Media News - Thursday, September 02, 2010

Ping! Apple enters social media market via music

Ping - Apple's new social media network - will allow users to follow friends' music interests working in a stream of updates similar way to Facebook or Twitter Having cornered the MP3 player, mobile phone and computer tablet markets with the iPod, iPhone and iPad devices respectively, last night Apple announced its latest expansion – into social media – with Ping. Ping will be integrated into Apple's latest iTunes software update and will enable users, or "Pingers", to follow musicians, friends and others to see details including what music they're buying and what concerts they're attending. Steve Jobs, Apple's chairman and chief executive, said the information will arrive in a long stream of updates, similar to the way Facebook and Twitter work. "Be as private or as public as you want. The privacy is super-easy to set up," he said adding that users can choose to automatically accept followers or decide on a follower-by-follower basis – similar sounding controls to those on Twitter. The service is available immediately to more than 160 million iTunes users, Jobs said, and will also be available across the iPhone and iPod Touch ranges. (The Guardian)

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Apple TV takes aim at Web-connected living room

Apple Inc unveiled a smaller, cheaper version of its Web-to-TV device on Wednesday, stepping up a battle with Google Inc and Microsoft Corp for control of the digital living room. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs also rolled out a completely overhauled lineup of iPod media players and the latest version of iTunes, with a new logo that does away with the outdated image of a CD. The new Apple TV device, which accesses content from the Internet and plays it on a TV, will sell for USD 99. It is a quarter the size of the original, which cost USD 229. The 4-inch-square device allows users to rent TV shows for 99 cents and first-run films for USD 4.99. Earlier models, which allowed users to only buy shows, failed to find a major audience. Alongside renting TV shows and movies, Apple TV users will be able to stream content from video rental site Netflix Inc. Analysts were lukewarm toward the device, though some saw it as only a small, initial step in a much more ambitious plan. (Reuters)

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Denmark plans terrorism charge against Kurdish TV

The Danish government said on yesterday it backed the filing of terrorism-related charges against two Denmark-based companies behind a Kurdish television station that prosecutors accuse of promoting the PKK militant group. Danish Justice Minister Lars Barfoed said in a statement that he supported the prosecutors’ request to bring charges against the backers of Roj-TV for “promoting the activities of a terror organisation”. Denmark’s public prosecutors’ office said in a separate statement that charges would be brought against the Denmark-based companies Roj-TV A/S and Mesopotamia Broadcast A/S METV under section 114 of the Danish Criminal Code. That section makes it a criminal offence to promote the activities of an individual, group or association that commits or intends to commit acts of terrorism, the prosecutors said. Prosecutors will also seek to have Roj-TV’s Danish broadcasting licence suspended, they said. The station is available by satellite in Turkey and various European and Middle Eastern countries. The case will be heard by the Copenhagen City Court, but a trial date has not yet been set, the prosecutors said. (Reuters via Media Weblog)

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Amazon seeking to launch TV, movie subscriber service: WSJ

Amazon is seeking to launch a service that would give paying subscribers unlimited access to television shows and movies over the Internet, The Wall Street Journal said Wednesday. The newspaper, citing “people with knowledge of the proposal,” said the move is a bid by Amazon to take on movie service Netflix and grab a bigger slice of the online TV business. It said the Seattle-based company has proposed the Web-based subscription service to several major media companies including NBC Universal, Time Warner and Viacom among others. The Journal said Amazon would like to launch its new video service in time for the holiday season, “but it is unclear if any media company intends to participate.” It said the plan could could be delayed or shelved if not enough companies sign on. The service would be viewable on the Internet or through devices such as Web-connected TVs or Xbox 360 videogame consoles that play television shows and movies Amazon already sells on an individual basis, the newspaper said. Like Apple’s iTunes, Amazon currently offers TV shows for USD 1.99 per episode. The Journal said subscriptions could be bundled with the Amazon Prime service that gives offers free shipping on purchases. It said spokesmen for Amazon, NBC Universal, Time Warner and Viacom declined to comment on the proposed service. (AFP)

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The New York Times is latest newspaper to tightly integrate Facebook

The New York Times introduced Facebook integration earlier this week, allowing users to more easily share stories to Facebook, and see what stories their friends have already been sharing. It’s using the social plugins that Facebook launched in April, including the Like/Recommend Button, similar to what rivals like The Washington Post have already been doing. The integration is opt-in and merges a user’s existing nytimes.com account with their Facebook network; after doing so, the user will be able to see which Facebook friends have recently recommended stories, and lets the user recommend stories to Facebook directly from nytimes.com. The Times notably chose to use a closed system whereby users will only see activity from their Facebook friends but not from other Facebook users. Part of this feature is also to aggregate the most recommended stories into a feed on the Times’ web site. The New York Times created a FAQ section for users with questions about the new set up. (Insidefacebook.com)

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Lesson for journalists: Falsifying tweets isn’t wise

While journalism students are being trained for the repercussions of social media in classrooms, journalists in the real world are learning lessons the hard way. Mike Wise, a sports reporter for The Washington Post, was suspended for a month for advertising false information on his Twitter account. The Washington Post announced Wise had tweeted a false story on Monday that Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger would only be suspended for five games instead of six. Wise made his point that news spreads quickly, as the Washington Post took action the same day for the embarrassment the tweet has caused. "Wise wasn't reporting. He was fabricating, which is the greatest sin in journalism," wrote The Washington Post. (Editors Weblog)

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