Noise

by Alan Sheckter
Fall 2001

Jump on Nokia Bandwagon
Nokia's new Media Terminal is billed as an innovative "infotainment" device. The multimedia unit will combine digital video broadcasts (DVB), gaming, streaming and downloadable digital media, full Internet access and personal video recorder (PVR) technology, such as pause-and-play of live TV.
Nokia is also getting some help from its friends. They recently announced that Media Terminal would be preinstalled with a Linux-based version of RealPlayer 8 and Linux-based games from Loki, helping turn the family television into a multifunctional entertainment center.
Direct from the living room, the Media Terminal will open up the family TV to multimedia applications and services such as interactive TV, full Web access and video-on-demand.
A fall, 2001 release date is expected for the Nokia Media Terminal at a still-to-be-determined price.

Kenwood Says 'Entré'
Called an "entertainment hub" by its creator, Kenwood Sovereign's Entré will offer multiple home-audio network functions in one unit. The Entré will store MP3 music files, stream Internet radio programming and serve as a main controller for other Sovereign components. Entré, available this summer for an $1,800 suggested retail price, will also allow users to create play-lists via on-screen menus, and stream multiple audio programs simultaneously to different rooms. Users will store and play MP3 or .wma music files on Entré's 20GB hard disk drive. In addition, Entré will have a built-in CD recorder, allowing audio CD-creation for the car or portable player. Users will be able to burn standard CD audio tracks and MP3 files onto CD-R and CD-RW discs.

LiveWave
Sets up Interactive TV Cams
Thanks to LiveWave's video technologies, Cranston, R.I.'s NBC-TV affiliate has become the first broadcaster to provide viewers with user-controllable cameras. Called ConvergenceCams, located in and around Providence's major freeways and landmarks, the remote cameras feature broadcast-quality video with pan, tilt and zoom capabilities. The station takes control of the cameras during its newscasts. But for the rest of the day and night, viewers can go to the stations Web site, turnto10.com, and while checking the traffic and weather, can control the cameras, aiming them where they want. In addition, LiveWave has installed remote-operated video cameras at the Roger Williams Zoo for the TV station. Internet viewers take turns looking all over the zoo from their homes. While home users take advantage of the ability to check freeway traffic, officials say the polar bear cam is the most popular.

Internet Radio Plays Copyright
Wait and See
Internet radio has recently taken a punch in the nose. Hundreds of the streaming stations recently suspended their real-time broadcasts, citing artist and advertising copyright issues. This about-face came just as the genre's momentum was building.
Yahoo! Radio, which hosted over 400 stations, recently suspended many broadcasts, at the stations' request. As of June 19, 2001, they remained down. Yahoo! Radio, according to its Web site, "will resume streaming these stations as soon as these issues are resolved."
WMGK-FM in Philadelphia, formerly the Internet's number 1 classic rock station, according to www.internetradiolist.com, was also off the air. Program Director Dan Michaels offered this online explanation: "Dear Internet Listener: We're very sorry that recent developments in the music business and the advertising business have forced our hand regarding the discontinuation of our online simulcast. Radio stations all over the United States have responded to these developments in similar fashion."
Michaels said an exact payment schedule has yet to be established to satisfy Congress' 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which provides copyright holders and advertisers additional payments for music simulcast over the Internet.

Two new SimpleDevices on the Horizon
Bridging the gap between the PC and home stereo, the soon-to-be-released SimpleFi digital audio receiver (pictured here) will allow users to wirelessly stream digital audio from the desktop to their home stereo equipment. Its SimpleServe application will also turn PCs into multimedia servers by offering the ability to build custom playlists from online MP3 downloads and CD uploads, as well as play live audio streams from online providers such as Live365, MP3.com and Kick.
Partnered with Motorola, who will manufacture and brand the device, SimpleFi will be available in September for $299, though is expected to drop to $249 within six months. In addition to being a retail purchase item, it might also be offered as a leased cable system appliance.
SimpleDevices also announced SimpleAuto, an on-demand, personalized audio content provider for the automobile. The SimpleAuto unit, kept in the vehicle, will possess a hard drive. When SimpleServe (which is included in both products), downloads content to your PC, it will also automatically update the SimpleAuto appliance in the car.
SimpleAuto is expected to be available as an aftermarket item (MSRP $399) early next year, and as a built-in feature in 2003 cars.