__/ [ Oliver Wong ] on Tuesday 05 September 2006 16:28 \__
>
> "Roy Schestowitz" <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:1322071.fyZ0PWFvpv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> SanDisk faces MP3 licence dispute
>>
>> ,----[ Quote ]
>> | Electronics manufacturer SanDisk is facing a legal fight over its use
>> | of popular MP3 compression technology.
>> |
>> | [...]
>> |
>> | Italian patents company Sisvel alleges that SanDisk refuses to pay
>> | licensing fees it needs to playback MP3 files.
>> `----
>
> I'm a big fan of Ogg, but there are some pragmatic issues to worry
> about. For example, will they play on my mp3 player? I've got an iRiver,
> which was advertised as being capable of playing Oggs, but I was
> disapointed to find out it only supports a subset of the Ogg format.
> Specifically, it has a minimum bitrate it can support (if I encode with
> quality 3 or higher, the oggs seem to play fine, but I have a few oggs at
> quality 0 or even -1, which I'd rather not go through the hassle of
> re-encoding).
>
> Also, iTunes is my preferred media player, and Ogg support is only
> provided via a 3rd party plugin, and is a bit buggy at that.
>
> My contribution to this issue? Basically, I boycott players which are
> not ogg capable. I'm one of the few people here who doesn't own an iPod. On
> the rare occasion where I go shopping for a new player, I'll ask the
> salesperson to show me which of these players can play ogg files. I think
> I've asked around 5 clerks now, and none of them had ever heard of ogg
> before. Only 1 of them was interested in learning more about it (said he
> considered himself an "audio freak", so he was surprised to have never
> heard of this format before).
I once received a player that supported MP3 and WMA. It even sported a
Windows Media Player logo on the package *gasp*. I gave it to my mom. I
adamantly think that it's a shameful disgrace given that Microsoft is trying
to squeezein its formats, kill the use of MP3, and inject Microsoft DRM
into people's inventory. As people purchase and exchange music using their
phones/DPA/media player.other, it is another opportunity for Microsoft to
sqeeze in a format-based vendor lockin, without explicit notification
(teeagers and technophobes won't mind/understand). Let me see if I can find
a link to articles I have in mind. Heh. Took just a minute.
Microsoft-led coalition bands against Apple iPod
,----[ Quote ]
| The nine companies yesterday said they would co-operate to promote Windows
| Media-based music and video services in a programme not unlike the Plays
| For Sure scheme Microsoft launched in 2004. The firms will all stress how
| compatible their respective software, devices and services are and how
| well they all work with Windows PCs.
`----
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2006/06/01/ms_allies_against_apple/
,----[ Quote ]
| James Middleton reckons Microsoft is about to make its move on the
| mobile music market in a cunning stealth play...
|
| [...]
|
| It's well known that Microsoft is investing big in mobile DRM. In April,
| the Redmond Giant announced "significant investments" in the technology.
| Windows Media DRM is licensed and deployed by over 100 content services
| and on hundreds of wireless devices worldwide today and has been adopted
| by major handset manufacturers such as Motorola, Nokia and BenQ.
`----
http://www.telecoms.com/itmgcontent/tcoms/expertview/articles/2001735...
Microsoft supplies mobile DRM in Japan, eyes everywhere else
,----[ Quote ]
| It appears that Microsoft may be positioning itself to make a run at
| grabbing control of the mobile digital rights management (DRM) market,
| having come to an agreement with Japan's NTT DoCoMo mobile phone company
| to standardize that provider's phones with Windows Media Audio and
| Windows Media DRM.
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060517-6857.html
Best wishes,
Roy
--
Can Mac OS X and Vista catch up? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYjv0S_k0xo
http://Schestowitz.com | GNU is Not UNIX | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
roy pts/3 Tue Sep 5 13:22 - 13:39 (00:17)
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