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://GoldsteinReport.com/ - for daily updates in between postings. *************************************************** The domain name news is supported by auDA *************************************************** Top Internet engineers get ready for the IANA contract rebid by Milton Mueller http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/14/4604759.html Google & eBay, Keywords & Domains, & ICANN by Philip S Corwin http://www.circleid.com/posts/google_ebay_keywords_domains_icann/ .AU To Get More Secure with DNSSEC http://www.domainpulse.com/2010/08/14/au-to-get-more-secure-with-dnssec/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/au-to-get-more-secure-with-dnssec.html Australia takes a step towards secure internet http://www.securecomputing.net.au/News/224408,australia-takes-a-step-towards-secure-internet.aspx au: Australia takes a step towards secure internet http://www.itnews.com.au/News/224408,australia-takes-a-step-towards-secure-internet.aspx Challenges facing the US in global cybersecurity and governance by Brenden Kuerbis http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/9/4598863.html Domain Names as Second-Class Citizens by Milton Mueller http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/12/4603084.html ********************** GOVERNANCE ********************** East Africa: ICT Experts Root for Regional Code Internet experts from several partner states of the East African Community (EAC) are meeting in Kampala as part of efforts aimed at finding a common internet code that will serve the region. http://www.newtimes.co.rw/index.php?issue=14351&article=32486 http://allafrica.com/stories/201008130649.html ********************** DOMAIN NAMES ********************** ********************** - ICANN ********************** Top Internet engineers get ready for the IANA contract rebid by Milton Mueller One of the looming milestones in Internet governance is the impending renewal of ICANN's contract for the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions. The IANA contract is the mechanism through which the US government delegates control of the name and numbers space to ICANN. As such, it is the source of all of ICANN's real authority over domain name industry and IP address policy; take away that contract and ICANN is a shell. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/14/4604759.html ICANN Community Faces Policy Overload As I write this, there are currently 30 open or recently concluded comment periods at ICANN. You can comment on anything from ?Interim Paper on Policy Aspects Regarding Introduction of Single Character IDN TLDs? to ?Proposed Bylaws Amendment to Add Voting Director from the At-Large Community to the ICANN Board of Directors?. You just missed your opportunity to comment on ?Revised Process for Selection of Sites for ICANN International Public Meeting?. http://domainnamewire.com/2010/08/13/icann-community-faces-policy-overload/ New Associated Cities Leadership Outlines Organizations Goals Geo-domain name association Associated Cities went through some rough times in 2009. Reports of trouble with internal conflicts between board members and the direction of the group circulated as the 2009 Geo Domain expo neared. It seems now that the group is back on track and pushing forward with a new set of board members with Fred Mercaldo at the helm. http://www.domainnamenews.com/news/cities-leadership-outlines-organizations-goals/7901 Google & eBay, Keywords & Domains, & ICANN by Philip S Corwin Sell a trademark as a keyword for directed search or online auctions and make $billions. But use a trademark in a domain name for direct search and lose the domain, or worse. The gap between how trademark law treats the two species of search has grown wider in the wake of several landmark 2010 trademark law decisions -- and provides another sound reason why ICANN should not establish any new rights protections for new generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) beyond those STI-RT compromise positions already included in the fourth version of its Draft Applicant Guidebook (DAGv4). http://www.circleid.com/posts/google_ebay_keywords_domains_icann/ ********************** - ccTLD & gTLD NEWS ********************** African Union endorses .Africa domain The African Union (AU) has endorsed the DotAfrica domain project, a specific Internet namespace for Africa, aimed at building the Africa brand and encouraging increased participation on the Internet. http://www.ethiopianreview.com/articles/33069 http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=35837 The new .at-report has arrived! The second issue of the .AT Report presents the twice-yearly statistics for .at domains with a special focus on the following questions: Who owns Austrian domains? What is the home region of the .at-domain? What is the importance of regional attributes in domain names? and What is so special about the town of Holzhausen in Upper Austria? http://www.nic.at/en/uebernic/current_issues/nicat_news/news_view/article/81/der-neue-at-report-ist-da/ .AU To Get More Secure with DNSSEC AuDA (.au Domain Administration) has announced the launch of a phased plan for the deployment of Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) in the .AU