are presented; how users can interact with their music; how credible your expertise is; and how users are introduced to music they would not normally experience. The next wave of challenges is simply doing things right; licensing is no longer an issue
-- Apple is closed ÃÂMicrosoft's Janus, though proprietary, is more open and will allow users to more easily take their music on-the-go
-- Most consumers do not realize that it would cost $20K to fill up an iPod using iTunes, and that, conversely, they could pay just $15 a month to have access to 20K songs; many consumers are still fixated on 'physical' ownership. [Dec.10: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- The Remote Goa Rafat: I am in Northern Goa, and the goin' has been good...we are at the tip, on the border of Goa and adjoining state Maharashtra, living in 400 year old fort (Terakol Fort, in case you're interested) which has been turned into a small, seven room hotel...
The views of Arabian Sea are brilliant...we did some rock climbing by the sea cliff today.
And as is customary, we hired a bike and have been riding up the coast to various villages.
I am writing this from a ramshackle internet cafe in Arambol, the heart of alternative hippie goa, apparently.
Enough rambling...back with some more notes soon... [Dec.13: Link] | [by rafat]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

Â» DAILY NEWSLETTER:
To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
------------
paidContent.org's Generous Supporters
Valeo
BroadcastPC.tv
UPI
eMeta
ThePlatform
Entriq
IMN Inc

Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Microsoft, Senior Product Planner, New Consumer Products:
-- Warner Bros. Online Inc., VP -- Wireless
-- Audible, Director of Marketing/Customer Aquisition
-- NPR Online, Marketing, Analyst
-- IDT, Content Architect
-- BroadBand HR Consulting: Mobile Content Business Alliance Developer
-- <
>edweek.org, Executive Producer
-- FOLIOfn, VP Marketing -- Online Brokerage
-- Boonty, Video Game Scout
-- Tribune, Knight Ridder Washington Operation: GM, Tech Manager, Sales Manager
-- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502>VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- UBS Media Week: Comcast Vague About Wireless Future
-- UBS Media Week: McClatchy Embraces Hyperlocal Search
-- CSFB Media Week: Boston.com Going Registration in 2005
-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City
-- Dan Gillmor Leaves Mercury News to Start Citizen Journalism Venture
-- Making Money From Readers as Reporters
-- Yahoo, Ask Join Google In Fight For the Desktop
-- dotMP Domain Rings Up Registrations
-- Napster Signs With Dwango to Brand Ringtones
-- BitPass Launches Hosted Micropay for Small Businesses, Individuals
-- Packaging Online and Print Sports Packs
-- Where's Rafat?
--------------

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Dec. 10, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Comcast Vague on Wireless; McClatchy Launches Local Search; Boston.com Goes Registration

2004-12-10T03:35:00.000-08:00

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Confession: I opted for additional Media Week sessions Thursday at the expense of getting out the newsletter. The trade off? More news and more interviews. I hope you'll think it was worth it as the results unfold below and in coming days. Meanwhile, Rafat checked in for a long IM conversation and posted a message for you. -- Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES

-- UBS Media Week: Comcast Vague About Wireless Future

-- UBS Media Week: McClatchy Embraces Hyperlocal Search

-- CSFB Media Week: Boston.com Going Registration in 2005

-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City

-- Dan Gillmor Leaves Mercury News to Start Citizen Journalism Venture

-- Making Money From Readers as Reporters

-- Yahoo, Ask Join Google In Fight For the Desktop

-- dotMP Domain Rings Up Registrations

-- Napster Signs With Dwango to Brand Ringtones

-- BitPass Launches Hosted Micropay for Small Businesses, Individuals

-- Packaging Online and Print Sports Packs

-- Where's Rafat?

----------------------

UBS Media Week: Comcast Vague About Wireless Future: Comcast executives say offering wireless probably makes sense but they aren't close to any decisions. If cable operaqtors get together in a wireless consortium "it stands to reason we'd be in the group," co-CFO John Alchin said. Comcast isn't in any hurry, EVP-Operations Dave Watson told the lunch crowd, adding "I do think the industry would be well served to focus on the feature integration side."
There's an opportunity for partnerships with wireless operators who can't get adequate coverage in the home, he explained later. For instance, the right deal could make it possible for a tri-mode phone to convert from wireless to VoIP inside the house and back to wireless. But Watson said the company isn't hearing a lot of demand yet from consumers looking for portability.
-- In terms of VoIP, Comcast is on target to enable 95 percent of its plant by 2005; current test markets are Indianapolis, Philadelphia and Springfield, MA, testing at rates of $40-45 a month. Comcast is focusing on number portability, e911 and battery backup as priorities for rollout. Added features could include unified messaging, caller id on TV. Watson, who's also the top marketing exec, sees some feature bleedover from wireless offering ringtones as an example. "I think some of the fun stuff from wireless will come into the VoIP world."
[Dec. 9: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_broadband.shtml">Broadband | [by staci]

-- UBS Media Week: McClatchy Embraces Hyperlocal Search: By March 2005, McClatchy will offer local search across its Internet footpront. The effort started earlier this month on local portal triangle.com, complementing Newsobserver.com in covering the Raleigh-Durham area; it rolls out on StarTribune.com in Minneapolis next week. McClatchy is partnering with Planet Discover to produce the private-label search engine.(Press release about deal.)
"We're going to differentiate our search sites," CEO Gary Pruitt promised investors and analysts; the focus is on highly constrained local results, cleaner results, searching of local merchant inventory, white pages, etc. -- all from one search box.
McClatchy execs say within hours of going live, the search engine was being adapted by users; one example: Raleigh-Durham dentists were signing on to submit their sites and enhance the display.

[Dec. 9: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_newspapers.shtml">Newspapers | [by staci]

-- CSFB Media Week: Boston.com Going Registration in 2005: Boston.com will switch to a registration site in the first quarter of 2005, according to NYT Digital CEO Martin Nisenholtz. Parent company COO Janet Robinson made the announcement during her presentation this morning; Nisenholtz told me afterward that this was the first official mention and the date for the change wasn't fixed yet. The company expects registration at Boston.com to yield higher ad rates, enable demographic targeting. increase e-mail product growth.
Nisenholtz said the primary reason for the change is providing targeting for advertisers; geo and gender targeting are most in demand now.
Nisenholtz said it was purely coincidence that NYTimes.com and Boston.com are both up 37 percent YTD in advertising revenues and 24 percent in page views.
From the presentation:
-- Ad demand is so high the biggest challenge for the site now is providing enough inventory
-- the broadcast group will increase online offerings; no details
-- video is a priority for 2005
-- NYTimes.com particularly has been successful with display ads, which account for two-thirds of revenue.
--NYTimes.com is projecting a 60-percent increase in rich media ads foe 2005

Boston.com is adding a user-generated content section.
[Dec. 8: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_newspapers.shtml">Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Music 2.0 Conference, Universal City: Guest blogger Robert Spears had the chance to sit in on some panels at the iHollywood music meet. Here are a few of his observations.

At the "Digital Distribution Revenue Models" panel, the audience wanted to know which margins are better -- subscriptions or
downloads? The answer? "Next question."

-- Napster COO Laura Goldberg said their best download buyers are premium subscribers; they like to listen before buying.

-- Richard Wolpert, chief strategy officer of RealNetworks, said a lot of things. Christina Calio of MSN Entertainment didn't.

-- The university market is one area where labels are
amenable to experimentation -- next June, Napster will have its first
chance to convert student subscribers into full-price subscribers (i.e. 'grown-ups')

-- To counter the effects of too much 'digital Kool Aid
drinking', David Hughes, VP of Sony BMG, reminded the audience that there are 1.2B CD players in the world and that BMG just recently stopped shipping cassettes to India
-- news flash - DRM and interoperability are a big mess
-- piracy is forcing the industry to have a "more, better, faster" approach, according to David Weinburg, VP at Universal Music's eLabsa
-- the panel did not have much of a reaction regarding Sean Fanning's latest venture, Snocap, other than that its users will pay, and help cover bandwidth costs.

