June 5, 2006
Volume 13, Issue 8
P2P MEDIA SUMMIT Coming Soon
There are just ten days left to take advantage of early registration rates for the P2P MEDIA SUMMIT, the DCIA’s first annual Conference & Exposition taking place June 22nd-23rd in McLean, VA, and save up to $250.
This is a must-attend event for software developers and distributors, content providers, service-and-support companies, and all other parties interested in commercial development of the peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing marketplace.
Registrants for the full Conference & Exposition are also entitled to admission to the Digital Media Conference at no additional charge. Please click here to register online or call 888-864-3242.
New Internet Advertising Record
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) announced this week that Internet advertising revenues reached a new record of $3.9 billion for the first quarter of 2006, representing a 38% increase over Q1 2005 at $2.8 billion.
"The steady growth of online advertising is a clear indication that marketers continue to believe in the opportunities and effectiveness that this medium delivers in reaching and engaging their consumers," said IAB CEO Greg Stuart. "The interactive advertising industry remains committed to the creation of a world class medium with best-of-breed standards, measurement guidelines, research, and ad products for marketers and agencies."
"The Internet continues to shape the media landscape as more advertising dollars are going online," said Peter Petrusky, PwC Director, Advisory Services. "It is abundantly clear that marketers are seeing a compelling opportunity to leverage the Internet as a powerful medium that drives both branding and sales results."
Personal P2P Getting Hot
Excerpted from GigaOm Report
A new breed of personal P2P file-sharing startups is coming to market with a renewed focus on ease-of-use. Three of those startups – Pando, Perenety, and Wired Reach – have made personal file sharing as easy as e-mail.
And now it is time to meet two new entrants. One is Zapr, which until recently was called Zingee and currently works on Windows. It asks you to add e-mail addresses of your friends (individuals or groups) and then drag-and-drop the file to be shared onto a window that pops up. Your friends get the e-mail and download it via a browser.
According to Michael Liubinskas, Zapr head of marketing and business development, "We’ve just launched an invite-only beta, so if you’d like a sneak peek, let me know. We are launching a new GUI with some network improvements in about four weeks."
The other company that just launched is PeerFactor, based in Paris, France. Users upload a file to its servers and get a link to share with their friends by e-mail. If only a few people are downloading the file, then downloads happen through a browser. However, if a lot of people are downloading the same file, you need a tiny P2P client called PeerFactor Provider (69 kilobytes in size). The company is targeting e-mail providers and telecom operators to offer an OEM-type solution.
The rise of these startups is in response to the ever-growing size of files – videos, photos, documents, and PowerPoint presentations. It is becoming difficult to send attachments, as e-mail servers tend to flag anything with a big attachment.
Report from CEO Marty Lafferty
 We are very grateful to P2P MEDIA SUMMIT sponsors BitPass, Javien, MusicDish Network, Mi2n, Alston & Bird, Digital Media Wire, and Potomac Tech Wire for supporting our upcoming first annual DCIA Conference & Exposition, June 22nd–23rd 2006 in McLean, VA.
BitPass provides an innovative commerce, loyalty, and rewards platform that addresses the growing demand among digital content providers to efficiently monetize their online offerings.
Since the company’s public launch of its platform in December 2003, buyers from more than 100 countries and more than 3,000 merchants have relied on BitPass to buy, sell, and promote videos, streaming music, photos, news, business documents, and other content and services.
On the forefront of the online payment industry, Javien Digital Payment Solutions is an experienced leader in the paid digital content arena. Javien’s experienced developers customize its e-commerce solution for each customer.
Its staff provides personalized service to ensure that customers get the solution that fits their needs and provides a seamless online experience for their consumers. Javien’s experience in the music and publishing industries makes it a trusted partner in the developing P2P marketplace.
The MusicDish Network provides musicians and labels with online artist development. As the Internet becomes a central medium for musicians to promote and sell their music, it has become essential for them to develop their careers online.
