Quid Pro Quo Day

Las Vegas, Nevada. 10 PM local time.

IT'S BEEN a long day, an insightful day, but somehow I feel a little ripped-off all the same, like I missed out on some sort of cool media freebie. More likely it was the almost crass way I've been bought by one company (more on that in a moment).

Kicked off this morning with a chat with 312 Studios, releasing a DVD copying program "For archival purposes only." We met outside of Starbucks in the LVCC at 9:30 AM and I got an earful about how they are doing nothing wrong, how they want to reach a settlement with Hollywood and on and on. Nobody at the MPAA wants to talk to them, likely due to the fact that 321 is suing nine major motion picture companies in a pre-emptive strike against getting a DMCA court case. After all, their program duplicates DVDs, abet with three anti-piracy measures - 1) A video disclaimer saying the software is only to be used for fair use purposes (i.e. to back up your personal stuff) 2) Setting the bit flag on a DVD copy to prevent mass duplication of copies, and 3) An electronic watermark generated via registration that is imprinted into video. But, if that isn't enough, they are also going to be more PR "visible" and lobby for legislation to insure that American consumers have fair use rights for DVD-copying. Their web site has been set up to provide easy-to-lobby instructions for consumers to mail their Congressmen in support of pending legislation.

A meeting with AMD was more upbeat. The company is convinced they have a winner in their 64-bit x86 chip technology and given the mutterings I've heard about Itanium, I can't blame them. Since they'll be able to offer 64 bit performance at 32-bit prices, what's not to like? There will even be a 64-bit portable chip for the "thin and slim" notebook segment, so as the saying goes "What's not to like?"

My guilt today springs from the ticket I have to "O," the water ballet production of Cirque du Soleil. It's $121 bucks and was given to me for attending Creo's press conference. Yes, standing-room-only. It's a shame, because Creo's Six Degrees software to manage e-mail and files on the desktop sounds to be interesting and bears comparison to Microsoft's OneNote software. Call it a new class of software, desktop management. Creo organizes and groups e-mail and files and allows one to search those files quickly and easily. For the poor bastards who get 300+ e-mail a day about different topics (300+ work-related e-mail, I should say), Six Degrees may offer some relief. But I've been bought, so I can't say if this is my brain or my "O" ticket talking.

Comdex Snapshot #1 - Bad Journalists
If I had $10 for every "journalist" at Comdex that has started a question with a belief statement, I'd have enough money to cover my hotel room for the week - and then some. Just ask a question in question form and be seated, don't give everyone else in the room your world view.

Double ugly in the media briefing center for those people who see free food and start stocking up it like Afghan refugees. I guess I shouldn't feel like I'm entitled to a cookie, but when I see some bloke with a stack of six, plus one per hand, I'm annoyed.

Comdex Snapshot #2 - Bright Lights, Battered Prices
Once upon a time, Comdex hotel rooms started $250-300 per night at the major casinos, assuming you could find a room without pre-booking six months in advance. I'm writing this at an $80/night place and I'm thinking I might have overpaid. One reporter was bragging about his $59/night deal at the Luxor. Parking used to be another bonanza at $20/day. Now, $5 or $10 a day. Even adult entertainment has taken a pay cut, with exotic dancers charging a meeting fee to your room of $60; previous fees were $99. Of course, tips are extra and always appreciated, and no, I don't know if tip prices have gone down. µ