Archive for March 2006
The King Has a New Owner
“Not much has changed at Graceland, a reverentially preserved 21-room Colonial Revival-style mansion, since Elvis Presley‘s former wife, Priscilla Presley, opened it to the public 24 years ago. Video projectors beam low-tech videos of a sweaty, singing, hip-swiveling Elvis onto walls. In a racquetball court behind the house, dozens of his gold records, along with various sequined jumpsuits and trophies, are on display. And, of course, there is the Jungle Room — the wood-paneled den famously decorated in skins and skulls and green shag carpeting.
“Revenue at Elvis Presley Enterprises, which operates Graceland, has barely changed in recent years, either. It has been stuck at about $40 million annually since 2000, and money for improving the property has been scarce.
“That is all about to change. And when the change is over, Graceland may look a lot like Disneyland.”
Julie Bosman. The King’s Legacy, All Shook Up. The New York Times. March 5, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Big Radio Introduces Its Own Broadcast Flag
“Rep. Mike Ferguson introduced the “Audio Broadcast Flag Licensing Act of 2006,” H.R. 4861, a House companion bill to the Senate’s broadcast flag bill.
“This bill would require that all future digital radios (both terrestrial, like HD Radio, and satellite, like XM and Sirius) “include prohibitions on unauthorized copying and redistribution of transmitted content.” The FCC would be tasked with working out the details.
“This is the culmination of months of lobbying by the RIAA to lock down the “record” button on your next radio. Despite the fact that, under existing copyright law, building and using digital radio recorders is clearly legal, thanks to the Audio Home Recording Act.”
EFF Deep Links. Copy Protection Coming to (Digital) Radio? March 2, 2006.
See also:
Ars Technica. New Radio Broadcast Flag Legislation Seeks to Control Innovation, Eliminate Fair Use. March 3, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Games Give Authors New Revenue Stream
“As soon as David Hodgson opened the bundle, he realized that a clock had started ticking on a new assignment: he had four months to write a manual on how to extort, kill and otherwise take over a New York mob family. The task was particularly harrowing, in part because he wanted to make sure that his prose was well organized and clear.
“Inside the package was an early copy of the much-anticipated Godfather video game that its maker, Electronic Arts, is scheduled to release later this month. Mr. Hodgson’s job was to understand every facet of the game and to write a book advising players about how to win it.
“Mr. Hodgson’s name may not ring a bell, perhaps not even with most of his readers. But he is a best-selling author, one of a platoon of 25 or so professional authors turning out books — strategy guides for video games — that can sell hundreds of thousands of copies.”
Matt Richtel. Is the Pen as Mighty as the Joystick? The New York Times. March 5, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Canadian Groups Collaborate on Public Domain Database
“Want to know what published works are in not subject to copyright? Two Canadian copyright groups have announced they will co-operate to create an on-line database of published works that have entered the public domain.
“In what they describe as a “ground-breaking project,” Access Copyright and Creative Commons Canada say they will create the “most comprehensive” searchable catalogue of published works that are no longer protected by copyright law.
“The aim of the registry is to determine whether a published work is in the public domain. The registry will also link to digital versions of the work, and provide information about where a paper copy of the work can be purchased.”
Jack Kapica. Database Planned for Public Domain Works. GlobeandMail.com. March 3, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
E.U. Plans Digital Library
“More than 6 million books and other culturally significant works are to go online via the European Digital Library over the next five years. The ambitious scheme will involve establishing centres throughout Europe dedicated to rendering works in a digital format, partially funded by the European Commission. The commission plans to establish a framework for setting up the library that respects intellectual property rights.
“The commission also published the results of a consultation on the digital libraries initiative on Thursday, which revealed opinions are divided on copyright issues, in particular between cultural institutions and right holders.
John Leyden. European Digital Library Is Go. The Register. March 3, 2006.
See also:
Steve Ranger. Europe’s Digital Library Taking Shape. News.com. March 3, 2006.
Europa. European Commission Steps Up Efforts to Put Europe’s Memory on the Web Via a “European Digital Library.” (Press release) March 2, 2006.
CBC.ca Canadian Libraries Join Race to Digitize Books. Dec. 29, 2005.
David A. Vise. World Digital Library Planned. WashingtonPost.com. Nov. 22, 2005.
Updates:
Groklaw. Heads Up, ODF – MS Makes a Pitch to EU Commission Digital Library. March 7, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
Big Cinema at the Crossroads
“No matter the guff about the old studio moguls pounding their fists on their desks and demanding excellence, and despite the sob stories about trampled vision, the American film industry has always been a business first. The genius of the system, to borrow André Bazin’s phrase, was that this heavily standardized, technologically dependent industry still fostered creative freedom and produced individual works of art. American movies both gave us an image of who we wanted to be and were instrumental in the creation of who we became.
“But what are our movies saying about us now? “Munich” is one of Steven Spielberg’s crowning achievements, yet despite its accolades it has been characterized as a disappointment. There is a sense that the director hasn’t been able to connect with those who months earlier thrilled to his dystopian fantasy, “War of the Worlds.” Audiences may be staying away from “Munich” because it lacks pop kicks and familiar marquee names. I fear, though, that after being fed a steady diet of schlock and awe, trained to expect less from films that demand little of them in turn, moviegoers no longer expect greatness from Hollywood and may not much care when, on that rare occasion, it shows up at the neighborhood multiplex.
Manohla Dargis. Hollywood’s Crowd Control Problem. The New York Times. March 5, 2006.
See also:
Paul B. Brown. The Long Studio Decline. The New York Times. March 4, 2006.
The Smoking Gun. Hollywood by the Numbers: The Tinseltown Money Trail. Feb. 28, 2006.
Updates:
The Patry Copyright Blog. Oscars and Copyright. March 7, 2006.
CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.
DOJ Reviews Music Download Pricing
“The Department of Justice has launched an investigation into the online music industry, looking into ‘possible anti-competitive practices’ in the growing music download business.
“The Justice Department’s investigation could be a replay of an earlier government investigation. In 2000, many of the same companies settled an antitrust case with the Federal Trade Commission, which found the five largest distributors of recorded music guilty of forging marketing agreements that set artificially high prices for compact discs. That price-fixing arrangement may have cost consumers nearly $500 million over three years, the FTC determined, but it did not levy fines against the companies. State attorneys general later sued and settled with the music companies.”
Yuki Noguchi. Justice Probes Music Firms’ Pricing of Downloads. WashingtonPost.com. March 4, 2006.
See also:
BBC News. U.S. Inquiry Into Music Downloading. March 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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