Thursday 31 March 2011

Amazon Cloud - Rights Violations?


Amazon's new unlicensed and widely written about cloud service was closely examined by the major record companies yesterday. Within each label there were debates about how to respond.
The first order of business was to determine whether Amazon violated copyright law or the terms of the company's current licensing agreements with the labels, music insiders told CNET.

Amazon spoke to some of the labels and Hollywood studios recently and informed them--some as late as March 24--that on Monday, it planned to launch Cloud Drive, a service that enables users to upload copies of their music, e-books, videos, and other digital media to Amazon's servers, the sources said. The company also rolled out the Cloud Player, which is used to listen to the uploaded music with the help of Web-connected devices. Amazon told the entertainment companies that it was prepared to unveil the Player and Drive without licenses.

The launch of Amazon's cloud service has received so much attention because storing digital media on third-party servers instead of a computer hard drive is supposed to be the next evolution of digital distribution. For more than a year, the music sector has waited for Apple and Google to unveil their own digital shelves. With all the attention on those companies, however, Amazon catapulted into the lead.
How Amazon's case is resolved could help determine the ground rules for cloud media storage. The case could also determine who has the inside track in providing digital lockers.

Amazon may have made a Jobs-esque move to help the company jump past rivals, but Amazon isn't Apple. The iTunes store has dominated digital music for nearly a decade and has the weight to push the labels' limits sometimes. In this case, there are some at the record companies that aren't impressed. They want to lawyer up, right now.

The legal issues are one thing, but some executives are steamed about the way Amazon waited until just a few days before launching the service to inform them of their plans.

Still, most of the people who spoke with CNET said they want to see what Amazon does next before deciding how to respond. Amazon said in its initial meetings with the entertainment companies that it would eventually negotiate to obtain licenses. The company, founded by CEO Jeff Bezos in 1994, has made good on the promises and managers there have begun talks with the labels.

So, Amazon negotiates while the company's cloud service is up and running. Meanwhile Apple, Google, and Spotify appear to have put themselves at a disadvantage by waiting to roll out their cloud offerings until they obtained licenses. Both companies are said to be nearly ready. Yet, if Amazon is allowed to continue to operate without a contract for too long, the labels risk proving that in digital media, it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission.
While there appears to be more doves than hawks at the labels, that didn't stop their lawyers from poring over Amazon's service in search of any potential rights violations, sources said. Here's some of what they were looking for:

•  Is Amazon making unauthorized copies? When a user stores music on Amazon's servers, the company must make that exact copy is available for the user to stream. The way the music industry sees it, if someone uploaded a copy of Bob Dylan's "Like A Rolling Stone," and Amazon streamed the same recording but a different copy of the recording, then Amazon would violate the label's rights.
According to Donald Bell, who reviewed Amazon's new service for CNET, Amazon did indeed stream back the same recordings he uploaded. He knows this in part because he uploaded songs from a little-known band whose recordings Amazon could not possibly have possessed.

The issue of making unauthorized recordings came up when Viacom, parent company of "MTV" and "Comedy Central" sued Google and YouTube in 2007 for copyright violations. Viacom claimed Google violated the law in part because it re-encoded the video clips users posted to the site, thus creating a new copy. Last year, a federal judge disagreed and Google won. The case is on appeal.

Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31001_3-20049049-261.html#ixzz1IAxZRVdh

Tuesday 29 March 2011

RIP Jackie Chan - Dies Of Heart Attack?


The 56-year-old popular Hong-Kong actor, Jackie Chan has become the latest victim of Twitter death hoax. "RIP Jackie Chan" has been one of the top trending topics on Twitter and Google all day today.
Apparently a fake report filed fake CNN article put together by the owner of a blog called Skiphopz triggered off the rumours.
The article was put together using an online, free anonymous service, which allows users to just paste HTML code and recreate a webpage without having to host it.
The article, which was entitled "Jackie Chan Dies Of Heart Attack", sparked off the rumour which led to flood RIP messages for Jackie Chan.
Not too long ago a tweet paying homage to former President of India APJ Abdul Kalam had sparked rumours of his death.


