WebProNews

Tag: syndicate

  • CyanogenMod Domain Moves After Original Is Shut Down By Owner

    It would be a bit of an understatement to say that CyanogenMod is the most popular Android modding group on the Internet. It’s more accurate to say that these guys are the face of the Android modding scene. They weren’t always like that though, and their humble beginnings have presented a problem that has taken its original domain down.

    The team that would eventually become CyanogenMod got their start by releasing a ROM for the G1 over three years ago. Back then, the team’s public face, CyanogenMod.com, was bought by a third party and donated to them. The person responsible for buying the .com domain remained a member of the team and handled the team’s Web presence.

    The team claims that this person began to impersonate another member of the team to make money off of referral deals. The CyanogenMod team confronted the impersonator and asked for the domain back. Unsurprisingly, the answer was no.

    Now, this is where things get weird. The person responsible for the .com domain is now demanding $10,000 for control of the domain. Understandably, the CyanogenMod team refused to be extorted. So they took to their social media accounts and removed all permissions that pertained to the guy who owned the .com domain. Unfortunately, he still owns the team’s Google Apps for Business account so all of the team’s email accounts have been deleted. They also warn that any emails from @cyanogenmod.com are to be disregarded until further notice.

    To make maters worse, the owner of the .com domain has also taken down all the CyanogenMod Web sites that he could. That means the original .com domain is no longer available for use. The team has moved to their own .org domain, but are now going through ICANN to get their .com domain back.

    The team will still be working on quality Android ROMs, but there might be some delays in releases. They obviously have to sort out all the legal matters that have suddenly exploded in their collective faces.

  • Facebook Protects Name And Brand

    Did they really think Facebook wouldn’t notice? FacebookOfSex.com (previously owned by FriendFinder Networks) was able to live for about a year and had over four million visitors before Facebook was able to get the rogue domain shut down recently. Facebook now owns the rights to the domain name and has been very busy protecting its name and brand against several other trademark infringing domains.

    Besides FacebookOfSex.com, Facebook is seeking damages in the amount of $100,000 and control from FaceSounds.com, Killfacebook.com, moneywithfacebook.com, friendsonfacebook.com and eighteen other domain names that are treading on the brand’s name. According to the Facebook usage guidelines, when asked the question, “Can I used Facebook in my business name or domain name?”

    The answer is, “No. Use of the Facebook trademark or something confusingly similar in your company name or domain name, even in connection with goods/services that are arguably unrelated to those offered by Facebook, can both create consumer confusion as well as dilute the distinctiveness of the Facebook brand and weaken Facebook’s trademark rights.”

    @alasdairt
    Alasdair Townsend    LOL, the land ‘grab’ continues – Facebook gains control of FacebookOfS http://t.co/u8Z3XEaz URL – http://t.co/7ZFDjjwi 2 hours ago via TweetDeck ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

  • Syndicate Video Game Jacks Into Retail Today, Gains Positive Reviews

    War never changes, unless its being fueled by corporations that want to rule the financial world. If you’re thinking of Perfect Dark, you have to go further back to 1993. We’re talking about Syndicate.

    EA announced the launch of Syndicate today, the sequel/reimagining of the Bullfrog classic strategy game from 1993. The new Syndicate is a first-person shooter and the extreme genre change has angered some fans of the classic game. Looking at the game for what it is, however, there’s sure to be something here for fans of shooters and action games.

    The game is set in 2069 and takes place in a cyberpunk setting that’s reminiscent of Ghost in the Shell or the aforementioned Perfect Dark. It’s a world with no government and the free market taken to its absolute extreme – all out corporate war.

    syndicatenviro

    The game was developed by Starbreeze Studios who made a name for themselves with the excellent Chronicles of Riddick games and my choice for best first-person shooter of the past five years, The Darkness.

    EA is really banking on this game so they pulled out the star power with Rosario Dawson and Brian Cox taking on the roles as executives for one of the largest syndicates in the game’s world. The story should be no slacker either with the tale being written by Richard Morgan.

    The game features your usual single-player campaign, but the main focus is definitely the four-player co-op mode. The co-op campaign is separate from the main campaign and has the player working for a start-up syndicate trying to take on the big guys.

    The game’s major hook is the ability to use a chip implanted in the character’s head that allows players to slow down time, see through walls and other cool sci-fi technologies.

    syndicatescifi

    I had a chance to try out the co-op a few weeks ago and I can confirm that the game is a blast. I wish that the people I was teamed up with in the random lobby weren’t so selfish as the game relies on cooperation more than most other co-op games. The team sticking together and healing each other is the key to victory.

    Starbreeze has not made a bad game yet and I don’t expect Syndicate to be any different. The game is definitely going to get a lot of flak for not being a turn-based strategy game like the original, but it’s for the best.

    If you still can’t get over the fact that EA turned a precious turn-based cult classic into a first-person shooter, Good Old Games has you covered. They recently released the original game in all its glory and its fully compatible with modern machines.

    The game launches today for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. The PC version requires an Origin account which is why I’ll be getting it on consoles. Call me when EA and Valve stop fighting so I can buy their PC games on Steam again.

    The game has received great reviews which may surprise some, especially those strategy gamers who were hoping the game would bomb critically. It even received a perfect score from Giant Bomb, which is a rare achievement from the house Jeff Gerstmann built.

    What may be the best part about the game is that EA has hired various top-tier DJs to write music for the game. The launch trailer features music by Nero:

    And just for kicks, here’s the trailer released last year featuring Skrillex:

  • Jotform.com Is Back In The Hands Of Its Rightful Owner

    Jotform.com Is Back In The Hands Of Its Rightful Owner

    The Jotform.com domain was returned today. The only problem is that the feds still aren’t saying what caused the suspension in the first place.

