Netflix has been making waves in the broadband video space by integrating their service into everything, from the Roku set top and the Xbox 360, to TiVO units and DVD players. Now Netflix says they’ll be integrating the service into HDTVs from LG Electronics. This is the first time the Netflix service will be embedded directly into a television. Tim Alessi, director of product development for LG Electronics USA, says the Netflix-enhanced TVs will sell for roughly 0 to 0 more than a regular HDTV set.
read comment(s)

Link to the original article…

The RIAA recently announced they’d hashed out closed door deals with a number of ISPs to terminate the connections of customers who receive too many warning letters from the industry. Their existing system of DMCA letter generation relies on data collected by largely unaccountable and secretive organizations like BayTSP and Media Sentry. Picking up on an earlier P2PNet report by Jon Newton, the Wall Street Journal reports the RIAA has fired the controversial Media Sentry, instead hiring DtecNet out of Copenhagen to monitor your BitTorrent bad habits.
read comment(s)

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Seoul Metropolitan Government holding ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival 2008′, the gala of lights from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009.

In the festival, a non-verbal performance using percussion instrument was held to celebrate Dong Ji, Korean event of the winter solstice.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Seoul Metropolitan Government holding ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival 2008′, the gala of lights from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009.

In the festival, the Wish Tree is entertaining visitors, which is a special tree that has been put up so you can hang their wish notes on its branches.

(Picture: The Wish Tree brings us hopes and a promise for a brighter tomorrow)

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING) — Symwave announced that the company will demonstrate the world’s first USB 3.0 storage solution boasting 5Gbps transfer speed at the upcoming CES 2009. Offering greater energy efficiency, it is compatible current USB 2.0/1.1 devices.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Cheonggyecheon Stream, where Hi Seoul Winter Festival takes place from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009, is a nearly 6km creek flowing west to east through the city centre of Seoul. In the festival, visitors can experience historical photos along the Cheonggyecheon Stream.

The Cheonggyecheon used to be a naturally formed stream before the Joseon Dynasty designated Seoul as its capital. In 1411, a temporary authority named ‘Gaecheondogam’ was set up to take care of the task of overhauling the stream. In 1441, an underwater column marked with notches, was set up in the west side of Majeongyo(Bridge) to measure the water level in an effort against floods.

After the Japanese invasion in 1592 and…

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Seoul Metropolitan Government holding ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’, the gala of lights from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009.

During the festival, ‘Drawing Show’, a non-verbal performance of art, music, dance, light and slapstick humor is entertaining visitors.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — LED lights are installed in shapes of snow flowers and ripples in a pond against the backdrop of Cheonggyecheon’s clear water during the Hi Seoul Winter Festival.

Shapes of snow crystals big and small are reminiscent of snow white snowflakes and the ripples of light like waves offer joy to citizens in a cozy and romantic winter mood.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Foreign visitors who came to Hi Seoul Winter Festival are enjoying LED lights that show an image of stars dotting the night sky descending to the ground.

The Hi Seoul Winter Festival will take place until January 18 , 2009 at the Seoul Plaza, Cheonggyecheon Stream, and other downtown areas of Seoul.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Special wedding proposal wall installed in Dumuldari bridge, one of 22 stylish bridges crossing Cheonggyecheon stream, is attracting young lovers during Hi Seoul Winter Festival that takes place from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009.

Offering a unique love-themed service with a newly built special screen, the ‘Proposal Wall’ provides people with an opportunity to propose to their partner and make a magic memory for the future.

Friends of the couples as well as pedestrians who happen to spot the couples while walking along the stream applaud these young lovers as they stand under the bridge surrounded with beautiful lights, flowers and tall buildings.

< !!co...

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — During Hi Seoul Winter Festival that takes place from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009, carriage ride services around Cheonggyecheon Stream attract visitors’ attention. Approximate fare is per three persons.

Link to the original article…

SEOUL, Korea (AVING Special Report on ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival’) — Seoul Metropolitan Government holding ‘Hi Seoul Winter Festival 2008′, the gala of lights from Dec. 19 to Jan. 18, 2009. During the festival, the 2008 Centre Georges Pompidou Exhibition “Heaven for Artists” is held under the theme of ‘Arcadia’ concept, from Nov. 22 to Mar. 22, 2009 in Seoul Museum of Art.

