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(European Audiovisual Observatory) The European Court of Justice has given a decision with implications as to the scope of the Television without Frontiers Directive 89/552/EEC (as amended by Directive 97/36/EC), in a case taken by the Dutch company Mediakabel against the Commissariaat voor de Media (Dutch Media Regulatory Authority). Mediakabel offers a pay-per-view service by the name of Filmtime which the Dutch Media Authority considered to be a television broadcasting service and Mediakabel as an interactive service. A television broadcasting service is subject to the requirements of the TWF Directive, in particular the obligation to reserve a certain percentage of time to European works. The Court held that:
(out-law) Ofcom has fined Channel 4 £5000 after the Richard and Judy show appeared to plug the energy drink Red Bull. It is the first time the communications watchdog has fined any terrestrial television channel. Under Ofcom's Programme Code, undue prominence may be given in any programme to a commercial product or service.
(TED) Call for tenders. Framework contract for services in support of information and communication initiatives related to information society and media policies (Deadline: 30/09/2005). DG Information Society and Media needs rapid access to professional specialised resources needed to assist in conceptualising and implementing its Communications Strategy, providing services, and helping to exploit a number of communication channels/tools (for print, internet and audiovisual) in synergy. The intention is to select a range of specialised contractors (or consortia led by a main contractor), most suited for delivery of the wide variety of specialised support services sought. This Call for Tenders is divided into 10 separate Lots, each covering a broad but distinct area of professional expertise : Communications Strategy and Management, Editorial Support, Audio Visual Services, Interactive Web Services, Press & Public Relations, Events Management, Replication Resources, Promotional Items and Conference Kits, Translation Services and Surveys. Contract document and additional documents are obtainable until 15 September 2005.
(RAPID) he European Commission has granted clearance under the EU Merger Regulation to the acquisition of sole control of Channel 5 Television Group Limited (Channel 5) of the UK by the RTL Group S.A. (RTL) of Luxembourg, belonging to Bertelsmann AG of Germany. Channel 5 operates in the broadcasting and media sector, specialising in the broadcasting of free to air TV, the sale of advertising space and the commissioning and acquisition of TV broadcasting rights in the UK. It also operates an Internet portal with Internet services and sales of advertising space. RTL is a broadcasting and media group controlled by BAG. BAG is the parent company of a group whose activities include the publication of books and magazines, printing, book and music clubs, TV and radio broadcasting, content and rights and related services in the media sector. The operation was examined under the simplified merger review procedure.
(Observer) The European Commission wants to limit the number of Premier League football matches shown by BSkyB so that other broadcasters can finally get a slice of the lucrative pay-TV soccer market. Sky, headed by James Murdoch, fears the move by Brussels' competition watchdog may prompt many of their 7.8 million subscribers to switch providers, while Premier League chiefs believe it could send their vital £1.6 billion TV income plummeting. Officials in the EC's competition directorate have told the league that, under their next broadcasting deal, starting in 2007, no one station should show more than half the live matches screened.
(Libération) France Télécom, SFR et Bouygues Télécom se défendent d'avoir conclu un accord pour mieux verrouiller le marché fort juteux de la téléphonie mobile. Leur réaction fait suite à la publication ce matin dans «le Canard enchaîné» de larges extraits d'un rapport confidentiel de la Direction générale de la consommation de la concurrence et de la répression des fraudes (DGCCRF) établi en mai 2004, à la demande du Conseil de la Concurrence. Celui-ci avait été saisi deux ans plus tôt par l'UFC-Que Choisir qui accusait les trois opérateurs d'entente illicite. Les documents saisis par les inspecteurs de la concurrence lors d'une perquisition au siège des trois opérateurs en 2003 sont édifiants. Comme ce cahier tenu par le patron d'Orange qui relatait par le menu les échanges entre les états-majors des trois réseaux, à propos du «Yalta des parts de marchés», comme l'entente avait été baptisée.
(Daily Telegraph) Ofcom, the Government quango who regulate broadcasting, have emerged as the new threat to the next Premier League television deal, which will replace the one ends in 2007. Ofcom want to cut Sky down to size and promote a satellite channel that could break the near monopoly enjoyed by Rupert Murdoch's channel. They believe that competition will be good for the viewers, that there should be a plethora of service providers and more competition will also bring more innovation.
(Financial Times) A decision by the competition watchdog, which found that the Racecourse Association had breached competition rules when it sold audio-visual rights at dozens of racecourses to a consortium backed by British Sky Broadcasting and Channel 4, has been overturned on appeal. It is the first time that an infringement ruling by the Office of Fair Trading has been reversed by the Competition Appeal Tribunal, the body set up to scrutinise the regulator's decisions under the Enterprise Act.
