...more recent posts
ok, how tacky is this opening cerimony?
Comcast tried to stop it. Telecom-funded politicians tried to discourage it. Big Media tried to de-legitimize it. But nothing could stop the people-powered movement to hold Comcast accountable for illegally blocking Internet content. Today, the FCC issued a punishment that has Network Neutrality opponents cringing and the rest of us popping champagne. In a landmark decision, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein approved a bipartisan “enforcement order” that would require Comcast to stop blocking and publicly disclose its methods for manipulating Internet traffic.more from todays nyt
Randy Pausch -- RIP.
torrential rein
Verizon and AT&T Score in 700Mhz Auction:
Amidst frenzied media coverage and hopes for changes to the nation’s wireless infrastructure, the 700MHz auction came to a close this week after raising $19.59 billion. Much like a political election, the incumbents won, and talk of change will likely remain just that — talk. Verizon Wireless, a joint venture between Verizon Communications and Vodafone, won the majority of the C block with a bid of $4.74 billion and AT&T picked up 227 licenses in the B block of regional licenses, the FCC said this afternoon.
http://www.google.com/m/search?mrestrict=xhtml&q=3d+dlp#query
this has potential.
2 locations with one set of media
Toshiba withdraws from HD-DVD market. Blu-ray wins.
Comcast to FCC: We block only 'excessive' traffic
notebook port observations and predictions ...
from the email bag ...
As part of your current Netflix subscription, you have the option to watch some movies and TV episodes from the Netflix library instantly on your PC at no additional charge. Now, we've made it unlimited!
So watch instantly on your PC when you want, and as often as you want. Select from our separate, smaller library of over 6,000 familiar movies and TV episodes available to watch instantly.
- Your friends at Netflix
FCC Asks Comcast for P2P Answers
an article about a company that makes blu-ray mastering equipment
The part that caught my eye was the comment about neither blu-ray nor hd-dvd winning the format war. It will be all about downloads. It would be a shame if the video disc goes the way of the dodo. There is absolutely no form of video available to consumers that is anywhere near the quality of a well-mastered high def digital disc. Until we get fat pipes like they have in Korea, downloads will be much lower bit rate, and visibly lower quality.
If enough people get big ass displays, which will allow the average consumer to see the difference, physical media may retain a foothold.
netflix to introduce set top box.
Google to bid on 700MHz spectrum:
"We believe it's important to put our money where our principles are," said Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO, Google. "Consumers deserve more competition and innovation than they have in today's wireless world. No matter which bidder ultimately prevails, the real winners of this auction are American consumers who likely will see more choices than ever before in how they access the Internet."
We sort of knew this already, but now it's more official: Verizon is choosing LTE for it's next generation (4G) wireless network. LTE is in the GSM family, so that's it for CDMA I guess? This makes their "open network" announcement sound even a little better (what good is an open network if the devices have to be CDMA and there aren't any CDMA devices other than those built for Verizon's network?)
Verizon to open their wireless network to any apps, any device in 2008. That certainly sounds good, although we'll see what they mean by "any". From engadget:
So any device (including applications) tested and certified in VZW's new $20 Million test lab is fair game for use on their wireless network. In other words, Verizon becomes the data pipe, and nothing more for these new "bring-your-own" customers.Sort of sounds like a vague response to Android, and yet more pressure building to counter the iPhone. And that's good for everyone.