Unlikely bedfellows Microsoft and Apple have asked the US Government to put Canada on its priority blacklist of intellectual property crooks, saying the country isn't doing enough to prevent their products being ripped off.

The days of the humble cassette tape will soon be coming to a timely end with the announcement from British electrical retailer Currys that their existing stocks of blank cassettes will be sold but not replenished.

Hewlett-Packard will be one of the first major PC builders to sell systems containing a hybrid HD drive. Although specific computers and prices have yet to be mentioned, the company says it intends to incorporate LG's GGW-H10N, better known as the Super Multi Blue. The drive is able to read both Blu-Ray and HD DVD discs; it can only write to CD, DVD and Blu-Ray however, the last at 2x speed.

DVD ivory dome Flash has been busy again with a brand spanking new review for anyone interested in DVD and DivX authoring. Read all about it in his guide to TMPGEnc DVD Author 3 with DivX Authoring.

Don't know if you have been over to this site but dshirt.co.uk is the place to be if you are any good with the old paint packages. Dshirt has started promoting again for new designs to enter the competition for the chance to win £500 and there are 15 lucky winners who will get £500 each.

DVD guru Flash has come up with the goods again as he pits two popular network media players in his latest head-to-head review. Read all about it in his KiSS 1600 & Freecom 350 HD Network Media Players Head to Head review.

The secrets of HD DVD are out for the entire world to see, with bloggers across the globe revealing a code which cracks the hi def format’s AACS content protection.

Microsoft has released a test version of its new Silverlight online media platform, a rival to Adobe's dominant Flash player.

Nine Inch Nail tracks have been readily available from the NIN.com website, downloadable via the traditional client/server method, for some time. Surprisingly new material from the band is now available for download via the BitTorrent protocol. Even more surprisingly, the torrents were uploaded to The Pirate Bay.

Sony has gone webcam crazy this week with the launch of the first official units for both its PlayStation 3 and PSP.

Viewers in the UK will be able to access a full weeks' worth of BBC output via their PCs and other digital devices when the broadcaster finally launches its iPlayer service later this year.

Manufacturers, dealers, and champions of digital rights everywhere can rejoice: Video server maker Kaleidescape has beaten the DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA).

Amazon seems set to open a mainstream online music store as early as next month, and aims to follow the new EMI/Apple model of offering tracks unencumbered with DRM.

Samsung has said that it has become the first to begin mass producing 16 gigabit (Gb) NAND flash, the highest capacity memory chip now available.

Neuros Technology has called on Apple TV hackers to join it and develop a next-generation open source set-top box to prevent IPTV falling into the hands of the Man.

THE faces of some bootleg DVD pirates hit with 10-year-long ASBOs have been plastered on posters in a Hackney supermarket.

CMC Magnetics, the largest producer of optical discs in Taiwan, saw a small net profit of NT$301 million (US$9.05 million) in 2006 after suffering net losses consecutively in 2004 and 2005. The company's board of directors decided not to distribute any dividend for operations in 2006.

Linux users may be happy to know that Nero has released the latest Linux version of its software suite, NeroLINUX v3.0.0.0 Beta.

The next user to download a song from a peer-to-peer file-sharing service like LimeWire could be in for a surprise. Not a recording industry lawsuit, but a pop-up asking him to look at an ad - either text or video - in return for a free and legal copy of the music.

A lorry driver who earned thousands of pounds selling counterfeit CDs and DVDs has been jailed for three months.