News roundup... [24/06/2002]

By Alun Williams

Posted on 24 Jun 2002 at 17:23

Here, in brief, are some of the day's other stories. Microsoft's IM goes mobile; Digital rights case broadened; Next-gen ADSL; Artistes suffer from geek fans...

• MS IM goes mobile The reach of Microsoft's Instant Messenger now extends to mobile phones in Europe. Essentially, you will be able to continue your chat - in instant message form - when moving away from your PC. Reuters reports that operators in Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Austria, Turkey and Norway have launched a new service working together with MSN. The UK, you will notice, is not part of the list - the major operators have yet to sign up to the deal. It is believed, however, that more than 30 million people will have access to the new service. A first for Europe, but AOL's Instant Messenger has been available on American mobiles since the end of last year.


• Digital rights case broadened InterTrust Technologies is 'substantially broadening' its patent infringement lawsuit against Microsoft. The case involves patents for trusted computing and digital rights management. Seeking compensatory and punitive damages, InterTrust is now seeking an injunction against Microsoft products that include Windows XP, Office XP, Microsoft .Net, and a number of Microsoft .Net-based products and services. The US court case now covers 11 patents, 144 claims and over 190 separate infringement scenarios.


• Next-gen ADSL Faster ADSL services are to be launched in Tokyo, according to a report from Kyodo News. The company eAccess is due to launch a new broadband service in October that will have an access speed of 12Mbits/sec (up from the current 8Mbits/sec) operating within a wider range of 6 to 7km (an increase on its current range of 4 to 5km).


• Artistes suffer from geek fans One from Slashdot: the musician Moby believes he is currently experiencing the 'Pearl Jam' phenomenon, whereby artists with a techy following suffer in the chart sales stakes. The explanation? The more technical savvy are downloading music or burning CDs while the less technologically literate simply buy an acts' CD... [more...]