December 11, 2006
Volume 15, Issue 11
INTENT MediaWorks Adds Freishtat & McEwen
DCIA Member INTENT MediaWorks, a leading provider of technology for the distribution of licensed digital media content and advertising, has appointed Gregg Freishtat as Chairman and Neal McEwen as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (EVP & CFO). INTENT’s pioneering technology enables the profitable and consumer friendly distribution of digital entertainment and advertising via the Internet and peer-to-peer (P2P) file trading systems.
"INTENT is fortunate to have these two highly talented business leaders join our team," said Les Ottolenghi, CEO & Co-Founder of INTENT MediaWorks. "Over the years, Gregg and Neal have led a number of start-ups to tremendous success. Combining a world-class management team with ground-breaking technology, INTENT is poised to make a significant impact in the digital entertainment market."
Gregg Freishtat previously founded three companies and led each of them through acquisition by a publicly traded company. He was Chairman & CEO of Proficient Systems from January 2001 until it was acquired by LivePerson in June 2006. Prior to that, he founded and served as CEO of VerticalOne Corporation, which was purchased by S1 Corporation in November 1999. He also started Telet, which was sold to Premiere Technologies in 1996.
"INTENT has the opportunity to make an extraordinary impact on the entertainment industry," said Freishtat. "Content providers and advertisers have agonized over how to distribute digital music and video in a way that consumers will accept. INTENT’s award-winning technology and consumer-friendly method of distributing licensed content will finally unlock the revenue potential of the massive digital entertainment marketplace."
Neal McEwen has served in senior executive positions with several leading technology companies. He was CFO of Proficient Systems, Co-Founder & CFO of VerticalOne Corporation, CFO of Peachtree Software, and President of a subsidiary of Intelligent Systems Corporation. As a Certified Public Accountant, Neal held a variety of positions for many years with Ernst & Young, including as Director of Entrepreneurial Services.
"INTENT’s technology represents the most cost effective distribution channel for digital entertainment and advertising," said McEwen. "By putting licensed music and video in front of the millions of people using open P2P applications, websites, blogs, and social network sites, INTENT enables content providers and advertisers to take advantage of new business models and prosper in the burgeoning market for digital entertainment."
Parks & Riccobono Join Brilliant Technologies
DCIA Member Brilliant Technologies Corporation has appointed Ken Parks as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Rick Riccobono as Executive Vice President of Digital Rights Management (EVP–DRM).
Ken Parks makes the move to Brilliant from EMI Music, where he was Senior Vice President, Strategy & Business Development, on a global basis. He comes to Brilliant at a pivotal point in its history. The company is gearing up to launch the world’s first ad-supported P2P music service, QTRAX, which will provide fans with free access to high-quality, high-fidelity digital music files. QTRAX will also provide users with an array of allied services.
"Ken is an exceptionally talented individual whose broad range of skills and experience is a remarkable fit with our business. Ken’s leadership will be a key driver for the success of QTRAX and the long-term growth of Brilliant," said Allan Klepfisz, Brilliant President & CEO. "His years of experience as a deal maker and attorney in the Internet space include helping shape some of the earliest advertising-supported content syndication deals."
Parks said, "I am delighted to be joining Brilliant in this moment of extraordinary change and opportunity in the music industry. With the explosive growth in online advertising, the potential for advertising revenue attached to music is clearly tremendous. It is to the music industry’s credit that they are embracing QTRAX as a new distribution vehicle that responds to the needs of users while respecting rights holders."
Rick Riccobono has established a track record as a rights expert and pioneer in digital distribution starting with his tenure at Supertracks (a precursor to iTunes) through the development and implementation of Brilliant’s QTRAX. He spent 15 years as a senior music publisher with CBS Songs, Screen Gems & Chappell/ Intersong, and subsequently a decade as a Vice President & Officer of BMI. He has also been integrally involved in establishing entertainment media licensing agreements in the US and the international market for a number of mobile entertainment and digital distribution products.
"Rick further strengthens our executive team. We would not have gotten to this point of being extensively licensed by the music industry if not for Rick’s tireless efforts. The combination of our unique business model, our lead in licensing for a new music model, and our strong executive team augers very well for our future," said Klepfisz.
