Copy and Burn: 'a Pirate's Life for Me'
Ryan Hume
Aarrggghh, mateys! 'Tis a sad day for those pirates sailing the silicon seas in search of that latest Britney Spears download or the new cuts from the upcoming Radiohead album. Aye, the virtual sea can truly be a devastating mistress, and there are record companies out there that just don't respect the pirate's wish for free musical accompaniment to boisterous bouts of spiced rum and plank-walking parties.
No, today's modern pirate just isn't satisfied with a gut-wrenching chorus of Yo-ho, Yo-HO! any longer. They want to spin on their peg legs and get freaky to Pink's "Get This Party Started" or get rowdy during the extended solo on a bootlegged live version of Metallica's "Master of Puppets" while playing air guitar on a disgruntled parrot. And strangely enough, they have the audacity to want to do this all for FREE!
Yet there is an organization out there - as vile as the King of England - that wants to put a stop to music piracy at any cost. This organization is known as the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It has recently been developing technologies that will invade the privacy of millions of Americans' home computers, which could result in, if they are able to proceed, perhaps the largest destruction of virtual privacy since the most infamous of government organizations was created last year, the dread Total Information Awareness Network.
http://www.dailyvanguard.com/vnews/d.../3eb881109ea85
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Gates Touts New Secure Computing System
Matthew Fordahl
AP
Consumers shouldn't be worried that Microsoft Corp.'s new security technology will wrest control of their PCs and give it to media companies, Bill Gates said Tuesday. They can always choose not to use it, he said.
The Microsoft co-founder expects consumers as well as governments and businesses to embrace the system, which hard-wires security into silicon chips rather than just software. It's designed to offer unprecedented levels of protection against hacking and eavesdropping.
"This is a mechanism that if people want to use, for example, to protect medical records, they can use it," Gates said in an interview with The Associated Press. "It's a lot of work to do this stuff, and we think consumers will want those privacy guarantees. If they don't want them, then fine, ask me about our other work."
The technology has raised eyebrows not only for the absolute control it would grant such creators of digital content as music and movie companies but also because it is being driven by Microsoft, which has a reputation for strong-arming the computer industry.
Gates spoke about the technology, known officially as the "Next Generation Secure Computing Base," at the 12th annual Windows Hardware Engineering Conference, where developers were getting their first look at it.
The technology is a key element of the software giant's effort to create a more secure computing environment, which would be a tremendous boon, Gates said.
In the first demonstration of how the system would work, the company showed Tuesday how programs protected by the technology could not be altered or their communications intercepted by a malicious hacker, who happened to be played by a Microsoft worker dressed in a red T-shirt adorned with a skull.
But the demonstration was limited to attempts to rewrite simple programs and capture chatroom traffic. Many of the functions that will be built into hardware were emulated by software because the chips are not yet built.
The final version is expected to offer more control. Creators of top-secret government documents, financial records or other sensitive material could assign rights to sensitive files, allowing them to be viewed only on trusted computers running the system. Anyone else — hackers and malicious programs included — would be locked out.
The same platform could be employed by content creators — who include software makers like Microsoft. They could severely limit how materials are copied or even how long they last — a stark contrast from the freedoms of today's computers.
Gates said the format of digital content is up to their creators, and Microsoft is only providing a platform on which record labels and movie studios — as well as others — can build. He said it's in the content provider's interest to use simple copy protection schemes.
"What you are seeing now is recognition they need to provide their content in easily accessible forms or else it ends up encouraging piracy," Gates told the AP.
He said Microsoft is not working in a vacuum on the project. It requires broad industry support to ensure secure channels across the computer.
The technology, formerly code-named Palladium, will create what amounts to a secure computer within a computer. Certain areas of memory, the processor and even the channels to the display, keyboard and networks are locked down and accessible only by trusted software.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...cure_computing
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Satellite TV Company Reports a Profit
Bloomberg News
EchoStar Communications, the satellite television broadcaster, said yesterday that it had its third quarterly profit in eight years after attracting a surge of new subscribers.
EchoStar, owner of the Dish Network satellite TV service, had first-quarter net income of $58 million, or 12 cents a share, in contrast to a net loss of $35 million, or 20 cents, a year earlier. Revenue rose 23 percent, to $1.36 billion, after 350,000 new subscribers signed up, the company said.
EchoStar had 8.53 million subscribers at the end of March. Its larger rival, the DirecTV unit of Hughes Electronics, had 11.4 million customers last quarter.
EchoStar's subscriber growth exceeded some analysts' forecasts.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/07/business/07BIRD.html
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DSL Price War to Threaten Cable's Crown?
Ben Charny
Lower DSL prices could pose a serious challenge to the cable industry's hammerlock on the U.S. market for high-speed Internet access, according to financial analysts.
Speculation about a broadband price war was sparked last week with reports that Verizon plans to slash its DSL (digital subscriber line) prices by 30 percent, to $34.95 a month. That would undercut current cable broadband prices by between $10 and $15 a month and turn DSL into an expensive money loser for Verizon.
But it could also help fill out anemic DSL subscriber rolls for the phone company, which has struggled to make inroads against cable companies in the broadband market.
Verizon's DSL competitors, BellSouth, Qwest Communications and SBC Communications, all declined comment. Verizon itself has yet to formally comment on the new prices. However, it's already advertising the new plans on its Web site.
"Verizon's agenda seems to be not only to increase its share versus cable, but (in general) appears to be to accelerate migration of dial-up customers to high- speed," Merrill Lynch analysts wrote in a research note to clients. And Prudential Financial analysts wrote that "pricing competition for broadband is clearly accelerating overall."
About 16 million U.S. households get some form of high-speed Web access. Most, about 10 million, get it from cable companies, which have until recently have been regarded as offering better service for about the same price as DSL providers such as Verizon.
Lower DSL pricing could also hurt dial-up services such as AOL Time Warner's America Online, which charges $23.90 a month for its flagship premium service. The world's largest Internet service provider has seen subscriber numbers fall off slightly in recent quarters from a high of 34 million, as customers migrate to discount services such as United Online or to high-speed providers, including AOL Time Warner's RoadRunner high-speed cable service.
AOL also offers its own high-speed service, costing $54.95 a month. In addition, it is hoping to lure customers from other high-speed providers by way of its $14.95 a month "bring your own access" product, which includes features such as exclusive content.
