MediaBytes 11.06.2007

JEFF BEWKES will replace Richard Parsons as the CEO of Time Warner, effective January 1st. The move comes after months of speculation about Parsons’ future at the company and pressure from Wall Street due to a sagging stock price. Parsons will remain Chairman of Time Warner and said that Bewkes has his “full support” as Continue Reading →
Apple's Leopard OS
One of my seriously Mac-addicted staff members stood in the rain last Friday night to get us a five-pack of the Apple’s new Leopard operating system. Being only slightly less addicted, I set aside 40 minutes circa 8:30am Saturday morning to do the install. I stopped for the day about 11:30pm — this is my Continue Reading →

MediaBytes 10.23.2007

NBC confirmed the pulling of all official NBC content from YouTube ahead of the Hulu launch. The company believes that pulling the content will help push more traffic to the forthcoming online video service. Hulu will host NBC videos and distribute them through Yahoo, AOL, MySpace and other video destinations. However, it does not currently Continue Reading →

MediaBytes 10.15.2007

BLACKARROW will unveil its multi-platform ad management system today. The company will help manage, deliver, and measure targeted ads that appear in online video and VOD. In the future, BlackArrow will allow advertisers to update ads that have already been recorded to DVRs. The company is funded by some major players, including Comcast, Intel, and Continue Reading →
RIAA
Last week the RIAA won its lawsuit against Jamie Thomas, a Minnesota woman who put 24 songs in her Kazaa shared folder. The judgment, now being appealed, was for $222,000 ($9,250 per song). It’s a big number, and because it’s so big, it is excellent fodder for sensationalists on both sides of the issue. The Continue Reading →

MediaBytes 09.11.2007

ABC is seeking partners to more widely distribute its online programming, signaling a change in its go-it-alone strategy. The network is in talks with several web sites, including AOL, Comcast, MSN, and MySpace. ABC isn’t opening up completely, however. It is insisting that all partners use its own video player, to ensure that viewers have Continue Reading →

MediaBytes 08.24.2007

 CABLELABS has approved a new technical standard for IP video, in conjunction with major movie studios and consumer-electronics makers. It brings together Paramount, Sony Pictures, Walt Disney, Warner Brothers, Hitachi, Intel, Panasonic, and Toshiba. The specification will allow set-top boxes and other devices to transfer cable signals throughout home networks, and should spur growth Continue Reading →
Music
In honor of the Music Publishers joining the lawsuit against YouTube for copyright infringement, my last article focused on music rights. Specifically, what rights you need if you want to avoid getting sued by overzealous stakeholders. Thank you all for your comments, here and via email. The most surprising thing about the discourse this week Continue Reading →