March 8, 2010
Volume XXIX, Issue 12
P2PCMC and MSNY This Week in New York
Don't miss the P2P & CLOUD MARKET CONFERENCE (P2PCMC) on Tuesday, March 9th, at the Cornell Club of New York, and Media Summit New York (MSNY), taking place on March 10th-11th at the McGraw-Hill Building
The P2PCMC will explore marketing strategies, business models, case studies, and future opportunities related to peer-to-peer (P2P) and cloud based commercial offerings.
MSNY is the premier international conference on media, broadband, advertising, television, cable and satellite, mobile, publishing, radio, magazines, news and print media and marketing.
You can still register at the discounted rate of $1,095 for both of these outstanding events by clicking here or calling 410-476-7964. We can also accept registrations for P2PCMC exclusively at $499.
This cost includes the continental breakfast, conference luncheon, refreshment breaks, and VIP networking cocktail reception as well as all keynotes and panel sessions at the P2PCMC - in addition to all events and amenities at MSNY.
With this attractive combined-conference discount, you can advance your knowledge of new developments in the media marketplace and the most-cutting edge technologies that are being adopted for it.
Opera Founder: "P2P is the Future of the Web"
Excerpted from Techie Buzz Report
On the eve of Opera 10.5's launch, Opera's Co-Founder Jon Von Tetzchner sat down to speak with The Register. In a freewheeling conversation, he discussed a wide range of issues including future of the web, evolution of mobile web and of course Opera.
Speaking on the Browser Ballot screen, Opera's Co-Founder was hopeful that it would help users across Europe discover faster and safer alternatives to Internet Explorer. While speaking about competitors, Tetzchner was dismissive of Google's effort, "You know what Chrome means? It's plating, a skin. That's what Chrome is."
He also indicated that Opera is unlikely to implement the per-process model (each tab is a separate process) employed by Chrome. Unknown to most, Chrome isn't the first browser to utilize per-process architecture. In fact, it was implemented inOpera for BeOS almost a decade back because, "the BeOS team were very keen on threading". "We can do that now", commented Tetzchner, "But we find if you do things the Google way, you use a lot more memory".
In spite of minimal presence in the desktop market, Opera has always been a leader in the mobile segment. It championed the philosophy of "One Web", even when most of the world was intent on using WAP. "Now people can see we were right", said the man who was atOpera's helm for more than a decade.
Today, Opera believes that P2P is the next stage of web everywhere. Jon pointed out that Opera is no longer restricted to computers and mobile devices. Indeed, Opera is being used in set-top boxes (STBs), televisions, and even cars. Unite - which can convert any system which has Opera installed into a web server, is Opera's attempt at tackling the demands of the evolving web.
"Today a photo you take on your phone [waves E71] stays on your phone. But if each phone had an IP address, and then people could connect to you and see it. That's why we think you'll have Unite everywhere. We want to bring home the message that the web will be everywhere, in your mobile, in your GPS, in your STB."
Opera also sees the browser as the next application development platform. Although, Jon pointed out that what Google calls HTML5 is really "an attempt to create a common platform for their services", he agreed that browsers are the best option when it came to running cross-platform applications.
Tech Start-Up Sees Profits in the Clouds
Excerpted from Indianapolis Star Report by Daniel Lee
Bluelock is focused on a tech specialty known as "cloud computing," a growing form of computer outsourcing. This is where a business or organization pays to access computing power and services over the Internet (the "cloud") instead of building a physical network of servers, routers and other gear.
"There's a lot more to running infrastructure than just patching servers," said Brian Wolff, Bluelock's VP of Sales. "You have to manage routers, the power, the cooling. Do I have a generator if the lights go out?"
Bluelock, founded in 2006, is off to a promising start.
Bluelock's 13,000-square-foot Indianapolis, IN data center, hardware, and support staff become its customers' data center.
Revenue jumped from roughly $1.7 million in 2008 to $9.3 million last year. Bluelock has about 80 customers and is turning a profit, according to Mark Hill, Bluelock Chairman. Under the leadership of CEO John Qualls, the company has about 25 employees and is looking to boost that number to 40 by the end of the year.
Bluelock is being aggressive. The company is an early adopter of California-based software maker VMware's vCloud Express programs - a new method to provide on-demand "virtual" computing services where customers can quickly ramp up their computer power as they need it and pay as they go.
"Bluelock is one of the ones that's made that move early," said James Staten, principal analyst with market research firm Forrester Research.
Staten said the cloud computing market for IaaS is about $300 million to $400 million a year worldwide but should grow into the billions.
Report from CEO Marty Lafferty
 We look forward to seeing you in New York, NY at the P2P & CLOUD MARKET CONFERENCE (P2PCMC) .
This DCIA-hosted special event is scheduled for Tuesday March 9th at the Cornell Club of New York in conjunction with Media Summit New York (MSNY).
