Legal and regulatory issues

Audiovisual

• EU - Business without frontiers: Europe's new broadcasting landscape  +/-

  (RAPID) Speech by Viviane Reding, Member of the European Commission responsible for Information Society and Media, European Media Leaders Summit 2004, London, 7 December 2004.

Calls for proposals / tenders

• EU - Benchmarking of filtering software and services  +/-

  (Safer Internet) A call for tenders for benchmarking of filtering software and services has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union S243 of 14/12/2004. SIP-BENCH. See also Call text (as published in the Official Journal). Extract from Technical specifications. Time-limit for receipt of tenders is 28 February 2005.

• EU - calls for proposals for Daphne II  +/-

  (Europa) Two new calls for proposals have been launched in the framework of Daphne II programme to combat violence against children, young people and women, for specific projects on the one hand (deadline 18 February 2005) and for projects aiming at the dissemination and the use of existing results on the other (deadline 15 March 2005). see DAPHNE Illustrative Cases Playing safe on the Internet.

Computer crime

• UK - Paedophiles Pose Greatest Threat Facing Internet  +/-

  (Scotsman) Online paedophiles are the greatest threat facing the internet, government research said. A variety of internet child porn issues dominated a top 10 of criminal threats posed by new technology, a Home Office report The Future of Netcrime revealed. The survey of 53 internet and technology experts saw seven different child porn concerns ranked in the 10 most serious netcrime threats, with grooming and possible stalking of children ranked as the top fear. In second place was the growing use of the internet for espionage by corporate spies. see also vol 2 of Report.

• US - P2P group launches site to combat child porn  +/-

  (CNET News.com) A peer-to-peer industry trade group is launching a Web site aimed at educating consumers about the dangers of child pornography online and helping them report it to law enforcement. The Distributed Computing Industry Association's P2P Patrol site is part of a larger approach to the issue. Previously, the group has worked with law enforcement to help find online child pornographers and has helped create a tool that pops up a warning to computer users if they are searching for a term frequently associated with the illicit material.

Content regulation

• UK - Parents face video game lessons  +/-

  (BBC) Ways of ensuring that parents know which video games are suitable for children are to be considered by the games industry. The issue was discussed at a meeting between UK government officials, industry representatives and the British Board of Film Classification. It follows concerns that children may be playing games aimed at adults which include high levels of violence. see also UK - Age rating under the microscope (BBC) The government is calling for violent video game warnings to be made clearer in a bid to stop adult games falling into children's hands. Trade and industry secretary Patricia Hewitt believes too many youngsters are playing games aimed at adults which show 'high levels of violence'. The Interactive Software Federation of Europe is responsible for developing the age rating system for most major console manufacturers, including PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo.

Copyright, trademarks and patents

• AU - Sharman witness: Tech can control illegal swapping  +/-

  (CNET News.com) In the Kazaa case, Justin Tygar, a University of Berkeley professor of computer science and information management, said that digital rights management systems make it very difficult for users to exchange files which infringe copyrights. Watermarking technology can help assist in catching cases where infringement happens.

• AU - ISPs accept copyright promise  +/-

  (News.com.au) Internet and telco companies have accepted a promise from the Australian Government to protect them from an avalanche of copyright law suits after the free trade agreement with the US comes into force on January 1. Following a last-minute lobbying effort involving industry bodies, Telstra and Optus, the Government wrote a letter to the Opposition defending the proposed law But after the lobbying, the Trade Minister said some details - such as when internet providers were required to block websites which allegedly breached another person's copyright - could be clarified by a special regulation.

• EU - Consultation on the review of EU legislation on copyright and related rights  +/-

  (Europa) The review is aimed at updating the legislative framework in the field of copyright and related rights, increasing its consistency and also simplifying the provisions. The Commission launched a consultation of all interested parties on the basis of a working paper. All interested parties were invited to send their comments on the working paper before 31 October 2004. The consultation has since then been closed. 134 Organizations and other stakeholders submitted their contributions. 126 contributions were authorised for publication.