Verizon's price cuts would leave the phone company with a severe financial handicap if the expected explosion of new customers fails to materialize. Analysts say Verizon would be earning dramatically less per DSL customer than it used to, meaning it would need to sell services to many more people to make any discernible profits.
Financial analysts are already expecting a flood of new customers for Verizon, with Prudential Financial, Merrill Lynch and UBS Warburg analysts all upping their estimates on the number of new customers Verizon will add this quarter. The analysts also expect other major telephone companies to answer with their own price cuts.
http://news.com.com/2100-1034-1000068.html
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Power-Line Group to Plug in Audio-Video
Richard Shim
The HomePlug Powerline Alliance, an industry group promoting home networking over power lines, said Monday that it has begun taking proposals from companies interested in developing an audio-video streaming specification. The new specification, to be called HomePlug AV, will be for the distribution of data and multistream entertainment, including high-definition and standard-definition television.
The plan is for HomePlug AV to coexist with the power-line networking standard HomePlug 1.0. The deadline for proposals is Aug. 1. Details of the specification are expected to be released 12 months to 17 months after that, according to the group, which recently added Panasonic as a member.
http://news.com.com/2110-1035-999758.html
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More Than One Way to Skin a Media Player
Media Player flaw flays PC security
Robert Lemos
Microsoft warned Windows Media Player users on Wednesday that a flaw in the way the application handles the download of "skins," or interface colors and motifs, could allow an attacker to take over a victim's PC.
The vulnerability could let an intruder create a file that appears to be a Windows Media Player skin, but that in reality is a malicious program. The program can be copied to a location of the intruder's choice when downloaded. An online vandal could, for example, have a Trojan horse loaded onto a victim's start-up folder, so that it executes when the computer is restarted.
"Windows Media Player normally copies into the Internet cache and then into an unpredictable location," said Stephen Toulouse, security program manager for Microsoft. "If it has a skin extension, it can be copied into a predictable location," or one determined by an attacker.
The software giant released an advisory for Windows Media Player 7.1 and Windows Media Player for XP (version 8.0) and urged customers to patch their systems immediately. Windows Media Player 9.0 is not affected by the issue.
http://news.com.com/2100-1002-1000355.html
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Now Accepting Donations
The Uni Four
“All donations are greatly appreciated. I have gotten many requests that I put up a donation link on my site to help cover some of the $12,000. I want to thank everyone for their generosity.”
- Jesse Jordan
http://chewplastic.com/
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“Hey Kids!
Don’t do anything that might
upset the profits of the
gigantic media oligarchies!
They'll take away your Mommy
and Daddy's house and make
you live on the sidewalk!"
\
Scary Ferret Saves Software
http://www.playitcybersafe.com/
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Austrailain Broadband News
Free P2P data within your state on Netspace
Dan Warne
Netspace has improved its ADSL plans by offering free peer-to-peer data within users' local states.
"Netspace is pleased to announce that traffic to and from another Netspace HomeADSL customer in your state is now considered free usage. This only applies to traffic within the state in which you are located. This is also applicable only if your proxy settings are correct (as per all other free traffic sites)."
One industry insider said he thought the deal was likely to cause Netspace problems due to the way Telstra requires ISPs to route data.
"Telstra requires all peer to peer traffic to go into Telstra's network, back to the ISP and then back out to Telstra's network again. If users take advantage of this, the ISP will find its links to Telstra becoming saturated."
"The deal has probably been introduced because Netspace has been getting a lot of heat lately, since iiNet came onto the scene and started taking a lot of the 'word of mouth business'" he said. (The source was not from iiNet).
http://whirlpool.net.au/article.cfm/942
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''Only a Handful of Users Reported Problems'': Telstra
Dan Warne
Telstra claims it has finally fixed its problem with peer-to-peer connections on its 144.x.x.x IP range, but not without claiming that only a "handful of users" reported the problem each week.
Telstra said it had taken a long time to fix because it hadn't been "a significant worry for us to escalate beyond a low-fault impact."
However when confronted with the details of one user who had constant P2P problems, Telstra conceded the problem must have been "an extreme nuisance and frustration that he couldn't achieve what he set out to do with P2P connections."
The telco also admitted it had put one fix in place that it had to retract due to fears it could have had a "detrimental impact" on the rest of its network.
Currently Telstra is testing the fix in NSW, QLD and ACT and aims to have the fix rolled out to the network nationally next week.
http://whirlpool.net.au/article.cfm/659
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Song Swappers Twice As Likely To Buy Music Than Non Swappers – survey
Sue Zeidler, Reuters
Offering some insight to the recording industry as it struggles to boost sales online, a survey released on Wednesday found that Web surfers who download music from song-swap sites are more likely to buy music online, as well as offline at retailers.
The research put rap music as the No. 1 genre purchased by online fans, which may help record companies gain a better understanding of who their online customers are.
The survey was based on 36,000 Internet users and released by Web tracker Nielsen//NetRatings, a unit of NetRatings Inc NTRT.O .
It showed that nearly 31 million active Internet users aged 18 or older -- representing 22 percent of the active Internet universe -- downloaded music in the past 30 days, and 71 percent bought music in the past three months.
Nielsen//NetRatings said the research indicated that in the past three months, online music enthusiasts were 111 percent more likely to buy rap music than average Internet users.
Nielsen//NetRatings classified online music enthusiasts as users who had downloaded music in the past 30 days, whereas the average Internet users are people logging onto the Internet for surfing and other purposes.
Dance and club music ranked No. 2, with downloaders 106 percent more likely to have purchased dance and club music than the average Internet users during the last three months and 77 percent more likely to buy alternative rock.
R&B, soul music and rock rounded out the top five.
Greg Bloom, senior Internet analyst at Nielsen//NetRatings, said that understanding the preferences of online music enthusiasts may help recording executives in their attempts to successfully woo fans from the free swap, or peer-to-peer services, which let people get songs without authorization.
The major record labels, including AOL Time Warner Inc. AOL.N , EMI Group Plc EMI.L , Bertelsmann AG BERT.UL , Vivendi Universal's EAUG.PA V.N Universal Music and Sony Corp. 6758.T , blame the popularity of such free services as Kazaa and Morpheus for sharp declines in CD sales.