(out-law.com) The Home Office and Scottish Executive are seeking views on plans to make it an offence to possess images that depict scenes of serious sexual violence and other obscene material. At present such content is generally illegal to publish but legal to view. Proposed law The suggested ban would take the form of a new, free standing offence restricted to explicit pornography containing actual scenes or realistic depictions of: intercourse or oral sex with an animal; sexual interference with a human corpse; serious violence in a sexual context; or serious sexual violence. According to the consultation paper, "serious violence" will involve or will appear to involve serious bodily harm in a context or setting which is sexual - for example, images of suffocation or hanging with sexual references in the way the scenes are presented. "Serious sexual violence" will involve or will appear to involve serious bodily harm where the violence is sexual. The maximum sentence suggested is three years' imprisonment for possession, although other options are presented in the consultation paper. The current maximum penalty for publication may be increased from three to five years to maintain a distinction. Consultation. Closing date 2 December 2005. see also Ban on violent net porn planned (BBC);
(Christian Science Monitor) Despite highly publicized arrests, law-enforcement officials say that the sexual exploitation of children on the Internet is growing dramatically. Law-enforcement officials are particularly disturbed by the increased number of commercial sites that offer photos of exploited children in return for a credit-card number. Those fighting child porn say it has become a global multibillion-dollar industry. see Press Release (NCMEC).
(Heise) The brash and at times aggressive advertising as well as the business practices of Jamba, VeriSign's successful ring tone division, are drawing more and more criticism. Not only is the company's brazen advertising beginning to grate on the nerves of many viewers of the music channel MTV, serious problems are also beginning to emerge because children and adolescents are spending vast amounts of money on downloading individual ring tones or on taking out subscriptions for batches of them, thereby as a consequence running into considerable financial difficulties.
(out-law.com) A proposal from premium rate regulator ICSTIS to slow the transfer of money between phone networks and those running premium rate services was approved by communications watchdog Ofcom. The slowdown, which takes the form of an emergency amendment to the ICSTIS Code of Practice, will come into effect on 15th September. ICSTIS and Ofcom have also separately published details of a new Memorandum of Understanding between the two organisations. This sets out the clear division of responsibility between ICSTIS and Ofcom.
(Technology Daily) A group of U.S. senators unveiled legislation designed to curb children's access to online pornography. The legislation, introduced by Senator Blanche Lincoln, D-Arkansas, would impose a 25 percent excise tax on all transactions at for-profit adult web sites, including membership fees. The sites typically sell subscriptions to users so they can view pornographic photographs or videos. The bill would mandate that adult web sites use more advanced age verification technology similar to those used by online wine sellers. The legislation was introduced in conjunction with the release of a report by the centrist think thank Third Way. The report examines the access to online pornography by children. The report found that the largest group of consumers of Internet porn are 12 to 17 years old. see also News Release (Third Way).
(Guardian) The BBC is to accelerate plans to broadcast programmes and entire channels on the internet and on mobile phones, using popular shows such as Doctor Who in a series of pilots designed to assess public demand. see also Big beast BBC won't swamp commercial rivals in new media. Mark Thompson, the director-general of the BBC, has laid out a vision for the future that includes more commercial partnerships for the public service broadcaster as it expands into new media services. Mr Thompson said the broadcaster needed to expand out of its traditional TV and radio services in order to justify its licence fee in the coming years. The renewed focus on broadband or on-demand services is likely to alarm commercial rivals, who fear the BBC's expansion provides unfair competition.
(Michael Geist) Dicussion of a Canadian court injunction prohibiting Canadians from reading or discussing any aspect of the latest Harry Potter tome and a high charge by the National Gallery of Canada for a copy of a photograph.
(RAPID) The European Commission has opened a public consultation on commitments submitted by BUMA and SABAM, the Dutch and Belgian collecting societies that manage music copyrights for authors. These companies have proposed commitments that aim to end the restrictions, as far as these two collecting societies are concerned, in the cross-licensing arrangements for online music that they have between themselves and with other societies. The Commission issued a Statement of Objections in 29 April 2004 raising concerns that these restrictions unjustifiably transposed into the Internet world the national monopolies that the societies have traditionally held in the offline world. The Commission sees modernising the licensing of music for online services as highly important and it will now consult third parties on the proposed commitments.
(out-law) The European Patent Office (EPO) has launched a microsite to provide information on the law and practice relating to the patentability of computer-related inventions. It comes in the wake of a failed European Commission attempt to clarify the law in this area.
(CNET News.com) Google will temporarily stop scanning copyright-protected books from libraries into its database following discussions with 'publishers, publishing industry organizations and authors,', while it makes changes to its Google Print Publisher Program. The company's library project involves the scanning of out-of-print and copyright works so that their text can be found through the search engine's database. Google is working on the project with libraries at Stanford University, Harvard University and other schools. The plan has come under fire from several groups, including publishers, who object to what they claim are violations of their copyrights.
(Guardian) Publishers and learned societies are fighting a last ditch action to stop the research findings of thousands of British academics being made freely available online. The UK research councils, which control billions of pounds worth of funding, have announced their intention to make free access on the internet a condition of grants in a bid to give British research more impact worldwide as it is taken up and cited by other.
(UMICH) The University of Michigan and Google, Inc. have entered into a partnership to digitize the entire print collection of the University Library. The digitized collection will be searchable by Google, and the University Library will receive and own a copy of all images to integrate into new and existing UM Library user services. This FAQ addresses questions in the following areas: The UM-Google Project (aka MDP), Michigan's decision to work with Google, Collections to be converted, and materials handling, Technology issues, Legal issues, Access to the content online, UM's Digital Archive, Impact on existing library services. [Ed: Interesting. The most detailed description so far published by a signatory of the Google Library project]. See also CORRECTIONS: Google Print Not All I Said It Was by Barbara Quint.
