[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
[APPLe list] general internet news - July 7
**********************************************************
Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/
**********************************************************
Don't forget to check out www.auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, already online!
And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings.
***************************************************
The Internet News is brought to you by auDA
***************************************************
The Google Ogle Defense: A Search for America's Psyche
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/02/AR2008070203623.html
EBay drops Australian PayPal requirement
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23962517-15306,00.html
eBay backs down on Australian PayPal changes
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/07/03/1214950928313.html
Viacom vs. YouTube: Beyond Privacy
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2008/tc2008073_435740.htm
Google Told to Turn Over User Data of YouTube
http://iht.com/articles/2008/07/03/technology/04youtube.php
Google faces 'Street View block' in UK
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7488524.stm
BBC Leads the Way onto the Web
http://businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2008/gb2008072_556416.htm
Europe drafts law to disconnect suspected filesharers
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/06/europe_drafts_law_to_disconnect_filesharers/
nz: Carter announces new initiatives for safer schools [news release]
http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/carter+announces+new+initiatives+safer+schools
us: Predators use gaming consoles to 'get foot in the door'
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2008-07-01-porn_N.htm
European Commission wants a web that is better enabled for the disabled
http://www.europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1074
Split Australian network and broadband: Google
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23961689-15306,00.html
**********************
RESEARCH PAPERS
**********************
55% of adult Americans have home broadband connections [news release]
Some 55% of all adult Americans now have a high-speed internet connection at home, according to a May 2008 survey conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. The percentage of Americans with broadband at home has grown from 47% in early 2007 and 42% in early 2005. Among individuals who use the internet at home, 79% have a high-speed connection while 15% use dialup.
http://www.pewinternet.org/press_release.asp?r=305
Broadband Development and Growth in OECD Countries
This volume examines broadband developments and policies, and highlights challenges such as connecting users to fibre-based networks or coverage of rural areas. It also outlines emerging issues that may need policy attention as we move to next-generation networks. The findings are also relevant to emerging and developing economies designing broadband strategies.
http://www.oecd.org/document/1/0,3343,en_2649_37441_40931201_1_1_1_37441,00.html
How to Overcome Digital Divide? Determinants of Internet Diffusion by Baptiste Massenot & Oleg Shchetinin [Toulouse School of Economics]
Abstract: We document the existence and the persistence of the digital divide and investigate the determinants of the Internet diffusion in both developing and developed countries. Our study innovates on the following: i) we use a data set that covers more countries and years than the earlier studies ii) We use the GMM estimator which requires milder assumptions to be consistent than the traditionally used panel data estimators in technology diffusion studies.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1154030
**********************
INTERNET USE
**********************
The Google Ogle Defense: A Search for America's Psyche
Question: Do you think your Google habits -- your random, untethered wisps of thoughts manifested as search terms like "unexplained hives" and "Kate Beckinsale single?" -- can be bundled together to paint an accurate representation of your morality?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/02/AR2008070203623.html
EBay drops Australian PayPal requirement
eBay has dropped its bid to use Australia as a guinea pig to trial a new policy where all other modes of payment are barred except its own transaction gateway, PayPal.
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23962517-15306,00.html
eBay backs down on Australian PayPal changes
eBay has backed down on plans to force all of its users on to PayPal just as the competition regulator looked set to scuttle the move.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/07/03/1214950928313.html
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/07/03/1214950928313.html
eBay still 'forcing' Australian sellers to use PayPal
eBay is surreptitiously strong-arming its users into embracing PayPal despite publicly announcing it has shelved plans to block other payment methods.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/07/04/1214951011001.html
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/07/04/1214951011001.html
Internet viewed as new channel to Chinese democracy
After Chinese President Hu Jintao's online chat with Internet users, 52.4 percent citizens think the Internet in China will become a livelier forum for debate, and can develop into a form of social participation.
http://www.china.org.cn/2008-07/03/content_15924395.htm
Pew Study Shows Sizable Chunk of US Still Not Online
A new study shows the majority of Americans still on dial-up Internet access are keeping the slow connection by choice. The Pew Internet and American Life Project's "Home Broadband Adoption 2008" report finds only 55 percent of Americans are now using high-speed broadband connections -- up 8 percent from this time last year.
