Hi DNS List, The DNS news is back with a bumper edition to start in 2009, courtesy of auDA. By my calculations this is the 643rd edition of the news since it started in 2002. So happy new year to you all and happy reading of the news for 2009. Don't forget to check out http://www.auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the archive of the last 3 months of the news. And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. Cheers David *************************************************** The domain name news is supported by auDA *************************************************** Reboot the FCC by Lawrence Lessig http://www.newsweek.com/id/176809 Internet needs global regulation, says researcher http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsID=108714 ICANN 2008 Annual Report Published http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-31dec08-en.htm U.S. Commerce Dept. criticizes Internet plan [AP] http://news.smh.com.au/technology/commerce-dept-criticizes-internet-addressing-plan-20081223-741m.html With Gaza conflict, cyberattacks come too [IDG] http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124658 Israeli domain registration server hacked http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3649281,00.html Researchers devise undetectable phishing attack [IDG] http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/12/30/Researchers_devise_undetectable_phishing_attack_1.html Obama Gov. Website Illegally Approved http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2008/dec/obama-gov-website-illegally-approved Court Awards Verizon Largest-Ever Judgment In a Cybersquatting Case [news release] http://newscenter.verizon.com/press-releases/verizon/2008/court-awards-verizon.html Verizon Wins $31 Million Judgment in Cybersquatting Case [IDG] http://www.pcworld.com/article/156076/.html Domain name disputes have doubled since 2003 http://royal.pingdom.com/2008/12/30/domain-name-disputes-have-doubled-since-2003/ Netregistry deal with local domain name aftermarket http://itnews.com.au/News/NewsStory.aspx?story=91831 ********************** RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** Linking Governance and Performance: ICANN as an Internet Hybrid by Lee, Maeng Joo Abstract: ... The dissertation (a) systematically assesses ICANN?s overall performance based on a set of evaluative criteria drawn from its mission statements; (b) explores possible factors and actors that influence ICANN?s overall performance by tracing the governance processes in three cases based on a preliminary conceptual framework; and (c) suggests practical and theoretical implications of ICANN?s governance and performance in its broader institutional context. The study finds that although differing governance processes have led to different performance outcomes (Lynn et al. 2000), ?stability? has been the defining value that has shaped the overall path of ICANN?s governance and performance. The study characterizes ICANN as a conservative hybrid captured, based on specific issues, by the technical and governmental communities. It also proposes the concept of ?technical capture? to suggest how technical experts can have significant, but often implicit, influence over the policy development process in organizations. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-06172008-202220/ Deconstructing an Experiment in Global Internet Governance: The ICANN Case by Slavka Antonova [International Journal of Communications Law & Policy] Abstract: This paper examines what was lost during the four years of experimenting with ?multistakeholderism? in ICANN and what the stakes of the parties that influenced the policymaking process the most were. Building on Governmentality Studies? understanding of the neo-liberal project of self-governance and Organization Studies? collaboration theory, the document and discourse analysis of ICANN?s practices deconstructs the original model of a collaborative policymaking process conducted by a private multistakeholder corporation and formulates the expectations, stakes and strategies of the participating parties. Thus, it is suggested in the paper that, because the Internet technical elite was granted the managerial role in ICANN, the experts were able to influence the agenda of the policymaking process and its pace, and ultimately to take over the policy-proposal accumulation task and eliminate the working groups, which were open to all participants. http://ijclp.net/files/ijclp_web-doc_1-12-2008.pdf The New Network Neutrality: Criteria for Internet Freedom by Sascha D. Meinrath & Victor W. Pickard [International Journal of Communications Law & Policy] The meteoric rise of network neutrality?s prominence as a crucial Internet policy debate has led to current events far outpacing theoretical and historical analyses. This paper addresses this lag in scholarship by contextualizing recent events in relation to historical telecommunications antecedents. In doing so, we critically evaluate the current network neutrality debate and offer a set of technical and policy guidelines for a new, more broadly defined network neutrality. Specifically, we submit that beyond redefining network neutrality, we must connect issues usually dealt with separately ? issues that are actually a subset of one overarching concern: Internet freedom. We conclude with an exploration of the social and political impacts of this broader conception of network neutrality and suggest that this ?new network neutrality? provides a proactive foundation for supporting the goal of creating a more open and participatory Internet. http://ijclp.net/files/ijclp_web-doc_10-12-2008.pdf A Tale of Two Protcols: IPv6, IPv6, MTUs and Fragmentation by Geoff Huston I have seen a number of commentaries and presentations in recent times that claim that IPv6 is identical to IPv4 in every respect except one: namely more addresses. But there is one more rather critical difference, and that is the deliberate change in the IPv6 with respect to MTU handling and packet fragmentation, and this relatively minor change in IPv6 has some really quite critical implications. In this article I'd like to illustrate some of the implications of this change with respect to the IPv6 treatment of packet fragmentation by taking an in-depth look at the IPv6 packet flows and why and how this change to packet fragmentation management can cause service-level disruption. http://www.potaroo.net/ispcol/2009-01/mtu6.html Address Transfers and Markets by Geoff Huston The RIRs' policy forums are now considering what the appropriate registry policies should be when the allocation function for IPv4 addresses has terminated. Attempting to apply the same policy principles that were used to guide the address allocation function to the registry function is causing some level of confusion. Here previous practice becomes confused with the generic principles, and the differing characteristics of allocation and registry functions are not being clearly distinguished. http://www.potaroo.net/ispcol/2008-11/transfers.html Internet and Governance: Focusing on the role of ccTLDs in the formation of ccNSO of ICANN by Kim Eui Young & Lee Young-eun This paper analyzes a case of internet governance on the formation of ccNSO of ICANN, focusing on political dynamics among ICANN, ccTLD forces, GAC, and ITU. This study sheds light on the limits of two competing theories of international relations: realism and global governance, particularly a variant of global governance that emphasizes private authority in global politics. The case illustrates that internet governance does not center around politics among non-state actors such as ICANN, the e-commerce force, and NGOs; nor can it be reduced to politics among major states over their national interests. This research demonstrate that the reality of internet governance is far more complex than depicted by the two dominant theories, which presents a theoretical implication in support of the complex system theory or network theory. http://www.dbpia.co.kr/view/ar_view.asp?arid=1025254 The Empire of Mind: Digital Piracy and the Anti-Capitalist Movement by Michael Strangelove [Canadian Journal of Communication] http://www.cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/1935/1979 ********************** GOVERNANCE ********************** Reboot the FCC by Lawrence Lessig We'll stifle the Skypes and YouTubes of the future if we don't demolish the regulators that oversee our digital pipelines. http://www.newsweek.com/id/176809 Internet needs global regulation, says researcher The Internet needs to be globally regulated if it is to have any chance of stopping scams such as security "scareware," a researcher has suggested. http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsID=108714 http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124179 http://computerworld.com.au/article/271661/ http://pcworld.idg.com.au/article/271661/ ITU: The Communication Wonderland by Sivasubramanian Muthusamy I kept wondering if all that I had said about Dr Toure was fair?I hadn't met him before and had written so much to comment on the transcript of his speech at ICANN, Cairo . My discomfort was short-lived and even before a month elapsed I met him at the Internet Governance Forum, Hyderabad. Exchanged pleasantries before saying "I wrote some strong comments about your speech at Cairo". Dr Toure looked happy to see me, beamed with a bit of surprise and said he read my comment, he tried to find me and I was charmed by his unassuming manners and the spontaneity and the responsiveness with which he offered to clarify a few points about his speech and the ITU. http://www.circleid.com/posts/20090101_itu_communication_wonderland/ 'Father Of The Internet' Seeks Expansive Role For CTO [National Journal] As the tech community eagerly awaits more details on President-elect Obama's proposed chief technology officer post, many have made wish lists of what they would like to see come of the first-of-its-kind job. In a recent interview with NationalJournal.com's Theresa Poulson, Google's vice president and "chief Internet evangelist," Vinton Cerf, who has been rumored to be on the short list for the job, outlined what he might include on the CTO's agenda and how the position could invigorate the economy by creating jobs through investments in infrastructure. http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20081222_1469.php Barack Obama's Internet Agenda Obama has also been a strong supporter of "network neutrality," the principle that service providers should not be able to discriminate against any of the data that they carry. Net neutrality laws are necessary to ensure that Internet service providers do not block content they disagree with or give financial breaks to big tech companies. http://www.cio-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=63680 ********************** DOMAIN NAMES ********************** ********************** - ICANN ********************** ICANN 2008 Annual Report Published The 2008 Annual Report for ICANN has been published online today. The report covers in detail the organization's achievements and progress during 2008, including three major initiatives ICANN has undertaken this year: the process for introducing new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) to the Internet; the introduction for the first time of internationalized domain names (IDNs); and an extensive Improving Institutional Confidence consultation, to enable the conclusion of the Joint Project Agreement (JPA) with the United States government in September 2009. http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-31dec08-en.htm What changes do you want to see to the ICANN magazine in 2009? The monthly magazine was first published in August 2007 in order to give the community a monthly update of what ICANN was working on and what had happened recently. At the time, it was very difficult to follow what the organization was actually doing unless you attended phone conferences and scoured the website for information. http://blog.icann.org/2008/12/what-changes-do-you-want-to-see-to-the-icann-magazine-in-2009/ Applicant Guidebook comment period update The first comment period for the Applicant Guidebook has now closed for English speakers, and will close on 7 January for those responding in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish. http://blog.icann.org/2008/12/applicant-guidebook-comment-period-update/ Joint AC/SO chairs meeting video For the first time at an ICANN meeting, we held a joint Supporting Organization and Advisory Committee chairs public meeting. The idea was to get the different arms of ICANN to cover the topics and areas that most concerned them and to have their different viewpoints on the same topics outlined and discussed. http://blog.icann.org/2008/12/joint-acso-chairs-meeting-video/ WIPO eUDRP Initiative (24p, 12.3mb) http://wipo.int/export/sites/www/amc/en/docs/icann301208.pdf Domain name reform to open up Internet wider The Internet is virtually everywhere on the planet. For people who want to connect with the modern world, there is no choice but to use it. But recently one such Beijing resident Wu Xian met with some Internet troubles. The 65-year-old bought a computer two months ago, but it was difficult for her to navigate the Internet because Wu, who knows no English, can't read foreign letters on the keyboard and many of the screen commands and domain names are equally alien to her. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2008-12/29/content_7349450.htm http://english.rednet.cn/c/2008/12/29/1675454.htm US questions net overhaul plans Plans to offer hundreds of new web addresses as alternatives to .com have been criticised by the US government. ... But the US Commerce department has questioned both the benefits and the costs of such a scheme. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7797206.stm U.S. Commerce Dept. criticizes Internet plan [AP] A proposal to create hundreds of new Internet domain names as alternatives to ".com" has suffered a setback as a key U.S. government agency warned that the plan might not benefit consumers or promote competition. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20081223/commerce_internet_081223/20081223 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/12/22/financial/f152447S28.DTL http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/dec/22/commerce-dept-criticizes-internet-addressing-plan/ http://news.theage.com.au/technology/commerce-dept-criticizes-internet-addressing-plan-20081223-73y3.html http://news.smh.com.au/technology/commerce-dept-criticizes-internet-addressing-plan-20081223-741m.html US to ICANN: plan to sell new gTLDs is a real stinker The United States government has issued its own response and evaluation of ICANN's impending plan to open between 200-800 gTLDs for sale at $185,000 per domain and $60,000 per year. Many of the government's concerns (the report contains statements from both Merideth Baker, Acting Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and Deborah A. Garza, Acting Assistant Attorney General) mirror those we raised last week. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081222-us-to-icann-plan-to-sell-new-gtlds-is-a-real-stinker.html US.gov questions DNS liberalisation plans The US government has criticised an ICANN plan to allow many more top level domain extensions, raising questions once again over the organization's independence from political interests in Washington. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/23/icann_liberalisation_ntia/ ICANN's gTLD Proposal Hits a Wall: Now What? by Michael D. Palage ICANN's plan to begin accepting applications for new gTLDs in mid-2009 may have been derailed by last week's outpouring of opposition from the global business community and the United States Government (USG). Having been involved with ICANN for over a decade and having served on its Board for three years, I've never seen such strong and broad opposition to one of ICANN's proposals. http://www.circleid.com/posts/icann_gtld_proposal_hits_wall_now_what/ Commerce Dept. Criticizes Internet Addressing Plan The NTIA argues that before introducing new domain names, ICANN needs to ensure that the plan would not jeopardize the stability and security of the Internet addressing system. And it says ICANN needs to examine whether companies operating the new domain name registries would have too much market power, including the power to raise prices. http://www.cio-today.com/news/Commerce-Dept--Criticizes-ICANN/story.xhtml?story_id=1200044YX4CO http://www.data-storage-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=63719 FastCompany And TechCrunch On New TLDs and Cybersquatting Chris Dannen of FastCompany blogged his thoughts on the pending release of new TLDs . Dannen feels that the release of the new domain extension will spur a rebirth of cybersquatting. http://www.domainnamenews.com/news/fastcompany-and-techcrunch-on-new-tlds-and-cybersquatting/3608 ICANN ad for new TLDs Reading through the current issue of The Economist magazine, my jaw dropped as I turned to page 155 and saw an advert for ICANN! Focussed on the new TLD program which, I quote, "could produce a new wave of innovation ? innovation for business and billions of non-English speakers," this looks like a determined step by ICANN to stay ahead of the criticism that is being levelled at it for trying to usher in an ear of new TLDs on the Internet too quickly. http://stephanevangelder.com/archives/177-ICANN-ad-for-new-TLDs.html Call for Nominations for Seat 9 on the ICANN Board In line with the ASO Memorandum of Understanding and ICANN Bylaws, the Address Council calls for nominations for Seat Number 9 on the ICANN Board. http://aso.icann.org/index.html ********************** - ccTLD & gTLD NEWS ********************** 500,000 .cz Domain Names Registered In late December, CZ.NIC announced there were now 500,000 .cz domain names registered. The registration of .cz domain names has risen rapidly since October 2007, with the increase attributed to their then new registration system called FRED with more than 200,000 domains have been registered since its introduction. http://www.domainpulse.com/2009/01/02/500000-cz-domain-names-registered/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/general/500-000-.cz-domain-names-registered.html The half-milionth domain .CZ has been registred [news release] The registration of .CZ domain names has become significantly faster and simpler since October 2007 when CZ.NIC commenced the operation of its own registration system FRED. Thanks to the latter, more than 200,000 domains have been registered since its introduction. http://www.nic.cz/page/621/the-half-milionth-domain-.cz-has-been-registred/ How .Edu Domain Names Work .Edu has strict eligibility requirements for post secondary education institutions. http://domainnamewire.com/2008/12/23/how-edu-domain-names-work/ Domain Name Update: EU Registrations And Cybersquatting On The Increase A record number of .eu domain names have been registered as the number of complaints filed with WIPO under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) has soared. http://mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=71342 How .Gov Domain Names Work .Gov domain names are highly restricted domains. Here?s how they work. http://domainnamewire.com/2008/12/26/how-gov-domain-names-work/ .IN Registry Seeks Arbitrators for Domain Name Disputes The National Internet Exchange of India, which operates the .IN ccTLD Registry, is inviting proposals from interested individuals who wish to apply as Arbitrators for the .IN Registry, and who have proven expertise in this area as per the Eligibility Criteria. The positions are for three years. http://www.domainpulse.com/2009/01/02/in-registry-seeks-arbitrators-for-domain-name-disputes/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/general/.in-registry-seeks-arbitrators-for-domain-name-disputes.html .KE Domain Names Hit 10,0000 .KE domain names hit the 10,000 mark on the 19th of December, 2008. http://www.kenic.or.ke/ .LY Team announces domain price reductions .LY domains have been discounted from 120 L.D. to 40 L.D. that is a reduction of over 60%. .com.ly .net.ly and other domains reduced from 35 L.D. to 15 L.D. http://nic.ly/news_details.php?action=fullnews&id=17 SIDN fraud warning regarding coweto.nl SIDN, the .nl registry, has received a number of complaints regarding www.coweto.nl. On this website, the registrants of .nl domain names are asked to pay a ?web levy?. http://www.sidn.nl/ace.php/c,728,6020,,,,Fraud_warning_regarding_coweto_nl.html rs: Invitation to municipalities to register domains The Serbian National Register of Internet Domain Names (RNIDS) and the Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities have initiated a joint public campaign to remind more than a hundred municipalities to register their .rs domains. http://rnids.rs/en/node/67?lang=en ********************** - DNS SECURITY ********************** With Gaza conflict, cyberattacks come too [IDG] The conflict raging in Gaza between Israel and Palestine has spilled over to the Internet. Since Saturday, thousands of Web pages have been defaced by hacking groups operating out of Morocco, Lebanon, Turkey, Iran, said Gary Warner, director of research in computer forensics with the University of Alabama at Birmingham. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124658 http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/010109-with-gaza-conflict-cyberattacks-come.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/156246/.html http://computerworld.com.au/article/271961/ Domain hacked in protest to ongoing Gaza offensive Israeli sources reported on Friday that an Israeli domain server was hacked on Friday and the main pages of major Israeli websites were replaced with images of the casualties of the ongoing Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip. http://www.imemc.org/article/58292 Israeli domain registration server hacked Gaza offensive prompts Islamic group Team Evil to 'hijack' Israeli domain names by hacking into registration server, rerouting users of Ynetnews, Bank Discount to hostile webpage. Original sites were not hacked http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3649281,00.html Real war spawns virtual battle The all-too-real war in the Gaza Strip has spilled over to virtual reality. From Saturday thousands of Israeli Internet pages were accessed and despoiled by hacker attacks originating from Morocco, Lebanon, Turkey and Iran, says Gary Warner of the University of Alabama in an interview with NetworkWorld. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1052631.html URL redirects open scareware loophole at major sites Combine open redirect web pages with search engine optimizations and you get a new twist on Google Bombing, now with extra malware. Attackers have begun using this new method, which presents consumers with infected options from supposedly secure companies. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081224-url-redirects-open-scareware-loophole.html Researchers devise undetectable phishing attack [IDG] With the help of about 200 Sony Playstations, an international team of security researchers have devised a way to undermine the algorithms used to protect secure Web sites and launch a nearly undetectable phishing attack. http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/12/30/Researchers_devise_undetectable_phishing_attack_1.html http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=knowledge_center&articleId=9124558 http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/271901/ Budget constraints might hamper DNS security With the year coming to a close, DNS experts worry that security projects aimed at fixing critical flaws with take a backseat to cost-cutting measures http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/News/e98d2e30-593a-4873-968d-b9afd93ff5a4.html Researchers Hack Internet Security Infrastructure An international team of computer security researchers demonstrated today a key weakness in the Internet infrastructure that could let hackers launch virtually undetectable attacks aimed at intercepting secured online communications when consumers visit bank and e-commerce Web sites. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/30/AR2008123001056.html Experts uncover weakness in Internet security Independent security researchers in California and researchers at the Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) in the Netherlands, EPFL in Switzerland, and Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Netherlands have found a weakness in the Internet digital certificate infrastructure that allows attackers to forge certificates that are fully trusted by all commonly used web browsers. http://www.physorg.com/news149860866.html ********************** - DOMAIN DISPUTES ********************** Web site uses MLK name to attack Martin Luther King Type the name ?Martin Luther King? into the popular Google Internet search engine, and find a surprise: among the expected university and newspaper links, one site ? the third highest ranked link ? stands out. ... The King family could try to unplug Stormfront by filing an Internet domain name complaint or a lawsuit, lawyers said. But they said it would not be an easy case. ?As vile, reprehensible, ignorant and horrible as that Web site is, one could argue that it?s political comment,? said Pete Wellborn, an Atlanta lawyer who specializes in Internet law and has taught at Georgia Tech. Still, Wellborn said the Kings could succeed, especially if Stormfront is making any money off King?s name. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/12/29/king_web_site.html Obama Gov. Website Illegally Approved Barack Obama?s transition website was illegally authorized to register as an official U.S. government domain and Judicial Watch has exclusively obtained documents to prove it, including evidence that the authorization was initially denied. http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2008/dec/obama-gov-website-illegally-approved Court Must Vacate Kentucky Court's Baseless Domain Name Seizure [news release] The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) urged a Kentucky Court of Appeals Wednesday to vacate a lower court's order authorizing the seizure of more than 100 Internet domain names associated with websites operating around the globe. The seizure, and the lower court's exercise of jurisdiction over global domain names, threatens free speech across the Internet. In a move to combat what it viewed as illegal online gambling, the Commonwealth of Kentucky convinced a state court to "seize" 141 domain names because the names allegedly constituted "gambling devices" that are banned under Kentucky law -- even though the sites were owned and operated by individuals outside of the state, and in many cases even outside of the country. Unless the sites screened out Kentucky users, the court held, the seizure order was proper. http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/11/13 A Kentucky Court Approves the Seizure of Out-of-State Companies? Domain Names: A Dangerous Precedent that May Chill Free Speech and Impede Global Internet Communications Does a government or court have the right to seize a domain name when a website's activities are illegal where the government or court sits, but legal elsewhere? http://writ.news.findlaw.com/ramasastry/20081222.html Court Awards Verizon Largest-Ever Judgment In a Cybersquatting Case [news release] In the largest cybersquatting judgment ever, a federal court in the Northern District of California has awarded Verizon $33.15 million in a case in which an Internet domain registration company tried to take advantage of Verizon and Verizon customers by using Internet names chosen to be easily confused with legitimate Verizon names. The default ruling came in a case filed by Verizon against OnlineNIC, a company based in San Francisco that had unlawfully registered at least 663 domain names that were either identical to or confusingly similar to Verizon trademarks. http://newscenter.verizon.com/press-releases/verizon/2008/court-awards-verizon.html Verizon awarded 'largest-ever' cybersquatting judgment A federal court in Northern California has awarded Verizon $33.15 million in what the company is calling the largest cybersquatting judgment ever, Verizon announced Wednesday. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10128852-93.html http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,62049560,00.htm http://news.zdnet.co.uk/itmanagement/0,1000000308,39586130,00.htm Verizon Wins $33 Million in Cybersquatting Case Customers of OnlineNic, Inc., a top 15 domain registrar with over 1,000,000 domains registered, should be concerned about the state of the registrar after a judge ordered the company to pay $33 million to Verizon http://domainnamewire.com/2008/12/24/verizon-wins-33-million-in-cybersquatting-case/ Verizon Wins $33 Million in Suit Over Domain Names [Bloomberg] Verizon Communications, the telecommunications company, has been awarded $33.2 million in a lawsuit against an Internet services company that it claimed had registered hundreds of domain names with Verizon trademarks. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/25/technology/companies/25verizon.html Verizon claims $33.2M victory in domain name case Verizon Communications Inc. said Wednesday a U.S. District Court in California has awarded it $33.2 million in a suit against a San Francisco company accused of registering hundreds of Internet addresses similar to Verizon's to attract Web users. http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/12/24/verizon_claims_332m_victory_in_domain_name_case/ Verizon wins cybersquatting case [AFP] A California court has awarded US telecom firm Verizon 33.15 million dollars in the largest cybersquatting judgment ever, the company said Wednesday. http://news.smh.com.au/technology/court-awards-verizon-33-mln-dlrs-in-cybersquatting-case-20081225-74wm.html http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/infotech/view/20081225-179911/Verizon-wins-cybersquatting-case Verizon claims $33.2M victory in domain name case [AP] Verizon Communications Inc. said Wednesday a U.S. District Court in California has awarded it $33.2 million in a suit against a San Francisco company accused of registering hundreds of Internet addresses similar to Verizon's to attract Web users. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28380105/ Verizon Wins Record Cybersquatting Judgment Telecommunications giant Verizon has won a record $33.15 million judgment against Internet domain registrar OnlineNIC for cybersquatting. http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3793381 Verizon Wins $31 Million Judgment in Cybersquatting Case [IDG] Verizon Communications has won USD$31.15 million in damages in a cybersquatting case it brought against domain registry OnlineNIC, while Microsoft is seeking judgment against the same company and Yahoo has recently filed similar charges. http://www.pcworld.com/article/156076/.html http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124378 http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/122608-verizon-wins-31-million-judgment.html http://nytimes.com/external/idg/2008/12/26/26idg-Verizon-wins-3.html Verizon awarded $33.15m against cybersquatter Verizon has been awarded $33.15m in a cybersquatting lawsuit against a shady domain aggregator that registered hundreds of websites using the telco's name and trademarks. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/12/26/verizon_awarded_33mil_against_onlinenic/ A Kentucky Court Approves the Seizure of Out-of-State Companies? Domain Names: A Dangerous Precedent that May Chill Free Speech and Impede Global Internet Communications Does a government or court have the right to seize a domain name when a website's activities are illegal where the government or court sits, but legal elsewhere? This is the question raised in a recent Kentucky dispute over online gambling websites. Online gambling is legal in many places in the world, but illegal in the United States. Thus, the State of Kentucky ? in an effort to impede online gaming by state residents ? went to court to seize 141 domain names as a means of shutting down many popular online casinos. All of the domain-name owners likely reside out-of-state. http://writ.news.findlaw.com/ramasastry/20081222.html German police have seized two Internet gambling domains Mainly German reports over the weekend raise the alarming prospect that the Internet is under further assault - this time from German authorities. http://www.recentpoker.com/news/german-internet-police-1685.html HC directs pirates to pay damages to T-Series Two Chinese "cyber pirates" and a US company have been restrained by the Delhi High Court from using the name 'supercassettes' for their pornographic website and have been directed to pay Rs 5,00,000 compensation to music label T-Series. http://www.radioandmusic.com/content/editorial/news/hc-directs-pirates-pay-damages-t-series Squatters Are Screwed; Nobody Cares If Your Domain Has That Hot New Suffix Quick, name three significant web sites that have domain extensions that end in .me or .tv. Having trouble? Sure, there are a few of them out there (kyte.tv and Buddy.tv come to mind, but I can?t think of any major .me?s). For all of the hype surrounding these extensions at launch, they?ve largely failed to deliver. http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/12/30/squatters-are-screwed-nobody-cares-if-your-domain-has-that-hot-new-suffix/ Domain name disputes have doubled since 2003 Every year, companies find that someone has registered domain names involving their trademarks, or variations of their domain names that are confusingly similar to the original. If a solution can?t be found by talking to the registrant of the offending domain name(s), a formal dispute usually follows. http://royal.pingdom.com/2008/12/30/domain-name-disputes-have-doubled-since-2003/ Pingdom.com analyses upsurge in WIPO disputes Pingdom.com just published an interesting article analyzing the upsurge in WIPO disputes over the past five years. They found that the number of WIPO cases has doubled since 2003. That reversed a trend from 2000-2003 that saw disputes dropping each year. http://dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2008/dailyposts/12-30-08.htm Domain Name Disputes Handled By WIPO Continue To Rise DN Journal just noted that WIPO disputes have continued to increase over the past five years, linking to an article at pingdom.com. Pingdom notes that domain disputes have doubled since 2003 and that the United States is the origin of most of the domain name disputes handled by WIPO. Forty percent of the defendants are U.S.-based, despite the fact that the U.S. only has 15% of the world?s internet population. Here is the chart posted on Pingdom. http://tcattorney.typepad.com/anticybersquatting_consum/2008/12/domain-name-disputes-handled-by-wipo-continue-to-rise.html Bodybuilder ordered to pay in cyber-piracy dispute with Miccosukee Tribe A Miami bodybuilder has been ordered to pay $3,000 in damages plus attorney's fees after he was found liable for cyber-piracy and trademark dilution in a domain-name dispute with the Miccosukee Tribe. http://www.miamiherald.com/news/southflorida/story/830786.html http://www.miamiherald.com/460/story/830786.html ********************** - IPv4/IPv6 ********************** IANA: New IPv6 address for ?L? DNS Root Service The set of DNS root servers served under the hostname l.root-servers.net now have IPv6 capability, and have been added to the DNS root zone. We encourage operators of DNS infrastructure to update their DNS software to the most-updated IP addresses for the root servers. In particular, many DNS resolvers have a DNS root ?hints? file. This should be updated with the revised set of IP addresss. http://www.iana.org/reports/2008/l-root-ipv6.html The year in IPv4 addresses: almost 200 million served One of the first things I do every year on the first of January is have a look at what happened with the IP address stockpile during the previous year. We started 2008 with 1,122.85 million unused addresses left and we ended it with 925.58 million. So the world used up 197.27 million IPv4 addresses in 2008, increasing use of the total address space from 69.7 percent a year ago to 75.3 percent now. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090102-the-year-in-ipv4-addresses-almost-200-million-served.html ICT: bold growth in '09 ... Increased demand for Internet bandwidth will be another major factor, believes Mark Reid, chief executive officer of Jamaica Network Access Point (JNAP). Reid said that JNAP was still confidently going ahead with its US$1.8-million expansion to offer the new IPV6 protocol that is being utilised to provide new IP addresses, which the Internet was running out of. http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/Business/html/20081227T180000-0500_144167_OBS_ICT__BOLD_GROWTH_IN_____.asp IPv6... The Dangers of Prolonged Inter AS Tunnel Vision by Yves Poppe Tunnel vision is a rather serious medical condition and the Internet or at least a number of service providers could be at risk if not treated soon enough. Symptoms of inter AS (Autonomous System) tunnel vision are many slower connections with IPv6 compared to IPv4 with some failing all together. Reason is that tunnels, especially inter-AS tunnels, can lead to long paths and non-optimal routing. http://www.circleid.com/posts/20090101_ipv6_inter_as_tunnel_vision/ RIPE NCC Online Services Now IPv6 Enabled All of the RIPE NCC's major online services are now accessible via IPv6. These services include the web servers, FTP servers, DNS, the LIR Portal and mail system as well as the RIPE Database and all of the RIPE NCC's Information Services - Test Traffic Measurement (TTM) service, the Routing Information Service (RIS), DNS Monitoring (DNSMON) service and Hostcount. http://ripe.net/news/ripe-ncc-v6-enabled.html ********************** - MISCELLANEOUS ********************** Netcraft December 2008 Web Server Survey In the December 2008 survey, we received responses from 186,727,854 sites. This total has grown by 1.56 million sites since last month. http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2008/12/24/december_2008_web_server_survey.html Brand Your Business Online Here are some ideas for branding your business online: 1. Protect Your Name. As an entrepreneur, your name is vital to your brand and the identity of your business. Be sure to secure a domain name in your name. It?s usually a good idea to register multiple domains in case someone types the wrong extension, so that you can be found despite the mistake. Network Solutions and GoDaddy are