(CNET News.com) Adult magazine publisher Perfect 10 is seeking a preliminary injunction against Google to stop the search giant from allegedly displaying copyright images of its models. Perfect 10 asked the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles to immediately halt Google from allegedly copying, displaying and distributing more than 3,000 Perfect 10 photos. Perfect 10's lawsuit against Google is similar to one it filed against Amazon.com in July. In that suit, Perfect 10 makes similar allegations against Amazon's A9 search engine.
(Australian IT) Posting unauthorised photos of children on the internet could be outlawed in Australia. It is one of the options raised in a discussion paper, released on behalf of all state and territory attorneys-general, which reviews the adequacy of existing laws around Australia. The Discussion Paper calls for submissions from interested parties by 14 October 2005.
(Economist) A company, MyPublicInfo, has officially launched its product, called the PIP, or public information profile. For $79.95, Americans can now go to the firm's website and see, within hours, all the public records about themselves from thousands of databases across the country.
(CommsWatch) Do you hate it when a company with which you've never done business telephones you to try and sell you something? Have you ever had a silent call when your phone rings but there's nobody there? Unsolicited telephone calls and most especially silent calls are hated by consumers. Around 9.5 million consumers and 500,000 businesses have registered under the Telephone Preference Scheme. A million customers have already signed up to BT's free service BT Privacy. Yet the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), which operates the TPS scheme, and the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which is responsible for combating unsolicited calls, apparently receive over 1,500 complaints a week and so far no company has yet been prosecuted.
(AP) A federal appeals court has revived the government's online eavesdropping prosecution against an executive of a company that offered e-mail service and surreptitiously tracked its subscribers' messages. The case, closely watched by Internet privacy groups, had been dismissed in 2003 by a judge who found it was acceptable for the company - an online literary clearinghouse - to make copies of the e-mails so it could peruse messages sent to its subscribers by rival Amazon.com. Decision.
(BBC) A former AOL employee has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for selling members' details to spammers. Jason Smathers, 25, said he turned into a 'cyberspace outlaw' after selling the database of 92 million screen names and e-mail addresses. As a result of his actions in 2003, about seven billion unsolicited spam e-mails flooded inboxes of AOL members.
(silicon.com) by Declan McCullagh. The Bush administration is objecting to the creation of a dot-xxx domain, saying it has concerns about a virtual red-light district reserved exclusively for internet pornography. Michael Gallagher, assistant secretary at the Commerce Department, has asked for a hold to be placed on the contract to run the new top-level domain until the dot-xxx suffix can receive further scrutiny. In a letter, Gallagher said: 'The Department of Commerce has received nearly 6,000 letters and emails from individuals expressing concern about the impact of pornography on families and children'. Other governments have also been applying pressure to Icann in a last-minute bid to head off dot-xxx. A letter from Icann's government advisory group asks for a halt to "allow time for additional governmental and public policy concerns to be expressed before reaching a final decision".
(egovbarriers) The European Commission is funding a three year project to investigate the legal, organisational, technological and other barriers to expanding effective e-Government services using the Internet. The study will identify and explore key issues that can constrain e-Government growth, drawing on real-life case studies. The project is led by the Oxford Internet Institute (OII). Its project partners are: gov3, a UK-based e-Government consultancy; the University of Tilburg (Netherlands); CRID, the Research Centre for Computer and Law of the University of Namur (Belgium); and the University of Murcia (Spain). See also the eGovernment Studies 2005 - MODINIS: Assessing the Economics (Luiss Management and RSO SpA), Identity Management KU Leuven, Case Studies on Interoperability (The European Institute of Public Administration (EIPA)) and Exchanging Good Practice (Bearing Point) .
(Guardian) A national computer database containing the personal details and photographs of up to 50,000 of the most dangerous offenders in Britain was launched yesterday by the Home Office. The database, which is accessible by every police force in Britain, includes a personal profile on the most serious violent criminals and sex offenders that incorporates details as precise as whether their pet cat wears a leopardskin collar.
(Guardian) The Office of Fair Trading has launched an inquiry into the market in public sector information. It will look into the activities of organisations such as HM Land Registry and the UK Hydrographic Office, which collect and maintain data and recover their costs by selling information to government, business and the public. The office notes that some "public sector information holders" (PSIHs) compete with private firms. "The study will ... examine whether PSIHs have an unfair advantage selling on information in competition with companies who are reliant on the PSIH for that raw data in the first place." The inquiry's outcome could have a big impact on Britain's e-government economy. Its findings will inform a growing debate about whether agencies that collect data on the taxpayer's behalf should be able to dominate the market in "value added" products such as electronic maps and weather forecasts.
(Europa) Call for Tender. e-Learning Policy Indicators 2005 study. see also Invitation to Tender, Terms of Reference, Service Contract. These documents are obtainable until 9th September and the last date for submission of offers is 15th September.
(Reuters) Japan's communications industry and Internet service providers are planning to give police information on people who post messages suggesting they may be close to committing suicide. Four communications-industry groups have worked out guidelines for submitting the information, which could include the names and addresses of such people. Rising numbers of Japanese die each year in group suicides after meeting online via suicide Web sites, posing a new problem for officials trying to tackle the nation's alarmingly high suicide rate.
