Tom Betz 's Techdirt Comments

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  • On the post: How Many Times Will Skype Be Acquired For Too Much Money By Big Tech Companies With Little Strategic Synergies?

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 10 May, 2011 @ 08:38am

    Has anyone thought about patents?

    What patents does Skype own that Microsoft could use to troll all the other VOIP providers into submission, just as Microsoft is now trying to troll Android phone builders into submission?

    I suspect that patents are the real reason Microsoft bought Skype.

    I see a purchase like this one, I immediately think "Intellectual Ventures".

  • On the post: Fox News Tries Selective DMCA Takedowns: If Liberal Bloggers Use It, Take It Down

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 15 Nov, 2009 @ 08:10am

    Re: Ignorant winger Joe...

    ... wrote: As if MSNBC will show anything negative to the DNC or Obama.

    Even leaving out the three hour Republican message machine that is Joe Scarborough in the morning, both Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann (and their really conservative guests like Prof. Jonathan Turley) regularly criticize the Democratic leadership in Congress and the actions of President Obama's White House, when they find those actions to be wrong.

    When did the Fox Propaganda Channel ever criticize the actions or policies of the Bush Administration while it was in office?

  • On the post: Glenn Beck Not Allowed To Rape And Murder An Internet Meme

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 06 Nov, 2009 @ 06:02pm

    For what it's worth, the latest version still resides in the Google Cache, so if you want to take one last trip down memory lane, do it now!

    http://74.125.47.132/search?q=cache:http://glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com/

  • On the post: Newspaper Publisher: Search Engines Break Into Our Homes

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 15 Sep, 2009 @ 09:39am

    Having his cake and eating it too.

    I left a comment for the Telegraph's story; anyone care to wager on whether it gets published? Obviously, Brendan Hopkins has never heard of "robots.txt". I suggest he Google the term, or ask his webmaster about it. It is the standard means of politely telling search engines to bugger off, and Google happily honors it. If Mr. Hopkins doesn't want Google to index his newspaper web sites, he need only tell them so via "robots.txt", and his web sites will soon find the obscurity they so richly deserve. However, I suspect that Brendan Hopkins in reality wants to have his cake (Google helping him to publicize the content on his web sites) and eat it too (hypocritically complain about Google publicizing that same content).

  • On the post: NBC Unwilling To Pay Music Publishing Fees For Jimmy Fallon Show

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 22 Feb, 2009 @ 07:43am

    This is nothing new...

    ... Craig Ferguson has been complaining forever about the license-free canned music CBS forces him to use on-air. Of course, CBS is also too cheap to pay for a Late Late Show house band...

  • On the post: Still Waiting For The Internet's Major Impact On Politics

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 24 Mar, 2007 @ 07:32am

    Re: The Effect Is More Subtle

    Hmmm... for some reason., the Subject of my prior comment was cut off. I have restored it fully in this comment.

  • On the post: Still Waiting For The Internet's Major Impact On Politics

    Tom Betz ( profile ), 24 Mar, 2007 @ 07:28am

    The

    For example, without the work of Talking Points Memo and its readers, the scandal surrounding the "Pearl Harbor Day 8" US Attorney firings would have disappeared quickly. Because of Paul Kiel's lead investigative work, it promises to open windows on the Bush administration's campaign to corrupt and politicize the Department of Justice that could blow open doors to the rest of the administration's corruption.

    And without the efforts of the Daily Kos and other group blogs, there would not be a Democratic majority in the House (and especially the Senate) and all of Paul Kiel's work would have been for naught, because there would be nobody empowered to take this important investigation into the White House.

    And this is just the beginning.