Jason Hirschhorn, SVP MTV Networks, keynoted, leading off with a lengthy video promo (i.e. commercial),ÃÂ a clever
technique to reduce one's speaking time. The strategy at MTV Networks is to aggressively and creatively embrace digital media in all its forms and platforms (the old mantra "I want my MTV!" now should be, in effect, "I want my MTV, anywhere, anyway, anytime I want!"
-- they will integrate and cross-promote their many offerings (e.g. TV shows about downloads)
-- to counter the industry perception that MTV stopped being about music long ago, he said that they have never had more music programming, and that digital music is at the core of their corporate strategy (if one aggregates all of their cable channels, it's believable)
-- a member of the audience asked "Is there ANY platform you would NOT be interested in pursuing?" Hirschhorn's response: "Yes. I am not interested in PRINT. I don't read a lot, and I like pictures"

[Dec. 9: Link] |

href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_music.shtml">Music | [by staci]

-- Dan Gillmor Leaves Mercury News to Start Citizen Journalism Venture: One of the most well-known -- and, although he would probably naysay it -- powerful voices in tech journalism is switching gears. Dan Gillmor announced Thursday night on his blog that he's leaving the Mercury News next month to work on a citizen journalism project growing out of his much-discussed book "We the Media: Grassroots Journalism by the People, for the People."
Gillmor explains:"Something powerful is happening, it's in the early stages and I have a chance to help figure this out. I'm not ready to discuss the specifics yet, mainly because I have many more ideas than I could possibly try to put into practice at this point -- and we're early in the process of working out the venture's actual form. Keep in mind that this project is now in what's known as the seed stage. It's not an operating entity yet, though I expect it will be. But we're some time away from that, with many issues to resolve in the meantime."
More from Silicon Beat,, where the news was first posted along with a Merc News memo.

[Dec.10: Link] |

href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_newspapers.shtml">Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Making Money From Readers as Reporters: News orgs and entrepreneurs alike see potential in meshing citizen journalism and hyperlocal coverage with the bottom line. Leslie Walker rounds up the usual suspects and adds a few you may not knowas she look at the big idea "that citizen-generated content lowers costs and creates more loyal audiences." Jeff Jarvis said Advance Net is planning citizen-journalist blogs/sites in six towns in Oregon, New Jersey and Massachusetts. "
Jarvis wants to create a network of online journals so local businesses can negotiate one deal and have their advertisements appear on several sites simultaneously. "It is not easy now to go out and buy ads to appear on the top 10 blogs in New Jersey or Washington," Jarvis told Walker. "Somebody needs to create that ad model."

[Dec.10: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_broadband.shtml">Broadband | [by staci]

-- Yahoo, Ask Join Google In Fight For the Desktop: Yahoo finally announced its own plans for desktop search; an early January beta in partnership with X1 Technologies. The service starts with software to use Yahoo Search on the desktop but is expected to expand to integrated services including Yahoo IM, email and address book. No embedded ads but Web searches will include advertising.
Yahoo's well-leaked news gets it out the door just before Ask Jeeves' expected Dec. 15 announcement about its desktop search offering.

[Dec.10: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_yhoo.shtml">YHOO | [by staci]

-- dotMP Domain Rings Up Registrations: Open Dec. 1 by Saipan Datacom for public registration at $300 a pop commmercial, $49.95 personal, .MP stands for mobile phone. It's much more than just a domain -- dotMP PS is more like a social networking/blogging/home page concept. From the site: "It's your unique ID or handle on the Web and the mobile Internet. Your .mp domain name gives your friends and visitors direct access to your dotMP site on their computers and mobile phones. No portal entry and no long (lame) URLs." Russell Beattie explains it . Be sure to check out the comments at Russell's site as people try to use .mp -- and the follow-up from co-founder Gib Bintliff. An excerpt: "dotMP is not only a blog service; it's a Mobile Content Platform. ... PS (Personal Site) is for individuals' non-commercial use. It's all about the creation of a unique online identity, self-expression and sharing with peers, loved ones and friends (and making new ones)."

[Dec. 9: Link] |
href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_wireless.shtml">Wireless | [by staci]

-- Napster Signs With Dwango to Brand Ringtones: Napster is going mobile with ringtones. That could be a big so what, but there's a twist -- the service to be launched in 200 will be tied into Napster's PC offering. The ringtones will come from the Napster digital music library and PC users will get promotions, offers, etc. (Press release.)
Meanwhile, parent Roxio is getting slammed in the market by valuation concerns.
[Dec. 9: Link] |

href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_music.shtml">Music | [by staci]

--
BitPass Launches Hosted Micropay for Small Businesses, Individuals: BitPass Studios allows anyone to sell digital content by uploading files and inserting a URL into an email or IM. It's meant for those who can't afford the infrastucture of a secure site -- artists, writers, community groups. It also generates HTML code that can be added to the site. BitPass claims the new product is the first one designed for individuals and small businesses to sell digital documents in all three environments.
If the execution is as good as the idea this could challenge PayPal; it might also provide an option for the PayPal-averse.

[Dec. 9: Link] |

href="http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_micropayments.shtml">Micropayments | [by staci]

-- Packaging Online and Print Sports Packs : Here's an example of packaging online and print subscriptions for the avid fan -- $99.95 for an annual subscription to NC State-centric PackPride.com and Pack Pride The Magazine, recruiting year books and The Sporting News. Monthly online subs don't get the magazine.

[Dec. 9: Link] |
[by staci]

-- Where's Rafat?: Where am I? I have been traveling heavily over the last two weeks and got married in South Africa, about 50 miles outside Durban on a former British plantation...that was about 10 days ago. Now I am in India, and preparing to fly off to Goa for a week...

Meanwhile, our exec editor Staci and James over at MocoNews.net have been doing an excellent job and let me spend the month at ease...

I was planning to post more from my travels, but my Gateway laptop's AC adapter blew out the first day I was in India....Gateway doesn't have a presence here. That's hampering me a lot, but I've reconciled to it. It has been tough on me: the temptation of not posting and checking e-mails etc, but the discipline is required, not just to start my own private life, but to develop this till-now sole venture into a company...

That's it for now...I'll post some pics sometime this week or next. I'll be back in LA Jan first week...

[Dec. 9: Link] |
[by rafat]

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In Case You Missed It:

-- UBS Media Week Interview: Eric Nicoli, EMI -- iPods Must Become Interoperable Or Risk Market Share

-- CSFB Media Week: Cable Companies Grapple With Wireless

-- Advertisers Eyeing Blogs

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Dec. 2, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Another Internet Ad Deal; Microsoft Enters Blog Fray; Nifty -- and not so nifty -- Video Viewing

2004-12-02T06:23:00.000-08:00

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PAIDCONTENT.ORG
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RafatAli [ mailto:rali@paidcontent.org ]
PaidContent.org Newswire: [Dec. 2, 2004]
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HEADLINES
-- NYT: Viewpoint Purchase of Unicast "More Evidence That
Internet Marketing is Hot Again" [ #011525 ]
-- Microsoft's Blogging Service Launches Thursday [ #011519 ]
-- MSN Blog Launch Round-up [ #011524 ]
-- Watch Your Home TV Anywhere You Have High-Speed Access [
#011518 ]
-- Mossberg: Portable Media Centers Aren't Ready for Non-techies
[ #011522 ]
-- Comcast Tops CED Broadband 50 [ #011516 ]
-- In Honor of Blog Being Dubbed "Word of the Year>"Word of the
Year" [ #011515 ]
-- Two European Broadband Deals for Warner Bros. in Two Days [
#011521 ]
-- Bloglines Adds Six Languages, Doubles Index [ #011517 ]
-- iTunes Avoid a Black Eye [ #011514 ]
-- Canadian iTunes Store Opens for Business [ #011523 ]
-- Sports Media & Technology Conference: "Turning a Team Website
into a Profit Center" [ #011503 ]
-- Did Viacom Bid for MarketWatch? (Corrected Version) [ #011478
]
----------------------
NYT: Viewpoint Purchase of Unicast "More Evidence That Internet
Marketing is Hot Again": Internet video specialist Viewpoint is
acquiring Unicast Communications for about $7.4 million. Nat
Ives sees it as part of a series of "mergers and acquisitions by
both small and large companies vying to become one-stop Web
shops for advertisers, more of whom are getting online in a big
way."
Unicast CEO Richard Hopple, who will join the Viewpoint board,
told him: ""There are a lot of little vendors floating around
the marketplace confusing the world and competing against each
other. Publishers, agencies and advertisers have really cried
out for some kind of simplification." Press release [
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20041202005222&newsLang=en
]. [Dec. 2: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_02.shtml#011525 ] |
Advertising [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_advertising.shtml ] | [by staci]

