Bush
bashers want to buy Super Bowl spot
Liberal political advocacy group MoveOn.org may be moving
into one of the remaining Super Bowl ad spots. If so, this will mark the
first time a political advocacy group has advertised on one of the coveted
spots. Eli Pariser, MoveOn.org Voter Fund campaign director, spilled the
details of the Super Bowl plan to an audience of approximately 2,000 at
the Hammerstein Ballroom Monday. If the group grabs a spot on the Feb. 1
Super Bowl, it will air the winning submission from its “Bush in 30
Seconds” contest, which collected entries of original TV ads zeroing in
on President Bush. At the ceremony, controversial filmmaker Michael Moore
announced “Child’s Play” by Charlie Fisher was the winner. It
features young children working adult jobs, such as in an auto
manufacturing plant. Pariser said MoveOn.org is looking to purchase the ad
space for somewhere between $1.7 and $2 million. Fewer than 10 slots
remain for the Super Bowl.
Forget
music, who's monitoring copyrighted porn?
Will
the porn industry begin filing suit against the peer-to-peer networks a la
the Recording Industry Association of America? An adult-video company is
complaining that Kazaa doesn’t protect porn on its peer-to-peer network.
Pornography producer Titan Media has complained to Congress, saying that
Sharman Networks, the owner of online file-swapping service Kazaa, has not
blocked users from downloading its films. The company claims that Sharman
Networks can keep track of network activity through “spyware”
installed on Kazaa users’ computers. This technology allows them to
block users from downloading copyrighted files, such as Titan’s films.
The production company said in a letter to Congress that Sharman had not
complied with its request to halt unauthorized copying of their adult
videos over the network. This is a new development in the current war
against internet piracy. Titan requested a blockage of 1,400 of its movies
from Sharman last month but has heard no response.
'Something'
screener hits net, angers MPAA
As
if the whole self-indulgent Oscar screener debate wasn’t already
annoying enough, “Something’s Gotta Give” has gone and fanned the
controversy after a screener copy was leaked onto the net. The Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is investigating how a copy of the
romantic
comedy sent to an
Oscar voter got online. Academy officials learned of the copy of the Jack
Nicholson and Diane Keaton film on Monday in exactly the sort of situation
the film industry is trying to avoid. The academy banned the distribution
of screener DVDs and videotapes because of bootlegging concerns, but that
was modified after complaints came flooding in from filmmakers, producers
and independent production companies. The ban was initially amended so
encoded videotapes could be shipped to Academy Award voters only, which
was later changed to include independent production companies. The copy
apparently belongs to Carmine Caridi, a film and television actor. No
legal action has been taken yet.
Phew!
Microsoft won't end Windows support
Software giant Microsoft said Tuesday it will extend
support for Windows 98 users in an attempt to appease developing
countries. Microsoft’s original schedule would have ended support for
Windows 98 on Jan. 16, while Windows ME support’s end date was scheduled
for Dec. 31. But the company decided to lengthen both versions’ support
through June 30, 2006 because so many users in developing countries still
rely on older versions of Microsoft operating systems. Authorities from
the countries have criticized Microsoft’s insistence that customers
should buy new, more expensive Windows and Office software versions.
Microsoft said in a statement that it will continue to make paid phone
support available to Windows 98 and Windows ME users and will continue to
review any security issues.
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