Dave Dumps Vonage, Acquires M-Card

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I had assumed the lawsuits would ultimately kill Vonage… And while they still might, as part of our moving prep, I made the decision to proactively kill service. My 2.5 years with them has been somewhat rocky, including poor customer service and call quality issues. Complaints from folks on the other end of the line is what finally led me to this decision.

In Vonage’s defense, I’ve really appreciated the voicemail->email feature and their pricing was extremely competitive. However, our multiple cell phones and SkypeOut should be sufficient going forward. If not, for the first time in years, we’ll consider going back to a reliable Verizon landline.

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Digital Media Bytes

A periodic roundup of relevant news… from our other blogs: HDTV Super Bowl Buying Spree: Connected Home 2 Go The Pros and Cons Of Media Center Vista: Davis Freeberg Hollywood Studios Abandon DVDs in 2008: Connected Home 2 Go HBO on the Web – Not a Time Warner Contradiction: Connected Home 2 Go Supercharge Your … Read more

TiVo Phasing Out Original Series3 Hardware (Production)

Based on an email TiVo reseller DVR Upgrade received, Mgeazone wrote that TiVo’s original Series3 hardware is being discontinued. Both he and I had assumed this day would eventually come, given the newer TiVo HD platform. However, at CES TiVo left me with the impression that they had no imminent plans to pull the plug… … Read more

Breaking News: TiVo v EchoStar

I just got off a plane in Minneapolis and will be tied up most of the day, but learned that the US Court of Appeals has rendered their decision (on testimony I attended). I haven’t had a chance to peruse the document, but here’s a cut & paste of the conclusion:

In sum, because of a failure of proof of literal infringement, we reverse the judgment of infringement of the hardware claims with respect to all of the accused devices. We remand for any further proceedings that may be necessary with respect to those claims. We affirm the judgment of infringement of the software claims with respect to all of the accused devices. Because the damages calculation at trial was not predicated on the infringement of particular claims, and because we have upheld the jury’s verdict that all of the accused devices infringe the software claims, we affirm the damages award entered by the district court.

The district court’s injunction was stayed during the course of these proceedings. The stay that was issued pending appeal will dissolve when this appeal becomes final. At that time, the district court can make a determination as to the additional damages, if any, that TiVo has sustained while the stay of the permanent injunction has been in effect.

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A Post-CES Jawbone Trade

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As I mentioned recently, the Jawbone folks ran a smart marketing campaign at CES: Trade in any Bluetooth headset for a Jawbone. Only problem was, I left my new Blueant Z9 (above left) at home because I haven’t been happy with it.

Fortunately, I worked out a post-show trade and I’ve been using the Jawbone for a few days (with my iPhone and MacBook Pro). I’m very pleased with the incoming and outgoing audio quality (and volume) and, despite the bulk, it’s comfortable. The Z9 handles multiple paired devices better, but clear conversation is more important to me – I’ve finally found a worthy successor to the rock solid Plantronics Voyager 510 (above right).

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Dr. DivX Saves The Day

Those who’ve been reading ZNF since my early TiVoToGo tutorial days should remember my fondness for the Dr. DivX video conversion utility. I’m not sure what led the DivX folks to kill the original app, but every now and then I find a use for the re-released open source version. At work, we’re hooking up … Read more

BitTorrent Gets More Industry Support… In Norway

Eirik Solheim alerted me that Norwegian Broadcasting is embracing BitTorrent: As one of many ways to reach people with our content we have decided to do an experiment and make one of our most popular television series available through BitTorrent. The files are MPEG4 H.264, 1024×576 25fps, 3 Mbit/s. No DRM. Spreading brand awareness online … Read more

Dave Dumps HD DVD

Yep, I’m putting my money where my mouth is – my HD DVD player is listed on ebay and my Netflix account has been updated (above). Toshiba may have purchased a $2.7 million Super Bowl ad spot, but that’s the last gasp of a dead format. In this next-gen optical disc battle, HD DVD “bought” … Read more