Rick has moved to New York from California to facilitate spending the bulk of his time on the QTRAX launch. "I have been involved on a consulting basis with QTRAX for three-and-a-half years and have come to feel that this is the project to which I want to link my professional future. I consider QTRAX to be the most exciting thing going on in the music world today," he said.
Report from CEO Marty Lafferty
 Plan now to attend the Distributed Computing Industry Association’s (DCIA) first annual New York Conference & Exposition. The inaugural P2P MEDIA SUMMIT NY Conference will be held Tuesday February 6th at the Princeton Club of New York.
On the afternoon before the conference, DCIA Member RawFlow will host a special workshop featuring live demonstrations of its newest offerings.
RawFlow is a leading provider of P2P streaming technology that enables broadcasters, content delivery networks (CDNs), social networks, and webcasters to maximize the scalability of their Internet broadcasting without increasing risk or cost.
RawFlow’s technology allows the Internet to become a viable infrastructure for delivery of rich media content. It eliminates the success penalty that is normally associated with Internet broadcasting.
DCIA Member Alston & Bird will host a reception following RawFlow’s workshop.
That evening, there will be a P2P Digital Watermark Working Group (PDWG) dinner meeting and public announcement of the new white paper that PDWG is currently developing.
The February 6th Conference will feature keynotes from top P2P and social networking software distributors, panels of industry leaders, valuable workshops, and much more.
There will be a continental breakfast, luncheon, and networking cocktail reception with live entertainment.
Confirmed P2P MEDIA SUMMIT NY speakers include senior executives representing such industry leading firms as Abacast, Alston & Bird, arvato mobile, Brilliant Technologies, CacheLogic, Digimarc, Digital Containers, Friend Media Technology Systems (FMTS), FTI Consulting , iMesh, INTENT MediaWorks, Javien, KlikVU, Media Global Intertainment, MediaPass Network, P2P Cash, PeerApp, Raketu Communications, RawFlow, RazorPop, SafeNet, V2 Music, and VeriSign.
Additional speakers will be announced in coming weeks.
Live showcase entertainers for the post-conference networking cocktail reception include Kirsten DeHaan and the Internet’s First Rock Star Scooter Scudieri.
The February 7th-8th Exposition is being held in conjunction with the Media Summit New York (MSNY) conference, and your registration for the full DCIA Conference & Exposition includes that event as well.
MSNY is the premier international conference on motion pictures, television, cable & satellite, broadband, wireless, publishing, radio, magazines, news & print media, advertising and marketing.
Exhibits and demonstrations for the February 7th-8th DCIA Exposition, held in conjunction with the MSNY conference, will feature industry-leading products and services.
Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in this 2007 inaugural event. Online registration at the special early-bird rate of $299 will begin this week, or you may register now by calling 410-476-7965.
For sponsor packages and speaker information, please contact Karen Kaplowitz, DCIA Member Services, at 888-890-4240 or karen@dcia.info. Share wisely, and take care.
P2P Insiders LinkedIn Group
A special online networking group has been created for DCIA Members and guests by fellow Member RazorPop CEO Marc Freedman.
The P2P Insiders Group on LinkedIn allows group members to directly connect with other P2P, distributed computing, social networking, and digital media business executives and professionals. LinkedIn is the world’s largest business network with over 8 million executives and professionals worldwide. Membership to both LinkedIn and the group are free.
P2P Insider LinkedIn group membership enables you to:
• Easily search for other group members to propose deals, make new business contacts, contact professional colleagues, or inquire about jobs.
• Immediately and directly contact group members without having to go through mutual LinkedIn connections.
• Let other group members know what businesses and services your company offers.
• Learn more than a name. View rich LinkedIn professional profiles of your fellow P2P Insider members.
Join the P2P Insiders LinkedIn Group at http://p2p.linkedingroup.com. Please forward this invitation to your colleagues, whether they use LinkedIn already or are new to LinkedIn, so they can enjoy and help build our online network.
Skype Offers End-of-Year Bundle Pack
DCIA Member Skype is offering a "Skype End-of-Year Bundle Pack" that combines an attractive package of products and services just in time for the holiday season.
