Unlinking Social Networks

Stowe Boyd, writes about his move away from social networking applications. I think its a great article that hits home with anyone who has signed up for the many and varied sites created to date.

The $250 Million Radio Show #17

Can be found here. Show list here.

Travel Log - New Jersey and 'blizzards'

Spent most of the day in Manhattan. Sat down for drinks with Gary Churgin and Michael Simon of the Harry Fox Agency for drinks and catching up. Gary became CEO at HFA right after we settled our lawsuits with the publishers, so we have known each other fairly well for a long time. In addition to showing Gary what we are up to, we had a nice informal chat about podcasting. No real take aways, but it will be interesting to see how they decide to approach podcasting.

During drinks, a 'horrible' snow storm began. This isn't normally a problem, except we needed to make a drive out to Morristown, New Jersey that evening. I happen to have a nasty combination of driving experience that makes me a dangerous snow driver. I am a long time Los Angeles commuter and I have spent the last 10+ Christmases in Fargo, North Dakota. I am entirely comfortable in complete whiteout conditions and I hate slow drivers. I laughed as I drove through, over and around the freaked out Jersey drivers on our way to the hotel.

Had an amazing dinner at Copeland. This was a top rate Manhattan dining experience out in the burbs. We had no idea that it would be this good. Dinner was with Scott Wolf who worked with me at Vivendi who now heads up sales at Muzak.

Brooklyn

Went to Brooklyn this morning for a meeting. Once we got off the subway there I realized that in all the many years I have been coming to NYC I had never been anywhere outside of Manhattan. Brooklyn was very cool. Need to explore some more some other time.

Travel Day - New York City

Wasn't I just there? Off again. Should be a nice flight given all the storms we were pounded with overnight.

Podcast on the Fly

Ian Miller, who screws around with me on the Acmenoise website that I use to find bands for my podcast cooked up a really cool feature. At Mp3.com we had a thing called Notify Me, which was an opt in email product that was positioned opposite some of what RealNetworks was doing with RMP files. What Ian added to Acme is a podcast link to each artist page. If you click on the link it generates an XML feed that you can plug into your aggregator of choice. Then, anytime the artist adds new music to the site, it automatically gets downloaded to your player.

Fear And Loathing Quote

There are too many lines in the book to recount, but a quick search of Fear And Loathing quotes on Google brought the book back to life again. This one stood out to me:

"How long could we maintain? I wondered. How long until one of us starts raving and jabbering at this boy? What will he think then? This same lonely desert was the last known home of the Manson family; will he make that grim connection when my attorney starts screaming about bats and huge manta rays coming down on the car? If so, well, we'll just have to cut his head off and bury him somewhere, 'cause it goes without saying that we can't turn him loose. He'd report us at once to some kind of outback Nazi law enforcement agency and they'll run us down like dogs. Jesus, did I say that? Or just think it? Was I talking? Did they hear me?"

Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Seattle Library

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originally uploaded by brikmaster.

I am an armchair fan of architecture. In particular Gehry and Kahn. Yesterday I was in Seattle for business and happened to swing by the new Seattle public library while on a taxi ride to a meeting. The Rem Koolhaus building is certainly unique though reminiscent of the I.M. Pei triangle at the Louvre. I am so sad that I didn't get to go inside as the virtual tour you can find here really shows how amazing the building is.

Hunter S Thompson dead

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was one of the most bizarre and enjoyable books I have ever read. Any book that makes you break out into hysterical laughter is something that shouldn't be missed. Pleasant journey Hunter.

Great Post on Podcast Licensing

Can be found here.

Association of Music Podcasting

I should have mentioned earlier that a group of us music podcasters are working together to promote the music of artists who grant us their permission to use their music on a royalty free basis within our podcasts. We seek to highlight the awesome content that currently has a difficult time getting into the hands of consumers by traditional means. If this sounds like something cool to you, check out our site at AMP.

