From cave paintings to camera phones

In an early June Guardian column Nick Carr opines on the newest leisure time activity–the self-recording of one’s daily life. “Today, we seem to be operating under a new and very different dictum: the unrecorded life is not worth living,” Nick writes. ZDNet Blog reports.

He traces the phenomenon from painting on cave walls to cheap camcorders and now camera phones.

... What exactly is behind our rage to document the minutiae of our daily existence? That’s hard to say. Maybe it’s just another manifestation of modern-day narcissism. Maybe it’s a byproduct of our media-saturated culture, with its sense that nothing’s real until it’s been recorded and broadcast. Or maybe it goes deeper than that. In striving to preserve the moments of our lives, to immortalise them, might we simply be expressing our fear of death?

... Cave paintings drawn more than 30,000 years ago rarely had human forms, and are composed of mostly wild animals, perhaps depicting hunting and gathering scenes. Today we shop in supermarkets for food, and spend more of our time focused on ourselves as subject and object. As Nick concludes in his column, “We’re so busy recording our lives that we have little time left to examine them. And perhaps that, more than anything else, is the real point.”

Corbis lets photographers set fee

Corbis on Monday launched its own "microstock" site, following its two biggest rivals and several smaller ones into the domain of websites where customers can buy images inexpensively. [via USA Today]

"The site, called SnapVillage differs from several of its rivals by letting photographers set their own prices from a range of options: $1, $5, $10, $25 or $50. The company hopes that choice, along with flexible but easy search tools, will encourage photographers to contribute and customers, such as ad agencies, to buy."

Mirror Mirror on the Wall, who do I look like most of all?

Normally used for security purposes, face and image recognition technologies are making their way into other, more entertaining, fields. One service, kaocheki lets people send a digital photo of themselves via cell phone to find out which celebrity they most resemble. The Japan Times reports.

"Taking full advantage of the high-resolution camera phones that are everywhere in Japan, two-year-old mobile content provider J-Magic Inc. launched the service on a trial basis in late April. By early June, more than 22 million users had tried the service.

"I didn't expect it to become such a big hit," said Takuya Miyata, the 34-year-old founder and chief executive officer of J-Magic. "The popularity has spread through mixi (Japan's top social networking site) and blogs. I didn't do much promotion."

Mayor to print photos to deter prostitution

An Italian town's mayor hopes to shame men into not using prostitutes by photographing cars that pick them up and publishing the details in local newspapers. Reuters reports. [via we-make-money-not-art.com / del.icio.us/régine].

"Cesare De Martin, mayor of the northern town of San Fior near Venice, has instructed local police to photograph any cars seen stopping to liaise with prostitutes on the side of the street.

Advertisements in local newspapers with the number plates will then be published, he said."

Hollywood seeks opening in iPhone

In Hollywood, where Jobs' convention-defying tactics are all too familiar, media executives are eagerly preparing for a new era as they hope to position more content where consumers want it: in their hands. News.com reports.

"... For years, mobile phone carriers like AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint have closely controlled what cell phone users watch, when they watch it, and on what kind of screen they watch it--much the way the networks did with television before new technologies loosened their grip. Many in Hollywood and Silicon Valley hope the iPhone's multimedia features will make it easier for any mobile-crazed consumer to do the same things they do on the Web: watch their favorite television shows, download maps, send e-mail messages to friends and swap videos.

In what is the beginning of many attempts to make the cell phone more Web friendly, Apple has designed its own application so consumers can receive YouTube videos through a Wi-Fi network. Industry executives predict that as it becomes easier to get information via Wi-Fi networks, more consumers will bypass traditional wireless networks altogether. That prospect, while helpful for phone makers and media concerns, is frightening for service providers if consumers begin to regard them as irrelevant."

Camera Phones Will Top 1 Billion This Year

The number of mobile camera phones in use will top 1 billion this year, reflecting their tremendous growth rate since they hit the market around seven years ago, according to a new market evaluation. [via PC World]

"Sales shot up from about 3 million camera phones in 2001 to 500 million last year, according to figures released Friday from Strategy Analytics Ltd."