The P2PCMC will explore marketing strategies, business models, case studies, and future opportunities related to P2P and cloud based commercial offerings.
Our keynotes will include John Waclawsky, Member Services, DCIA; Rick Kurnit, Partner, Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz; Mike Saxon, SVP, Technology, Media and Telecom, Harris Interactive; Zeeshan Zaidi, COO, LimeWire; Kumar Subramanian, CEO, MediaMelon; Michael Papish, CEO, MediaUnbound; Nicholas Longano, CEO, MusicMogul; Robert Levitan, CEO, Pando Networks; and Gary Greenstein, Of Counsel, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.
You can still register for the P2PCMC at $499 or for both P2PCMC and MSNY at the discounted rate of $1,095 for both of these outstanding events by clicking here or calling 410-476-7964.
The full-day P2PCMC this Tuesday features keynotes and panels of industry leaders from the forefront of innovation. There will be a continental breakfast, conference luncheon, and VIP networking cocktail reception.
P2P & CLOUD MARKET STRATEGIES will address questions such as how are the market strategies different for using P2P or cloud computing to distribute consumer entertainment and corporate enterprise data? What characteristics are required for software companies to succeed in key market segments? Should software companies concurrently pursue multiple strategies? How do live P2P streaming and wide-area cloud deployments impact major market segments? What unique market attributes can yield new opportunities for monetization?
Panelists will include Simon Applebaum, Host & Producer, Tomorrow Will be Televised; Ian Donahue, President, RedThorne Media; Jason Henderson, Games Product Manager, Verizon Communications; Mark Mackenzie, VP, Digital Media Ventures, Alliance Bernstein; Rajan Samtani, former Sr. Director of Business Development, Digimarc; and Mike Tedesco, VP, Product Development and Technology, World Wrestling Entertainment.
P2P & CLOUD BUSINESS MODELS will zero in on such issues as has as any alternative business model - paid-download, subscription, or advertising-supported - yet proven to be the most promising in the consumer sector? Have any more innovative approaches been attempted? What are the most advanced approaches for P2P content protection? What wholesale content and enterprise business models are coming into play? How can users, both at the consumer and corporate levels, navigate among P2P and cloud service offerings?
Panelists Will include Mick Bass, VP, Alliance Management, Ascent Media; Vincent Hsieh, CEO, Aleric; Steve Lerner, Practice Director, CDNs & Management, RampRate; Dan Schnapp, Partner, Hughes Hubbard & Reed; and Greg Stephens, Director/VP, Songwriters Association of Canada (SAC).
P2P & CLOUD CASE STUDIES will ask what techniques have proven best so far in terms of monetizing the enormous traffic that P2P generates? What successes in cloud computing have been achieved in the wholesale entertainment and enterprise categories? What has been the relative worth of the different formats and interactivity that this channel supports? What case studies from related businesses can be applied to P2P and cloud computing and how?
Panelists will include Melike Amjarv, Independent Producer; Tom Chernaik, Principal, DigComm; Norman Henderson, VP of Business Development, Asankya; Steve Mannel, Media & Communications Industry Director, Salesforce.com; and Chuck Stormon, VP, Strategic Accounts & Alliances, PacketExchange.
P2P & CLOUD FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES question what can the industry do to ensure that the benefits of P4P and similar mechanisms are applied to the distribution of copyrighted works? How can participants at various levels of this channel gain support of rights holders? Which identification techniques (e.g., watermarking and/or fingerprinting) should be used to protect content and enhance the ecosystem? What new solutions will impact P2P and cloud computing software developers and distributors to the greatest degree?
Panelists will include Scott Campbell, CEO, Virtually Atomic; Lawrence Low, VP of Product Management & Strategy, BayTSP; Rich Moreno, Principal, Sivoo; Graham Oakes, Chairman, Digital Watermarking Alliance (DWA); Neerav Shah, VP of Business Development, Verimatrix; and David Ulmer, Senior Director, Multimedia, Motorola.
Registration can be done online here or by calling 410-476-7964. Share wisely and take care.
Where Tech is Headed
Excerpted from Minyanville Report by Mike Schuster
It's astonishing that it only took a dot-com collapse and a decade of sobering hindsight for a digital world to hit a stride. Years of misguided ventures, Silicon Valley hubris, and 404 errors irrevocably led to the failure of not only the companies themselves, but the ability to grasp what the Internet even means.
However, after a total re-evaluation of direction and feasibility, we're back on track. The web and the products it's influenced may still show their kinks, but given all the missteps, false starts, and utter disasters, the progress and vision in the last 10 years is nothing short of remarkable.
As with every decade, the next 10 years will be a series of ups and downs. But the end result will undoubtedly be for the better.