• US - Google hit with trademark suit over 'Scholar'  +/-

  (CNET News.com) The American Chemical Society has filed suit against Google, alleging that the search giant violated a trademark held by the group when it launched the Google Scholar search tool. The suit claims that Google's use of the word 'scholar' violates a trademark held by ACS for the name of its Web-based academic search tool, SciFinder Scholar.

• US - Studios launch campaign against BitTorrent  +/-

  (Guardian) Hollywood stepped up its battle against internet pirates when the Motion Picture Association of America launched a legal battle against the filesharing networks BitTorrent and eDonkey. Both networks are widely used to trade pirated movies online. The association is working with police in the US and Europe to target individuals involved in the setting up of the filesharing facilities, as opposed to those using them, or the software companies behind the programs. BitTorrent itself is a piece of file transfer software, but the MPAA's targets are those who provide links to pirated files.

• US - Supreme Court to hear P2P case  +/-

  (CNET News.com) The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a controversial case on whether file-sharing software companies could be held legally responsible for copyright infringement on their networks. The court's action is good news for big record labels and Hollywood studios, which have lost successive rulings on the issue in lower courts. They want software companies like Morpheus parent StreamCast Networks and Grokster to be held legally responsible when copyrighted material is swapped using their software. At the core of the case is an interpretation of a 20-year-old decision that made VCRs legal despite their ability to copy TV shows and movies, which ultimately helped pave the way for a host of technologies ranging from CD burners to Apple Computer's iPod. That case, known as the Sony-Betamax decision, set out rough guidelines under which technology used to make illegal copies of copyrighted material could be distributed without the manufacturer being responsible for the resulting piracy, as long as the product was also capable of "substantial noninfringing uses".

Human Rights

• EU - Public Consultation on the Fundamental Rights Agency  +/-

  (Europa) The Commission has launched a public consultation concerning the creation of a Fundamental Rights Agency. see Communication from the Commission. The Fundamental Rights Agency COM(2004)693

Junk mail (spam)

• UK law failing to nail spammers  +/-

  (ZDNet UK) On the first anniversary of the introduction of Britain's Privacy and Electronic Communication regulations, it emerges that not a single offender has yet been brought to book for sending unsolicited junk mail. The UK government's anti-spam legislation has yet to make an impact, 12 months after its introduction. Not a single prosecution has been brought under the Privacy and Electronic Communication regulations and none is imminent, according to the Office of the Information Commissioner.

Mobile and wireless

• EU probes mobile phone call costs  +/-

  (BBC) European Union (EU) telecoms regulators are to investigate whether fees charged when mobile phones are used abroad are too high. Under the 'roaming' system, mobile phones automatically find a local network when users travel abroad, allowing them to make or receive calls. These roaming charges are frequently higher than national mobile calls. The investigation will take six months and regulators may choose to impose a ceiling on roaming fees. See Press Releases of Commission and European Regulators' Group.

Portals, browsers and search engines

• New from Google Labs: Google Suggest  +/-

  (Google Weblog) This new web search service (in beta version) suggests queries as a user types what he or she is looking for into the search box. By offering more refined searches up front, Google Suggest can make searching more convenient and efficient, because it eliminates the need to type the entire text of a query. In addition, the service can connect users with new query suggestions that are useful, intriguing, and fun.

Protection of minors

• DE - Ministerin: Strengerer Jugendschutz fürs Fernsehen  +/- Translate

  (Heise) Der Jugendschutz im Fernsehen muss strikter gehandhabt werden, sagte Bundesfamilienministerin Renate Schmidt (SPD) beim Festakt zum 50-jährigen Bestehen der Bundesprüfstelle für jugendgefährdende Medien (BPjM) in Bonn. Die Landesmedienanstalten sollten notfalls strenger gegen solche Sendungen vorgehen können, betonte die Ministerin. Schmidt wies auch auf einen neuen Filter für indizierte Internet-Angebote aus dem Ausland hin, der voraussichtlich im Februar 2005 zum Download zur Verfügung stehen wird.

