Simon Perry

  • Channel 4 Say Sorry To Mac Users (video)

    4oD: Channel 4 Say Sorry To Mac Users (video)UK Channel 4 has finally sorted out their video catch-up service.

    Channel 4 previously only offered 4oD which only ran on PCs running Windows, because it uses Microsoft’s DRM.

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  • AudioBoo: G20 Boost Take Up

    AudioBoo: G20 Boost Take UpWell done to the Best Before team who are behind AudioBoo, they’re really building user numbers and adding features.

    AudioBoo, if you haven’t come across it already, lets you record and post audio entries from your iPhone. These messages live on AudioBoo and can be integrated into your own blogs – giving you an audio blog post.

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  • MBL Returns To Flash, Dumping Microsoft Silverlight. Why?

    MBL Returns To Flash, Dumping Microsoft Silverlight. Why?Looks like Microsoft has hit a speed bump in trying to get Silverlight adopted by broadcasters.

    Some reasons for the Major League Baseball stopping using Silverlight might be coming to light. With 500,000 subscribers, MBL.com is the Web’s most successful subscription service, so well worth taking note of.

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  • View DVI Monitors 2Km Away Using Fibre-Extender

    View DVI Monitors 2Km Away Using Fibre-ExtenderIf you like using your computer while looking at the screen through a telescope, Gefen has the product for you.

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  • Vodafone Drop DRM for MP3

    Vodafone Drop DRM for MP3Another one falls.

    Vodafone have announced that they are switching their music catalogue from Universal Music, Sony Music and EMI away from DRM-protected music to MP3 format.

    This makes Vodafone the first global mobile operator to do it.

    Not only will these tracks but DRM-free in the future, but people who have bought DRMd tracks already will be able to change them to MP3 for FREE. Are you listening Apple? No DRM-dropping tax.

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  • ThruYou: Remix Cluture’s Latest Incarnation

    ThruYou: Remix Cluture's Latest IncarnationRemix culture has just found its latest incarnation.

    Kutiman, a member of a collective called bacon oppenheim, has taken music videos found on YouTube and blended the audio and used the visuals to create individual versions of tracks – essentially using YouTube as a box of samples to pick from to create some great tunes.

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  • Spotify Hit By Hackers: Suggest Password Change: UPDATED

    Spotify Hit By Hackers: Suggest Password ChangeSpotify, the fab online music service, has been hit by hackers.

    In a mail just sent out to Spotify users, they reveal that the Spotify protocol – the method they use to transfer music to subscribers – has been compromised by a hacking group.

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  • Cadbury’s Live Dairy Milk Become Fairtrade-Certified Webcast

    Cadbury's Live Dairy Milk Become Fairtrade-Certified WebcastWell done to Cadbury (well known UK chocolate maker) for committing to take their Dairy Milk chocolate to be Fairtrade certified from Autumn 2009.

    Their approach to releasing the information is also refreshing – they’re carrying out a live webcast as we speak/type at Cadbury Live.

    Cadbury is also opening themselves up to questions from the public, while the live webcast is going on.

    All good news, but quite quaint to see that incoming questions are being read from a piece of paper rather than the expected laptop screen.

    Thanks to for alerting us to this.

  • ITV & Friends Reunited: Becoming Friends Disconnected

    ITV & Friends Reunited: Becoming Friends DisconnectedWhen ITV announced that they were going to be buying Friends Reunited way back in 2005, we thought it was a terrible idea and went into some detail as to why we thought so …

    We think that Friends Reunited has done an amazing sales job on ITV. It’s a site that would appear to be in decline rather than its ascendancy. Their expansion into Genes Reunited, Dating and Jobs Reunited would appear to point to them thinking the same.

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  • Skype Heading To Nokia Handsets

    Skype Heading To Nokia HandsetsBig news for Skype and Nokia … and in turn mobile phone operators.

    It’s just announced that Skype will be integrated into Nokia handsets, starting in the 3rd quarter of 2009 with the N97.

    As well as allowing Skype calls via 3G and WiFi, Skype to Skype calls will be free (excluding any data charges), we’re also told that “low-cost Skype calls to landlines and mobile devices” will be allowed.

    The surprise is that Skype contact details will be integrated into the handsets address book, showing the presence of the Skype user and enabling instant messaging.

    Skype has previously had some success getting on to mobile phones, the most significant of which was the deal with 3, but this deal with Nokia is far more significant.

    Good for mobile service providers?
    As to how the mobile service providers will react to it is quite another matter.

    If their subscribers are using data bundles, the operators aren’t going to make any money from calls that are made over their networks, reducing them to providing the plumbing to enable it.