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Buzz Out Loud 912: Where's the sex in 'Highlander?'

That and other important questions are answered in today's show, where we're joined by John C. Dvorak in dissecting the new Facebook Terms of Service, the New Zealand blackout over copyright law, and the last-minute saving of SiriusXM. Also, give your boys the violent video games. They need them.

Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 912

Day one of U.S. TV transition only 114 more to go http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

Facebook’s new terms of service: “we can do anything we want with your content. Forever.” http://consumerist.com/5150175/facebooks-new-terms-of-service-we-can-do-anything-we-want-with-your-content-forever

Facebook … Read more

Creditors may oust Sirius XM chief

Sirius XM Radio's chief executive may lose his job if the company chooses to file for bankruptcy protection.

A group of creditors tells The Wall Street Journal that it will seek the removal of CEO Mel Karmazin if the company chooses bankruptcy over a deal with an investor that would allow it to remain solvent.

"Creditors will act quickly and definitively if they perceive that management is acting in their own interest and not in the best interest of the estate," Edward Weisfelner, a partner with Brown Rudnick, the law firm representing the creditor group, told the … Read more

Reports: DirecTV in talks with Sirius XM

It appears Sirius XM Radio is seeking some sort of an investment from Liberty Media, which controls DirecTV, according to several media reports quoting anonymous sources close to the matter.

A deal between the satellite radio giant and the largest U.S. satellite-TV provider could help for Sirius fend off bankruptcy and an unsolicited takeover attempt from satellite company EchoStar, which has bought up Sirius' debt.

The Wall Street Journal, citing a person familiar with the matter, wrote that "though the talks between Sirius and Liberty are advanced, a deal remains far from certain. It wasn't clear how … Read more

Report: Sirius Radio prepares bankruptcy filing

Sirius XM Satellite Radio, the financially troubled radio service, is busy preparing for a possible bankruptcy filing, according to a published report.

Sirius, home of shock-jock Howard Stern, has been working with advisers on the bankruptcy documents that could be filed within days, according to The New York Times.

Sirius is staring at a significant debt crisis. According to a story that appeared on Yahoo finance, financial research firm, Moody's, "thinks there's a 'high likelihood' that Sirius will fail to repay or refinance its debt in 2009."

Sirius' debt comes due on Tuesday, according to the … Read more

Report: Sling Media co-founders, other top execs leave

Sling Media, the company that enables users to push their cable shows to their laptops from anywhere in the world, has seen a management shakeup, according to a published report.

The company's co-founders Blake and Jason Krikorian are leaving as are execs Jason Hirschhorn and Ben White, according to the blog PaidContent.

According to the report, Sling Media's senior executives agreed to stay a year following the company's acquisition by EchoStar for about $380 million. The year is up and it appears that the Sling's entrepreneurial leadership is walking away.

They may leaving at just the … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 888: Will the Pre Save Palm?

Palm releases a hot new phone and we ask ourselves if the Palm Pre is the company's saving grace or just destined for failure. Also, Ford trucks get remote PC access, and Lexus thinks it's a good idea to spam you while you are driving! What is this world coming to? Tekzilla's Veronica Belmont sits in with us on today's show! Listen now: Download today's podcast… Read more

EchoStar SlingLoaded HD DVR 922 combines Slingbox and DVR into one super set-top box

We're huge fans of the Slingbox, which lets you access your home TV from any broadband-connected PC and many models of 3G smartphones. But the boxes have always had a fundamental problem of monopolizing the host video source (cable/satellite box or DVR); if you access your Slingbox remotely and somebody happens to be watching the home TV, both of you are forced to watch the same program.

That's just one problem that the new EchoStar SlingLoaded HD DVR 922 fixes. The "SlingLoaded" moniker basically means that it's got a Slingbox built-in. That, along with … Read more

TiVo profits from EchoStar litigation

This post was updated at 3 p.m. PST with information from the earnings call.

EchoStar's loss was TiVo's gain during the third quarter of 2008.

Alviso, Calif.-based TiVo on Tuesday announced it recorded profits of $100.6 million for the quarter, or 98 cents per share, compared with a loss of $8 million for the same quarter a year ago.

The staggering change in fortunes for the DVR maker was due to the patent litigation judgment it won against EchoStar. EchoStar paid TiVo $105 million in damages during the quarter--if it hadn't, TiVo would have … Read more

Dish Network DTVPal DVR to ship in December

After a delay of several months, Dish Network will be releasing the DTVPal DVR in mid-December. The antenna-friendly HD DVR will retail for $250 (after a $50 instant rebate).

You may remember the DTV Pal DVR as the EchoStar TR-50. That's the name under which it was launched at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, where it garnered CNET's Best of CES award for the home video category.

The latest iteration of the DTVPal DVR is pictured above. While the name and look of the product have changed a bit, it appears that it retains its core feature … Read more