-- Microsoft's Blogging Service Launches Thursday: Microsoft
makes it official with a late-afternoon press release [
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/041201/sfw136_1.html ]. MSN Spaces
will be frieh to anyone with a Hotmail or MSN Messenger account.
As expected, the service is aimed at home user who will trade
off on-site banner ads for the ability to post photos, keep a
journal or share playlists. Jupiter Research analyst Michael
Gartenberg tells AP Microsoft is late but not too late since
blogging is just catching on with mainstream users.
Also, as some speculated, the new service is being linked
closely with Messenger 7, also debuting in beta Thursday, and
with Hotmail to create a de facto suite of communication
services. In the press release, Blake Irving, corporate vp for
the MSN Communication Services and Member Platform Group, says
the investments are designed "to break down some of the barriers
between the services so people can focus less on the technology
and more on the people they care about." Translated that means
making MSN as sticky as possible so users spend most of their
online time there and bring others with them. This goes far
beyond the portal concept; Microsft doesn't want you to use MSN
as a gateway -- it wants you to live there.
Features include:
--Contact Cards in MSN Messenger and Hotmail that "are windows
into a consumer's Space, mirroring its look and the most recent
information posted."
-- RSS support soon to be integrated with My MSN
-- Users can create playlists with links to MSN Music, possibly
driving sales. "With just two clicks, people can sample or
purchase a song on someone's playlist through MSN Music" Irving
told AP similar links to other music services wouldn't be
offered.
-- remote updates by cell or e-mail
-- MSN bloggers can choose who gets to see their "Space"
(public, MSN Messenger contacts only, private)
AP says Irving won't rule out a paid, premium blog down the
road.
The press release says users can sign by going here [
http://spaces.msn.com/ ] but that still goes to the Japanese
version. Where's Joi Ito [ http://joi.ito.com/ ]when you need
him?
Update: The site's now in English and some blogs are starting to
show up.
Here's a video of a demo [
http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0411/23725/MSN_Spaces_Demo_MBR.asx
] and an interview [
http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0411/23725/MSN_Spaces_MBR.asx ]
with the MSN Spaces team.
Related -- Report: MSN Blog Service Ready for Launch [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_30.shtml#011506
] [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011519 ] |
Microsoft [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_microsoft.shtml ] | [by
staci]
-- MSN Blog Launch Round-up: Easly the most written about tech
subject in the last 24 hours. Here's a mix of reaction and
related news.
--"MSN Spaces will make blogs communication tools" [
http://forrester.typepad.com/charleneli/ ] says Forrester
analyst and blogger Charlene Li, who set up her own spaces blog
[ http://spaces.msn.com/members/charleneli/PersonalSpace.aspx ]
as soon as the service went live. "The next wave of bloggers is
going to look very different from todayaÂÂs blogger aÂ" their
motivation will be on sharing experiences rather than having a
place for their ideas and opinions."
-- Mike Wendland: Ballmer talks up links to the Net [
http://www.freep.com/money/tech/mwendland2e_20041202.htm ] A
Dec. 1 interview in Detroit.
-- First blogosphere reaction to MSN Spaces [
http://radio.weblogs.com/0001011/2004/12/02.html#a8789 ] From
Robert Scoble, who also describes all the reasons MSN Spaces
won't work for many current bloggers [
http://radio.weblogs.com/0001011/2004/12/02.html#a8788 ],
including him.
-- 2 Giants to Introduce Enhanced Data Sharing Services on Net [
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/02/technology/02web.html?oref=login&ex=1259643600&
en=d4e1a62c1341ebf2&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland ] John
Markoff shoehorns the MSN launch and Google's second version of
its Usenet service into one heavy-handed story.
-- Bambi Francisco's take [
http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B554E56E3-AFC7-4B78-AFD8-766700452842%7D&siteid=google&dist=google&dist=
]: How Microsoft is trying to avoid a lot of blog corspes ...
"MSN hopes its ready audience base of 145 million (and) instant
messaging users 187 million Hotmail users will keep people
interested in their MSN Spaces blogs."
-- Microsoft sees blogs for the masses [
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/201947_msftblog02.html ]
but analyst Matt Rosoff tells the Seattle P-I he doesn't see it
attracting a huge market.
-- MSN Spaces, Microsoft's new, frieh service, courts bloggers [
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002106573_msn02.html
] Yahoo tells the Seattle Times "it has no announcement" to make
about blogging tools.
-- Feedster announces new service [
http://scott.feedster.com/archives/111-Welcome-to-the-Conversation.html
] that allows searching of just MSN Spaces [
http://spaces.feedster.com/ ]. Still a work in progress. (via
Scoble) [Dec. 2: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_02.shtml#011524 ] |
Microsoft [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_microsoft.shtml ] | [by
staci]
-- Watch Your Home TV Anywhere You Have High-Speed Access: The
New York Times's Seth Schiesel has a fascinating feature about
Ken Schaffer, a 57-year-old inventor who has figured out how to
make home TV reception portable "with high-quality pictures to
be watched, and channels to be changed, from anywhere in the
world that the Internet can reach." Schaeffer calls it "space
shifting."
For now, only TV enthusiasts with a few thousand dollars can
take advantage of TV2ME [ http://www.spaceshift.net/ ]but
Schaffer is trying to reduce the cost to under $1,000. From his
Manhattan apartment, he showed Schiesel the TV program running
in his Moscow apartment and another monitor showing the
programming on a London TV.
The kicker? Sony now has a smaller, cheaper model called
LocationFree TV -- it also works over WiFi -- but Schaeffer's
picture is better because his MPEG-4 coding is more efficient
than the major consumer electronics manufacturer. [Dec. 1:
Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011518 ] |
Media Hardware [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_media_hardware.shtml ] |
[by staci]
-- Mossberg: Portable Media Centers Aren't Ready for Non-techies
(sub.req.): Bad news for Samsung, Creative Labs, iRiver and
anyone counting on portable media centers to take off soon --
influential WSJ columnist Walter Mossberg doesn't like the
models he's been reviewing. Mossberg writes in his Dec. 2
Personal Technology column: "Unless you're a techie or a
hopeless gadget freak, stay away from the Portable Media Centers
for now. If you want a portable video device, you're better off
buying a portable DVD player. They can be bought for half the
price or less, come with larger screens, and are able to draw
from an almost unlimited selection of content."
You can almost hear readers crossing them off this year's
holiday gift list ... [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011522 ] |
Media Hardware [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_media_hardware.shtml ] |
[by staci]
-- In Honor of Blog Being Dubbed "Word of the Year": here are
several new ones to put on your radar.
-- One of the most touted newcomers is Simon Waldman [
http://www.simonwaldman.net/about-meand-this-blog ], director of digital
publishing for Guardian Newspapers. SimonWaldman.net is about
"newspapers, new media and beyond ..."
-- NewsBluntly [ http://www.newsbluntly.com/ ],
http://www.newsbluntly.com/, billed as "the blunt news about
broadcast journalism." The folks at The NewsMarket [
http://www.thenewsmarket.com ] are drawing attenion to their
Internet-based news video delivery system with a, well, blunt
blog [
http://www.newmediamusings.com/blog/2004/11/newsbluntly_the.html ]
that could well antagonize possible customers.
-- Conservative blogger Robert Cox says he's spent so much time
watching Keith Olbermann and writing about him that he might as
well start a separate blog [ http://www.olbermannwatch.com ].
He's looking for contributors. Guess there's a void to fill with
Dan Rather leaving the big stage.
Update: Just saw that Om Malik's group broadband blog -- The
Broadband Daily [ http://www.thebroadbanddaily.com/ ] --
launched today [
http://www.gigaom.com/2004/12/introducing_the.php ]. Here's the
RSS link [ http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheBroadbandDaily ] and
the contributors [ http://broadbanddaily.gigaom.com/authors.php
]. [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011515 ] |
Broadband [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_broadband.shtml ] | [by
staci]
-- Comcast Tops CED Broadband 50: "because there is no getting
around Comcast's massive gravitational pull in the cable
universe." The next four slots are occupied by Time-Warner
Cable, Echostar, News Corp. and Verizon. Chipmaker Entropic
Communications rounds off the list at #50Then there's Area 51 [
http://www.cedmagazine.com/ced/2004/1204/area51_04.htm ],
featuring the also-rans, drop offs and who knows. That list is
topped by low-profile Sony Passage. Others include BitTorrent --
"BitTorrent's rise to fame or infamy, depending on who you are,
could be fleeting. Its growing popularity will also draw
attention from content owners and copyright lawyers who are more
than willing to take a big bite out of BitTorrent's hide." [Dec.
1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011516 ] |
Broadband [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_broadband.shtml ] | [by
staci]
-- Two European Broadband Deals for Warner Bros. in Two Days:
Warner Bros. has new broadband deals with SF Anytime in
Scandinavia and Telecom Italia in Italy. Both European companies
will be able to offer movies for download six months after DVD
release and will have access to library titles for streaming.
The programs will be geofiltered and the viewing period will be
24 hours. DMEurope.com details [
http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=4715 ]the Italian
package. [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011521 ] |
Movies [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_movies.shtml ] | [by
staci]
-- Bloglines Adds Six Languages, Doubles Index: Bloglines [
http://www.bloglines.com ], the Web-based RSS reader Rafat and I rely
on to track a lot of the sources used for paidContent, announced
today that its article index hit 200 million. It took a year to
reach the first 100 million and only four months to double that.
Also, in addition to the English default, users can now set
cookies to read Bloglines in Spanish, Japanese, Chinese
(Traditional), French, German and Portuguese.
Bloglines would be close to ideal with better search capability
and without the annoying "close this window" messages after
clipping, blogging or e-mailing items. One of the execs told me
how to use the service to create RSS feeds for things like
annoyingly RSS-less Google alerts and it's made life much
easier. (If you want to try it, set up a Bloglines e-mail