two places you can use to register a domain name. http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/tips/archives/2008/12/brand_your_busi.html Go Daddy 2008 Charity Donations Hit $1.7MM [news release] When GoDaddy.com CEO and Founder Bob Parsons does something, he usually does it BIG ? which is exactly how you could describe his company?s charitable donations this year. Go Daddy?s 2008 philanthropic contributions to local, regional, national and international charities have reached $1.7 million for the year. That tops Go Daddy?s own company record, set last year with $1.4 million to charity. https://www.godaddy.com/gdshop/news/release_view.asp?news_item_id=200&app_hdr= ********************** - DOMAINING & AFTERMARKET ********************** Domain Name Scam Warning : Pumping and Dumping Domains Pump my dollarIn a fashion reminiscent of investment pump and dump scams, domain sellers list domain names for sale and pump cheap traffic to the names to make them look appealing and then dump the names on unsuspecting buyers. http://www.domainnamenews.com/featured/domain-name-scam-warning-pumping-and-dumping-domains/3632 Crisis or no crisis for domain names? There's no real suspense here: yes domain names are also being hit by the current economic downturn. Aftermarket domain sale volumes may not be falling too much, but transaction values are certainly down as sellers adapt to the end of the "anything sells (even a dud domain)" era by dropping their prices. http://stephanevangelder.com/archives/174-Crisis-or-no-crisis-for-domain-names.html Netregistry deal with local domain name aftermarket Netregistry has inked a deal with a new local domain aftermarket website, Netfleet, in a move the latter hopes will position it as an Aussie version of international domain selling giants like Sedo. http://itnews.com.au/News/NewsStory.aspx?story=91831 Mystery Domain Auction Isn?t About Domain Names John Motson of DNxpert.com launched his MysteryDomainAuction.com web site yesterday, and a blogging firestorm ensued. http://domainnamewire.com/2009/01/02/mystery-domain-auction-isnt-about-domain-names/ Innovative Mystery Domain Auction Site Launches John Motson, the domainer behind DnXpert.com and the ebook Domaining Manifesto has concocted a new domain auction site with a twist that should get people talking. http://www.domainnamenews.com/miscellaneous/innovative-mystery-domain-auction-site-launches/3614 First Three Names on This Week's Top 20 Domain Sales Chart Total a Cool $1 Million Retailers may be suffering through a dismal Christmas season but domains had a banner sales week with five names cracking the six-figure barrier. The first three names on our new Top 20 chart banked a total of $1 million on the dot. The top two, FinancialAid.com ($480,000) and FinancialAide.com ($320,000) were sold as a set at Moniker's live auction at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. New York. http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2008/domainsales12-30-08.htm GreatDomains Auction Sales and Dominate This Week's Expanded Leader Board Sedo's GreatDomains.com premium auction site runs a week long sale once a month. A fresh batch of completed transactions from that high end venue dominates this week's all extension Top 40 sales chart (it actually wound up being 41 due to a tie for the final position). As we always do when a wave of special event sales comes in, we doubled the length of the usual 20-position all-extension leader board to insure results from the everyday venues are not overlooked. http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2008/domainsales12-23-08.htm The Royal Treatment: How Acquiring and Developing High Quality Domain Names Gave Warren Royal Control Over His Own Destiny The precipitous plunge in parking revenue over the past year has left many domain owners looking for lifejackets. They find themselves fighting a powerful undertow generated by Google and Yahoo's desire to fatten their own margins by cutting payouts to their partners. Finding themselves in this subservient situation has made freedom from the kings of PPC the #1 item on the domain commoner's Christmas wish list this year. http://dnjournal.com/cover/2008/december.htm ********************** RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** Defamation Litigation and the Press in China by Xiaoyan Chen and Peng Hwa Ang [International Journal of Communications Law & Policy] Abstract: This paper analyses 145 defamation cases in the court dockets in Chengdu from January 1987 to July 2005. Chengdu, the fourth most populous city in China, was chosen because the city trailblazed a number of reforms in the media in China. Lawyers and staff handling legal matters for all the newspaper groups in Chengdu were interviewed. Also interviewed were administrative personnel of the newspapers and senior officials from Chengdu Municipality Propaganda Bureau. Analyses of the cases show a marked increase in the number of defamation suits since the law was changed, probably attributable to an increasing awareness and consciousness of individual rights. This study also found that the success rate for plaintiffs depended more on the climate of the period in question than on whether the government or private sector is the owner. The success rate could also be divided over three periods, corresponding to the development of the media in China. This study suggests that the authority have not used defamation laws as a weapon to suppress the media; neither do the media nor journalists regard defamation litigation and defamation law as a major threat to their freedom of expression. This is not to deny the element of power in defamation litigation: ordinary individuals had the hardest time in defamation. This paper argues that it is simplistic to try to attain greater media freedom and freedom of expression through a mere reshaping of defamation law. http://ijclp.net/files/ijclp_web-doc_4-12-2008.pdf Filtering in Oz: Australia's Foray into Internet Censorship by Derek E. Bambauer [Brooklyn Law School, Legal Studies Paper] Abstract: Australia's decision to implement Internet censorship using technological means creates a natural experiment: the first Western democracy to mandate filtering legislatively, and to retrofit it to a decentralized network architecture. But are the proposed restrictions legitimate? http://ssrn.com/abstract=1319466 Regulating Mobile Content: Convergences and Citizenship by Gerard Goggin [International Journal of Communications Law & Policy] Internet and media convergence has been for sometime concentrated on mobile technologies. Most notable, perhaps, has been the emergence of a cluster of online, mobile data and content services and technologies that have been precursors of fully-fledged mobile media themselves. With these important, lucrative, and potentially farreaching developments in mind, this paper focusses on international approaches to regulation of mobile content with case studies of the US, Canada, Britain and Australia. http://ijclp.net/files/ijclp_web-doc_7-12-2008.pdf Kids' Ad Play: Regulating Children's Advergames in the Converging Media Context by Sara M. Grimes [International Journal of Communications Law & Policy] Abstract: This article explores possibilities for regulating emerging forms of advertising within children?s online culture, focusing specifically on the rising phenomenon of advergames. An immensely popular form of entertainment among children and teens, advergames integrate advertising and market research strategies directly into the fabric of online games and environments. I begin by situating advergames within broader traditions of advertising to children. I then present and discuss four potential ?points of entry? for the regulation of these new media advertising practices, which include media regulation, consumer protection law, industry self-regulation and contract law. As media regulation in Canada and the US share many similarities, and because children?s digital media is most often transnational with a large proportion of content originating from the US, the discussion draws upon both Canadian and US legislation, providing comparisons where relevant. I discuss different courses of action that could potentially establish clearer restrictions on marketers? interactions with children online, as well as enforce regulation of the role of advertising in children?s online games. The aim of this paper is to explore the Canadian government?s position that existing regulatory frameworks can be effectively extended to digital media, as well as demonstrate the necessity of enhanced coordination and integration if these regulatory regimes are to remain relevant within the converging media context. http://ijclp.net/files/ijclp_web-doc_8-12-2008.pdf Criminality on the Internet by Sally Serena Ramage Abstract: The internet is without boundary and the legislation as to jurisdition is still unclear. This is an initial study into criminality on the internet. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1319341 An Analysis of E-Commerce: E-Risk, Global Trade, and Cybercrime by Katherine T. Smith Abstract: E-commerce is extensively used in all types of business, including manufacturing companies, retail stores, and service firms. This paper reviews prior research, examines the origins of e-commerce, identifies e-risks, describes retail trade on the Internet, defines virtual business, identifies aspects of website design, and describes types of cybercrime that hamper e-commerce. E-commerce has made business processes more reliable and efficient. Participating in e-commerce is essential for businesses to be able to market their products and services in the global marketplace. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1315423 The Reclassification of Extreme Pornographic Images by Andrew D. Murray [Modern Law Review] Abstract: ... This article examines the UK Government's attempt to control the availability of such material through s.63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, which criminalises possession of such images. It begins by examining the consultation process and concludes that an underlying public policy objective was the root of the new offence despite the lack of a clear mandate for such a policy. The article then examines whether this weakness in the foundations for the proposed new offence caused the proposal to be substantially amended during the Committee Stage of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill: to the extent that the final version of s.63 substantially fails to meet the original public policy objective. The article concludes by asking whether s.63 may have unintended consequences in that it fails to criminalise some of the more extreme examples of violent pornography while criminalising consensual BDSM images, and questions whether s.63 will be enforceable in any meaningful way. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1321578 The Problem of ?Free Speech? in the Idea(l) of Freedom of Speech by James Ressel https://elaw.murdoch.edu.au/issues/2008/2/elaw_15_2_Ressell.pdf Rethinking Broadband Internet Access by Daniel F. Spulber & Christopher S. Yoo [Harvard Journal of Law & Technology] Introduction: ... This Article seeks to address these shortcomings. Part II reviews the manner in which the leading last-mile broadband technologies have been regulated. Part III describes the theories invoked to justify mandating access to telecommunications in the past ? including natural monopoly, network economic effects, vertical exclusion, and ruinous/managed competition ? and evaluates their applicability to last-mile broadband networks. It concludes that each of these previous theories has little bearing on an industry characterized by vibrant intermodal competition, rapid customer growth, and dynamic technological change. Part IV employs a five-part conceptual framework that we have developed based on a branch of mathematics known as graph theory to analyze the impact of various types of access in a more systematic manner. This framework illustrates the divergent impact that the different types of access can have on networks and how mandating http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/articles/pdf/v22/22HarvJLTech001.pdf Obstacles and Solutions to Internet Jurisdiction: A Comparative Analysis of the EU and US laws by Faye Fangfei Wang [Journal of International Commercial Law and Technology] Abstract: In an era of information technology, businesses, through the use of the boundless Internet, can enter into international electronic contracts from anywhere in the world. The potential for cross-border disputes in electronic contracts is obviously much greater than in a paper-based environment, where a high degree of commercial contracts are domestic in nature. Can the traditional rules on jurisdiction, which are geographically orientated and generally rely on the place of performance, apply to the modern electronic contract disputes? This paper will analyse the EU and US approaches for determining jurisdiction in e-contracting cases and discuss the possibility of proposing specific jurisdiction rules for online contracts. http://jiclt.com/index.php/JICLT/article/view/82 File-sharing and downloading: goldmine or minefield? by Stuart Helmer and Isabel Davies [Journal of Intellectual Property Law & Practice] Legal context: Major copyright owners have been slow to rise to the challenge presented by illegal file-sharing and downloading. In recent years, they have scored a number of significant Court victories against file-sharers, but the recent decision in Promusicae v Telef?nica, in which the ECJ held that the right to the protection of industrial property does not necessarily outweigh the right to privacy, indicates that rights holders may benefit from a more creative and co-operative approach to file-sharing. http://jiplp.