Archive for February 2006
Strong Critique of Google Video DRM
“With the introduction of its new copy-restriction video service, Google has diverged from its corporate ethos. For the first time in the company’s history, it has released a product that is designed to fill the needs of someone other than Google’s users.
“The question is, why has Google done this? There’s no Google customer who woke up this morning looking for a way to do less with her video. … That’s not to say that there’s nothing problematic about getting your video through Google this way. But the problems of the inability of the entertainment industry to adapt to the Internet are the entertainment industry’s problems, not Google’s. Google’s really good at adapting to the Internet — that’s why it’s capitalized at $100 billion while the whole of Hollywood only turns over $60 billion a year.
“But once Google starts brokering the relationship between Hollywood and their audience, this becomes Google’s problem too, which means that all the absurd, business-punishing avenues pursued by Hollywood are now Google’s business, as well.”
Boing Boing. Google Video DRM: Why is Hollywood More Important Than Users? Feb. 14, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
The Money Men Enter Patent Reform Debate
“Venture capitalists are turning into legal experts — and against each other — as Congress prepares to rewrite patent legislation.
“Patents are the commercial currency for inventors of the “next big thing” — time and resources spent on research and development are worthless without an exclusive right to exploit an invention. The Patent [Reform] Act of 2005, introduced in the House of Representatives in June, is intended to overhaul 50-year-old legislation that has failed to keep up with fast-moving and comprehensive changes in technology, particularly in the life sciences and information technology sectors.
“Everyone agrees that the system needs improving, but the venture capital industry is split on how this should be done.”
Marietta Cauchi. Patent Reform in Congress Drives Wedge in Industry. PostGazette.com. Jan. 27, 2006.
See also:
Government Accounting Office. USPTO Has Made Progress Hiring Examiners, But Challenges to Retention Remain (GAO-05-720). (.pdf) June 2005.
Florence Olsen. Patent Examiners Battle Stress. FCW.com. July 25, 2005.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
From Russia, With Love
“A coalition of U.S. trade associations representing copyright-based industries has called on the U.S. government to recognize serious copyright violations in Russia and to designate the country for possible sanctions.
“The IIPA is recommending that Russia be named a Priority Foreign Country, a designation reserved for countries that are judged to have the most onerous and egregious acts, policies, and practices that have the greatest adverse impact on U.S. products and to not be engaged in good faith negotiations or making significant progress in negotiations to address these problems.”
Martyn Williams. IIPA Piracy Petition Criticizes Russia. Computerworld. Feb. 13, 2006.
See also:
International Intellectual Property Alliance. 2006 Special 301 Report on Global Copyright Protection and Enforcement. No date.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Disney Follows Soderbergh, Shunning Staggered Releases
“Buoyed by its success selling ABC television shows online, Walt Disney Co. plans to revive an experimental service today that beams movies into customers’ homes.
“Disney and its partners — Cisco Systems Inc. and chip maker Intel Corp. — are relaunching MovieBeam as the market for downloadable video is picking up. Disney was among the first companies to sell shows through Apple Computer Inc.’s iTunes Music Store.
“But, analysts said, MovieBeam is anything but a sure bet.”
Dawn C. Chmielewski. Disney to Revive Video on Demand. LATimes.com. Feb. 14, 2006.
See also:
John Borland. MovieBeam Video Service Launches Nationwide. News.com. Feb. 13, 2006.
Jennifer Whitehead. Winterbottom Film to Get Simultaneous Cinema, DVD and Online Release. Digital Bulletin. Feb. 13, 2006.
CopyCense. Soderbergh Shakes Up Cinema. Dec. 6, 2005.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Google Rankles Republicans
“Google has a Washington problem. Since it started hiring for its public policy team last year, the Web giant hasn’t snagged a single high-profile Republican. Indeed, Washington’s GOP ruling elite isn’t giving Google the time of day.
“The Republicans can’t seem to forgive what they see as Google’s leftward tilt. In the 2004 federal election cycle, 99% of Google employees’ campaign contributions went to Democrats. For its first lobbyist, the company last May hired Alan Davidson, a Democrat and former privacy policy wonk at the Center for Democracy & Technology think tank.
“And now Google has taken positions on two issues that rankle many on the Right: rebuffing U.S. government subpoenas to measure how many Google searches are related to pornography, while bowing to the censorship demands leveled by China’s communist government as the price of doing business in that country.”
Catherine Yang. Google’s Search for Respect in D.C. BusinessWeek Online. Feb. 9, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Major Shareholders Call for VNU Breakup
“Dutch publisher VNU NV is facing calls from its biggest investors to break up the company rather than be bought up for over 7 billion euros ($8.3 billion) by private equity firms.
“The world’s biggest market research company would be broken up into three segments — Media and Measurement, Marketing Information and Business Information.”
Reuters. VNU Major Shareholders Push for 3-Way Breakup: Report. WashingtonPost.com. Feb. 14, 2006.
See also:
Andrew Ross Sorkin. Hostility by Any Other Name Smells Just as Hostile. The New York Times. Feb. 12, 2006
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Strike the Pose, Then Strike the Deal
“There’s no more highly paid model in the world than Victoria’s Secret babe Gisele Bundchen. The lingerie company shells out around $5 million per year to the 25-year-old Brazilian beauty. But Bundchen doesn’t get a cut of every bra the corporation sells.
“To pocket that kind of “passive” income, Bundchen turned to Brazilian shoe company Grendene, which markets Ipanema Gisele Bundchen sandals. The company slaps the model’s name and likeness on every box of sandals it sells, and in exchange Bundchen pockets around 7% of the wholesale revenue.
“Only the superstars can keep their careers going for much after they turn 30. Assuming she hasn’t married a hedge fund tycoon or just wants to keep working, what’s a supermodel to do?”
Kiri Blakeley. Most Entrepreneurial Supermodels. Forbes.com. Feb. 3, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
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