Tech evangelism and Miso soup like no other
Posts tagged entertainment
EFF to Fight Obama Administration on Access to ACTA Documents
May 7th
A couple months ago we reported on President Obama’s failure to live up to his desire for a transparent government when he opted to allow his administration to play the national security card to keep details of the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) out of the eyes of the general public.
On April 30, 2009, the government released a second batch of documents related to the treaty, ultimately providing little substance. Since the Obama administration continues to withhold more than a thousand pages of material about ACTA the EFF has opted to resort to legal attacks to force the government to open up about this potentially dangerous [secret] treaty.
Google is Not In Danger Thanks to The Pirate Bay Guilty Verdict
Apr 21st
Late last week the verdict was announced in the most closely watched P2P related legal skirmish to date, the Swedish trial of the four administrators of The Pirate Bay. All of the defendants were found guilty of “assisting in making copyright content available” and received 1-year jail sentences and a fine totaling over $3.5m.
In the aftermath of the decision, many folks are speculating that Google might be an entertainment industry target of opportunity because the most widely used search engine provides the ability to locate copyrighted content owned by the music and movie studio. Is this really a possibility?
Why is Twitter A Beneficial Service for the Average User?
Apr 20th
Over this weekend CNN was running one of their “Quick Vote” polls and the question was, “Do you use Twitter?” The overwhelming majority of respondents, approximately 94%, answered either “No” or “What’s Twitter?” compared to the meager 6% who stated they do use the micro-blogging service. The CNN audience reflects the average user, most of whom have no clue what the service is all about. So this begs the question, what benefits can the average user appreciate from using Twitter?
HOWTO Use uTorrent as a Digital Video Recorder for Automated TV Show Downloading
Apr 14th
BitTorrent is a powerful peer-to-peer file sharing protocol used for downloading large-sized files from a variety of sources very quickly. One of the most popular uses for BitTorrent these days is for downloading TV shows. With so many people connecting their computers directly to a TV for the sole purpose of watching TV shows and movies, it quite practical to use an automated TV downloading workflow. The TechMiso Crew will teach you how to use uTorrent on Windows as a “digital video recorder” of sorts to automagically download TV shows as they are released online.
Why Is Hulu Bothering to Play Whack-A-Mole with Boxee?
Apr 2nd
It apparently takes a special kind of executive to be in upper management in the entertainment industry. It would seem that one of the required job qualifications is a complete and utter lack of any form of technology competence. Every time a new technology company innovates the industry steps in with damage claims, often times issuing cease-and-desist letters or even filing pointless lawsuits against company’s which have found innovating ways to make the entertainment industry’s content more valuable.
The latest knee jerk reaction involves Hulu, the industry supported YouTube alternative which streams commercially supported TV shows and movies produced by NBC, Fox and other studios, and Boxee, a cross-platform media application which displays full-screen versions of videos found on many web-based media sites. The main allure of Boxee is the ability to connect a PC to a TV and stream TV shows, videos and movies from the web to a TV rather than viewing on a computer monitor.
The Future of Music Is In The Clouds
Mar 25th
The music industry is hell-bent on selling shiny little plastic discs rather than innovating in a space sorely in need of modernization. The litigation campaign so clumsily wielded by the geniuses behind the Recording Industry Association of America has done absolutely nothing to deter the rampant music piracy running amok through society today. If they truly desire to remain relevant, rather than focusing their efforts on the misleading “education campaign” the recording industry should be concentrating on the one area destined to be the future of music – cloud computing.
Obama Administration Dims Transparent Government Hopes, Declares Proposed ACTA Treaty a “National Security” Secret
Mar 14th
One of the significant promises Barack Obama made during his run up to the presidency was overturning the Bush era culture of White House and governmental secrecy. Americans, knowing full well there will never be a complete removal of political backroom drug-deals, were eager to see a more open, transparent government – a pledge Obama was intent on keeping. Unfortunately it appears the President has been unable to keep that promise, instead opting to allow his administration to play the national security card to keep details of the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) out of the eyes of the general public.
RIAA Goes To New Lengths To Demonstrate Their Hypocrisy, Appeals Order To Webcast Trial
Jan 20th
In one of the most brilliant moves to-date against the RIAA’s litigation campaign versus music consumers, the Tenenbaum legal team led by Harvard Law School Professor Charles Nesson has convinced the court to allow the trial to be broadcast live on the internet. In her opinion granting the request, Judge Gertner noted how peculiar it was for the RIAA to appeal, especially considering they have repeatedly stipulated the entire basis for the lawsuits was to educate consumers about the evils of music piracy.
Don’t Be a Dumbass – DRM-free Tracks from Apple Should Not Be Shared on P2P Networks
Jan 16th
Apple recently announced that it has finally decided to move in to the DRM-free era by shattering the shackles off of all music sold at the iTunes Music Store. No longer will music purchased through iTunes be locked to the previously instituted 5-computer limit nor will there be restrictions on CD burning. One important aspect that has not, and will not, change is the use of watermarking to essentially “tie” the files to a particular consumer. Do not think that because the music files no longer contain DRM that you can up and hop on Limewire and start sharing these tracks with the world.
Don’t be that dumbass who ends up sharing their legally purchased but watermarked DRM-free tracks. This will do nothing but place you in the crosshairs of the high-paid legal guns the recording industry has no qualms wielding.
iTunes DRM-Free, Legal Purchasers Get Shafted
Jan 7th
Today at Macworld Expo, during the keynote by Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing, Philip Schiller, Apple announced the end of the DRM era – all tracks available in iTunes will be available solely as iTunes Plus songs. What this means for consumers is that Apple now will be offering high-quality, 256-Kbps AAC encoded files which no longer have restrictions on CD burning or the amount of computers on which the music can be played.
Beginning today, all four major music labels — Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and EMI — and thousands of independent labels, now offer their music in the DRM-free iTunes Plus format with higher-quality 256 kbps AAC encoding. iTunes customers can also now purchase and download songs directly onto their iPhone 3G over their 3G network — just as they do with Wi-Fi today — for the same price as downloading to their computer. And in April, based on what the music labels charge Apple, songs on iTunes will be available for 69¢, 99¢, or $1.29, with most albums still priced at $9.99.
Unfortunately, if you have ever purchased DRM-encumbered tracks from Apple, you are going to get the shaft should you desire to remove the DRM from your existing purchases!
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