Wired News:

Digital cinema developers descended here last week to convince theater owners that the future of their industry has finally arrived. But, after years of failed promises, newfangled confections like dark-chocolate Raisinets appeared to get a better hearing (two thumbs up.)

Wired News:

"The major record companies have been neglecting this aspect of music for the better part of 90 years," said David Seubert, director of the Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project.
Why orphan works are such a problem.

Wired News:

Apple normally locks developers out of the iPod, but perhaps it will license Blomberg's software now that it's been sued for contributing to hearing loss on a large scale. It's unclear whether Apple might be found liable, but the iPod is one of the loudest portable music players around, with a high output of 30 mW per channel.
This one's a feature, not a bug.

Wired 14.03: START

Still, some of your big clients say they won't use your new TiVo ratings until you show ad-skipping. We're building the tools so they can actually look at the audience and see who skipped the commercials. That will come out in the second quarter of 2006.

French parliament passes DRM bill. Will Apple bolt?

Most notably, the bill would force Apple to open up its FairPlay DRM system so that consumers would be able to play music purchased from iTMS on the device of their choosing. Obviously, the bill would not just apply to Apple: Sony and others using proprietary DRM schemes would have to offer the same level of interoperability.

Will open WiFi get you sued by the RIAA?

But in general, the risks to your own network and computer are small, and most users won't be looking to hack into your files anyway. Leaving the network open is a way of being a good neighbor to others in need of a quick connection. Will that trust periodically be abused? Yes it will. Will you be liable when it happens? No.

Toshiba delays release of HD DVD players, Netflix jumps the gun

The reason for the delay in getting the movies out was due to members of the Advanced Access Content System (AACS) being unable to agree on a final specification for copy protection. This has been an issue for both Blu-ray and HD DVD, as content producers remember how easily the CSS encryption scheme for DVD movies was cracked, and are anxious to avoid repeating that scenario.

Slashdot | Open Source R&D Tax Credit?

The Center for American Progress is proposing an R&D tax credit for open source development.
Here's a better idea.  Give a major tax break to those who contribute content into the public domain or CreativeCommons domain, perhaps basing the value of the tax break on the number of times downloaded or some other metric.  It's not a true free-market solution, and not without implementation difficulties, but it would go a long way towards solving the orphan works problem.  Of course, there's nothing wrong with the traditional orphan works solutions--mandatory renewal at 50 years or so.

Slashdot | CATO Institute Releases Paper Criticizing DMCA

The DMCA is anti-competitive. It gives copyright holders--and the technology companies that distribute their content--the legal power to create closed technology platforms and exclude competitors from interoperating with them. Worst of all, DRM technologies are clumsy and ineffective; they inconvenience legitimate users but do little to stop pirates.'

Product placement in the DVR era : Page 1

The scene does not simply mock the rise of product placements on television; it is a product placement.

Slashdot | Microsoft To Construct iPod/DS/PSP Killer

According to The Mercury News Microsoft is developing a PSP/DS/GBA/iPod-killer.
That's a lot of best-in-class devices to try to slaughter.

Furdlog » Content Delivery: Who Pays?

Sirius Satellite Radio has reached agreements with three major recording companies to settle disputes over a portable music player that allows users to store digital copies of music, a Sirius spokesman said Monday. Financial details were not disclosed.
Pity.

Furdlog » Reframing Entertainment Distribution

In an era where there are so many homogenized films trying to reach every quadrant of the audience, we can help a great little movie find as big an audience as a big mediocre one.

The Patry Copyright Blog: Ready to Die or At Least Pay $4 Million

A jury in Nashville awarded Bridgeport Music and Westbound Records $4.2 million in damages for including an unauthorized sample from the Ohio Players' "Singing in the Morning" on the Notorious B.I.G.'s "Ready to Die."

--Ari