Utilizing search placements and web marketing campaigns, MusicDish Network distributes and markets music videos and music releases through major file-sharing networks such as Kazaa and eDonkey. Thus far, its artists have achieved hundreds of thousands of downloads of their music.
MusicDish Network’s industry newsletter Mi2n provides its readers with in-depth coverage of business news, technology news, label news, video news, radio news, career announcements, music events, web events, music releases, and band news.
Alston & Bird is a major US law firm with an extensive national and international practice and 700 attorneys in five major markets. The firm provides litigation, tax, intellectual property and technology, and transactional legal services that are among the most comprehensive in the country.
The firm will present a summit workshop on optimizing value for companies in the distributed computing industry, including protection of IP rights, structural aspects which bear on value (i.e., shareholder agreements, employment and non-compete agreements,and confidentiality agreements), as well as exit strategies.
Digital Media Wire (DMW) is a news organization, publisher, and events company serving the digital media industry since May 2000. It publishes Digital Media Wire Daily, a well-respected free daily e-mail newsletter, which provides daily briefings on the most important industry developments.
DMW also presents conferences, which feature the leading minds in digital media and provide valuable networking opportunities, including the Digital Media Conference in partnership with Potomac Tech Wire.
Potomac Tech Wire is a free daily e-mail service summarizing the business of technology in the Washington, DC area. Every business day, readers rely on Potomac Tech Wire for a quick, objective briefing of the area’s top tech-related stories.
There are a limited number of sponsorship opportunities remaining for the P2P MEDIA SUMMIT. For more information, please contact DCIA Member Services leader Karen Kaplowitz at 888-890-4240 or karen@dcia.info.
The Conference’s panel discussions, value-optimization workshop, and special luncheon session will explore where the industry is heading, how P2P technology will evolve in coming years, what mainstream companies will be involved, which sectors will be impacted, who will be the winners and losers, and what the next generation of P2P companies will look like.
Our keynote speakers include Sam Yagan, CEO, MetaMachine, developer and distributor of eDonkey; Jan Marc Külper, Business Development, arvato mobile, developer and distributor of GNAB; and Les Ottolenghi, CEO, INTENT MediaWorks, developer and distributor of MyPeer.
For a complete agenda and to register, please click here or call 888-864-3242. Our special pre-registration rates for the Conference ($399) and Conference & Exposition ($499 - which includes the Digital Media Conference) will end June 16th.
As former Vice President Al Gore said this week, "Distributed computing unlocks the surge of energy to allow individuals to democratize the dominant medium of television." Share wisely, and take care.
Share Files with Vista P2P Technology
Excerpted from Ars Technica Report by Matt Mondok
Everyone’s been in a meeting like this at one time or another: the group is sitting around, pounding out thoughts both verbally and on their laptops. All of a sudden, boom, someone comes up with a great idea which is expressed in a certain file, say a .vsd (Visio) file. Each person needs a copy of it, which means each person busts out a thumb drive that needs to be passed around the room to each PC. Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone had the same software installed that could share the file on demand?
Now I know what you’re saying, "There’s already software out there to do that," but Microsoft felt that it would be much easier to coordinate if that software were built right into the operating system. Thus, the company is including an upgrade to the Windows collaboration tool, called Windows MeetingSpace, in Windows Vista. Windows MeetingSpace is a type of P2P software that is used by WiFi users for file sharing, and it leverages the company’s "People Near Me" technology.
With Windows MeetingSpace, as long as a user is running Vista and has built-in WiFi, the user can start a session, join a session, and see nearby users – no Internet connection required. While every version of Vista will include Windows MeetingSpace, Vista Home Basic users are limited to only joining sessions. For security purposes, Microsoft gives users the ability to password-protect a session, turn off session broadcasting, and disable the "People Near Me" technology so that they cannot be seen at all.