But other industry watchers argue that declining sales are the result of fewer hit albums being released and a weak economy.
'The de facto standard may be a few years away, but understanding the genres of music that sell well online and offline will be crucial to generating revenue along the way,' Bloom said.
http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle....toryID=2701186
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'Napster Effect' Hits US TV Shows
Darren Waters
On Monday I watched the latest episode of ER just a few days after it was broadcast in the United States.
But I was not in the US - I sat in front of my computer at home to watch the programme, which I had downloaded from the internet in the interests of research in about five hours.
The growing online availability of TV programmes, and films, is the latest threat to the entertainment industry still reeling from the effect of peer-to-peer programs, such as Kazaa and the now-defunct Napster.
After ER, I watched the latest instalment of thriller 24, a new episode of Frasier and a new episode of Friends, again all in the interests of research.
Almost all the programmes had been broadcast less than a day earlier in the US, many months before viewers in the UK and Europe will see them.
One friend who downloads drama The West Wing is more than a year ahead of episodes in the UK.
I used a program called BitTorrent to download the shows, a piece of software which allows multiple people to download the same programme at the same time.
It is not the only piece of software one can use, but uniquely BitTorrent allows multiple users to exchange the same information.
As I download Friends, another user is taking it from me, who in turn is providing it to someone else, and so on.
The effect is that the more people who are trying to access the programme, the easier and quicker it is to obtain.
The TV industry is already aware of many BitTorrent sites, and is closing them down as fast as it can find them.
But with web space so readily available it only takes a short time to put up a web page and link to the latest programmes.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...io/3006619.stm
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Altnet Lands Exclusive Distribution Deal With Artist/Author Lee Jaffe for Rare, Never- Seen-Before Home Video Footage of Bob Marley and the Wailers
Press Release
· Footage Available Today for Free, Secure Download to Kazaa Media Desktop Users
· Autographed Copies of "ONE LOVE: Life with Bob Marley and the Wailers," a Touching Behind-the-Scenes Collectors Portrait of Marley and his Jamaican Life, Also Available
Altnet today announced that it has secured the exclusive distribution rights to artist and author Lee Jaffe's never-been-seen-before home video footage of Bob Marley and the Wailers. The exclusive video footage is offered today via Altnet gold icons for free, secure download to Kazaa Media Desktop users.
This exclusive footage was shot in black and white in 1973 by Jaffe and shows an intimate portrayal of Bob Marley and Peter Tosh at 56 Hope Road, Kingston, Jamaica. The intimate scenes show the greatest reggae legends of all times jamming and relaxing in the Kingston rehearsal studio behind the old colonial house which was The Wailers headquarters. Additional footage shows a journey to and at Cane River Falls, outside Kingston, with Bob, Bunny Wailer, Secco Patterson (The Wailers percussionist), and Ras Daniel Hartman (co-star of the movie "The Harder They Come") and his infant son.
Altnet is also facilitating the sale of autographed copies of Jaffe's new book "ONE LOVE: Life with Bob Marley and the Wailers."
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/...m&footer_file=
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PRODUCT REVIEW: Spyware Removers Help Kill Mystery Software from Machines
Anick Jesdanun
A few weeks ago, my computer got hijacked. Every time I booted up, I was greeted with free ''scratch and win'' game cards. I felt like a loser for letting it happen even worse for failing to figure out how to turn them off. ''Spyware'' removers came to the rescue.
The advertising and data-collecting programs I sought to exile are often called ''spyware,'' ''adware'' or ''malware.'' They sneak onto your computer in myriad ways.
Install a free file-sharing program like Kazaa, and you'll wind up with a few. Just browsing some Web sites, particularly using Internet Explorer with security settings set to low, will sometimes give you more.
Many of these programs can't be easily removed using the ''add-remove programs'' feature on Windows.
That's where the spyware removers come in. They scan your system for known advertising software and help remove any they find. Programmers keep tabs on the latest threats and continually make updates available for free download.
A word of caution, though: You may have to forgo free music if you want to get rid of all your advertising software. Removing ad programs can disable the file-sharing application on which it piggybacks or violate license terms.
Unfortunately, these spyware removers tell you little about which of the files they are excising are truly necessary for a specific program to work.
I tried a half-dozen spyware eradicators and found three worthy of further consideration: Ad-aware from Lavasoft; Spybot Search and Destroy from PepiMK Software; and Spyware Eliminator from Aluria Software.
http://boston.com/dailynews/127/econ...remover:.shtml
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Music Industry's Aggressive Tactics Tune Out Fans on Net
Users of popular Internet systems for music copying are getting a new and unwelcome surprise: ominous instant messages from the recording industry warning that "distributing or downloading copyrighted music on the Internet without permission from the copyright owner is ILLEGAL."
The messages are the latest tactic in record companies' reinvigorated war against Internet music copying. Always quick to verbally attack those who use file-sharing systems, the industry now is adopting more tangible tactics. Call it virtual warfare.
Except the industry's messages contain a real threat of legal action. They also warn those tempted to share Internet music that doing so opens their computers' hard drives to unsavory characters who may be looking for more than free music.
This is classic recording-industry recalcitrance: heavy on threats against breaking the law, light on incentives to obey it. And it's only the first volley. The industry is developing computer viruses that would attack the computers of people offering pirated music. On the legislative front, it is pushing for a national law that would make such hacking by copyright holders legal.
Talk about adopting enemy tactics. By proceeding with its plans, the recording industry would join the ranks of Internet spammers and hackers. It also would waste creative efforts alienating the very people it needs to lure back to legitimate music sites.
The strategy raises questions about the business rational behind destroying an audience to save it — especially an audience that has proved itself hungry for a reliable, convenient way to record music online.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion...our-view_x.htm
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Interview With A Vaidhyanathan
Cyrus Shahmir
ReadMe: P2P file sharing has been singled out by record companies as a major threat to profits and a violation of copyright laws; is it truly a threat, or is the industry fear mongering, and if so, why?
