When you start to see something like this bandwagon of PC and CE guys all converging on the same [entertainment oriented] convergence place, it starts to look pretty ugly. Remember, these are the same guys who brought us 8000 different models of television remote controls with incompatible codes and buttons in the wrong places [not to mention the fact that we can never find the darn things.]

Gateway's Chief Insists the PC Yield to a Digital Future. Ted Waitt, chief of Gateway, plans to transform underused outlets from bland showrooms into touchy-feely retail boutiques. By Carolyn Marshall. [New York Times: Technology]

The FCC released it's 576 page order on UNE-P yesterday. It's hard to tell whether there are any surprises in such a massive thing, but it doesn't appear so.

This is the link to the order [ http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2003/db0821/FCC-03-36A1.pdf] And this is Chairman Powell's comment [http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2003/db0821/FCC-03-36A2.pdf]

F.C.C. Discloses New Rules for Telecom Industry. The rules elaborate on an F.C.C. decision that local telephone companies must share older equipment but not newer technology dedicated to high-speed data. By Jennifer Lee. [New York Times: Technology]

The NYT wrote another editorial in its news pages by focusing about 75% of the arguments in this article on the anti-monopoly viewpoint and backhanding the logic for why the FCC had no business interferring in an emerging technology in the first place.

F.C.C. Lifts Ban on Video for AOL Instant Messaging. The Federal Communications Commission has granted a request by AOL Time Warner to drop restrictions on adding video to its AOL instant messaging service. By David D. Kirkpatrick. [New York Times: Technology]

Hauppauge [HAUP; Nasdaq] and others are making these devices that the NYT's Mcmanus describe as "bridging the gap" between the PC and the TV enabling consumers to display "media content" that resides on PCs.  Curiously, there is no word on the Hauppague website about the MediaMVP product that Mcmanus references in his article [From PC to TV Screen, a Stream of Multimedia. Your PC is brimming with great photos, MP3's and videos. But your family and friends are glued to the television. By Neil Mcmanus. New York Times: Technology] and no indication of its price or feature set.

Among other things, Hauppaauge makes a 350 Meg PC/DVR card that sells for $200.

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There is a significant battle going on for control of the intellectual property surrounding the delivery of targeted television and internet advertising.

Ad firm 24/7 pushing for patent power. 24/7 Real Media wins another patent for delivering digital ads, giving it new authority over the online-ad serving market as it pursues patent licenses to improve shareholder value. [CNET News.com]