(RAPID) Ten business leaders of Europe's major telecom, Internet, TV and music companies met in London with the European Commission, the UK Presidency and representatives of the forthcoming Austrian and Finish presidencies to discuss how to give a spur to Europe's emerging "Digital Economy". Technological and market developments are bringing about third generation mobile phones, digital TV broadcasts, online music, Voice over IP and interactive Internet services. At their summit in London, the ten European business leaders agreed to work together with Member States and the Commission on the basis of an "Agenda for Unlocking Europe's Digital Economy", in particular on the following points: * Promotion of media content markets through effective rights protection, licensing arrangements and encouraging legitimate use of content. For this, industry will seek to agree a European Charter Content Online & IPR by May 2006. * An appropriate and proportionate modernisation of single market rules on audio visual content. * Stimulation of investments in new broadband networks (fixed and mobile), advanced applications and content-rich services and promotion of competition through a full and effective implementation of the EU electronic communications regulatory framework. * Greater efficiency and policy coordination on the use of and trade with radio spectrum in Europe. * Easy access for users to content and services through secure and interoperable software and services. * Investing in private and prioritising public research and development on ICT.
(CommsWatch) At a seminar in Hong Kong on the theme "Regulation in a convergent environment". Richard Hooper, Deputy Chairman of Ofcom and Chairman of Ofcom's Content Board made a presentation entitled Content regulation in the multiplatform multichannel digital age. He provides is the nearest we have so far had to a coherent and credible alternative to Commissioner Viviane Reding's interventionist appoach and the straightforward, do nothing approach, although he understatingly calls his line "the modified do nothing strategy". He makes crucial distinctions between illegal, harmful and offensive content and, in essence, he proposes: "So the modified do nothing strategy would enforce the blocking of illegal material beyond just child abuse sites; would encourage a self-regulatory approach to material that was legal but harmful; would encourage classification/filtering systems for material that was legal but offensive; and would use the general law (as it stands, or with necessary revisions) to stop other problems such as phishing, hacking and other fraudulent uses of the technology. see also Where is the debate on Internet regulation?
(OUT-LAW News) China is adopting the London Action Plan on Spam Enforcement Collaboration. The country is thought to generate 20% of the world's spam, making it the second biggest source of unsolicited emails after the US. The Plan calls for increased investigative training, the establishment of points of contact in each agency to respond quickly and effectively to enforcement inquiries, and the creation of an international working group on spam enforcement.
(Economist) Microsoft has reached a settlement with Scott Richter one of the world's leading spammers. which includes a payment of $7m to the software giant. Despite legal and technological challenges, spamming is still a big problem. Internet users have been taking matters into their own hands using blocking technology, which is improving all the time. Around 90% of all spam is caught by filters these days. But spam still clogs servers, And a troubling development is the increased incidence of "phishing", a form of fraudulent spamming that can be extremely costly to victims. Phishers send out millions of e-mails in an attempt to steal personal and financial-account details from unsuspecting dupes. These e-mails purport to come from reputable businesses and contain links to websites where recipients are asked to divulge bank and credit-card details.
(CNET News.com) At the start of last year, Bill Gates told the world's elite at an annual conference in Davos, Switzerland, that the problem of spam would be solved in two years. But if the Microsoft chairman was betting on Sender ID to play a major role in achieving that goal, it looks like a losing bet. The Microsoft-backed protocol to identify e-mail senders aims to stem spam and phishing by making it harder for senders to forge their addresses and by improving filtering. So far, though, there's been a lack of adoption by legitimate businesses. Instead, it's been proving popular with a group it's meant to deter--spammers.
(CNET News.com) by Declan McCullagh. An online dating service does not have the right to blast unsolicited email at thousands of University of Texas email addresses. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals said that the university did not run afoul of federal law or the US Constitution when blocking a torrent of spam from White Buffalo Ventures' LonghornSingles.com site.
(silicon.com) Anti-spam campaigners have branded the UK's anti-spam laws 'a waste of time and public money' as the Information Commissioner admits it hasn't prosecuted anyone for sending junk emails. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has admitted it fails to take legal steps against UK spammers while 'successfully' enforcing regulations against 13 fax marketers.
(ITU) In a survey to test whether top e-tailers are allowing consumers to opt out of receiving promotional or marketing messages, the FTC has determined that 89 percent of the online merchants it tested are honoring requests to halt future mailings. The study showed a high rate of compliance with the CAN-SPAM opt-out provisions.
(CNET News.com) A new Web site aims to help determine whether a specific computer has been sending legitimate e-mail or spam. The TrustedSource Web site uses data from reputation filters, which are billed as the next big thing in e-mail security. Makers of spam-fighting tools collect data on e-mail senders and use that to assign "reputations" to e-mail sending computers and Internet domains. Those who send a lot of spam get a negative rating and their messages are more likely to be filtered out.
(immateriblog.de) A Munich court of appeal upheld a lower court ruling, demanding that German IT news service Heise Online remove a link to Slysoft.com, an Antigua based company selling software enabling users to make copies of copy-protected CDs and DVDs. Legal experts criticised the decision as endangering press freedom. Six major labels in January served a writ to Heise, preventing it from publishing links to Slysoft. In April, a lower court in Munich held that Heise was allowed to report on Slysoft's software but not to link to the company's web page, even though the link was referring to the homepage only, not the download page. By providing a link to the company's homepage, the court said, Heise intentionally provided 'assistance in the fulfilment of unlawful acts' and is therefore liable as 'an aider and abettor'. The case is based on article 95a of the German authors rights code which outlaws the manufacture, import, sale, renting, and promotion with regard to sale or renting of applications to circumvent copy protection measures. Also prohibited is the possession of these applications when they are used for commercial purposes, and to perform services in order to circumvent or promote circumvention.
