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You'll have to keep dusting off those stacks and shelves of DVDs for the foreseeable future--and maybe forever.

Kaleidescape, a company that has long sought to help consumers create copies of their DVDs and store the digital files to a media server, has lost another legal battle.

A prototype of RealNetworks' Facet, the DVD player that copied and stored digital movies, but was effectively killed in 2010 following a court fight with the DVD CCA.

(Credit: Greg Sandoval/CNET)

In 2004, the DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA) sued Kaleidescape. That group, which includes all the major Hollywood studios and some consumer electronics companies, licenses the anticopying protections on DVDs and Blu-ray discs.

The DVD CCA accused Kaleidescape of violating the terms of the CCA license when it began releasing servers that copied DVDs. Kaleidescape has argued there's nothing in the DVD CCA's contract that prohibits anything that the company's media servers do.

But according to a story published by Cepro.com, on January 9 a Superior Court judge in Santa Clara, Calif., issued a tentative ruling in favor of the DVD CCA. Kaleidescape's managers say they will appeal and continue their eight-year court fight. Read Cepro.com's story for all the legal ins and outs.

What's most interesting about this prolonged legal battle is that the two sides appear to be fighting over a format that might be obsolete by the time their conflict is resolved. DVD sales have been in decline for years as Web-streaming services, such as those offered by Netflix, HBO Go and Amazon, grow in popularity.

The idea of buying another set-top box just to house DVDs we collected and never got around to watching sounds like a waste of time. But I'm probably getting ahead of myself again. My studio sources chafe when I write that the DVD is dead and they remind me that while home-video revenues are declining, they are still significant.

Fair enough. But I've always argued that if the studios wanted to milk the DVD for as long as they could, why not give consumers a better way to store and handle their discs?

Four years ago, RealNetworks sought to create a server similar to Kaleidescape's. The box, called Facet, would have used technology similar to RealDVD, the company's DVD-ripping software, to enable users to copy their discs. The technology was supposed to lock up the movies within the box so they couldn't be shared illegally. It was slick.

RealNetworks founder Rob Glaser demonstrated the device in court. With a single push of a button, a user could hop from scene to scene or movie to movie.

But the DVD CCA prevailed in 2010 over RealNetworks in a court case similar to Kaleidescape's. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a group that advocates for Internet users and tech companies, was supportive of Kaleidescape and RealNetworks and argued that the DVD CCA's opposition was an attempt to keep consumers from making copies under fair use and force them to back up their films by buying additional copies.

On the contrary, said DVD CCA. They argued that they were making movies and TV shows easier to access than ever but they would "vigorously defend our right to stop companies from bringing products to market that mislead consumers and clearly violate the law."

See the rest here:
Courts have likely killed media servers that copy DVDs

President Obama grants many more media interviews than his predecessors, but holds far fewer impromptu question-and-answer sessions, according to data compiled by a professor who studies presidential interactions with the press.

By doing so, Mr. Obama and his administration have more control over who asks questions and where they are answered.

Mr. Obama has been interviewed a total of 408 times in his first three years as president, according to Martha Kumar, a professor at Towson University who works alongside reporters at the White House. President George W. Bush had given 136 interviews at the same period in his presidency, and President Bill Clinton had given 166.

However, Mr. Obama has comparatively avoided Q.&A.s with scrums of reporters, according to Mr. Kumar, answering questions at 94 photo opportunities and other such sessions in his first three years. Mr. Bush had spoken at 307 such sessions after three years in office, and Mr. Clinton, 493.

He has held 17 solo news conferences, more than Mr. Bush (11) in the same period, but fewer than Mr. Clinton (31) and far fewer than President George H.W. Bush (56). Ms. Kumar’s data was published by The Hill on Tuesday.

“He prefers interviews because he prefers speaking on a particular topic,” Ms. Kumar told the newspaper. “He likes to develop his thinking. He likes to talk at length.”

The Obama administration has previously gained notice for granting interviews to a great variety of outlets — he was the first sitting president to come on “The Tonight Show,” for instance. He has answered questions from the public through YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and most recently Google Plus, which held a conversation with him on Monday.

Such sessions have opened the White House to charges that it is skirting the White House press corps. Daniel Pfeiffer, the White House communications director, responded in an e-mail, “The idea that interacting with the public through social media is somehow going around the White House press corps is a prehistoric notion.”

“The media has become so diffuse that communicating ones’ message requires a lot more work than it used to,” he wrote. “You have to be willing to go where the viewers are, because they now have so much choice in where they get their information.”

Link:
Media Decoder Blog: Obama Favors Interviews Over Impromptu Q.&A.'s, Study Finds

OULU, Finland, February 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

The Shanghai Media Group ("SMG") children´s channel Toonmax and Ball-IT Oy, a leading motion control gaming system producer, have signed a partnership agreement. SMG, China´s second largest media company, will start to produce a TV game show based on Ball-IT´s gaming innovation blobo, and will broadcast 26 episodes in China in the second half of 2012. The blobo TV show will initially reach 30 million households, with the ultimate target being to reach 200 million households.