Sri Lanka vs New Zealand : SL vs NZ


Facts and figures relating to the World Cup semifinal between Sri Lanka and New Zealand at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo on Tuesday.
Head-to-head record: New Zealand lead 35-33 (Tied: 1; NR: 4) In the World Cups: Sri Lanka lead 5-3 In the sub-continent, Sri Lanka lead 16-5 (NR: 2).
Results in last five head-to-head ODIs 8 Sept 2009 Sri Lanka won by 97 runs in Colombo 27 Sept 2009 New Zealand won by 38 runs in Johannesburg 13 Aug 2009 Sri Lanka won by three wickets in Dambulla 19 Aug 2009 No result in Dambulla 18 March 2011 Sri Lanka won by 112 runs in Mumbai.
* New Zealand have not beaten Sri Lanka in their last four World Cup encounters. Their last win in the tournament over the co-hosts was in 1992.
* Sri Lanka (WWW, NR, WLW) have romped into the semifinals. Besides a slip against Pakistan when they lost by 11 runs and a washout against Australia, they have easily won their other games, including a 10-wicket quarterfinal thrashing of England.
* Tillakaratne Dilshan seems to be Sri Lanka's talisman. He is the second highest scorer in the tournament with 394 runs at a strike rate of 96.33. He has so far scored two centuries, one fifty and taken six wickets at an economy of 3.66.
* With 363 runs apiece, Kumar Sangakkara and Upul Tharanga are also flying high. They have a formidable spin and pace duo in Muttiah Muralitharan (13 wickets at an economy of 3.96) and Lasith Malinga (eight wickets) along with Ajantha Mendis' miserly bowling at an economy of 3.01.
* The only chink in their armour potentially is the untested middle order. The only time they were tested was against Pakistan and they came unstuck.
* New Zealand (WLWWWLW) have vanquished the lesser teams such as KenyaZimbabwe and Canada but lost to Australia and Sri Lanka. However, their 110-run win over Pakistan signalled the return to form of their key players, Ross Taylor and Jacob Oram.
* An upset win against South Africa by 49 runs in the quarterfinals is likely to provide an edge to the mental fortitude of New Zealand.
Tim Southee (15 wickets) is one of the leading pacemen in this tournament, ably supported by Oram (12 wickets) and the very tenacious Nathan McCullum (eight wickets).
* Taylor's wicket (288 runs with 14 sixes) and Brendon McCullum (243 runs) at the top of the order will be key to New Zealand's chances.

Monday 28 March 2011

Star Jones Talks "Celebrity Apprentice," Calls NeNe Leakes "Unladylike"


 
Star Jones
 
 
Related Stories
 
Theybf.com :    It's been a busy week for Star Jones. The "Celebrity Apprentice" star stopped by "The Wendy Williams Show" yesterday to address her drama with NeNe Leakes, promote her new novel Satan's Sisters and raise awareness about heart disease.


With NeNe Leakes bashing Star Jones even moment she gets, it's about time we got a response from the Queen Bee herself. During a stop by the "Wendy" show yesterday she told Wendy she will not be engaging in a public spat with NeNe.

"I am an educated African American woman I am not going to lower myself. Period. Bar none."

She continued,

"Did I sleep with her and forget to call the next day? Because I am starting to feel that way. Have you ever had an experience where someone talks about you again and again and again?"

Star also talked about the open heart surgery she had one year ago. She has raised a lot of money for the American Heart Association both on "Celebrity Apprentice" and in her personal time.

source: http://foreign.peacefmonline.com/entertainment/201103/148127.php

Friday 25 March 2011

Azkals


MANILA, Philippines (4th UPDATE) – The Philippine Azkals scored another goal against the Bangladesh Bengal Tigers for a 2-0 cushion in their Challenge Cup group stage game in Yangon (Rangoon), Myanmar.
Filipino-Spanish striker Angel Aldeguer Guirado scored goal number 2 for the Philippines in the second half of the game.
Earlier, Ian Araneta scored the first goal in the 41st minute after picking up a loose ball off Guirado.
The Azkals are now pushing to increase their lead to secure the win and advance into the Challenge Cup finals in 2012.
The Filipino booters started out aggressively, launching a full attack against the Bengal Tigers.
This aggressive play resulted to an early injury stoppage that stretchered Bangladesh’s Zahid off the field.
Guirado and Chieffy Caligdong made sure to keep the Bangladesh defense busy by closing in several goal attempts.
The Filipino squad also put up an excellent defense with team captain Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario and Ray Jonsson clipping Bangladesh’s wings.

The Azkals had a scare when Bangladesh nearly scored on a loose ball. Fortunately, Filipino-British keeper Neil Etheridge came out to clear the ball.

