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[APPLe list] general internet news - 8 June
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Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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Americans Viewed a Record 16.8 Billion Videos Online in April Driven Largely by Surge in Viewership at YouTube [news release]
http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2009/6/Americans_Viewed_a_Record_16.8_Billion_Videos_Online_in_April
us: Internet use triples in decade; broadband surges
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2009-06-03-internet-use-broadband_N.htm
Just a few on Twitter do all the tweeting: study
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-40101620090605
Google Says It's Actually Quite Small
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/06/AR2009060600056.html
Half of Kiwi parents snoop on their kids’ email, website history
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/half-kiwi-parents-snoop-their-kids-email-website-history-103211
us: Crawford: Beware Of Web Rhetoric
http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2009/06/crawford-beware-overheated-rhe.php
Swedish Pirate Party wins seat [AFP]
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/06/08/2592010.htm
http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/2481864/
Illegal downloads and dodgy figures
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jun/05/ben-goldacre-bad-science-music-downloads
Online Video: How Big Is It, Really? A lack of standard measurement has led to conflicting reports about online video viewership
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jun2009/tc2009064_863184.htm
Doctors warn of 'mobile phone elbow'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/technologynews/5439991/Doctors-warn-of-mobile-phone-elbow.html
Father of the cell phone pushes wireless communications to new heights
http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13725793
US shuts down ‘criminal’ internet provider
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cd0dbabe-5157-11de-84c3-00144feabdc0.html
10 Worst Countries to be a Blogger
http://cpj.org/reports/2009/04/10-worst-countries-to-be-a-blogger.php
China Squeezes PC Makers - Beijing Is Set to Require Web Filter That Would Block Government-Censored Sites [sub req'd]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124440211524192081.html
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RESEARCH PAPERS
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Clean Feed: Australia’s Internet Filtering Proposal by Alana Maurushat & Renee Watt [UNSW Law Research Paper]
Abstract: This article examines the Australian Federal government's proposal on internet filtering. Technical, policy and legal frameworks are discussed. A comprehensive comparative chart is provided looking at other countries which already have internet filtering in place.
http://ssrn.com/abstract=1412013
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INTERNET USE
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YouTube drives video viewing to record month [IDG]
People in the U.S. viewed a record 16.8 billion videos online in April, a 16% increase over March, due in large part to a "surge" in usage at YouTube, according to comScore.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9133995
http://pcworld.idg.com.au/article/306397/
Americans Viewed a Record 16.8 Billion Videos Online in April Driven Largely by Surge in Viewership at YouTube [news release]
comScore, a leader in measuring the digital world, today released April 2009 data from the comScore Video Metrix service, showing that U.S. Internet users viewed 16.8 billion online videos during the month, representing an increase of 16 percent versus March. A significant increase in video viewing at YouTube during April contributed to the month’s sizeable gains.
http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2009/6/Americans_Viewed_a_Record_16.8_Billion_Videos_Online_in_April
us: Internet use triples in decade; broadband surges
It's official: The Internet is a part of daily life. According to a new report by the Census Bureau, Internet use tripled from 1997 to 2007. Sixty-two percent of U.S. households used the Internet from home; 18% did that in 1997.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2009-06-03-internet-use-broadband_N.htm
Just a few on Twitter do all the tweeting: study
A tiny fraction of those who use the fast-growing social network phenomenon Twitter generate nearly all the content, a Harvard study shows.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE55381J20090604
http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-40101620090605
Google Says It's Actually Quite Small
Three times in the past month, government agencies have targeted Google for antitrust reviews. An outstanding private lawsuit alleges that Google tried to kill a business-to-business search engine with predatory pricing. And during the waning months of the Bush administration, soon-to-be Obama antitrust chief Christine Varney declared that Google "has acquired a monopoly in Internet online advertising." Last month she asserted that the Bush administration had been too lax in combating monopolistic behavior and that the Obama Justice Department would no longer "stand on the sidelines."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/06/AR2009060600056.html
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NEW TECHNOLOGIES
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Google makes a new wave and transforms the browser
Once upon a time, web pages were just text, written in something called "Hypertext Mark-Up Language" or HTML. This is a code that makes much use of angle brackets, quotation marks and forward slashes. When your computer requested a web page from a site, the site sent back the text file then your web browser program parsed the angle brackets and the other gobbledegook in order to render it for displaying on your screen.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/jun/07/media-business-google-wave
Debating the power of Google's Wave
We've had about a week to absorb the Google's pitch for Wave, its new experimental communication platform, and about a day to try the actual early "sandbox" build of the service. See our hands-on review. But there's more to talk about with Wave. It's not just an app, it's an important evolution in the philosophy of written communication.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10256471-2.html
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CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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Half of Kiwi parents snoop on their kids’ email, website history
More than half of parents snoop on their kids’ email or check their history of visited websites, according to a survey of 1000 New Zealanders by Colmar Brunton, carried out for Symantec.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/half-kiwi-parents-snoop-their-kids-email-website-history-103211
us: Crawford: Beware Of Web Rhetoric
Susan Crawford, special assistant to President Obama for science, technology and innovation policy, warned a federal advisory committee on Internet child safety on Thursday to be wary of several pitfalls as they begin their work. "Be reluctant to engage in overstated or overheated rhetoric. This issue makes tempers run high," Crawford told the inaugural meeting of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's Online Safety and Technology Working Group.