The TV show promotes fun and healthy living for today´s youngsters. On the show kids take each other on in front of a live studio audience, who watch their avatars compete on a large screen, while the viewers can play blobo at home and compare their results with the TV contestants.

The TV show is based on the blobo gaming system - a motion control and fitness gaming device that works with PCs and MACs via Bluetooth. The single golfball-sized wireless wonder, blobo, captures even the smallest movements of the human body, being a genuine fitness gaming experience. The games combine excitement with all-round family fun.

The sales box for Chinese consumers consists of a blobo device, a Bluetooth adapter (needed for computers without built-in Bluetooth), and 8 Fun&Fit games. At first blobo will be sold in China through 1,500 retail shops, including SMG´s own digital and electronics supermarkets, later aiming for nationwide broadcast and marketing.

"We are very excited by the opportunity to introduce to China this captivating TV format, which brings families together while making them move and have fun. The product, blobo, on which the game show is based, is unique as it is very intuitive and easy to learn, " says Mr. Hu, Vice President of SMG Toonmax.

Mr. Juha Rytky, CEO of Ball-IT, says that they could not wish for a better partner in China. As part of SMG, Toonmax Media is the leading media company in the core target groups, kids and families. "The overall business potential is huge, as there are already more than 150 million PC online gamers today in China. The market already exists and is booming, we are now offering added value for the gamers by offering them the motion controlled gaming experience, " says Mr. Rytky.

SMG is a multimedia television and radio company broadcasting, news, Internet and related media entertainment services. The television broadcasting media consist of 11 analogue TV channels, 90 paid digital cable TV channels, and a full Internet broadcasting TV service, along with 10 analogue and 19 digital radio services. The group also owns and operates 5 sports centres and 14 cultural art centres. Other areas of operation include newspapers, magazines, news websites and audio-visual publishing. Formed in 2001, SMG is the result of a merger between the People´s Radio Station of Shanghai, East Radio Shanghai, Shanghai Television Station, and Oriental Television Station. The company employs around 5,200 people.

Ball-IT Oy is a Finnish company founded in 2005, focusing on sensor technologies, motion interpretation algorithms and all related software for the development of consumer electronics and product variants for the gaming industry and other segments. It also offers a software development kit for third parties - such as game studios - to develop the content for its motion control gaming system. Games are sold from Ball-IT´s online shop, using a revenue sharing model with the game studios. Ball-IT is offering a technologically-advanced - yet very aggressively priced - motion control gaming system for PC and MAC platforms, including games and content. The Company is privately held by its founders and investors, Aura Capital and Fortel Management.

More information about the product and images are available at:

http://www.bloboshop.com/pages.php?page=media&language=en

The TV game show trailer is available at:

http://www.bloboshop.com/tv

Ball-IT Oy

See the original post here:
Shanghai Media Group and Ball-IT Oy Launch blobo Fitness Gaming for Chinese Kids and Families

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- LexisNexis (www.lexisnexis.com), a leading provider of content and technology solutions, announced today at LegalTech® New York, the launch of the LexisNexis®Social Media Visibility service that enables solo practitioners and lawyers at smaller law firms to establish a solid, comprehensive, and manageable social media presence. The service includes creation of an exclusive blog page as well as guidance and assistance in crafting profiles and in generating and posting appropriate content on major social sites, including Facebook®, Twitter® and LinkedIn®. By leveraging social media more effectively, lawyers and firms are better able to demonstrate thought leadership, extend the reach of their websites, improve site performance on search engines, and engage prospective clients via popular interactive communities.

“Consumers use social media tools to find the information they need, including finding lawyers and legal information. We provide customers with an effective strategy for utilizing social media in order to maximize lead generation,” said Phil Livingston, CEO, LexisNexis Marketing & Business Solutions.

“Social media specialists at LexisNexis will help law firms build a credible social media presence through engaging blog content and exposure on top social media sites,” Livingston added.

The LexisNexis Social Media Visibility service begins with either the creation of a custom blog tailored to match the look and feel of the rest of the firm’s website or a unique blog page designed to match the blog’s theme. The LexisNexis team will collaborate with each firm to develop relevant blog content each week based on topics chosen by the firm. The firm has full creative control of content posted. The team increases the blog’s exposure by submitting it to major blog directories, legal blog lists, and to other relevant sites, such as Digg®, YouTubeTM and Squidoo, to generate inbound links. In addition, the team will set up the firm’s Facebook Fan Page and Twitter account with feeds to its blog, and create a LinkedIn company profile that includes attorney profiles.

Law firms also have the option to subscribe to Social Media Visibility Advanced and receive all the benefits of Social Media Visibility, plus even more online exposure that includes two custom-developed blog posts per week, additional submissions to blog directories, and additional individual attorney profiles on LinkedIn.

To learn more about the LexisNexis Social Media Visibility service, please visit http://www.lexisnexis.com/law-firm-marketing/products-and-services/optimization-services/social-media-visibility/.

