Michael Weiss Predicts the Death of P2P
An interesting summary of recent movements in the File-Sharing Wars over at Digital Music News reveals reveals that the CEO of Morpheus, Michael Weiss, has predicted the demise of the P2P networks.
"Most P2P companies will be gone by the end of the summer," predicted Michael Weiss, CEO of Morpheus, during a Thursday discussion at Music 2.0. "I would say there will be two or three standing," he said.
P2P file-sharing levels continue to reach new highs, the number of average simultaneous users on P2P networks approached 7 million, according to data from BigChampagne. That is a 14 percent jump over figures from last year, and nearly double levels from 2004.
Enforcement efforts have been directed against individual users and companies, though it is unclear if that strategy is having a meaningful impact. Already, the RIAA has entered into serious negotiations with leading P2P applications to create paid upgrades to their services. That includes eDonkey and LimeWire, two enormously popular clients.
More from Music Downloads
Avanquest Publishing Targets ipod Generation
 |
Avanquest Publishing USA, a leading developer and publisher of best-selling consumer and business software titles available online and at thousands of retail locations in North America, have entered the iPod market with a line of applications designed to enhance the iPod experience and benefit both iPod consumers and PodCast creators.
The initial titles in the new line include WebPodStudio™, PodPresenter™, iPocketBible™ and iExtend™.
“Avanquest Publishing USA is proud to be partnering with leading software developers who are creating applications specifically for owners of the latest iPod devices,” said Christina Seelye, president and CEO, Avanquest Publishing USA. “The iPod phenomenon has created a new market with a broad user base, so there is a growing need to develop and publish user-friendly software that enhances the capabilities of these popular devices. The titles with which we are launching our feature-rich line of iPod software answer that demand.”
Produce Audio and Video PodCasts with WebPodStudio
Broadcasting “radio” and “television” shows over the Internet has never been easier. WebPodStudio is a perfect solution for PC users who want to create quality PodCasts for business or home use without the technical know-how. Users simply plug in a microphone and a camera and WebPod Studio does the rest.
Create, View and Share Slide Presentations from the iPod with PodPresenter
PodPresenter by ThinkFree, Inc. transforms the iPod into a portable PowerPoint graphics system. Users can create new slide presentations or edit and view existing slides simply by plugging the iPod into any Windows or Mac machine. Easy to install, PodPresenter runs directly from the iPod so users don't always need to carry a laptop.
Back up Music, Photos and Files on the iPod with iExtend
With the iExtend synchronization tool, PC users who are constantly on the move can stay organized and access emails, notes, calendars, contacts and important digital files while listening to music
For additional information, please visit www.avanquest.com and www.avanquestusa.com .
More from Pod Tools
Podzinger Becomes More Popular By the Day
 |
PodZinger, the fastest, easiest, and most- reliable podcast search engine (www.podzinger.com), today announced that users are now able to search more than 70,000 individual podcasts for the information they care about, making PodZinger the pre-eminent search tool of audio content.
Since its launch in January, PodZinger is the only search engine that enables users to find the word or phrase they are looking for by searching each and every word in audio content.
Podcasts are rapidly emerging as a popular on-line audio publishing vehicle. But trying to find podcasts that are of interest to us is reminiscent of the early days of the internet. Instead of using general search techniques, sites attempted to organize all the content on the internet into categories.
The diversity of the available content became too cumbersome for mere categorization to be an effective means for people to find what they wanted. Search evolved to where it is today, that is, to look inside websites quickly for words and phrases.
Using PODZINGER you open up a previously untapped source of content via a simple web search.
More from Pod Directories
Microsoft Gives Away iPods
 |
To publicize their "Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac" Microsoft have introduced the Spring Cleaning Sweepstakes with $100,000 worth of prizes.
Four $10,000 Spring Cleaning Makeovers featuring Office 2004 software.
$60,000 in additional runner-up prizes including Apples 30GB Color iPod.
One entry per person (you don't have to buy anything) enter here
More from IPods in the News
New Podcast - The Secret Life of a London Woman
 |
Giving the SoccerGirl podcast a run for her money is "faceless" - the diaries of an anonymous London Girl.
Her podcasts — on unhappy threesomes with her boyfriend and her obsession with calories — are among the most downloaded in the US, and in the UK's top 10.
The only thing known about the woman is that she is a university student living in the capital. The weekly updates reveal the woman's innermost thoughts about men, sex, her parents and her obsession with her weight.She calls a voicemail and leaves messages
The messages are transcribed and fed through a voice synthesiser
She hasn't told family, friends or lovers
This allows her to say anything without fear of consequence
Each week, she calls a voicemail server and leaves a message for the Kiss FM DJ Bam Bam, who is the only person who knows her identity. He then transcribes the message and puts it through a voice synthesiser.