(Legalis.net) Pour la première fois, la responsabilité de l'intermédiaire de paiement a été mise en cause dans une affaire concernant l´accès à un site internet à contenu pornographique, par un mineur. Dans un jugement du 7 juin 2005, les juges de la 17e chambre correctionnelle du tribunal de grande instance de Paris ont rejeté cette demande en affirmant que cet intermédiaire n'était qu'un « simple prestataire de service de la société » et n'est pas responsable de l'accès par des mineurs à un site pornographique
(CNet News.com) by Eric Goldman. New York Attorney General Elliott Spitzer's recent enforcement action against adware vendor Intermix Media has opened up a new front in the battle against this type of software. Spitzer has repeatedly threatened advertisers who run ads with adware vendors. What legal doctrine holds advertisers liable for advertising via adware? We have yet to hear a coherent theory from Spitzer - or anyone else - explaining how this liability arises. Advertiser liability for adware vendors' actions would represent a novel and unprecedented application of current law.
(BBC) The Malaysian government is to put a stop to the anonymous use of mobiles. From the end of the year, people using a prepaid service will have to register their details with phone companies. The decision follows growing fears about the use of unregistered phones by members of violent militant groups either to communicate with one another or to trigger explosions. see also MY - Malaysia targets mobile phone sex (BBC). The Malaysian government has ordered police to randomly check mobile phones for pornographic images. The move follows reports by a local newspaper that young people were swapping sex videos and images on their mobile phones. Officers have been ordered to immediately delete any explicit images they find stored in the phones.
(EICN) The European Internet Coregulation Network (EICN) tasked the Oxford Internet Institute (OII) to lead a working group examining the child protection implications of Internet-enabled mobile phones and other new mobile devices, part phone and part handheld computer. The OII has elaborated a comprehensive project report on the "Implications of the Mobile Internet for the Protection of Minors", to be published shortly. The present report serves as a summary of that project, and concludes with the EICN's recommendations, which were unanimously adopted by the member organisations on 28 July 2005.
(Ministè de la Famille) Les groupes de travail préparatoires à la Conférence de la famille, "Enjeux démographiques et accompagnement du désir d'enfant des familles" présidé par Hubert BRIN, président de l'UNAF et Protection de l'enfant et usages de l'Internet, présidé par Joël THORAVAL, président de la Commission nationale consultative des droits de l'Homme, ont remis mardi 17 mai leur rapport à Philippe DOUSTE-BLAZY, ministre des Solidarités, de la Santé et de la Famille.
(Reuters) Most studies done on violence and video games support the conclusion that violent video games can increase aggressive behavior in children and adolescents, especially boys, researchers said. An analysis of 20 years of research shows the effects can be both immediate and long-lasting. The findings, presented at an annual meeting of American Psychological Association, prompted the group to adopt a resolution recommending that all violence be reduced in video games and interactive media marketed to children and youth.
(AAP) Australian Opposition Leader Kim Beazley has called for a subsidy on the cost of internet filtering so families can better protect their children from violent and pornographic websites.
(Michael Geist) Internet service providers always seem to get the first call when a problem arises on the Internet. Lawmakers want them to assist with investigations into cybercrime, parents want them to filter out harmful content, consumers want them to stop spam, and copyright holders want them to curtail infringement. Despite the urge to hold ISPs accountable for such activities, the ISP community has been remarkably successful in maintaining a position of neutrality. Given the importance of the neutrality principle, it came as a shock to learn last week that Telus, Canada's second largest telecommunications company, was actively blocking access to Voices for Change, a website supporting the Telecommunications Workers Union.
(Heise) Um Jugendliche vom Besuch ihrer Internetseiten abzuhalten, hat die Reemtsma-Zigarettenfabrik, Hamburg, in dieser Woche ein Altersverifizierungsverfahren der SCHUFA eingesetzt. Die deutschen Internetseiten der Zigarettenmarken West, Davidoff, Drum, Cabinet und John Player Special (JPS) stehen Nutzern seitdem nur nach einer Identitätsüberprüfung offen, bei der Name, Adresse und Alter anhand der bei der SCHUFA gespeicherten Daten überprüft werden. Reemtsma, Teil der Imperial Tobacco Group, teilt mit, man habe dieses Verfahren auf Grund der brancheneigenen Bestimmungen zum Jugendschutz eingeführt. Die Überprüfungsmöglichkeit nutzen schon jetzt verschiedene Freemail-Anbieter, Online-Auktionshäuser wie azubo und die Firstgate AG, ein Anbieter von Zahlungssystemen im Internet.
(Heise) The US IP carrier Level3 has blocked access by German customers to a website and the IP address that goes with it. The website in question is a commercial "Snuff Site" that without effective age limitation of any kind offers against payment videos of, for example, genuine executions or of people killed as a result of natural disasters (such as, for instance, of victims of the recent tsunami in the Indian Ocean). According to its own statements the German branch of Level3 was made aware of the site by the German organization dedicated to the protection of children and adolescents jugendschutz.net. The child protection organization had called on the company to remove the content from the Net.