Safer Internet awareness

• EU wants to make Net safe for children  +/-

  (Reuters) The European Union has launched a plan to protect children from pornography and racist sites when they surf the Internet. 'Children are using the Internet more and more and can come across dangerous content. It's essential to inform parents what tools they can use,' Viviane Reding, the European Information Society and Media commissioner, told a news conference. Around 60 percent of children regularly surf the Internet in Scandinavia and countries such as Britain, the Netherlands, Estonia and the Czech Republic, data issued by the European Commission showed. But most parents are not aware of the potential risks or do not know who to contact when they come across harmful content, Reding said. see also EU equips parents with internet safety tools (RAPID). The EU Telecommunications Council has agreed on the Safer Internet Plus programme, which aims to empower parents and teachers with internet safety tools. The 4-year programme (2005–08), proposed by the European Commission in March, will have a budget of € 45 million to combat illegal and harmful internet content. The new programme also covers other media, such as videos, and explicitly addresses the fight against racism, and also “spam’. It will focus more closely on end users: parents, educators and children.

• EU - Safer Internet  +/-

  (Europa) New short URL for the Safer Internet site on Europa: http://europa.eu.int/saferinternet. The site has been updated as part of the renewal of the Information Society pages on Europa. Information has been added about new projects funded in 2004 and about the Safer Internet plus Programme 2005 - 2008.

Security and encryption

• Who says safe computing must remain a pipe dream?  +/-

  (CNET News.com) by Bruce Schneier. I am regularly asked what average Internet users can do to ensure their security. My first answer is usually, 'Nothing--you're screwed.' But that's not true, and the reality is more complicated. You're screwed if you do nothing to protect yourself, but there are many things you can do to increase your security on the Internet.

Telecommunications

• EU - Electronic communications markets 10th report  +/-

  (RAPID) The EU electronic communications sector is showing signs of intensifying competition and strong growth in some segments. Progress in implementing the regulatory package has been good, but more work is needed if Europe is to reap the benefits of a fully competitive sector, says the European Commission's latest report on the implementation of the EU electronic communications regulatory package. This report, which for the first time covers 25 Member States, highlights the strong expansion of mobile and broadband communications.

• EU - Member states slow to transpose telecoms laws  +/-

  (EurActiv) One and a half years after it was due, Belgium, France, Greece, Luxembourg and Spain are still dragging their feet on the EU regulatory framework for electronic communications.

Market & Technology

Portals, browsers and search engines

• Google to scan famous libraries  +/-

  (BBC) The libraries of five of the world's most important academic institutions are to be digitised by Google. Scanned pages from books in the public domain will then be made available for search and reading online. The full libraries of Michigan and Stanford universities, as well as archives at Harvard, Oxford and the New York Public Library are included.

Statistics

• UK - Web users demand more protection from ISPs  +/-

  (ZDNet UK) The majority of Web users believe that Internet service providers should bear the burden for protecting their customers from spam, viruses and other malicious attacks, latest research has found. But the respondents also said they were willing to pay more for a better service and would even switch providers to avoid the attacks. 54 percent of those surveyed said they would pay up to £2 more a month for a better service, while almost a third (32 percent) said they would change ISPs.

• US - Artists, Musicians and the Internet  +/-

  (Pew Internet & American Life Project) The first large-scale surveys of the Internet's impact on artists and musicians reveal that they are embracing the Web as a tool to improve how they make, market, and sell their creative works. They eagerly welcome new opportunities that are provided by digital technology and the Internet. At the same time, they believe that unauthorized online file sharing is wrong and that current copyright laws are appropriate, though there are some major divisions among them about what constitutes appropriate copying and sharing of digital files. Their overall judgment is that unauthorized online file-sharing does not pose a major threat to creative industries: Two-thirds of artists say peer-to-peer file sharing poses a minor threat or no threat at all to them.

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