address and use it for alerts or other non-RSS subscriptions.
The results appear as feeds and don't clutter up your
mailbox.) [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011517 ] |
RSS Etc. [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_rss_etc.shtml
] | [by staci]
-- iTunes Avoid a Black Eye : Apple found a way to stick with
its iTunes business plan and help charity at the same time.
Unwilling to change its standard price per download, iTunes was
the lone major online holdout from the Band Aid fundraiser for
Africa [
http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=630147§ion=news
] based on selling downloads at and single CDs of the revamped
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" for £1.49. The solution:
Apple will sell the song for its standard UK rate of 79 pence
and donate the additional 70p per download. The charity gets the
money and Apple gets around the negative publicity. The original
1984 versions goes for 79p; all proceeds go to the charity.
This song is a huge deal in the UK, where folks lined up before
stores opened to get the CD yesterday when it debuted. [Dec. 1:
Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011514 ] |
[by staci]
-- Canadian iTunes Store Opens for Business : iTunes quietlly
went online in Canada a day after its self-imposed November
deadline passed. According to MacObserver, it's the only one of
four music services in Canada that work with Macs. Macteens [
http://macteens.com/more.php?id=568_0_2_0_C ] says, "the new
store appears to be exclusively in English, contrary to rumors
that it would feature both English and French versions. Each
song sells for .99 Canadian dollars, equivalent to $.84 USD (as
of current exchange rates at press time)." [Dec. 2: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_02.shtml#011523 ] |
Apple [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_apple.shtml ]
|Music [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_music.shtml ] |
[by staci]
-- Sports Media & Technology Conference: "Turning a Team Website
into a Profit Center":
(by David Eckoff, guest blogger): This is the fourth in a
series of posts about the 6th Annual Sports Media & Technology
conference.
During the session "Turning a Team Website into a Profit Center"
experts from three official team sites -- two NHL, one NBA --
and an executive from MLB Advanced Media shared their
insights.
The topic was particularly interesting to me because I
previously founded and published one of the most popular
unofficial college team sites on the Internet, Inside Carolina
and because I previously built a network of college team sites
selling content to fans on a subscription basis as Senior
Vice-President at Rivals.com [ http://www.rivals.com ].
That said, you certainly don't have to run a sports team site
for this to be meaningful. The topic is more broadly relevant to
a variety of destination websites, not just sports team sites.
-- George Kliavkoff, senior vice-president at MLB Advanced Media
[ http://www.mlb.com ], said that team sites in their network
are one component of a larger strategy. "Think cross selling,"
Kliavkoff said. "Think of ticketing, sponsorship sales,
merchandise and content subscriptions."
How does integrated cross selling work? Consider my real-life
example: I am a Boston Red Sox fan living in Seattle and after
watching frieh video of the Red Sox championship parade on
MLB.com, I was swept up in the excitement of the victory
celebration -- and on the spot purchased two Boston Red Sox
championship hats via MLB.com.
-- Kliavkoff emphasized that aggregation has advantages.
Visitors to MLB.com, find consistent navigation across team
sites. And aggregating rights across all teams enables MLB.com
to deliver a single package to their partners. That creates
economic value for MLB.com.
-- In contrast, the folks who manage individual team sites
within the NHL and NBA said they value their independence in
running their own team websites and would be unhappy with a more
centrally managed infrastructure. So what's behind that? Marty
Quessenberry, director of new media for the Tampa Bay Lightning
[ http://www.tampabaylightning.com ], said that his team
competes for the attention of fans in Tampa Bay (which is a more
football-centric market); as a result, his team website has
unique needs that he believes wouldn't be met with a more
centralized approach.
-- One thing everyone agreed with: the Internet enables teams to
connect with fans in unique ways. For example, Quessenberry from
the Tampa Bay Lightning said that last year the team auctioned
in-person delivery of Valentine's Day roses by NHL players [
http://sptimes.com/2004/02/12/Columns/Love_for_hockey__wedd.shtml
] to high bidders, with the money going to charity.
-- Another example: Kurt Kehl, senior director of communications
for the Washington Capitals [ http://www.washingtoncaps.com ],
says that team owner Ted Leonis regularly reads the message
boards. Leonis recently took the 25 most active message board
posters to dinner. Credit to Mr, Leonis where credit is due:
rewarding your most loyal customers with a unique experience --
and listening to their opinions -- is smart business.
-- Finally, Jeramie McPeek, senior director of publishing,
Phoenix Suns [ http://www.nba.com/suns ] says that his goal is
to have more original content about the Suns than anywhere else.
McPeek also notes that the website helps the Suns sell
sponsorships, with the added online component.
As interesting as this panel was, I would have liked to have
seen even broader representation among the panelists. For
example, NFL.com [ http://www.nfl.com ] is doing excellent work
with their team sites; and thinking outside the box of official
team sites, there's much that can be learned about turning a
profit from experts at the two major unofficial team site
networks, such as Bobby Burton from Rivals.com [
http://www.rivals.com ] and Peter Gruman from Scout.com [
http://www.scout.com ].
Related -- "Cable Programming and Distribution Issues that
Affect the Way We View Sports [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_15.shtml#011362 ]" |
Set-Top Boxes and The Future of Interactive Television [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_15.shtml#011368 ]" |
"Expanding the Fan Base with Wireless Applications [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_17.shtml#011423 ]"
Guest blogger DAVID ECKOFF, is senior director at RealNetworks [
http://www.realnetworks.com ], where he co-leads the Media ASP
business that powers subscription offerings for the NFL, NASCAR,
CSTV and others. The opinions expressed in the posts here are
his own and not those of Real. You can reach David Eckoff by
e-mailing davideckoff ...at... gmail.com [Dec. 1: Link] [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011503 ] |
Sports [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_sports.shtml ] | [by
David Eckoff]
-- Did Viacom Bid for MarketWatch? (Corrected Version): Update:
Correction: A heads-up from MarketWatch that I should have been
more careful with this item originally published on Nov. 26. The
lack of a specific mention of a bid doesn't mean Viacom opted
out. In fact, there is no way to tell from the filing whether or
not Viacom followed through after affirming in its own filing
that it had the right to bid. MarketWatch stresses that it
cannot say whether or not Viacom was an actual bidder. The rest
of the entry stands. My apologies for any confusion. [Dec. 1:
Link] | MKTW [ http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/cat_mktw.shtml ]
| [by staci]
-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
-- VNU eMedia, Market Analyst
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_21.shtml#011463 ]
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital
Media Technologies [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011369 ]
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011395 ]
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011394 ]
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_07.shtml#011294 ]
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_24.shtml#010983 ]
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
[ http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_10.shtml#010631
]
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_31.shtml#011109 ]
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_24.shtml#010983 ]
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Classified Jobs
[ http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/ ]
The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the
digital media sector
-- VNU eMedia, Market Analyst [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_28.shtml#011502 ]
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_21.shtml#011463 ]
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital
Media Technologies [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011369 ]
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011395 ]
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_14.shtml#011394 ]
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_11_07.shtml#011294 ]
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_24.shtml#010983 ]
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
[ http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_10.shtml#010631
]
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_31.shtml#011109 ]
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer [
http://www.paidcontent.org/jobs/week_2004_10_24.shtml#010983 ]
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here [
http://www.paidcontent.org/classifieds/ ] In Case You Missed
It:
-- ESPN Will Launch Own Mobile Phone Service [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011513 ]
-- Audio: Interview with Jessica Perry, Dow Jones [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_30.shtml#011501 ]
-- Jupiter: One-Third of Young a***ts Interested in Subscription
Music [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011511 ]
-- BusinessWeek Discovers Mobile TV [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011509 ]
-- Another Fish Jumps in Consumer Search Pond [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011508 ]
-- Report: MSN Blog Service Ready for Launch [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_30.shtml#011506 ]
-- The Right Price for Cyberspace? [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011507 ]
-- BitPass Adds CDBaby Library to Online Music Store [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_12_01.shtml#011510 ]
-- eHarmony Matches Up with Friendster [
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_30.shtml#011505 ]
-- Follow ICANN's Annual Meeting via Webcast [
http://media.icann.org/ramgen/encoder/capetown.rm ]
--------------
[ http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/ ]This work
is licensed under a Creative Commons License [
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_________________________________________________________________
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[Nov 30, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Online Radio Ratings Return; WSJ Goes Mobile; Internet Ad Spending Jumps 25%