domain. http://www.domainpulse.com/2010/08/14/au-to-get-more-secure-with-dnssec/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/au-to-get-more-secure-with-dnssec.html Australia takes a step towards secure internet Australia has started down the long road to a safer internet, as the domain name regulator kicked off a plan today to secure online communications at their bedrock. http://www.securecomputing.net.au/News/224408,australia-takes-a-step-towards-secure-internet.aspx au: Australia takes a step towards secure internet Australia has started down the long road to a safer internet, as the domain name regulator kicked off a plan today to secure online communications at their bedrock. http://www.itnews.com.au/News/224408,australia-takes-a-step-towards-secure-internet.aspx .CO Internet Announces Landrush Auctions For .CO Domain Names .CO Internet S.A.S. announced that auctions will commence today for the more than 2,500 .CO domain applications that received multiple bids during the .CO ?Landrush? phase. The auctions, which will take place over the course of the next four weeks, are only open to the individuals and entities that previously applied to register a specific .CO domain during the .CO Landrush phase. Eligible parties must register at COauctions.co in order to participate. http://www.cointernet.co/media/press-releases/co-internet-announces-landrush-auctions-co-domain-names There are already 700,000 .CZ domains, with the longest one being 63 characters long The CZ.NIC Association, administrator of the .CZ national domain, registered domain number 700,000 on Wednesday 4 August at 10:22 a.m. The average monthly increase in the number of .CZ domains has therefore remained around 10,000. http://www.nic.cz/page/771/there-are-already-700,000-.cz-domains,-with-the-longest-one-being-63-characters-long/ dotFree?s ?free? domain names explained As I reported a couple of days ago, a Czech company called The dotFree Group wants to apply to ICANN for a .free top-level domain, and will offer domain names for free. http://domainincite.com/dotfrees-free-domain-names-explained/ Movement for '.MLS' domain picks up steam A total of 34 multiple listing services representing 503,000 real estate brokers and agents are now backing an effort to create and manage a new "generic" top-level Internet domain, .MLS, that only MLSs would be allowed to use. http://www.inman.com/news/2010/08/13/movement-mls-domain-picks-steam VeriSign Plans to Release 1 and 2 Character .Net Domains VeriSign has asked ICANN to allow it to release one and two character .net domain names. http://domainnamewire.com/2010/08/12/verisign-plans-to-release-1-and-2-character-net-domains/ si: WHOIS news When looking up a domain name via WHOIS now you can also check .si zone records. What is the difference? http://www.registry.si/news/news-item/article/whois-news/285.html uk: Nominet Summary of Reserved Short Domains Consultation responses Following the recent consultation on the release of two letter, one character and other reserved .uk domains which ran 8 March and 8 June 2010, we have collated the responses and are providing a summary and analysis of the responses. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=7768 uk: Nominet Customer Satisfaction surveys We are committed to providing all of our customers with the highest levels of service and your opinion is important to us. That's why we are launching two customer satisfaction surveys to measure the level of satisfaction with the support services that we offer. These surveys are being carried out on our behalf by an independent market research company called The Leadership Factor. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=7822 ********************** - DNS SECURITY ********************** Challenges facing the US in global cybersecurity and governance by Brenden Kuerbis The US General Accounting Office has released a new report which provides an overview of US government involvement and the challenges it faces in global Internet security and policy. Cataloging the breadth and scope of departmental and agency efforts to engage in multiple issues and institutions, it paints a picture of a government struggling to identify a cohesive strategic approach to Internet governance. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/9/4598863.html Experts Warn of a Weak Link in the Security of Web Sites Computer security researchers are raising alarms about vulnerabilities in some of the Web?s most secure corners: the banking, e-commerce and other sites that use encryption to communicate with their users. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/14/technology/14encrypt.html Registrar DNSSEC Implementation Cheat Sheet At the Public Interest Registry, our continued commitment to security is rooted in ensuring our Registrars can protect their customers from attacks such as pharming, cache poisoning, DNS redirection, and domain hijacking. http://pir.org/blog/2010/dnssecsheet An Attack on DNS is an Attack on the Internet by Peter van Eijk On Saturday Aug 7th, DNS provider DNS Made Easy was the target of a very large denial of service attack. As far as can be determined the total traffic volume exceeded 40 Gigabit/second, enough to saturate 1 million dialup Internet lines. Several of DNS Made Easy's upstream providers had saturated backbone links themselves. There are indications that not only DNS Made Easy suffered from this attack, but the Internet as a whole. http://www.circleid.com/posts/an_attack_on_dns_is_an_attack_on_the_internet/ ********************** - DOMAIN DISPUTES ********************** Internet Domain Name Disputes - Judicial Trends in India by Ranjan K. Misra Abstract: Cybersquatting, is a crime against the laws and regulations of cyber law. It can be defined as registering, trafficking in, or using a domain name with bad-faith i.e. mala fide intent to make profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to someone else. The cybersquatter then offers to sell the domain to the person or company who owns a trademark containedwithin the name at an inflated price. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1653637 us: Using God in Web name triggers dispute When Moses wrote ?thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy God in vain,? he probably was not referring to Web addresses and intellectual property. But one Johnson City evangelist was struck down by the finger of God.TV when he created a website called GodTVNetwork.com. http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?ID=79937 ********************** - MISCELLANEOUS ********************** Domain Names as Second-Class Citizens by Milton Mueller A new book by Dr. Konstantinos Komaitis (Lecturer in Law at the University of Strathclyde) provides a passionate yet legalistic and well-researched overview of the legal, institutional and ethical problems caused by the clash between domain names and trademarks. This is really the first decent book-length treatment of what is now a decade and a half of legal and political conflict between domain name registrants and trademark holders. But this is more than a static compilation and description of the subject: Komaitis has an original and fundamentally important argument to make. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2010/8/12/4603084.html Afilias Opens .INFO Awards to Select the Best Websites of 2010 Afilias, a global provider of Internet infrastructure services and registry for the .INFO TLD, today announced the opening of its fourth annual .INFO Awards program which recognizes the best .INFO websites around the world. http://www.afilias.info/news/2010/08/06/afilias-opens-info-awards-select-best-websites-2010 http://www.info.info/news/2010/08/06/afilias-opens-info-awards-select-best-websites-2010 Netcraft August 2010 Web Server Survey In the August 2010 survey we received responses from 213,458,815 sites. This month saw four of the major web servers gaining hostnames but only two gaining market share. http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2010/08/11/august-2010-web-server-survey-4.html ********************** - DOMAINING & AFTERMARKET ********************** Hot on the Heels of Good News About the Domain Aftermarket Buyers Respond By Taking a Break! This was an unusual week for the domain aftermarket. It started with several reports of sales increases for 2Q-2010 vs. the previous quarter as well as the same quarter last year (our own data showed a 38% jump in total dollar volume over 2Q-2009 and a 26% increase over 1Q-2010). So how did buyers respond to the good news? By taking a bit of a break! http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2010/20100811.htm Stocks.com, Cable.com, Rate.com and Other Premium Domain Names Headline Live Auction at DOMAINfest New York Moniker/SnapNames have released the final live auction catalogue for the Live Auction at DOMAINfest New York with some quality domain names up for grabs including XXX.com, BigApple.com, Physicians.com, stocks.com and LocalNews.com. The Moniker auction will occur on Wednesday, August 18, 2010 from 16:00 to 19:00 and will be followed by the Moniker auction of the premium names Following the Moniker auction, SnapNames will host an online auction that will run through Wednesday, August 25 at 17:00. US Eastern time. http://www.domainpulse.com/2010/08/14/stockscom-cablecom-ratecom-and-other-premium-domain-names-headline-live-auction-at-domainfest-new-york/ http://www.domainnews.com/en/stocks.com-cable.com-rate.com-and-other-premium-domain-names-headline-live-auction-at-domainfest-new-york.html If Parking is Dead How Come Another New Company Has Just Entered the Space? Plus, Major Domain Auctions Will Highlight Four Conferences This Month Parking revenues have fallen so far over the past couple of years that some have gone as far as to declare that form of domain monetization dead. I wouldn't go that far, but there is no denying that parking has become a critically ill patient. In this environment, no one would dream of starting up another parking company, right? I would have thought so, but I would have been wrong. http://dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2010/dailyposts/20100813.htm ********************** REPORTS & RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** A Comparison of Network Neutrality Approaches In: The U.S., Japan, and the European Union by Kenneth R. Carter, Tomoaki Watanabe, Adam Peake & J. Scott Marcus Abstract: In this paper, we compare and contrast three different regulatory approaches to addressing Network Neutrality. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1658093 Internet Access: Where Law, Economy, Culture and Technology Meet by Sulan Wong, Eitan Altman & Julio Rojas-Mora Abstract: Internet growth has allowed unprecedented widespread access to cultural creation including music and films, to knowledge, and to a wide range of consumer information. At the same time, it has become a huge source of business opportunities. Along with great benefits that this access to the Internet provides, the open and free access to the Internet has encountered large opposition based on political, economical and ethical reasons. An ongoing battle over the control on Internet access has been escalating on all these fronts. In this paper we describe first some of the ideological roots of free access to the Internet along with its main opponents. We then focus on the problem of ?Internet piracy? and analyze the efficiency of efforts to reduce the availability of copyrighted creations that are available for non-authorized free download. http://ssrn.com/abstract=1654260 ********************** INTERNET USE ********************** The internet: is it changing the way we think? American writer Nicholas Carr's claim that the internet is not only shaping our lives but physically altering our brains has sparked a lively and ongoing debate, says John Naughton. Below, a selection of writers and experts offer their opinion http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/15/internet-brain-neuroscience-debate Google and the Search for the Future: The Web icon's CEO on the mobile computing revolution, the future of newspapers, and privacy in the digital age. To some, Google has been looking a bit sallow lately. The stock is down. Where once everything seemed to go the company's way, along came Apple's iPhone, launching a new wave of Web growth on a platform that largely bypassed the browser and Google's search box. The "app" revolution was going to spell an end to Google's dominance of Web advertising. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704901104575423294099527212.html http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704901104575423294099527212.html?mod=WSJ_Tech_RIGHTTopCarousel_1 Stalkers Exploit Cellphone GPS Phone companies know where their customers' cellphones are, often within a radius of less than 100 feet. That tracking technology has rescued lost drivers, helped authorities find kidnap victims and let parents keep tabs on their kids. ... Mr. Helwig, in an interview, acknowledged using the service to track his wife on some occasions. He says he signed up for the tracking service last year. "AT&T had this little deal where you could find your family member through her cellphone," he says. But he didn't use it to find his wife that day, he says. Mr. Helwig, who is awaiting trial on related assault charges, declined to comment further about the matter. He has pleaded not guilty. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703467304575383522318244234.html http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703467304575383522318244234.html?mod=WSJ_article_RecentColumns_WhatTheyKnow China Moves to Dominate the Next Stage of the Web [ReadWriteWeb] Blogging, Tweeting and Facebook have changed the world by making it easier than ever for everyday people to publish and distribute their thoughts and media to the world. The resulting tidal wave of data now offers opportunities for innovative entrepreneurs to build entire new products, services and companies based on processing that data and offering recommendations, analytics and other information products to consumers. http://www.nytimes.com/external/readwriteweb/2010/08/12/12readwriteweb-china-moves-to-dominate-the-next-stage-of-t-61741.html Starbucks Will Win the US Cafe Wi-Fi War Analysis: Laptop homesteaders are prompting coffee shops to reconsider their wi-fi policies, but here's what they don't realize about their decisions. http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9180700/Elgan_Why_Starbucks_will_win_the_Wi_Fi_wars http://www.pcworld.com/article/203304/.html Coffee shops are taking Wi-Fi off the menu: to stimulate sales, coffeehouses are pulling the plug on the Net Housed in an old San Francisco warehouse, Four Barrel Coffee ? with its vintage record player, 53-year-old coffee roasting machine, tables hewn from recycled wood and wall of mounted boar heads ? calls one of the world's most wired cities home. http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/08/business/la-fi-cafe-wifi-20100808 Digital drug peddlers target teens with iDoses Spaced-out adolescents in headphones litter YouTube, some panting and others wincing as they listen to droning, pulsating soundtracks known as iDoses. ... Helane Wahbeh, an assistant professor at Oregon Health and Science University, has done several studies into binaural technology, and recently told US National Public Radio there was insufficient evidence showing that it could create altered states. http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/digital-drug-peddlers-target-teens-with-idoses-20100813-12231.html http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/4022434/Digital-drug-peddlers-target-teens-with-iDoses http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/digital-drug-peddlers-target-teens-with-idoses-20100813-12231.html