Source:http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/sports/03/25/11/ph-azkals-vs-bangladesh-tigers-now-underway

Thursday 24 March 2011

Rose McGowan Interview


LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT

rose-mcgowan-law-and-order-svu-slice
The episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, actress Rose McGowan guest stars as Cassandra Davina, the main attraction at a swingers club where Detectives Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) go undercover to solve the case of a stabbing victim found in a parking garage. While there, they meet Cassandra’s boyfriend, Doug Loveless (guest star Ryan Hurst), who makes the detectives wonder just how far jealousy can push someone.
During a recent interview, Rose McGowan talked about what drew her to the role, the challenge of playing this complex and layered character, being a fan of SVU, how kind and generous the cast and crew were, and what a treat it was to be included on the list of amazing guest stars that the series has had. She also talked about how she is currently filming the thriller Rosewood Lane, about a radio talk show psychiatrist named Dr. Sonny Blake (McGowan), who moves back to her hometown, where she notices her neighborhood paper boy’s unusual behavior. Check out what she had to say after the jump:
Question: What can you say about Cassandra and who she is?

Wednesday 23 March 2011

Mega Millions soars to $304 million

The Mega Millions jackpot has rolled over again, climbing closer to record territory with a jackpot for Friday night estimated at $304 million.



Two tickets sold in Georgia matched the first five numbers drawn Tuesday night -- 1, 14, 35, 50 and 53,  -- but not the "Mega Ball," which was 43. Those players, along with 24 players in other states, won $250,000 each.
The record advertised jackpot for a Mega Millions drawing was $390 million in March 2007. That huge payout was split between Eddie Nabors, a truck driver from northwest Georgia, and a New Jersey couple, Elaine and Harold Messner. Nabors and the Messners both chose the cash option and received $116 million before taxes.
The jackpot for tonight's Powerball multi-state lottery is $101 million.

Tuesday 22 March 2011

Lawrence Taylor should have gone to jail


An underage girl whose encounter with former football star Lawrence Taylor led to his conviction for sex crimes says he should have been sent to jail.

The girl, now 17, spoke to the media after Taylor was sentenced Tuesday to six years on probation for sexual misconduct and patronizing an underage prostitute.
The girl has been identified in court and by her attorney, Gloria Allred, only by her initials, C.F.
She denied she is a prostitute and said another man forced her to go to Taylor's hotel room in May 2010. She believes Taylor could tell she had been beaten and that she was underage. She said Taylor took "something precious" from her and should be behind bars.
Allred would not say whether the girl plans a lawsuit against Taylor.

Zardari in WikiLeaks


The US announcement of its proposed military pullout from Afghanistan had boosted anti-American forces in the country, President Asif Ali Zardari told Senator John Kerry and added that Washington could not afford to keep that time-line for troop withdrawal from Kabul, according to WikiLeaks cables partly published by The Hindu on Monday.
Based on a meeting in February last year, the cable to Washington by US Ambassador in Pakistan Anne Patterson gave an account of Mr Zardari’s economic worries and his perception of Iran’s role in the region.
“Kerry asked Zardari what effect President Obama’s announcement of a US drawdown date had had on the possibility of success in
Afghanistan. Zardari answered that it had given a boost to those fighting against the United States, but that they ‘live in illusion’.”
The cable added: “Zardari doubted that the US would actually leave Afghanistan in two and a half years, adding that ‘no one can afford that’.
Kerry asked if dialogue with the Taliban was possible. Zardari gave a qualified yes: in specific regions, like Quetta, dialogue might be possible, but on a larger scale it was not.”
Mr Kerry asked to what degree events in Iran have an impact in Pakistan. Mr Zardari said Iran needs to be engaged, and recounted his visit to Iran as an emissary of the free world.
Mr Kerry noted that with the December mosque bombing in Rawalpindi, Pakistani terrorism had changed, Ms Patterson said. “He asked if
Pakistan was going to commit to doing whatever it takes to get rid of extremism. Zardari replied that he was thinking of the future and what will win people away from extremism in 10 or 15 years. He added, however, that he was ‘fighting a war on a shoestring budget’.”

