general internet news - 23 August

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general internet news - 23 August
Australia	2007-08-23 01:33:24

Don't forget to check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, including an RSS feed - already online! And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. ************************************************* The Internet News is brought to you with the support of InternetNZ *********************************************** Green awareness low but rising in Asia http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/business/0,39044229,62031229,00.htm Free speech in Australia? Not while we're on sheep's back http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462353847.html mt: Children, the internet and safety http://timesofmalta.com/core/article.php?id=272017 au: AFP playing 'catch up' on internet paedophilia http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/22/2011518.htm au: Govt launches free internet filter for parents http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/20/2010161.htm http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Government-launches-free-porn-filter-initiative/0,130061733,339281354,00.htm Free net nasties filters snapped up http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,22278781-15306,00.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/20/1187462176198.html ISP-level filtering? No problem, says Nominum http://itwire.com/content/view/14087/127/ us: Courts block laws on video game violence http://nytimes.com/2007/08/21/arts/television/21vide.html http://news.com.com/2100-1043_3-6203629.html Cyber boom - social networking online gold rush http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html Half Of Companies Blocking Workers' Access To Facebook http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801484 Bebo tops Kiwi social networking heap http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&;objectid=10459060 Bebo Becomes the Most Visited Social Networking Site in the UK [news release] http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=1571 Law enforcers plan Canadian cyber-crime centre http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/70e7bc38-17b7-479d-b320-bccb35683cdd.html uk: Man detained for unlawful use of broadband connection http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,2154015,00.html Oz data privacy landscape called into question http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/news/EB9F85FDFDE8AEA8CC25733A000811AC Loss of records from Monster.com is a reminder of peril of revealing personal info online [AP] http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/23/1187462396486.html Israeli ISP's will Block Pornographic Sites upon Request http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=latestnews&id=1835 Attempts to regulate online hate in Canada http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=F6BDECB1-E833-49D3-8ACB-48FA165E60FC IBM Report: Viewers Shifting From TV To Internet Content http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/08/ibm-report-view.html http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKN2240696820070823 http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801806 Blog: OECD report a wake-up call - Singapore 'gets' what potential exists in technology http://www.nzherald.co.nz/blog/story.cfm?c_id=1501198&objectid=10459412 More women and seniors said online (Reuters) http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKL2270657220070822 Internet bites into audiences for traditional media [Independent] http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2886408.ece http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&;objectid=10459396 Google Wins the Most Hearts on the Web http://nytimes.com/2007/08/19/business/yourmoney/19count.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462197863.html JupiterResearch Finds Google and Yahoo! Favorite Online Brands, with MySpace Ranking High Among Youth [news release] http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.08.20-favorite-brands.html/ JupiterResearch Reports Over One Fifth of the World's Population Will Be Online By 2011 [news release] http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.07.23-world-online-population.html/ nz: Finances worry Kiwis, not personal safety http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/4171710a28.html au: Computer games lure teens to enlist http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462354421.html The question: Do older people really struggle with technology? http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2152875,00.html Cyber-criminals unleash spam Storm http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2197180/cyber-criminals-cook-spam-storm http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;2091148102;fp;2;fpid;1 New Storm of 'Confirmation Spam' [news release] http://www.marshal.com/pages/newsitem.asp?article=284 au: Telstra: Govt broadband 'all about money and Labor' http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Telstra-Govt-broadband-all-about-money-and-Labor-/0,130061791,339281330,00.htm New Zealand at the World Summit Award 2007 [news release] http://wsa-awards.org.nz/ ****************** RESEARCH PAPERS ****************** Navigating the Media Divide: Innovating and Enabling New Business Models [IBM report] Summary: The worlds of traditional and new media are already clashing, and it’s a conflict that continues to expand. However, a second type of conflict is brewing – one that could cause major rifts among traditional partners. For media companies, it’s time to pursue different and somewhat opposing business models…and navigate the media divide. A new media world has arrived. Pioneered by teens and gadget-savvy professionals, it has quickly spread into virtually every consumer segment, and started to encroach on traditional media. The number of unique visitors to MySpace.com has now surpassed the 50 million mark – something akin to the number of U.S. households that tune into the Super Bowl. Every day, consumers around the world watch about 100 million videos on YouTube – putting that