Siva Viadhyanathan: It is a potential threat to the industry, but it's too early to quantify. There are conflicting numbers and confusing studies that show that downloading either encourages or retards CD purchasing, or both. So, no one knows. There are too many factors involved in an economy and ecology as complex as music. We do know that the actions of the music industry have alienated their best consumers and degraded faith and trust in copyright laws. So it's the music industry that is destroying copyright law, not the fans.
http://journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/Re...cle.php?id=149
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Internet Access for the Cost of a Cup of Coffee
Kate Hafner
AS the Wi-Fi trend sweeps through the air, one question appears to be cropping up with increasing frequency: to charge or not to charge?
Wi-Fi, for "wireless fidelity," allows fast wireless connections with the Internet using a protocol called 802.11. Wi-Fi is finding its way into airports, hotels, universities, truck stops and cafes, especially Starbucks, which charges for connections through T-Mobile, a wireless carrier. Even McDonald's is experimenting with Wi-Fi in Manhattan. All that is needed is a laptop or mobile device equipped for Wi-Fi or retrofitted with a Wi-Fi card, and proximity to a Wi-Fi beacon known as a hot spot.
But it remains to be seen how many users will be willing to pay the $30 a month being charged for Wi-Fi access at places like Starbucks, given the monthly communications fees many people already shoulder.
In a growing number of places, an alternative is available - at no charge. And not surprisingly, several are in Austin, one of the most wired places in the nation and now one of the most wireless, boasting a profusion of hot spots.
One of them is Wild Wood, a small store that sells hand-carved animals from Oaxaca, Mexico.
Wild Wood, which bills itself as an "art cafe," serves not just coffee and desserts but full meals, all of them prepared in the store's small kitchen. The owner, Joan Griffith, said she offered free Wi-Fi access because it was far more important to her to increase the number of customers than to make a little bit of money from an access surcharge. Besides, she said, free access breeds good will, which in turn breeds loyalty.
Ms. Griffith's initial capital outlay for her wireless setup was $700, counting a refund of $425 from the Internet service provider she used. She pays another $120 a month for the Wi-Fi access. She pointed out that she would be paying $80 a month anyway for her own access; adding the capacity for more computers was not much more expensive.
"I'm going to make my money because people are going to buy coffee and soup, and because it's going to smell good in here," she said. "Anything that's going to get them parked in here for a while is worth the extra $40 I'm paying for an extra hookup."
Schlotzsky's Deli, an Austin fixture, is another mecca for free Wi-Fi. Schlotzsky's, a nationwide chain of sandwich stores that got its start in Austin, offers free Wi-Fi at 10 of its Austin restaurants, one in Houston and one in Atlanta.
John C. Wooley, the chief executive of Schlotzsky's, said he briefly considered charging customers for Wi-Fi access but quickly changed his mind.
Mr. Wooley said each restaurant spent about $2,000 to get its Wi-Fi up and running, and another $300 to $500 a month for the high-speed communications line that provides the wireless access network to the Internet. His reasoning is similar to Ms. Griffith's, but on a larger scale. Schlotzsky's surveys over the past few months have shown that 6 percent of customers go to Schlotzsky's for the free Wi-Fi. That translates to 15,000 customers per store per year. If each pays, on average, $7 for a sandwich and drink, that adds up to about $100,000 in sales per year.
"That's a really good return on investment," Mr. Wooley said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/08/te...ts/08wifi.html
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Swisscom Eurospot Offers Wi-Fi to SFR Subscribers
Leigh Phillips
Swisscom Eurospot has signed an agreement with SFR, allowing the subscribers of SFR to use the European hot-spot coverage provided by Swisscom Eurospot to access the internet via its wi-fi network.
For over a year Swisscom has been engaged in setting up its public wireless LAN hot-spot network in locations such as hotels, railway stations and airports across Switzerland (Swisscom Mobile) and the rest of Europe (Swisscom Eurospot).
From June, SFR customers will have access to Public Wireless LAN services at hotspots operated by Swisscom Eurospot. Each time the user logs onto the internet, Swisscom Eurospot's homepage will appear on the screen. After that she will simply click on the SFR icon and enter her access codes, and can then surf the internet.
http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=16221
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Concert CD's Sold on the Spot by a Radio Giant
Matthew Mirapaul
Clear Channel Communications, the radio broadcasting and concert promotion giant, plans to introduce a venture today that will sell live recordings on compact disc within five minutes of a show's conclusion. The venture, Instant Live, will enable a band's still-sweating fans to leave with a musical souvenir instead of say, a pricey T-shirt or a glossy program.
Although initially modest, involving only small-audience clubs and theaters in the Boston area, the venture could eventually extend beyond radio and concerts into music distribution. And that could prove troubling to critics, who already complain that the company's rigidly formatted radio stations prevent diverse artists from reaching the airwaves and that its dominance of the concert business too often forces touring acts to accept unfavorable deals.
Josh Bernoff, a music industry analyst at Forrester Research in Boston, said Clear Channel's entry into the CD business could alter the music industry's tenuous balance of power. At the moment, no single record label dominates the market the way that Clear Channel dominates the radio and concert business.
"For the labels," Mr. Bernoff said, "that means that their most important goal is to get Clear Channel to broadcast their acts and promote their concerts." The task could become more challenging, he said, if the labels find themselves competing against Clear Channel's own CD's for air time.
But Clear Channel executives say Instant Live is not so much a foray into the CD business as it is a way to wring further revenue from live music events. And they note that it is simply a continuation of the trend among various bands and start-ups in recent years to sell authorized recordings that are available on CD or as Internet downloads soon after the event. This practice can generate additional revenue for musicians and also thwart illicit concert recordings, they said.
"We're not interested in signing artists to exclusive recording contracts," said Steve Simon, an executive vice president in Clear Channel's concert promotion unit in Cambridge, Mass.
The Instant Live venture adds an element of immediate gratification for music consumers, with towers of CD burners turning out multiple copies of the digital recordings.
"They would look at it as another trinket to sell to concertgoers when they're at their venue, whether it's a T-shirt or an instant bootleg or a hot dog," said James M. Marsh, a broadcasting analyst at the investment bank SG Cowen Securities.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/05/bu...ia/05DISK.html
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Pilot Test of Pocket Internet TV
David Minto
The pilot test has concluded of a new mobile digital TV receiver in pocket TV format that works over the internet.
VTT, a Finnish research organisation, had been piloting its new technology around downtown Tampere, homes and cafes since October with users apparently appreciating the mobility of the system. The trial service offered programmes over the internet only a few minutes after they had been broadcast on TV, with programmes archived up to week after broadcast.