Recent tech development has shown an eye toward improved usability. More than ever, intuitive displays and streamlined interfaces are regarded as importantly - if not more so - as the hardware behind it. Apple has long been a proponent of a welcoming user interface (UI) and will likely be a leader in that regard. But the strides shown in Microsoft's upcoming Windows Phone 7 Series have displayed a clearer understanding of what sleekness coupled with logical consolidation can accomplish. A handful of hubs - rather than hundreds of apps - is a far simpler method of relaying information.
In fact, consolidation will be an inevitability in the next few years. As web apps explode both in number and variety, it will be nearly impossible for average users to visit each site individually during their free time. As seen in the Windows Phone 7 Series and RSS readers, more aggregators will gather up information from multiple sites and display them all in one place. Almost every chat program does this now with AIM, Google Talk, Yahoo Chat, etc. Buzz slip-ups aside, Google Profiles will likely expand beyond their Facebook and Twitter links to encompass a complete online profile - every app, status update, and location tag grouped into one page.
Speaking of geotagging, location updates will continue to rise in popularity. Foursquare - a location-based social network which just celebrated its first TV spot - has already inked deals with Bravo, HBO, Warner Bros., and the History Channel. Location-aware services like Yelp and Google Goggles will flourish on mobile phones, and thanks to the popular feature on the Motorola Droid, turn-by-turn navigation will be a given on more smart-phones.
Expect a boom in augmented reality. Wikitude - which overlays information onto known landmarks using a smart-phone camera and display - merely touches upon what augmented reality could deliver in the coming years. Imagine identifying animals on a nature hike in real time. Imagine diagnosing your child's illness with a screenshot of his or her throat. Imagine a social network based around virtual graffiti tags that are displayed when you hold a smart-phone up to a city block. Just a fraction of what can and will be done.
As data files grow, so will the storage and affordability of solid-state drives - making load times exponentially faster than with the outdated hard disk. Samsung, Kingston, and OCZ have shown a lot of progress in the field but could easily be usurped by another group. However, as physical media is gradually phased out in favor of the video and audio file, so will the need for a high-capacity hard drive.
While there's little to assume that government initiatives of delivering citywide wi-fi will be any different from any other grandiose promise, there's no denying that wi-fi is more available than ever. And as bandwidth increases, so does the viability of online storage. Google Apps and its upcoming Chrome OS relies heavily on the cloud, and Apple's recent acquisition of the music startup Lala hints at the development of an online music and video library.
But that's assuming record labels and movie studios would ever agree to it.
Unfortunately, one of the biggest detriments to innovation in the last 15 years won't disappear any time soon: Digital Rights Management (DRM). It brought down Napster and it will soon ruin Hulu. Jonathan Miller, chief executive of digital media at Fox, hinted at the possibility of a pay structure being implemented into the free video-streaming service, prompting Hulu's backers to give a closer look at the concept. What was once a beacon of hope for both viewers and networks will be more of the same: feeble attempts to keep viewers from watching video for free. But if Hulu falls, another service will replace it, and until studios realize that, there's always BitTorrent.
If anything, the next 10 years will have an emphasis on digital freedom. The ease to adopt a service and integrate it with another. The lightweight portability of cloud computing and better smart-phones. Sleeker and more configurable user interfaces. Immediate access to information and connections to friends two blocks over. The ability to be completely immersed in a digital world of your choosing.
And hopefully, if privacy is a concern, the ability to shut it all off.
Microsoft Bets its Future on Cloud Computing
Excerpted from PC Magazine Report by Chloe Albanesius and Mark Hachman
Microsoft is betting its future on cloud computing, chief executive Steve Ballmer said Thursday.
"The real thing to do today is to capture, what are the dimensions of cloud computing that literally, I will tell you, we're betting our company on, and I think pretty much everybody in the technology industry is betting their companies on," Ballmer said during an appearance at the University of Washington.
Ballmer outlined five dimensions of cloud computing: the cloud creates opportunities and responsibilities; the cloud learns and helps you learn, decide, and take action; the cloud enhances your social and professional interactions; the cloud wants smarter devices; and the cloud drives server advances.
"The cloud fuels Microsoft, and Microsoft fuels the cloud," Ballmer said. "About 70% of the folks that work for us today are either doing something exclusively for the cloud or is inspired to serve the five dimensions that I talked about today.
"A year from now, that will be 90%, he said.
Cloud computing - or hosting applications and data in a nebulous collection of servers that's not explicitly revealed to the client user - continues to be big business. Cloud-based offerings pulled in $46.4 billion in 2008, a number that was projected to increase to $56.3 billion in 2009 and $150.1 billion by 2013.
Microsoft Office 2010, due in June, will also be optimized for the cloud, Ballmer said. "We're having some success. For the parts of our Office product that are already in the cloud, about 90% of the customers - at least institutions that we work with - choose us."