Lessig Podcast

Speaking of Lessig he has started a Podcast. I'll bet he isn't reading text over The Beattles. ;-)

The Copyright Fairy

Earlier this week I did a radio show on KPBS with Dave Winer. At one point in the conversation I stated that if the two of us were talking, and we had a Who song playing in the background, that if we recorded that conversation and made it into podcast then this would be copyright infringement unless we had the permission of the various rights holders. Dave retorted that he didn't necessarily think that is correct. There may be some strange application of Fair Use that I have missed over the last 7 years or so, but I don't believe that is the case.

What I found particularly funny about this exchange is how some of the blogger intelligentsia hold themselves out as thoughtful and informed yet fail to do the simple homework when all of the source materials are freely available for them. The DMCA? You can find it online. The 2nd district court rulings in MP3.com vs RIAA? Online. 9th district Court rulings in Napster vs RIAA? Online. Kazaa, etc. etc. Sorry for the lack of links but you get my point.

The conclusion that I have come to is that many including Dave wish that the Copyright fairy would come along and change the existing body of law because its just not fair. Although I agree with many who think that it would be great if we could use samples and play mashups, and play the songs of our youth in podcasts and home videos etc. the reality today is that you can't.

I propose that Dave and others who question the status of how podcasts fit into existing copyright law take some of the following steps:

1. Go read the law. I would include the DMCA and the various rulings in the dozens of digital music lawsuits over the past 7+ years.

2. Talk to your friends Larry Lessig and Hank Barry. I spoke with Hank briefly at Bloggercon and although we didn't talk at length I am certain that he would reiterate what I have said.

3. Immediately stop playing copyrighted music in your podcasts. If you care about the technology and its potential, don't make it a target for yet another round of lawsuits.

4. Start a conversation with the RIAA and the publishers. I am meeting with the CEO of the Harry Fox Agency next week. Understanding how they view the law and if there are opportunities to obtain experimental licenses or find other accommodations is a better way than just pretending or hoping that everything is just fine.

I would be extremely excited to find out that I am wrong about this, but given my experience, I have a very high degree of confidence that I am spot on.

I recall how the labels held technologists in great contempt during the late 1990s in the digital music space because many of them wouldn't take the time to either take a walk in their shoes, or take the time to understand the law. I find it ironic that those who would hold people to higher standards when they talk of the blogosphere, technology or internet ethics etc. can't do the same when faced with issues around intellectual property.

These Days Link

Can be found here. We were on around 35 minutes into the show.

Dave Winer on KPBS

Dave Winer, the father of RSS and co-father of podcasting will be on the KPBS radio show These Days with yours truly. Check it out if you get the chance. I'll post a link after the show.

Radio Show on Podcasting

Tomorrow I will be on the local radio station KPBS at 9:30 AM for a taping of These Days with local host Tom Fudge. I think the show will focus on podcasting and the issues involving copyright. I will post a link to the audio when it's available. I am not sure who the other guest or guests are yet.

Travel, Posting and RSS Calendar

We are in the last stages of work on our startup prior to launch sometime in the future. I suspect that I won't be posting as frequently as normal. I also am traveling a lot. If you scroll down this page you will see an RSS Calendar box that has all my travel plans. If you read this and happen to be in one of the cities I am going to be in, drop me an email and lets grab a coffee or drink or something when I cruise through your town.

Podcast Spot Link

NBC News.

Must use IE and Windows Media to view.

NBC 7/39 Podcast Spot

If you are in San Diego check out the Podcasting spot tonight at 5 PM. Yours truly is hanging out with NBC's Vic Salazar for a spot on Podcasting.

Packet Video Customer Service

I should start a customer service blog that's open to the whole world where we can document our wonderful customer service experiences. I think I have three so far that I can recall. So I am trying to figure out how to up-sample the video from my P910 so I can edit the clips. It's over a week since I sent my message to Packet Video. Since they are in San Diego I should swing by Michael Moore style and have the receptionist show me how to do that. And I could recorder it. Hmmm.

The $250 Million Radio Show #16

Can be found here. Information here. It was great talking to Vic from NBC. The segment should air Friday or Monday. I'll post more when I find out.

ASCAP Licenses Podcasts

Yeah right. I don't think the record labels or publishers will be too impressed with this license. ASCAP has a marginal claim that podcasts are performances. They have no ability to cover the other two rights.