Run Down of Episode 6
Its been an emotional time. Her granddad is going into hospital and her grandma is also ill. Her mum is regretting her decision to throw her boyfriend out and now wants him back. She is stressed because the body never texts her unless she texts him. He does redeem himself with a cozy night in and he is starting to open up more. They are planning a night with Viagra. She is also going for dinner with her dad to Zilli's in Soho and is looking forward to it.Head over to The Show to download direct to iTunes
More from Latest Pods
Introducing the PodShirt
 |
The latest entry to the iPod fashion stakes is the PodShirt. After plenty of jeans and jacket designs your podShirt can complete the look.
Your iPod shuffle attaches itself to make the i of the design by way of a magnetic clasp.
It comes in medium, large or extra large - black, black or a rather fetching black - and you can use it with the ipod shuffle, the ipod shuffle or the ipod shuffle.
Best to use it to pose around the gym rather than go jogging in a dodgy area where you could easily be relieved of your song collection!!
More from About iPods
New Directory for Video Downloads
 |
A new directory aimed at iPod users. There's a lot of great iPod compatible video out there. Searchforipod makes it easy for you to find it. They aggregate unique, interesting and - of course - funny, weird and wacky video from hundreds of video podcast feeds, and then organize it all into easy-to-understand categories.
Searchforipod makes it easy to get iPod compatible video into iTunes in one click. Once you have the video in iTunes, sync it to your iPod and you're ready to go. (Or watch the video right in iTunes!)
When you click a "Download to iPod" link for a video (including a playlist you have created), iTunes will open and the video will start downloading into iTunes. Once the video has finished downloading, click on the "Podcast" tab in iTunes and you will see the video you have just downloaded. You can then either watch the video right in iTunes or sync your iPod to watch the video on your iPod.
SearchforIpod is an offshoot of Searchforvideo.com
More from Video Downloads
RIAA Says NO to Ripping CDs Onto Your iPod
Less than a year ago the RIAA ( Recording Industry Association of America) said that it was perfectly lawful to take a CD that you've purchased, upload it onto your computer, put it onto your iPod. (MGM Vs Grokster).
In the latest report from the US Copyright Office ( Exemption to Prohibition on Circumvention of
Copyright Protection Systems for Access Control Technologies) (link to PDF of Report) the RIAA have done a classic about-turn. They say that although CD ripping is widespread it does not make it legal.
"Nor does the fact that permission to make a copy in particular circumstances is often or even routinely granted necessarily establish that the copying is a fair use when the copyright owner withholds that authorisation," the filing states.
"It is no secret that the entertainment 'oligopolists' are not happy about space-shifting and format-shifting," said the Electronic Frontier Foundation in a statement. "But surely ripping your own CDs to your own iPod passes muster."
For sure this move will only alienate the record buying public further and drive more people to the exploding File-Sharing networks. Their products are over priced and under valued. How many tracks on the average CD are worth a second listen one - two???
They not only want to own the copyright now they want to own the format. Go and Join the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) and help "Defending Freedom in the Digital World".
More from Music Downloads
Blues and Acoustic Folk Podcasts
 |
"Music 4 iPods" podcasts offer free music downloads from independent musicians wishing to promote their music to the public.
Great Podcasts from Music4ipods - plenty of blues, acoustic folk, country from up and coming musicians.
Good information for beginners about Podcasting and Podcatching.
List of Feeds available:
| For Acoustic/Folk | type http://www.music4ipods.com/acoustic.xml |
| For Blues | type http://www.music4ipods.com/blues.xml |
| For Country | type http://www.music4ipods.com/country.xml |
| For Electronica/DJ | type http://www.music4ipods.com/electronica.xml |
| For Hip-Hop/R&B | type http://www.music4ipods.com/urban.xml |
| For Jazz | type http://www.music4ipods.com/jazz.xml |
| For Rock/Pop/Alt | type http://www.music4ipods.com/rock.xml |
| For World | type http://www.music4ipods.com/world.xml |
Well worth a look - Music4ipods.com
More from Latest Pods
Loudest iPod Speakers in the World
 |
Designed to work with nearly any portable music source, the Stowaway Boomtube H 2 0 1 portable speaker system transforms personal MP3 players, Cellular MP3 phones, or even laptop computers into a portable party.
It features two-inch aluminum speakers for great sound and a subwoofer-like bass tube with more than 40 watts of total system power. Perfectly portable it's compact tubular design with twist-on speakers make for a perfect fit in any backpack, briefcase or overnight bag.
Rechargable lithium-ion batteries mean you've got the power to listen whenever and where ever you want. Anodized aluminum housing resists stains and scratches. Aluminum speaker cones for better quality and style.