(Berkman Center for Internet & Society) The university-based OpenNet Initiative (ONI)has released Internet Filtering in Singapore in 2004-2005, a report that documents the degree and extent to which the Republic of Singapore controls the information environment in which its citizens live, including websites, blogs, email, and online discussion forums. Compared to other countries with mandatory filtering regimes that ONI has closely studied, such as China, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, Singapore's technical filtering system is among the most limited.
(Guardian) "Nanny" computer software, intended to shield children from offensive internet content, often fails to protect them from viewing pornographic and racist websites, according to a new survey. The consumer magazine Computing Which? gave two programs, Norton Internet Security 2005 and Microsoft's MSN Premium, scores of below 35% across a series of testsa series of tests.
(GamesIndustry.biz) Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has been re-rated as AO (Adults Only) in the USA as the result of an investigation by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board into a sexually explicit mini-game that could be by following instructions online. The title was originally rated M (Mature), which is normally the highest rating granted by the ESRB to mainstream games and means that the title is suitable for over 17s. The far less common AO badge is seen as hugely commercially damaging, as the vast majority of US retailers have a policy of not carrying AO-rated titles.Rockstar now plans to remaster the game without the offending content, which will allow it to continue to see the title as M-rated; however, until those copies can be shipped out to replace existing stock, that stock will either have to be removed from shelves or re-stickered with an AO rating. GTA: San Andreas is unlikely to be re-rated in the UK where it has been given an 18 certificate by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), meaning that it is illegal for retailers to sell it to anybody under that age. see also Video gaming - Chasing the dream (Economist).
(IDM.net.au) An online safety training roadshow and information campaign aimed at educating parents, teachers and community groups about the risks children face online has been launched by Australian ICT Minister, Senator Helen Coonan.
(ITU) The ITU WSIS Thematic Meeting on Cybersecurity took place from 28 June - 1 July 2005 in Geneva, Switzerland. A large number of written contributions, presentations and a webcast archive are available online, with the following background papers: A Comparative Analysis of Spam Laws: the Quest for Model Law, A Comparative Analysis of Cybersecurity Initatives Worldwide, Harmonizing National Legal Approaches on Cybercrime and ITU Survey on Anti-Spam Legislation Worldwide
(CNET News.com) Phishers have added a new lure to their tackle boxes: e-mails that ask people to fax sensitive information to bogus security investigators.
(ICSTIS) ICSTIS has issued an updated version of its Code of Practice for consultation. The proposed 11th Edition of the Code has been published following an in-depth review of ICSTIS' existing rules and will ensure consumers are thoroughly protected in the fast-moving premium rate industry. It also takes account of the recommendations made in the Ofcom Review late last year. Responses should be submitted no later than Friday 23 September 2005.
(RAPID) Following action by the European Commission`s Competition Directorate-General, Deutsche Telekom (DT) has recently changed an application to the German telecoms regulator Bundesnetzagentur for the approval of wholesale fees it charges its competitors for shared access to the local loop (line sharing). The action ensured that DT complies with commitments it had given the Commission to terminate a presumed abuse of dominant position in form of a margin squeeze.
(Europa) 76 contributions were received to the public consultation on Communication COM(2005)203 of 24 May 2005 on the Review on the Scope of Universal Service in electronic communications. Contributors include ministries, regulatory authorities, consumer and user associations, individuals, operators, service providers, manufacturers and other businesses and organizations.
(RAPID) France Télécom will be required to provide, for a transitional period, market players with wholesale nationwide high-speed access to France´s telecoms network. This regulatory measure, proposed by the French national regulatory authority for electronic communications, ARCEP, was authorised today by the European Commission. The measure will apply until competing network operators have built a sufficiently wide backbone network and a large enough customer base to enable them to invest further in regional high-speed (“broadband”) services, such as access to the web and services connecting subscribers´ premises to the network (“local loops”). The Commission asked ARCEP to review this market again within a year to fully take account of new market developments which could enhance competition in the wholesale nationwide broadband market in France.
(out-law.com) Communications watchdog Ofcom will be making radio spectrum available for use by Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) equipment, and that those using the new technology would not need a wireless telegraphy licence. The country's privacy watchdog - the Information Commissioner - has also clarified data protection implications of using RFID.
(RAPID) Terrorist attacks using explosives or chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear substances on mainline or metropolitan railway systems pose a clear and present danger to EU citizens. This is why the European Commission has decided to fund a research project to design and demonstrate an anti-terrorist security system architecture to better detect these terrorist threats and hence better protect railway passengers. The project will combine information from combine information from sensors, remote control or autonomous cameras, ground penetrating radars and line scanners. This is one of 13 projects selected under the "Preparatory Action for Security Research" to improve the security of EU citizens and strengthen the European industrial base. The eight technology projects and five supporting activities selected will receive EU funding of €15 million. Given the increasing importance of security research, the Commission proposed to substantially increase the yearly budget from €15 million to roughly €250 million a year from 2007. Full list of 13 projects.
(Guardian) Google has banned its staff from talking to any CNet reporters for a year following a story written by reporter Elinor Mills. She had the temerity to employ Google's own search technology to dig out details of Google CEO Eric Schmidt's business and personal life, including how much he made from selling Google shares and the town where he lives.
(EurActiv) While Google has announced a break in its project to scan 15 million books, France is speeding up its rival venture for a European Digital Library. At its second meeting on 30 August 2005, the Library's Advisory Council set up a number of working groups, which are to deal with issues such as financing, editorial choices, private sector co-operation and choice of a search engine.
