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general internet news - 16 February
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Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/
Internet in Asia blog:
http://internetinasia.typepad.com/
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The problem in China isn't with Google
http://www.ethicalcorp.com/content.asp?ContentID=4081
China defends internet regulation
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4715044.stm
http://iht.com/articles/2006/02/14/business/net.php
cn: Beijing Censors Taken to Task in Party Circles
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/15/international/asia/15china.html
Yahoo Grapples With Online Rights
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/13/technology/13yahoo.html
Gates defends Microsoft?s actions in China
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/07367e96-9da2-11da-b1c6-0000779e2340.html
Net firms face grilling on China
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4699242.stm
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHINA_INTERNET
http://iht.com/articles/2006/02/15/business/net.php
nz: Prime Minister slates New Zealand broadband
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/B1A978A9A2A9C60CCC25711500078CAB
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&ObjectID=10368328
Why the net should stay neutral
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4700430.stm
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CENSORSHIP, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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The problem in China isn't with Google
The uncomfortable truth is that the Chinese government
is not progressing as fast towards democracy as a
growth-hungry West has let itself believe, argues Tom
Rotherham. ... While one may well wish that the
Chinese government recognised that free access to
information is in its people?s interests, it is
wrong-headed in the extreme to suggest that any
company is doing the right thing by ignoring the
government in a country in which it operates.
http://www.ethicalcorp.com/content.asp?ContentID=4081
cn: Pirates and bloggers beat China's great wall of
propaganda
Considering that each copy of Memoirs of a Geisha
found in China breaks at least two laws and defies the
will of communist censors, you might think that DVDs
of the banned film would have to be sold under the
counter.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,1709275,00.html
China defends internet regulation
China has responded to international criticism of its
internet regulations by saying its rules are "fully in
line" with the rest of the world.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4715044.stm
http://iht.com/articles/2006/02/14/business/net.php
China's old guard warns censors of 'social disaster'
A group of retired senior officials and academics,
including Mao Zedong's former secretary, yesterday
called for more openness, warning China's propaganda
department that the media crackdown "could sow the
seeds of disaster for political and social
transition".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,1710025,00.html
In Rare Briefing, China Defends Internet Controls
Chinese authorities are determined to stop "harmful
information" from spreading through the Internet, but
the controls it places on Web sites and Internet
service providers in mainland China do not differ much
from those employed by the United States and European
countries, a senior Chinese official responsible for
managing the Internet said today.
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/14/international/asia/14cnd-china.html
cn: Beijing Censors Taken to Task in Party Circles
A dozen former Communist Party officials and senior
scholars, including a onetime secretary to Mao, a
party propaganda chief and the retired bosses of some
of the country's most powerful newspapers, have
denounced the recent closing of a prominent news
journal, helping to fuel a growing backlash against
censorship.
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/15/international/asia/15china.html
China denies Internet controls lead to arrests
China is being forced on the defensive over its media
censorship policies, fending off attacks from United
States and even, unexpectedly, its own ageing
Communist Party officials.
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=11219283
Yahoo Grapples With Online Rights
In advance of what could be harsh Congressional
questioning this week, Yahoo plans to issue a
statement today outlining its belief in openness and
freedom of speech ? even when it is forced to violate
those beliefs by laws in China.
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/13/technology/13yahoo.html
Yahoo! appeals for support in censorship row
Yahoo! yesterday sought to blunt criticism of its
business practices in China in advance of what is
expected to be a gruelling hearing in Washington on
Wednesday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,,1709154,00.html
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,39020369,39252127,00.htm
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/14/yahoo_censorship_statement/
Gates defends Microsoft?s actions in China
Bill Gates suggested that a US law governing how
internet companies deal with censorship overseas could
help to resolve recent concerns stemming from their
activities in China.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/07367e96-9da2-11da-b1c6-0000779e2340.html
us/cn: Internet Firms to Defend Their China Policies
Yahoo Google and Microsoft will go on Capitol Hill to
defend corporate policies for dealing with China that
they say balance business interests with human-rights
concerns.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/14/AR2006021401859.html
Net firms face grilling on China
US hi-tech giants are to hit back at claims of
complicity in censoring net users, at a Congressional
hearing.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4699242.stm
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CHINA_INTERNET
http://iht.com/articles/2006/02/15/business/net.php
cn: Online Firms Facing Questions About Censoring
Internet Searches in China
For Internet companies doing business in China, a
piece of a booming market has not come without
compromises. A series of episodes showing that the
companies were bending to the restrictive demands of
Beijing ? filtering words like "democracy" or "human
rights" from Chinese versions of a blog product, or
censoring certain concepts from their China-based
search engines ? has leaked out from users inside
China.
