Microsoft jumps on Soapbox for YouTube rival

Microsoft has made its latest attempt to jump onto the Web 2.0 bandwagon with the unveiling of a user-driven video service. Like YouTube, the Web's most popular video site, Soapbox on MSN Video lets users upload personal videos where others can view, rate and comment on them. ...more

Universal pilots film download partnership with Wippit.com

Universal Pictures UK has signed a deal with music download service Wippit.com to offer movies via a 'download to own' service. This is the first time a Hollywood studio has signed a deal with an independent download service, claims Wippit. ...more

iPod pushes 200 per cent Apple profits leap

Apple's profits increased by 228 per cent, year-on-year, driven by a 909 per cent rise in iPod sales. The company's latest quarterly financial results - Q2 2004 - showed a profit of $46mn, compared to $14m a year ago. As a result the all-important earnings per share figure rose from $0. ...more

21st century bullying, a modern menace

UK charity claims one in four youngsters subject to bullying by threatening emails or text messages. According to a survey commissioned by the children's charity NCH, bullying by means of mobile phones and PCs is widely prevalent. Figures quoted by NCH include 16 per cent of young people receiving bullying or threatening text messages, and a further four per cent receiving threatening emails. ...more

AOL admits accounting impropriety

AOL Time Warner has admitted that its America Online (AOL) division may have overstated revenues. Three weeks ago the SEC, the US financial regulator, launched an investigation into allegations made by the Washington Post newspaper that AOL had boosted revenues with 'unconventional deals'. AOL has now said that it may have reclassified one-off payments received - totalling $49 mn over six quarters - as revenues from advertising and ecommerce. ...more