http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2009/06/crawford-beware-overheated-rhe.php
us: Internet safety seminar held at St. Bernard School
To better protect themselves and children from the dangers of the internet, parents and teachers attended a presentation at St. Bernard's elementary school Wednesday night.
http://amherstburgecho.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1596343
us: Federal panel takes a fresh look at kids' Internet safety
Last year, Congress passed the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act,which called for yet another committee to study Internet safety. By statute, the Online Safety and Technology Working Group is made up of representatives of the business community, public interest groups and federal agencies. I'm on the committee as co-director of the nonprofit ConnectSafely.org.
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_12522370
us: Fremont prosecutor to crack down on sexting
Fremont County's prosecuting attorney says she intends to prosecute cases of cell phone "sexting" to the maximum.
http://rexburgstandardjournal.com/articles/2009/06/05/news/30.txt
ca: Deciding when to be a cyber-parent
Julianne Doctor doesn't bother sneaking around cyberspace to see what her teenage daughter Hayley is doing. Instead, in the cyber-parenting version of having all the kids welcome to hang out in your rec room, Doctor wanders in and out of her daughter's cyberspaces and knows who she is hanging around with and what they're up to.
http://www2.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=8c9a9f66-d9e7-44c7-94cd-df9699d71326
http://www.vancouversun.com/Life/Cyber+stalking+cases+have+parents+examining+children+online+activities/1668168/story.html
jp: New Service from OCN Provides Children with Safer Internet [news release]
NTT Communications (NTT Com) announced today that customers of NTT Com’s "OCN" Internet access service can take advantage of a new offering to make home computers and the Internet safer for their children.
http://www.ntt.com/aboutus_e/news/data/20090528.html
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ONLINE TV & MUSIC
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Swedish Pirate Party wins seat [AFP]
A Swedish party that wants to legalise internet filesharing and beef up web privacy scored a big victory by winning a European parliament seat, results showed.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/06/08/2592010.htm
http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/2481864/
http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-technology/swedish-pirate-party-enters-eu-parliament-partial-results-20090608-c04c.html
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-technology/swedish-pirate-party-enters-eu-parliament-partial-results-20090608-c04c.html
Swedish Pirate Party headed to European Parliament
The final returns are still being counted, but Sweden's Pirate Party (Piratpartiet) has secured at least one seat in today's elections for the European Parliament. According to Sweden's election authority, the Pirate Party has crossed the four percent threshold needed for a seat and currently has 7.1 percent of the vote.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/06/swedish-pirate-party-headed-to-european-parliament.ars
Illegal downloads and dodgy figures
You are killing our creative industries. "Downloading costs billions," said the Sun. "MORE than 7 million Brits use illegal downloading sites that cost the economy billions of pounds, government advisers said today. Researchers found more than a million people using a download site in ONE day and estimated that in a year they would use £120bn worth of material."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jun/05/ben-goldacre-bad-science-music-downloads
'Slow lane' for British copyright thieves
The government has all but ruled out using a "three strikes" law to tackle persistent net pirates. Using warnings and disconnection to tackle pirates was thought to be in the final Digital Britain report due to be published on 16 June.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8083866.stm
The pirates will always win, says Carphone's Dunstone
Trying to stop people sharing copyrighted material over the internet is a game of cat and mouse in which the pirates will always win and calls for internet service providers to halt illegal file sharing are "naive", according to the boss of Carphone Warehouse.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/jun/05/dunstone-carphone-warehouse-results-pirates
Online Video: How Big Is It, Really? A lack of standard measurement has led to conflicting reports about online video viewership
Online video watching—is it massive or is it overblown? These days, it's almost a political question. Traditional television distributors assure us that 99% of video is watched on a television screen, and a massive observational study concluded that people say they watch more online video than they actually do in order to sound "new and cool." Consumers "cord-cutting" their cable subscriptions en masse? That's a "myth."