The vision here is that Windows MeetingSpace will be an invaluable tool for both coffeehouse junkies and meeting goers everywhere. Using poor judgment in word choice, Microsoft’s Mika Krammer told CNet, "You can just start a session and project onto someone’s system. We’ve tried not to exclude anyone from being part of a session."
Although Windows MeetingSpace will be part of the maiden Vista release, Microsoft developers have already been using the technology in-house, and it is said to be much more stable in Vista’s Beta 2 release.
Skype Teams with Dell for Faster VoIP Calls
Excerpted from TMCnet Report by Johanne Torres
DCIA Member Skype and Dell Computer announced on Wednesday that they have joined forces for faster VoIP calls. The companies agreed to ship Skype software with new Dell XPS mobile systems, which include the XPS M1210 and XPS M2010.
The new deal calls for Dell to provide its customers with access to Skype’s voice and video Internet calling software. Dell will pre-load Skype on the XPS 2010, a mobile entertainment system, which features a 20.1-inch high-definition display with integrated webcam. The XPS 1210 can also be configured with Skype as part of an optional audio-video communications package also comprised of an integrated rotating webcam, noise-isolation earbuds and mobile broadband capability.
"As the leading notebook supplier, Dell is committed to delivering cutting-edge technology that provides voice and video connectivity virtually anywhere," said Brett Faulk, Worldwide Marketing Director, Consumer Notebooks for Dell. "Teaming with Skype, the trend setter in Internet communications, will provide our customers the very best experience when reaching out and staying in touch with friends and family around the world."
Skypers are able to conduct PC-based calls to other Skypers across the world without worrying about the cost or the distance of the call. Unveiled this week, the Dell XPS M1210 and M2010 are available immediately worldwide.
P2P for Collaborative Learning
Excerpted from Campus Technology Report by Judith Boettcher
How will e-learning change as the next generation of P2P applications becomes commonplace? Might P2P hold the seed of great pedagogical wins for learning and collaboration? During the first wave of P2P, we had little time to think about the possibilities these tools might have for learning.
After all, our first general awareness of P2P focused on legal issues and the protection of copyright and intellectual property; six years ago, the wildly popular Napster file-sharing application made P2P technologies almost synonymous with illegal music sharing. Today, Napster is a legal online music store.
In any P2P technology, personal computing devices have two roles, each enabling collaboration among users. First, the devices act as "servers" to other computers, providing files and/or computing power to be used by others in the "club." And they act as "clients" to other users, receiving files and/or computer power. In true P2P applications, there is no central computer, no technical support, no command/control or hierarchical structure. As P2P has evolved, though, a popular hybrid model centralizes some functions, such as indexing where files are located.
Dozens of legal services supporting self-publishing and sharing are emerging. Most of these services appear to be hybrids of P2P and client-server technologies. Some incorporate the ubiquitous text-blogging services, new photo-sharing services such as Flickr, or new video-blogging and sharing services such as Veoh. Skype, the free, high-quality online telephone service, is built on P2P technology. Web conferencing tools often use some features of P2P technologies, such as direct connection between personal computing devices, including the so-called "third screen" of our mobile handsets (e.g., cell phones and PDAs).
Lawrence Lessig, Stanford Law School (CA) professor and author of several books on intellectual property and cyberspace, calls P2P the "next great thing for the Internet." Others have called P2P a "disruptive technology" – its "impacts can fundamentally change the roles and relationships of people and institutions" ("P2P: Harnessing the Benefits of Disruptive Technologies," O’Reilly & Associates, 2001).
But whatever the future holds for these tools, they are sure to have interesting applications for e-learning. Key P2P features to watch for are how it supports sharing and direct communication among students and enables personal publishing.
The P2P paradigm is not restricted to music sharing or moviemaking. Clearly, two key P2P features are fast becoming essential to the future of e-learning: instant communication among peers, and file sharing (which includes more control over content). Add in the growing culture of sharing and collaboration, and sprinkle with the continuing evolution of the faculty member into the role of producer and director, orchestrating learning from the sidelines.
