Internet

The name and details of the latest venture for Skype and Kazaa co-founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis were released earlier last week. The young entrepreneurs have tackled the world of Internet television with a service called "Joost". ... Zennstrom and Friis, who sold Skype for an incredible $2.6 billion USD to eBay Inc. in 2005, have said that Joost will combine aspects of file-sharing software and regular broadcast television. (Source: news.zdnet.com ) Joost (pronounced "juiced") may even eventually attempt a move onto television sets, but the two co-founders have remained adamant that ... (view more)

This past Tuesday, Netflix unveiled its new "Watch Now" service. The service gives subscribers the option of downloading movies to their PC at no additional charge, an attractive alternative to Netflix's traditional mail delivery method. "Watch Now" ... will be introduced to only a small portion of Netflix subscribers initially; however, the company will be allowing about 250,000 subscribers into the system each week until June. (Source: physorg.com ) Viewers can use the service after accepting a computer applet that takes under a minute to install. Subscribers to the $18 monthly package can ... (view more)

It wasn't so long ago that Microsoft shipped its latest browser, Internet Explorer 7. Ditto for the latest iteration of Mozilla's cult hit Firefox, with version 2 upgrading many of the features that made it second only to IE. However, even as these ... two web surfing tools begin to make their way onto more and more home and business computers, Microsoft and Mozilla are hard at work on their next browser generation. It's not surprising considering the one core reason why continual updates are necessary: security. Codenamed "Gran Paradiso", Mozilla appears ready to launch Firefox 3 sometime this ... (view more)

Did someone in Israel read the recent Infopackets story about technology making it easier for people to lie? It sure seems that way! Actually, the uniquely titled KishKish Lie Detector has been available to the public since December, and a new beta ... upgrade has just been released. The Israeli technology works over the Internet with popular online phone service, called Skype. (Source: batm.com ) "We tested it with the [former U.S. president Bill] Clinton speech about his relationship with his intern Monica Lewinsky," stated Zvi Marom, the founder and CEO of BATM Advanced Communications. "When ... (view more)

Google's popular service Gmail let down some users recently (and worried many others) when users reported missing emails. After investigating the situation, Google has reported that about 60 users have been affected by the problem. This represents ... an extremely small proportion of Gmail users -- a group in the tens of millions. (Source: thestreet.com ) Google spokesperson Courtney Hohne issued an emailed statement apologizing for the problem. "Once we found out about this issue, we worked day and night to confirm that only a few accounts were affected and to do whatever we could to restore as ... (view more)

YouTube has agreed to discuss copyright issues with a Japanese group, the company said last week. The Japan Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) had sent a letter to YouTube earlier this month requesting stricter ... copyright policies. The letter was sent on behalf of the JASRAC and 22 other Japanese entertainment industry associations, including the Motion Picture Producers' Association of Japan, Yahoo! Japan and all of the major commercial television broadcasters. (Source: pcadvisor.co.uk ) The reply, which was signed by YouTube CEO Chad Hurley and CTO Steven Chen, ... (view more)

The major television networks must be sick and tired of seeing their content streaming for free on YouTube. Viacom, Fox, CBS, and NBC have been in talks to jointly develop a YouTube competitor that would let the networks keep the advertising ... proceeds. But is such an arrangement possible? Perhaps. On one hand, the major networks have shown an interest in online content streaming. Many have their own portals that show the network's content with commercials. Developing a joint service would enable the networks to combine their expertise and create a central location for television network media ... (view more)

Google has dedicated a substantial amount of time revamping the comment sections on their popular YouTube website. Google will modify certain sections to address those concerned with the apparent lack of restriction, and conversely, lack of freedom ... in regards to their online media database. The changes will be a compromise that intends to appease both parties. When Google initially purchased YouTube.com, many users felt that corporate ownership would lead to restrictions placed upon their extensive video library. The company has countered these concerns by placing importance on user comments ... (view more)

It's been a while since we reported a big hire or promotion by one of our favorite major software or hardware companies. Back in the earlier months of 2006, it seemed like good 'ol Microsoft was moving people from one position to the next -- as if ... playing a game of boardroom magical chairs. As the Christmas season has set into gear, however, most companies have remained mum: until now. Dell has recently announced that former Wells Fargo employee, Sona Chawla, has been appointed head of online sales and support. Chawla will be working directly under Dell's senior vice president, John Hamlin. ... (view more)

You never know when a good news story might develop. But you do know that you have your trusty camera phone on hand if it does -- and so do Reuters and Yahoo. The two companies have teamed up to offer "You Witness News," a news service that allows ... people to submit their photos and videos, which may end up being published. Selected content will be featured on Reuters.com and Yahoo! News. Reuters also hopes to use some material in print beginning next year. (Source: dailytech.com ) The partnership attempts to capitalize on an increasingly popular form of news, known as "citizen journalism." The ... (view more)