[Fmpro] ASCAP and its new Digital Watermarking partner

[Mark Northam]

ASCAP's Mediaguide service, long criticized for not implementing digital
watermarking that would benefit score and CPA composers for television
performances the most, in November signed a deal with a television video
watermarking company, apparently to refer digital watermarking needs of
broadcasters OUT to the other company, Teletrax.

Maybe ASCAP members, like ASCAP, need to refocus on technology outside of
ASCAP to provide this valuable service...:? This would tend to send a pretty
strong signal that ASCAP has no intention of adopting digital watermarking
itself, at least not any time soon.

Over the last several months, numerous calls and emails to Mediaguide have
not been returned - no surprise - apparently composers are far too "small
fry" for the bigshots at Mediaguide to worry about... Despite the fact that
we as ASCAP members pay 50% of their salaries and underwrite the continuing
multi-million dollar losses of Mediaguide. Amazing.

Best,

Mark Northam

----------------------------

Teletrax and Mediaguide Announce Commitment To Jointly Provide TV and Radio
Intelligence
2006/11/13

NEW YORK, November 13, 2006 ­ Given the recent consolidation in the
television and radio business intelligence environment, Mediaguide, a
leading radio verification service, and Teletrax, the global television
intelligence company, announced today a commitment to jointly serve the
needs of advertisers, their agencies and media buyers, broadcasters, and
other content owners in tracking the use of their audio and video across
more than 4,000 radio and television stations worldwide. Teletrax is a
subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated (Nasdaq: MDLK) and a joint
venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG) and
Medialink.

³In today¹s fragmented media landscape, many clients require cross-media
solutions,² said Andy Nobbs, president of Teletrax. ³We believe that
Teletrax and Mediaguide provide best-of-breed media solutions in an
extraordinarily complementary way. Teletrax now covers more than 180 U.S.
television markets, all major terrestrial, cable and satellite networks, and
the major broadcasters of more than 50 nations across the globe.²

³Mediaguide currently provides advertising intelligence on more than 2,600
radio stations nationwide,² stated Steve Lubin, chief executive officer of
Mediaguide. ³We are excited to jointly offer the media industry an
unprecedented breadth of broadcast information.²

While each company will continue to provide its unique services to its
respective client base, the commitment announced today provides for a
coordinated client experience. The commitment announced today will enable
both Teletrax and Mediaguide to better reach clients seeking a cross-media
solution through referrals to each other¹s industry-leading service.

Using cutting-edge technologies, both companies provide world-class content
management solutions to key sectors of the media industry. The
patent-pending Mediaguide audio fingerprinting solution is used by
performers, publishers and the recording, advertising, radio, and television
industries. The proprietary, award-winning Teletrax video watermarking
system is used by companies, including ABC Television Network, Fox
Broadcasting Company, NBC News Channel, Reuters Television, and ITN
Networks.
---------------------------------
Mark Northam - Publisher
Film Music Magazine / Film Music Weekly
The Professional Voice of Music for Film & TV
http://www.filmmusicmag.com
1-800-774-3700 x702 / (310) 645-9000 x702