Reprise Media Reading List 11/17/2006
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Written By Kate Zimmermann | November 17, 2006 | Share This
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Bix + Yahoo: Hot or Not?
The New York Times reports that Yahoo is acquiring user-generated contest site, Bix.com. Bix lets registered users create, enter into and judge contests online, evidently inspired by the American Idol phenomenon. Indeed, most of the Bix contests are a quick look into the painful job of an American Idol selection judge - check out Sing Your Fav Song A Capella, Karaoke Christmas Songs, or Women Can Sing Men’s Songs Too! to get a taste of the magic. Neither the deal amount nor Yahoo’s intention for the site have been disclosed, but considering Yahoo’s audience plus the addictive nature of Bix.com, this could be like Flickr gone Karaoke.
Craigslist Not Guilty
A Chicago federal district judge has ruled that Craigslist is not liable for what posters say in their advertisements for roommates, effectively shielding it from the Fair Housing Act. The Fair Housing Act bars publications from printing housing ads that indicate any preference/discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin - but, thanks to a follow-up ruling that protects “Interactive Computer Services”, Craigslist is off the hook. More importantly, however, the court ruled that Craigslist is only protected from the Fair Housing Act if it doesn’t actually alter material that is then made available - because this would indicate that Craigslist has the capability to monitor and edit all material - BUT, said alterations would have to be a part of “material that sparks a legal claim“. As if online content ownership and liability wasn’t already unclear enough.
What’s Myspace is Not Yours
Today Myspace launched a new tool for copyright holders to help track down and remove their content. The tool essentially flags copyrighted material as it’s uploaded and notifies the owner, who can request its removal. Another nifty little feature - the tool will also block videos that are removed from being re-uploaded to Myspace. Myspace’s new program is very similar to YouTube’s own content-management technology, that gives copyright owners the option of sharing ad revenue rather than removing content all together.
The Right to Bear Cellphone
The BBC announced today on their Editor’s Weblog that they will now pay for “user contributions” captured on cell phones or digital cameras. The post was careful to note that the BBC would be highly selective about what content they deemed worthy of monetary reimbursement. Like other media companies that have opened their doors to citizen journalism, the BBC declared, “This could be the beginning of a new era in journalism, one that blurs the distinction - or even reverses the relationship - between news providers and news recipients.” To date, the most famous pieces of citizen journalism have revealed abuses by government officials. The Daily Reel calls the burgeoning citizen journalism movement a “reverse-Orwellian act of citizen’s response”, comparing cellphones the proverbial “guns” of the 2nd Amendment.
Second Life Plagued By Virtual Thieving Bot
Last but not least, This Story ran a few days ago about a new crime wave in Second Life. Apparently, a program called CopyBot has infested the virtual world, allowing users to copy any object in Second Life. Given that the economy of Second Life is propped up on user’s ability to sell virtual objects with real money, CopyBot is wreaking havoc on Linden Lab’s currency system. Linden Labs has stated that they’re virtually (yay for puns) powerless to stop users from taking advantage of the bot. CNET reports that this is not the first issue to draw complaints from users - rising real estate prices, security problems, and UI bugs have all surfaced in the past. It’s still unclear whether CopyBot is a real threat to Second Life’s stability, or just evidence of growing pains.
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