23 May 2006
Making Money Selling Music Without DRM

Sounds like somebody's finally developed a business model for the digital age. It's about time.

Ars Technica's Nate Anderson has an excellent writeup on the rise of eMusic and how they're suceeding despite their unwillingness to hop on the DRM bandwagon. From the article: 'The Holy Grail of online music sales is the ability to offer iPod-compatible tracks. Like the quest for the mythical cup itself, the search for iPod compatibility has been largely fruitless for Apple's competitors, whose DRM schemes are incompatible with the iconic music player. For a music store that wants to succeed, reaching the iPod audience is all but a necessity in the the US market, where Apple products account for 78 percent of the total players sold. Perhaps that's why eMusic CEO David Pakman sounds downright gleeful when he points out that there's only two companies in the world that can sell to them--Apple and eMusic.'

(link) [Slashdot]

14:14 /Copywrongs | 0 comments | permanent link

Free Nationwide Wireless Internet Access?

I'll believe it the day I sign up and see the speed.

ISP-Planet is reporting that startup M2Z wants to offer 95% of America free wireless Internet access using the 20Mhz frequency allocation. They're backed by Kleiner Perkins, one of the most successful VC firms in history, and being started by the guy who built the @Home network and a former FCC Wireless Bureau Chief. 384/128 speeds will be free and they'll sell the higher speeds and the government will get a kickback of the revenue.

(link) [Slashdot]

14:10 /Technology | 1 comment | permanent link

Dracula castle returns to bloodline

The headline was too good to pass up ...

More than 60 years after it was seized by communists, the Romanian government is to hand back one of the country's most popular tourist sites, the fabled Dracula Castle, to its former owner, the culture minister said Tuesday.

(link) [CNN.com]

14:07 /Humor | 0 comments | permanent link