LexisNexis today also announced the launch of a new portfolio of website products and services for law firms, called LexisNexis®Web Visibility Solutions, featuring search engine and mobile device optimization. Each web product in the LexisNexis Web Visibility Solutions portfolio includes the features and optimization necessary for a law firm to compete effectively in specific practice and geographic areas. The LexisNexis team leverages market data, ongoing testing, analyses of legal search engine marketing trends, proprietary law firm website conversion research, and our own experience in creating and/or hosting more than 40,000 law firm websites to create sites that rank competitively and convert more site visitors to clients.

“LexisNexis Web Visibility Solutions are backed by a team of web design and SEO specialists who help ensure each site competes effectively, ranks high on search engine results, can be found easily by the rapidly growing segment of mobile device users and convert visitors to leads,” Livingston added.

Along with the search engine and basic mobile optimization and basic blogging platform that come standard, these Web Visibility products all feature LexisNexis® Client Center. Named “Best Legal Solution” in the 2012 Software & Industry Information Association (SIIA) CODiE Awards, LexisNexis Client Center is an online client collaboration portal built directly into a law firm’s website, where lawyers and their clients can easily and quickly exchange documents and relevant case information in a secure environment. By providing a secure, online conduit for calendar, contact, task and other information sharing directly from a firm’s website, Client Center offers smaller firms the ability to deliver more efficient client service, differentiate themselves from their competitors, and reduce administrative costs – all while maintaining attorney-client privilege. Client Center is powered by LexisNexis Firm Manager™, an online practice management application for solo practitioners and small law practices.

For more information about LexisNexis Web Visibility Solutions, please click on the following link:

http://www.lexisnexis.com/law-firm-marketing/products-and-services/websites-seo-social/

About LexisNexis Legal & Professional

LexisNexis® Legal & Professional (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading global provider of content and technology solutions that enable professionals in legal, corporate, tax, government, academic and non-profit organizations to make informed decisions and achieve better business outcomes. As a digital pioneer, the company was the first to bring legal and business information online with its Lexis® and Nexis® services. Today, LexisNexis Legal & Professional harnesses leading-edge technology and world-class content, to help professionals work in faster, easier and more effective ways. Through close collaboration with its customers, the company ensures organizations can leverage its solutions to reduce risk, improve productivity, increase profitability and grow their business. Part of Reed Elsevier, LexisNexis Legal & Professional serves customers in more than 100 countries with 10,000 employees worldwide.

LexisNexis helps solo practitioners and specialized law firms enhance their online presence and drive more prospects to their firm. Services offered include website design and development, video production, search engine optimization, robust profiles on leading legal sites Lawyers.comSM and martindale.com®, and coordination of Martindale Hubbell® lawyer ratings services.

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LexisNexis Launches Social Media Visibility Service for Law Firms

Reuters

In the college football world, there’s a lot of talk that Penn State’s recruiting is suffering because its new head coach, Bill O’Brien, is more focused on getting the Patriots’ offense ready for the Super Bowl. That’s not good news for Nittany Lions fans.

But Patriots fans can be satisfied with knowing that at Super Bowl Media Day, all indications were that O’Brien is singularly focused on the Super Bowl, and the only time Penn State is a distraction is when the media asks about it.

O’Brien said today that he is delegating the Penn State stuff to the staff at Penn State until he starts that job on Monday.

“This is about the Patriots this week,” O’Brien said. “I’m thrilled to be the head coach at Penn State, but I’m really focused on the Patriots and trying to do the best we can to put together a great game plan on Sunday.”

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said there has been no change to the game planning process with O’Brien having a second job.

“Bill O’Brien has done everything he normally does, and everything he can possibly do,” Belichick said. “I’m sure he’s spent some extra hours early in the morning and late at night doing things for Penn State. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do here, and he has been very diligent in his responsibilities.”

The Patriots have been in this position before, with Charlie Weis coordinating the offense through the Super Bowl after accepting the Notre Dame head coaching position, and that worked out fine for the Patriots. (Weis’s tenure at Notre Dame didn’t work out quite as well for the Fighting Irish.)

Patriots guard Brian Waters offered an interesting assessment of the O’Brien situation, saying he thinks being at the Super Bowl should be great for recruiting.

“For him, this is the greatest recruiting tool he’s got,” Waters said. “He could have easily walked away and said ‘I’ve got my opportunity somewhere else,’ but instead he’s seeing it through. He’s as fired up as he was the course of the season.”

Waters also praised O’Brien for the fire he showed in his famous sideline confrontation with Tom Brady.

“As players, we liked [the argument],” Waters said. “Those are two positions that can be relaxed . . . I don’t want to say pretty boy positions, but they can be. The guys calling the plays and the guy throwing the ball. To see those two be the most fired up two guys on your team, to us as a football player, a lineman in the trenches every day, we have an appreciation for that.”

Penn State fans can be glad to know their coach is fiery, and not a pretty boy.

Read the original post:
PFT: 5 observations from Patriots' Media Day