10-03-2002, 05:00 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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DataPlay ready to close up shop
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-960514.html
DataPlay, the darling of several computer shows last year, seems ready to call it quits. They have simply run out of cash. Two years ago a disk that held 500MB on a relatively cheap media the size of a quarter looked very appealing. Then some ugly truths came out. I talked about some of them in this article back in April.
"Major record labels have supported the format, and DataPlay expected to have discs featuring artists such as Britney Spears and N'Sync on the market by the end of this month." However, they have run out of money and can't seem to find the funding necessary to complete this phase of the business. Well, I am sorry to see any company close its doors because those employee's lives are affected, but I am glad potential investors haven't put more money into it. It could be the overall cloud over the technology sector, but my bet is investors see now that consumers simply will not put up with media that prevents them from making a copy of the product they purchased to listen to on different devices in the house or car.
If they can come up with a Digital Rights Management technology to lock content to a person and not a device, I'll sign up for it immediately. Until then, good riddance to this device and any that follow in its footsteps.
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10-03-2002, 05:28 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 481
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I have been eager for DataPlay to get here for years, and they were getting sooo close (for years), so I was disappointed when I heard about this. I was still holding out hope they might pull through.
As far as the digital right management aspect goes, I was welcoming that on this medium. I figured if "they" had a new format with all the security they wanted, it would be a way for them to get their mitts off of our Compact Discs and not mess them up. The problem with everything they have come up with for CDs is it has affected honest people more than the dishonest. A new medium that was cluttered from the start wouldn't have expectations of it being open and available for all uses.
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10-03-2002, 05:29 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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Do we know, though, that DRM is what killed it, or if it was just time-to-market? The darn thing took so long to come out -- 500MB is not nearly as impressive anymore since we have SD cards that are 512MB-sized (admittedly, not so cheap, but that'll change -- take a look at the prices of CF cards today!)
--bdj
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10-03-2002, 05:45 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 59
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Dead but Not Dead
If you all have been following what has been going on in Congress of late with DRM and other Digital issues you know that congress and the President are caving to Hollywood. It seems even MS has caved as their news update to Win XP has serious DRM built-in.
We are looking at Tivo being made illegal soon with how the bills are being prepared. We are looking at our ability to make a copy of a show, movie or music taken away; even for our own personal use.
Few people are speaking out against this issue. It seems like many when you read this board and others, but in truth most Americans don't get it. We are, for the most part, ahead of the curve. Many of us have probably read at least one E-book, carry at least a few songs on our Pocket PC and maybe even have put a movie or two on our Pocket PC.
The industry isn't saying we can't do that... but they are saying we will have to pay for the right each time. They don't trust us at all. In some ways I don't blame them.... people make copies and give them to friends all the time which is a violoation of the copyright act. But it seems a case where a few bad apples seems to be ruining the barrel.
Hollywood and from I have read cheif amung them Disney, are pushing to take away any rights we have to copy the programs distributed by Hollywood. The first acts will allow them to attack and damage any computer they believe has illegal music or movies and if they accidently hit a good American... too bad, so sad. Also, if they destroy your computer in the process, regardless of whether you are a good or bad american... you will have no recourse. They are being given permission to hack...... which by the way makes them terrorist under current US guidelines (I don't think that is law yet) which means that the US congress and President are supporting terrorisim against American Citizens and by that fact... the US Gov't should consider itself it's own worst enemy.
Of course, we have known this for some time....
I may have my details a bit out of whack... but the essense of what I am saying is this....
Your right to have "back-Up" copies or to have the ability to have a song you love in multiple locations is going to be made if not illegal, impossible...without hacking and that will be illegal. Of course there is precedent for this in the computer industry... YOu may legally only have Office on one computer unless you have more than one license. The traditional book license is now nearly dead and buried.
If you own a Used CD shop or something like it... I susspect you are next on the Hollywood and RIAA hit list. You cost them money and it is finally, all about the money.
And who says greed won't get you anywhere......
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10-03-2002, 06:35 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 139
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Considering the speed at which flash memory is maturing, it was only a matter of time until this technology died.
As cool as it was a few years back at Comdex, it really couldn't compete with flash in regards to access speeds, power, form factor and media reliability.
__________________
Wes SalmonSoftware Test EngineerMicrosoft Mobile and Embedded Devices
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10-03-2002, 07:06 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 390
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Panasonic already shows 1Gig SD card. Tho they say they won't start making it until there is demand and manufacturing price falls around next year.
http://www.idg.com.sg/idgwww.nsf/uni...4?OpenDocument
Matsu****a's current SD memory card road map calls for a 2G-byte card to follow the planned 1G-byte version sometime in 2004 and then cards in 4G-byte, 8G-byte and 16G-byte capacities to follow from 2005.
