EU Extends Music Copyright to 70 Years

If you were planning to boost your copyright-free music library in the next few years with tracks from The Beatles, the Rolling Stones and The Who, today's news is all bad. Under previous European law, copyright for these bands was due to expire soon. However the EU Council has voted this week to extend the copyright on sound recordings from 50 to 70 years.

The BBC's coverage presents the music industry's point of view, supported by aging musicians who stand to benefit.

For a different perspective, the less copyright-friendly folks at Slashdot speak out against the change.

Source is http://www.mediacollege.com/forum/content.php?73-EU-Extends-Music-Copyright

Netflix responds to change in their concurrent video streaming policy

Earlier today, there was considerable outrage when Netflix began enforcing their policy on concurrent video streams, months after changing their ToS, making it impossible for multiple users to stream movies or TV shows at the same time if they are using the same account.
While the move would of course cut down on groups of people pooling together to use one account, there was outrage from families who legitimately have two people who enjoying streaming films, sometimes at the same moment.

Reads the ToS:

Personal Computer Requirements and Device Limitations: To enjoy watching instantly via your personal computer, your equipment must satisfy certain system requirements. Click here to view the various system requirements. To see partners who offer Netflix ready devices you may use to access our service, click here. YOU MAY INSTANTLY WATCH ON UP TO SIX UNIQUE AUTHORIZED NETFLIX READY DEVICES. YOU WILL BE ALLOWED TO INSTANTLY WATCH SIMULTANEOUSLY ON ONLY ONE SUCH DEVICE AT ANY GIVEN TIME. For certain membership plans in the United States, you may instantly watch simultaneously on more than one Netflix ready device within your household. Click here to view the number of devices on which you may simultaneously view movies & TV shows that are associated with your plan. The number of devices and concurrent streams may change without notice to you. For certain limited membership plans in the United States, your available Netflix ready device may be limited to personal computers.


This afternoon, however, Netflix’s VP of Communication, Steve Swasey responded to TC and said "the restrictions happened in error and the company is not actively blocking concurrent video streams."

That being said, the ToS, with the wording above, has not been changed.

Source is http://www.afterdawn.com/news/article.cfm/2011/09/07/netflix_responds_to_change_in_their_concurrent_video_streaming_policy

DivX Plus brings Blu-ray features to streaming

Rovi has released DivX Plus, its streaming solution for the delivery of premium digital entertainment to connected devices, including HDTVs, Blu-ray Disc Players, smartphones, game consoles, PCs, Macs, and cable set-top boxes.

The technology brings with it multimedia features that have previously only been associated with Blu-ray discs, part of a package that includes support for 1080p high definition, DTS Audio, subtitles, multiple language tracks, and trick-play features such as smooth fast forward and rewind, quick-start playback, and the ability to resume playback across devices.

“It can deliver a very Blu-ray like experience on a big TV or a quality that is appropriate for a phone or a tablet,” Rovi chief evangelist Richard Bullwinkle told Broadband TV News. He added that both Samsung and LG had taken site-wide licences with a view to installing it across all of their devices. “Their story is that they want an eco-system that allows the consumer to start watching on the TV and continue on the tablet.”

DivX Plus is using digital rights management technology already used by online retailers that offer movies in the DivX format that include WB Shop, Media Markt, and Film Fresh.

Separately, it has been announced that Rovi’s TotalGuide will be included in Panasonic’s connected TV and DVD/BD recorder products sold in Europe.

Source is http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2011/09/01/divx-plus-brings-blu-ray-features-to-streaming/

Pirate Bay boys launch legal cyberlocker 'BayFiles'

The Pirate Bay have announced the launch of their own legal cyberlocker, called BayFiles.

The service, like rivals, allows users to upload files and share them online.

BayFiles is also registered as a DMCA agent, meaning they will take down all files that are flagged as unauthorized due to copyright infringement and bans multiple-time offenders.

In the future, the company hopes to expand BayFiles into a "feature-rich" cloud service, a la Dropbox. Just like new services from Amazon, Google and Apple, the platform will allow you to upload your music and stream it from a phone (or from anywhere) as long as you have Internet access.

The service is free to sign up, and free members can upload files up to 500MB.

Premium members (at $7 a month or $63 a year) can upload 5GB files with unlimited storage.

Source is http://www.afterdawn.com/news/article.cfm/2011/08/30/pirate_bay_boys_launch_legal_cyberlocker_bayfiles