number in context, the top 15 British primetime television shows combined attract about 100 million viewers, as do the top 4 U.S. shows. To examine the inherent tension between new and traditional media and explore future industry scenarios, we conducted a comprehensive study that included interviews with leaders of media companies and an in-depth analysis of the factors that are shaping the industry outlook. http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1026258 IBM end of advertising survey results The IBM Institute for Business Value provides strategic insights and recommendations that address critical business challenges to help clients capitalize on new opportunities. The Institute is comprised of consultants around the world who conduct research and analysis in 17 industries and across five functional disciplines, including human capital management, financial management, corporate strategy, supply chain management and customer relationship management. The report is available here: http://www.ibm.com/media/thoughtleadership ****************** CENSORSHIP ****************** Free speech in Australia? Not while we're on sheep's back No price is too high to pay to protect the Aussie woolgrower. With marked contempt for the effect it would have on freewheeling public debate, Peter Costello has introduced a little bill to clobber campaigners against the bloody business of mulesing sheep. But not only them: his strategy will snare anyone calling for customer boycotts. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462353847.html Slavery and freedom on the Internet The Internet - the free and open Web of ideas - has become the new symbol of freedom, or at least one of its more visible prophets. Howard Rheingold, a scholar of the early Internet era, predicted a utopian vision where the "electronic agora" would change the public space and create a free, global society, or an "Athens without slaves." http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1187502436613&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull ma: Censorship Begins At Home A new press law has created a regulatory council comprising journalists that some fear could lead to censorship by media persons rather than the government. The new law provides for setting up a National Press Council (NPC) to deal with complaints of excesses within the media. The law does not specify what these complaints could be but sets out what the NPC could do about them. http://allafrica.com/stories/200708211052.html Chinese blog providers 'encouraged' to register users with their real names [AP] Blog service providers in China are "encouraged" to register users with their real names and contact information, according to a new government document that tones down an earlier proposal banning anonymous online blogging. http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_6688083 First Self-Discipline Convention For Chinese Blog Service Providers The venerable Internet Society of China has formally published the Blog Service Self-Discipline Convention, the first of its kind in China which has already been endorsed by over a dozen blog service providers including people.com.cn, Sina.com, Sohu.com, Netease.com, Tencent.com and Qianlong.com. http://www.chinatechnews.com/2007/08/22/5788-first-self-discipline-convention-for-chinese-blog-service-providers/ ******************************************** CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ******************************************** mt: Children, the internet and safety ... A Survey on The Use of the internet by Students carried out by the National Statistics Office in 2005 shows that 79.1 per cent of school children, with equal proportions for boys and girls, access the internet regularly mainly for entertainment and educational purposes. Chatting is also widespread; in fact 8.7 per cent of all students, said they had an appointment with someone they had encountered in a chat room. Also, on average, about one out of every three students is exposed to pornographic, violent and racist material as well as vulgar language when browsing the internet. http://timesofmalta.com/core/article.php?id=272017 au: AFP playing 'catch up' on internet paedophilia There are concerns the Australian Federal Police (AFP) is having trouble keeping up with internet paedophiles. ... But there are concerns that the AFP, which is part of a virtual global task force, is playing catch-up when it comes to internet policing compared to overseas authorities. http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/22/2011518.htm au: Govt launches free internet filter for parents A central part of the Federal Government's campaign to protect children online has come into force today. http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/20/2010161.htm http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Government-launches-free-porn-filter-initiative/0,130061733,339281354,00.htm http://euroa-gazette.com.au/articles/8207.aspx http://www.net4now.com/isp_news/news_article.asp?News_ID=4612 Free net nasties filters snapped up THE federal Government distributed more than 850 free internet filters to parents and carers within 12 hours of opening the gate on its $189 million family protection scheme, NetAlert. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,22278781-15306,00.