Switchvox Press Release

Switchvox is being unveiled at the Desktop summit today. Here is their press release.

Podcast TV Interview

I am being interviewed today for a TV spot on the local NBC affiliate about my podcast. I plan on taking some pics and maybe a bit of video.

Google Maps

Ok this is some crazy stuff. I like this.

Blue Tooth Snafu

If you have read any of my older posts regarding Bluetooth you will know that I am an unapologetic fan of the technology. Well last week, right before my trip to NYC, my Jabra headset died. I may have been wearing it in the rain, but it felt like it was going downhill fast. I am now shopping for a replacement. When I figure it out I will let you know. I have seen a drastic improvement in the Bluetooth implementation on my phone over the previous version, so I am hoping the headset people have made some improvements.

Flickr Giant Pics

Speaking of Flickr and Tags, we have a bunch of art around the office from the Obey - Andre the Giant series. I uploaded a couple to my Flickr account and then tagged them. I got to see this really cool slide show which I recommend.

Sand Hill Road - Brian Dear

Brian put some pics on Flickr recently that chronicled a trip to Sand Hill Road. We generally drive through Palo Alto and out the back way as you work up the road so we don't get that view. Instead we look at the mall as we make the left hand turn. It is kind of cool the myth around Sand Hill Road and the reality that strikes you as very funny once you start making the rounds. I almost put up some similar pics on the last trip but restrained myself.

Million Dollar Baby

Ok, so I really do enjoy big Media content. Although we have too many kids, my crafty wife has managed to get shifts of babysitters to watch our 2 1/2 yr old and the triplets. As a result we have actually seen a couple of movies including almost all of the Best Picture Nominees.

My favorite? Million Dollar baby. Not just because it has Million in the title.

Clint Eastwood is an amazing director. Hillary Swank, though I don't care for her generally, is powerful. The story is engaging and hit me in the torso like I haven't been hit in a while, pleasantly surprising me after a section of the movie, that in retrospect, had slowed by design. Go see it!

Seasons of Interest

I am in football mourning. I don't expect to check out this site, or this site, or this one for a while. I wasn't really interested in the teams in the Superbowl, but it was the end of the season.

Since the election I haven't checked out this site, or this, or this either.

Some things relate to time. Some things relate to place. Right now, right here, I am not relating to either football or politics. At least for a couple of months...

eMusic - Cancelled

I was cleaning up some of those credit card treadmill items today and with a heavy heart, cancelled my eMusic subscription. I have been a big fan of the service for such a long time, but the cap of tracks (which I understand by the way) always made me mad if I hadn't downloaded my quota as there was only a reset and no carryover. It's leaving money on the table. Combine this with the fact that I really had most of the music I wanted anyways and each end of month became an exercise to download something, anything to get to my 40, seemed like a waste of time. I wish them well.

New York Recap

NYC can wear you down. Non Business related highlights included:

Bond Street Restaurant
Brasserie
SoHo House

Non Business Related meetings that were cool included:

Jay Dedman
Andrew Scott

Back home and busy. Lots to catch up on....

Taxi Audio File

Ok so I had to cut up the file to get the good parts, but it can be found here.

If anyone knows what they are saying I would love to find out. I am hoping its something like "Hey lets have a beer after work" and nothing more sinister than that.

The Revolution will be televised under our nose...

While riding in a cab the other day. I heard a really bizzare radio broadcast in the cab of the driver that was all fuzzed out and reminded me of a propaganda broadcast in an unrecognizable language. I was very intrigued as this was a really cool audio icon to me so I pulled out the P910 and started recording the noise.

It was really cool. I stopped the clip and asked the driver what it was. He said it was CB. I asked him if he could turn it up so I could record it. He got really pissed and said no and turned it off. Oops. I can't imagine what they were talking about but it kind of gave me the shivers given his response. I guess it might have been kind of creepy for me to ask to record it too....

Rome Total War

I received a copy of Rome Total War for Christmas but hadn't opened the package up until on the flight earlier this week from San Diego to NYC. Its a good thing I hadn't. This game is so unbelievable. I looked up after a short time playing (Or so it seemed) and we were in NYC. Nice.

MP3Tunes

Michael is at it again.