(BBC) Canadian entrepreneur Bob Young successfully launching the Lulu site - which allows readers to download single copies of books stored on Lulu without the need of huge print runs - in North America. Mr Young is unveiling his UK-based site on 2 August. His Lulu site offers budding writers, photographers and musicians - who might normally be rejected by the mainstream outlets - the chance to get their works published.
(Economist) Gaming has gone from a minority activity a few years ago to mass entertainment. Games consoles are the most powerful mass-produced computers in the world and the new machines will offer unprecedented levels of performance. But it will also make depictions of violence even more lifelike, to the dismay of critics. This summer there has been a huge fuss about the inclusion of hidden sex scenes in "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas", a highly popular, but controversial, game in which the player assumes the role of a street gangster. Senator Hillary Clinton and a chorus of other American politicians have called for federal prosecutors to investigate the game and examine whether the industry's system of self-regulation, which applies age ratings to games, is working properly. In America, half of the population plays computer or video games. However most players are under 40, while most critics of gaming are over 40. An entire generation that began gaming as children has kept playing. The average age of American gamers is 30. Amid all the arguments about the minutiae of rating systems, the unlocking of hidden content, and the stealing of children's innocence, three important factors are generally overlooked: that attitudes to gaming are marked by a generational divide; that there is no convincing evidence that games make people violent; and that games have great potential in education. see also A study of the effects on players of violent fantasy-world game Asheron's Call 2.
(New York Times) Africa's cellphone boom has taken the industry by surprise. Africans have never been rabid telephone users; even Mongolians have twice as many land lines per person. And with most Africans living on $2 a day or less, they were supposed to be too poor to justify corporate investments in cellular networks far outside the more prosperous cities and towns. But when African nations began to privatize their telephone monopolies in the mid-1990's, and fiercely competitive operators began to sell air time in smaller, cheaper units, cellphone use exploded.
(Silicon.fr) Quaero: derrière ce nom très latin se dessine le projet européen d'un moteur de recherche Internet multimédia. Lors d'un discours à Reims, le président de la République Jacques Chirac a une nouvelle fois évoqué le sujet. Il s'agit de doter l'Europe d'un outil comparable au géant Google. Le projet sera piloté par la toute nouvelle Agence pour l'Innovation Industrielle (AII), installée par le président de la République. Elle recevra en septembre la candidature de quatre projets franco-allemands. voir aussi Un milliard d'euros pour l'innovation en France (01net). see also Chirac backs eurocentric search engine (Daily Telegraph) and France pushes plans for a European competitor to Google
(BBC) Parents tend to ignore warnings on games that say they are unsuitable for children, research shows. A study commissioned by the UK games industry found that parents let children play games for adults, even though they knew they were 18-rated. Like movies, all games receive an age classification. This works through a two-tier system involved the British Board of Film Classification and a voluntary European setup known as Pegi. But the research presented at the Elspa (Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association) summit in London suggests that few parents pay much attention to the age ratings.Most people knew that games had age ratings, the study by the Swiss research firm Modulum showed.However, parents were still letting their children play 18-rated games. The research showed that parents were more concerned about children spending too many hours playing games, rather than about what type of title they were playing. And to a certain degree, sticking an 18-rating on a game made that title more desirable. Mr Freund suggested that the problem was that parents felt disconnected from the world of video games and so showed little interest in this aspect of their children's lives.
(vnunet.com) Researchers have discovered a new method used by criminals to hide the location of phishing websites in email messages. The technique uses a form that sends the users to phishing websites after they have pushed a button. Traditionally phishers employ a link in the body of the email message, security watchdog, the SANS Internet Storm Centre has warned.
(Heise) Laut einer aktuellen Studie, die der Verband der deutschen Internetwirtschaft, eco, nun vor der Internationalen Funkausstellung (IFA) in Berlin vorgestellt hat, wird das Fernsehen auch in Zukunft nicht durch das Internet verdrängt werden. Nach Einschätzung einer Expertenbefragung im Rahmen des Studienprojekts "Internet-Agenda 2015" sind 81 Prozent der Fachleute fest davon überzeugt, dass die meisten Bundesbürger auch in zehn Jahren Fernsehprogramme noch per Satellit oder Kabel beziehen werden und nicht etwa über das Internet.
(ZDNet France) L'internet haut débit poursuit sa croissance en France: au second trimestre 2005, l'Arcep (Autorité de régulation des communications électroniques et des postes) a recensé 7,9 millions d'abonnés. Les différents fournisseurs du secteur ont gagné environ 600.000 clients en trois mois, soit une hausse de 8,3% par rapport au premier trimestre 2005. Le nombre d'abonnés a augmenté de 61% sur une année, par rapport à la même époque en 2004.
(Legalis.net) Une analyse statistique de la jurisprudence relative au droit de l'Internet vient d'être réalisée par à partir des 568 décisions publiées. Ces décisions concernent le droit des nouvelles technologies. Elles sont réparties en 9 catégories qui feront l'objet d'une étude spécifique pour chacune d'entre elles. Il s'agit de litiges en matière de: Vie privée, Responsabilité, Diffamation, E-commerce, Contenus illicites, Bases de données, Logiciel, Droit d'auteur, Nom de domaine.