http://ecommercetimes.com/story/63685.html
US tax payback spent on porn
President Bush’s economic stimulus plan, which involved sending out checks of up to $1,200 to every taxpayer, has provided a boom to the online porn industry, according to market research.
http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2220730/tax-payback-spent-porn
Gartner Says E-Mail Will Lead the Charge Into Mainstream Adoption of Cloud Computing
Driven by falling prices and new vendors, the percentage of commercial mailboxes using a cloud-provisioned model will grow from 1 percent of enterprise seats in 2007 to 20 percent in 2012, according to Gartner Inc. The push into the cloud e-mail market by large suppliers will cause fundamental restructuring of the e-mail market, analysts predicted.
http://gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=712507
**********************
NEW TECHNOLOGIES
**********************
Environment: Climate risk from flat-screen TVs
The rising demand for flat-screen televisions could have a greater impact on global warming than the world's largest coal-fired power stations, a leading environmental scientist warned yesterday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/jul/03/scienceofclimatechange.climatechange
Taking steps toward mobile cash
... The transaction was made possible by mobile payment - a form of cashless consumption that uses a technology called near-field communication, which sends encoded payment data over distances of less than 10 centimeters, or about 4 inches. Romen, the director of near-field communications at Nokia, the largest cellphone maker in the world, said mobile money had the potential to eventually replace many kinds of cash payments.
http://iht.com/articles/2008/07/02/technology/wireless02.php
**************************
ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL
**************************
Viacom vs. YouTube: Beyond Privacy
As Viacom is granted access to YouTube user records, a bigger threat to user-generated sites emerges: The law is increasingly siding with rights owners
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2008/tc2008073_435740.htm
Google has enough data to pull you out of the crowd
If you're anything like me – nothing to be proud of, I know – you probably spend your idle moments surfing the crucible of modern life that is YouTube. In just a few short years it's gone from being a niche video website to the basic staple of online entertainment.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/04/youtube.google
Google forced to reveal users' YouTube viewing habits
Google has been ordered to hand over details of YouTube users' viewing habits by a judge presiding over a copyright infringement case against the site.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article4263925.ece
Google Told to Turn Over User Data of YouTube
A federal judge has ordered Google to turn over to Viacom its records of which users watched which videos on YouTube, the Web’s largest video site by far.
http://nytimes.com/2008/07/04/technology/04youtube.html
http://iht.com/articles/2008/07/03/technology/04youtube.php
YouTube Ordered To Release User Data
A federal judge in New York this week ordered the video-sharing site YouTube, the world's third-most-visited Web site, to release data on the viewing habits of its tens of millions of worldwide viewers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/03/AR2008070302359.html
Viacom lawsuit: Google told to hand over all YouTube user details
The internet giant Google is being forced to hand over the personal information of every person who has ever watched a video on the YouTube website as part of a billion-dollar court case in the US.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/jul/04/youtube.google
YouTube: Trade secrets are safe but your information isn't
A judge has ordered YouTube to hand over information about every video watched including logins and user IP addresses to Viacom, which is suing the video sharing service for $1bn.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/07/03/youtube_trade_secrets_are_safe_but_your_information_isnt.html
us: Google must divulge YouTube log
Google must divulge the viewing habits of every user who has ever watched any video on YouTube, a US court has ruled. The ruling comes as part of Google's legal battle with Viacom over allegations of copyright infringement. Digital rights group the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) called the ruling a "set-back to privacy rights".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7488009.stm
Court Gives Viacom Window on YouTube User Activities
A new ruling in Viacom's $1 billion lawsuit against Google has privacy advocates fretting that the case may further erode privacy online, even if it's eventually settled. Judge Louis Stanton of the U.S. District Court for Southern New York ruled that Google must provide Viacom with information from its database, including users' YouTube login IDs, the videos they watched, and the time they watched them. Viacom wants the data in order to rebut Google's claim that user traffic to copyrighted content on YouTube is just a small part of the site's overall traffic.
http://ecommercetimes.com/story/63689.html
Judge orders YouTube to expose user viewing habits and history
A federal judge yesterday ruled that Google Inc. must turn over a YouTube logging database containing 12TB of data that includes user log-in IDs, IP addresses and video viewing habits to Viacom International Inc. The media and entertainment firm had sought the data -- recorded once a user starts to watch a YouTube -- as part of its $1 billion copyright lawsuit against Google's video unit.
http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9106518
Britain's buggies march into battle against eBay
Two of Britain's most popular baby buggy brands have joined the front line in the growing global battle between retailers and eBay, the internet auction site.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article4258334.ece
UK blogger wins right to free speech
A blogger who faced charges of intimidation in cyberspace has won a legal judgment that anti-censorship campaigners claimed this weekend will protect freedom of expression across the worldwide web.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/jul/06/northernireland.civilliberties
nz: Internet "Mr Right" not so righteous
Women looking for Mr Right on the Internet are being warned there is a Mr Con-man lurking amongst the contenders by a NZ Internet safety group.
