Where Law, Technology and Life Meet…
{ Daily Archives }
from techcrunch.com
I honestly dont know if this is a good or bad sign that $550m is not sufficent for a social networking site. They are only 1/10 the size of Myspace based onpage views. Then again, I think $1B for Facebook was more than generous.
from infoworld.com
No matter how far technology may move forward, sometimes the oldest scams seem to find ways to co-op them. Phishing is a well know online scamming technique. Most users have become aware not to click on hyperlinks in unsolicited e-mail, or trust such content as authentic. Companies such as Passmark Security (recently acquired by RSA Security) have developed methods to help individuals protect against such scams. But now this Phishing scam has moved to telephone, thanks to VOIP technology, I wonder if someone will build a business model around countering this new threat.
A new kind of identity theft scam, with thieves using easy-to-obtain VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) telephone numbers to trick Internet or telephone users, is beginning to pop up, said a cybersecurity vendor.
Related to phishing scams, the new scheme uses cheaply obtained VOIP numbers as bogus credit card or financial services telephone numbers…
In phishing scams, identity thieves send e-mail that looks like it comes from a bank, credit card company or online payment service such as PayPal. The e-mail typically says the recipient’s account has been compromised in some way, and it contains a link to an official-looking Web site where the recipient can enter account information.
In the new scam, …identity thieves ask potential victims to call a phone number attached to a VOIP account, easily obtained online through services such as Skype or through retailers reselling VOIP products such as Vonage Holdings Corp…
from www.infoworld.com
More troubles for Vonage. I wonder if they hadn’t gone public, if litigation such as this would have been initiated.
he technology used by Vonage Holdings to deliver voicemail service to its 1.6 million VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) telephony customers infringes another company’s patent, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
Klausner Technologies has asked a federal court in the eastern district of Texas to fine Vonage $180 million in damages and royalties for the patent infringement.
Klausner, a privately owned company that controls 25 patents for VOIP voicemail technology, already collects licensing fees from Time Warner Inc. for using this technology in its AOL Voicemail and VOIP voicemail services.
The company asked Vonage, of Holmdel, New Jersey, to sign a similar agreement in January, but the only response has been a request for more time, Klausner claims…
from Salt Lake Tribune
Regardless of the purpose of their actions, or the underpinnings, the sale of these scrubbed movies is such a clear violation of the original content owner, I can’t see a plausible way for them to appeal.
After a bitter three-year legal battle involving Utah companies that sanitize movies on DVD and VHS tape, a federal judge in Denver ruled Thursday that such editing violates U.S. copyright laws and must be stopped.
In a ruling in the case involving CleanFlicks vs. 16 of Hollywood’s hottest directors, U.S. District Judge Richard P. Matsch found that making copies of movies to delete objectionable language, sex and violence hurts studios and directors who own the movie rights.
I think this is a fabulous example of a disruptive technology going mainstream. Apparently BiTorrent has now offically signed a deal where it will be used as a vehicle for content distribution. They have an agreement with four different movie studios that will ultimately allow them to sell movie titles and distribute them via torrents.
from forbes.com
This is a very interesting article with insight into some young executives running some substantial organizations:
San Francisco -
There’s a fittingly playful nature at the offices of children’s clothier Gymboree. A lot of that has to do with the tone set by 33-year-old Matthew McCauley, the youngest CEO ever to head the $700 million outfit in its 30-year history. A graduate of Brigham Young University who got his start handling distribution at Payless Shoes and The Gap, McCauley suspects his youth keeps him open to new perspectives.
“I love to riff and bounce ideas off of people. Regardless of what their function is, [Gymboree’s employees] are all talented, bright people,” says McCauley, who routinely solicits feedback from staffers throughout the company and in different departments. That open strategy seems to be working: Gymboree’s first-quarter sales reached $189 million in April, up 16% compared with the same quarter last year.
But being young and in charge isn’t a typical scenario for the top brass of publicly traded companies. Of the companies on Wall Street’s Russell 2000 Index, there are just eight chiefs age 35 or under. Among the small group, McCauley, who began with Gymboree (nasdaq: GYMB - news - people ) in 2001 heading inventory allocations, is the lone CEO to race up the corporate ladder. Three of the chiefs take the reins of their family firms, and the remaining four founded their own companies. Each recognized quite early a desire to take a leadership role.
See some of America’s youngest CEOs…
from the seattletimes.nwsource.com
Some additional insight into Microsoft’s Ipod killer. As an interesting note, I heve heard a great deal of speculation that MS may provide a means to automatically transfer songs purchased on Itunes into their players format, at their cost. I have heard rumors ranging from just 20 songs to all songs a user may have purchased on Itunes. Though there is some question as to how they could do this, if they would simply have to scan the hard drive, or if the user would have to provide their Itunes login.
icrosoft is indeed developing a digital-media player to compete with Apple’s iPod, and there’s much more to the story.
A few details trickled out last week from music companies that Microsoft is lining up to support the device. Microsoft isn’t commenting, but I was able to piece together a broader picture with some research, reporting and information from a source close to the project. What’s being developed is actually a complete line of Xbox-branded digital-media products, including a device that plays media, a software media player and an online media service.
The project, or at least part of it, is referred to internally at Microsoft by the code name Argo — a reference to the huge warship used by the hero Jason in Greek mythology.
Argo is being developed within the Xbox group under the leadership of Xbox co-founder J Allard. His team includes people who previously worked on MSN Music, an online music service that had a promising debut in 2004 but fell victim to Microsoft’s dithering over its music strategy…