The Skype End-of-Year Bundle Pack includes an SMC Wi-Fi phone, a La Fonera Wi-Fi router, 500 SkypeOut minutes, and 12 months of Skype voice-mail for $159.99. The bundle can be found online at SMC Wi-Fi Phone Package.
The 500 SkypeOut minutes in the End-of-Year Bundle are based on calls to destinations that fall under the SkypeOut global rate, applicable to calls to fixed lines in more than 30 countries.
Skype is also offering the new NETGEAR SPH101 and Belkin Wi-Fi Phone for Skype phones at its online store.
Skype-enabled X-Series handsets from "3" launched in the UK Friday also in time for the holidays. The devices, which use the iSkootMobile software, are currently available in "3’s" UK stores, and will be in "3’s" other markets around the world beginning in early 2007.
X-Series customers will now be able to make unlimited Skype calls from their NokiaN73 and from more handsets in the future.
Digital River Supports eEye Digital Security
DCIA Member Digital River, a global leader in e-commerce outsourcing, will provide e-commerce services for eEye Digital Security, a leading developer of endpoint security and vulnerability management software solutions. Digital River is managing the online sale, marketing and digital delivery of eEye’s integrated suite of vulnerability management software, which enables organizations to protect their digital assets against security threats. The software titles are being sold at www.eeye.com in an online store built and hosted by Digital River.
"Digital River is dedicated to providing its clients with world-class e-commerce services," said Don Peterson, Digital River’s Senior Vice President of Global Client Development. "We are leveraging our e-commerce best practices to help eEye tap into the growing potential of the online sales channel. By building and managing an online store that is branded for eEye, we can help the company strengthen its brand recognition, offer a user-friendly shopping experience, and reliably deliver its products to its customers - all important elements for successfully selling online."
In addition to powering the eEye-branded online software store, Digital River is processing order transactions using multiple preferred payment methods as well as providing fraud screening and customer service support. The online store features eEye’s complete product portfolio, including Retina® Network Security Scanner, REM Security Management Console, Iris Network Traffic Analyzer, Blink endpoint security solutions, and SecureIIS Web Server Protection. The eEye product suite is used in conjunction with popular tools, such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems.
PlayFirst Surpasses 1 Million Diner Dashers
Forty-nine year-old retired Air Force drill instructor Donna Austin faced an empty nest when her only daughter left for college. Little did she know that she would soon find company in another woman facing a major life transition. That woman turned out to be Flo, the stockbroker-turned-restaurateur and star of DCIA Member PlayFirst's hit casual game franchise, Diner Dash.
Today, Mrs. Austin is far from alone; she is one of over one million PC and mobile purchasers in the growing Diner Dash community and an active part of the fastest growing segment of video game players – casual gamers. Analyst firm DFC Intelligence estimates the casual games audience includes over 150 million consumers worldwide. Community members like Mrs. Austin post high scores for Diner Dash games on average once every eleven seconds to PlayFirst and are drawn to casual games for their mix of quick fun and mental challenge.
"My first casual game was Minesweeper but once I played Diner Dash, met Flo, read the storyline and saw all of the colorful graphics, I knew there was no going back," said Mrs. Austin who lives in Colorado Springs, CO. "Diner Dash is mentally challenging and I love problem solving. The best thing is the sense of accomplishment I feel after winning a level and helping others in the community play through the games."
Mrs. Austin has collected all three titles in the Diner Dash series – Diner Dash, Diner Dash 2: Restaurant Rescue and Diner Dash: Flo on the Go – which feature Flo as she manages a stream of challenging customers to pursue her dream of building a dining empire.
"The Diner Dash games keep getting better and better! Diner Dash: Flo on the Go made me want to go on vacation! The atmosphere of the different transportation modes was truly imaginative and even the food was more enticing! I also appreciated the multi-cultural aspect of the customers such as the couples and the mothers with babies. You can tell PlayFirst is a very forward-thinking company," Mrs. Austin said.
"Reaching the one million customer milestone is no small feat and we will continue to expand the Diner Dash franchise to new platforms, markets and audiences," said John Welch, President & CEO, PlayFirst. "At PlayFirst we are immensely thankful to Donna Austin and all our wonderful fans who have purchased the games and helped build Diner Dash into a hit franchise."
