Google vs. Viacom
Viacom International, Inc. v. YouTube, Inc. (SDNY complaint filed March 13, 2007).
The Viacom and YouTube spat have officially graduated from a “kerfuffle"” to “brouhaha” with the news that Viacom has just sued YouTube in federal court. After public saber-rattling by Viacom and significant negotiations between the parties, Viacom finally pulled the trigger and sued YouTube for copyright infringement. Two quick points about this lawsuit:
1) I would be very surprised if this lawsuit reached a final judgment on its merits. Instead, I suspect Viacom is using the complaint to increase the pressure on Google to negotiate. This is an expensive escalation of the negotiation, but to me, it's entirely consistent with a logical negotiation strategy.
2) If this case does reach a final judgment on its merits, I have no idea what the court will say. I know what the court should say (regular readers are well aware of my defense-side orientation), but trying to do a neutral assessment the law, the precedent isn't so clear that one side is an obvious winner. I thought the complaint did a good job telling its story of YouTube as a piracy-based business, and some judges might be swayed by that story (see, e.g., Napster). On the other hand, Congress has enacted the 512 safe harbors for precisely this situation, and I think many judges will find those safe harbors apply. Even so, Viacom does a good job pointing out the limits of the 512 notice-and-takedown scheme by noting that it has no viable mechanism to identify videos shared only with "friends," in which case some judges might be sympathetic that the safe harbors aren't a complete solution for Viacom. So, what will a judge do? I don't know. All the more reason for the parties to work out a settlement before they spend too much money on litigation.
I'm still waiting to see what YouTube's going to do about revenue-sharing with non-professional content creators. I'd like to see what their plan is to monetize the channels of the popular YT characters like Boh3m3 and TheHill88 and LisaNova an even the proven-to-be-scripted Lonelygirl15. Hopefully, there'll be money left over for people who are actually creative on YouTube after deals are made to pay off the lawsuits about the blatant and rampant piracy of previously-made, copyrighted content.
Miss USA 2007
Rachel Smith, Miss Tennessee and Miss USA 2007It’s a shame to see Miss USA 2006 go, but a new year means a new group of excruciatingly beautiful, tenanted and intelligent young ladies.
Top 15 Miss USA 2007 Contestants
The 56th Annual Miss USA Pageant, where Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner will crown her successor at the conclusion of the two-hour primetime telecast, makes a return to Los Angeles after airing the last two years live from Baltimore, Maryland. Miss USA travels the nation as an advocate for breast and ovarian cancer awareness, education, research, and legislation. Each contestant from 50 states and the District of Columbia will be judged in three categories: swimsuit, evening gown and interview.
2006 Miss USA Tara crowned Rachel
After a tumultuous reign as Miss USA, Tara Conner passed her crown to Miss Tennessee Rachel Smith during last Saturday’s Miss USA 2007 Pageant. Rachel Smith, 21 years old, a journalism graduate from Tennessee, She beat out finalists Meagan Yvonne Tandy of California; Cara Renee Gorges of Kansas; Helen Salas of Nevada; and Danielle Lacourse of Rhode Island.
Rachel Smith reacts after winning the Miss USA 2007 pageant
Though crowning a new beauty queen was the focus of night, the pageant began by spotlighting outgoing Miss USA Tara Conner’s highly publicized bout with alcoholism.
Man webcam suicide on chatroom at March 23, 2007
The apparent internet “suicide” of Shropshire man Kevin Whitrick has caused shockwaves on website chat rooms around the world. There was an immediate flurry of activity on website chat rooms where users were commenting on Mr. Whitrick’s death and seeking information about it.
A terrible sign that people don't know the line on cyberspace. This depressed man in England told everyone in his chat room that he was going to off himself and about 50 people watched in as he strung himself up. Some even egged him on until they realized he was serious. International authorities are increasingly worried about the trend for internet suicide. There is a growing number of websites and chat rooms with names such as “Suicide Club” where people plan their deaths.
This truly is one of the most heartbreaking stories I've ever read in my life. I just wish he tried to get help and not commit suicide.