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/20/1187462176198.html http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,22280762-5005962,00.html PM's war on sexy ads to save 'our future leaders' Prime Minister John Howard supports Get Real campaign, which raises awareness of sexualization of children in media ... Federal Parliament last week called for a review of codes for commercial television and radio to specifically look at the sources, beneficiaries and effects of the sexualisation of children. It also directed the Australian Media and Communications Authority to include sexualisation of children in a review due next year. Ms Tankard Reist said the forum was yet to assess whether the Government's recently announced internet pornography filter would adequately protect children from undesirable images. http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article-pacificislands.asp?parentid=76251 SafeMedia Corp. Praises the Australian Government's Efforts to "Improve the safety of the internet" [news release] Australian Communications Minister Senator Helen Coonan recently announced a $189 million package of measures to improve the safety of using the internet, and for a federal police crackdown on predators and national security threats. The package included $84.8 million to provide individual households with either internet filtering software packages or pre-filtered internet connections from an internet service provider. "We applaud the Australian federal Police, who plan to track down online predators and national security threats, and to provide households with either Internet filtering software packages or pre-filtered Internet connections from an Internet service provider," said President/COO Pasquale Giordano, SafeMedia Corp. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/8/prweb547908.htm ISP-level filtering? No problem, says Nominum US software company, Nominum, claims that its technology is able to provide ISP level content filtering with 'sub-millisecond' delays, contrary to many claims that ISP level filtering would inevitably slow down response times for web surfers. http://itwire.com/content/view/14087/127/ us: Courts block laws on video game violence As video games have surged in popularity in recent years, politicians around the country have tried to outlaw the sale of some violent games to children. So far all such efforts have failed. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/21/arts/television/21vide.html http://news.com.com/2100-1043_3-6203629.html ****************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ****************** Cyber boom - social networking online gold rush The new gold rush is on, but it's no longer to the hills of Ballarat or California that people are flocking. Instead, it's to the new frontiers of virtual cyberspace worlds where people are heading in their droves, eager to be among the first to snag themselves some land and set up shop. And it's not just Monopoly money they're playing with. The virtual world of Second Life (secondlife.com), which has almost 9 million "residents", turned over more than 12.5 million Linden dollars during July - cash that can be transferred into real-world bank accounts at a floating exchange rate of about 265 Linden dollars for $US1. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html Half Of Companies Blocking Workers' Access To Facebook Employers are increasingly blocking access to Facebook because they're concerned about the time wasted and the information leaked when workers use social networks on company time. http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801484 http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,62031185,00.htm Bebo tops Kiwi social networking heap Facebook is the social networking flavour of the month, but Bebo is still the top of the heap. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&;objectid=10459060 uk: Bebo edges ahead of MySpace Teen social site Bebo has overtaken MySpace as the most visited social networking site among UK surfers, according to web monitoring firm comScore. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2197096/bebo-edges-ahead-myspace Bebo Becomes the Most Visited Social Networking Site in the UK [news release] comScore released a study of UK traffic in July to a selection of leading social networking sites. UK property Bebo.com became the most visited social networking site from within the UK in July, attracting 10.6 million unique visitors, an increase of 63 percent over the start of the year. It was closely followed by social networking behemoth Myspace.com, which enjoyed a 25 percent increase in traffic over the same time period, to reach 10.1 million unique visitors in July. http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=1571 Social networking site for celebrities aims to create virtual 'Studio 54' The more the merrier is the ethos of popular social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, but a new online club hopes to attract only the richest, most beautiful and interesting people in the world by promising absolute exclusivity. Diamond Lounge aims to do for the world of internet networks what Studio 54 did for New York nightlife, and the identity of members is being kept strictly secret in order to maintain an aura of glamorous mystery. http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article2881423.ece Website logs deaths of MySpace users ... Welcome to the world of mydeathspace.com, a website set up by a 26-year-old legal clerk from California that records the deaths of MySpace users. Since its launch in December 2005 the site has accumulated 3,000 obituaries and 11,000 members. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/aug/21/news.myspace US launches ‘MySpace for spies’ The American intelligence community is preparing to launch ‘A-Space’, an internal communications tool modelled on the popular social networking sites, Facebook and MySpace http://www.ft.com/cms/s/6e2648ea-5014-11dc-a6b0-0000779fd2ac.html ********************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ********************** Law enforcers plan Canadian cyber-crime centre The Canadian Association of Police Boards’ initiative to establish a global centre for cyber crime in Canada got a boost this week with a $100,000 pledge from Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day. http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/70e7bc38-17b7-479d-b320-bccb35683cdd.html uk: Man detained for unlawful use of broadband connection A man has been arrested for using a broadband internet connection in the street without the owner's permission. The 39-year-old was using his laptop while sitting on a wall outside a house in Chiswick, west London, when two community support officers challenged him. He was detained after admitting using the wireless internet connection without permission. http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,2154015,00.