2004-11-30T08:20:00.000-08:00

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HEADLINES
-- Online Radio Ratings Redux
-- Online Journal Goes Mobile with Summus
-- NBC Universal is Looking for Broadband Ad Dollars
-- Internet Ad Spending Up Dramatically
-- BT Creates Broadband Entertainment Division
-- <011498>High-Speed Use Changing UK Habits
-- Infrared Posters Beam Info to Mobile Phones
-- Kazaa Defense Gets Turn
-- Kazaa Trial is Underway Down Under
-- Ohmynews Profits from Citizen Journalism>
----------------------

Online Radio Ratings Redux: ClickZ reports that Arbitron is back with a new plan for rating online radio and a new partner, comScore Media Metrix. The first effort, which ended last February, relied on desktop software that had to be downloaded and installed. This version is based on a 200,000-person panel of Internet users from comScore's global consumer panel. comScore Arbitron Online Radio Ratings will provide average quarter hour and cume stats in demographic segments and dayparts similar to that of traditional radio, making it easier for buyers.
Meaningful measurements could transform online radio into a haven for advertisers, instead of a guessing game. But radio services and advertisers will have to be careful not to overdo it or risk pushing listeners to less commercial-laden options.
Related -- Arbitron to Cease Measurecast Ratings [Nov.30: Link] | Advertising | [by staci]

-- Online Journal Goes Mobile with Summus: The Online Journal is teaming up with Raleigh-based Summus Inc. to launch a mobile edition in early '05. In true Journal fashion, "The Wall Street Journal Mobile" will be subscription only -- $3.99 a month billed by the carrier.
Content will include news from the Online Journal, comprehensive market, stock and commodities data, and personalized portfolio information. directly to a cell phone. The press release says it will be available via most U.S. wireless carriers but not which ones.
The press release also doesn't say whether current print and online subscribers will get a break on the subscription price so the assumption is we're talking an additional $47.88 a year on top of those fees. Does Dow Jones expect to get people to pay three times for the same info or are they counting on new customers? Stay tuned ... [Nov.30: Link] | WSJ | [by staci]

-- NBC Universal is Looking for Broadband Ad Dollars : Randy Falco, president of NBC Universal Television Networks Group, tells the FT that the company has to explore ways new media platforms and wireless technology in order to tap into the broadband ad pipe. Falco told Tim Burt: "It's not just about cable and broadcasting but also broadband advertising, which is a $7bn industry. This is about being in a position to monetise and exploit content across multiple platforms. It will take us in new directions where cable and satellite will not be the only distribution outlets for your content."
Ok, so it's a blinding statement of the obvious to many of us but it matters that it comes from someone near the top of one of the largest media companies.
This was just a aidebar to a much more detailed piece about NBC Universal. [Nov.30: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Internet Ad Spending Up Dramatically: Internet ad spending jumped 25.8 percent to $5.5 billion for the first nine months of 2004 compared to $4.4 billion for the same period in 2003, according to TNS Media Intelligence/CMR. That's nearly one-third of the $17.7 billion brought in by local newspapers and half of the amount being spent on cable tv. It's also the largest increase of all segments; nearly half of the segments showed double-digit increases. [Nov.30: Link] | Advertising | [by staci]

-- BT Creates Broadband Entertainment Division : As of Jan. 1, BT is aggregating its broadband entertainment and education efforts into BT Entertainment, a new division of its retail consumer business. According to VNUNet.com, the move covers on-demand music, gaming and video. Andrew Burke, now director of BT Rich media, will head the new division; Dan Marks, president of Universal Studios Networks UK, will come on board in early '05 to head IP video development.
Here's another look from the Sunday Times.
Wonder what else BT Retail CEO Pierre Danon has up his sleeve before leaving to join Cap Gemini as COO early next year ... [Nov.29: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- High-Speed Use Changing UK Habits (pdf): Additional evidence on the way speed changes usage patterns, this time from Nielsen/NetRatings UK. More than 50% of the 22.8 million UK home surfers are using 128k or higher -- and spending roughly 32 hours a month online, more than twice as long online as dial-up users. They also view more than three times as many pages and visit more sites. The number of high-speed homes is up 5. million, a 117 percent jump from Oct. '03 to Oct. '04. Size of household plays a role; those with 5-plus tend to go for more speed.
With high-speed users accounting for more than 50 percent of the audience, Nielsen/NetRatings analyst Gabrielle Prior says websites need "to adapt, update and enhance their content to retain their visitors and encourage new ones. In the future, websites will be Ã¢ÂÂspedÃ¢ÂÂ out of the market, not Ã¢ÂÂpriced outÃ¢ÂÂ."
Speaking of more, it's time for Nielsen/NetRatings to break out true broadband in that study and make it more meaningful. [Nov.30: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Infrared Posters Beam Info to Mobile Phones: The latest in London? Interactive posters that beam infrared signals to mobile phones. According to Netimperative, users can activate the infrared on their phones, hold it up to a "hypertag" on the poster and download vouchers, business cards, ringtones or games. Using infrared guarantees a signal at underground stations. The first campaign sends a number for safe night travel directly to the phone.
Lots of potential as more phones gain infrared. For instance, a user could point at a movie poster armed with hypertags and get a direct link to the online ticket booth. Until more phones come with infrared, though, this has more potential as an attention-getting gimmick than a real consumer tool. (Via picturephoning.com) [Nov.29: Link] | Advertising | [by staci]