Microsoft is moving toward storing data in the cloud as much, or more, than on a user's hard drive - whether it be the movies that users can download via Xbox Live or TellMe, a voice-driven service that will handle about 10 billion spoken commands this year, Ballmer said.
Microsoft's recent announcement of Windows Phone 7 will enable smarter devices, ones that were really designed for the cloud, Ballmer said.
"Earlier versions of our phone, I think you'd say, were really designed for voice," which Ballmer said was a "legacy" technology. Services - such as Windows Azure, SQL Azure, Microsoft SharePoint, and Exchange - lie on top of those and use those devices as input.
In response to a question about privacy, Ballmer said that user opinions vary. In January, Microsoft pushed for a bill to address privacy and security issues governing cloud computing.
The Ten All-Time Greatest Free Downloads and Services
Excerpted from PC World Report
In our fifteen years of choosing the best free stuff, we've spotlighted the superstars: Adobe Reader, Craigslist, Flickr, Gmail, Google, Mozilla Firefox, and Wikipedia.
Here are ten other classics you might not use - but should.
Ad-Aware Free: This utility is simple to use and does an excellent job of detecting and killing spyware.
Audacity: This versatile open-source program can record sound as well as edit it, through a surprisingly powerful set of tools.
BitTorrent: Easier to use than other file-sharing clients for games, movies, software, or music. Lets you pause or resume downloads, move downloads up and down your queue, and control downloads in other ways.
Dropbox: This download gives you access to 2GB of online storage space, and offers dead-simple file syncing among any number of PCs and the Web.
Evite: Sign up to use this site to create and e-mail party invites and easily track RSVPs online.
FreeConference.com: Register to schedule and make unlimited conference calls with this service.
IMDb: How did we ever settle bar bets about stars, costars, directors, dates, and more about films without the detailed information in the Internet Movie Database?
OpenOffice.org: This full-featured, downloadable Microsoft Office competitor gives you a word processor, a spreadsheet, a presentation program, a database, and a drawing application.
The GIMP: In this oddly named image editor, you'll find many of the same photo tools that come with Photoshop, including filters, effects, masks, and layers.
Trillian Basic: From a single interface, you can communicate with many popular instant messengers (IMs), such as AIM, ICQ, IRC, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger.
How Things Work: Cloud Computing
Excerpted from the Tartan Report by Philip Orbeta
At the rate at which technology is being developed, it is easy to get lost in a bombardment of tech words and fancy lingo referring to new pieces of hardware and software. One of these words that has gained more attention in recent times is the term "cloud computing."
Upon hearing the term, it is probably not entirely clear what it is or how it works, but for those who have used some form of cloud computing service themselves, it is evident why it has become a buzzword used even at the top levels of the software and information technology industries.
Cloud computing may be simpler than it seems. Think of a network of computers that are either linked for the use of a company or people simply working on a similar project. In order to make sure that progress occurs as efficiently as possible, it is important that each person is equipped with the right hardware and software to do his or her job.
Additionally, when dealing with a project that may eventually expand, it is also important to consider the costs of paying for licensing of additional members, costs of additional data storage, and even upgrades in software versions.
This would normally be frustrating for any group using conventional file sharing or file transfer methods. With cloud computing, however, many of these problems are easily resolved. By abstracting key aspects of a project, such as memory storage and file sharing, and providing them as a service on the Internet, the project becomes more scalable and dynamic, while maintaining structure and simplicity in use, according to Cloud Computing.
Among people who are more familiar with computing and its terminology, cloud computing has often been compared to grid computing, utility computing, and autonomic computing. Grid computing commonly refers to a cluster of networked, loosely coupled computers that form a virtual supercomputer, used in order to perform very large tasks. Utility computing refers to computing resources that are charged based on the amount of use, similar to utilities such as electricity and water. Autonomic computing refers to computer systems that are capable of self-management.
In many ways, certain cloud computing services share common traits with each of these concepts. However, every service exhibits different aspects based on its functionality, and thus cannot be classified into one category or another.
Aside from being scalable and dynamic, cloud computing services are often cost-efficient due to an individual service's ability to maintain its technological infrastructure on its own, in addition to the utility-based pricing often implemented with its use. Since services are accessible online, information resources can be accessed on any machine with Internet access.
Given the centralized structure of these services, security becomes more efficient while maintaining reliability provided by redundant sites in terms of disaster recovery and business continuity. Switching costs associated with cloud computing are often very low. A business looking to transfer their system "to the cloud" can do so with minimal barriers to entry, according to How Stuff Works.
Several cloud computing applications are Software as a Service, Platform as a Service, Managed Service Providers, Service Commerce, and Internet Integration. Services include Salesforce CRM, which is used to automate and organize sales-related activities; Amazon Web Services, which is a group of software services developers can use to build cloud-based systems; and Google App Engine, which is a platform for hosting and developing web applications.