This is ridiculous. What kind of sick people go into an insult chat room in the first place? The fact that those people goaded him into killing himself is unbelievable. Regardless of whether or not they "thought" he was acting even joking in that way about suicide is not acceptable. Those people that encouraged him to go ahead and kill himself should be held just as responsible for his death as if they were there and assisted him with it! Those people have something seriously wrong with them in the first place...they need more help than a "support facility" can offer.
The people who were egging him on should be ashamed of them and should remember "what goes around comes around" and someday they will find that out. I can only hope that the rest of their lives they will feel responsible for the death of this poor man and find it hard to live with them. Hopefully the person who said that will forever be haunted by what had happened to Mr Whitrick. He was a person who needed support and assistance, yet there are some heartless people out there who further provoke him by such taunts.
So, if you're a chat room user and someone threatens suicide, or if someone threatens murder, take it seriously. I so wish this man had been encouraged to see that like other life problems, there is always hope, always a better way, always light at the end of the tunnel.
Advertlets vs. Nuffnang
Advertlets and Nuffnang are 2 Malaysian blog advertising networks that launched in beta recently.
Company Mission
Company mission is the first thing I look for; from their about page (Advertlets and Nuffnang), I can’t find enough details to know where the companies are heading.
I mean I am not sure what future could I have as both a publisher and an advertiser with both company. What should I expect to get in the next 6 months? 1 year? 2 years?
Company Name
Advertlets can be related with advertising, but I am not sure what Nuffnang means. Advertlets also have the advantage of sorting by alphabetical order… it’s common practice that we name an A before a N (Advertlets vs Nuffnang, but rarely Nuffnang vs Advertlets).
Nuffnang does have one advantage though, I made no mistake typing in their URL; while for Advertlets, I made countless attempts before making the right one (my typos: advertlest, adverlest, adverlets, advertles etc).
Company Design
Advertlets seemed more professional, while Nuffnang funkier perhaps. In my opinion, it’s about business in the end, so it’s better to have a more professional layout; I preferred Advertlets in this case.
Not sure about the users’ interface, I am not ready to register with both networks yet.
Company Contacts
Email and phone support is available on both sides. Advertlets seemed to be missing their address though… any good reasons for that?
I will send an email to both and see how the response time is, and perhaps get them to share their view on some issues here.
From a Blogger’s Perspective
How much money am I going to make?
I think at the beginning both networks will need a bit of incondition support from some bloggers to kick-start their network. I don’t mind giving them a try even though it means less income for a while.
The question in the end is however… How much money could I make with them? What is the potential? Should I expect anything in RMx,xxx or RMxxx or RMxx or what? I know it depends on visitors and targeting etc… at least they could give a rough idea on estimate CPM perhaps.
What are the advertisers that we are expecting? Fellow bloggers? Large brands like TM or Maxis? Local stores like a pub or restaurant? Online biz or MLMs?
From an Advertiser’s Perspective
What are the formats of my ads? CPC? CPM? Text? Graphics? Videos? Polls? What are the sizes?
Advertlets… how am I supposed to make payment?
Nuffnang… get a credit card merchant account ASAP.
Miscellaneous
Build a support forum. You need to make communications easier between you and your bloggers/advertisers; and I believe some bloggers are eager to share their ideas as well.
Advertlets… what’s happening to the URL? It gives funny signs like #@. Also, I can’t seem to find the Terms of Service (Tos)…
Nuffnang have some serious typos with their website. Also there’s inconsistency in the usage of RM and $, rather confusing actually.
I understand that both networks are still in beta, and I can see some progresses; but I think they need to show more urgency in making it works though. Good luck.
Sumatra Earthquake
A powerful magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck western Indonesia's Sumatra Island on Tues., Mar. 6, 2007.
An Indonesian woman holds her child near a house that was destroyed after an earthquake in the area in West Sumatra, Indonesia on Tues., Mar. 6, 2007.
Two powerful inland earthquakes rattled the Indonesian island of Sumatra in March 6th, 2007, leveling hundreds of buildings and killing at least 80 people, according to government officials in Jakarta. The death toll was expected to increase as rescue workers continued to dig through the rubble of collapsed buildings. Officials said an accurate count of the dead was not yet possible.
