Windows Marketplace for Mobile getting kill switch/remote kill

Now, I’ll start by saying that Microsoft is not the first entity to employee a kill switch in their App Store. Their are also kill switches in Android and Apple’s App Store. However Microsoft’s approach or at least the way it’s been presented leaves me a tad more worried than other stores do. Why so? Well, like the name implies, the Microsoft supported kill switch automatically remove any app blacklisted and/or removed from Windows Marketplace for Mobile after said app has already been approved. While this is good in the rare instance that a malicious program sneaks through, abuse and censorship seem like likely candidates to stretch this feature’s imaginative legs. Naturally, while the app in question will be quickly and automatically removed, you can bet your sweet cheeks that your money (if the app removed was a paid app) will take it’s sweet time getting to you…if it ever makes its way back.

If a particular app is removed for violating a particular Marketplace rule, I should be the end all be all decision maker for whether it stays on my device or not. Anyone a bit peeved? Think there’s any difference good or bad between Microsoft’s kill switch and other competitors’ switches?

**9/18/09 Update:Microsoft has come forth to clear the air…check out their response.
Source: BGR, Image Source

The new poster child for stupid: The entertainment industry and the CMX file format.

As if the entertainment industry, more recently the video and music industry, couldn’t be more behind the times, completely lost of their true demographic, and utterly clueless and incompetent when it comes to anything digital, they all come out swinging to surprise us over and over. The latest and most ridiculous attempt at world dominance comes in the form of CMX, a new file format that various sectors of the entertainment industry are putting their weight behind. Apparently this decision took several years of brainstorming between many high up exec’s to get to this point. Have they have forgotten about MP3, you know, the universal standard even if it is a bit dated? Even still, there are plenty of others such as AAC, Ogg, and FLAC just to name a few. So why bring out another new file format in a world that is literally drowning in them?