These are the elements of the e-learning experience we should be preparing and designing for. The relationship between faculty and students will continue to change, and adjusting our tools and systems to benefit, not collapse, from these changes is our challenge. Where P2P services will lead is yet unknown, but their future application to collaborative e-learning will no doubt hold surprises for us all.
Avvenu Guarantees File Access
Avvenu, the company that provides secure remote access to home and work computers from around the corner or around the globe, announced Guaranteed Access, the first feature in the company’s new Avvenu Plus premium service level. Guaranteed Access lets subscribers access and share documents, folders and photos using any web-enabled mobile device or computer, even if the user’s computer is not connected to the Internet or is turned off. And to ensure users have access to the latest versions of their files and folders, Guaranteed Access includes Auto Sync, which automatically keeps the selected content current.
To use the Avvenu Plus Guaranteed Access feature, users simply select the files and folders they want to make available via Avvenu’s network servers and Guaranteed Access takes care of the rest automatically. To ensure that the most current versions of the user’s files and folders are available, Guaranteed Access’ Auto Sync feature automatically updates the selected content whenever the Avvenu user makes changes to the files. When Guaranteed Access users attempt to access their offline computer, Avvenu automatically points them to these updated files and folders stored on the Avvenu network.
"We are committed to connecting people with their content, even if their computer is across the world and turned off. Every document, every image is immediately available, as well as the latest versions of files that reside on their home or office computers," said Richard French, CEO of Avvenu. "Guaranteed Access is the first of many useful features to be offered by Avvenu that ultimately make the mobile lifestyle a reality."
The Guaranteed Access premium feature is available now at www.avvenu.com for a low subscription rate of $3.99 per month or $29.99 for one-year.
Seamless P2P Proprietary DRM
DCIA Member Seamless P2P has contracted with Phenom development partner OrionsWave to create a proprietary digital rights management (DRM) solution to control access to digital data such as software, music, and movies.
Seamless DRM will be integrated into the Windows family of content-protected files at the operating system (OS) level in order to allow content providers to identify which PCs and mobile devices are authorized to play particular files and more effectively control content distribution, file trading, and moving software from one machine to another. Seamless DRM will be marketed directly to media outlets through Seamless P2P, as well as via a dedicated website for other content providers and interested parties to protect their content outside of Seamless’ Phenom application.
Unlike other DRM solutions, Seamless is ensuring compatibility with new handheld and mobile devices and their operating systems, such as the Microsoft Origami tablet and Windows Mobile Version 5.0.
Seamless DRM will encrypt and add identifier keys to protected content, so when an application in the Windows family tries to load it, the OS will sense that this is a DRM-protected file and load special values into the file header area. This area will tell the OS to send identifier data to Seamless DRM servers to verify that the user has access to the file and if so, send back the unlock key, allow the user to play the file, or use the software on that system.
Luke Rippy, President of Seamless P2P, said, "Creating Seamless DRM is a natural offshoot of the ongoing development of our soon-to-be-released Phenom Version 3.0 secure P2P collaborative communications solution. DRM will handle the description, analysis, valuation, trading, monitoring, and enforcement of usage restrictions associated with specific IP so necessary in a vibrant P2P environment. Our experience and success to date working with OrionsWave in the development of Phenom Version 3.0 gives us great confidence in the skills and capabilities of their team."
Digital River Offers NCsoft Games
DCIA Member Digital River, a global leader in e-commerce outsourcing, signed an agreement with NCsoft to launch several online game titles, including "Lineage II," "City of Heroes," "City of Villains," and "Auto Assault" in the Digital River oneNetwork marketplace. These titles are available for online sale and digital delivery through online retail, content, and portal sites in oneNetwork. Digital River’s oneNetwork marketplace offers publishers the opportunity to generate increased visibility and incremental sales for their digital products through an established indirect online sales channel.
