mgraham333

Here you go.... Gottlieb image

A new kind of copy-protected music CD will likely hit U.S. shelves early next year, as record label SonyBMG experiments with a technology created by British developer First 4 Internet, according to sources familiar with the companies. Several major music labels have already used a version of the British company's technology on prerelease compact discs distributed for review and other early-listening purposes, including on recent albums from Eminem and U2. The releases for the retail market, expected early in 2005, will be the first time the Sony music label issues copy-protected CDs in the U.S. market, although the company's other divisions have done so in other regions. BMG, Sony's new corporate sibling, has been more aggressive, with a handful of protected CDs released last year. "We have always focused on a high level of protection, but we've waited until there aren't any playability issues." --Mathew Gilliat-Smith,CEO, First 4 Internet A SonyBMG representative declined to comment on the plans. First 4 Internet Chief Executive Officer Mathew Gilliat-Smith confirmed that his company plans to release a consumer version of its technology with one major label in the United States, but he declined to identify the label. Gilliat-Smith said his company has been waiting to improve its technology. Better-known companies Macrovision and Sunncomm have seen sporadic--and sometimes controversial--use of their products on CDs released around the world. "We're not keen to rush," Gilliat-Smith said. "We have always focused on a high level of protection, but we've waited until there aren't any playability issues." The new SonyBMG experiments are a further sign that copy protection on music CDs may be moving closer to the mainstream U.S. market. The practice is much more common in European and Asian markets. For several years, the major record labels have sought a way to protect CDs against unrestricted copying and "ripping," or transforming songs into files such as MP3s that can be swapped widely online. Early experiments proved unpopular, prompting reports that the discs could not play in certain kind of stereos, or might even damage computers. The past year has seen resurgent signs of interest from the major labels, however. A watershed moment in the United States came when the BMG-released Velvet Revolver album reached the top of the industry's sales charts, despite being clearly marked as copy-protected. Industry insiders said that helped assuage some boardroom concerns about potential consumer backlash. Questions remain about the appropriate technology to use, however. The technology from Sunncomm, used by BMG in the United States, can be fairly easily disabled simply by pressing a computer's "Shift" key while loading. Although label officials have said that's enough to deter casual pirates, the industry wants to avoid that kind of simple work-around. It also may be a tricky job to make rules associated with copy-protected discs match those associated with songs purchased from online stores such as Napster or Apple Computer's iTunes. Those stores allow their customers to burn CDs that can then be copied without restriction; by contrast some labels want to limit the number of times a copied CD can be duplicated again--a technology called "secure burning." First 4 Internet's entry into the market marks a potentially new twist on the basic technology, however. The company got its start by offering a tool to identify pornographic images in Web sites and e-mails, and selling the technology to Web-filtering companies for their own products. The company has been working on the disc-protection technology since 2001, following conversations with the EMI record label, Gilliat-Smith said. The technology wraps ordinary song files in strong encryption, but in a way that still allows regular CD players to read them. Another part of the disc contains data files that help improve protection. The company has worked particularly closely on prereleases in the U.S. market with Universal Music. First 4 Internet's U.S. representative said the copy-protection technology has been included on a number of extremely high-profile CDs while in the review and demo stage, without being broken. "Could it be broken? I'm sure that somebody must be able to do it," said Graham Oakes, the head of Los Angeles-based Ezee Studios, which represents First 4 Internet. "But is there a generally known hack that has been put on the Net, or have any of the record label IT people found a hack yet? No." Analysts remain skeptical that labels will ultimately launch copy-protected discs on a widespread level in the United States, citing continued consumer opposition and the delicate technological balancing act between strong protection and universal compatibility with CD players. "If there's something that isn't going to play in every CD player that's out there, it's going to create a backlash," said Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg. "If it's easy to defeat, then that doesn't bode well for why you released it in the first place." source: News.Com

Simpsons did it!

