Fuzzy, Fat-Tummied Teddy Hides Hi-Tech Gadget

It's rare to see a fuzzy toy that will possibly attract the interest of sunglasses-wearing federal agents and corporate lawyers.

But this week's featured gadget might do just that.

iTeddy is a cute stuffed animal with a media player in his tummy.  Yes, that says "in his tummy."  One look at him and you can't help but say tummy.

Parents can load songs, mp3's, audio stories and other media on the bear through a USB connection to the computer then hand the bear over to the toddler and he or she has a cuddly friend who also sings songs.

The bear is a big hit in the UK, where it was invented.  Watch this British commercial about it.

So, it's headed over here to the good ol' USA.  And that's where it may run into a problem.

The iTeddy includes software that allows you to copy DVDs to your child's toy.  And why not? That would fun, to put a Barney DVD on the bear's tummy.

The problem is that in Hollywood's view, copying a DVD directly violates the Digital Milenium Copyright Act or DMCA.  While no one seems to have objected to iTeddy yet, it may be because Hollywood hasn't heard of iTeddy yet.

Witness what happened to Real Networks when  it tried to create software that did much the same thing.

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