Facebook Launches 'Places' Feature for BlackBerry

0

Palo Alto, Calif. – Facebook has expanded availability of
its new Places feature to RIM’s (NASD: RIMM) BlackBerry platform, in the form of a software
update to its mobile application. The service is already available for iPhone
and Android platforms.

 

Related Links:
http://mashable.com/2010/11/10/facebook-blackberry-places

DISH Google TV Offering: $179 for Set-top, Plus $4 Monthly Fee

0

Englewood, Colo. – Satellite TV provider DISH Network (NASD: DISH) on
Wednesday announced the availability of its Google TV integration package,
which includes a $179 Logitech Revue with Google (NASD: GOOG) TV set-top box, and will
require DISH subscribers to pay an additional "DVR integration
service" fee of $4 per month. The service will let viewers search across
TV, DVR, video-on-demand and Web video content.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/27dgwep

http://www.dishnetwork.com/googletv

U.K. Retail Chain Sainsbury's to Launch Music Download Store

0

London – Sainsbury’s, the third-largest U.K. retail store
chain, plans to launch a music download store this month, Billboard reports.
The company recently launched a website where consumers may purchase CDs, DVDs
and video games, and will add around 500,000 tracks from all four major labels
for the launch of the download store. The store will also add movies and
e-books in the next year.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/25oba8h

(Billboard)

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk

BitTorrent Expands App Studio, Distributes Movie via P2P

0

San Francisco – File-sharing software purveyors BitTorrent
on Wednesday released an update to its μTorrent application, which expands the
App Studio — a development framework that lets programmers build extensions on
the platform — to the application’s 65 million users. The company also
launched a promotion for "Four Eyed Monsters," a film that will use
BitTorrent for free distribution.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/2e2kwbs

http://tinyurl.com/24l5vwe
(TorrentFreak)

http://www.bittorrent.com

The White House Debuts Online Virtual Tour

0

Washington – Months in the making, the White House on
Tuesday launched an interactive White House tour, available at the link below.
The tour lets site visitors watch exclusive "Inside the White House"
videos and tour many of the most popular areas of the facility, including the
West Wing, residence, East Wing and South Lawn. "You’re invited to do
everything from cook with the New Orleans Saints in the White House kitchen, to
peek inside the Situation Room, to watch the Jonas Brothers perform in the East
Room and tour the first ever beehive on White House grounds with beekeeper
Charlie Brandt," wrote Kori Schulman, the White House deputy director of
digital content.

 

Related Links:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/interactive-tour

U.K. High Court Grants Review of Digital Economy Act

0

London – The U.K. High Court on Wednesday granted two ISPs’
request for a judicial review of provisions of the country’s Digital Economy
Act that deal with copyright infringement, according to published reports.

U.K.
ISPs TalkTalk and BT filed their request for a review in July, arguing the law
was rushed through with insufficient scrutiny, and may run afoul of Europe’s
e-commerce directive.

They also argued the law unfairly targets only larger
ISPs with provisions that require them to disconnect repeat file-swappers.

"We are very pleased that the court has recognised that our concerns about
the copyright infringement provisions in the Digital Economy Act should be
considered in a full hearing," BT and TalkTalk said in a statement.

"It is important for everyone involved — copyright owners, consumers,
ISPs and institutions like libraries and universities — to have certainty on
the law before proceeding."

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/396kdl5

(Financial Times)

http://tinyurl.com/38j3uqk
(Music Ally)

http://tinyurl.com/3x6dtn3
(DMW previous coverage)

Report: Global Smartphone Sales Up 96% to 81M in Q3

0

Egham, England – Worldwide mobile phone sales totaled 417 million
units during the third quarter, up 35% from last year, while smartphone sales
grew 96% to 81 million and accounted for nearly 20% of all mobile sales during
the quarter, according to a report from market research firm Gartner.

"This
is the third consecutive double-digit increase in sales year-on-year,
indicating that consumer demand is healthy," said Carolina Milanesi, research
vice president at Gartner.

"Smartphone OS providers have entered a period
of accelerated platform evolution, stimulated by more regular product releases,
new platform entrants and new device types," added Gartner analyst Roberta
Cozza.

"Any platform that fails to innovate quickly — either through a
vibrant multi-player ecosystem or clear vision of a single controlling entity
— will lose developers, manufacturers, potential partners and ultimately
users."

Gartner forecasts that sales of media tablets like the iPad —
which are forecast to reach 54.8 million units next year — may have an impact
on mobile device sales.

 

Related Links:
http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1466313

Hulu Revenue to Hit $240 Million in 2010; Up From $108M in '09

0

Los Angeles – Hulu will generate $240 million in revenue in
2010, up from $108 million in revenues generated last year, and $25 million in
2008, CEO Jason Kilar told the audience at the NewTeeVee Live conference,
Business Insider reports. The joint venture between News Corp. (NYSE:  NWS), NBC Universal (NYSE:  GE)
and Disney (NYSE:  DIS) had not as of yet provided dedicated revenue figures.

Kilar also
said that Hulu counted 30 million users in the past month, who accessed 260
million full content streams and were served 800 million ad streams.

The
service also now counts 235 content partners and 352 advertising clients.

Kilar apparently did not provide any early data on adoption rates for Hulu Plus, the company’s recently-launched, $10-per-month subscription service that provides greater access to older TV episodes.

 

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3aj7lzv

(Business Insider)

http://www.hulu.com

CNET: FBI Probing Attacks on Websites of Anti-Piracy Groups

0

San Francisco – The FBI is investigating the recent
denial-of-service attacks launched by a 4chan-connected group called "Anonymous"
against websites of anti-piracy or copyright-friendly groups including the
MPAA, RIAA, BPI and the U.S. Copyright Office, CNET News.com reported, citing a
source with knowledge of the probe.

The FBI is believed to have stepped up its
probe after an attack last week briefly degraded access to the Copyright
Office’s website, and is in contact with other victims of the attacks.

Spokespersons for Anonymous told CNET the attacks are
"motivated by protecting the free flow of information and that copyright
is a form of censorship."

CNET noted that a 23-year-old was sentenced last
week to 30 months in prison, for launching denial-of-service attacks in
2006-2007 against the websites of Rudy Giuliani, Bill O’Reilly and Ann Coulter.

 

Related Links:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-31001_3-20022264-261.html

http://tinyurl.com/247wtbo
(DMW previous coverage)

AOL Launches "Wow" Daily Deal Service in Three Cities

5

Washington – Hoping to capitalize on the success of startups
like Groupon and LivingSocial, AOL (NYSE: AOL) on Wednesday launched its new "Wow!
Deal of the Day" service in three cities, including Washington.

The daily
localized discounts — also now in Boston and Philadelphia — are available
either on the Wow.com website or through emails delivered to subscribers.

Though other companies already have solidified their places in the group buying
space, AOL is counting on its significantly higher Web traffic to make the
venture successful.

The company also plans to launch daily national deals by
the end of this year.

 

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/24cvlu9

http://www.wow.com