My two Border's stores are the same way. Boxed sets are locked down and jammed together so that all you can see are the spines. And it looks like no one every buys them. In fact, many of the sets and I have become good friends. I say hello to them every time I stop in. Some of them have been there for at least 7 years. I would consider liberating some of them if I couldn't get them for so much cheaper online. Even their 25% coupons don't level the playing field.

How about: Count Your Blessings Instead Of Sheep from Sonny Rollins Plus Four? (Irving Berlin) Bing Crosby from the 1954 movie "White Christmas". When I'm worried and I can't sleep I count my blessings instead of sheep And I fall asleep counting my blessings When my bankroll is getting small I think of when I had none at all And I fall asleep counting my blessings I think about a nursery and I picture curly heads And one by one I count them as they slumber in their beds If you're worried and you can't sleep Just count your blessings instead of sheep And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings I think about a nursery and I picture curly heads And one by one I count them as they slumber in their beds If you're worried and you can't sleep Just count your blessings instead of sheep And you'll fall asleep counting your blessings

I might give Lance Reddick (Lt. Daniels from The Wire) the nod for playing Miles. He's definitely got the "brooding" thing down. Give the man a green shirt and a trumpet and see what happens.

I remember the Snoop as Miles thread. I thought it had stayed mostly on track or at least it stayed Snoop-centric. Looks like it broadened a bit. I've got no problem playing there going forward despite the somewhat specific thread title. Wouldn't be the first time around here a thread's title didn't sum up it's contents.

Looks like you were catching up on some of the LPRs. Do you already have Illinois Jacquet's Desert Winds and Roland Kirk's Kirk In Copenhagen? If not, I highly recommend them. Those five albums together are one of the best "batches" of releases of 2004.

Just pulled the trigger on the Roy Eldridge Mosaic. Wooohooo!

I could do a dozen of these, using mostly characters from HBO's THE WIRE but I'll start with just one. Wendell Pierce playing Charles Mingus edit for side by side view

I saw it the other way around. When they were talking on the balcony, to me it was Avon that knew he had been betrayed. The way Avon said it was "just business" the way Stringer had done - I knew that Avon knew. And it looked to me like Stringer had an idea...but obviously he wasn't watching his back. I wonder how long the duo of Omar and Mr. Bow-tie will last. Isn't that an odd pair. Great show!!

Angry Alien is at it again with another installment in their 30 second bunny theater. It's A Wonderful Life

AfricaBrass, I whole-heartedly agree! I do have to say though, your current avatar is the most disturbing use of Cat-Shatner yet I love it!! (preserving history: cat-shatner rudolph)

Disney backs Blu-Ray. CNN story MSNBC version At this point I'm so pissed that the industry can't come together and back one standard that I hope they all crash and burn! F*ck 'em. Consumer confusion means death, don't they get that?????

If you say CUE-pon, how do you say soup?

This reminds me of something "Joey" from Friends once said. He called it, "A moo point. You know like a cow's opinion - it doesn't matter."

I haven't given this a full legal analysis, but a quick read finds this to be mostly accurate. I would post the entire article here but............ Click here. Actually if you read the article at the above link you would see that permission was given to reproduce the article - but that wouldn't have given me the opportunity to be a smart ass.