-- Kazaa Defense Gets Turn (reg.req.): On day 2 -- no, we're not planning day-by-day coverage -- the defense compared Kazaa to video recorders, citing the U.S. Supreme Court Betamax decision that said Sony wasn't liable when people used its technology illegally because the technology also had lawful uses. Kazaa attorney Tony Meagher also spoke of Kazaa's lack of control over the way the software is used, telling the court "we are not in a position to control and we do not control use." [Nov.30: Link] | DRM |Music | [by staci]

-- Kazaa Trial is Underway Down Under: The Kazaa filesharing program "is an engine of copyright piracy to a degree of magnitude never before seen," attorney Tony Bannon told the Australian court as he began arguments on behalf of major record labels Sony/BMG, EMI, Warner Music, Universal Music Australia and another two dozen parties.
Bannon followed up with a smackdown of the new version of Kazaa bundled with Skype. "Kazaa version 3 provides delightfully contemporaneous evidence that the respondents give their blessing to the copyright-infringing ways of their users," he said. "Indeed, they reward them with a new and better product to continue their robbing ways."
The civil action against Kazaa is expected to take about three weeks but a verdict before the end of the year is unlikely. We'll make it through if Kristyn Maslog-Levis of ZDNet Australia continues her lively, thorough coverage, a rarity among the dozens of Kazaa stories I've sorted through today.
Wired News also has a good piece highlighting efforts to prove who actually owns Sharman Network. [Nov.29: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- Ohmynews Profits from Citizen Journalism :Ohmynews, the South Korean citizen's media site,is bringing in almost $500,000 a month in advertising and makes a monthly profit of about $27,000, Asia Times Online reports. (Via EditorsWeblog )The site, which broke even last year, has a full-time staff of 53, including 38 professional reporters and editors, and more than 43,000 citizen journalists paid for their contribitions. Roughly 80 percent of the content is citizen produced.
Against a backdrop on media reform in South Korea, the lengthy article explores the site's reasons for success, including the country's overwhelming adoption of the Internet as a primary source for news and its emphasis on interaction. [Nov.29: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
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Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- Google Joins the Digital Video Search Pack
-- Sony Broadband Powers Up with the Cell
-- ContentGuard Deal Stuck in Europe
-- Internet TV Company Survives with Niche Emphasis
-- EContent's 100 Companies That Matter Most in Digital Content
-- Wanted: Feasible Business Plan for Audio Site
-- Going Deep For Premium Content Doesn't Insure a TD
-- Online Sales Booming but Online Newspapers Missing Out
-- Looking for Online Audio? New Site Hopes You'll Go Fish
-- Viacom Didn't Bid for MarketWatch
-- Movie Downloads: "Good Idea Done Poorly"
-- Short but Sweet List of Sites to Watch
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

For the latest news and archives, go to PaidContent.org

To subscribe to this e-mail newsletter, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-|________________
POWERED BY: http://www.imninc.com/eletra/redirect.cfm?a=alirafat&x=b44hHMl,b2DgcH9d
From Rafat Ali, 500 Nth 2nd Street, Unit C, Alhambra, CA 91801 US

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[Nov 29, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Google's Video Search Plans; New Broadband Chip; Go Fish

2004-11-29T08:43:00.000-08:00

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Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Nov 29, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelt to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by BroadcastPC

Advertisement
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HEADLINES
-- Google Joins the Digital Video Search Pack
-- Sony Broadband Powers Up with the Cell
-- ContentGuard Deal Stuck in Europe
-- Internet TV Company Survives with Niche Emphasis
-- EContent's 100 Companies That Matter Most in Digital Content
-- Wanted: Feasible Business Plan for Audio Site
-- Going Deep For Premium Content Doesn't Insure a TD
-- Online Sales Booming but Online Newspapers Missing Out
-- Looking for Online Audio? New Site Hopes You'll Go Fish
-- Viacom Didn't Bid for MarketWatch
-- Movie Downloads: "Good Idea Done Poorly"
-- Short but Sweet List of Sites to Watch
----------------------

Google Joins the Digital Video Search Pack : CNET's Stefanie Olsen updates the video search scene with some anonymously provided details about Google's two-pronged approach -- a consumer video search service to be launched in '05 and a new archive-search technology aimed at networks. The latter relies for now on close-caption indexing for keyword search and has been shown to a few broadcast execs primarily to forestall copyright issues.
Yahoo -- according a single source in the story -- plans a 1Q05 launch of its consumer multimedia search engine.
Searchable video should lead to more video on demand and more advertising opportunities. It may also change viewing patterns in ways we can't yet identify just as Google and others changed the way people approach information.
Related -- The Next Big Thing May Be Searchable TV [Nov.29: Link] | Google |Microsoft |YHOO | [by staci]

-- Sony Broadband Powers Up with the Cell: Sony will base home servers for broadband and HD on "revolutionary new computer chip" the Cell starting in 2006. Partners IBM, Sony and Toshiba say the Cell "will allow computers and consumer electronics products to quickly process huge amounts of video and other digital content." Tech details aren't coming until February but the chip's power is based on multiple processor cores including a 64-bit power processor.
This is part of the tech puzzle that needs to be solved before broadband TV can succeed.
Related -- Internet TV Company Survives with Niche Emphasis [Nov.29: Link] | Sony | [by staci]

-- ContentGuard Deal Stuck in Europe (reg.req.): The New York Times deciphers the addition of Thomson to Microsoft and Time Warner in the pending ContentGuard deal. The European Commission is stalling the process over concerns the purchase might give Microsoft a digital-rights monopoly. Adding a French company, especially one that holds the MP3 license, as one-third owner might alleviate some concerns but who knows? This is, as the Times points out, the same commission that ordered the Microsoft Media Player to be cut from Windows although there is a new competition commissioner. The decision's due in January.
Related -- Thomson buys stake in ContentGuard [Nov.29: Link] | DRM | [by staci]

-- Internet TV Company Survives with Niche Emphasis: "The Internet will do to cable what cable did to broadcasting," predicts Dave Gardy, CEO of Internet TV pioneer TVWorldwide. The Washington state company carries a mix of archived and live streaming on 20 niche channels includuing USVets.TV, terptv for University of Maryland sports and HomelandDefenseTV. TVWorldwide survives on a mix of revenue streams, including pay-per-view and subscription. Gardy's prediction sounds nifty but there's one major catch -- cable TV didn't require a shift to a new way of watching television, just a new delivery system. A lot of matters have to be solved before ITV can come close to cable, among them delivery technology, blanket broadband access and migration to the living room. [Nov.29: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- EContent's 100 Companies That Matter Most in Digital Content: EContent releases its 4th annual EC100 list of "companies that matter most in the digital content industry." Out of a dozen categories, the largest is fee-based info services including big names like Dow Jones alongside the more esoteric Chemical Abstract Society. Only three made the blogging section -- Google, Six Apart and, on the enterprise side, Traction Software.
The smallest company appears to be one-mand band Peter Morville's Semantic Studios, used by the information architect to spearhead "findability." One observation I couldn't help but make after scrolling through the pages -- by far the majority of the companies on the EC100 are headed by white, male CEOs. [Nov.29: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- Wanted: Feasible Business Plan for Audio Site: Doug Kaye, founder of IT Conversations, is asking users "after 18 months, nearly 300 programs" to help him find a financial model.
For those who haven't found it yet, IT Conversations (motto: "New Ideas Through Your Headphones") is geek audio heaven with downloadable or streaming recordings and transcripts of interviews, Internet-only shows and events like BloggerCon and PopTech.
Kaye explains: "As is true for other podcasters (if you can call IT Conversations a podcast) this is virgin territory. No one really knows what will work and what won't. But if any business model is to be successful it's got to meet the needs of the listeners without whom there would be no business to model."
Others might have had to look for a rational plan earlier but Kaye has had enough personal funding to support the site without having to worry about pesky little things like mortgage payments and grocery bills. It's also been a good self-promotion tool. But bank accounts that feed intensive projects like have a way of seeping cash so anyone who values this service ought to give its future some thought. Here's my two cents -- sell ads for the audio streams and the site but offer ad-frieh options through micropayments or a subscription. Consider fees for recording some sessions. Make deals to provide entire events on CD with a cut for IT and a cut for the organization. (Via Scripting News)
Update: Be sure to scroll down for the comments for a variety of reactions and ideas. Among the questions raised -- does switching to a pay-for-play model require compensating the speakers and panelists? Is he looking for profit or cost recovery? [Nov.27: Link] | Nanopublishing | [by staci]