Buy direct from ThinkOutside or in the UK from Widget.co.uk - Around $250
More from About iPods
Bill Gates Planning a MicroPod
 |
"Is Microsoft going to develop a hand-held, you know, MP3 player, to combat iPod?" asked Schyler Mishra, 19, a senior at Seattle's John Marshall High School, referring to Apple Computer's dominant music device.
"We are talking with partners about how we, working with those partners, can make even better music players. We've got some in the market today. I'd say in total they have about 20 percent market share, which is lower than we like, and so we're seeing where we can come together to make a device that's less expensive and connects in better ways, does photos and videos in better ways."
He added: "I don't think what's out in the market today is the final answer. But again, it just shows the magic of software. Apple did a very good job on iTunes, did the user-interface design right. That means we'll have to match all that good work and do something even better."
And so, Gates concluded, "Between us and our partners, you can expect to see some pretty hot products coming out over the next couple of years."
The Birth of the MicroPod?
More from IPods in the News
BitTorrent to Integrate with Opera
 |
Opera Software today announced that it has teamed with BitTorrent Inc. to include the BitTorrent™ protocol in the upcoming version of the Opera Web browser. Integrating this popular technology in the Opera browser means faster and more efficient downloads of large files.
Their latest press release reveals that they have signed an agreement covering Opera's use of the BitTorrent trademark and access to the BitTorrent search engine from the browser's user interface.
BitTorrent's technology will be made available to users of the Opera browser in two ways: first, users can search for torrent files in the Opera browser's integrated search field, and second, when a file has been selected, Opera's Transfer Manager feature will handle the download. As a result of integrating BitTorrent into the Opera browser, users no longer need separate software for the searching and downloading of torrent content.
"Implementing BitTorrent is a natural choice, considering its efficient use of bandwidth and worldwide popularity. For users this means that they can browse and download content in an application they're familiar with," says Christen Krogh, VP of Engineering, Opera Software.
Opera already supports other file transfer protocols such as FTP and HTTP . BitTorrent is the logical next step in the company's strategy to increase productivity and improve the overall Internet experience for end users.
The challenge for Opera is whether they can equal or improve on the performance of dedicated BitTorrent clients such as BitLord? Will it support simultaneous downloads, download queue, selected downloads in torrent package, fast-resume, disk cache, speed limits, port mapping, proxy, ip-filter, etc.???
More from Video Downloads
New iPod Nano 1GB
 |
In a very low-key product launch, Apple has announced the introduction of the new iPod Nano 1GB to their lineup.
The new 1GB iPod nano will hold up to 240 songs or 150,000 pictures and sells for $149 from the Apple Store
Apple also announced that it is cutting the price of its iPod shuffle. The 512MB model will now sell for $69 while the 1GB model will go for $99.
Let's wait for some reviews!
More from About iPods
Comedy Podcast - Mister Rons Basement
 |
"Mister Ron's Basement," a unique and extremely popular podcast, using the newest of modern mediums to re-popularize long-forgotten humorists is just about to send out its one millionth download.
The show, which offers readings of humorous works from the public domain by well-known authors such as Mark Twain and O Henry, and long forgotten writers like Ellis Parker Butler, Stephen Leacock, and Fanny Fern, has been drawing in an average of 7000 to 8000 downloads a day in recent months. There are a few podcasts that feature readings of public domain books and stories, but none are quite like Mister Ron's Basement.
In less than a year, “Mister Ron” Evry's podcast topped 900,000 downloads by the end of January, and is expected to hit the One Million mark sometime in February.
“I am utterly amazed,” said Evry, “that so many people are interested in what I thought was a fringe subject. I suppose that people are simply hungry for humorous stuff to listen to on their commutes, and despite the age of the material, most of the stories I read are still very funny indeed.”
Evry's search for funny material in the public domain (his operation is too small to deal with paying royalties) has been essentially limited to works written before 1923. By digging around in an ever-growing collection of old books, and researching scholarly papers on the internet, he has discovered a wide variety of mostly forgotten literature written to tickle the funnybones of generations long gone
You can get his podcast here
Or go to his website - Mr Ron's Basement
More from Pod Bloggers
Touch Screen for iPods in the pipeline
 |
Last week Apple filed a patent with the US Patent and Trademark Office for 'Gestures for touch sensitive input devices'.
The application mentions a tablet computer but the better use would be for the iPods.
Excerpt 1: [0008] With touch pads, the movement of the input pointer corresponds to the relative movements of the user's finger (or stylus) as the finger is moved along a surface of the touch pad. Touch screens, on the other hand, are a type of display screen that has a touch-sensitive transparent panel covering the screen. When using a touch screen, a user makes a selection on the display screen by pointing directly to GUI objects on the screen (usually with a stylus or finger).