One of the best places to keep up with this on going battle (and all things DVD) is The Digital Bits. Here is a recent messge: There are going to be plenty of people in the coming days and weeks who will bemoan the fact that these studios are choosing HD-DVD over Blu-ray Disc, because they assume Blu-ray Disc is the better format. Look... on paper, the Blu-ray Disc specs look more impressive. But I've seen technical demonstrations of film footage in both Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD, and it all looks fantastic. The fact is, we can't really judge which format is better until we start seeing FINAL product in both formats. I'm not talking about test discs that have 30 minutes of barely compressed video - I mean the actual product consumers are going to get when they go their favorite video stores next Christmas, complete with extras, audio options etc. The fact is, we just don't know which format is going to look and sound better, and I fully expect BOTH to look and sound amazing. It's just too early to start forming a sound, informed opinion on the quality issue. Let me tell you why today's announcement IS a good thing. It helps clear up consumer confusion. Here we are, nearly a full year away from HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc product rollout here in the States, and already we know where roughly 70% of the Hollywood studios are going to line up. In terms of the majors, we're only waiting on 20th Century Fox, Buena Vista and DreamWorks. The minors (Lions Gate, Image, Anchor Bay, etc) will likely go where the majority goes, and some (like Image) might even dabble in both formats. That means if you're a consumer who's interested in getting into high-definition movies on disc, all you'll have to ask yourself is which studios own most of your favorite films (you can go to sites like IMDB.com to figure that out). Based on that knowledge, you can make a reasonably informed decision as to which format to buy. Frankly, I expect that the studios that have yet to commit either way will make their format choices known by the spring of next year (certainly by summer). I also believe that firm, early commitments by all of the major studios one way or another will put a great deal of incentive (and pressure) on the various hardware manufacturers to start planning and marketing combination decks that will play BOTH Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD (much like several of them now produce combo decks that play both the SACD and DVD-Audio high-resolution audio formats). Once that happens, the question of which format will dominate will effectively be moot, at least in terms of prepackaged, high-definition movie software on disc. All of this is a far cry from the first couple of years of the current DVD format, when only a handful of the major studios had committed to DVD, and consumers had long waits to find out what the rest Hollywood was going to do. That uncertainty meant that many consumers waited until DVD was 3 or 4 years old before ditching their VCRs and finally making the digital transition (and most consumers waited even longer than that). If all of the major Hollywood studios commit fully to one format or the other by mid-2005, that means the decision for consumers (as to whether or not to upgrade to high-def) is going to be pretty simple. It also means that there's going to be lots of great movie titles available for launch. And it means prepackaged, high-def movies on disc actually have a fighting chance of finding at least some consumer interest right away. That can only be a good thing for this industry... and for all of you as movie fans. Stay tuned... source: My Two Cents Column, The Digital Bits

does anyone get the feeling we've seen the last of the % off marked price coupons - have only seen % off regular price for some time

Mine too. I hate these "flipper" discs. I'm trying to decide whether to replace it with the new special edition that came out.

I wanted to let everyone know that the animated covers couw has created have another home. You can get both the avatar and full-sized versions here.

here's a new approach: spend $50-$75 save 10% spend $75-$100 save 15% spend $100 or more save 20% click here

Coltrane Conquers Kmart Maybe you've heard this jarring piece of music playing behind a Kmart Martha Stewart ad on TV. It's not the usual junk that clutters our heads and makes you want to reach for an aspirin — or something stronger. No, it's a short clip of John Coltrane's very famous 1960 recording of "My Favorite Things." From the album of the same name, this track features jazz greats pianist McCoy Tyner and drummer Elvin Jones. Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote the song for "The Sound of Music." Coltrane plays a shivery soprano sax on the album cut, which is 13 minutes long. The commercial is about 30 seconds. Coltrane died much too young at age 41 in 1967. His legacy lives on at the Coltrane Foundation, which is administered by his widow, Alice, and their 39-year-old son Ravi. I called there yesterday and spoke to a staffer, who told me that Kmart had licensed the track from not only the publisher, but from them as well. Coltrane is now making money from the merchandising giant. It's not like the foundation says "yes" to everything. "Alice was approached by the Gap not too long ago," said her sister, Marilyn McLeod. "But she didn't like the commercial. This one she liked." You might like to know that Alice Coltrane, a musician herself who was married to John in 1965 near the end of his life, has just released her first album in 27 years, "Translinear Light." It's full of Indian and spiritual influences. That's our jazz lesson for today, kids. If you see Britney, Lindsay, Hilary, Haylie, Paris, Jessica or Ashlee, please give them a copy of it! Source: FoxNews

sooo much beauty....

I say we take him out back and beat the crap out of him.