Cloud computing, though relatively new, is slowly starting to have a crucial impact on the way we handle information and Internet resources. It is possible that we may soon see cloud computing implemented as a standard in the near future. What is now known as just another buzzword could become a gateway to a new age of information technology.
Highly Advanced Interactive Analytic Applications on Rise
Excerpted from ZDNet Report by Adrian Bridgwater
I thought I'd take a fun upbeat kind of topic to talk about. So what's lighthearted and easy to digest? I don't know about you, but highly advanced interactive analytic applications comes to mind for me.
These are the apps that are typically used to process extremely large data volumes inside a massively parallel database. As ultra-fast analysis on tens and hundreds of terabytes to petabytes of data becomes something of a necessity, the data management and data processing vendors are positively licking their lips at the prospect of their niche becoming a whole lot more en vogue.
But what's the deal here for developers? The drive towards this sector of the tech spectrum will necessitate distributed computing specialists with a keen eye on performance optimization. So are there tools out there to help? Yes of course there are or I wouldn't have started thinking about the subject in the first place.
Likely protagonists in this space include companies like Aster Data with its recently announced nCluster 4.5 product which is focused on the management of sophisticated analytics for deep data exploration at massive volumes levels. The company is also now going to market with a Developer Express integrated visual development offering.
With customers like MySpace (remember them?) on its books, the company hopes that developers will be attracted offerings such as the Aster Data Analytic Foundation, a suite of re-usable analytic functions for accelerating application development; and the Aster Data Management Console 4.5, a management console for visibility and control of data and analytic applications.
"Foundation" and "Console" as brand names? Have they been cuddling up too close to Microsoft and Atari? I jest of course, "interactive analytic applications" will (and I think we can be definite about this) become more important now.
That said, if you search the term on our own site here you will draw a blank (until today I hope) and if you Google it you will find Aster Data comes up a close second behind Tibco, so watch this space.
See - I told you it was going to be fun!
ISPG Gears Up for Industry Roll-Out
The principles developed by the DCIA-sponsored Inadvertent Sharing Protection Working Group (ISPG) have now been vetted through a review process with industry-leading companies and found to be generally appropriate and applicable to file-sharing programs. Broader adoption among such software developers and distributors will now be sought.
File-sharing software programs are defined for this purpose as applications that enable users to make available user-originated files in their native formats for searching and downloading by other users of the same or compatible software.
It is important to note that many implementations of P2P, cloud computing, and other distributed computing technologies are exempt from the concerns of inadvertent sharing for a variety of reasons. For example, P2P services that do not permit user-originated content to be distributed over their networks obviously do not pose this risk. And those that require multiple affirmative steps including file format conversions of user-originated content before sharing are also much safer.
The ISPG will seek to contact administrators for file-sharing clients where such concerns do apply and work with them on implementation and compliance reporting.
The primary focus of the ISPG currently is to protect consumers from inadvertently sharing personal and sensitive data when using file-sharing applications at their source. Default settings, software functionality, user communications, and notice-and-consent regimes are the primary vehicles for preventing files from being made available for inadvertent sharing on such networks at their points of entry.
A Canadian research study, accessible here, has been published regarding inadvertent sharing of private health information (PHI) on file-sharing networks. This report - and numerous others - underscore the pressing need to address this problem by responsible software developers.
The ISPG cautions that nothing that the group has undertaken to date seeks to address confidential data already in distribution on file-sharing networks or the Internet generally. The quantity of such available material is cumulative and is expected to continue to grow despite the ISPG's potentially enormous impact on curtailing initial sources of inadvertent file sharing.
This work represents an extremely critical industry priority, and one that if addressed by a critical mass of file-sharing applications will yield substantial benefits to users.
Self-Destructing Data Could Help Protect Your Privacy
Excerpted from ZDNet Report
Digital memories are long. E-mails, images, and documents sent today can resurface years from now, but new software could help ensure that what happens online, doesn't have to live there eternally.
ZDNet correspondent Sumi Das explains how 'Vanish," the work of researchers at the University of Washington, Seattle, uses P2P networks to create unique encryption keys. Please click here for this video report.
LimeWire Store Releases "Live at Lime with the Hidden Cameras"
Excerpted from Plug In Music Report
LimeWire Store has exclusively released Live at Lime with The Hidden Cameras. The multi-member Canadian band led by singer/songwriter Joel Gibb recorded the EP in New York City during its North American tour supporting its recent album, Origin:Orphan (Arts & Crafts).
Live at Lime with The Hidden Cameras features live renditions of six tracks from Origin:Orphan: "Do I Belong?," "In the NA," "Kingdom Come," "The Little Bit," "Origin:Orphan," and "Walk On."
