08/25: Catching Up...
Posted by Patrick
Sorry, I was traveling and ending up taking around 5 days away from blogging. Here is an assortment of stories from this time that interested me:
The Windows Genuine Advantage validation servers were down for approximately 3/4 of a day.
Facebook is working on a new ad system:
MTV has partnered with RealNetworks, signaling the end of the Microsoft/MTV partnership.
From the AP:
From Eric Bangeman:
India plans to vote no "against Microsoft’s Open Office Extensible Mark Up Language (OOXML) standard at the International Standards Organisation (ISO) in Geneva on September 2".
Microsoft wants to use technology from the Tellme acquisition for in car navigation/help systems.
Bebo is partnering with Microsoft for contact management through WLM:
Ubisoft will develop games under the Games for Windows brand.
Microsoft is voluntarily offering to retrofit free of charge as a precautionary measure to overheating problems that some have experienced.
Microsoft celebrates 25 years of hardware:
They've launched a mini site on Microsoft.com in honor of the occassion.
Microsoft is bringing back the SideWinder gaming hardware line.
For more info (and pictures), see the press release.
Soapbox will be based on a firm foundation of copyright owner respect.
Awesome.
Microsoft has launched Tafiti, a Silverlight based search engine powered by Live Search.
Via Todd Bishop, Todd Bishop, Bink.nu, Bink.nu and LiveSide.
The Windows Genuine Advantage validation servers were down for approximately 3/4 of a day.
Facebook is working on a new ad system:
Social-networking Web site Facebook Inc. is quietly working on a new advertising system that would let marketers target users with ads based on the massive amounts of information people reveal on the site about themselves.
Eventually, it hopes to refine the system to allow it to predict what products and services users might be interested in even before they have specifically mentioned an area. ...
But Facebook's new plan faces hurdles. It could upset Microsoft, which is itself trying to build technology to make it easier for advertisers to place targeted ads on Facebook. A Microsoft spokeswoman declined to comment on this issue.
Eventually, it hopes to refine the system to allow it to predict what products and services users might be interested in even before they have specifically mentioned an area. ...
But Facebook's new plan faces hurdles. It could upset Microsoft, which is itself trying to build technology to make it easier for advertisers to place targeted ads on Facebook. A Microsoft spokeswoman declined to comment on this issue.
MTV has partnered with RealNetworks, signaling the end of the Microsoft/MTV partnership.
From the AP:
Viacom Inc.'s MTV Networks and digital media company RealNetworks announced Tuesday a digital music joint venture that will compete with Apple's dominant trinity of the iTunes Store, iPod player and iPhone.
MTV will merge its Urge music service into the Rhapsody offering from Seattle-based RealNetworks Inc., forming a new company called Rhapsody America. The new service will be accessible on computers and music players and integrated with Verizon Wireless' VCast multimedia service for cell phones.
MTV will merge its Urge music service into the Rhapsody offering from Seattle-based RealNetworks Inc., forming a new company called Rhapsody America. The new service will be accessible on computers and music players and integrated with Verizon Wireless' VCast multimedia service for cell phones.
From Eric Bangeman:
15 months after partnering with Microsoft on URGE, MTV has decided to cut its ties with Microsoft and cast its lot with with RealNetworks and Verizon. At a news conference this morning, MTV and RealNetworks announced Rhapsody America, a new joint venture between the two companies with Verizon Wireless supporting the mobile platform. The news is yet another disappointing development for Microsoft's online music sales ambitions, given that it foreshadows the closure of Urge.
India plans to vote no "against Microsoft’s Open Office Extensible Mark Up Language (OOXML) standard at the International Standards Organisation (ISO) in Geneva on September 2".
Microsoft wants to use technology from the Tellme acquisition for in car navigation/help systems.
Bebo is partnering with Microsoft for contact management through WLM:
Social networking site Bebo will partner with Microsoft to use the software maker's Windows Live instant messaging service on its site and simplify the exchange of contacts. ...