The 5.8 Magnitude, or 6.3 on the Richter scale, earthquake on Sumatra island, occurring at 11.00am western Indonesia time, was felt hundreds of kilometers away in Singapore, where some office buildings were evacuated, and in neighboring Malaysia.
The tremors were most strongly felt in a number of West Sumatran towns including Solok, Tanah Datar, Padang Panjang, Padang Pariaman, and Bukit Tinggi, and also in Riau province. In Solok, the worst hit area, the natural disaster caused a school fire, killing four elementary students. Hospitals were said to be overflowing with patients, many of them with broken bones and cuts. At least one hospital was evacuated, sending panicked doctors and nurses fleeing with startled patients limping behind.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake struck 33 kilometers below Solok, on Sumatra’s western coast, shattering windows and toppling power lines. It was followed by several strong aftershocks. The tremor and at least one of the aftershocks was felt in Singapore, 430 kilometers from the epicenter, forcing the evacuation of several older office buildings. And in Malaysia’s southern coastal city of Johor, citizens fled offices, buildings and shopping centers, eyewitnesses said.
Indonesia is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
The Politics of Reform
I've written recently the importance of "delivery" with regards to the success of the National Education Blueprint 2006-2010. Well, Prof Joan Nelson, a senior scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre of the Smithsonian Institution, who specializes in the politics of policy-making, policy reforms and institutional change, pretty much agrees.Prof Nelson, who is also currently the Pok Rafeah Distinguished Chair in International Studies at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia argued that while it's "heartening" to know that we are making efforts in upgrading our education system:
"[The] history of efforts to reform and improve education is replete with cases of well-meaning, well designed measures that were implemented only partially, or were seriously diluted in the course of implementation, or were put in place but later reversed."
Hence while stakeholders recognize that better education is top priority, many of those "directly involved in the public education system - bureaucrats, teachers, headmasters and principals, and also much of the higher education establishment - oppose reforms that would shift control over resources, change relationships, or increase pressure to perform."Of course, politicians add to the already complex situation. They face a "time consistency problem" as the cost of reform is usually immediate while the benefits come much later. This has clearly been the case in Malaysia where the education reform programmers changes as frequently as the changes in Ministers.The latest National Education Blueprint replaces the former plan by the former Minister of Education, which was also meant to stretch to 2010. At the same time, the recently appointed Minister of Higher Education, did not hesitate to dump the report completed no more than a year before his tenure to conduct a brand new study.Malaysia respective ministers in charge of our education could do well to take heed of Prof Nelson's advice. The question then is, whether the strength of the political will required is there to make the necessary and often difficult institutional changes to ensure that our goals and targets are met.
Copy protected audio CDs...bleh...
I finally can use Internet, just great! My roommate forgets to pay the net fee because she going home being rushing celebrating Chinese New Year, I had two weeks can not get on the Internet wholly at home...I have something to share...Ok, as a software developer I have a lot of respect for people that want to get paid for their work. That is completely understandable. But when I purchase( I say again PURCHASE ) an audio CD and pay full freaking' price in Chinese new year holiday at a mall, I would like to be able to at least put that on any device I have that plays music. I don't sell CDs, don't normally trade CDs, and don't open up my mp3s for file sharing.
I bought the Charlie Wilson CD a while back but finally got around to ripping it. It is copy protected and launched its own player when I inserted it into my CD Rom. In addition, the utility that came with it only rips to wma format and even that requires a license to play (i.e. you can put it on an mp3 player or use it on a CD with a collection of songs). Now, if this stuff did everything it was supposed to and still let me use legally purchased music for my own benefit, I would have no complaints.
To get around the copy protection, I had to set my CD Rom so that it would not auto play. After that I launched Music Match and ripped them directly to mp3. I had to do the same with John Legend. The copy protection doesn't work and only gives headaches to those that legally purchased the music. If I had downloaded from a file sharing network like Grokster, it would have been free and I wouldn't have had to jump through hoops.
One other way (I have read) to get around the copy protection is to use the utility on the discs to rip to your hard drive in WMA format. Then use Windows Media Player to download the licenses and burn a CD. You can then rip your burned CD back to your hard drive as mp3s. What a pain...
