Roku set-top box to become an open platform
Earlier this summer, Roku, the company responsible for the hit $99 Netflix streaming set top box, said the device would soon support major content providers other than Netflix. With the release of an SDK, that finally looks viable.
Roku CEO and Founder Anthony Wood, formerly of ReplayTV, gave a keynote speech yesterday morning at the Streaming Media West conference in San Jose, entitled "The Future of Internet TV: Primetime Anytime." There, Wood proclaimed that the DVR (which his former company claims responsibility for inventing), is in its death throes, because "Streaming from the Internet to the TV is a much better solution."
Rage over 'Spore' DRM turns into class action suit
EA has been sued in the Northern District of California over DRM software placed in its evolution simulator game Spore developed by Will Wright and Maxis.
Though the game itself is regarded very highly, any praise it has received has been greatly overshadowed by the public's vexation at the SecuROM copy protection that caps installations at three. In the midst of public complaints, EA later increased the install limit to five.
MySpace Music snags EMI, launches today
Just as before, the site offers unlimited free streaming of content posted to an artist's profile. But now its system for playlist creation and purchase has improved, especially now that the fourth and final big label is secured.
Social Network MySpace has officially launched its music-dedicated portal after securing EMI as its final partner among the Big Four major labels.
Kneecapped malware host tries to rise again
InterCage (a.k.a., Atrivo), the network provider notoriously fingered as a major purveyor of malware, found its way back online after a days-long shutdown cheered by anti-malware and anti-spam activists.
Could pulling just one firm offline make a noticeable dent in the malware trafficking problem? That may depend on whether Sunday's move by former upstream provider Pacific Internet Exchange (PIE) to cut InterCage's connection makes an impression on owner Emil Kacperski.
Judge sets aside RIAA win in Jammie Thomas case
The Minnesota woman who lost the only RIAA copyright-infringement case to go to trial thus far had her verdict set aside Wednesday by the judge who originally oversaw the case.
District Court judge Michael Davis took the remarkable step of vacating the verdict reached on Capitol v. Thomas in his very own courtroom. The judge's 44-page decision is based on his conclusion that he did give the jury improper instruction as to whether the law disallows making files available for distribution, as Ms. Thomas allegedly did when she saved songs in a folder that was visible to peer-to-peer networks.
Congress may see the glass half-empty on DTV transition
Suppose only a small percentage of the American population finds themselves without television service come next February, and either don't know why or aren't sure what to do. Are federal, state, and local governments ready for them?
After a pair of congressional hearings in recent days where witnesses gave generally favorable reports on the status of the nation's transition to digital television -- still slated for next February 17 -- leaders there are still putting out the word that a crisis of misinformation may not be avoided in time.
Sony Ericsson to finally roll out its subscription music service
Sony Ericsson's PlayNow Arena has just been given a boost, with a plan for unlimited downloads and an agenda to roll it out to wireless customers worldwide.
PlayNow Arena fully launched in the Scandanavian countries Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden in August, offering mobile entertainment content for Sony Ericsson users. The service uses a "cover flow" type interface to sell music, games, ringtones, and other phone content.
Intel, Oracle team on encryption to protect data in business 'clouds'
Judging from the announcement at this week's OracleWorld, both enterprise cloud computing and virtualization customers could soon get new data encryption technologies that are "hardware-rooted."
Oracle and Intel are now working together on enterprise computing "clouds" that will use data encryption for improved privacy, the two companies said at this week's OracleWorld conference.
Free wireless group denies T-Mobile's claims of signal interference
M2Z, major supporters of a "porn-free wireless broadband access for all" plan, have rebuffed T-Mobile's spectrum tests that say it would interfere with the company's cellular signal.
The 2155-2175 MHz band (termed advanced wireless service, or AWS) has been the subject of contention for several years, as chunks of spectrum are the one of the most important commodities for telecommunications operations, and different groups want it used for different purposes.
Motorola takes biometric ID to the streets
A new attachment for two of Motorola's enterprise digital assistants (EDAs) gives police and other mobile security folk the gear to check fingerprints in the field.
It's the stuff of nightmares and various cheesy cop shows: The bad guy gets control of an officer's gun / radio / car and takes his mayhem to a new level. But with the announcement of a biometric attachment for two models of their EDAs popular with police and other security personnel, Motorola's looking to increase the peace.
Spurned iPhone developer's complaints mysteriously disappear
Alex Sokirynsky, one of many application developers rejected by Apple's App Store, has admitted to deep-sixing his own blog post. Could Apple be using NDA clauses as a tool for silencing disenchanted developers?
In the latest twist on a series of application rejections by Apple's App Store, Alex Sokirynsky -- one of at least four impacted developers -- has pulled a blog post in which he'd vented about Apple's ongoing interference and vowed to move his Podcaster application to Google's Android Marketplace.
MySpace's new ad network lets musicians self-promote
MySpace, the social network turned music repository, has unveiled the beta of "Promote Your..." a self-service advertising system that allows users to publish and manage banners on its network that click through to musicians' profiles.
The service is geared toward independent musicians and businesspeople, offering audience targeting, efficacy tracking, and an advertising budget range from $25 to $10,000. It also offers an ad creation wizard interface or the ability to upload pre-made 300 x 250 or 728 x 90 .JPG, .GIF, or .PNG banners that are less than 600K in size.
Yahoo denies any new developments with Time Warner over AOL
With Microsoft out of the picture in any future deal with Yahoo, there has been speculation over someone else potentially filling the void. But a news story yesterday made it seem like that void was being filled, and Yahoo is disputing it.
Late yesterday, following a meeting of Yahoo's board of directors, the Financial Times published a story citing someone its reporter called "one person familiar with the company's thinking" as revealing that some type of hurdle had been cleared precluding a future deal between Yahoo and Time Warner over the latter's AOL unit.
Massachusetts, Nevada mandate encryption for consumer data
New regulations will tighten security measures around residents' personal data, but the impact of these regulations will affect businesses beyond the two states' borders.
Massachusetts' Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation issued new regulations, called the Standards for The Protection of Personal Information of Residents of the Commonwealth, set to take effect on January 1, 2009. The state already has what are considered by some to be the most far-reaching information security requirements of any US state (see this PDF client advisory from a Mass. law firm for more).
Analyst: Android is in iPhone's league, but more apps are needed
Despite speculation that Google's Android might turn into a platform for lower-end "feature phones," Android is definitely shaping up into not only a smartphone platform but also an iPhone competitor, says analyst Avi Greengart.
NEW YORK, NY (BetaNews) -- A lot more applications are needed before Android fulfills its potential, suggested Avi Greengart of Current Analysis, a leading wireless/mobile analyst. Greengart spoke with reporters including BetaNews today during the launch event for T-Mobile's G1, the first Android phone.
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