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/22/AR2007082202120.html http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/22/chiswick_wardriver/ uk: Online drugs 'put patients at risk' Britons are increasingly at risk of being sold unsafe drugs over the internet because of the growth in unlicensed online pharmacies, a report suggests. Almost a fifth of all online pharmacies are based in Britain, and only a tiny fraction are certified by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the pharmacies’ regulator. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2288778.ece uk: For Google, a different twist in a trademark dispute In a new trademark dispute, Google Inc. finds the shoe is on the other foot -- and it seems to be pinching a bit. ... Yesterday, a London-based blogger, Frank Fuchs, said Google ordered him to stop using its trademarked logo on his Web site. Fuchs said he is EU product manager for local search at Yahoo Inc. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9031958 http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/cdb50a0c-5f21-4b8c-8a70-a4aa3944d262.html American Wants Google to Stow Away AdWords American Airlines has become the latest and most high-profile corporation to take on Google's AdWords program, claiming the paid search service infringes on the airline's trademarks without compensation. American Airlines said it filed a lawsuit Thursday in Federal District Court for the Northern District of Texas, accusing Google of violating trademark laws by selling access to search terms such as "American Airlines" and "AA.com" to third parties. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/58931.html Canadians watch for Patriot Act abuse The controversial Patriot Act in the U.S. continues to loom over its northern neighbour as the potential risks of cross-border data transfer threaten to undermine Canadian privacy. ... Among the many controversial provisions of the Patriot Act, one in particular presents a potential threat to Canadian privacy. Section 215 of the Patriot Act allows the U.S. FBI to issue national security letters to compel third-party organizations, such as ISPs, financial institutions or telecom firms, to secretly disclose customer information, said Jason Young, an associate at Toronto-based technology law firm Deeth Williams Wall LLP. http://itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/58921d20-cd55-4773-af2e-794bf890165b.html ********************** PRIVACY ********************** Oz data privacy landscape called into question When it comes to privacy, bank customers in Australia are left to choose between garbage, trash or junk. That is how Gartner’s vice president of research, Rich Mogull, describes the data privacy landscape there. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/news/EB9F85FDFDE8AEA8CC25733A000811AC Loss of records from Monster.com is a reminder of peril of revealing personal info online [AP] A recently disclosed fraud involving hundreds of thousands of people on the Monster.com jobs website reveals the perils of leaving detailed personal information online, security analysts say. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/23/1187462396486.html Monster attack steals user data US website Monster.com suffers an online attack with the data of hundreds of thousands of users stolen. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6956349.stm http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,136154-c,onlineprivacy/article.html http://out-law.com/page-8399 ********************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ********************** European legal circles await ruling on Microsoft Perhaps the most closely watched figure in European legal circles this summer has been Bo Vesterdorf, the Danish judge who heads Europe's top appeals court, with antitrust lawyers hanging on his every public utterance. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/20/technology/20microsoft.html http://news.com.com/2100-1014_3-6203394.html us: Leahy, Cheney Wrangle Over Warrantless Wiretap Docs The battle over the Bush administration's warrantless wiretapping efforts escalated Monday as the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee threatened to hold White House officials in contempt for flouting an already-extended deadline to respond to a June subpoena. The subpoena by the Senate Judiciary Committee requested documents providing the legal justifications for the warrantless wiretapping program. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/eKWTLtWHYi47yE/Leahy-Cheney-Wrangle-Over-Warrantless-Wiretap-Docs.xhtml The Warrantless Debate Over Wiretapping [Op-Ed Contributor] Congress just passed, and President Bush hurriedly signed, a law that amends the legal framework for the electronic interception of various kinds of communication with foreign sources. Almost immediately, commentators concluded that the law was unnecessary, that it authorized a lawless and unprecedented expansion of presidential authority, and that Democrats in Congress cravenly accepted this White House initiative only for the basest political reasons. None of these widely broadcast conclusions are likely to be true. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/22/opinion/22bobbitt.html uk: Lawyer questions Tories' plan to reform Data Protection Act The Conservative Party has put forward proposals to reform the Data Protection Act to end what it calls "the huge regulatory burden" it places on businesses. But the figures used to justify the changes have been criticised for being almost 10 years old. http://out-law.com/page-8398 All is Not Safe for Kenyan Media Hardly before the dust settles on the controversial Media Bill of 2007, the media fraternity has discovered yet another equally controversial and even more sinister and draconian piece of legislation, which is in the process of being promulgated. But like the Media Bill 2007, media owners and practitioners have vowed not to take the Kenya Communications Amendment Bill 2007, also known as the ICT Bill, lying down. http://allafrica.com/stories/200708211094.html http://hana.ru.ac.za/article.cfm?articleID=1603 China Will Establish Online Copyright Information Platform The Online Copyright Alliance of Internet Society of