http://nytimes.com/2006/02/15/technology/15online.html
us/cn: U.S. task force eyes Net censorship in China,
elsewhere
The U.S. State Department said Tuesday that it had set
up a task force to help U.S. technology companies
protect freedom of expression in countries like China
that censor online content.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-6039414.html
http://smh.com.au/news/breaking/us-pushes-for-online-free-speech/2006/02/15/1139890779565.html
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=11217104
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&ObjectID=10368501
Another cyberdissident imprisoned because of data
provided by Yahoo
Reporters Without Borders today condemned the US firm
Yahoo ! for handing over data on one of its users in
China which enabled the authorities there to send him
to prison for eight years, the second such case that
has come to light in recent months.
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=16402
us: Use of technology to block Net's info flow
scrutinized
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday
launched a task force to counter efforts by other
nations that use U.S. technologies to block the free
flow of information across the Internet.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2006-02-14-china-net_x.htm
au: Censorship protestors target Google's Sydney HQ
It may be Valentines' Day but a couple of protesters
from the Australia-Tibet Council failed to feel the
love for Google over its decision to censor sensitive
content from its Chinese search engine.
http://zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Censorship_protestors_target_Google_s_Sydney_HQ/0,2000061733,39238180,00.htm
us: Cyberstalking law opens debate on what's annoying
It didn't get much publicity, but an anti-stalking
bill passed by Congress recently makes it a federal
crime to "annoy" someone over the Internet.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2006-02-14-cyberstalking-law_x.htm
us: Teens? MySpace Web site a boon for sex predators
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
says on its Web site that one in five children who use
the Internet have been solicited sexually. It cautions
young people and their parents not to post any
personal identifying information, including
photographs, which could be used by an Internet
predator to find them.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060213/NEWS/60212004/0/FRONTPAGE
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060213/NEWS/60213002/0/FRONTPAGE
nz: For a safer web
New Zealand starts the ball rolling for global Safer
Internet Day today, as 32 countries come together to
promote better online safety habits and to show
solidarity for the issue of keeping kids safer in
cyberspace.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3565927a11275,00.html
id: Address porn, poverty Muslim leaders tell SBY
Pornography and public welfare were the hot topics of
an informal discussion between President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono and national Muslim leaders in a
small Indonesian-Chinese mosque in Pasar Baru on
Monday.
http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=39096
Racist abuse closes BBC Asian cricket online board
An online message board dedicated to Indian and
Pakistani cricket fans on the BBC Web site has been
shut down after some users began posting racist and
religious abuse, the broadcaster said on Wednesday.
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=11223800
Web Sites Fight Proof-of-Age Rules For Porn Performers
The adult-entertainment industry is embroiled in a
legal battle with the federal government over new
regulations that many online purveyors fear could put
them out of business.
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB113979639540872097-Qf4QwbhqPe_bBmLxs3NawJzk_M0_20070212.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top
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LEGAL, SECURITY AND PRIVACY
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au: Ruddock defends phone taps
PLANNED powers to tap, for the first time, the phones
of people not suspected of a crime will be subject to
strict controls, Attorney-General Philip Ruddock says.
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,18155148%5e16123%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html
http://zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Ruddock_defends_phone_tap_e_mail_surveillance_legislation/0,2000061744,39238370,00.htm
Whose words are they anyway?
In a blaze of international publicity, the World
Association of Newspapers announced last week that it
is considering legal action against Google News, which
it accuses of "building a new medium on the backs of
our industry, without paying for any of the content".
This follows earlier objections to the Google Print
service - Google's plans to scan millions of books
have attracted opposition from publishers and authors.