"The Hidden Cameras really delivered in the studio that day," said Tom Monday, Director of Partner Relations at LimeWire Store. "The resulting EP is not just something hardcore fans will appreciate - it's also a great introduction to a band which, in my opinion, is one of the best acts to emerge from the Canadian indie-pop scene in the last ten years."
Mojo hailed Origin:Orphan as an album that "transcends gender and genre," while The Guardian proclaimed it "bundles of sonic joy." Cokemachineglow declared the album "genuinely affecting, and fun, pop music."
RightsFlow Partners with The Royalty Network
Excerpted from All About Jazz Report
The Royalty Network (TRN), an independent music publisher and administrator and RightsFlow, a provider of bulk mechanical licensing and royalty services, announced a new partnership granting RightsFlow a blanket license for TRN's entire catalog.
This blanket access will allow RightsFlow to more accurately identify, account, and remit royalties on behalf of TRN's over 9,500 label, distributor, music service and artist clients. The agreement marks a growing trend of independent music publishers engaging in new procedures to reduce administrative workload and improve efficiency.
"By entering this agreement with RightsFlow, we are assured that our songwriters, artists, publishers, and producers are accounted to by RightsFlow's many clients for all US digital downloads, streaming income, and ringtone sales," stated Frank Liwall, President of TRN. "We respect RightsFlow as a market leader in mechanical licensing and welcome their progressive approach to accounting to publishers."
"We are extremely pleased to announce this new relationship," stated Kim Gerlach, Director of Licensing at RightsFlow. "We view The Royalty Network as a forward-thinking publisher that prides itself on maximizing efficiency in representing its songwriters, publishers, and repertoire, and foresee similar open data transfers with additional publishers in the future."
Cloud-Based Game Anti-Infringement System May Work
Excerpted from Slashdot Report
Much virtual ink has been spilled over Ubisoft's new, harsh digital rights management (DRM) system for "Assassin's Creed 2." You must have a constant Internet connection, and, if your connection breaks, the game exits.
While this has angered many, most writers on the topic have made an error. They think that this system, like all DRM systems in the past, will be easily broken. This article explains why it does have a chance of holding hackers off long enough for the game to make its money. As such it is, if nothing else, a fascinating experiment.
"Assassin's Creed 2" is different in a key way. Remember, all of its code for saving and loading games is tied into logging into a distant server and sending data back and forth. This vital and complex bit of code has been written from the ground up to require having the saved games live on a machine far away, with said machine being programmed to accept, save, and return the game data.
This is a far more difficult problem for a hacker to circumvent.
Spotify Fires Back After DMF Report
Excerpted from Billboard Report by Glenn Peoples
The latest debate in digital music is music streaming services' impact on paid download purchases.
In response to new data shared by NPD Group's Russ Crupnick, P2P music streaming service Spotify says on-demand music services do not cannibalize music sales.
"There is other data out there to prove the exact opposite of that report," a Spotify spokesperson told FastCompany. The spokesperson pointed to a Billboard interview with the Orchard's Scott Cohen in which the co-founder claimed Spotify was actually boosting sales. "We are not seeing any cannibalization," he said.
What exactly did Crupnick say in his presentation at Digital Music Forum (DMF) in New York? According to CNET's Greg Sandoval, Crupnick used a phrasing to imply a causal relationship between online listening and purchasing.
Digital Music News' post on the presentation did not have exact quotes, but used words like "leads to" and "cannibalization."
In other words, listening to product A results in an X% decrease in purchases, while listening to product B results in a Y% increase in purchases. Crupnick later told Sandoval he was speaking only about US consumers.
Since Spotify has not launched in the US, it does represent on-demand services that are part of this discussion.
In many cases, market research reflects merely a correlation between listening and buying. There could be a number of reasons to help explain why on-demand streaming services are related to lower purchases. Age and income are two obvious explanations. Younger consumers with less disposable income and less propensity to buy recorded music seek out free streaming.
MySpace Music's young audience may simply be less likely to buy music than Pandora's older, iPhone-using, wealthier audience. The services may not be shaping purchasing habits, consumers may be choosing services based on their characteristics.
But it appears NPD presented the data to imply a causal relationship between free services and paid downloads. And that is likely to stir up the emotions of record label executives who want to access models that discourage freeloading.
EU Opposes 3-Strikes on File Sharing in International Treaty
Excerpted from Digital Media Wire Report by Mark Hefflinger
The European Commission has issued a statement indicating that it will take steps to ensure an international intellectual property treaty currently being negotiated does not include a "three-strikes" provision that would sever the Internet connections of copyright infringers on file-sharing networks, ZDNet reported.
"We are not supporting and will not accept that an eventual Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) agreement creates an obligation to disconnect people from the Internet because of unauthorized downloads," John Clancy, a spokesman for EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht, told ZDNet.