Italians shoot film with camera phone

According to the AP, Italian directors have completed a 93-minute documentary movie called “New Love Meetings" filmed entirely with a Nokia N90 called “New Love Meetings".

"The movie mostly features close-ups, and the image, while overall clear, is slightly shaky. Directors said Tuesday that no post-production manipulation was made on the image.

Although no professional lightening was needed, a pocket flashlight was used at times, said Milan-based Barbara Seghezzi, the other director of the movie.

The approach offers the advantage of being intimate, leading people to open up a little more easily, directors say. In a documentary about love and eroticism, that doesn’t hurt. For two months last year, the directors interviewed some 700 people across Italy, at bars, open markets, on the beach. About 100 of them ended up in the movie.

... The directors’ idea was to do a modern version of the 1965 documentary “Love Meetings” by Pier Paolo Pasolini, the famed film director and writer found beaten to death 30 years ago. "

Related:

-- Feature Film Shot Entirely on Cellphone Cameras The world’s first full-length movie to be shot entirely on cellphones wrapped up in Johannesburg in February 2006. The 35mm feature film, entitled SMS Sugar Man was shot with cameraphones.

China expected to watch mobile TV free next year

Recently, the base patent holder of China's domestic mobile TV industry announced that a patent fee of China Mobile Multimedia Broadcasting (CMMB) will not exist within the next two years, and then a one Yuan patent fee will be collected in a representative manner.

This means that it will be possible to use a mobile phone to watch TV for free in 2008. At the same time, the industry standards of the CMMB will enter the commercial age. [via People's Daily Online]

YouTube content available on the iPhone at launch

Gizmodo reports that Apple has announced that the YouTube software update was ready for download for Apple TVowners.

And "one more thing": YouTube would be available on the iPhone at launch.

More in press release.

AT&T launches Video Share

AT&Thas announced the launch of AT&T Video Share, a service that allows users to share live video over their wireless devices while participating in a voice call.

Consumers can now share moments with family and friends while the moments are happening.

The service also enables a range of innovative, time-saving business applications, from viewing real estate or retail displays to facilitating insurance claims or troubleshooting efforts.

[via Light Reading ]

YouTube rolls out in 9 countries wtih celeb welcoming videos

In the first step in its international rollout, YouTube has launched localized versions of its video sharing site in nine countries — Brazil, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, the UK and Japan.

Their URLs are easy to remember, simply put the country's code before youtube.com. ie.e.: br.youtube.com, ie.youtube.com, it.youtube.com, uk.youtube.com, es.youtube.com....

YouTube Japan features a welcome video by Tokyo-based art collective Rinpa Eshidan, whose killer “motion painting” videos have a history of rocking YouTube.

And on YouTube France celeb French rap singer Kamini extends his welcome. This welcome video is also promoted on most other country specific YouTubes that I checked out (on Japan's too), so it must it appears by recognizing your IP adress. In my case YouTube France would be the closest to Switzerland.

My guess is that each country has a celebrity welcome video message.

[via Pink Tentacle]

MTV premieres full length film on mobile phones

MTV is taking full-length movies to the mobile screen, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

"The network said Monday that "Super Sweet 16: The Movie" -- an extension of the MTV series "My Super Sweet 16" -- will premiere on mobile television service Verizon V Cast TV, marking the first time an MTV feature-length film has debuted on the wireless service before running on air.

... Inspired by the series, "Super Sweet 16: The Movie" chronicles the story of two best friends trying to outdo each other as they both plan their long-awaited sweet 16 party."

YouTube Mobile Goes Live

Youtube's Mobile site at m.youtube.com has gone live. Gizmodo reports.

"YouTube Mobile is a new, xHTML site optimized for your cellphone. The service will require your phone to be capable of video streaming already (RTSP/3GP with H263/AMR), but that shouldn't be a problem for most our techbling Gizmodo readers. Plus, using MMS, you can upload YouTube videos directly from your phone."