China says it will soon build a copyright information bulletin platform in order to better protect online copyrights and speed the popularization of Internet applications. http://www.chinatechnews.com/2007/08/23/5791-china-will-establish-online-copyright-information-platform/ Israeli ISP's will Block Pornographic Sites upon Request On July 8, 2007 a bill was approved by the Israeli Government's Ministers' Committee for legislation requiring ISPs to provide to clients a service for blocking websites which are "not fit for children". Such sites are defined websites containing primarily violent, pornographic or gambling content, provided that the websites are not intrinsically of any artistic scientific, news, educational or social value. http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=latestnews&id=1835 Attempts to regulate online hate in Canada Though free speech is generally protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, hate speech is outlawed by the Canadian legislation like the Criminal Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act, among others. Sections 318 through 320 of the Canadian Criminal Code criminalize hate speech and have been upheld as constitutional by the country’s Supreme Court. The Canadian Human Rights Act is a civil measure that targets hate speech. However, it may be difficult to use these laws to prosecute many of the hate web sites themselves due to jurisdictional issues, because these sites can, and do, find homes in the United States, where they are protected by the First Amendment. This article provides an overview of Canadian laws applicable to hate speech, including online hate speech. http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=F6BDECB1-E833-49D3-8ACB-48FA165E60FC ****************** INTERNET USE ****************** IBM Report: Viewers Shifting From TV To Internet Content It was rather timely for VideoEgg's Troy Young to invoke the name of IBM referring to the YouTube advertising news considering that The IBM Institute for Business Value just released a report that offers insightful data on the Internet media space. From April to June the Institute surveyed Internet users in North America, Australian, UK, Germany and Japan. Addressing the hotly contested market of Internet video versus broadcast television, the report states: "Among consumer respondents, 19 percent stated spending six hours or more per day on personal Internet usage, versus nine percent of respondents who reported the same levels of TV viewing. 66 percent reported viewing between one to four hours of TV per day, versus 60 percent who reported the same levels of personal Internet usage." http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/08/ibm-report-view.html http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKN2240696820070823 http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801806 IBM end of advertising survey results The IBM Institute for Business Value provides strategic insights and recommendations that address critical business challenges to help clients capitalize on new opportunities. The Institute is comprised of consultants around the world who conduct research and analysis in 17 industries and across five functional disciplines, including human capital management, financial management, corporate strategy, supply chain management and customer relationship management. The report is available here: http://www.ibm.com/media/thoughtleadership Navigating the Media Divide: Innovating and Enabling New Business Models Summary: The worlds of traditional and new media are already clashing, and it’s a conflict that continues to expand. However, a second type of conflict is brewing – one that could cause major rifts among traditional partners. For media companies, it’s time to pursue different and somewhat opposing business models…and navigate the media divide. A new media world has arrived. Pioneered by teens and gadget-savvy professionals, it has quickly spread into virtually every consumer segment, and started to encroach on traditional media. The number of unique visitors to MySpace.com has now surpassed the 50 million mark – something akin to the number of U.S. households that tune into the Super Bowl. Every day, consumers around the world watch about 100 million videos on YouTube – putting that number in context, the top 15 British primetime television shows combined attract about 100 million viewers, as do the top 4 U.S. shows. http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1026258 Blog: OECD report a wake-up call - Singapore 'gets' what potential exists in technology Singapore really gets technology and how to encourage innovation and investment in the sci-tech area. Its Government is also keenly aware of how important good broadband infrastructure is and has a ten-year "master plan" to become number one in the world in "harnessing infocomm to add value to the economy and society". Here's a flavour of what Singapore wants to achieve by 2015: a two-fold increase in the value-add of the information communications industry to S$26 billion, a three-fold increase in information communications export revenue to S$60 billion, Creation of 80,000 new jobs (55,000 in ICT), 90 per cent broadband penetration (currently 75.5 per cent), 100 per cent computer ownership in homes with school-going children. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/blog/story.cfm?c_id=1501198&objectid=10459412 More women and seniors said online (Reuters) Britons are changing their media habits as more women and people over 65 go online and as more consumers opt for a single provider for their Internet, entertainment and phone services, an industry report says. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKL2270657220070822 Internet bites into audiences for traditional media [Independent] The rising popularity of social networking sites is putting more pressure on the business models of companies in the television and radio sectors, with internet usage eating into consumption of traditional media for the first time. UK citizens spend over 50 hours a week on the phone, surfing the internet, watching the television or listening to the radio, according to Ofcom's annual Communications Market Report. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2886408.ece http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&;objectid=10459396 Google Wins the Most Hearts on the Web It is not enough to be able to state your favorite movie, your favorite song or your favorite color. In the 21st century, you should also be ready to answer this question: What’s your favorite Internet brand? That is what JupiterResearch did recently in a survey, and it should come as no surprise that Google won this popularity contest. Next in line was Yahoo, followed by Amazon, eBay and MySpace. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/19/business/yourmoney/19count.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462197863.html JupiterResearch Finds Google and Yahoo! Favorite Online Brands, with MySpace Ranking High Among Youth [news release] JupiterResearch reports Google and Yahoo! are consumers' favorite online brands, although young adults like MySpace just as much. Marketers can use the results of this consumer survey to target campaigns so they align with consumer affinities. http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.08.20-favorite-brands.html/ JupiterResearch Reports Over One Fifth of the World's Population Will Be Online By 2011 [news release] JupiterResearch found the worldwide online population will increase from 1.1 billion users in 2006 to 1.5 billion in 2011, representing 22 percent of the overall worldwide population in that year. Brazil, Russia, India, and China will provide impetus for future growth of the online population. The rapid expansion of Internet access in the US, Canada, Japan, and Western Europe during the past decade has produced largely mature online populations in those countries and, as a result, they will witness comparatively slower Internet growth rates through 2011. According to the report, North America's share of the worldwide online population is expected to erode from 21 percent in 2006 to 17 percent in 2011. http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.07.23-world-online-population.html/ Google Remains Goliath in Online Search Google continues to win the battle for Internet search dominance, according to the latest findings of Web traffic measurement firm comScore. The Reston, Va.-based Internet metrics company said its July numbers show Google leading the field of what it considers the top five search engines. According to comScore, Google snagged a 55.2 percent share of searches conducted with all five engines. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/YHPDSwZxQBnz6m/Google-Remains-Goliath-in-Online-Search.xhtml YouTube to put advertising into video clips YouTube will introduce advertising into video clips today for the first time as the world’s most popular video- sharing website tries to justify its $1.65 billion (£832 million) purchase price. The Google-owned site also hopes to reinvent video advertising on the web. YouTube believes that its approach is as unobtrusive as the classifed adverts placed by its search-engine owner. Twenty seconds after a clip begins, a transparent advert appears in the bottom fifth of the video for a further 15 seconds. Clicking on the image overlay plays the advert, but if ignored it simply disappears. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article2302764.ece http://www.salon.com/tech/machinist/blog/2007/08/22/youtube_ads/index.html Google Aims to Make YouTube Profitable With Ads Ever since Google bought YouTube last November, it has avoided cluttering the site and the video clips themselves with ads, for fear of alienating its audience. ... Now Google believes it finally has found the formula to cash in on YouTube’s potential as a magnet for online video advertising and keep its audience loyal at the same time. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/22/technology/22google.html http://iht.com/articles/2007/08/22/business/youtube.php YouTube features overlay ads Video advertising is coming to YouTube, but it won't be the type common at sites elsewhere. Starting today, the popular video-sharing site plans to feature semi-transparent "overlay" ads at the bottom of selected video clips. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462318442.html nz: Finances worry Kiwis, not personal safety How safe it is to shop on the internet worries New Zealanders more than personal safety issues. The top fear held by New Zealanders is that someone will get their credit card details, according to a survey of attitudes to security issues. The second biggest fear is that someone will get access to personal information and misuse it. http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/4171710a28.html au: Computer games lure teens to enlist There's a war going on in the tight labour market. The Australian Defence Force is seeking to lure teenagers into military careers with an arsenal of devices ranging from new "reality" website videos to shoot-'em-up computer games. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462354421.html Website shows urban India shedding divorce stigma A decade ago, getting a divorce in India often made you feel like a social misfit, the odd-one-out at family gatherings, the one with something "wrong". http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKDEL28139620070821 uk: Rainy July pushes online sales past £4bn July's wet weather boosted online shopping to record levels as consumers chose to surf the net rather than hit the rain-soaked high street, according to a report out yesterday. http://www.guardian.co.uk/weather/Story/0,,2153084,00.html Philippines militants turn to YouTube Al-Qaeda-linked extremists in the Philippines have turned to the wildly popular Internet video-sharing website YouTube in an apparent attempt to raise cash and recruits, the military said Tuesday. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462242201.html How a million Windows users killed Skype Skype's developers have just posted a fascinating explanation for last week's massive service disruption, in which millions of people were unable to log in to the popular Internet phone service for more than a day. http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2007/08/20/skype/index.html http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article2292536.ece Skype explains 2-day outage [AP] A two-day outage that left millions of Skype users unable to use the popular Internet phone service was caused by a high number of restarts after people had downloaded a Windows security update. http://iht.com/articles/ap/2007/08/20/technology/EU-TEC-Germany-Skype-Outage.php ****************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ****************** We're all doomed to be surprised Broadcasters and newspapers are set on a course of convergence. But with the outcome uncertain, flexibility is vital: The future is out of our hands. This thought - unnerving and comforting in equal measure - is worth keeping in mind whenever anyone suggests a panel session on Where We Are All Going. Of course it's our job to make educated assumptions and to formulate the smartest strategies we can. But in the end we are all doomed to be surprised. Technology is the most obvious thing over which we have no control. In the last six months I've tried two new gizmos that completely change the experience of reading words on a screen. http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,2152075,00.html China's Mobile Phone User Population Tops 500 Million The latest statistics from China's Ministry of Information Industry shows that by the end of July 2007, there had been more than 880 million telephone users in China, including 372 million fixed-line phone users and 508 million mobile phone users. http://www.chinatechnews.com/2007/08/23/5793-mii-chinas-mobile-phone-user-population-tops-500-million/ It's exclusive: Paramount, DreamWorks choose HD DVD The format war over next-generation DVDs just got a lot murkier. Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks Animation SKG said today that they will offer movies exclusively in the HD DVD format rather than its more popular rival Blu-ray, a surprise move that complicates the technology battle that Blu-ray had been clearly winning. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-hddvd21aug21,1,1821197.story http://nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Dueling-DVD-Formats.html http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKN2028331720070821 http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462207022.html The next-gen disc format war gets uglier, more ridiculous Paramount and Dreamworks said today that they're abandoning support for Blu-ray Disc and will begin putting out their movies exclusively on HD DVD, one more step in the aggressively consumer-unfriendly march of large entertainment and tech firms (Sony on the Blu-ray side, Microsoft on the HD DVD side) to leave many people sitting with obsolete equipment -- and to drive both of these allegedly next-generation discs into the ground. http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2007/08/20/hd_dvd/index.html Japanese experts demand change to make phones and laptops safe The fundamental technology behind the present generation of lithium-ion cells – the batteries that power nearly every laptop computer and mobile phone in the world – is inherently dangerous and must be changed to ensure safety, according to experts. ... “Battery companies are still learning because the technology is young, but there is a fundamental flaw with the way lithium-ion batteries are currently designed and if the companies genuinely care about safety, they need to completely change their production methods. A lithium-ion battery is quite a dangerous little box of energy,” Professor Wakihara said. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article2295743.ece     The question: Do older people really struggle with technology? Just as you can't teach an old dog new tricks, you can't teach the over-50s new manual tasks, such as operating DVD recorders or iPods. Or so new research suggests. On the plus side, older people probably find it easy to turn this page in white-hot rage. Researchers at Heriot-Watt and Strathclyde universities claim that physiological degeneration in the connections between cells in the frontal lobe means that older people are allegedly flummoxed by new-fangled things such as taps that you pull rather than twist. http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2152875,00.html Living the Digital World   From our fixed line connection to mobiles, laptops or digital music players, all our ‘must-have’ ICTs are powered by digital technologies. Although it may sound all familiar, for many people the idea of “Living the Digital World” where digital technologies are set to play an increasingly important role in all our lives, remains a futuristic concept. http://www.itu.int/newsroom/features/digital_world.html Technology helps reinvent cell phone advertising [AP] Mobile phones are a potential gold mine for advertisers, the most personal and intimate way to communicate and engage with subscribers -- more than 2 billion of them and counting worldwide. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-phoneads18aug18,1,6014493.story ****************** SPAM ****************** Cyber-criminals unleash spam Storm Security experts have warned of an outbreak of malicious spam emails that use log-in account confirmation details as a hook to get users to visit an infected website. The Marshal TRACE threat research team said that the emails appear to come from a legitimate organisation and provide recipients with temporary log-in confirmation details for a website. The spam uses text like 'for security purposes, please login and change the temporary Login ID and Password', and include a link to an IP address which is in fact a website infected with the Storm Trojan. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2197180/cyber-criminals-cook-spam-storm http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;2091148102;fp;2;fpid;1 New Storm of 'Confirmation Spam' [news release] Email and Internet content security provider Marshal (www.marshal.com) has identified a new outbreak of malicious spam emails that use login account confirmation details as a hook to get email users to visit an infected web site. http://www.marshal.com/pages/newsitem.asp?article=284 How MySpace brought down a spammer by Eric J. Sinrod MySpace.com is well known as a social-networking service that allows members to create unique personal profiles online to find and communicate with other people. But did you also know that MySpace is actively trying to root out spammers? In March, MySpace filed a lawsuit in federal court against Sanford Wallace doing business as FreeVegasClubs.com, RealVegas-Sins.com and Feeble Minded Productions. The company alleged it was the victim of an abusive scheme to disseminate commercial messages and solicitations to MySpace users. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6203779.html ****************** FILE SHARING ****************** us: Comcast throttles BitTorrent users It looks like Comcast, America's biggest cable network, has put the squeeze on BitTorrent users. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/22/comcast_throttles_bittorrent_users/ ***************************** COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS ***************************** Green awareness low but rising in Asia Green IT awareness is low, but rising, and governments in the Asia-Pacific region will be the primary drivers of future eco-friendly initiatives, reveals a new market report. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/business/0,39044229,62031229,00.htm New Zealand at the World Summit Award 2007 [news release] The World Summit Award (WSA) is a global initiative to select and promote the world’s best e-Content. The WSA was started in 2003 in the framework of the United Nations WSIS. See wsa-awards.org.nz/ for the NZ site and wsis-award.org for the global site. New Zealand has chosen eight projects to enter into all 8 categories for the 2007 World Summit Award. For the first time the NZ is joined by five projects from the Pacific. This gives this region very substantial exposure. This years World Summit Awards Gala event will be held in Venice in early November. http://wsa-awards.org.nz/ Google reveals stake in Chinese social Web site [Reuters] Google revealed on Monday that it had acquired a stake in Chinese community Web site Tianya.cn, indicating a foray by the global search leader into social networking in the world's second-largest Internet market. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKSHA23163320070820 http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/08/update-google-b.html Google turns its attention to the stars The internet giant has launched a new guide to 20,000 celestial bodies as a complement to its Google Earth service http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2308536.ece http://www.salon.com/tech/machinist/blog/2007/08/22/earth_sky/index.html ****************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ****************** au: Telstra: Govt broadband 'all about money and Labor' Telstra has accused the Coalition of turning the country's broadband network into an election issue rather than concentrating on how improvements in speed could affect Australians. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Telstra-Govt-broadband-all-about-money-and-Labor-/0,130061791,339281330,00.htm Ethiopian president vows investment in telecoms, IT [AP] Ethiopia's prime minister Wednesday promised to invest in the country's telecommunications network, long hampered by corruption, bad service and high tariffs. "Rapid progress for countries such as Ethiopia in this area is not a choice, but a necessity," Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said at the opening of a three-day technology conference in the capital, Addis Ababa. http://iht.com/articles/ap/2007/08/22/business/AF-FIN-Ethiopia-Communication.php ****************** MOBILE/WIRELESS ****************** Future Of 4G Finally Firming Up? Three different flavors of wireless, 802.16m WiMax, LTE, and UMB, are the top three contenders for the fourth generation of wireless technology. Each has pluses and minuses, as well as corporate backing, says In-Stat. http://informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/08/future_of_4g_fi.html ****************** VoIP ****************** au: VoIP guide has the questions, if not the answers Attracted by the low call costs spruiked by VoIP operators? A newly updated booklet suggests a range of questions to which consumers should seek answers before signing on the dotted line. http://www.itwire.com/content/view/14095/1119/ ****************************** ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN ******************************** au: Suspended jail term for child porn [AAP] A PERTH man has escaped with a suspended jail term after admitting he traded child porn and for possessing "revolting" images of men having sex with very young girls. http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,22283440-5005962,00.html http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21498,22282842-2761,00.html US sailor 'groomed' Aussie girl on internet A US Navy sailor has pleaded guilty to using the internet to groom a 14-year-old Australian girl for sex. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22276528-421,00.html 48 arrested in Polish child porn ring (AP) Police arrested 49 people, including teachers and clergy, and seized computers and thousands of CDs and DVDs containing child pornography in early morning raids across Poland, officials said Tuesday. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-08-21-poland-porn_N.htm +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the most recent edition of the domain news, including an RSS feed - already online! The domain name news is supported by auDA. For information on subscriptions to the domain name and/or general internet news please contact me. For archives of postings to the list, see http://lists.technewsreview.com.au/pipermail/technewsreview/. Also see http://technewsreview.com.au/ for recent updates. Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2007   --------- 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 Sick of deleting your inbox? Yahoo!7 Mail has free unlimited storage. Get it now.

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