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411365/1890737
nz: Online dating danger highlighted
Women looking for Mr Right on the Internet are being warned there is a Mr Conman amongst the contenders. Several women have been caught out by the man, who describes himself as lonely, sad, and suffering from terminal cancer.
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=140257
**************************
PRIVACY
**************************
Google faces 'Street View block' in UK
Google's plans to launch a mapping tool in the UK could be referred to the Information Commissioner. Street View matches photos of locations to maps, including passers-by who were captured as the photograph was taken.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7488524.stm
Google's controversial Street View hits the UK
Google's Street View photography cars have been spotted on the streets of London. The company started its first European data gathering for the service in April in Italy.
http://out-law.com/page-9233
Google Changes Home Page, Adding Link to Privacy Policy
The word “privacy” now appears on Google’s home page, with a link to the company’s privacy policy.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/04/google-changes-home-page-adding-link-to-privacy-policy/
**********************
ONLINE TV & MUSIC
**********************
BBC Leads the Way onto the Web
For online video streaming, the BBC's iPlayer has been a huge success. U.S. broadcasters like ABC and NBC could take a lesson
http://businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2008/gb2008072_556416.htm
Europe drafts law to disconnect suspected filesharers
France has suggested an amendment to the pan-European Telecoms Package, which would bar broadband access to anyone who persists in illegally downloading music or films.
Last month, the government of Nicolas Sarkozy insisted on a similar "three-strikes-and-you're-out" scheme for France. Under a cross-industry agreement, ISPs would have to cut off access for up to a year for third-time offenders. Sarko believes "there is no reason that the internet should be a lawless zone".
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/06/europe_drafts_law_to_disconnect_filesharers/
The internet's traffic jam
As more and more people download albums and watch movies via the web, are we heading for an 'internet crunch'? - Did it take your browser a little bit longer than normal to open this article? Have you found yourself twiddling your thumbs recently as you wait two or three seconds (rather than the usual millisecond) for an email to send? Perhaps you've even found yourself making a cup of tea while waiting for the homepage of a particularly image-heavy website to download. Using the web, do you sometimes feel like you're stuck in 1998 – all slow connections and snail-paced emails – rather than 2008?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/03/bbc.internet
Games firm wins rulings against British BitTorrent users
A London court has come down in favour of a games publisher in four cases in which it claimed that the users had been illegally downloading and sharing computer games on the internet.
http://out-law.com/page-9234
uk: Warning letters go to music file-sharers
Virgin Media has sent about 800 letters to customers warning them that they should not be downloading illegal music files via file-sharing sites. It is part of a 10-week campaign it is running in conjunction with the BPI to "educate" users about downloads.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7486743.stm
**********************
CENSORSHIP
**********************
Chinese bloggers evade great firewall
Bloggers in China are using backward-written text as a means of evading censors while reporting on a riot that took place last weekend.
http://www.vnunet.com/computing/news/2220643/chinese-bloggers-evade-great
************************************************
CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
************************************************
nz: Carter announces new initiatives for safer schools [news release]
Education Minister Chris Carter today launched a range of initiatives aimed at making schools safer for students and to ensure schools have anti-bullying programmes in place.
http://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/carter+announces+new+initiatives+safer+schools
nz: Alarm over networking website
Take a good look at your child's Bebo page and see who their friends are, warn a concerned Timaru couple. After monitoring their child's profile they see internet social networking as an unacceptable risk.
http://stuff.co.nz/timaruherald/4606813a6571.html
uk: Parents warned 'four in ten children are victims of online cyberbullies'
Four out of ten children claim to have been targeted by online bullies. And almost one in five admits to persecuting other youngsters via a home computer.
http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/news/article-1031311/Parents-warned-children-victims-online-cyberbullies.html
jp: Only 20% of known child porn sites heed watchdog's call to shut down
Only 20 percent of some 1,600 known child pornography sites were taken off the Internet in 2007 despite pressure from a Tokyo-based watchdog that monitors the harmful sites, the group said Friday.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20080705a2.html
us: Predators use gaming consoles to 'get foot in the door'
Sexual predators are using gaming consoles such as the Wii, PlayStation and Xbox to meet children online. "Child predators are migrating from traditional methods to alternate media," says Detective Lt. Thomas Kish of the Michigan State Police. "They are going to places where children are."