More details on pronet advertising via Techmeme

Greek Police Torture Video Published on Athens Indymedia

At least four policemen torture two migrants inside the police station of Omonia in central Athens. They force them to beat each other while one of the policemen repeatedly instructs them to "hit harder" and beats both. Indybay reprots.

For nearly a year, the above footage was circulated amongst policemen via mobile phones.

On the early hours of the 16th of June 2007 the video was uploaded to a commercial video sharing service and from there, to Athens Indymedia.

A few hours later it featured as breaking news in all of the country's major media outlets, forcing prime minister Karamanlis to issue a statement condemning the incident.

Related torture/abuse incidents from Egypt:

-- Egypt's Torture Video Sparks Outrage

-- Egyptian Prisoner's torture sent to his friend's cell phones by police

-- Video phones expose torture in Egypt

Yes, the Screen Is Tiny, but the Plans Are Big

The New York Times reports on big media's plans in bringing video content to mobile phones.

"ESPN, CBS and MTV, as well as news organizations like The Associated Press and the Hearst Corporation, are investing in original cellphone content. After all, there is no other medium that most people carry with them everywhere, and some media executives are wagering that consumers will fill their empty moments — however fleeting — with mobile media content.

... Many mobile-content providers assume that consumers with more than a few minutes to spare won’t be attached to their cellphone screens. Yet executives at broadcast networks like ABC say that this assumption is worth challenging, and they are betting that consumers will also watch longer-form content on their phones. Last month, ABC began showing full-hour episodes of shows like “Lost” and “Grey’s Anatomy” on Sprint’s network.

Albert Cheng, executive vice president for digital media at ABC, says people may think that short-form content works best on cellphones simply because that is the bulk of what has been developed. “We’re all experimenting,” he says. “I don’t think any of us really knows what people want on mobile.”

But one must really look beyond America to see where TV on mobile phones is going. According to an article in the BBC, services in Japan, South Korea and Italy are attracting millions, confounding critics who said people would not watch TV on a small device.

Clooney is hounded by cameraphone paparazzi

Ocean's 13 star George Clooney has hit out at fans with camera phones - insisting they hassle him more than the paparazzi.

The actor claims he is snapped by wannabe photographers everywhere he goes.

Clooney adds, "If I walk out of a whorehouse with a hooker on my arm, then I deserve what's coming to me. If I am at the airport with my secretary and these kids jump in and ask 'who's the chick?', then you have to defend her...and that gives them their story."

[via Contact Music. Image from SightsSounds ]

The Iraq war and the electronic trenches

Videos posted on the internet by U.S. soldiers in Iran include the now typical array of cellphone images of explosions and shouting, of young men, fuelled by adrenalin, swearing and laughing in almost every excerpt, reports cbc.ca. There are also images of animal abuse by soldiers.

And coming from the other side, U.S. troops are watching Juba videos on the Internet from their Iraqi bases. Some are even posting video replies — images of helmets with bullet holes in them, a retaliatory "You didn't get me, I'm still here"taunt. Juba might be called the Bogeyman of Baghdad. He's a star of the insurgent videos, a sniper who likes to boast electronically of his accomplishments.

According to ifilm, Juba is probably a compilation of many snipers. His targeting and shooting of U.S. soldiers is meticulously and melodramatically recorded on camera. Each propaganda posting is accompanied by swelling music, elaborate graphics and enough footage of soldiers crumpling to the ground to send the signal that Juba is watching and waiting.

This is the modern equivalent of First World War soldiers barking threats at each other across the trenches.

Laid-off Papparazzi sue Judge who put Paris back in Jail

Not sure this is true, but it's entertaining.

According to Dateline Hollywood one laid off paparazzi is suing Judge Miachael Sauerwork for putting Paris Hilton back in the slammer, out of the public eye and uh, out of the range of his photo lense.