Excerpt 2: [0009] In order to provide additionally functionality, gestures have been implemented with some of these input devices. By way of example, in touch pads, selections may be made when one or more taps are detected on the surface of the touch pad. In some cases, any portion of the touch pad may be tapped, and in other cases a dedicated portion of the touch pad may be tapped. In addition to selections, scrolling may be initiated by using finger motion at the edge of the touch pad.
Methods and systems for processing touch inputs are disclosed. The invention in one respect includes reading data from a multipoint sensing device such as a multipoint touch screen where the data pertains to touch input with respect to the multipoint sensing device, and identifying at least one multipoint gesture based on the data from the multipoint sensing device.
More from About iPods
iPods in your new Chrysler
 |
Chrysler has announced that it will be the first American automaker to provide full iPod integration as an option in most of its 2006 models, with over three million 2006 Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge models offering iPod integration, beginning this spring. Drivers will be able to listen to their iPod through the car's audio system, select their music by artist, album or playlist with radio or steering wheel controls and view selections on the radio's display.
"Customers have been asking for iPod connectivity and we're excited to make it available to so many of our vehicles in 2006," said Randy Ewers, director, Mopar Accessories Portfolio Team. "We're providing the largest number and range of automobiles with iPod support of any automaker, allowing Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge owners to bring and listen to their entire music collections."A complete list of auto makers supporting iPods is available at the Apple site. In addition, plenty of otherf after-market solutions are available from Alpine, Clarion, Kenwood and Pioneer for automobiles that currently do not offer iPod integration.
More from IPods in the News
Promotional Video Downloads From Square Enix
Square Enix has launched a new Japanese site named Square Enix Promotion Video .
As the site's name may somewhat hint, it will function as a video podcast distribution area where visitors can check out promotional trailers of Square Enix's various games.
The site currently features only a trailer of Front Mission 5: Scars of War, but it will be updated multiple times each month with new trailers.
 |
 |
This is the link to the Square Enix feed
More from Video Downloads
Leather Case for Your iPod
 |
The new brand from Disruptive Technology Channels to cover more than just iPod accessories today announces the LeatherJacket – A high quality leather case for iPod nano and iPod video available in candy pink and black.
The perfect timing of the launch for the LeatherJacket means that those hopeless romantics out there can now give their partner the perfect gift. What better way to say “I love you” than to give a pink super stylish leather case to protect their iPod from the inevitable, everyday wear and tear that life brings. The LeatherJacket is handmade from the finest quality top-grade leather and gives iPod owners the chance to “Pimp their Pod”, giving it a luxurious home.
Tom Dudderidge, managing director, Disruptive Technology Channels, commented: ““The LeatherJacket is one of many new exciting products to be launched within the next few weeks from GEAR4. With all the recent press attention that iPod’s have received lately about scratches, the launch of the LeatherJacket couldn’t come at a better time. This now means that iPod’s can be kept in pristine condition whilst still looking great. We found that the iPod can now be considered as a fashion accessory so it is necessary to have a special outfit to match every occasion. The LeatherJacket’s luxurious leather and super soft velvet lining is available pink and black and gives the iPod a home fit for a king.”
LeatherJacket for iPod Video and nano – A High quality, top grade leather case with super soft velvet lining that keeps your iPod protected in style. The LeatherJacket comes complete with detachable belt clip, has strong magnetic button closure and allows for full access to screen, click wheel and ports. The LeatherJacket offers your iPod a snug comfortable fit and is available for iPod nano and iPod video in candy pink and black.
For more details go to Disruptive
More from About iPods
iPod Speakers Survey
 |
If it's not convenient to use your headphones to listen to your music there are a number of speaker systems around that you can connect your iPod to.
Consumer Reports recently tested eight of these speaker systems, ranging in price from $90 to $300. Most work with the whole line of iPods, as well as other MP3 players. Testers say, at their best, these speakers are comparable to typical boom boxes or bookshelf stereo systems.
Consumer Reports found you get the best bass with the $250 Altec Lansing InMotion IM 7. For the best overall audio, check out the Bose SoundDock for $300. But it's not super portable. It weighs a little over five pounds and doesn't run on batteries.
If portability and battery-operation are paramount, Consumer Reports says you'll sacrifice some audio quality. Your best bet: the JBL On Tour for $100. It's quite small and runs on four AAA-size batteries.
Consumer Reports has also tested all the iPods on the market, including the newest one that can also play videos, but testers found the screen is easily scratched, as is the case with some of the iPod Nanos.
Ratings of the new iPod with video is available free at ConsumerReports.org from January 5 th until February 6 th .
More from About iPods