British science fiction writer Sir Arthur C Clarke has died in Sri Lanka at the age of 90. Born in Somerset, he came to fame in 1968 when a short story The Sentinel was made into the film 2001: A Space Odyssey by director Stanley Kubrick. His vision of future space travel and computing captured the popular imagination. A close aide said he died after a cardio-respiratory attack
Some of the largest book publishers in the world are stripping away the anticopying software on digital downloads of audio books
The BBC appears to have inadvertently removed the controversial DRM from its iPlayer video-on-demand service. Now, all BBC programmes are broadcast across the country in digital form without DRM, literally diffused at the speed of light in all directions without any restrictions, but the Beeb somehow believes that there’s a new risk of piracy created by letting those same digital files out on the net
Channel Seven’s planned TiVo digital video recorder service could be scrapped within weeks if free-to-air broadcasters proceed with their biggest assault yet on pay television. The free-to-air industry is likely to launch its own FreeView-branded recorder early next year that will offer access to as many as 15 free digital TV channels and an electronic program guide
Nine Inch Nails are struggling to keep their website online after releasing their latest album as a partly free download
Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor released a 36-song instrumental collection, Ghosts I-IV
, direct to the Internet via his official website. The album is available at a number of pricing options, beginning with a free sampling of nine of the songs. All 36 cuts can be had for as low as $5 (download), or for as high as $300, a signed limited-edition set that will ship in May (pictured). There’s also a $10 double-disc CD set, which includes a 16-page booklet and ships on April 8, or a $75 package that includes two discs, a DVD and a deluxe book
While the RIAA sues its customers, and blames filesharing for the decrease in record sales, a coalition of seven independent Swedish record labels explores alternatives that make use of the Internet and filesharing technology
A bronze statue of Bon Scott, the former lead singer of rock band AC/DC, will be erected at Fremantle’s fishing boat harbour
Mel Gibson’s company Icon Film Distribution has bought the Dendy cinema and film distribution businesses for $21 million
As the internet threatens to kill the established music industry, the Rudd Government is considering a three-strikes policy against computer users who download songs illegally. The Government will examine new legislative proposals being unveiled in Britain this week to target people who download films and music illegally. ISPs there might be legally required to take action against users who access pirated material. Under the three-strikes policy, a warning would be first issued to offenders who illegally share files using peer-to-peer technology to access music, TV shows and movies free of charge. The second strike would lead to the offender’s internet access being suspended; the third would cancel the offender’s internet access
BBC is bringing its shows to iTunes UK, with some already appearing on the store. Shows initially showing up include Torchwood, Spooks, The Mighty Boosh, Life on Mars, The Catherine Tate Show, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps and finally Little Britain. All the episodes cost the regular UK pricing of £1.89 will be available to download and buy 8 days after broadcast
Channel 7 has finally got it finger out of its arse and signed an agreement for Foxtel to retransmit the Channel 7 signal to its cable subscribers in the major capital cities within a matter of weeks
. Satellite subscriers aren’t as lucky, having to wait until 2009 for the launch of the new Optus D3 satellite before they can receive the free-to-air channel. It also means that Channel 7’s EPG information will be made available to Foxtel, giving the Pay TV operator the most comprehensive EPG on the Australian market
The American actor Roy Scheider, best known as the hero in the blockbuster Jaws, has died aged 75. The two-time Oscar nominee died yesterday in hospital in Little Rock Arkansas after being treated for cancer
A deal has been struck between the major media companies and the Writers Guild of America to end the writers’ strike, former Walt Disney chief executive Michael Eisner revealed on CNBC
The Italian parliament may have unwittingly legalised sharing music over P2P networks. A new copyright law, passed by both houses of parliament, would allow Italians to freely share music over the Internet as long as it was noncommercial and the music degraded
Foxtel has officially unveiled its new HD service, including the new Hi-Def box, at a media conference in Sydney. The new service is called Foxtel HD+, but pricing and release date haven’t been announced yet
A distributor of internet file-swapping software abruptly postponed the launch of its free online music service until it can finalise music licensing deals — a detail the company omitted when it threw a star-studded coming-out party over the weekend. Qtrax’s ambitious, ad-supported music service promised unlimited, advertising-supported music downloads with the blessing of the major recording companies. That claim began to unravel just hours before Qtrax’s scheduled debut on Monday when Warner Music Group issued a statement that it had not authorised the firm to distribute its artists’ music. Other major record labels soon followed
The Oregon attorney general’s office is investigating the Recording Industry Association of America’s practices regarding 17 University of Oregon students accused of copyright infringement. While the AG isn’t minimising the seriousness of copyright violations, his office has submitted a brief questioning the data mining tactics and subpoena practices employed by the RIAA
It’s not often that an ad catches my interest, but the recent ad that Showcase has been running for Dexter is one that does.
Unfortunately, others didn’t seem to appreciate it and there were enough complaints that it has been withdrawn. I can only guess that the offended viewers were staff members from the Adelaide tourist bureau.
Is the RIAA as we know it about to disappear? As rumours continue to swirl that EMI will pull its funding from music trade groups like the RIAA and IFPI, an IFPI spokesman says that the group is in the middle of a major internal review of its operations
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