Researchers reported being particularly surprised by the interest the system attracted from children under 7, who could select programmes from a screen shot menu so did not need to be able to read. Adults predictably tuned into mainly news and current affairs programming, though some entertainment shows also proved popular.
http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=16207
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Dutch CD Pirate Arrested
Joe Figueiredo
A Dutch citizen, arrested last week by Belgian police for mass copying and selling proprietary CDs illegally, has been extradited to the Netherlands.
According to FIOD-ECD, the intelligence and investigative service attached to the Dutch tax authority, the pirate was found in possession of more than 160 CD burners, a large quantity of computers, blank CDs and other materials used in professional CD duplication, as well as a substantial number of original and copied DVDs.
The pirate’s ‘sales catalogue’ apparently included such favourites as ‘Top of the Pops’ compilations.
http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=16186
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Clampdown On Pirate Radio in the Netherlands
Joe Figueiredo
Agentschap Telecom, the Dutch government agency responsible for radio-frequency planning, management and enforcement, has closed down 68 illegal radio stations in the Netherlands to date.
Launched in March and expected to last a year, ‘Project Etherflits' is the agency’s attempt at fighting radio pirates, mostly located in the north and east of the country.
In the beginning, the agency only reacted to complaints of bad radio reception caused by interference from these stations. However, it has now started a concerted effort to track and close them down.
The pirates, who see a connection (which the agency denies) between the agency’s actions and the forthcoming (commercial) radio frequency allocation, are furious at the agency’s strict enforcement of the law and its severe fines.
First-time offenders are made to pay E1,100. Subsequent ones can expect a E2,250 fine and confiscation of their equipment.
Pirates are organising protests in cyberspace and the physical world. They have set up a website to give vent to their anger and plan counter actions. One such action, a demonstration, is planned for Saturday in The Hague, to which several prominent Dutch politicians have been invited.
http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=16201
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America's Most Wanted Pirate Continues to be Hit Hard by Sanctions
David Minto
The US Trade Representative’s Office has issued a report that confirms Ukraine is still top of its hit list when it comes to taking economic action against piracy.
The E68m US sanctions affecting metals, footwear and other exported products were placed on Ukrainian goods in January 2002 and will continue to remain in effect. The US claims that the Ukrainian government has failed to deliver on promises to crack down on illegal copying of optical products, such as computer software, movie DVDs and music CDs. The International Intellectual Property Alliance estimates that global piracy costs US copyright industries more than E22bn annually.
"Open markets and rules that guarantee the protection of intellectual property are critical to the continued health of the creative sectors of our economy," US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick said in a statement.
Rampant piracy and lack of enforcement were problems in Russia, Taiwan, Poland, Brazil and elsewhere, the report claimed. Despite this, only Ukraine has been placed on the ‘Priority Foreign Country’ list, singled out for the harshest treatment.
http://www.europemedia.net/shownews.asp?ArticleID=16170
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Police Act Against Music File-Swapping In Germany
Police in Germany have launched the first action against music file- swapping, raiding the premises of a suspect in Fürth, southern Germany, who was allegedly operating a peer-to-peer (P2P) "OpenNap Napster-clone" server and distributing music files to thousands of users. It is alleged that more than one million music files - equivalent to tens of thousands of albums - were offered among some 3,000 individual users over a period of several weeks. The individual himself allegedly was distributing such files through the server. The action followed a report made to the prosecutor's office by IFPI Germany which represents around 400 record companies. During the raids, launched in April police seized six computers and other evidence. Jay Berman, chief executive and chairman of IFPI said: "This is an important step by Germany, coming at a time of intense activity by our industry to provide legitimate on-line music services. We are determined to hold to account those who knowingly distribute copyrighted works on the internet without authorization. Their actions are hurting everyone in the creative chain, and they are making it difficult for legitimate on-line services to compete" If prosecuted, this case could lead to imprisonment or fines for copyright infringement. Further civil proceedings could follow.
http://www.mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=51508
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Why Grokster and Morpheus Won, Why Napster Lost, and What the Future of Peer-to- Peer File Sharing Looks Like Now
Chris Sprigman
On April 25, in M-G-M v. Grokster, U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson dismissed a copyright infringement lawsuit brought by
a group of movie studios and record companies against Grokster and Morpheus. (Grokster and Morpheus are peer-to-peer services that enable users to share copyrighted music, movies, and other content over the Internet without paying a dime to the copyright owners.)
Many observers were surprised. They had assumed that Grokster and Morpheus would - like Napster in A&M Records v. Napster - be shut down for facilitating individual file sharers' copyright infringement. But Judge Wilson, after carefully examining the underlying technology, found that though users' infringement was occurring, Grokster and Morpheus were not contributing to or authorizing it. Thus, they could not be held liable.
The decision is obviously bad news for Hollywood studios and record companies. If it is upheld on appeal, they will continue to face wide- scale infringement of their copyrights.
If the decision is indeed upheld on appeal, will that be good news for consumers? That is a more complicated question. The answer depends heavily on Hollywood's reaction. Will it continue its battle on other fronts - focusing perhaps not on the services, but on their users? Or will it, instead, launch new strategies to take advantage of the powerful business opportunities that peer-to-peer might provide?
To see what is likely to occur in the future, it's helpful first to take a closer look at the differences between Grokster, Morpheus, and Napster.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/comment..._sprigman.html
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File-Sharing Hub Hums Away at OU, Despite Controversy
Brandon Worth
College campuses, including Ohio University, have become hotbeds for illegal piracy of copyrighted music files because of tech-savvy, music-loving students with little money and fast Internet connections.
Facing sliding music sales, the recording industry recently has taken steps to stem declines in recorded music sales by targeting the individuals they see as the biggest threat to their business -- Internet users who download music from the Web without paying for it. So far, such steps haven't been taken at OU, but it could just be a matter of time.
A numbers of music pay services have popped up on the Web since the technology needed to create compact discs from personal computers became available in the late 1990s. Students at OU and other college campuses have gotten around paying for music by using "file sharing" technology.
File-sharing systems first came into the spotlight in 2000 when the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sued the creator of Napster, a program that could be downloaded for free from the Internet and which allowed users to search one another's computers for music files and transfer them to their own systems.