(Guardian) Of the 16m Korean households, at least 78% have an active broadband connection - more than twice that of the UK. More than 12m individual broadband lines feed a country of 48 million people, pumping data between four and 100 times faster than typical broadband connections in the UK. According to recent reports, Koreans spend more than 20 hours a week surfing the internet - more than twice as long as Britons - and online shopping accounts for 12% of retail sales.
(Guardian) The mobile phone could overtake the internet as the most popular medium for music downloads before the year is out, the global record industry lobby group has predicted. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said 3G technology would drive the growth of digital music downloads to mobiles. UK mobile phone companies are predicting 3G sales to boom this Christmas, as handsets become more affordable. Digital Music Report 2005.
(Euractiv) A new OECD study predicts stiff competition for traditional fixed-line telephony from internet-based solutions. The OECD's 2005 Communication Outlook comes just as traditional telephony carriers are recovering from a period of non-profitability, but, the authors say, they may soon be plunging back into the red. The main threat comes from Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony, which poses a series of challenges - especially to the profitable market in long-distance foreign calls. Using programmes such as the popular Skype VoIP application, users can cut 80% of their phone costs.
(Silicon) Peer-to-peer networks are no longer dominated by pirated music files - now, it's cracked software, games and films that are doing the rounds on P2P. According to research from CacheLogic, video content now makes up almost 62 per cent of all traffic on the four largest P2P networks - BitTorrent, eDonkey, Gnutella and Fastrack, the network used by Kazaa. Audio formats are now just some 11 per cent of all P2P traffic, with the remaining 27 per cent being dedicated to 'other' content, such as games and software. see also graph.
(CNET News.com) A new study by ISP network service CacheLogic suggests that file swappers around the world are converging on a new favorite technology, possibly in response to pressure by Hollywood studios. Last year, British company CacheLogic said BitTorrent - a peer-to-peer technology optimized for downloading large files - was accounting for more than half of all the file-swapping traffic on Internet service provider networks around the world. A year later, peer-to-peer traffic in general continues to account for the majority of data traffic on ISP networks, usually between 50 percent and 70 percent of the total, the company said. But BitTorrent has been overtaken by usage of eDonkey, a rival with more power to search for content, but with similar speedy download features.
(Guardian) At the height of the dotcom boom, as mobile phone companies began looking for revenues from non-voice services, adult content was lauded as a money-spinner based on its success in the online world. Since then, all the UK operators have dabbled in the provision of erotic content, either directly or by allowing customers to access content provided by third parties. But the figures do not match the hype. In its report into the mobile entertainment industry, Informa's prediction for the entire mobile phone content market, including music and gaming, is $43bn by 2010. Adult services will account for just 5% of the market.
(New York Times) At a computer security conference in Las Vegas, an Irish software designer described a new version of a peer-to-peer file-sharing system that he said would make it easier to share digital information anonymously and make detection by corporations and governments far more difficult. The issue is complicated by the fact that the small group of technologists designing the new systems say their goal is to create tools to circumvent censorship and political repression - not to abet copyright violation.
(BBC) Some Internet providers are considering cutting their ties with BT altogether and offering broadband via their own equipment. The process, known as Local Loop Unbundling (LLU), gives control of part of the network which connects customer to their local exchange to BT's rivals. The French Internet Service Provider (ISP) Wanadoo has announced it will trial the technology this summer.
(New York Times) Start-up companies like Skype and Vonage using VOIP, or voice-over-Internet protocol, technology are offering cheap long-distance rates and features not found with conventional phone service. Cable and traditional phone companies around the world, too, are taking Internet phones to the masses. Lately, a subset of VOIP services, called PC-to-phone service, has been gaining momentum. With these services, users can make calls to, and receive calls from, regular phones on their personal computers as long they have a broadband connection, VOIP software downloaded from the Web and a headset.
(eco) Am 7. und 8. September findet der 3. Deutsche Anti-Spam- Kongress in Köln statt; wie in den letzten Jahren, wird der Kongress auch dieses Mal von eco, in Zusammenarbeit mit der IHK Köln durchgeführt; verstärkt durch die Unterstützung des Bonner und Kölner Anwaltvereins. Der erste Tag widmet sich internationalen Initiativen der Spam Bekämpfung (hier werden u.a. Vertreter der Federal Trade Commission, der Europäischen Kommission, der OECD sowie der amerikanischen Anti Spam Initiative MAAWG und der UK Anti Spam Group berichten), der zweite Tag juristischen Mitteln und Vorgehensweisen zum Thema Spam, Viren, Würmer & Trojaner.
(WSYA) The World Summit Youth Award aims to empower youth by creating digital opportunity. WSYA is not only a showcase to the world for young designers, technologists and e-content creators, it also contributes on a global scale to reducing poverty, protecting the environment, sharing knowledge and empowering marginalized youth groups. The three WSYA categories are Development, Creativity & Culture and Community Engagement. This awards competition is held within the framework of the UN World Summit on the Information Society. WSYA is organized within the framework of the United Nations World Summit on the Information Society in partnership with the WSIS Youth Caucus. The WSYA is held under the patronage of Vivienne Reding, European Commissioner for the Information Society and Media. Sponsors of the WSYA include Internet Society (ISOC), Logitech and Siemens AG. Deadline for submissions Sep. 18 2005
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