Bebo, the largest social networking site in the UK, will allow its 36 million global users to export and import contacts between its site and contacts lists maintained on Microsoft's Windows Live online services.
Bebo, the largest social networking site in the UK, will allow its 36 million global users to export and import contacts between its site and contacts lists maintained on Microsoft's Windows Live online services.
Ubisoft will develop games under the Games for Windows brand.
Microsoft is voluntarily offering to retrofit free of charge as a precautionary measure to overheating problems that some have experienced.
The action is being taken after Microsoft was informed of a very small number of incidents of a malfunction in the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel, in which a component in the wheel chassis may overheat and release smoke when the AC/DC power supply is used to energize the wheel. There have been no reported incidences of fire, personal injury or property damage resulting from the component failure in the wheel.
Microsoft celebrates 25 years of hardware:
What began in 1982 with a Microsoft® Mouse designed to easily navigate Microsoft Corp.’s first version of Microsoft Word has grown to an extensive lineup of innovative, indispensable products for today’s computer-centered lifestyle. Microsoft Hardware is celebrating its 25th anniversary of staying ahead of the computing curve by delivering groundbreaking peripherals that make the software and services experience better and easier. In recent years, Microsoft tapped the Microsoft Hardware Group’s rich heritage of hardware innovation as it developed the Xbox® video game system, Zune™ digital media player and the new multi-touch technology breakthrough, Microsoft Surface™.
“The Hardware Group transformed Microsoft beyond just a software company,” said Robbie Bach, president of the Entertainment & Devices Division at Microsoft. “From Xbox to Zune and now Microsoft Surface, the Hardware Group continues to lend its expertise across all Microsoft categories, helping to redefine the consumer expectation of Microsoft products.”
“The Hardware Group transformed Microsoft beyond just a software company,” said Robbie Bach, president of the Entertainment & Devices Division at Microsoft. “From Xbox to Zune and now Microsoft Surface, the Hardware Group continues to lend its expertise across all Microsoft categories, helping to redefine the consumer expectation of Microsoft products.”
They've launched a mini site on Microsoft.com in honor of the occassion.
Microsoft is bringing back the SideWinder gaming hardware line.
Today at the Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany, Microsoft Hardware debuts the revival of its SideWinder™ line with its first gaming mouse built from the ground up — a product that transcends the mouse category to become a customizable gaming system.
The Microsoft® SideWinder Mouse was created to meets gamers’ individual needs, providing custom tuning tools and a design for ultimate handling. The first mouse to wear the coveted SideWinder name, this top-of-the-line gaming machine sets itself apart from the competition with never-before-seen features that gamers want, uncovered during worldwide research. Features include one-touch access to Windows Vista® Games Explorer, Quick Turn — a performance-enhancing macro that lets users check their perimeter from wherever they are in-game — the first-ever LCD on a gaming mouse, and a cable anchor that doubles as an accessories storage box.
The Microsoft® SideWinder Mouse was created to meets gamers’ individual needs, providing custom tuning tools and a design for ultimate handling. The first mouse to wear the coveted SideWinder name, this top-of-the-line gaming machine sets itself apart from the competition with never-before-seen features that gamers want, uncovered during worldwide research. Features include one-touch access to Windows Vista® Games Explorer, Quick Turn — a performance-enhancing macro that lets users check their perimeter from wherever they are in-game — the first-ever LCD on a gaming mouse, and a cable anchor that doubles as an accessories storage box.
For more info (and pictures), see the press release.
Soapbox will be based on a firm foundation of copyright owner respect.
Thomas Rubin, Microsoft's associate general counsel for copyright, said that unlike YouTube, Microsoft's Soapbox video-sharing site is designed to work in concert with copyright holders and that it represents an effort to be a good corporate citizen. Soapbox uses Audible Magic fingerprinting technology.
Awesome.
Microsoft has launched Tafiti, a Silverlight based search engine powered by Live Search.
Via Todd Bishop, Todd Bishop, Bink.nu, Bink.nu and LiveSide.