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2008-07-01-porn_N.htm
us: Berkman Center Announces Request for Technical Submissions Related to Child Safety on the Internet
The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University today formally announced a Request for Technical Submissions as part of the work of the Internet Safety Technical Task Force. The Task Force, comprised of leading Internet businesses and organizations, is focused on identifying effective online safety tools and technologies that can be used by companies and individuals across multiple platforms.
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/newsroom/ISTTF_techsubmissions
**************************
GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
**************************
Judge Rejects Bush’s View on Wiretaps
A federal judge in California said Wednesday that the wiretapping law established by Congress was the “exclusive” means for the president to eavesdrop on Americans, and he rejected the government’s claim that the president’s constitutional authority as commander in chief trumped that law.
http://nytimes.com/2008/07/03/washington/03fisa.html
European Commission wants a web that is better enabled for the disabled
15% of Europeans suffer from some form of disability, and many face barriers such as reading a website's small text or even knowing how to access websites and online services. Despite repeated calls by the EU and government leaders to improve this situation, progress remains limited: by far the majority of websites fail to use universally accepted user-friendly solutions. Today the European Commission launched a public consultation on further measures to make websites in Europe accessible, starting with those of public administrations, and invites stakeholders to give their views. It also addresses other technologies like digital television. The consultation is open until 27 August 2008.
http://www.europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1074
*********************************
COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
*********************************
Investigators ramp up inquiry into Yahoo's ad link with Google
The US department of justice has begun a formal investigation into competition concerns surrounding an advertising tie-up between the two biggest global players in internet searches, Google and Yahoo.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/jul/03/microsoft.microsoft
At Yahoo, a Threat from Within
Fleeing executives' gripes: the Microsoft saga, the Google deal, and cumbersome decision-making
http://businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_28/b4092000252792.htm
The Case Against Google-Yahoo
With the Justice Dept. confirming it plans to look into any Google-Yahoo partnership, foes are lining up their arguments
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2008/tc2008073_184471.htm
**********************
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
**********************
Split network and broadband: Google
Google has joined Australia's national broadband debate, telling the federal Government's expert panel that the provider of Australia's new high-speed internet network must not operate both the network and a retail broadband businesses.
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23961689-15306,00.html
Telecom to spend $130m on new IP network [NZPA]
Telecom, whose share prices is bobbing around near a 15-year low, said today it plans to spend $130 million on new Internet Protocol (IP) network.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/telecom-spend-130m-new-ip-network-32773
Fast internet still a pipedream in the NZ country
City slickers who complain incessantly about their broadband internet options (that's me - I admit it) should spare a thought for their country cousins. Donald Aubrey, who farms in the South Canterbury high country, used to take a book with him to read when he fired up his internet connection - it was that slow. Until recently Aubrey had dial-up only, but in rural New Zealand, even dial-up ain't what it is in town.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10519917
**********************************
ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
**********************************
uk: Nurses caught viewing child porn
An NHS whistleblower, who revealed that nurses caught viewing child porn had been allowed to continue treating patients, claims ministers disregarded her warnings that the disciplinary panel charged with rooting out rogue staff was failing.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/jul/06/nhs.childprotection
Australia praised, pedophile sentenced
Australian authorities have been praised in the US after an American pedophile was sentenced to 33 years in prison.
http://news.theage.com.au/world/australia-praised-pedophile-sentenced-20080704-31ly.html
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The domain name news is supported by auDA
For information on subscriptions to the domain name and/or general internet news please contact me. For archives of postings to the list, see http://lists.technewsreview.com.au/pipermail/technewsreview/. Also see http://technewsreview.com.au/ for recent updates.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
(c) David Goldstein 2008
---------
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)
"Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery
Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email address.
www.yahoo7.com.au/mail