"It is important to our online retail partners that we continue to add diverse digital products to our downloadable catalog – a catalog they resell to mainstream consumers," said Tom Venable, Digital River SVP of Retail Sales. "OneNetwork offers access to a broad consumer audience, making it a compelling sales channel for popular online games."
Digital Music Booming in China
Excerpted from Daily Variety Report by Clifford Coonan
The overall digital music market in mainland China will grow to $513 million this year, rising to $1 billion-plus by 2008, and $1.6 billion in 2010, Liu Guoxiong, Chairman of the China Audio-Video Association, forecast at a seminar in Shanghai.
Sales of digital music products last year were $450 million, Liu said. Music sales in traditional formats have been declining for the past two years because of the impact of new media, such as mobile phones and the Internet. In 2004, China put 417 million CDs on the market, down 8.6%, he said.
The huge potential of China’s digital music market has piqued foreign interest, with overseas investment in the sector at $87.5 million between October 2005 and March of this year.
Wide-scale music piracy remains a serious disincentive to domestic musicians working in China. In recent months, the government has made numerous pledges to combat counterfeiting.
Liu said China was due to join two international intellectual property treaties this year. Both moves would be conducive to the "healthy development" of China’s digital music market.
Share Your Memories Online
Excerpted from 50 Connect Report
It’s frustrating when you witness something special, like your grandchild taking his first steps, and there’s no-one else around to see it.
Well, now you can send a video of treasured events to friends or other members of the family living on the other side of the world.
Until now, sharing large files like this has been too complicated and prohibitively expensive. Or, as in the case of e-mail, only capable of sending small files and with no certainty that they have been delivered.
Such problems are now a thing of the past however, thanks to a brand new service from TribalWeb, now in the UK. Thanks to its clever P2P technology, you can set up your own private network and choose which friends or family you wish to invite to join: you can then send or receive videos, photographs and files, no matter how big they are.
It’s easy to use too; just go to www.tribalweb.net and follow the simple instructions. Only those people you choose can see the files you share and all the data on your network has the latest security protection. And, best of all, it’s absolutely free.
TribalWeb comes to the UK after a hugely successful launch last year in France, which in its first year has attracted more than 120,000 users of both sexes and of all ages.
TribalWeb is a P2P file-sharing service ideally designed for individuals, groups, and small businesses. New to the UK, and available free-of-charge by downloading the software from the TribalWeb website and setting up your own private network, files of all sizes (including documents, pictures, and videos) can be shared rapidly and securely between two or more members of the network.
MySpace for Online Music Activity
According to a new JupiterResearch report, "Music and Community: Low Cost, Authentic Promotion," 48% of music discoverers find out about music from friends. In turn, the study finds that sites such as MySpace generate more community-related music activity than Yahoo Music, AOL Music, or MTV.com.
According to the release, music discoverers continue to use a broad variety of means to find out about music: 53% discover music through videos and 87% through radio, but word-of-mouth is a powerful way to expose and influence musical tastes. Sites incorporating virtual friends are influential music marketing platforms.
"Music marketers should leverage community sites, such as MySpace, to recreate the feel of personal recommendations of friends," said David Card, VP and Senior Analyst at JupiterResearch and author of the report. "Not only are these sites free, but they can be effective music discovery tools."
P2P Media Services Raise ISP Hackles
Excerpted from VNUNet Report by Dave Friedlos
Internet experts have expressed concerns about the growing use of P2P technology to download media services over the web. Services such as Sky’s broadband video download offering work on the basis that content is stored on customers’ PCs and uploaded to new users using P2P software, rather than delivering it directly from central servers.
Similar services in the US have resulted in ISPs threatening to charge content providers for use of bandwidth.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the web, warned against the creation of such a ‘two-tier’ Internet in a speech at the WWW2006 conference in Edinburgh last week.