Since Napster's demise, numerous similar services have been created, and students around the country have dodged record industry watchdogs by creating their own file-sharing hubs on university computer networks.
This year, students living in OU residence halls have been able to share their music collections with other students through a "mini-Napster" called OU Direct Connect.
OU Direct Connect, which is not affiliated with the university, allows students to swap more than just individual songs, according to the site's creator, OU freshman Nathan Frey. Students can search one another's computers for entire albums and full-length movies free of charge. Frey said OUDC also is a good educational tool because students can trade material such as academic research and computer programs. He stressed that students are sharing legal files that are not copyrighted, in addition to the other material.
Since the site was created in January, more than 300 OU dorm- dwellers have used OUDC to search their peers' computers for song and movie files and download them to their own computers, using the high-speed network connections provided by the university. An OUDC user can search through thousands of files and download a song in three to 10 seconds, according to Frey.
"It's really fast, much faster than Kazaa and other popular hubs," he said.
Frey said he advertised the OU Direct Connect hub, which he operates from a server in his dorm room, by putting up flyers and creating a Web site. He got the idea for OUDC from a friend at Case Western Reserve University, and pursued it because creating Napster-like services on college computer networks seems to be a trend that is spreading.
http://www.athensnews.com/issue/arti...story_id=12618
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Music Industry is Turning Against its Own Customers
Dwight Silverman
From the beginning, when the music world was rocked on its heels by the popularity of Napster's file-sharing service, the recording industry scrupulously avoided going after the very people who were trading digital music files -- the users.
It was a serious public relations dilemma. Prosecuting individuals who were offering sometimes thousands of songs on their hard drives would have been a case of Goliath squashing David like a bug.
Industry executives feared they'd come off as evil greedheads, alienating the public at large, including those people who actually pay for their music.
But recent events indicate that era may be over. Stung by the inability to kill off other file-sharing services, and those services' increasing popularity, the music business has begun to slap around its own customers.
There are several trends at play here:
· File-sharing services are not going away, and in fact there are more options today than ever before. There are far more users of Kazaa, Grokster and Morpheus than Napster ever enjoyed. And late last month, a judge ruled that Grokster and Morpheus were not liable for copyright infringement, the first legal victory by file-sharing services against a litigious onslaught by the music industry.
· More and more home computer users are upgrading to broadband connections. While downloading music is a painful experience over pokey dial-up, it's a joy via DSL or cable modem. And those selling high-speed services aren't shy about mentioning the availability of online music and movies in their marketing materials.
· Personal computers are now seen as multimedia hubs by consumers. Nearly all new models come with CD burners. Many include programs such as MusicMatch Jukebox that can convert songs on CD to MP3 files, the file format of choice for music swappers. Even the media players built into both Windows and the Macintosh operating system can rip songs from a CD.
· Music sales continue to decline, though whether that's due to the proliferation of file-sharing services is debatable. Some studies indicate that music downloaders actually buy more CDs, and that they use file-sharing to sample new music before paying for it. Critics of the recording industry say popular music isn't selling because most of it is junk.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory...siness/1894405
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Madonna's Web Stunt Prompts Rash of Remixes
Charles Arthurm
You'd think Madonna would have learnt by now: it never pays to annoy the fans, especially on the internet. An attempt by the singer and her record company to embarrass people downloading illegal free copies of her album – by replacing them with a brief message from Madonna, saying "What the f*** do you think you're doing?" – has instead sparked a remix bonanza, with online DJs creating dozens of brand new tracks using her words as a sample.
To complicate matters for the music giant Warner Bros, which hired a company to upload the "spoofed" tracks, it's not clear whether the star could claim copyright if anyone released a single including the file – because she would have no way to prove it is her speaking.
That would mean that if any of the remixes does become a hit, Warner Bros and Madonna would be unable to claim any royalties – unlike a number of other artists over the years, including Suzanne Vega and Gary Numan, who have seen unexpected paydays when underground remixes of their work have suddenly become popular.
The remixes are being collected at a site called the "Madonna Remix Project", owned by a pair of internet users. One, known only as "irixx", says: "When I heard the self- righteous attempts of our lady of pop to inspire repentance in the hearts of guilt- ridden file sharers, I could not help but laugh. the crystal clear sample was a gift horse that i could not look in the mouth."
The "spoofed" files were designed to appear as if they were compressed versions of the songs from Madonna's American Life album, released last month.
They were put on file-sharing networks in the US, where millions of people swap music online free over high-speed connections, despite record companies' anger and attempts to stop the practice.
http://news.independent.co.uk/digita...p?story=404186
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Microsoft and Hollywood Hit the Control Button
Julian Bajkowski
Viruses, worms and hackers no longer rate in the IT threat stakes, according to one of Australia's most respected information security and cryptography developers.
Professor Bill Caelli, AO, of Queensland University of Technology, warned a Sydney audience of CIOs this week that the biggest immediate threat to the future of information technology is a Microsoft-fronted attempt by the content and copyright owners' lobby to seize control of IT hardware through a project codenamed Nexus.
Speaking at the CIO Magazine Conference in Sydney, Caelli told Computerworld that a combined Microsoft/Intel initiative due to be announced in a matter of days seeks to configure future Intel-based hardware to enforce copyright.
"I believe they're going to announce a sub-operating system that will not be accessible to the end user. This will run on new add-on hardware associated with the Intel processor. While you can use Nexus for secure operation, it will also enforce digital rights management.
"Technically, we suspect that Intel will have to work with Microsoft to introduce a new protected state of operation inside the Intel processor or its subsidiary chips. This is codenamed Ring-0 (Ring minus zero)," Caelli said.
The legal implications should Nexus materialise would also appear onerous for both consumers and OEMs.
Caelli warns that legislation already exists, here and in the US, that makes it illegal to tamper with the access and/or encryption control mechanisms of certain devices – a situation that many PC OEMs are yet to confront. Indeed the very concept of ownership of the computer that you buy is in question:
"Imagine you bought a Holden and the bonnet was welded down to stop you looking at the motor – there'd be an outcry… but in the IT game they get away with it, and one more freedom is lost. What's really important is for the first time that content holders will be able to control your device – in the past there was no control over the device; you didn't see the manufacturers of LPs attempting to control record players. That whole philosophy is about to change. It's draconian because you are changing the rights of ownership," Caelli says.
http://www.computerworld.com.au/nind...96437&eid=-255
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The Long Arm of Longhorn
Michelle Delio
The Long Arm of Longhorn Microsoft sends a mixed message as it introduces the successor to Windows XP. The new OS is designed to make sharing multimedia files easy -- but its digital rights management features restrict how those same files can be used.
