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Digital Rights Summit

It's tough to know which CDs, SACDs, and DVD-Audio discs have been restricted through watermarks or other "copy protection" techniques. This has created a thriving underground community, with websites such as Fat">http://www.fatchucks.com">Fat Chuck's devoted to sussing out the corrupted audio products and posting notification to consumers.

Music Publishers Sue Bertelsmann

In October 2000, during Napster's prolonged courtroom agony, Bertelsmann">http://www.bertelsmann.de">Bertelsmann AG alienated fellow music industry plaintiffs by investing $50 million in a strategic partnership with the file-sharing upstart. At the time, Bertelsmann hoped to leverage Napster's technical expertise and fame to give Bertelsmann Music Group the inside track with Internet music distribution.

High-Rez PC On the Way?

HTPCs are hot among home theater cognoscenti. Using a personal computer to anchor an audio/video system has boomed in recent years due to the availability of high quality video processing software, Dolby Digital and DTS decoding support, and DVD transports. HTPCs (home">http://www.guidetohometheater.com/news/11166/">home theater personal computers) also thrive in part because of the tinkering gene shared by many enthusiasts.

Cablevision Dumping Wiz Stores

The">http://www.thewiz.com/wiz/app/CeMain">The Wiz may not be long for this world. On Monday, February 10, Cablevision">http://www.cablevision.com">Cablevision Systems Corporation announced that it would sell or close its remaining 17 consumer electronics stores, all in the New York metro area, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The announcement came only a few days after Circuit City announced major cutbackshttp://www.stereophile.com/news/11569/">cutbacks; of its workforce and the elimination of sales commissions.

Added to the Archives This Week

Michael Fremer investigates the Parasound">http://www.stereophile.com//amplificationreviews/774/">Parasound Halo JC 1 monoblock power amplifier, exclaiming, "The 5-to-1 ratio of cost to retail price suggests that the "raw" cost of the JC 1 is about $600—a number almost impossible to believe, given the superb build quality and sheer heft of this powerhouse monoblock." And then there is the sound.

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