Malcolm Hutty, head of public policy at the London Internet Exchange, said bandwidth ownership could become as controversial in the UK as in the US.
‘ISPs are concerned that content providers are getting free bandwidth access without paying for it,’ he said.
‘The content providers’ view is that customers pay for the bandwidth and can use it to move content if they like.’
Ovum analyst Jonathan Arber says there are also concerns that users could face additional costs if they have download and upload limits.
‘There has been some criticism because many users do not realize Sky is uploading from their PC for the benefit of other users,’ he said. ‘Not everyone reads the fine print.
Steve Nuttall, Sky’s Director of Business Development, says the company makes users aware of how P2P works during the installation process. He says the Kontiki technology, delivered by Ioko, is also used by other content providers, including the BBC.
‘Sky by Broadband is designed to give users an improved experience and deliver content faster,’ he said. ‘It does not affect general usage as the Kontiki platform operates on a low priority.’
MPAA Touts Pirate Bay Shutdown
Excerpted from Digital Music News Report by Alexandra Osorio
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has just trumpeted the shutdown of the Pirate Bay, a massive source of unauthorized digital content. The BitTorrent tracker previously commanded an immense level of traffic and interest, and regularly thumbed its nose at agencies like the MPAA and RIAA.
But recently, the MPAA tied with Swedish authorities to raid several Pirate Bay facilities, resulting in the seizure of multiple servers and various individuals. "Since filing a criminal complaint in Sweden in November 2004, the film industry has worked vigorously with Swedish and US government officials in Sweden to shut this illegal site down," the MPAA noted in a Wednesday announcement.
"Over 50 Swedish law enforcement officials executed search warrants and raids at 10 different locations which resulted in three arrests and the preclusion of millions of users trading up to 2 million illegal files simultaneously."
The Pirate Bay website, www.piratebay.org, is currently down, though anti-copyright organization Piratbyran has posted an update on a separate blog. "The Pirate Bay and Piratbyran is down after a raid on our ISP... we will post more info as soon as we know it," the group stated.
Just prior to its shutdown, the Pirate Bay reportedly offered a total of 157,000 illegal files, including blockbuster releases "DaVinci Code," "Mission Impossible: III," and "The Poseidon Adventure." It was also ranked as the 479th most visited Internet destination in the world according to Alexa.com.
Coming Events of Interest
-
Scooter Scudieri Performance – John Hopkins University’s Outdoor Summer Film Series kicks off on June 9th with "Walk the Line" and live entertainment from Scooter Scudieri, the "Internet’s First Rock Star." For more information, please call 410-516-4548.
-
P2P MEDIA SUMMIT – June 22nd-23rd at the Intercontinental Holiday Inn, Tysons Corner, McLean, VA. This first annual DCIA Conference & Exposition will cover policy, marketing, and technology issues affecting commercial development of this emerging high-growth industry. Exhibits and demonstrations will feature industry-leading products and services. For sponsor packages and speaker information, please contact Karen Kaplowitz at 888-890-4240 or karen@dcia.info. DCIA Members Music Dish Network and Javien are our media and e-commerce partners respectively. Plan now to attend.
-
Washington Digital Media Conference – June 23rd at the Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, McLean, VA. DCIA Conference & Expo attendees can attend this executive briefing on emerging business, policy, and technology issues & opportunities at half-price. This is a must-attend event for media, entertainment and technology businesses, educational institutions, and government agencies involved in the digital distribution of media. The Washington Post calls the event: "a confab of powerful communicators and content providers in the region."
-
6th Annual Future of Music Policy Summit – October 5th–7th at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. FMC sees hosting this Summit in Canada as an opportunity to expand its perspective on a range of issues – from copyright, to sampling, to digital royalties, to radio, to how various musical communities are managing change. The music marketplace has become truly global, and some of the biggest challenges are navigating the assortment of legal and licensing schemes that encourage and/or impede the promotion and sale of music.
|
