May 22, 2003
ReplayTV may strip ad skipping
Here's a big loss for the viewing public: ReplayTV May Strip Ad Skipping.
ReplayTV said it would likely leave some controversial features on its home television recording machines for now but may strip them from new models.ReplayTV, the digital video recorder maker purchased last month by Japan's D&M Holdings from bankrupt Sonicblue (SBLU), said it is mulling the fate of ReplayTV's features that skip commercials and send saved programs over the Internet.
Marc Canter said:
Well we knew it was coming so....
Thanks again to Craig Newmark and the EFF for fighting the fight.
JD said:
In a year or two, these used ReplayTV boxes may become hot items on the resell market. Especially if no other technology company steps up and offers similar features. (We use the TiVo fast-forward function perhaps 15 to 20 times a night, which becomes tiresome after a while.)
Tim Berners-Lee on the web's future
Wired News reports from Budapest: Tim Berners-Lee, the man who dreamed up the World Wide Web, is worried that commercial interests threaten the future of the Internet. Speaking at the International World Wide Web Conference, he offers a possible solution.
New movies section at NYT
The NY Times has launched an ambitious national Movies section. The section includes:
• National Showtimes and Ticketing: Find a movie and buy your tickets right on the spot.
• Rate and Review: Rate movies and write your own reviews.
• Critics' Picks: Find movies recommended by New York Times critics including The Times's "Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made."
• Review Archive: A complete list of New York Times movie reviews dating back to 1983, as well as selected reviews back to 1929.
• Box-Office Charts: Weekend and all-time data for the U.S. and Canada, New York City and the U.K.
• DVD/Home Video: A complete section devoted to new releases.
Gotta like it. This was something city guides were good at. Glad to see the Times get ambitious here.
Hi-def camcorders and going digital underwater
Two David Pogue articles in today's Circuits section of the NY Times:
The High-Definition Camcorder Enters the Picture
Digital Underwater Photography, with shots of his snorkeling safari on his personal site. Nice. And here's Canon's meaty guide to underwater digital photography.
Also in Circuits:
A browser that shrinks web pages. Opera, a Norwegian company known for its Web browser for full-size computers, has introduced a new browser for some Nokia mobile phones.
False Web Ratings (in recommendation systems) Swing Opinion, Study Says
Annika Sorenstam shoots a 71
One minute ago, Annika Sorenstam shot a 71 in her opening round of the Colonial. She played well, but bogeyed the last hole to finish one above par. She said earlier that she hoped to shoot "around par," so this was a good day for her. The announcers on the USA network said she's got a 50-50 chance to make the final cut tomorrow and play through Sunday. I hope she does well.
The Web vs. big media
In Salon's continuing brilliant series on media consolidation, it brings us: Can the Web beat Big Media? FCC czar Michael Powell says new technologies will let diversity flourish even as giant corporations consolidate their control over TV and newspapers. Dream on.