"I am out of work now because that bastard, Judge Michael Sauer, took her away from us,”said celebrity photographer Michael Lantora, who lost his job after Hilton returned to jail.

Celebrity photo agencies throughout Hollywood laid off over 100 paparazzi Monday, claiming the move was necessary due to the unexpected absence of their two most popular subjects.

Paparazzi industry insiders say their industry’s recession is only worsened by Britney Spears’ decision to vacation in Puerto Vallarta.

... Celebrity media ethicists argued that while photo agencies may save money in the short-term, the layoffs are bad for the industry and democracy in the long-run."

Paris didn't eat or drink out of fear guards would take cameraphone pics of her on john

According to The New York Daily News, the mysterious health condition that led Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca to release Paris Hilton from jail was her fear of guards filming her with cameraphones - while on the john.

"It was apparently the one time she was camera-shy.

Paris Hilton was so terrified guards would snap a cell-phone picture of her on the toilet that she didn't eat or drink for three days, which left her facing a life-threatening collapse, a source told the Daily News. She also was not taking prescribed medication while in jail, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said.

The stainless steel lavatory in the hotel heiress' 12-foot-by-8-foot cell was in plain view of a large window in the door, which guards could look through 24 hours a day.

"She was absolutely terrified that one of the guards or staffers would get her with the cell-phone cam and it would wind up on the Internet," a Hilton insider said yesterday.

"She didn't eat or drink a single thing for three days because she didn't want to use the toilet. She was in real danger."

Hilton also suffered from "extreme claustrophobia" and began hyperventilating and freaking out.

"She cried the entire time, and that wasn't helping the dehydration," the source said.

Jail medical officials became concerned that severe dehydration and a buildup of waste and toxins in Hilton's body could cause a complete collapse and "even kill her," the source said."

YouTube access coming to mobile phones

YouTube co-founder Steve Chen said today consumers in many parts of the world will have access to the popular video-sharing Web site on their mobile phones by next year. [via the Mercury News]

"Taiwan-born Chen made the remarks as he spoke to a group of enthusiastic Web users at a forum on Internet development in Taipei.

Videos of between 30 to 60 seconds could best serve the needs of commuters on subways or buses, while files of up to 10 minutes will be sufficient for train riders, he said.

As Internet technologies move into the next phase, Web sites should provide richer content and greater mobility so users can have access to them anywhere, Chen said."

"Paris Hilton Goes Back to Jail!" videoclip a huge hit on YouTube

Poor Paris. Back in jail.

A subject of gleeful merriment on video sharing website YouTube, with one musical clip having already attracted over one million viewers.

Played on a catchy and familiar tune with clever lyrics, PARIS HILTON GOES BACK TO JAIL! was produced and written by Allan Murray and Sean Haines. This is the their first clip: We made this video on a shoe string budget with the help of some great peeps. Great indeed.

[via WatchingTV Online]

Do You Want to Be a Music Critic This Summer?

A leading cellphone maker is taking advantage of the rising popularity of blogs and other forms of consumer-generated content — as well as the increasing interest in mobile marketing — by offering music fans ages 18 and up a chance to play critic for the summer. [via The New York Times]

"To help peddle a new camera phone, LG MobileComm USA is joining with the music publication Billboard for a promotion called Mobile Beat contest, that will send up to 30 contestants to concerts around the country.

The 30 or so youthful critics will file reviews and photos on deadline from concert sites, from late June through mid-September. Their commentary will be posted on personalized blogs, housed on the Billboard website

In true democratic Web fashion, the blogosphere will select the contest’s three finalists as well as the ultimate winner, all chosen based on the number of hits to the blogs."

'Garda' caught in YouTube sneer

Video footage showing what appears to be a uniformed Garda Ombudsman making fun of a member of the public has sparked top-level investigations after it was posted on the internet. The Independent reports.

"The posting of the video on a website comes just a week after mock footage of troops firing at civilians in Liberia was also posted onto the same YouTube site.

