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The concept of a money-back guarantee has been around for a long time and has worked with respect to all types of consumer products. Now, the idea of getting a refund for a product that does not perform as advertised is gaining momentum. Professor Claus Moldrup of the Danish University of Pharmaceutical Sciences in Copenhagen believes that such a system would be a benefit to both patients and manufacturers.

Presently, a high percentage of prescription drugs do not have the desired effect when prescribed to various individuals. The reasons for this include genetic factors, interactions with other drugs, or the drug may not be the correct choice. Speaking in the British Medical Journal, Professor Moldrup stated that: "A no cure, no pay strategy creates a win-win situation for the authorities as well as the drug industry, and thus the patients, because in a competitive environment only the best drugs will win." Although a few companies, like Novartis, Eli Lilly, and Bayer have incorporated the idea into promotional campaigns for specific drugs, the industry as a whole has been slow to embrace the concept. In fact, only eight such promotions have been offered in the past ten years. It is hoped that stiffer competition, greater scrutiny by the FDA, the move by the government to control healthcare costs, and doctors being more reluctant to be influenced by sales pitches will cause a shift in favor of refunds.

Chemotherapy and radiotherapy may save a female cancer patientís life but these therapies may also cause infertility. While freezing a womanís eggs before cancer therapy begins offers one possible option, the thawing process often renders the eggs incapable of being fertilized. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center has studied a freezing technique called vitrification which freezes an egg instantaneously thereby preventing the formation of damaging ice crystals which destroy about 50% of frozen eggs. In trials using mouse eggs, vitrification has achieved a 98% egg survival rate.

The introduction of various devices that permit listeners to record Internet radio streams and then convert them into MP3 files are making Web radio and streaming services more and more popular with the public. In the opinion of many legal and media experts, this type of recording software may violate digital copyright laws and simply promote piracy. The record industry will be faced with yet another challenge to the proprietary rights of artists, song writers, and record labels.

The Digital Copyright Millennium Act prohibits duplication of copyrighted material from a computer hard drive. Such material may only be recorded from a digital or analog device and only for personal use and not redistribution. Current software such as Replay Radio, however, permits users to perform all types of sophisticated editing functions and turn streaming music services into perfectly tagged MP3 song files.

Entertainment lawyers see this technology as a law suit just waiting to happen. Some Webcasters have already warned at least one software manufacturer to stop advising its customers that their streaming music services work with the recording software..

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