-- Going Deep For Premium Content Doesn't Insure a TD (sub. req.): More newspapers are trying to turn local sports into an online subscription revenue stream -- with mixed results, says the WSJ's Carl Bialik. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel started the mini-trend with Packer Insider started the trend three years ago, selling some 40,000 subscriptions since at $5.95 per month or $34.95. Most imitators stick to that pricing mode although other football sites have yet to achieve those heights.
Walling off sports coverage can siphon users from ad-supported frieh content, as the Knoxville News-Sentinel learned when it started charging for some sports coverage. Jack Lail, managing editor of multimedia, told the Journal the premium content has about 3,000 subscribers but traffic to frieh GoVols.com dipped by 25 percent when content went behind the pay wall.
My own POV -- walling off previously frieh content risks alienating loyal users and cutting ad-supported traffic. Create new content that a fan might consider worth a few extra bucks or aggregate it all in a way that makes it more valuable.
Newspapers still relying on print subscriptions need to be especially careful. Include the online-version of print content in the print subscribtion and give print subscribers a significant discount on premium content. [Nov.28: Link] | Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Online Sales Booming but Online Newspapers Missing Out: British online newspaper publishers caught in the frieh content cycle are turning to premium content to bolster ad revenue, reports The Independent's Jane Thynne. The story includes a roundup of what British sites are charging for premium content like columnists, archives, tools, crosswords and niche coverage.
The Mail, which went online last spring, charges for columnists, E-Editions and crosswords; it now boasts a half-million users a month but doesn't say how many are paying customers -- only that the site is "meeting targets."
Simon Waldman, director of digital publishing at Guardian Unlimited, told her debates about degrees of paid content are irrelevant: "The big question is how newspapers will fit into an internet which is increasingly providing a 'citizen's media' with bloggers and Google - people create their own media and newspapers become less the arbiter of what's important in the world." [Nov.28: Link] | Newspapers | [by staci]

-- Looking for Online Audio? New Site Hopes You'll Go Fish: SiliconBeat, the Merc News' tech biz blog, reports on a new search engine for digital content that channels users to legit downloads. GoFish works like a comparison search site with a financial twist -- commission (9-15%) on sales referred from the site and on subscriptions. Ad revenue is also part of the business plan. I didn't see anything that would clue a consumer in on the commission arrangement but maybe that's coming Monday with the official launch. Michael Downing, formerly of Musicbank, heads the effort. [Nov.26: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- Viacom Didn't Bid for MarketWatch: An SEC filing in preparation for the shareholder vote on Dow Jones' proposed acquisition of MarketWatch offers a detailed timeline of the deal starting with the first approach by DJ exec Gordon Crovitz early last June. In early August, a second unsolicited bidder popped up and by late August shareholder Pearson was on the record evincing no interest.
In early September, investment banker UBS appoached five additional potential bidders; six of the seven, including Dow Jones, were interested. Dow Jones signed its confidentiality agreement on Sept. 8. Despite the number of people involved, the sales talk managed to stay off the public radar until late Octiber.
Four parties, including Dow Jones, submitted bids but Viacom -- despite an SEC filing affirming its right to bid -- never actually made an offer. For detail gluttons, here's an excerpt. (The WSJ reported Viacom's no-bid but the link is broken.)
Related: -- Process Began With Unsolicited Offers [Nov.26: Link] | MKTW | [by staci]

-- Movie Downloads: "Good Idea Done Poorly": PC World reviewer Dan Tynan tried Movie Link and Starz Ticket on Real Movies -- and found both wanting especially compared to the ease of Netflix. "The services are hobbled by the studios, which give movies to them a month after they hit the video stores, and impose silly rules on when you can watch films." My own visit to Movie Link just now turned up another flaw -- it only works with IE 5.0 and higher. No Mozilla. No Netscape. No Safari. Given the shifting sands of the browser market maybe it's time to start thinking more globally. [Nov.26: Link] | Movies | [by staci]

-- Short but Sweet List of Sites to Watch: I was reading the EC100 for link potential when I stumbled across a sidebar about sites that fall outside that scope and found some familiar names -- "essential read" MoCo.News and ContentNext, which "should prove to be Ali's next great success." EContent writer Peggy Salz likes both. A lot. Rafat is described as "something of a cult icon in the industry" and paidContent as "enormously successful." What a nice wedding present ...
Just to make staying up late even more worthwile, right below, the Online Journalism Review (where I'm contributing editor) gets a nod for encouraging "the consistent application of ethics and the growth and improvement of digital content."
Be sure to check out the write-ups of other sites including Technorati, Flickr and Gawker Media. [Nov.29: Link] | [by staci]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

Â» DAILY NEWSLETTER:
To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
------------
paidContent.org's Generous Supporters
BroadcastPC.tv
UPI
eMeta
ThePlatform
Entriq
IMN Inc

Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- Fast Internet Use Up But Not Enough
-- P2P Startup Improves '05 Launch Position
-- Multi: Borelli Out at AOL
-- Judge Slows Down Movie P2P
-- Not Your Father's WebTV
-- WDIG Promotes Nichols
-- Mobile Message Boards
-- ESPN.com To Debut Original Animated Series
-- BT and Blueprunt Join Forces for Legit Digital Music Option
-- CNN Hires Online Media CEO To Head News Ops
-- Thomson buys stake in ContentGuard
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

For the latest news and archives, go to PaidContent.org

To subscribe to this e-mail newsletter, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-|________________
POWERED BY: http://www.imninc.com/eletra/redirect.cfm?a=alirafat&x=b441cVk,b2DgcH9d
From Rafat Ali, 500 Nth 2nd Street, Unit C, Alhambra, CA 91801 US

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[Nov 24-27, '04] PaidContent.org News Day: Not Enough Access, Borelli Out at AOL; P2P Start-up

2004-11-24T17:31:00.000-08:00

To view this newsletter in full-color:
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PaidContent.org

Â© 2002-2004
Rafat Ali

PaidContent.org Newswire: [Nov 24, 2004]

**Some words have been deliberately misspelt to avoid e-mail filters**

Today's newsletter is brought to you by Entriq

Entriq develops and manages online pay media infrastructure.
Prince's award winning Musicology website is powered by Entriq. The NPG website distributes both music and video directly from the artist with security and supurb customer care to Prince's fans.
Check out the how Entriq helped NPG Music Club (PDF File) or contact us at sales@entriq.com.

The server transition is finally history. Sorry for any inconvenience. We didn't publish a newsletter yesterday and this one may set a record for late. We'll post as warranted for the next few days and we'll resume our normal publication schedule Monday. In the meantime, those of you on holiday can kick back while we keep up with the news. Be sure to check out the job listings on the right; you never know. ... Staci D. Kramer, Executive Editor

HEADLINES
-- Fast Internet Use Up But Not Enough
-- P2P Startup Improves '05 Launch Position
-- Multi: Borelli Out at AOL
-- Judge Slows Down Movie P2P
-- Not Your Father's WebTV
-- WDIG Promotes Nichols
-- Mobile Message Boards
-- ESPN.com To Debut Original Animated Series
-- BT and Blueprunt Join Forces for Legit Digital Music Option
-- CNN Hires Online Media CEO To Head News Ops
-- Thomson buys stake in ContentGuard
----------------------

Fast Internet Use Up but Not Enough: According to a U.S. Dept. of Commerce report "A Nation Online: Entering the Broadband Age" (prepared in September but held until after the election), the use of fast Internet connections doubled from 2001 to 2003 but did not meet expectations. As of Oct. '03, about 20 percent of U.S, households were on the fast track. That means the majority of U.S. households either didn't have the ability to get high-speed access or chose not to pay for it. Either way, that leaves a big gap of households not using broadband content or services and it leaves the U.S. lagging behind other countries. Especially troubling: the low numbers in certain demographic segments -- 1 in 7 blacks, fewer than 1 in 8 Hispanics, 24.7 percent of rural users. That compares to 40.4 percent of urban households and 1 in 4 whites. [Nov.24: Link] | Broadband | [by staci]

