Category: Stories
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MPs reject Ofcom’s Nathan Barley quango
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Andrew Orlowski
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In a victory for Register readers, MPs have rejected Ofcom’s proposal for a publicly-funded new media quango. The Commons’ select committee for Culture, Media and Sport rejects the idea that the creation of a “Public Service Publisher” gatekeeper would help the market. The report is here, while the Ofcomwatch blog broke the news here. The…
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I’m a walking billboard… bitch
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Andrew Orlowski
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On Wednesday, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg boasted that the “next 100 years” of advertising began here. On the face of it, it looked like Web 2.0 had found its “Long Boom” moment. Facebook has yet to turn a profit, so Zuckerberg hardly seems in a position to advise other people how to make money –…
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“The Government wants to copyright my thoughts!”
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Andrew Orlowski
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“They’re coming to take me away – ha haa!” – Napoleon XIV The Patient A student, Robert Soave writing in The Michigan, the student paper at the University of Michigan. Clinical Symptoms The patient is fearful: “The idea that information can be owned is quite terrifying” He also fears a loss of identity. Once something…
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American Radiohead fans are 73% more irrational – survey
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Andrew Orlowski
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Radiohead last month let punters “set the price” for the digital download of their new album It’s Raining In Rainbows, which is coming out on CD shortly. Since people could download it for free – how much did they really pay? Estimates to date have relied on self-selecting opinion poll data. This one, ComScore reminds…
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Warner slaps Nokia for Web 2.0 swap site
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Andrew Orlowski
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Nokia’s Music Store went live last week – but look in vain for anything by Led Zepp, John Coltrane, or Smokey Robinson. That’s because Warner Music Group (WMG) is refusing to license its catalogues to the phone giant, in protest at its Web 2.0 file swapping site, Mosh. WMG says Mosh is a hotbed of…
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Panic in smartphoneland
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Andrew Orlowski
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Google is set to give the mobile phone business a body blow today – the second punch in the guts it’s had this year. Apple delivered the first blow, by turning the operators’ subsidy model upside down – as well as making rival manufacturers look like knuckle-dragging Neanderthals. But Google’s arrival may prove to be…