The Wires (October 18, 2007)

insideradio.com (fee required): Retail staffs get schooled on HD Radio. iBiquity is re-launching its retail sales training website, HDRadioUniversity.com, in an effort to better educate salespeople selling HD Radio products in an "informative and fun way." iBiquity VP Bernie Sapienza says the site has been redesigned to present an "efficient approach to helping salespeople stay up-to-date on new products and maximize their sales."

GOP pushes for Fairness Doctrine vote. Frustrated a bill to block the policy's reinstatement hasn't been put on the calendar, House Republicans are using a rarely-used maneuver to get their bill to the floor for a vote. In what amounts to a petition drive, sponsor Mike Pence (R-IN) will work to get 218 signatures to force a vote on his Broadcaster Freedom Act.

Imus eyes RFD-TV deal. Don Imus is in what the New York Times calls "serious discussions" with RFD-TV, the cable network targeting rural America, to simulcast his soon-to-launch radio show. The Omaha-based network is available in 30 million homes. Insiders say they hope to use the Imus deal to expand their reach onto more cable systems.

TV Technology: Hitachi Sets Record for Hard Drive Data Packing. Hitachi Ltd. has announced the development of a very small read head for hard drives, which, when implemented, could quadruple storage capacity.

TV Technology: Fox Business Debuts in 720p. The new Fox channel for business launched itself from its New York City headquarters early Monday morning (Oct. 15), with a full 16:9 screen and 720p image to show for itself.

TV Technology: USB Stick Records HD/SD Off-Air. USB sticks are used for a wide array of mostly PC tasks these days ranging from a typical storage back-up resource to partnering up with a wireless mouse for laptops. Pinnacle, a division of Avid, has now introduced a USB stick which it says can record and play back digital and analog video, as well as HD (albeit it in limited quantities).

RadioWorld: Let the ‘Monetizing’ of HD2s Begin. It’s good to see the HD Digital Radio Alliance loosening restrictions on HD2 format selection for 2008 and making plans for “monetizing” those channels.

RadioWorld: AM IBOC at Night: The Story Continues. Plenty of readers have told us what they’re hearing with AM IBOC at night. What’s your experience?

ZDNet: Google launches 'highly complicated' YouTube copyright tool. Larry Dignan: Technical details were sparse, but Google says it will terminate accounts of "repeat infringers based on DMCA notices." From Sonny Melendrez -- Can radio relive it's glory? Yes and no. What we heard in the past belongs to the past. However the ingredients that made it great are as valid today as when this 1950 vintage Hallicrafters S-40B radio was built. Real radio has always been about the moment. Even the pre-recorded serial programs from the early days of the medium contained a sense of the unexpected. Another timeless glory-element is the simple technique of "wowing the audience".

USENET Targeted by RIAA. Looks like the last bastion of illegal song sharing has been sighted by the RIAA. In an ongoing effort to decrease the amount of illegal file sharing on the Internet, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is suing Fargo, ND-based Usenet.com. In the copyright infringement lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, 14 recording companies allege that the service "enables and encourages its customers to reproduce and distribute millions of infringing copies of Plaintiff's valuable copyrighted sound recordings," according to Wired. The suit claims Usenet.com encourages its customers to pay up to $19 a month by enticing them with copyrighted music, and asks for a permanent injunction barring the company from "aiding, encouraging, enabling, inducing, causing, materially contributing to, or otherwise facilitating" such infringement. . Read the rest at the link above.

RadioInk: RIAA Labels Sue Usenet.com. Fresh off a triumph in the first peer-to-peer infringement case to go to court in the U.S., a group of RIAA member labels has filed suit against paid Usenet provider Usenet.com, saying it encourages and facilitates copyright infringement.

All Access reports that CBS News KFWB 980 in Los Angeles is now offering 6am-8am PT Saturdays and Sundays for sale to block programmers.