    You may remember yesterday when we reported that Jotform.com was suspended by the federal government for apparently no reason. When the Jotform team attempted to contact the Secret Service as to why their Web site had been taken down, they were told that the government was too busy to look into it.

    It’s a good thing then that the Jotform.com domain was returned today. The business can keep operating under their original domain and everything can go back to normal.

    Hold on there, not everything can go back to normal just yet. Techdirt requested comment from the Secret Service as to why Jotform.com was taken down. What a great response they got:

    “We are aware of the incident and we’re reviewing it internally to make sure all the proper procedures and protocols were followed.”

    In response to this, a post went up on Hacker News that details what U.S. Web sites can do to protect themselves from the overreaching arm of the U.S. government.

    Today’s sysadmin todo list:

    0. Get corporate membership with EFF.

    1. Identify all applications with user-generated content.

    2. Move all associated domains to a non-US based registrar.

    3. Migrate DNS, web serving and other critical services to non-US based servers.

    4. Migrate yourself to a non-US controlled country.

    I’m sorry for US sites and users. Your government is hell-bent on turning the internet into a read-only device like TV, easily regulated and controlled. The population will be required to sit quietly and keep their eyes glued on the screen so they don’t miss the ads, with any infringers deemed terrorists and pedophiles and thus deserving of summary punishment by DHS squads.

    Hopefully the internet will route around the damaged segment, and the rest of us can continue to enjoy the amazing interactivity it has brought our society.

    Is it a little extreme? Yes, but it highlights what is slowly becoming reality in the U.S.

    The United States keeps on saying that it wants to help startups and small companies succeed, but you can see with the example of Jotform that the government can take whatever they want when they want.

    Are you a small business owner who uses the Internet? What do you think about the Jotform debacle? Will you be moving your business? Let us know in the comments.

  • SOPA: GoDaddy Kind of Blacks Out

    SOPA: GoDaddy Kind of Blacks Out

    GoDaddy used to be in support of SOPA, now they’re not. You wouldn’t think that if you went to their site today.

    GoDaddy, on and off again supporter of SOPA, joined the other sites participating in the blackout today. The only issue is, where is it?

    godaddy

    Can you see the blackout? I couldn’t see it at first. Then you can see at the very bottom left, in a cute little corner, a black box that says, “Go Daddy & many other Internet leaders oppose SOPA & PIPA.

    Clicking on the link takes you to a support page with a brief explanation of their opposition that apparently only started when everybody else complained about it.

    The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) was with the U.S. House Judiciary Committee when an uproar erupted on the Internet. An overwhelming majority of the Internet community voiced strong opposition to SOPA legislation. Go Daddy joined to oppose SOPA.

    On Jan. 16, U.S. Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) stopped action on SOPA.

    Companion legislation, known as PIPA, is still up for debate in the U.S. Senate. Go Daddy opposes current PIPA legislation, as do many other major technology companies and users.

    Do you think Go Daddy has done enough to voice their opposition to SOPA? Or is it just the “me too” mentality to avoid losing more domains?

  • .XXX Domain Purchases Begin, Calling It a Landrush

    There has been a long running debate, and legal battle over whether or not .xxx domains should be allowed to exist. ICM, presented their idea of .xxx and .kids domains to ICANN back in 2000. Various proposals would be submitted throughout the years, none of which would be accepted until March 31st this year.

    Now, you can put a claim into a .xxx domain, so long as you’re a member of the adult sponsored community. ICM is handling the process in various phases. Their “Sunrise A” and “Sunrise B” phases allowed trademarked companies to apply for the domains; reversely, companies were allowed to prevent their company from appearing on .xxx addresses as well.

    As of November 8th, we’re now in the “Landrush” phase. Meaning, there are no trademark or pre-ownership rights requirements. Beyond being a member of the adult entertainment community, all bets are off. The Landrush phase will last until November 25th. Afterwards, on December 6th, the domain will be available to the general public.

    XXX Domain Landrush

    The argument over the domain generally concerns the reasons behind its need. Many believe providing pornographic sites the option to have a .xxx domain, will provide internet users a distinct signal that there is adult material on the site. Others believe the domain won’t act as that great of a filter, specifically within search engines.

    The real question is whether or not .xxx is a top-level domain which can actually take off and make a dent. Most top-level domains never gain the traction to necessitate use. Why use .me when .com has better credence?

    According to a recent press release, over 80,000 applications for .xxx domain names were received. That’s just during the Sunrise phases, so the number is expected to exponentially increase going into Landrush.

    Stuart Lawley, CEO of ICM Registry, said this of the numbers, “We couldn’t be happier about the success of the Sunrise period. There is always a risk with a new TLD that you may build it and nobody will come. We are thrilled that over 80,000 applications came! In fact, the .XXX Sunrise period results far exceeds those of any other new sTLD, including .mobi, .asia and even that of .co that re-launched last year with a significant marketing campaign. We look forward with great anticipation to Landrush, opening next week and General Availability on December 6, which is when the fun really starts.”

    All of the domain registration companies are accepting .xxx domains at this time: GoDaddy, name.com, register.com, and more.

    It will be interesting to see what impact .XXX will have in the world of top-level domains. Will pornographic sites start to shift to the domain, simply for the prospect of having the “xxx” on the end? Will search engines tweak their results to compensate for the domain inclusion?