It looks like Music Match version 8.0 or higher (basic free version) will enable you to rip a protected CD. Actually, Music Match is a pretty good program for both playing and ripping.
Britney Spears Shaved hair in Feb 16,2007
Britney Spears bald? That’s right. In a fit of anxiety, Britney Spears has shaved her own head completely bald. Will this start a new trend of teenage girls shaving their head? This is totally out of character. I felt Britney Spears did the stupidest thing. maby the sad and pathethic Britney was so helpless and was said to have suffered from amphetamine psychosis. After so much fuss about her break with Kevin Federline, her crazy antics with Paris Hilton, her “Britney Crotch Shot” controversy, Britney again did the stupidest thing. She’s totally out of control. Everybody is beginning to think that she’s a dumbest loser, definitely she will not be our kids’ icon anymore. While at it, Britney also gets herself a tattoo. Unlike the other shenanigans, this incident really scares me. It makes me wonder if this girl is going to hurt herself one of these days. Hollywood, be on your guard. Will it be another U-Nee, Xu Wei Lun or even Anna Nicole Smith story that we are going to have next?
Do you agree extending the retirement age?
Tuesday, 06-February-2007, Prime Minister Abdullah pointed out the government will study extending the retirement age of civil servants to 60 years old at the annual dinner of the Association of Administrative and Diplomatic Service (http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/2/6/nation/16795622&sec=nation). He felt that 40 used to be the age of maturity but now people were at the prime of their life when they were in their 50s. And also he said that civil servants who reached the age of 56 would possess a wealth of experience, and they could still contribute to the government.
I think that Malaysian national constitution and administration system are always base on UK as chief source during 50 years became independent. Much legislation now ought to be based on current national conditions but revise or adjust.
Now national education is already popularizes, healthy consciousness of the people have more strengths gradually, also the corresponding factor has rise such as society economy and per capita life-span.
Along with the sustained development of Malaysia, ultimately, extending retirement age must put in practice. The government will consider canceling the retirement age compellingly, allow the employees to work until they consider retiring.
However, the more important thing is when the government decides to extend retirement age, also ought to reinforce to manage the efficiency and quality of human resources further, may ensure that the plan of extending retirement age and will not derive some negative consequence.
Deepest condolences for Beatrice Xu
Taiwan entertainment star Beatrice Xu （Xu Wei Lun）and her assistant was involved in a serious car accident last week Friday night, their car crashed onto the highway safety barrier and was knocked by a truck behind them. According to reports she is in coma deeply, and in critical condition because of internal bleeding in her skull. Her assistant was also injured but not critical. She was confirmed to have passed away at 19:37pm last Sunday (Jan 28) after emergency rescue for almost 2 days. Tuesday her parents and friends went send back to Taipei for the funeral process.
I was so shocked and sad when I heard the news from my friends…TOTALLY UNBELIEVABLE!!! I saw this news on cable TV, newspaper and Internet. The accident of the famous star becomes “hot news” pursued by the media in Asia entertainment circle this week.
Heartbreaking, she is so beautiful and young; I felt she is a talented actress when first I saw her on TV she gave me a special feeling that I get attracted by her. Although she is gone but through her success of bringing entertainment to all the people I know everyone will remember her, no matter how long it is and rest in peace…life is really so unpredictable still a shock to me, she is becoming hot like cake, the next moment she is gone… Life is short. Hope her will find peace in heaven. RIP...
In Loving Memories of Beatrice Xu
Xu Wei Lun Profile
Name: Xu Wei Lun (Hsu Wei Lun, Hui Wei Lun, Beatrice Xu)Nickname: Lun Lun 伦伦Chinese name: 许玮伦 (許瑋倫)Birthdate: November 13, 1978Birth place: Taipei, TaiwanHeight: 168 cmBlood Type: AFamily: Parents and a younger brotherEducation: Tamkang University, Taiwan (French Study)Spoken Languages: Mandarin, English, French and 台語Profession: Actress and model
Favorite Color: Black and whiteFavorite Fruit: BlackberriesFavorite Music: Classical, Jazz and R&BFavorite Actress: Julia RobertsFavorite Singer: Mariah Carey
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUzlpCL03ks