"The 'three-strikes rule' or graduated response systems are not compulsory in Europe. Different EU countries have different approaches, and we want to keep this flexibility." Several reports on a leaked draft of the ACTA in question indicate that it does contain three-strikes provisions. More recent reports question this assertion, and further indicate that the ACTA appeared very similar to the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) in its scope.
File Sharing Becomes the Latest French Hobby
Excerpted from The Inquirer Report by Nick Farrell
The French government is facing a problem with file sharers after its hamfisted attempt to appease the entertainment industries backfired.
Ever ready to surrender to a powerful authority, the French handed over a huge chunk of its legal system to the big media industries and brought in all the laws that the music and movie mongols wanted to prop up their dying business models.
The only problem is that, rather than making file sharing disappear, it has made it all the more interesting for French teens to get around. Nothing makes anything cooler than making something that harms no one unlawful.
Yep, so-called file-sharing 'piracy' is fast becoming the reefer and street racing event for teens of the 21st century.
According to The Times, studies suggest that 42% of software programs are copied without authorization in France, compared with 26% in Britain and 27% in Germany. In the southwest of France, the 'piracy' rate was 49%.
Cerise Club, a French Internet company, said that unauthorized file sharing is a "national sport" and this is despite the fact that French copyright legislation is among the most repressive in the world.
"The French take a sly pleasure in getting round all the systems put in place, and it's very difficult to persuade them to do otherwise," a spokesman told the Times.
Music Industry Needs Clear Strategy for Digital Delivery
Excerpted from Times Online by Alexi Mostrous
It's 4 AM in a hotel room far from home and you've just broken up with your lover. Aside from the mini-bar, there's no empathy available: not a soul to talk to, no shoulder to cry on.
You update your Facebook status with news of the split. Seconds later someone on the other side of the world sends your smart phone a digital version of "What Difference Does It Make?," allowing you and Morrissey to wallow together in self-pity. Someone else sends you Paul Simon's "Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover," which cheers you up a bit. This may sound far-fetched, but the hope of the music industry rests upon such connections.
A future where songs are not bought, but accessed via telephones, sent across cyberspace, and passed around friends through platforms such as Twitter, is what is hoped will save music from the twin ravages of unauthorized downloading and a lack of strategic direction.
The full extent of the crisis was illustrated with the news that EMI, the label that gave the world the Beatles and Pink Floyd, faces the possibility of break-up if it fails to find $180 million by June. The smallest of the "big four" record labels, it has suffered from the battle between its parent company and bankers over a $3.9 billion debt - despite a jump in profits and the signing of 200 artists in 18 months.
"EMI is perceived to be in a terrible situation, worse than it actually is, and that's putting off some artists," said James Sandom, Manager of the Kaiser Chiefs. "It's a shame because they've got some great creative people and are out to prove a point."
The Internet is the big battleground. Infringement remains rampant, with more than seven million unauthorized file sharers in Britain alone. Shops such as Woolworths and Zaavi have collapsed, further depressing CD sales. Albums, which bring in the most amount of revenue to record labels, have been hit by digital websites such as Apple's iTunes that allow users to "cherry-pick" their favorite singles. Falling revenue has had an inevitable effect on talent.
"The number of artists getting signed is down 50% from 2006," Sandom said. "The class of 2003 and 2007, including Franz Ferdinand and the Kaiser Chiefs, were able to build massive careers. There's not been one artist in the past three years, apart from Kings of Leon, given the backing to achieve that success.
"There are a couple of the major labels that have made it very clear internally that they don't believe signing bands is a viable prospect. Solo artists need less investment, they either work on the radio or they don't."
The desperate situation has pre-empted two radical approaches: labels have invested in new subscription services such as P2P music streaming service Spotify, and artists have increasingly moved towards corporate sponsorship.
"As an industry we've fought back from near collapse," said Paul McGuinness, the U2 Manager who masterminded the Irish band's current multimillion-pound sponsorship deal with RIM's Blackberry.
For the right band, McGuinness said, "Record label funding can be replaced by the right corporate sponsor. And falling CD sales can - hopefully - be made up for by subscription packages."
Feargal Sharkey, the former lead singer of the Undertones and chief executive of UK Music, agreed. "Research shows that 80% of 14-to-24-year-old UK file sharers would pay for a licensed service. Quite clearly, this is the direction in which we need to be heading."
Daniel Ek, 27, the founder of Spotify, the online music site, told The Times that he expected his company to be one of a few players in a $50 billion-dollar industry in five years' time.
Spotify currently has seven million users in Britain, Spain, France, Sweden, Norway and Finland, of which about 5% pay a monthly subscription fee to listen to advertising-free music. Based on recent venture capital investment, the four-year-old company is now worth about $250 million.
"By 2012 half of all telephones will be smart-phones and we'll see impressive growth in 'access' music services such as Spotify," Ek said. "The overall industry will be worth $40 to $50 billion dollars and, if you look at how Internet companies develop, there will be only a couple of really dominant players. We hope to be one of them."
