A computer-like object just doesn’t replace a book: the feel of the paper, the smell of old books, the ripped cover on the book read over and over again.  However, the ability to lessen one’s luggage weight by loading all those books onto one device is tempting.  As the e-book technology that makes this possible [...]

Last December, guitar hero Joe Satriani filed a lawsuit against the members of Coldplay and Capitol Records, alleging the band’s song, “Viva La Vida,” contained “substantial, original portions” of his 2004 track “If I Could Fly.”1 (Listen here to refresh your memory.) To the delight of many Coldplay fans, a financial settlement was finally reached [...]

TiVo hasn’t always been profitable, but today the company stands to make a small fortune after winning its patent suit against the Dish Network Corp over technology used in its remote controls. The decision would net TiVo about $300 million from Dish (about $100 million in damages and interest, and the rest in contempt sanctions). [...]

September seemed like a good month for Tiger Woods. Forbes magazine declared that Woods was “the first billion-dollar athlete.”1 The magazine calculated that with the $10 million bonus he received from the FedEx Cup,2 Woods reached the billionaire status that is usually reserved for the Waltons and hedge fund CEOs. What made Woods’ impressive earnings [...]