But what is its legal position faced with these
objections?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/newmedia/story/0,,1702906,00.html
us/uk: Briton made 'online suicide hunt'
A Briton facing US murder charges over the deaths of
his wife and daughter searched websites about killing
and suicide, court papers allege.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4712304.stm
cn: China shuts 76 Web sites in crackdown on piracy
China, often criticized by the West for doing little
to tackle widespread music and film piracy from the
Internet, on Wednesday touted a four-month campaign it
said resulted in 76 Web sites being closed.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/15/AR2006021500313.html
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CHINA_INTERNET_PIRACY
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=11219956
ng: 419er jailed for 376 years
A Nigerian 419er was last Friday jailed for 376 years
by a Lagos court for "stealing, forgery, impersonation
and conspiracy to obtain money by false pretences"
contrary to the Advance Fee Fraud Act, the Nigerian
Daily Independent reports.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/14/419er_jailed/
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POLICY
******
uk: Licence warning over watching TV on PC or mobile
phone
Mobile phone networks and internet providers are
investing heavily in TV services, but many people are
confused about the legal implications, according to TV
Licensing.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Media/site/story/0,,1709236,00.html
Vietnam to curb online gaming phenomenon
Vietnam's government is planning to introduce new
rules to combat its citizens' growing "addiction" to
popular online games following reports of gamers being
admitted to hospital due to exhaustion.
http://iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=115&art_id=qw113983254161B213
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INTERNET & NEW TECHNOLOGY USE
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Skype's free internet calls to be offered on 3 network
Skype, the provider of free phone calls over the
internet, yesterday clinched an important deal with
mobile phone operator 3 which will see its service
offered across the company's five networks, including
in Britain, later this year.
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1709827,00.html
uk: Mobiles look to entertain you
Music, video clips and images are becoming
increasingly important to mobile operators.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4709906.stm
Operators ally for mobile IM
Fourteen major mobile phone operators have promised to
break down the barriers preventing their users sending
instant messages to each other
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/communications/3ggprs/0,39020339,39252511,00.htm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/13/AR2006021301586.html
uk: Microsoft, BT, Virgin team on mobile TV
Microsoft announced on Tuesday a partnership with
British Telecom Group and Virgin Mobile to launch a
mobile TV service in the United Kingdom.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6038827.html
uk: Virgin Mobile confirms mobile TV deal
Virgin Mobile has confirmed it is to unveil a mobile
TV service later this year following a tie-up with BT
Wholesale. The tie-up comes as little surpise as both
firms had already been working together in trials of
BT Movio, which piggybacks the Digital Audio
Broadcasting (DAB) network, to broadcast pictures to
handsets. The story was leaked over the weekend.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/14/bt_virgin_tv/
Nintendo unveils TV, Web browser features for DS
Japanese fans of Nintendo's <7074.OS> dual-screen DS
portable game machine may soon be able to surf the Web
and watch high-definition television programs on their
devices in addition to playing games.
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=11220742
uk: NTL, Bit Torrent, Cache Logic to trial legal P2P
video downloads
The three companies will combine their assets to
evaluate ultra high-speed legal P2P downloads of video
content in the UK. The trial is scheduled to begin in
April 2006
http://dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=13403
nz: Prime Minister slates New Zealand broadband
In the strongest indication yet that Telecom faces
further regulation, Prime Minister Helen Clark slated
broadband offerings for New Zealanders in her opening
address to Parliament. She called for new initiatives
for faster internet access at more competitive prices.
http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/B1A978A9A2A9C60CCC25711500078CAB
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&ObjectID=10368328
Canadians embrace sex of the virtual kind
Call it a sexual revolution of the virtual kind -
young Canadians are practising a new style of safe sex
and the only touching required involves a keyboard.
http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=115&art_id=qw1139873940114B232
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COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
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Why the net should stay neutral
Is it time to let internet companies provide premium
access to paying websites and services? No, says BBC
technology commentator Bill Thompson.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4700430.stm
How to make lewd, lazy lads pay
Later this month, Time Inc will launch Office Pirates,
a website aimed at young men who are mucking about
online while they are supposed to be working.
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1708473,00.html
The end of the (free) pipe dream?
Gervase Markham, our man from Mozilla, says that
charging for sending e-mails could create a dangerous
precedent on the previously free-to-access internet
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9075-2029464,00.html
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ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
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us: Magistrate recommends suit against Yahoo! be
dismissed
A Texarkana lawsuit by parents of a young boy whose
image was used on the online E-group Candyman could be
dropped against Yahoo! because the law was designed to
protect the large Internet companies.
http://www.texarkanagazette.com/articles/2006/02/13/local_news/news/news02.txt
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Also see
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Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and
BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.
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(c) David Goldstein 2006
David Goldstein
address: 4/3 Abbott Street
COOGEE NSW 2034
AUSTRALIA
email: Goldstein_David @yahoo.com.au
phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9665 5773 - home
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