In case you missed it, Apple recently announced a new iPod. One that’s 30 percent thinner than the current model and sports a 2.5-inch video display.

But the big news wasn’t so much about the gizmo as the content. In announcing the new iPod October 12th, Apple CEO Steve Jobs also said there would be plenty of video content for sale through Apple’s iTunes store, including first-run network TV shows “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives,” for $1.99 per episode.

That’s when the Hollywood community collectively woke up and smelled the coffee.

To say that Hollywood was surprised would be like saying Katrina was a mild summer breeze. As it turns out, most of Tinsel Town was apparently out of the loop when it came to Apple’s plans for iPod video content.

In fact, union presidents representing Hollywood writers and actors, Patric Verrone of the Writers Guild Of America, West, and John Connolly from the American Federation Of Television and Radio Artists, were lunching in Beverly Hills when they first saw a TV news story about the iPod and Apple’s plans to sell downloads of ABC’s two most popular TV series.

The two union leaders didn’t waste any time contacting the heads of the Screen Actors Guild, Directors Guild Of America and the Writers Guild Of America, East, so that they could discuss battle plans to ensure their organizations were not left out in the cold. They eventually issued a joint statement that said, “We have not yet heard from the responsible employers of our members. But we look forward to a dialogue that ensures that our members are properly compensated for this exploitation of their work.”

However, no one is all that sure how big a piece of the download pie should go to actors, writers and directors. Should they get as much as they do from the licensing fees paid by networks to the shows producers? Or should they get the same percentage as from DVD sales?

There are different rates for different media and, while there are agreements regarding Internet use as well as on-demand use, Hollywood has yet to decide how to label iPod content.

Then there are the TV network affiliates to consider, which may turn out to be the biggest losers when it comes to selling downloadable TV shows. Network affiliates have long enjoyed a monopoly regarding network programming.

But, if a large enough chunk of the viewing audience chooses to download “Lost” the day after the program’s initial network airing instead of watching it on their local ABC affiliate, the local station eventually will see a decrease in audience – which, in TV dynamics, always coincides with decreased ad revenue.

National advertisers are also concerned about selling downloadable TV shows. Sponsors spend big bucks, not only to make those commercials, but to place them on shows like “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives.” So far, very little has been said as to whether shows will be sold on iTunes with commercials intact.

Since a lot of advertising is time sensitive, a commercial pushing a weekend sale at a national retailer or a movie premier would be out of date if downloaded the Monday after the sale ended. It’s conceivable that advertisers running a specific commercial on a network’s TV show might want to place a different commercial on the download version.

But despite the controversy over the video iPod, Hollywood isn’t against the concept. After all, it’s another potential revenue stream and Hollywood has never, ever shied away from making more money. The main problem is figuring out all the angles.

Or, as Verrone said, “We have to learn more about the actual technology. I’m thrilled by the notion I can watch my shows in the palm of my hand, but I also want to make sure we are paid appropriately.”

Going… Going…

Unite The United, the charity organization founded by the producers of the Vans Warped Tour and the Rockstar Taste Of Chaos Tour have come up with a way to aid Hurricane Katrina victims. It’s a five-week auction featuring one-of-a-kind memorabilia and collectibles.

The donor list for the Unite The United Charity Auction set to kick off on eBay on October 24th reads like the ultimate rock ‘n’ roll auction. Among the artists and bands contributing items are 311, Blink-182, Def Leppard, Green Day, Good Charlotte, MxPx, No Doubt, Ozzy Osbourne, Papa Roach, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Rob Zombie, while companies include Ampeg, Baker Skateboards, Alvarez Guitars, Geffen Records and Vestal Watches.

Additional items will go up on the auction block each day. For more information check out www.unitetheunited.com.

Big Brother Is Printing

And yet another reason to watch over your shoulder: Electronic Frontier Foundation recently announced it has cracked the tracking codes embedded in documents created by Xerox Corp.’s DocuColor laser printers.

According to the EFF, researchers discovered the printers arrange patterns of yellow dots in 15 by 8 grids, repeatedly embedding those patterns on each page printed. There are only two ways to view the dots: either with a magnifying glass or by placing the document under a blue light, which will cause the dots to turn black. Either way, anonymity ain’t what it used to be when you use the office Xerox to print that nasty message to your boss.

Supposedly, the dots indicate which machine a document was printed on as well as the date and time it was printed.

According to the Secret Service, such technology is employed to make it more difficult to reproduce U.S. currency as opposed to keeping tabs on who’s printing what. Either way, if you’re in the kidnapping biz you might want to consider handwriting that next ransom note.