The 4½-minute video shows what appears to be a clearly visible young uniformed garda taking a phone call from a member of the public and repeatedly laughing and mocking the man who requests to speak to a sergeant.

First reports indicate the footage was most likely filmed using a mobile phone and posted onto the internet after being circulated to other mobile phones in the locality."

Mr Papparazi wants your celebrity snaps!

The Mr Paparazzisite works with Forbidden Technologies to allow everyday users armed with camera phone footage, to easily upload video footage and pictures to the website.

The site was created as a response to the massive demand for celebrity info- and for pictures that aren't just considered 'press shots'.

... ... The site offers a relatively simple user interface and free registration... For more advanced users it has links with FORscene, a web based editing system which offers uploading,editing, and publishing features on a collaborative global scale. You'll feel very Tarantino using all these tools, and there are really straightforward instructions to walk you through the process.

[reBlogged from Shiny Shiny]

Nielsen to track mobile media use

Nielsen, an entity best known for its television ratings system, announced Wednesday that it will begin to track what you do with your cell phone. From NewsBlog reports.

"In particular, the company will begin measuring how consumers use mobile Internet and mobile video beginning in July.

The service will be called Nielsen Wireless.

Included in the metrics will be comparisons of how subscribers of different wireless carriers watch TV or play video games, compared to the same use on their cell phone."

Camphone shot of the day

The Milan sky was filled with confetti for Danilo Di Luca, the winner of The Tour of Italy. Capture on cameraphones and posted on Giro Milano Photo Essay, via Daily Peleton.

Police condemn ghoulish onlookers who videoed horrific crash scene

UK Police have condemned ghoulish onlookers who videoed the horrific crash scene after a mother was mown down by a lorry in front of her two children, reports Daily Mail.

"... While some rushed to help, others stopped in the street and used camera phones to take pictures or video footage of the gruesome scene in Portsmouth, Hants.

Today police launched a scathing attack on them and said those intent on capturing the trauma had got in the way of emergency services."

Cameraphones set to battle crime

Waleli, a Dutch company, has developed MMS-witness, a system allowing citizens to video crime-in-progress and upload it onto the internet, reports
BCS.

"Witnesses will be encouraged to covertly film events and then text the recordings to a central police database."

LOLcats: Web photo-posting phenomenon

For the last few months, online regulars have been seeing on various Web sites and blogs pictures of cats and other animals in strange poses, with large type captions embedded in the photos, writes Chron.com.

"The grammar and syntax in the captions are atrocious by design. The pictures are called LOLcats, named after the abbreviation for "laughing out loud" used by fans of text and instant messaging.

The origin of LOLcats is murky at best. Based on various blog posts — the most authoritative at LinguisticMystic.com, written by a Colorado linguistics student — they may have evolved from a practice called Caturday, in which cat lovers posted photos of their felines with funny captions on Saturdays.

Now there are dozens of pictures of cats on the Web with captions that take the same form.

Images from I Can Has Cheezburger' collection. The title comes from one of the earliest, most popular LOLcat pictures, which features a dark-gray cat that seems to grin expectantly. You can see the original by going to the site and clicking on the "First Post — #1" link on the right (picture below).

Anti-spying undergarments

Thanks to new "Shot Guard" underwear from Cramer Japan, female athletes, students and children are now protected from infrared photography.

It seems that Japan's legendary "hentai" (perverts) have found a new way to get their jollies: snapping photos of female athletes through their sports wear by adapting the night-function capabilities of ordinary camcorders to take infrared photos of unsuspecting women & children in the daytime.

Cramer's technicians came up with an effective way to beat the heat and promptly took "Shot Guard" underwear to market.

According to Cramer Japan's president Takashi Hokazono, "By introducing conditions that make photography more difficult, the number of malicious photographers will decrease."

Hokazono did not explain how it works, but. Shiny Shiny suggests that it could involve "chilling your nether regions."

[InventorSpot via Crave]

Related sort of: - Blur anti-photography spray