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/4/1/51 Should Anti-Cyberbullying Laws Be Created? by Matthew C. Ruedy [North Carolina Journal of Law and Technology] Abstract: In 2006, thirteen-year-old Megan Meier met a teenage boy named Josh Evans on the social networking website MySpace. The two had an amicable relationship until Josh began making derogatory comments to Megan. The correspondence ultimately resulted in her suicide. Months later, ?Josh? was revealed to be the collective creation of forty-seven-year-old Lori Drew, her teenage daughter, and her part-time employee, Ashley Grills. Megan?s suicide has pushed forward legislation for the criminalization of cyberbullying, which can be defined as action or behavior on the Internet intended to hurt or harass another person. This Comment discusses the issues and challenges associated with creating cyberbullying laws, from the decision to create such laws in the first place, to the difficult First Amendment restrictions posed by the ?true threat? and ?imminent incitement? doctrines. http://jolt.unc.edu/abstracts/volume-9/ncjltech/p323 ********************** INTERNET USE ********************** Web worldwide: UK housewives love it, Chinese use it most, Danes are least keen ... The poll of more than 27,500 people in 16 countries found that housewives in the UK spend 47% of their leisure time on the web, compared with 39% for students and 32% for the unemployed. Globally, the average across all occupations was 29%. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jan/01/internet-web-worldwide-international UK housewives rule in online time A survey of more than 27,000 web users in 16 countries has shown that the Chinese spend the largest fraction of their leisure time online. However, UK housewives spend even more than China's average - 47%. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7789494.stm Gaza: secondary war being fought on the internet As fighting rages in the Gaza Strip an unprecedented 'virtual war' is being joined in cyberspace. A furious public information battle is taking place on sites ranging from YouTube to Facebook between the Israeli state and Hamas. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article5424671.ece Social networking sites new frontiers of the Gaza conflict [AP] Israel's bruising war on the Islamic militants who control Gaza has moved online, where sites like YouTube and Facebook are the new battlegrounds. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10550208 More and More, US Schools Got Game Lifelong gamer Russell Alford, 15, usually has to wait until his homework and chores are finished before he can play Call of Duty 4, but this semester he got to play another video game at school. His finance class at Marshall High School in Fairfax County designed avatars and saved a virtual city from an oil spill -- earning points for teamwork, research on the world's water supply, business ethics and negotiating skills. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/03/AR2009010301556.html Robot dives in to find Mediterranean internet sea break Engineers are engaged in a deep-sea operation to restore internet and telephone access to millions of people in the Middle East, Africa and Asia after the undersea cables that form one of the world?s main communication arteries were severed. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article5385679.ece eBay bans sale of ivory products The internet auction site eBay has finally banned the sale of virtually all ivory products from its website after coming under intense pressure from conservationists who accused the site of acting as a major black market source for forbidden elephant tusks. http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/ebay-bans-sale-of-ivory-products-1220035.html Third subsea cable repairs begin Two ships have started repairs undersea cables that were cut on 19 December, disrupting telephone and net services to Asia and the Middle East. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7797162.stm Undersea robot searches for severed cables [IDG] A robot submarine was scouring the seabed 200 meters under the Mediterranean Sea trying to locate the ends of undersea cables that were cut on Friday, disrupting voice and Internet traffic. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124163 http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/155872/.html Tough year ahead for IT industry, warns OECD The economic downturn will hit the Internet economy hard in 2009, according to the latest available OECD estimates. The IT Outlook 2008 says that the IT industry is likely to have grown by 4% at most in 2008 compared to the previous year. But with the outlook for the global economy worsening and business and consumer confidence plumetting, growth will remain flat or decline in 2009. http://www.oecd.org/document/36/0,3343,en_2649_34223_41915748_1_1_1_37441,00.html Internet economy could shrink in 2009: OECD [AFP] The internet economy could shrink in 2009 because of the worldwide downturn, the OECD warned Monday in a report that forecast contraction of the semiconductor industry and cutbacks by corporate customers. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,24836685-15317,00.html http://news.smh.com.au/technology/internet-economy-could-shrink-in-2009-oecd-20081223-73pz.html http://news.theage.com.au/technology/internet-economy-could-shrink-in-2009-oecd-20081223-73pz.html OECD: IT economy in for some serious battering in 2009 The OECD is comprised of thirty member states, primarily Western and Asian industrial democracies. Information and communications technology (ICT, in its parlance) is among the industries that it tracks, and the group has just issued its annual report for 2008. It concludes that the information and communication technology (ICT) economy is slowing down in line with the drop in GDPs, and may be in for a decline in 2009. But that decline won't be uniform, as at least some sectors are likely to see growth. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081222-oecd-it-economy-in-for-some-serious-battering-in-2009.html Kiwi broadband performance improved in 2008: report [NZPA] Industry investment drove continuous improvement in New Zealand's national broadband performance during the past six months, a report prepared for the Commerce Commission says. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10549534 NZ broadband growth threatened by recession The Commerce Commission?s third quarterly report on broadband quality shows while New Zealand?s broadband growth rate puts us among the top ten OECD countries, the credit crunch is expected to moderate broadband uptake and investment in 2009. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4801760a28.html The Internet's Cool, But TV Remains Ad King A Deloitte survey also finds that nearly six in 10 U.S. consumers would like to easily integrate their televisions with their computers to download or watch online content. http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212700357 IE's European share falls under 60%, Firefox's growth stalls Fewer than 60% of European Web users run Microsoft Corp.'s Internet Explorer, while more than 31% have switched to Mozilla's Firefox, a French-based metrics company reported yesterday. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124263 http://computerworld.com.au/article/271741/ http://pcworld.idg.com.au/article/271741/ http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/155987/.html Why Online Ads Are Weathering the Recession It hardly matters what sector of the economy you're in?it's none too soon for 2008 to be over. In the advertising business, the pain has proved especially acute, compounded by the latest estimates of where ad budgets are heading in 2009. http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2008/tc20081224_411499.htm Ebay changes backfire as it loses ground to rivals John Donahoe, chief executive of eBay, is facing questions over his leadership of the online auctions pioneer which has been trying to turn itself into a more traditional e-commerce website. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/ebay-changes-backfire-as-it-loses-ground-to-rivals-1210084.html Web overtakes newspapers as source of news in US survey As Barack Obama marched towards the White House and the economy plunged, more Americans ditched newspapers for the internet. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/27/us-media-internet-newspapers-television Print news is fading, but the content lives on It's been about 20 years since Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web on the back of the Internet. For more than a billion people on the planet, the Web today is an alternate, digital universe that is gradually overtaking the analog, physical world as a source of information and connections. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13953_3-10128881-80.html UK behind in global rush to broadband Britain is falling badly behind the rest of the world in the use of broadband technology and the consequences could prove disastrous for education, health care, entertainment and the fight against global warming, one of the country's leading computer experts has warned. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/dec/28/broadband-uk-ri-christmas-lectures Alternative health capital turns its 'negative energy' on pioneering wi-fi system It is regarded as an oasis of calm and tranquility, and the nation's capital for alternative health therapies and spiritual healing remedies. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3966373/Alternative-health-capital-turns-its-negative-energy-on-pioneering-wi-fi-system.html Internet Use Grows at Meetings, as Do Challenges Until recently, travelers attending conferences or trade shows had simple Internet needs. They would check e-mail messages and maybe look up information on the Web or connect to the home office. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/30/business/30internet.html http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/30/technology/internet.php Writing the Web?s Future in Numerous Languages The next chapter of the World Wide Web will not be written in English alone. Asia already has twice as many Internet users as North America, and by 2012 it will have three times as many. Already, more than half of the search queries on Google come from outside the United States. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/31/technology/internet/31hindi.html http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/31/technology/31hindi.php IE share slides record amount, ends 2008 down 10% Internet Explorer's market share plunged by a record-setting amount during December, Web metrics vendor Net Applications Inc. said today. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9124678 ********************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ********************** Get-Rich Offers Swell on Facebook On Facebook, a target-rich environment of the young and potentially real estate-less, D.C. resident Omari West can't help but notice all the advertisements spinning the economy's nose dive into can't-miss opportunities. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/28/AR2008122801765.html Twitter and Facebook hit by phishing attacks Twitter users have become used to giving their Twitter passwords to other sites, and now they've been hit with a phishing attack http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/jan/04/twitter-phishing Cyber ID theft concern as 'space faking' soars The growing trend of online "space faking", where users masquerade as other people, has reignited concerns about the safety and security of social networking sites. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/01/03/1230681809486.html http://www.theage.com.au/national/beware-in-cyberspace-no-one-can-hear-you-scam-20090103-79hs.html ********************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ********************** How Green Is Apple? Apple Inc.'s eye-catching logo - an apple with a bite taken from it - has come in many colors in the past. Now, the iconic computer company is trying to prove its commitment to the color green. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123066532721343231.html us: Bush Data Threatens to Overload Archives The National Archives has put into effect an emergency plan to handle electronic records from the Bush White House amid growing doubts about whether its new $144 million computer system can cope with the vast quantities of digital data it will receive when President Bush leaves office on Jan. 20. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/27/washington/27archives.html WiFi tops poll for best technological innovation of last decade Logging onto the internet in a caf? has made many people's lives significantly easier. And now it has been voted the greatest technological advance of the last decade. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/technologynews/3901749/WiFi-tops-poll-for-best-technological-innovation-of-last-decade.html For the Blind, Technology Does What a Guide Dog Can?t T. V. Raman was a bookish child who developed a love of math and puzzles at an early age. That passion didn?t change after glaucoma took his eyesight at the age of 14. What changed is the role that technology ? and his own innovations ? played in helping him pursue his interests. http://nytimes.com/2009/01/04/business/04blind.html http://iht.com/articles/2009/01/04/technology/blind.php ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ Czech move to stop cyber bullying The Czech education ministry has drawn up guidelines for teachers to halt the spread of cyber bullying in schools. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7804617.stm In Several US States, A Push to Stem Cyber-Bullying In California, a hateful Internet campaign followed sixth-grader Olivia Gardner through three schools. In Vermont, a humiliated Ryan Halligan, 13, took his own life after being encouraged to do so by one of his middle-school peers. And in perhaps the most notorious case, Lori Drew, 49, was recently convicted on misdemeanor charges for posing as a teenage boy on MySpace to woo and then reject 13-year-old Megan Meier of Missouri, who later hanged herself in her closet. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/31/AR2008123103067.html US cyberbullying laws do little to deter behaviour, experts say [McClatchy newspapers] Legal experts say the long-term impact of cyberbullying laws in America just beginning to take shape http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/17/cyberbullying-laws-myspace-stalking Internet sites could be given 'cinema-style age ratings', UK Culture Secretary says Internet sites could be given cinema-style age ratings as part of a Government crackdown on offensive and harmful online activity to be launched in the New Year, the Culture Secretary says. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/technologynews/3965051/Internet-sites-could-be-given-cinema-style-age-ratings-Culture-Secretary-says.html Website age ratings 'an option' for UK Film-style age ratings could be applied to websites to protect children from harmful and offensive material, Culture Secretary Andy Burnham has said. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7800846.stm Culture secretary Andy Burnham wants cinema-style age ratings for websites Internet sites could be given government-approved age ratings to prevent children accessing inappropriate material, a cabinet minister has suggested, in a move that is likely to trigger fears over web censorship. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/dec/27/website-rating-plan-government-obama Age-ratings plan for websites Internet websites could be given cinema-style age-ratings under plans by the Government to limit access to "unacceptable" material, Culture Secretary Andy Burnham has warned. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/online/ageratings-plan-for-websites-1212985.html Web sites could get cinema-style ratings - UK minister The kind of ratings used for films could be applied to Web sites in a bid to better police the Internet and protect children from harmful and offensive material, Britain's minister for culture has said. http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-37201420081227 http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE4BQ0JV20081227 Watch Out for Cinema-Style Web Ratings Have you ever been to a PG-13 rated Website? Well, you could, if British Secretary of State for Culture, Media, and Sports Andy Burnham's plan follows through. In an interview with the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, Burnham said that "cinema-style ratings" should be given to Websites to grade them based on content and decency. And while I would agree with his assessment that the Internet can be "quite a dangerous place," I just don't see a movie-style rating system as a viable solution. http://www.pcworld.com/article/156106/.html nz: Warning over kids' holiday photos on internet [Sunday Star Times] Experts are warning parents not to put holiday snaps of their children online because they could end up in a child porn collection. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4809055a11.html http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelsonmail/4809055a6417.html http://www.stuff.co.nz/sundaystartimes/4808747a6005.html Fatal flaws in Australian web censorship plan, says report Trials of mandatory internet censorship will begin within days despite a secret high-level report to the Rudd Government that found the technology simply does not work, will significantly slow internet speeds and will block access to legitimate websites. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/12/22/1229794328860.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/12/22/1229794328860.html Internet filters won't work: ISP Two of the country's major internet providers say the Government appears unlikely to meet its own deadline for trials of mandatory internet filtering. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/12/23/2453663.htm Howard Government report into ISP filtering [news release] The Howard Government, at the instigation of the Internet Industry Association (IIA), commissioned a report to be conducted by Mr Peter Coroneos, IIA's CEO. The previous government provided funding for the research and it was based on terms of reference agreed to by the IIA and the previous government. The report was to inform the previous government of the IIA's and other stakeholders' views, and international experience. http://www.minister.dbcde.gov.au/media/media_releases/2008/101 Govt denies trialling flawed internet filter THE federal Government has distanced itself from a report that found internet censorship technology under consideration is seriously flawed. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24840273-15306,00.html Minchin says Govt needs internet filter to work THE federal opposition says the Government is finding it increasingly difficult to make good on its promise of an internet filter. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,24840275-15306,00.html Net filtering trial delay 'another Govt bungle' The Federal Opposition says it is not surprised the Government's mandatory internet filtering trial has been delayed. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/12/24/2454789.htm Government rejects negative internet filter report A REPORT showing a mandatory internet filter will not work has been dismissed as untested by the Rudd Government. http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,20797,24839172-8362,00.html Australia's ISP Filtering Pilot Could Affect P2Ps Australia's broadband ministry on Monday defended the country's upcoming Internet filtering pilot, and acknowledged that the plan could include P2P traffic like BitTorrent. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2337430,00.asp CHRISTMAS SHOCK: Australian government to trial P2P filters The Rudd government didn't tell voters before the election, but now it has revealed it will filter illegal P2P transfers at a government level as part of its ISP filtering plan. http://apcmag.com/christmas_surprise_australian_government_to_trial_p2p_filters.htm Government defends internet censorship technology [AAP] The federal government has distanced itself from a report that found internet censorship technology under consideration is seriously flawed. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/12/24/1229998578450.html Australia to test Internet filter next month [AFP] The Australian government said Tuesday it would begin testing a pilot system next month to filter harmful information from the Internet, amid criticism that any such plan would be a technical failure. http://news.smh.com.au/technology/australia-to-test-internet-filter-next-month-20081224-74fm.html http://news.theage.com.au/technology/australia-to-test-internet-filter-next-month-20081224-74fm.html 'Great Aussie Firewall' set to go live The Australian government has a new year's resolution - to make the internet safe for everyone. http://www.3news.co.nz/ScienceTech/Story/tabid/412/articleID/85861/cat/74/Default.aspx 'Aussie firewall' may slow internet speeds - Internet NZ Internet experts in New Zealand believe Australian moves to censor cyberspace are doomed to failure. The Australian government plans to force Australian ISPs to filter out more than a thousand websites with content including child pornography, excessive violence, crime and drug information and promotion of terrorism. http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/stories/2009/01/02/12459765f1a8 Internet filter trials delayed, P2P now included! Although due to begin on or before the 24th of December 2008, Australia?s draconian Internet content filter trials have now been postponed until mid-January 2009, with peer-to-peer and BitTorrent traffic filtering also set to be performed. Here?s an idea ? delay to trial all right ? but to mid-Jan, 2099! http://www.itwire.com/content/view/22459/1103/ Australia: Growing opposition to Labor?s Internet censorship More than 2,000 opponents of the federal Labor government's plans to censor the Internet rallied in cities across Australia on December 13?the second national protest in the past two months. The demonstrations, which were convened by the Digital Liberty Coalition (DLC), are another indication of the growing concern of industry technicians, scientists and a broad range of ordinary people over the government's attempts to control and regulate Internet access in Australia. http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/dec2008/cens-d27.shtml Aussie government's own report trashes 'Net filtering Australia's hugely controversial ISP filtering plan received a lump of Christmas coal in its stocking with the release this week of a new report that points out the many difficulties with such a scheme. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081224-aussie-governments-own-report-trashes-net-filtering.html Uproar over Australian Internet filter [AP] A proposed Internet filter dubbed the "Great Aussie Firewall" is promising to make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among democratic countries. http://technology.inquirer.net/infotech/infotech/view/20081228-180330/Uproar-over-Australian-Internet-filter http://news.smh.com.au/technology/uproar-in-australia-over-plan-to-block-web-sites-20081228-762m.html Great Firewall of Australia: What?s not mentioned makes it even more scary Many in Australia, and those overseas interested in censorship would have now read a post from the Australian Minister for Censorship Stephen Conroy responding to concern over the implementation of the Great Firewall of Australia. http://www.inquisitr.com/12909/great-firewall-of-australia-whats-not-mentioned-makes-it-even-more-scary/ Australia's ISP Filtering Pilot Could Affect P2Ps Australia's broadband ministry on Monday defended the country's upcoming Internet filtering pilot, and acknowledged that the plan could include P2P traffic like BitTorrent. http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2337476,00.asp Aussie Internet Filtering Plan to Include P2P Traffic Government to "examine how technology can assist in filtering internationally-hosted content." http://www.zeropaid.com/news/9913/Aussie+Internet+Filtering+Plan+to+Include+P2P+Traffic Australian Gov to begin live pilot of P2P Filters The now extremely unpopular government in Australia is planning to launch a trial of its P2P filtering over the Christmas holidays. http://www.tweaktown.com/news/10918/australian_gov_to_begin_live_pilot_of_p2p_filters/ Australien: Familienbeihilfen kurbeln Spielkonsolen-Absatz an ?hnlich wie hierzulande ?berlegte auch die australische Regierung, inwieweit sie der erwarteten Konjunkturkrise mit einer Ankurbelung des Binnenkonsums vorbeugen k?nnte. Heraus kam dabei eine Familienbeihilfe in H?he von 1000 australischen Dollar pro Kind, umgerechnet etwa 500 Euro. Damit verbunden war ein Appell der Regierung, das Geld nicht zu sparen, sondern m?glichst sofort zum Konsum zu verwenden. http://www.heise.de/newsticker/Australien-Familienbeihilfen-kurbeln-Spielkonsolen-Absatz-an--/meldung/120896 ********************** ONLINE TV & MUSIC ********************** us: Music Industry to Abandon Mass Suits After years of suing thousands of people for allegedly stealing music via the Internet, the recording industry is set to drop its legal assault as it searches for more effective ways to combat online music piracy. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122966038836021137.html Warner Music pulls videos from YouTube Warner Music Group ordered YouTube on Saturday to remove all music videos by its artists from the popular online video-sharing site after contract negotiations broke down. http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-37124720081221 Sources: YouTube, not Warner Music, pulled videos Warner Music Group has been saying since Saturday that it was the one who asked that the label's videos be removed from YouTube after talks to renegotiate its licensing deal with Google's video site stalled. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10128454-93.html Recording labels and websites in a music video tussle The removal of Warner Music Group's videos from YouTube over the weekend highlights the growing tension between music labels and websites over what is becoming an important source of revenue for the beleaguered recorded-music industry: advertising and licensing fees from music videos, the foundation that built MTV but which has now largely migrated to the Internet. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-musicvid23-2008dec23,0,6294858.story Music companies plan music rival to YouTube Music companies are working on plans to launch their own video site, in direct competition with Google?s YouTube. The move comes as Warner Music pulls all its videos from the site after the two firms failed to agree on a new contract. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article5404035.ece Online video ads put message into the medium Online video technology firm Blinkx has developed an integrated advertising system it hopes will help generate revenues from the growing amount of video on the web. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/29/blinkx-internet-video-advertising Online piracy menaces pro sports An important National Football League game on a recent Saturday night was dark on millions of U.S. television screens, but it lit up an untold number of laptops. http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/29/business/29piracy.php ********************** MOBILE/WIRELESS ********************** What Carriers Aren't Eager to Tell You About Texting Text messaging is a wonderful business to be in: about 2.5 trillion messages will have been sent from cellphones worldwide this year. The public assumes that the wireless carriers? costs are far higher than they actually are, and profit margins are concealed by a heavy curtain. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/28/business/28digi.html http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/28/technology/digi.php Mobiles give Africa's farmers the chance to set out their stall The latest technology is enabling villagers to bypass middlemen and find out the prices their crops will command http://www.guardian.co.uk/katine/2009/jan/04/katine-uganda-africa-mobile-phones In Cuba, Cellphone Calls Go Unanswered Tatiana Gonz?lez stood transfixed before the glass display case watching a single cellphone spin around and around on a carousel at the government-run store. It was a Nokia 1112, a simple, boxy gray workhorse of mobile telecommunications technology -- and Gonz?lez was in love. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/02/AR2009010202409.html Nokia vows revenge as storm brews in touchphone market Mobile phone maker Nokia has vowed to wreak revenge on its competitors in 2009 after slipping behind in the battle of the 'touchphones'. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/telecoms/4074808/Nokia-vows-revenge-as-storm-brews-in-touchphone-market.html Mena Telecom reports high demand for WiMAX in Bahrain Mena Telecom, the first WiMAX operator in Bahrain, is reporting high demand for its services across the Kingdom. http://www.itp.net/news/542466-mena-telecom-reports-high-demand-for-wimax China Plans to License 3 Wireless Standards After years of delays, the Chinese government said late Wednesday that it would issue licenses for next-generation 3G wireless services, which could fuel growth in what is already the world?s biggest market for wireless services. http://nytimes.com/2009/01/01/technology/01wireless.html China lifts roadblock for 3G phones China's state council said it's approved licenses for higher-speed 3G mobile networks, a move expected to help bring higher-end services to phone users in the country. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10130095-94.html Smartphones drive mobile markets ... But all is not rosy in the smartphone garden. The popularity of these devices has brought to light several problems that look set to become acute in 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7797908.stm Mobile booms in India even as PC growth flattens [IDG] India's mobile market continues to boom despite the global economic downturn, though its PC market is seeing flat growth. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/122908-mobile-booms-in-india-even.html http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/156087/.html Fresh delay in auction of 3G licences in India India?s auction of third-generation (3G) telecommunications services faced fresh delays on Friday after its finance ministry recommended doubling the base price of the sale. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5d7b096a-d8fb-11dd-ab5f-000077b07658.html Indian government cracks down on spurious mobile phones [IDG] The Indian government has notified the customs department that import of mobile handsets is to be allowed only after declaration of the phones' International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/122308-indian-government-cracks-down-on.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/155946/.html Building The Next Generation Of Text Messaging CTIA has laid the groundwork for Enhanced Messaging, which is similar to SMS but enables users to include sound, animation, and presence in messages. http://www.informationweek.com/news/mobility/messaging/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212501714 D.Telekom and Vodafone combine to expand German VDSL Telecom giants Deutsche Telekom and Vodafone will work together to expand high-speed VDSL internet broadband services in Germany, the companies said on Tuesday. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE4BM17220081223 Thai regulator reports steady progress on 3G Thailand's National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) says it has finishing drafting third-generation terms and conditions, paving the way for it to start fixing policies and hold public hearings prior to issuing licenses in mid-2009. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/communications/0,39044192,62049567,00.htm India hopeful of strong bids at 3G auction: official India is hopeful an auction for third-generation (3G) radio waves next month will draw in bids at a "few times" the reserve price of 20.20 billion rupees ($415 million), a senior government official said on Tuesday. http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE4BM0NI20081223 http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-37163620081223 Mobile Web use hits an upward curve at last Data traffic to mobile phones jumped 463 percent in November compared to the same month last year, according to the latest State of the Mobile Web report from Opera Software. http://computerworld.com.au/article/271721/ Mobile web browsing on the up The levels of mobile web browsing of increasing dramatically, accorind to the latest report from browser maker Opera. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2233071/mobile-web-browsing ********************** SPAM ********************** Australian SMS Firm Agrees to Abide by Anti-Spam Laws The Australian Communications and Media Authority has accepted an enforceable undertaking from Oxygen8 Communications, after investigating complaints under the Spam Act 2003 that commercial messages in the form of SMS were sent by content providers using Oxygen8 Communications? technology platforms. http://www.cellular-news.com/story/35301.php How Does So Much Spam Come From One Place? At roughly 4:30 p.m. Eastern time last Tuesday, the volume of junk e-mail arriving at inboxes around the world suddenly plummeted by at least 65 percent, an unprecedented drop caused by what is believed to be a single, simple act. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/19/AR2008111903075.html au: Coffs Harbour warned on 'dangerous' email scam People in the Coffs Harbour area are being warned about an email scam that is currently circulating. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/01/02/2458046.htm ********************** DIGITAL DIVIDE ********************** Bringing Broadband to the Urban Poor To make good on a pledge to prioritize high-speed Internet access, President-elect Obama must address inner cities, where many go without a connection http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2008/tc20081230_015542.htm ************************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ************************** British police set to step up warrantless hacking of home PCs The Home Office has quietly adopted a new plan to allow police across Britain routinely to hack into people?s personal computers without a warrant. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article5439604.ece us: Lawsuit Against NYTCo Threatens Widespread Internet Linking Practices If successful, a lawsuit against the New York Times Co. brought by Gatehouse, a chain of local newspapers, could radically change the way information is distributed on the Internet. The suit challenges the widespread practice of reproducing samples of text with links to original published content on other sites. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/65638.html Hi-tech crime to boom as downturn blooms With the economic downturn affecting every corner of the globe, it is perhaps no surprise that it is likely to affect hi-tech criminals over the next 12 months. In contrast to many ordinary people, hi-tech criminals are likely to see opportunities to prosper rather than suffer in the downturn. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7797946.stm Chinese Court Convicts 11 in Microsoft Piracy Case A court in southern China convicted 11 people on Wednesday of violating national copyright laws and participating in a sophisticated counterfeiting ring that for years manufactured and distributed pirated Microsoft software throughout the world. http://nytimes.com/2009/01/01/business/worldbusiness/01soft.html China Sentences Ringleaders Of Software-Counterfeiting Gang The alleged ringleaders of a Chinese counterfeiting gang that sold at least $2 billion worth of bogus Microsoft software were sentenced Wednesday to prison terms of up to 6 1/2 years, in what is believed to be the harshest penalties yet under China's tightened piracy laws. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/31/AR2008123103061.html Facebook Is No Friend of Power.com Power.com is a start-up based in Brazil that aims to be the portal through which people access all of their favorite social networking sites. Facebook would prefer that its members access it directly, thank you very much. On Wednesday, Facebook filed a complaint against Power.com in United States District Court in San Jose, Calif., for copyright and trademark infringement, unlawful competition and violation of the computer fraud and abuse act, among other charges. ?Facebook has suffered irreparable and incalculable harm,? the complaint reads (here?s a PDF). Power.com removed access to Facebook from its site after Facebook filed the complaint. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/02/facebook-sues-powercom/ Alleged Aussie cyber stalker denied bail [AAP] A 30-year-old man asked a police officer posing as a child in an internet chat room to wear a mini skirt with no knickers when they met, a court in Perth has heard. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4808135a28.html ************************** PRIVACY ************************** Editorial: More Privacy Online Yahoo has announced that it will no longer hold some personally identifiable search information for more than 90 days. The company is hoping that the new policy will give it a competitive advantage with users who care about privacy. It also is an encouraging development for the cause of Internet privacy. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/24/opinion/24wed3.html ********************** CENSORSHIP ********************** Private firm may track all British email and calls The private sector will be asked to manage and run a communications database that will keep track of everyone's calls, emails, texts and internet use under a key option contained in a consultation paper to be published next month by Jacqui Smith, the home secretary. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/dec/31/privacy-civil-liberties UK government to outsource internet tracking The government is planning to get a private company to run its proposed database of every call, text, email and web site visit. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2233212/uk-government-outsource UK: Private firm to guard database of every phone call, e-mail A UK plan to create a database of metadata about every phone call, text message, and e-mail has become even more controversial in the wake of reports that maintenance of the system may be outsourced to private firms. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090101-uk-private-firm-to-guard-database-of-every-phone-call-e-mail.html UK's database plan condemned by Europe Britain must rethink plans for a database holding details of every email, mobile phone and internet visit, Europe's human rights commissioner has said in an outspoken attack on the growth of surveillance societies. Thomas Hammarberg said that UK proposals for sweeping powers to collect and store data will increase the risk of the "violation of an individual's privacy". http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uks-database-plan-condemned-by-europe-1218246.html Battle lines drawn over UK Bill to ban 'extreme' porn To some people it is exactly the kind of protective legislation that Britain needs in a world where access to a vast array of pornography is available at the click of a mouse. To others, a new law banning "extreme" pornography gives the Government unprecedented powers to police bedrooms (and basements). http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/battle-lines-drawn-over-bill-to-ban-extreme-porn-1216231.html Facebook Won?t Budge on Breastfeeding Photos Facebook is standing firm on a policy that has led to the removal of some photos posted by women that show breastfeeding. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/02/breastfeeding-facebook-photos/ Breastfeeding ban sucks, say web mums [AP] Web-savvy mums who breastfeed are irate that social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace restrict photos of nursing babies. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10550302 http://news.smh.com.au/technology/facebook-nudity-policy-draws-nursing-moms-ire-20090102-78mv.html http://news.theage.com.au/technology/facebook-nudity-policy-draws-nursing-moms-ire-20090102-78mv.html Mums furious as Facebook removes breastfeeding photos Facebook has become the target of an 80,000-plus protest by irate mothers after banning breastfeeding photographs from online profiles. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/30/facebook-breastfeeding-ban Protest as Facebook removes breastfeeding photos A mass online protest movement is gathering pace after Facebook banned some breastfeeding photos from the social network site. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article5417278.ece Facebook ban of breast-feeding photos sparks protests Are photographs of a mother breast-feeding her child indecent? The social networking site Facebook has sparked a massive online debate and protests after removing photos that expose too much of a mother's breast. http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-37226920081230 http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKTRE4BT0UP20081230 http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/facebook-ban-of-breastfeeding-photos-sparks-protests-1217396.html Fury as Mafia godfathers idolised on Facebook To the fury and dismay of relatives of Mafia victims, pages posted on the social networking site Facebook idolising notorious Cosa Nostra Godfathers have generated thousands of supporters in Italy. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5424356.ece Mafia Finds Fans on Facebook Thousands of users have joined fan pages devoted to top Mafia bosses on the social networking site Facebook, the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica reported Tuesday. http://nytimes.com/2008/12/31/world/europe/31briefs-MAFIAFINDSFA_BRF.html YouTube shoots down Israeli air strike videos [AFP] YouTube censors have removed several videos showing footage of air strikes and other attacks on Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip which were posted by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on its new YouTube channel. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/12/31/1230681544787.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/12/31/1230681544787.html Thailand blocks 2,300 websites [AP] The Thai government has blocked more than 2,300 websites over the past year, most of them for allegedly offending the country's monarchy, a senior official said. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10550142 http://news.smh.com.au/technology/thailand-blocks-2300-web-sites-20081230-77ay.html http://news.theage.com.au/technology/thailand-blocks-2300-web-sites-20081230-77ay.html Vietnam tightens rules on blogs Vietnam has tightened restrictions on internet blogs, banning bloggers from raising subjects the government deems inappropriate. Blogs should follow Vietnamese law, and be written in "clean and wholesome" language, according to a government document seen by local media. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7798681.stm Vietnam regulator bans subversive blogging Vietnam's Ministry of Information and Communication, which regulates the Internet in the country, has banned blogs that are subversive or reveal state, security or economic secrets, a newspaper reported on Wednesday. http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-37182120081225 http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKTRE4BN0E020081224 Thai infocomm minister vows to curb rogue sites The new Information and Communications Technology (ICT) minister has vowed to make it a priority to block Web sites insulting the monarchy. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,62049671,00.htm New government plans to step up online censorship Reporters Without Borders is more concerned than ever about the Internet?s future in Thailand after yesterday?s announcement that access to more than 2,300 websites was blocked in 2008, in most cases for lese-majeste (insulting the king), and the new information minister?s pledge to make it her priority to block such online content. http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=29847 ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** Reboot the FCC by Lawrence Lessig We'll stifle the Skypes and YouTubes of the future if we don't demolish the regulators that oversee our digital pipelines. http://www.newsweek.com/id/176809 Who's Winning the Battle Over Net Neutrality? The Internet is the greatest technical development of the 20th century, and its open competition model has been the envy of other market sectors. Internet advances are being crushed by monopolistic carriers who are more concerned with censoring content than delivering services to customers. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/65674.html us: Chamber backs broadband deployment--without Net neutrality laws Broadband development should not be stifled by federal regulation that intends to make networks more "neutral," the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is arguing through two papers released Monday. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10128169-38.html ********************************* COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS ********************************* Google's grand ambitions Google stretched its wings in 2008, furthering an expansion beyond its core search and search-advertising business. But the economy and the government raised the possibility that those wings could be clipped. http://news.cnet.com/2009-1012_3-6248451.html Microsoft poised to announce job losses Microsoft is preparing to announce the first widescale layoffs in its 32-year history, with up to 15,000 jobs at risk, according to some predictions. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article5429969.ece ********************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ********************** au: Unless TV networks adapt they will be eaten alive by the internet The commercial television networks are quietly delighted by Telstra's exclusion from the $10 billion national broadband network (NBN) tender, write Allan Fels and Fred Brenchley. http://business.theage.com.au/business/unless-tv-networks-adapt-they-will-be-eaten-alive-by-the-internet-20090102-7941.html http://business.smh.com.au/business/unless-tv-networks-adapt-they-will-be-eaten-alive-by-the-internet-20090102-7941.html BT faces tough year as broadband nears saturation Telecoms group BT will face "one of its toughest ever years" in 2009 as revenue from landline phone calls continues to decline and broadband reaches saturation point, according to a new report. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/telecoms/4093671/BT-faces-tough-year-as-broadband-nears-saturation.html 2008 year in review: Networking and Telecoms The networking and telecommunications world has seen something of a transformation in 2008, and we can expect more profound changes in 2009 as our reliance on being constantly connected continues to grow. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2233014/2008-review-networking-telecoms Australians offer advice on broadband New Zealand must learn from mistakes made in Australia when developing a national broadband network, senior Telstra officials said yesterday. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10549377 nz: Com Com releases NGN discussion paper Certain areas in telecommunications Next Generation Networks (NGN) may be unlikely to be economic to duplicate, a Commerce Commission discussion paper on the issue says. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4802823a28.html FCC's Martin Drops Porn Filtering Idea Even though Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin is leaving in a matter of weeks, he still hopes to push through a major policy decision he?s been backing for months: One that would create a nationwide free wireless broadband network for use by all. http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2008/12/fccs_martin_dro.html Martin drops porn filtering from FCC free wireless broadband plan Kevin Martin, the Chair of the Federal Communications Commission, called Ars Technica today to let us know that he has revised his proposal to roll out a free (and smut-free) wireless broadband service. In an effort to corral more votes, Martin has already circulated a new version of the plan, one that removes the controversial smut filtering requirement. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081229-no-more-porn-filtering-on-fcc-free-wireless-broadband-plan.html au: 2008 a wasted opportunity for broadband: Minchin THE Rudd Government promised 2008 to be the year of fast broadband for all Australians but instead it will be remembered as a year of "wasted opportunity" according to shadow communications spokesperson Nick Minchin. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,24859537-15306,00.html ACMA releases new Australian Radiofrequency Spectrum Plan [sub req'd] The Australian Communications and Media Authority has released a new Australian Radiofrequency Spectrum Plan. http://www.telecompaper.com/news/article.aspx?cid=651869 Europe has a chance to unite on broadband For seven years, AirData, a small wireless operator in Stuttgart, did something the largest German mobile operators, including T-Mobile, were unwilling to do: It delivered broadband Internet to consumers in remote corners of the country. http://iht.com/articles/2008/12/28/technology/spectrum.php ********************************** ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN ********************************** au: Bondi man charged over child porn [AAP] Police have seized thousands of DVDs from the home of a Sydney man charged with possessing child pornography. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2009/01/02/1230681729442.html +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2009 --------- 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 Stay connected to the people that matter most with a smarter inbox. Take a look http://au.docs.yahoo.com/mail/smarterinboxReceived on Sun Jan 04 2009 - 19:21:04 UTC
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