Source: http://www.dawn.com/2011/03/22/time-not-ripe-for-us-to-leave-kabul-zardari-in-wikileaks.html

Monday 21 March 2011

Sprint Nextel Falls 9.8% : AT&T Deal


Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) slumped as much as 9.8 percent in early trading after AT&T Inc. (T)agreed to buy T- Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom AG (DTE) for about $39 billion, trumping its effort to acquire the business.
Sprint Nextel declined as much as 50 cents to $4.55 at 7:14 a.m. in trading before the open the New York Stock Exchange, after closing down 1 cent to $5.05 on March 18.
With the T-Mobile USA purchase announced yesterday, AT&T would become the largest U.S. mobile-phone company.

Earthquake in delhi

Slight tremors felt in New Delhi on 21 March

At 15.22 today, slight tremors were felt in New Delhi. In some parts of Jammu and Kashmir also, reported  tremors by people.

This is yet to be confirmed but the intensity seems quite low.
Within few minutes of feeling the tremors, people started posting tweets on popular social networking - Twitter, regarding the same.

As per unconfirmed reports, 6.1 Magnitudeearthquake hit North Pakistan and tremors of the scale 3.2 hit New Delhi as well.


Thursday 17 March 2011

Japan's Nuclear Reactor


Helicopters dump seawater on Japan reactors

Japanese Self-Defense Force helicopters scoop water off Japan's northeast coast Thursday morning on their way to the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Okumamachi. Military helicopters dumped loads of seawater onto Japan’s stricken nuclear complex Thursday, turning to combat-style tactics while trying to cool overheated uranium fuel that may be on the verge of spewing out more radiation.

Read more – msnbc.com: World news

Wednesday 16 March 2011

Libyan Rebels Fall Back as Qaddafi Forces Near Benghazi


Muammar Qaddafi set his sights on Benghazi as his forces moved into the gateway city of Ajdabiya, 100 miles (161 kilometers) from the rebel capital, and prospects faded for a NATO-led no-fly zone to stop their advance.
The embattled Libyan dictator, appearing with a small group of supporters on state-run television, vowed to fight rebel “rats” and said “we are going to destroy them.” In Benghazi, hundreds of his opponents, watching the broadcast projected on the side of a building, jeered and threw shoes in disrespect, according to a live video feed shown by Al Jazeera television.
The Libyan army is “coming to secure Benghazi,” state-run television said. Pro-Qaddafi forces attacked on two sides of Ajdabiya using airstrikes and artillery, forcing out-gunned rebels and civilians to flee ahead of troops in tanks and personnel carriers, the Associated Press reported. There were conflicting reports on who controlled the city after nightfall.
With rebels on the defensive, the Group of Eight foreign ministers failed to agree yesterday on imposing a no-fly zone. The head of the rebels governing council, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, said on Al Arabiya television that the debate over a no-fly zone “doesn’t concern us now” and he called on Libyans to defend their cities.
“The international community has failed us,” Ahmed Omar, a rebel army commander, said by phone from Benghazi.

Qaddafi ‘Emboldened’

The message being sent to Qaddafi is that “western resolve is weakening and this has emboldened him,” Shada Islam, a Middle East and Asia expert at the Brussels-based Friends of Europe policy group, said in a telephone interview. “If we’d acted three weeks ago we wouldn’t be where we are now.”


Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-15/qaddafi-forces-near-benghazi-as-rebel-says-world-failed-us-.html

Monday 14 March 2011

iPad 2 Sold Out - Out Of Stock


Weekend sales of Apple's iPad 2 were stellar with as many as 500,000 tablets sold to mostly new tablet owners, according to Piper Jaffray, an independent market research firm. Sales of the iPad 2 were up 67 percent compared to the launch of to original iPad when Apple sold 300,000 tablets.
The figures reinforce Apple dominance in tablet sales as first-time tablet owners flock to the iPad 2 and not tablets such as Motorola's Xoom tablet based on the Android mobile operating system.
Piper Jaffray says it spent the weekend calling Best Buy, Target and Apple Store locations to get a handle on availability for the iPad 2. It discovered most stores were sold out. "We were unable to find any availability," wrote Gene Munster, Piper Jaffray analyst, in a research note Sunday.
It's unclear how many stores Piper Jaffray called to determine iPad 2 availability. Apple's online store currently indicates new iPad 2 orders will take three to four weeks to ship. On Friday, the iPad 2's shipping window was one week.
iPad 2 Customers Mostly New to Tablets
Piper Jaffray says it surveyed 236 prospective iPad 2 buyers in line at Apple Stores in New York and Minneapolis. Piper Jaffray determined that about 70 percent of iPad 2 buyers didn't own the original iPad, suggesting the iPad's user base is growing.
Read More: PCW