Today, all three Diner Dash titles are now available to download for free trial or purchase from PlayFirst, major game portals worldwide, and on cell-phones through Glu Mobile.
Raketu Partners with Mnogo
Raketu Communications, a leading global Internet communications, information, and entertainment company, is partnering with Mnogo, the largest web-based consumer club in Russia, to introduce Raketu’s P2P voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) technology to the Russian market.
Club Mnogo.ru, which is owned and operated by Lavtech.com, is the biggest coalition loyalty program in Russia, providing promotion services to hundreds of retail companies as well as operating a web-based consumer club with over a million members. Using Raketu’s "RakOut" dial-out VoIP services, Russian consumers will have access to free VoIP calling, including calls to Moscow and St. Petersburg, regardless of where calls originate.
"We are extremely pleased to partner with Lavtech and its Mnogo platform," said Greg Parker, President of Raketu. "As a leader in the Russian market, Lavtech is an ideal partner for us in delivering localized services in their native tongue - a key component of our global strategy."
"Mnogo.ru will introduce the Russian version of Raketu to its users allowing access to all Raketu features, including free calling for Russian consumers to locations in over 40 countries worldwide," said Mark Lavie, President of Lavtech.com.
Raketu provides a comprehensive integrated P2P communications, information, and entertainment tool, offering more options, control, and personal activity features than competitors. Along with highest-quality VoIP calling and highest call-completion, Raketu does not rely on a user’s computer for other users’ communications.
Raketu runs over any Internet connection and has been independently certified free of spyware, malware, adware, and viruses by SoftPedia.
BitTorrent Acquires uTorrent
Excerpted from Digital Media Wire Report
A week after announcing that it has landed $20 million in new funding, BitTorrent, a provider of P2P file-sharing technology, said that it has paid an undisclosed amount to acquire uTorrent, a lightweight implementation of the BitTorrent protocol.
BitTorrent said that it plans to integrate some of its content delivery technology into the uTorrent client. The company said that the move will accelerate its plans to provide content delivery services to websites looking to distribute large, high-quality files, as well as strengthen the adoption of its technology in embedded systems, including televisions, mobile phones and other non-PC platforms.
Together, the installed base now exceeds 135 million worldwide. "BitTorrent recognizes uTorrent’s exceptionally well-written code base and robust user community," said Bram Cohen, the CEO of BitTorrent. "Ludvig Strigeus, the developer of uTorrent, clearly put a significant amount of time into optimizing the client, which has already been widely adopted by the BitTorrent community as a safe and efficient implementation of the BitTorrent protocol."
Z Group Launches OnShare
Z Group has launched the beta of its OnShare software in response to the need for sending data securely over unsecured networks, examples of this being the Internet and other networks over which the sender does not have control.
Current solutions to this problem include IPSEC VPNs, SSL VPNs and centralized data-sharing products. All of these current solutions involve an investment in expensive hardware or software, the adoption of new working practices or a combination of both in order to make them work.
Typically, these solutions have been aimed at the corporate market because of this. Within the consumer market, there has been a proliferation of data sharing products primarily aimed at music and image sharing. These products are typically standalone applications passing data openly over unsecured networks.
Where some form of security has been implemented, this has been limited to standard key lengths supported by browsers and similar technologies. All of these solutions are limited by the fact that they are standalone applications supporting relatively weak security where offered. To address all of the above problems, Z Group developed OnShare. This technology makes it possible to send data securely over unsecured networks without the limitations of the above mentioned solutions.
This has been made possible because OnShare is closely integrated into the operating system run by the majority of PCs.
P2P Media Distributor Raises $12 Million
Excerpted from Digital Media Wire Report
Azureus, a provider of P2P distribution services for large files, announced on Monday that it has raised $12 million in its second round of venture capital financing. Redpoint Ventures led the investment round; Greycroft Partners, BV Capital and CNET Chairman Jarl Mohn also participated.
Azureus also introduced a new digital media platform, Zudeo, which allows content providers to publish and distribute HD or DVD-quality video and games on the Internet at no cost.
The company said its Java-based Azureus BitTorrent client has been downloaded over 130 million times, and commands the largest installed base of BitTorrent users in North America and Europe. Version 3.0 of Azureus has been codenamed Zudeo.