If Ek's valuation is correct, he will become a very rich man. The entrepreneur reportedly co-owns 47% of Spotify along with its Co-Founder, Martin Lorentzon. But Spotify's growth - particularly its delayed American launch - has been hampered by concerns that not enough users would upgrade to its "premium" service.
"While Spotify Premium is a good product, we doubt that the majority of music fans will want to sign up to a monthly subscription service in the near term," a recent report by Enders Analysis concluded. "The majority of people do not spend $15 a month on music." Record labels doubt that advertiser-funded services can provide a sustainable business model.
Edgar Bronfman Jr., chief executive of Warner Music, has condemned such services as "clearly not positive for the industry". Universal Music, however, has praised Spotify as a "sustainable financial model."
Ek expects the number of paid subscribers to reach 700,000 "in the not too distant future", he said - and growth in subscribers has "shot up" since his company introduced an iPhone application last September. He is also working with record labels to offer incentives to premium users, such as exclusive tickets to gigs and early song releases.
Spotify is also looking to introduce new "household" subscription services, allowing a parent to pay for the family's content, as well as partnering with more Internet service providers (ISPs) and telephone companies.
In a few years time, Ek predicts, "I will be able to update my status on Twitter to 'I'm feeling lonely' and someone will send me a track to cheer me up. But we're only at the beginning. This will only work if there's massive adoption of people paying for music."
Those in the industry accept that the days when record labels such as EMI could spend an alleged $300,000 a year on sex and drugs for artists were over. "There are concerns over how much money advertising-funded models will bring in," said Jon Webster, the chief executive of the Music Managers Forum. "But we want to embrace new models.
"There are people who believe the music industry should have the same revenue as it had ten years ago. But unfortunately the world has changed."
And, if any further warning were needed, Spain offers a salutary lesson to those who doubt the effect of music infringement, which the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) claims cost the worldwide industry $1.8 billion between 2008 and 2012. There, the music market is currently about a third of its 2001 level.
"We have made a great effort to create new business models on the Internet," said Salvador Cufi, Chairman of Musica Global, a Spanish independent label. "But there is no way in today's market that we can make those investments profitable. It's a very sad situation that we can no longer invest in new artists in the way we would like."
Plummeting investment has seen local artist album sales in Spain fall by 65%.
"Spain is a sign of what could happen in the UK if we don't deal with infringement and invest and support new services," said John Kennedy, chief executive of the IFPI, which represents the recording industry worldwide. "I don't know how many years we can cope with revenue declines of 8 or 9%."
So what of EMI? Elio Leoni-Sceti, chief executive, accepted that "the issues around the debt are not easy." But he said he was confident that the label would cope.
"We are a leaner, fitter organization," he said. "We've removed any bureaucracy, left our baggage behind and got better at listening to both our consumers and our artists."
The question remains: in five years time, will we be listening to them?
Coming Events of Interest
P2P & CLOUD MARKET CONFERENCE - March 9th in New York, NY. Strategies to fulfill the multi-billion dollar revenue potential of the P2P and cloud computing channel for the distribution of entertainment content. Case studies of sponsorships, cross-promotion, interactive advertising, and exciting new hybrid business models.
Media Summit New York - March 10th-11th in New York, NY. MSNY is the premier international conference on media, broadband, advertising, television, cable & satellite, mobile, publishing, radio, magazines, news & print media, and marketing.
DDEX Open Meeting & Workshop - March 11th-12th in Paris, France. The open meeting features an update on DDEX's standards, case studies on implementations, and an explanation of DDEX's work-plan for 2010, and the workshop focuses on "Identification Standards and Metadata in the Music Industry," and is being held with the assistance of CISAC and IFPI.
Cloud Connect - March 15th-18th at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA. The defining event that brings together the entire cloud computing community, including IT leaders, industry executives, and developers.
Cloud Computing Congress - March 16th in London, England. A practical guide on cloud computing for business - the value proposition, and the impact on the IT function. Building and managing applications in the cloud - how to manage and control applications and resources in the cloud environment. Security, testing and management of cloud infrastructures.
Cloud Expo - April 19th-21st in New York, NY. Co-located with the 8th international Virtualization Conference & Expo at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City with more than 5,000 delegates and over 100 sponsors and exhibitors participating in the conference.
Digital Hollywood Spring - May 3rd-6th in Santa Monica, CA. Digital Hollywood Spring (DHS) is the premier entertainment and technology conference in the country covering the convergence of entertainment, the web, television, and technology.
P2P & CLOUD MEDIA SUMMIT - May 6th in Santa Monica, CA. The DCIA presents this fifth annual seminal industry event as a conference within DHS, now expanded to include cloud computing, the most advanced and rapidly growing distributed computing technology.
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