Phillips also shows some prototype of SFFO, 1Gig optical the size of CFII.
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/pc/do.../philips00.jpg
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/pc/do...003/yamada.htm
So, all in all, DataPlay has been obsolete before they get their act straight. Nobody wants to spend $10 for a one time use disc when you can get smaller $70-80 CF or SD that can be used repeatedly. It just add too much cost for OEM to add the optical drive when a simple chipset for SD will do similar task at a fraction of the cost.
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10-03-2002, 07:23 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 481
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by BigDaddyJ
Do we know, though, that DRM is what killed it, or if it was just time-to-market?
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On the contrary, I was thinking that the DRM would save the format, because it got the big bucks of the recording industry behind it. I had figured that was what would finally make it happen.
And, I'd take a $10 write-once 500MB for song/movie storage any day over $75+ for half that on a rewritable I'd have to keep reloading all the time. True, that it is a mechanical device is a distinct disadvantage, but the cost vs. capacity advantage is still tipped way toward DataPlay.
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10-03-2002, 07:30 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,060
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Re: Dead but Not Dead
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Originally Posted by Kemas
Few people are speaking out against this issue...
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And the reason is that all the news stories and hubub surrounding it always paints the issue in the light of piracy. People hear "In an attempt to cut down on software piracy, which costs American businesses 18 gajillion dollars a year..." and they tune it out. "I don't steal software. I don't steal music. This doesn't pertain to me."
Now, if they heard "In an attempt to keep Americans from recording absolutely anything on their own VCRs and from using a music CD on more than one player..." I think they'd pay more attention.
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10-03-2002, 07:53 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 59
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Re: Dead but Not Dead
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Brad Adrian
Now, if they heard "In an attempt to keep Americans from recording absolutely anything on their own VCRs and from using a music CD on more than one player..." I think they'd pay more attention.
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I wish I believed this... but I work in IT and many of the people I work with still believe that congress would never pass a law that would basically make the current "fair use law" disappear. They believe that the "fair Use" portion of the copyright laws would first have to be removed before we could lose our rights to simply record a digital broadcast or have the latest Madonna hit on our desktop, notebook and car MP3 player at the same time.
If I have misunderstood what I have been reading hte past three weeks, please tell me.
The way this issue is being tackled though is quite simply going around this problem. Will people complain eventually, sure. But they have complained that CD prices are too high for some time now and they aren't going down in price and we all know that you seldom get a CD with more than 45 or 50 minutes of music and most of the tracks are either extream bubble gum or just plain horrible. The RIAA response will be to say we can buy single tracks on-line but with restrictions. Break the restrictions and you could go to jail. The music industry is still a multi-billion dollar ball game... sales might be down but no one is really hurting... This isn't about artist either... they are paid well... but the music companies make most of the money.
The Movie Industry will play the same game as will the TV industry only they are going after those that push the product out to us with a compelling argument... you need us, more than we need you. If HBO couldn't get hit movies anymore and DirecTV subscribers dipped becuase HBO and others ceased to exist and Pay Per View didn't exist.... what do you think they will do. Because in the begining they will say.. this only afects some of our customers.
There is a two arm approach to the digital media. Either producers of products love it, Hollywood or hate it, book publishers. Those that love it fear it will be copied and those that hate it fear it will be copied. Those that love it are looking for any means to control severly and those that hate are pricing it out of existance. Ever tried to buy an E-Book of a main stream author... same price as the hard back and no discounts.
I just have no belief the American People will see the problem for what it is and when they do, I don't think they will do anything about it. They wono't know how and they simply will believe that "one person can not make a difference."
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10-03-2002, 08:53 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 390
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by PPCRules
And, I'd take a $10 write-once 500MB for song/movie storage any day over $75+ for half that on a rewritable I'd have to keep reloading all the time. True, that it is a mechanical device is a distinct disadvantage, but the cost vs. capacity advantage is still tipped way toward DataPlay.
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not by much.
The dataplay music player is about $300, and they have yet to announce a computer reader model. It will be around the same range i suppose. So right there your price advantage has vaporized.
Right now a 128SD goes for abou $70, and 256 goes for about $170, by christmas I wouldn't be surprise if 128 SD goes for $50-60, and 256 for $150.
at the cost of 2 players dataplay readers $500 and 10 disk $100, you can get a 256 + 512mb around this christmas. (and the data play has yet to show up)
the cost of dataplay just keeps adding for each portable devices reader, while the SD price keep going down. the deal breaker is the reader, It's bulky and expensive to make it a common device. And in the long run it is limited to 500mb, plan for 1Gig and rewritable doesn't seem to go anywhere. It jsut cannot out run the SD price performance rate.
so ultimately the hassle cost is high compare to SD.
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