"Today, content owners and publishers can use Zudeo to freely promote and distribute their digital creations, without length or quality limitations," said Azureus CEO, Gilles BianRosa. "Furthermore, content creators and publishers can use our social networking tools to expose their content throughout the web, including blogs and social networks."
Will Google Invest in P2P
Excerpted from Digital Podcast Report
GigaOM is reporting that Google may invest in a Chinese P2P start-up called Xunlei (or Thunderbolt P2P Network).
Word on the street is that Google and Shanghai-based venture capital firm Ceyuan Ventures plan to invest in Chinese download accelerator and P2P file-sharing network operator Thunderbolt P2P Network (aka Xunlei).
A spokesperson for Shenzhen-based Xunlei, told eNet that the start-up will close its third round of investment in two weeks. Previous rounds were for $1 million and $10 million from IDG and Morningside Technologies.
Xunlei’s P2P file-sharing software has been downloaded 75 million times. The start-up was founded by two Chinese-born techs working in Silicon Valley who moved back to China.
This type of investment would make lots of sense given the growing bandwidth costs of YouTube and Google Video.
Napster Dude Working on WoW Social Network
Excerpted from CrunchGear Report by Vince Veneziani
Shawn Fanning made a program called Napster that enabled P2P file sharing to skyrocket in less than a year. After Shawn sold Napster, he apparently sat down and got really into this game you may have heard of called "World of Warcraft."
Fanning is now working on a social networking site called Rupture, which is named after a Rogue talent found in WoW. The concept is sound and bringing WoW players together outside the game is a great idea, but what does Fanning want to do exactly?
He said, "Using an add-on or a software download, Rupture taps into the game to automatically pull together character names, profiles, and resources, and publish them on a personalized site. Rupture will also pull together stats to create individual and guild rankings and provide a place for guilds to organize their playing. As Rupture tracks each member’s playing over time, these personalized profiles evolve. And players will be able to chat in groups or with other individuals and download other add-ons and game demos."
Sounds like an improved version of Thottbot mixed with MySpace.
OZ Mobilizes Popular Social Networks
OZ, a leading mobile messaging solution provider, announced its mobile social networking product. With over 400 million social networking users around the world, this solution will enable consumers to easily access the most popular social networking sites on their mobile phones.
"Wireless operators would be remiss to ignore the movement of social networking to the mobile device, a trend that could have positive implications for both messaging and data traffic revenues," said Jill Aldort, Senior Wireless Analyst at Yankee. "It will only become truly successful if the most relevant applications are widely available to the masses. OZ has expertise in this space, ensuring that mobile applications can be distributed on millions of phones."
The OZ Mobile Social Networking Solution delivers billing control and support, and provides these benefits to mobile operators and social networking providers: discoverability, service differentiation, optimized usability, and revenue generation. With its strong relationships with the top mobile operators in North America and Europe, as well as the leading mobile phone manufacturers, OZ is uniquely positioned to deliver social networking to the mass market.
"The phenomenal growth of user generated content and social networking on the Internet clearly demonstrates people’s desire to express themselves and communicate. The mobile phone goes with you everywhere and it is on pretty much 24/7. As such, it is the perfect tool for capturing and sharing your life and experiences with your friends and family in real time," said Skuli Mogensen, CEO & Founder of OZ. "We are very excited to be working closely with many of the social networking sites and look forward to delivering a great user experience on mass market phones in close collaboration with our mobile operator partners."
Coming Events of Interest
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2007 International CES – January 8th–11th in Las Vegas, NV. With four decades of history, the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) reaches across global markets, connects the industry and enables CE innovations to grow and thrive. The DCIA will moderate the "Next Generation P2P" panel on Wednesday January 10th, featuring DCIA Member executive Les Ottolenghi, Co-Founder & CEO, INTENT MediaWorks.
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P2P MEDIA SUMMIT NY – February 6th–8th in New York, NY. The Winter 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. Plan now to attend.
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Media Summit New York (MSNY) – February 7th–8th in New York, NY. Digital Hollywood’s premier international conference on motion pictures, television, cable & satellite, broadband, wireless, publishing, radio, magazines, news & print media, advertising and marketing. Your registration for the full P2P MEDIA SUMMIT NY Conference & Exposition includes this event as well.
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