No one, not even Microsoft chairman and chief software architect Bill Gates, seems to know whether Microsoft's next operating system will be a blessing or a curse.
Content producers probably will love it -- digital rights management will be built right in. Hardware developers remain unsure: The OS boasts tons of spiffy new entertainment features that could encourage consumers to upgrade, but will users be spooked by all that rights management stuff?
The successor to Windows XP, currently known as Longhorn and on display this week at the 12th annual Windows Hardware Engineering Conference, is intended to run on compatible hardware. The operating system and hardware will, in theory, work together to secure a computer and its contents from any tampering -- either by outsiders or, perhaps, even the owner of the computer.
Microsoft claims to have redesigned Longhorn's interface in accordance with a slew of studies on how people like to work, play and interact with their computers.
Longhorn, Microsoft promises, will be a cozy, comfy operating system, as familiar as a favorite pair of jeans.
But deep within Longhorn lurks the Nexus, part of Microsoft's new Next Generation Secure Computing Base system, which is intended to provide a tamper-resistant, private container for data users would rather not share with the world.
As of now, Microsoft expects that NGSCB will be part of Longhorn, according to Peter Biddle, product unit manager at Microsoft's security business unit.
NGSCB is essentially an encryption and permission management system. It can encrypt keyboard strokes or data being sent from a computer, as well as incoming streaming video or audio.
NGSCB also allows the owner or creator of a document, file or application to determine what can be done with it. Users won't be able to modify application code or alter the contents of documents if the owner has opted to block such activities. Users will be prevented from making copies of digital media if the owner so chooses. And users might not be able to forward or print e-mail or files without permission.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,58748,00.html
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Support for Fingered File Traders
Katie Dean
Support for Fingered File Traders The four university students nabbed by the Recording Industry Association of America for copyright infringement owe thousands of dollars to the music group following a recent settlement. Pledges of support have lit up message boards, but how much help they will actually receive remains to be seen.
Though the recording industry has settled its copyright-infringement lawsuits against four university students, the defendants are left paying thousands of dollars out of their own pockets.
Aaron Sherman and Jesse Jordan of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Daniel Peng of Princeton University and Joseph Nievelt of Michigan Technological University agreed to pay the Recording Industry Association of America between $12,000 and $17,500 apiece after they were accused of running Napster- like sites on their school networks.
But the students might have some help.
Pledges of support have lit up several message boards in the past few days with promises to pony up some dough.
"Someone should set up a PayPal account for them," suggested one poster on a Gnutella News message board. "I'd pitch in a few $."
"I could sacrifice at least 10 bucks for this cause, and I am sure a few thousand other P2P users might as well. (Of course, I need to be sure that the money goes to them, not some scam monkey)," wrote another.
At least one of the students is happy to oblige the potential donors. On Tuesday, Jordan added a PayPal link to his website, ChewPlastic, so supporters can help pay the $12,000 he owes the RIAA.
"I have gotten many requests that I put up a donation link on my site to help cover some of the $12,000," the site reads. "I want to thank everyone for their generosity."
Jordan also complained about the terms of the agreement.
"If the RIAA thinks that this is only a minor setback for me, they are greatly mistaken," he wrote on his site. "I hope that they enjoy the new fax machine (or whatever they plan to spend it on), because the artists they supposedly represent will certainly never see a dime of it."
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,58770,00.html
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Dr. Dre Nailed For $1.5M In Sample Suit
Erik Gruenwedel
A Los Angeles jury yesterday (May 6) found that Dr. Dre (real name: Andre Young) illegally used segments of the 1980 tune "Backstrokin'" in his song "Let's Get High" (co-written by Eminem and others) from the Aftermath/Interscope album "Dr. Dre 2001," Billboard Bulletin reports. The album has sold 6.6 million units in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.
The jury awarded the plaintiff, London-based music publisher Minder Music Ltd., more than $1.5 million in damages -- less than half of the $3.5 million originally sought.
Last month in U.S. District Court, Minder filed an amended copyright infringement lawsuit of its July 20, 2000, complaint against Dre, Eminem (Marshall Mathers), Interscope Records, and Universal Music & Video Distribution (UMVD), among others, seeking a jury trial.
Spokespersons for Interscope and UMVD declined comment. Dre's lawyer, Howard King, says the infringement was not willful and plans to appeal. "We're not done," says King. "We're only in the 7th inning."
http://www.billboard.com/bb/daily/ar...ent_id=1882500
Top 10 D/Ls - Singles
BigChampagne
To The Editor
Would Lower CD Prices Cut Internet Piracy?
Re "4 Pay Steep Price for Free Music," May 2: Busting the college savings of four students is just more of the same from big business in America. Instead of pontificating about music piracy, why doesn't the recording industry explain why the public should shell out 18 bucks for a new CD? If pricing were set by market forces instead of by some kind of industrial collusion, CD prices could be lower and individuals might be less inclined to pirate songs over the Internet.
I am no fan or defender of copyright infringers. But why should I feel any sympathy for fat record company executives who support their extravagant lifestyle by ripping off the public?
Dan Tauber
Palo Alto
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la...2Dtechno logy
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How to Run a PC Without Microsoft Apps
Man manages seemingly impossible feat
A READER HAS written to tell us how he's managing his PC and his life without using Microsoft applications.
He said he's replaced Microsoft software he used to use with as much third party software as possible. However, he said, there was one additionalrequirement and that was the software had to be freeware.
Here's his list.
MEDIAPLAYER winamp 2.x for audio and bsplayer for video. Smaller memory footprint, more features and skinning support.
www.winamp.com, www.bsplayer.com.
OFFICE Open Office, starts up slower and not completely compatible with all office documents tho. but a step in the right direction.
www.openoffice.org.
IE+OUTLOOK Mozilla, that's a given (with built in email client, dunno how it would stack up to The Bat tho, probably a lot worse, but it's not microsoft. Smartftp for all ftp stuff.
www.mozilla.com, www.smartfp.com.
