Technology News

Universal Says DMCA Takedown Notices Can Ignore "Fair Use"

Source: All About Jazz
July 19, 2008

Intellectual Property

SAN JOSE, California -- Universal Music told a federal judge here Friday that takedown notices requiring online video-sharing sites to automatically remove content need not consider whether videos are protected by the “fair use" doctrine.

The doctrine permits limited use of copyright materials without the owner's permission. The music company made the argument Friday as part of a lawsuit brought by a Pennsylvania woman whose 29-second video of her toddler dancing to Prince's “Let's Go Crazy" was removed ...

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iPhone 3G Trades Battery Life for Interface, Software Awesomeness

Source: All About Jazz
July 19, 2008

Wired Gives iPhone 3G the Once Over

We've spent an entire week testing every single nuance of the iPhone 3G and what follows is Wired's official, pull-no-punches, boiled-down, just-the-facts review. If you're still hankering for a lengthier take on the phone, check out our in-depth first look, which we recorded right after getting the device. -Wired Editor's note

There's much to love about Apple's new burner: GPS, 3G, Exchange support and an upgraded OS with hundreds of ...

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11 Must-Have iPhone Applications

Source: All About Jazz
July 18, 2008

Sorting the Jewels from the Junk in the iTunes Store The new apps are in the stores. Many are useless; others are buggy. Here are some that make the whole thing worthwhile

Remember when cell phones were just for making calls? The new iPhone 3G, which launched on July 11, dials phone numbers, but it also runs some 800 add-on applications -- developers are creating more daily -- that enable you to compare hotel room prices, read Shakespeare, ...

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Streaming Music Site Last.FM Gets Major Facelift

Source: PC Magazine
July 18, 2008

Streaming music site Last.fm on Thursday launched new features and underwent a massive facelift. The new design is far more attractive and user-friendly than its original look, offering a more interactive platform to play, discover, and share free music. “Along with putting straight our clutter, we've cleaned house too. The user interface has been re-aligned to be a more robust foundation for features to come, and we've updated the look and feel," Last.fm's Matthew Ogle wrote in a recent blog ...

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Sony Ships Next-Gen Blu-Ray Player with BD-Live

Source: PC Magazine
July 18, 2008

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Google, Lions Gate in Film Clips Deal

Source: PC Magazine
July 18, 2008

BEVERLY HILLS, California - In a move that signals a possible thawing of Google Inc's relations with Hollywood, its YouTube unit has reached a deal to feature film clips from Lions Gate Entertainment Inc on the video-sharing site. Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt announced the deal at an Ad Age/William Morris Agency conference on Wednesday and said it would give viewers access to scenes from their favorite Lions Gate movies, accompanied with ads. Lions Gate later confirmed the deal. “There ...

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EU Cracks Down on Dodgy Ringtone Sites

Source: PC Magazine
July 18, 2008

BRUSSELS - The European Union's consumer chief on Thursday launched a crackdown on websites offering mobile phone services such as ringtones after a probe found most were ripping people off, notably teenagers. An initial investigation by EU Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva into 500 websites providing ringtones, wallpapers, news feeds or videogames worth hundreds of millions of euros found that 80 percent were “misleading" consumers. “Far too many people are falling victim to costly surprises from mysterious charges, fees and ringtone ...

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Tivo Launches Youtube Partnership Early

Source: PC Magazine
July 18, 2008

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Just what the television industry needs, increased competition from those wacky YouTube videos that 68 million people watch every month. Only now, it will be easier than ever to view them on television screens. Beginning Thursday, TiVo will offer thousands of its subscribers the ability to stream YouTube videos onto their television sets through their broadband-enabled TiVo boxes. It's TiVo's first deal for streaming online content, though the company has partnerships with 60 Internet sites ...

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