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jun2009/tc2009064_863184.htm
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MOBILE/WIRELESS
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Doctors warn of 'mobile phone elbow'
First there was a risk of repetitive strain injury from texting, and now doctors have warned that chatting for extended periods of time can leave you with a new ailment – mobile phone elbow.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/technologynews/5439991/Doctors-warn-of-mobile-phone-elbow.html
Father of the cell phone pushes wireless communications to new heights
Unless you work in the telecoms industry, you are unlikely to have heard of Marty Cooper. He is hardly a household name. But his influence has been felt across the world, because he is the engineer who took the cellular technology used in the carphones of the 1970s and decided that phones ought to be small enough to be portable. His determination led to the first prototype, in 1973, and then to the first commercial mobile phone in 1983. “Marty is the most influential person no one has ever heard of,” says Robert McDowell, a commissioner with the Federal Communications Commission, America’s telecoms regulator.
http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13725793
Sensors and sensitivity - Data collection: Mobile phones provide new ways to gather information, both manually and automatically, over wide areas
If your mobile phone could talk, it could reveal a great deal. Obviously it would know many of your innermost secrets, being privy to your calls and text messages, and possibly your e-mail and diary, too. It also knows where you have been, how you get to work, where you like to go for lunch, what time you got home, and where you like to go at the weekend. Now imagine being able to aggregate this sort of information from large numbers of phones. It would be possible to determine and analyse how people move around cities, how social groups interact, how quickly traffic is moving and even how diseases might spread. The world’s 4 billion mobile phones could be turned into sensors on a global data-collection network.
http://www.economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13725679
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SPAM
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ACMA signs MOU with New Zealand to help fight spam [news release]
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has joined forces with the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs in the fight against spam by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish channels of communication that will allow both agencies to move quickly in response to the challenges and demands of the ever-changing spam environment.
http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_311742
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ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL
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au: Simple ways to stay smart and secure online [news release]
Australians are being encouraged to take some simple steps to improve their online security as part of National E-security Awareness Week.
http://www.minister.dbcde.gov.au/media/media_releases/2009/051
au: Conroy urges nation to change passwords [AAP]
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has urged Australian computer users to change their passwords to a minimum of eight characters, as part of the inaugural "change your password day".
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Conroy-urges-nation-to-change-passwords/0,130061744,339296801,00.htm
au: CommBank cyber scam hits phone and SMS
The relentless barrage of scam attempts aimed at Commonwealth Bank customers has transcended email, with the sophisticated Eastern European cyber criminals now targeting people via telephone and SMS.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/06/05/1243708605803.html
http://www.theage.com.au/news/technology/biztech/2009/06/05/1243708605803.html
US shuts down ‘criminal’ internet provider
The US Federal Trade Commission for the first time has sued and immediately shut down an internet service provider it accused of being a haven for a wide range of criminal activity, including child pornography and the electronic theft of personal banking data.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cd0dbabe-5157-11de-84c3-00144feabdc0.html
us: FTC Sues, Shuts Down N. Calif. Web Hosting Firm
In an unprecedented move, the Federal Trade Commission has taken legal steps to shut down a Web hosting provider in Northern California that the agency says was directly involved in managing massive global spam operations.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/06/ftc_sues_shuts_down_n_calif_we.html
FTC Shuts Down Notorious Rogue Internet Service Provider, 3FN Service Specializes in Hosting Spam-Spewing Botnets, Phishing Web sites, Child Pornography, and Other Illegal, Malicious Web Content [news release]
A rogue Internet Service Provider that recruits, knowingly hosts, and actively participates in the distribution of spam, child pornography, and other harmful electronic content has been shut down by a district court judge at the request of the Federal Trade Commission. The ISP’s upstream providers and data centers have disconnected its servers from the Internet.
http://ftc.gov/opa/2009/06/3fn.shtm
Court shuts down 'rogue' ISP after FTC complaint [IDG]
A federal judge has ordered the closure of an Internet service provider after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission complained that the company recruits and hosts spammers, child pornographers and other criminals.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9133966
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/060409-court-shuts-down-rogue-isp.html
Federal Trade Commission shuts down rogue ISP
The Internet might just have gotten a little safer. The Federal Trade Commission announced Thursday that it had Pricewert LLC shut down by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Division.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10257588-83.html
us: FTC Shuts Down Rogue ISP
The FTC has taken the rare action of taking down Northern California Internet Service Provider Pricewert LLC (also doing business as 3FN and APS Telecom), charging it with hosting criminal sites engaged in the distribution of spam, child pornography, spyware and malware as well as the operation of botnet command and control servers.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2348256,00.asp
FTC forces hive of scum and villainy ISP offline
The Federal Trade Commission has shut down an ISP that it claims is playing host to botnets, spammers, phishing websites, and even child porn. The company behind the ISP, Pricewert LLC, apparently does business under a variety of names, but the FTC claims that it "actively" recruits criminals in order to carry out illegal and malicious activity online. As a results, the FTC was able to obtain a temporary restraining order shutting down Pricewert, with a preliminary injunction hearing scheduled for June 15.