-- P2P Startup Improves '05 Launch Position: Scheduled to launch early next year, Wurld media's Peer Impact has deals now with three of the four top record lables -- Universal Music, Sony BMG and the Warner Music Group; CNET says negotiations with EMI continue.
At the Mercury News (reg. req.), Dawn Chmielewski says the the deals signal "the music industry's increasing willingness to co-opt rather than crush file-swapping technology..." while Wired News' Katie Dean explains how Peer Impact will work. (I was just reminded of her piece about P2P Weed, which lets users play downloads free three times.)
The new service, which plans to focus on community, will be 99 cents. I'm all for competition but I'm having a hard time seeing the reason for so many services stuck at the 99-cent level. Innovation on the front end is good but please find an innovative way to deal with price ... [Nov.24: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- Multi: Borelli Out at AOL (sub. req.): Lou Borelli tells Multichannel News' Steve Donohue that he volunteered to be leave as part of the company-wide restructuring. Cable vet Borelli, senior VP of broadband distribution and local promotion at AOL for Broadband, joined AOL in spring 2001. Joe Cantwell will handle broadband distribution as VP/general manager of affiliate marketing and operations.
Sounds like this could be good for Borelli, who I wasn't sure had the patience to be at AOL for one year, let alone three-plus. He shouldn't be offline for long.
[Nov.24: Link] | AOL | [by staci]

-- Judge Slows Down Movie P2P Cases: CNET reports that a Cailfornia judge has put 11 of 12 cases on hold, saying the MPAA may have been impoperly bundled them together. Borrowing from their music colleagues, the MPAA filed a slew of John Doe suits to start the discovery process with the intention of specifying names later.
Related -- <
http://www.paidcontent.org/pc/arch/2004_11_03.shtml#011133>Film Industry Suing Computer Users [Nov.24: Link] | DRM | [by staci]

-- Not Your Father's WebTV: AP gives Microsoft an early holiday gift with a positive review of MSN TV 2, an area where the giant has had a hard time surviving let alone dominating. "Advanced users who for years collectively looked down their noses at WebTV will be surprised at how capable MSN TV 2 is and how well it works in home networks," Matthew Fordahl writes of Microsoft's latest stab at marrying TV with the Web through the picture tube instead of the monitor. He's not thrilled with the way some non-MSN web content appears among other aspects.
Related: -- Gear Eye: MSN TV 2 [Nov.24: Link] | [by staci]

-- WDIG Promotes Nichols: Michael Nichols has been upped from vp to senior VP, creative and content development, at the Walt Disney Internet Group. He's responsible for broadband/wireless product development from idea to launch. A Disney vet of nearly 20 years, Nichols is described in the announcement as growing the wireless library to more than 6,000 individual products spread across nearly 20 categories. [Nov.24: Link] | Disney | [by staci]

-- ESPN.com To Debut Original Animated Series: ESPN's ambitions are way more than any of us realize, but its potential is less than what the company people think...
Bill Simmons--who pens "ESPN.com's The Sports Guy" on the popular online site, as well as a column in ESPN The Magazine--voices his own character for the animated series, which debuts on Nov. 24 on ESPN.com. The series consists of 11 one-minute episodes...
The animated comedy series marks ESPN.com's first foray into original entertainment programming for the Web. [Nov.22: Link] | Broadband | [by rafat]

-- Mobile Message Boards: I don't know what it would take to get this done but here's a feature from Japan worth exploring as a way to extend the web to cell phone when the power is out and provide a public service -- a mobile message board that pops up on cell phones within 30 minutes of earthquakes, hurricanes or other disasters. Users can post brief text messages and their status, ie home, shelter, okay. A big hit on NTT DoCoMo phones during the last month's earthquake, textually.org reports via The Daily Yomiuri that KDDI and Vodaphone K.K. users will have access, too. [Nov.24: Link] | [by staci]

-- BT and Blueprunt Join Forces for Legit Digital Music Option: BT hopes to appeal to multiple markets -- artists, labels, consumers, retailers -- with a legit digital music hosting and distribution service based on Blueprint software. Sccording to the fine print, rights holders will be able to make audio (ringtones, soings, etc.) and video available for multiple platforms. Check out the Robbie Williams' mobile store for an example. (The main Robbie Williams site is a different kind of example, a stylized design that's almost totally unreadable.) [Nov.24: Link] | Music | [by staci]

-- CNN Hires Online Media CEO To Head News Ops: In a growing sign that online media will lead the charge rather than the other way around, CNN News Group has tapped the CEO of The Feedroom Jonathan Klein as its new president overseeing U.S. news...
"Six years steeped in the digital information industry have helped me understand today's news consumers in ways never before available to media executives," Klein said in a statement.
Update: At The FeedRoom, Bart Feder, senior vice president and GM since 2000, succeeds Klein as president and CEO. Klein remains on the board of The FeedRoom, which bills itself as "the world's largest broadband news network and one of the Web's top video streamers." (via LostRemote.) [Nov.22: Link] | [by rafat]

-- Thomson buys stake in ContentGuard: The DRM patent company ContentGuard has sold a 33 percent stake to Thomson...the rest is majority owned by Microsoft and Time Warner.
The latest announcement follows recent concerns expressed by the European Commission that their stake in ContentGuard gives Microsoft and Time Warner control over key technologies in the market for digital media, strengthening Microsoft's dominance in the market for digital rights management.
Although the Commission is unlikely to want to block their takeover, it is expected to seek commitments from Microsoft and Time Warner that would allow competitors reasonable and non-discriminatory access to ContentGuard technology.
Some more info here...
Update: Ovum analyst Dario Betti on the deal: "Thomson knows more about IP management than the small Content Guard. After all they are exclusive licensing representative of mp3 patents -- to mention only one of their 35,000 patents. Thomson can offer better representation and channels to the market. Thomson's participation makes the deal more digestible to regulators and competitors." [Nov.22: Link] | DRM | [by rafat]

-------------------------------------------------------------
Classified Listings
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

Â» DAILY NEWSLETTER:
To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-- Send comments, links, rants and raves to Rafat Ali at rali@paidcontent.org
------------
paidContent.org's Generous Supporters
BroadcastPC.tv
UPI
eMeta
ThePlatform
Entriq
IMN Inc

Classified Jobs

The Digital Media Jobs Blog, covering, what else, jobs in the digital media sector
-- Qualcomm: Senior Legal Counsel, Content
-- Amazon.com: Senior Manager, Software Engineering, Digital Media Technologies
-- Optimost, Director of Marketing Solutions
-- Audible.com: eCommerce Merchandising Manager
-- THQ Wireless: Sr Mgr Wireless Product Development
-- UIEvolution, Software Development Engineer
-- Amazon.com: Senior Content Acquisition Manager, Digital Media
-- ContextWeb: Business Development Manager
-- ESPN.com: Search Tech Producer
To Post a Classified Ad, Go Here

In Case You Missed It:

-- AOL Splits Its Personality
--AOL's Internal Memo On Restructuring
--AOL To Launch Ad Supported Video
--Pulitzer Inc. Considering Sale
--Fox Launches Music Store
--New Digital-only Label Debuts
--Juha Christensen To Leave Macromedia
--Picks and Pans
--Let the Stripping Begin
--Google May Not Be Able to Keep Up the Pace
--Translating Newspapers into Mobile Reads
--UMG's Mobile Music Strategy
--RipeTV Ready To Launch Its Service
--------------

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

For the latest news and archives, go to PaidContent.org

To subscribe to this e-mail newsletter, send a blank e-mail to subscribe@paidcontent.org

-|________________
POWERED BY: http://www.imninc.com/eletra/redirect.cfm?a=alirafat&x=b43f9yK,b2DgcH9d
From Rafat Ali, 500 Nth 2nd Street, Unit C, Alhambra, CA 91801 US

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