Mobile banking yet to take off in rural India Regulations in the country have been relaxed but the adoption of mobile banking services in rural India is still held back by various challenges including low-value transactions, lack of focus from banks, financial illiteracy and paucity of cash-points. http://www.zdnetasia.com/mobile-banking-yet-to-take-off-in-rural-india-62202064.htm ********************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ********************** Google prepares for battle with Facebook Through acquisitions, investments and internal development, Google is piecing together the makings of a potent social networking infrastructure, one explicitly designed to challenge Facebook, which has quickly emerged as one of the most potent forces on the web. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/fd9b57ac-a879-11df-86dd-00144feabdc0.html nz: Faceless Facebook site faces setback Access to an internet site set up to attack Whangarei Mayor Stan Semenoff has been restricted and much of the content removed. http://www.northernadvocate.co.nz/local/news/faceless-facebook-site-faces-setback/3919273/ ********************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ********************** What's the carbon footprint of ... the internet? All carbon footprints are hard or impossible to pin down accurately, but the internet is a particularly complex case. This isn't just due to the fact that the "net" consists of millions or even billions of machines owned by countless people and companies. There's also another problem: even if we knew exactly how much energy all these devices consumed (which we don't), we still wouldn't know how much of that energy was spent on offline jobs (such as creating documents in Microsoft Office) and how much was spent on online jobs (such as emailing those documents to a friend or colleague). http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/aug/12/carbon-footprint-internet Net needs to go on a diet, say power-savers Pressure on electricity supplies will grow unless a way is found to control telecommunications' energy appetite. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10665760 ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ uk: 'Panic button' sparks leap in Facebook alerts [Press Association] More than 200 Facebook users have reported suspicious behaviour online since the launch of an anti-abuse application last month, figures showed today. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/panic-button-sparks-leap-in-facebook-alerts-2050709.html Facebook child protection app prompts 211 reports of suspicious online activity Reports through Child Exploitation and Online Protection app all classified as very serious offences, such as sexual grooming http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/12/ceop-facebook-child-protection Facebook 'panic button' leads to 'increase in reports' More than 200 UK Facebook users have reported suspicious behaviour following the launch of a "panic button" application last month, figures show. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10953600 ClickCEOP Status Update Since its launch on 12 July 2010, the ClickCEOP application in Facebook has been downloaded over 55,000 times which will give users a direct link to advice, help and the ability to report a problem to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre if they are worried about someone?s behaviour towards them online. http://www.ceop.gov.uk/mediacentre/pressreleases/2010/ceop_12082010.asp au: Apps and games to face censor, says ALP The Labor Party has flagged it will shut down a major loophole in the mobile phone industry. The loophole has allowed games and applications to go online without any kind of classification. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/apps-and-games-to-face-censor-says-alp/story-e6frg996-1225905609780 au: Digital drug peddlers target teens with iDoses Spaced-out adolescents in headphones litter YouTube, some panting and others wincing as they listen to droning, pulsating soundtracks known as iDoses. http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/digital-drug-peddlers-target-teens-with-idoses-20100813-12231.html se: Pirate Party amends manifesto on child porn The Swedish Pirate Party has changed its election manifesto after criticism over its position on child pornography. http://www.thelocal.se/28358/20100813/ ch: SWITCH Junior Web Award: launching the anniversary round! [news release] The website competition for school classes is meeting with a high level of interest in all four language regions of Switzerland. Today, it is being launched for the fifth time round. The competition is aimed at teachers interested in designing a website with their class. http://www.switch.ch/about/news/2010/jwa2011.html ********************** MOBILE/WIRELESS ********************** Apple iPhone repairs 'a rip-off' Apple has been accused of "ripping off" iPhone users over the amounts it charges to repair handsets. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/7946102/Apple-iPhone-repairs-a-rip-off.html Mobiles a 'threat' to privacy: Australian Law Reform Commission report Laws controlling the use of mobile phones in toilets, shower areas and change rooms would be tightened, and the filming of assaults with mobile phones for entertainment would be banned, under recommendations in a new report into the growth of public surveillance. http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/mobiles-a-threat-to-privacy-20100812-121i4.html ALRC Report 112: Secrecy Laws and Open Government in Australia http://www.alrc.gov.au/inquiries/title/alrc112/index.html India Warns It Will Block BlackBerry Traffic That It Can?t Monitor The Indian government said Thursday that it would block encrypted BlackBerry corporate e-mail and messenger services if wireless companies did not enable law enforcement authorities to monitor those messages by the end of the month. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/13/technology/13rim.html RIM 'optimistic' about BlackBerry in India BlackBerry manufacturer Research in Motion is "optimistic" the company can resolve security demands from the Indian government regarding its popular smartphone. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/13/blackberry-india-security-demands-rim BlackBerry assures India on access to services Research In Motion has promised India a technical solution for decoding encrypted BlackBerry data, a senior official said on Friday, a step that could allay Indian security concerns about the smartphone and avert a shutdown. http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE67A10I20100813 http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-50835420100813 http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/4025102/BlackBerry-assures-India-on-access-to-services India threatens to suspend BlackBerry by 31 August India has given the maker of BlackBerry phones a deadline of 31 August to provide the government access to all of its services or face being shut down. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10951607 India sets deadline for BlackBerry compliance India piled fresh pressure on Research In Motion today when it gave the company less than three weeks to satisfy its concerns over its BlackBerry smartphones or face seeing some services banned. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/12/blackberry-email-messaging-india India gives RIM until Aug 31 to yield on BlackBerry India, the world's fastest-growing telecom market, said it would hobble Research In Motion's BlackBerry smartphone unless the company gives it the keys to decode encrypted email and messages by the end of August. http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE67A10I20100812 http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-50807920100812 Gartner Says Worldwide Mobile Device Sales Grew 13.8 Percent in Second Quarter of 2010, But Competition Drove Prices Down [news release] Worldwide mobile device sales to end users totaled 325.6 million units in the second quarter of 2010, a 13.8 percent increase from the same period in 2009, according to Gartner, Inc. Smartphone sales to end users accounted for 19 percent of worldwide mobile device sales, an increase of 50.5 percent from the second quarter of 2009. http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=1421013 Google's Android on course to topple BlackBerry Google's android mobile phone operating system (OS) is set to pip Research in Motion (RIM) to second place in the global market by the end of this year, more than 18 months earlier than expected. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/googles-android-on-course-to-topple-blackberry-2051236.html Low prices drive second quarter phone sales up 14 pct - Gartner Sales of mobile phones rose 13.8 percent to 326 million units in the second quarter but average selling prices fell by more than expected amid intense competition, IT research firm Gartner said on Thursday. http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE67B16M20100812 ********************** SPAM ********************** nz: Spam gets personal There?s a growing trend down under of unwanted emails being sent from personal email accounts. http://www.3news.co.nz/Spam-gets-personal/tabid/412/articleID/170575/Default.aspx http://updatednews.ca/?p=32276 ************************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ************************** Experts Warn of a Weak Link in the Security of Web Sites Computer security researchers are raising alarms about vulnerabilities in some of the Web?s most secure corners: the banking, e-commerce and other sites that use encryption to communicate with their users. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/14/technology/14encrypt.html French arrest cyber-crime suspect for U.S. A founder of one of the world's most sophisticated Internet sites for trafficking stolen credit card information has been arrested by French police based on a U.S. criminal indictment unsealed Wednesday, the U.S. Secret Service and Justice Department announced. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/11/AR2010081105791.html Call to improve password security The growing use of graphics cards as surrogate supercomputers could spell trouble for users of short passwords. Researchers say the growing number of processors on graphics cards will soon make it trivial for them to crack short passwords. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10963967 Pirate traders exploit Internet sales model Internet sales of counterfeit and pirated goods to European consumers are frustrating attempts to stem illegal trade, a European Commission report said yesterday (22 July). http://euractiv.com/en/trade/pirate-traders-exploit-internet-sales-model-news-496598 French court orders ISPs to block gambling site A French court has told internet service providers (ISPs) to block access to a gambling site that is operated out of Gibraltar and does not have a licence to operate in France, according to news agency Agence France Presse (AFP). http://out-law.com/page-11306 us: Personal Jurisdiction and the Internet [reg req'd] An Article discussing the factors that US courts consider in determining whether a foreign company's website may subject it to personal jurisdiction in the US. http://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/article.asp?articleid=107334 ************************** PRIVACY ************************** Web Photos That Reveal Secrets, Like Where You Live When Adam Savage, host of the popular science program ?MythBusters,? posted a picture on Twitter of his automobile parked in front of his house, he let his fans know much more than that he drove a Toyota Land Cruiser. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/12/technology/personaltech/12basics.html Facebook, Germany Still at an Impasse Over Data Collection [IDG] Facebook officials met with Hamburg's Data Protection Authority on Thursday, but the two entities are still at loggerheads over how the social-networking site collects the information of unregistered users. http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/203134/.html Germany Keeps an Eye on Google's Street View Tool [IDG] German data protection officials are keeping close watch on Google as the company prepares to launch an online tool that lets people proactively block images from appearing on its Street View photo mapping Web application. http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/203130/.html au: Senate inquiry into online privacy The Senate has recently referred its inquiry, 'The adequacy of protections for the privacy of Australians online', to the Senate Standing Committee on Environment, Communications and the Arts for inquiry and report. http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=b2a13f16-da17-4665-ad5a-12a556786bc8 ********************** CENSORSHIP ********************** Apple censorship: Playboy forced to cover up for anti-porn Jobs Apple and Playboy are rather unlikely bedfellows. Hugh Hefner, who runs America's sauciest publishing house, has made billions from selling sex and ? up until January at least ? continued to enjoy the company of three live-in lovers whose combined ages were still two decades younger than his 84 years. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/playboy-forced-to-cover-up-for-antiporn-jobs-2051284.html New China Search Engine Will Be State-Controlled In an apparent bid to extend its control over the Internet and cash in on the rapid growth of mobile devices, China plans to create a government-controlled search engine. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/14/technology/14search.html Indian Govt: Google, Skype, RIM must meet security needs India will go after any company, including Google, after cracking down on BlackBerry in its bid to keep the world's fastest growing mobile phone market safe from militants and cyber spying, a government source said on Friday. http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-50820920100813 India 'may shut down' Google and Skype services [Reuters] India may shut down Google and Skype Internet-based messaging services over security concerns, the Financial Times reported on Friday, as the government threatened a similar crackdown on BlackBerry services. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/india-may-shut-down-google-and-skype-services-2051630.html vn: Hanoi clamps down on Internet cafes [AFP] Authorities in the Vietnamese capital are clamping down on Internet cafes in what they say is a bid to address online gaming addiction and inappropriate content. http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-technology/hanoi-clamps-down-on-internet-cafes-20100814-123ui.html http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-technology/hanoi-clamps-down-on-internet-cafes-20100814-123ui.html ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** Net neutrality: No, these are special puppies - Google has joined Verizon in lobbying to erode net neutrality Two firms want to redefine the internet. Or so it seems, judging by the ?legislative framework proposal? that Google and Verizon, an American telecoms operator, published on August 9th. http://www.economist.com/node/16793506?story_id=16793506 A Better Way to Keep the Net Open and Accessible Neutrality has been great for Switzerland ? and it could be for the Internet, too, say supporters of the idea that broadband providers should give equal priority to all digital traffic, from e-mail to bandwidth-hungry video. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/technology/16iht-CACHE16.html Google Plan Disillusions Some Allies On Friday at lunchtime, as Google employees dined al fresco, a hundred protesters descended on the company?s Silicon Valley campus. A group called the Raging Grannies sang a song called ?The Battle Hymn for the Internet,? and others carried signs reading, ?Google is evil if the price is right.? http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/technology/16google.html EU joins FTC in Apple business investigation Regulators from the European Union are getting involved in the Federal Trade Commission investigation of Apple's business strategies that was opened up in June, according to a New York Post report on Tuesday. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20013263-37.html http://www.zdnet.co.uk/news/compliance/2010/08/11/eu-joins-ftc-in-apple-business-investigation-40089795/ Editorial: The Google/Verizon Payment Plan For months, the Federal Communications Commission?s efforts to guarantee nondiscriminatory access to broadband Internet have met opposition from the companies that provide broadband service and from their allies in Congress. On Monday, Verizon and Google created a stir by jointly proposing an alternative set of rules as the basis for new legislation governing the Internet. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/14/opinion/14sat1.html ********************************* MISCELLANEOUS ********************************* Reporters Without Borders slams Wikileaks Reporters Without Borders has criticised the Wikileaks website's "incredible irresponsibility" in publishing the names of Afghans who had helped international troops fighting insurgents. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/08/13/2981681.htm Open letter to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange: ??A bad precedent for the Internet?s future?? Dear Mr. Assange, Reporters Without Borders, an international press freedom organisation, regrets the incredible irresponsibility you showed when posting your article ?Afghan War Diary 2004 - 2010? on the Wikileaks website on 25 July together with 92,000 leaked documents disclosing the names of Afghans who have provided information to the international military coalition that has been in Afghanistan since 2001. http://en.rsf.org/united-states-open-letter-to-wikileaks-founder-12-08-2010,38130.html nz: Telco-users' champion to step down from role The voice of New Zealand's telecommunications users is stepping down after more than a decade in the role. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/technology/news/article.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10665946 The NZ gamer is older than you think The average New Zealand video game player is aged over 30 - that's the finding of a new study into New Zealand's video game playing habits. http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/blogs/game-junkie/4028386/The-NZ-gamer-is-older-than-you-think ********************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ********************** Telstra shares tank as mobile phones take over Telstra shares collapsed almost 10 per cent yesterday - their second-biggest fall since listing on the stockmarket in 1997. The company admitted reaching an "inflection point" where fixed-line customers were hanging up faster than it could sign them to mobiles. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/industry-sectors/telstra-shares-tank-as-mobile-phones-take-over/story-e6frg9hx-1225904672818 Little need for 1Gbps broadband: Thodey Telstra's chief executive said today that household demand for 1 gigabit per second internet speeds is probably a few years away. http://www.zdnet.com.au/little-need-for-1gbps-broadband-thodey-339305178.htm us: Telecom Industry Opposes State Fees on Internet Telephony AT&T, Verizon, Vonage and other leading telecommunication companies sent a letter to the FCC recently urging the commission not to subject Internet telephony to state fees for the Universal Service Fund, a program that subsidizes telecommunications costs in low-income and rural areas. http://techdailydose.nationaljournal.com/2010/08/telecom-industry-opposes-state.php T-Mobile Looks to Lag in Offering US 4G Service Deutsche Telekom risks getting left behind in the U.S. market?again. http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2010/tc2010089_636192.htm us: Tapping the Web, 22,000 Miles Up Satellite companies have been the also-rans of Internet providers. They serve a little more than one million customers, most in rural areas that have no other options. Their services can be painfully slow and cost twice as much as high-speed broadband. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/technology/16satellite.html ********************************** ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR ONLINE CHILD PROTECTION ********************************** nz: Man sent 2000 explicit texts to 13-year-old sex victim A 34-year-old Whangarei man sent more than 2000 explicit and threatening text messages to a 13-year-old girl. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10666099 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2010 --------- David Goldstein email: goldstein_david§yahoo.com.au web: http://davidgoldstein.tel/ http://goldsteinreport.com/ phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9665 5773 - office/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 FlanneryReceived on Sun Aug 15 2010 - 19:45:03 UTC
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