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/06/ftc-forces-hive-of-scum-and-villainy-isp-offline.ars
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PRIVACY
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Germany, Google Still in Conflict Over Street View Data [IDG]
Germany and Google remain at an impasse over how long certain data should be retained by the company for its Street View imagery.
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/166198/.html
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CENSORSHIP
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10 Worst Countries to be a Blogger
With a military government that severely restricts Internet access and imprisons people for years for posting critical material, Burma is the worst place in the world to be a blogger, the Committee to Protect Journalists says in a new report. CPJ’s “10 Worst Countries to be a Blogger” also identifies a number of countries in the Middle East and Asia where Internet penetration has blossomed and government repression has grown in response.
http://cpj.org/reports/2009/04/10-worst-countries-to-be-a-blogger.php
China Squeezes PC Makers - Beijing Is Set to Require Web Filter That Would Block Government-Censored Sites [sub req'd]
China plans to require that all personal computers sold in the country as of July 1 be shipped with software that blocks access to certain Web sites, a move that could give government censors unprecedented control over how Chinese users access the Internet.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124440211524192081.html
China seen requiring PCs to block sites
China's government wants all PCs sold in the country from July 1 to be loaded with software that blocks certain websites, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE5570DP20090608
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/07/AR2009060702699.html
Wikipedia blocks access from Church of Scientology in L.A.
The Internet encyclopedia Wikipedia has blocked all contributions from computers at the Church of Scientology's Los Angeles headquarters to stop users there from revising articles to reflect a pro-Scientology viewpoint.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-wikipedia-scientology5-2009jun05,0,2485995.story
Australian Mac site asked to take down iPhone rumor
Australian site MacTalk posted a notice a couple weeks ago from Vodafone Australia and its iPhone supplier, Brightpoint, saying that the 16GB iPhone was being discontinued (declared "end of life," in retail speak)--a move that was hardly surprising, given the rumors flying about imminent new models. Now, MacTalk has received a cease-and-desist order about the story, mere days ahead of the Apple keynote in San Francisco.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/060509-australian-mac-site-asked-to.html
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GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
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US Telecoms Win Dismissal of Wiretap Suits
A federal judge on Wednesday threw out more than three dozen lawsuits claiming that the nation’s major telecommunications companies had illegally assisted in the wiretapping without warrants program approved by President George W. Bush after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
http://nytimes.com/2009/06/04/us/politics/04nsa.html
Internet tax working its way down the tubes to Louisiana
Louisiana residents may find themselves paying an extra fee on top of their regular Internet costs if the state's House of Representatives has its way. The House voted 81 to 9 in favor of the 15-cent monthly levy Thursday, with the bill's sponsors arguing that the money would go towards fighting Internet-related crimes in the state. The bill now moves to the state's Senate for a vote, though it faces opposition from Republican Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal.
http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2009/06/internet-tax-working-its-way-down-the-tubes-to-louisiana.ars
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MISCELLANEOUS
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Google NZ's missing millions [The Dominion Post]
Google New Zealand posted a loss of NZ$12,000 in 2008 despite more than doubling its revenues to $3.4 million.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/2480288/
German public broadcasters bullied over Web content
Commercial media in Germany has successfully bullied public broadcasters into reducing their online offerings on the premise that it constitutes unfair competition. Two public broadcasters have announced that they plan to reduce their online offerings in response to widespread criticism, thereby reinforcing traditional media's notion that their way is the only way to do business.
http://arstechnica.com/web/news/2009/06/german-papers-bully-public-broadcasters-over-web-content.ars
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TELECOMMUNICATIONS
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Telstra split-up key to NBN viability, says Optus
The federal Government's $43billion national broadband network will be economically unviable unless Telstra is structurally separated, arch-rival Optus says.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,28124,25594083-5018015,00.html
Optus suggests splitting Telstra
The Federal Government's proposed national broadband network (NBN) can be commercially viable, but only if Telstra Corp separates its wholesale and retail businesses, arch rival Optus says.
http://business.theage.com.au/business/optus-suggests-splitting-telstra-20090605-bynd.html
ACCC draws copper line
The competition watchdog has moved to address uncertainty over regulation of Telstra's copper network ahead of construction of Labor's $43 billion national broadband network.
http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,25590511-15306,00.html
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(c) David Goldstein 2009
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David Goldstein
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