MESSENGER trillian, neat little program that replaces all IM clients, support for Yahoo messenger, icq, aol, irc, msn and a lot faster with skinning support.
www.trillian.cc
PHOTOEDITOR Part of office suite - used it before just for viewing images, since more advanced programs load so long Irfanview - loads instantly and has wider support/features. Photoeditor couldn't open a 11mb jpeg while this proggie can.
www.irfanview.com.
NOTEPAD/WRITEPAD editpad. has a paid for variant that's pretty good too.
http://www.just-great-software.com/]Here[/url].
SHELL Not wanting to rely on IE i replaced the shell with geoshell, now using windows98se + 95 shell for file handling and geoshell for desktop. Surprisingly stable with latest patches etc.
www.litepc.com, www.geoshellx.com
He adds: "I still have a copy of IE6 on it for the DLLs that some other proggys use too. Strangely enough it doesn't crash on that line of html code. Zonealarm, adaware, cdex are also some indispensable freeware tools + the ones I got from your site (process viewer, antivirus, ...).
The end result looks a bit like
this.
http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=9316
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Comcast Loss Widens, Subscribers Growing
Reuters
Comcast Corp., the No. 1 U.S. cable service provider, on Thursday reported a wider quarterly net loss but raised its full-year outlook for new cable and high-speed Internet subscribers.
Comcast, with 21.3 million subscribers, said its loss ballooned to $297 million, or 13 cents a share, in the first quarter, from $89 million, or 9 cents a share, a year earlier. Bottom-line results continued to be pressured by paying off its debt.
Analysts were reassured that the older systems bought from AT&T Corp. last year were being upgraded to the level of Comcast systems, which offer more channels and features to compete with satellite TV services.
'They are clear signs that Comcast continues to make significant and earlier than expected progress integrating AT&T's systems,' said Kaufman Brothers analyst Mark May.
Comcast shares fell 20 cents to $30.22 on Thursday on Nasdaq.
'The stock is priced for perfection,' said CIBC World Markets analyst Alan Bezoza. 'I'm not sure (the results) was enough flair to push valuations higher than they are.' Comcast is trading at more than 12 times 2003 cash flow, at the high end of the cable sector average of 11.5 times cash flow.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...mcast_earns_dc
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Security Group: ICQ is Flawed
Robert Lemos
Two serious flaws in America Online's ICQ software could allow an online attacker to take control of a person's PC, a Boston security firm warned in an advisory released Monday.
Core Security Technologies described the vulnerabilities in an advisory released to several public security lists. While the company found a total of six flaws, it said only two have serious implications because they could allow an attacker to run code on the victim's computer.
"However, the risk associated to each vulnerabilities is highly dependent on the environment in which ICQ is being used," said Ivan Arce, chief technology officer for Core. "Generally we don't make assumptions about risk in our advisories because we don't think the one-size-fits-all approach is valid."
The vulnerable ICQ Pro 2003a client is the latest version of America Online's ICQ instant messaging software, which has been downloaded from CNET Network's Download.com site more than 228 million times. Last year, the company offered a slimmed down version called ICQ Lite. That application doesn't have the flaws, according to the advisory.
No one from America Online's ICQ subsidiary was available Monday to comment on the alleged flaws. The security researchers also noted that they had problems reaching those responsible for security at ICQ.
"We also attempted to get specific security contact points from third parties that might have reported ICQ bugs before but had no success with this either, so after over a month of going back and forth with the advisory we finally decided to publish it unilaterally," he said.
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-999913.html
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Wireless broadband ISP in a box: All yours for £20k
Is this the answer to the UK's 'broadband divide'
Graeme Wearden
Wireless equipment vendor Alvarion believes it has the answer to closing Britain's broadband divide - a wireless ISP in a box.
Costing £20,000, the starter kit launched this week contains the equipment needed to set-up a fixed wireless network of up to 50 end users.
Alvarion believes the system will simplify the task of setting up a new internet service provider, and could also be used by existing ISPs to extend their network coverage in broadband black spots. Rob Mortimer, Alvarion's UK sales director, said he hoped it would "kick- start wireless broadband Britain".
"There is a clear business model for wireless broadband which has been successfully adopted by new and incumbent operators across the globe," said Mortimer. "ISPs in the UK who are looking to avoid dependence on BT's last mile should seriously examine our offering."
The "ISP in a box" system will run in the 2.4GHz band, and should give each customer a connection of up to 1.4Mbps.
Based on a monthly fee of £50 and a £100 installation fee, Alvarion believes that the £20,000 price tag could be recouped in six months.
http://www.silicon.com/news/500016-500001/1/3999.html
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Teens OK with File-Sharing
Paul Bond
Only 27% of American teenagers believe that those who download or share digital music files without artist or label permission are breaking the law, according to just-released polling data.
Legality aside, just 20% of teens think that such activity is 'wrong.'
Asked the same questions concerning movies, 38% thought it was illegal to watch or download a film without appropriate permission, while 40% deemed such activity wrong.
Curiously, while the majority of teenagers clearly believe there's little wrong morally or legally with sharing digital music, 58% of them think Web sites that facilitate the activity are breaking the law. With movies, it's even higher: 60.8%.
The better news, from the perspective of the music and film industries, is that older Internet users are a bit more sympathetic to copyright holders. Of online adults 35-54, for example, 55% thought it wrong to download or watch a movie without permission, and 48% felt similarly about music. That, of course, should come as no surprise because the study also determined that teenagers engage in illegal file-sharing more so than do adults.
The study, from the firm E-Poll, surveyed 1,075 Internet users 13 years of age or older during the week ending April 7.
http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml...toryID=2709340
Until next week,
-
js.
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Current Week In Review.
Recent WIRs -
http://www.p2p-zone.com/underground/...threadid=16135 May 3rd
http://www.p2p-zone.com/underground/...threadid=16080 April 26th
http://www.p2p-zone.com/underground/...threadid=15980 April 19th
http://www.p2p-zone.com/underground/...threadid=15843 April 5th
The Week In Review is published every Friday. Please submit letters, articles, and press releases in plain text English to jackspratts (at) lycos (dot) com. Include contact info. Submission deadlines are Wednesdays @ 1700 UTC.