The exhibition presents how ‘the images of heaven’ were expressed and analyzed in contemporary ways by European artists around Paris after the 20th century by looking deeply into the relationship between their mythology, history, and literature.

This exhibition not only gives a chance to appreciate the best 39 modern artists ranging from the 20th century artists including Picasso, M…

Link to the original article…

Last May, we broke the news that Comcast would be implementing a 250GB monthly bandwidth cap. In October, that cap went live without an official usage monitor. Last December, a Comcast insider leaked us word (and screenshots) of a new bandwidth meter they told us would go live January 5 (next Monday). According to our source, the tool won’t show bandwidth usage in real time, but will operate under a three hour delay. It will also retain three months of bandwidth usage records, and will come with the option of monitoring multiple MAC addresses.

When asked for comment this afternoon on whether the tool drops next week, Comcast would only confirm that the meter is still being worked on. The company wouldn’t confirm the January 5 launch date, or provide a more specific launch window.

“We have not officially announced anything about launching the meter on a specific date,” says spokesman Charlie Douglas. “We are working on a meter and I can confirm that we are currently running an employee trial,” says Douglas.

“As soon as the trial is complete and we are completely satisfied with the tool, then we will launch it,” he says. “Until then, customers can use the meter included with our McAfee Security Suite or they can download and use a variety of meters that exist online.”

If it doesn’t drop on Monday it shouldn’t be too long of a wait. Comcast continues to insist that less than 1% of their users should ever brush against this cap. If you’re one of those, or you’re just curious about the new meter, keep your eye peeled on the Comcast excessive use FAQ.
read comment(s)

Link to the original article…

The promise of Internet anonymity has always been a refuge for snake oil salesmen looking to profit from the RIAA’s scorched earth legal campaign. There have been countless operations over the years that have offered everything from specialized VPN software and supposedly anonymous DSL to proxy servers or encryption in order to supposedly protect users from the ever watchful eye of the entertainment industry.

With the RIAA now supposedly ditching the “sue ‘em all” campaign in exchange for making ISPs Internet babysitters, the market is apparently hot once again for anonymity products, particualy ones capable of dodging looming ISP filters. Torrent Freak directs our attention to a new outfit named VPN4Life, which is promising a lifetime of unlimited, anonymous VPN-based BitTorrent access for (.00 introductory). From the site:

Like most promises of Internet anonymity this is likely not a high quality operation, especially considering the fact that traditional VPN services offering unlimited data transfers cost in the neighborhood of - per month.
read comment(s)

Link to the original article…

The VoIP sector suffered an existential crisis this week, with many in the industry debating whether the technology was alive, dead, or on life support. Former Microsoft manager Alec Saunders declared that VoIP was dead. Jeff Pulver, co-founder of Vonage and founder of Free World Dial Up insists that VoIP is far from dead. Jeff retains the revolutionary tone popular before the SunRocket kerfuffle marred consumer opinion of independent VoIP:

Others correctly observe that VoIP has simply changed shape. Gone are the “change the world” discussions of voice simply being data with an inevitable price point of zero. In their place is a residential VoIP market now dominated (to the tune of almost 90%) by the nation’s largest cable operators. Comcast is now the nation’s fourth largest phone company, adding half a million VoIP subscribers in the third quarter alone.

On the opposite trajectory is Vonage, the poster child for the independent VoIP movement, who many predict will finally fold in 2009. While Vonage struggles, the nation’s two largest phone companies are prepared to finally take VoIP more seriously. Previously hamstrung by fears that they’d further cannibalize declining landline revenues, both AT&T and Verizon have major plans for VoIP in 2009.

Residential VoIP isn’t dead as much as it is transformed — from baby boomer with revolutionary ambitions, to a mid-level office manager dreaming of a bigger cubicle. Just a few years ago, the talk was about how pesky upstart VoIP operators would someday make voice communications free. Now, the talk is about whether you’ll be getting your VoIP/broadband/TV triple play from a phone or a cable company.
read comment(s)

Link to the original article…