general internet news - 14 March

[David Goldstein <goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au>]

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Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/
Internet in Asia blog:
http://internetinasia.typepad.com/
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ie: Child Pornography a Growing Global Problem
 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/49186.html

uk: Britons Concerned About Online Pornography

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/11146

Oxford Internet Institute Joins Leading Global
Research Consortium on Internet Filtering

http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/news/releases/OIIPress_Filtering_20050305.pdf

nz: Broadband can make us better off
 http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3602391a28,00.html

jp: Internet suicide pacts a chilling reminder of
Japan's social woes

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060311p2a00m0na002000c.html

French download fee is officially out
 http://dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=14052

nz: Spam king sets up in New Zealand?

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/59EBE43733ED0C51CC25712D0009505F

ITU Calls For Enforceable ISP Codes of Conduct to
Combat Spam

http://michaelgeist.ca/component/option,com_content/task,view/id,1154/Itemid,85/nsub,/

OECD: Making the link

http://www.oecdobserver.org/story.php/eid/127/aid/1780

EU warns Microsoft over ?2m daily fine

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9075-2079715,00.html

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CENSORSHIP, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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ie: Child Pornography a Growing Global Problem
The Internet Service Providers Association of Ireland
said 4,469 reports, or 87.6 percent of the total,
cited specific URLs where child porn was available
online. Many Internet users are finding child
pornography accidentally online, the report noted.
Some users also complained about the easy availability
of adult porn on the Internet.
 http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/49186.html

uk: Britons Concerned About Online Pornography
Many adults in Britain believe explicit material on
the Internet should be regulated, according to a poll
by YouGov published in The Spectator. 71 per cent of
respondents believe there should be greater
restrictions on what sexual material is allowed online
today.

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/11146

Oxford Internet Institute Joins Leading Global
Research Consortium on Internet Filtering
The Oxford Internet Institute (OII) at the University
of Oxford has joined the OpenNet Initiative (ONI), a
programme established in 2003 to study state-sponsored
filtering of the Internet. This worldwide initiative
is a joint project undertaken by the University of
Toronto, Cambridge University, and the Berkman Centre
for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School, in
addition to Oxford.

http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/news/releases/OIIPress_Filtering_20050305.pdf

us: Suits Stifle Effort to Shelter Kids Online
It seemed like a good idea: enact a federal law to
protect children from sexually explicit material on
the Internet. But eight years after Congress passed
the Child Online Protection Act, legal challenges from
sexual health sites, the online magazine Salon.com and
other Web publishers have kept it from being enforced.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/INTERNET_BLOCKING

US: Children email registry legislation moves forward
(reg req'd)
BNA'S Electronic Commerce & Law Report reports that
legislation that would create a registry of children's
electronic contact information, and require marketers
to pay a fee to scrub their lists against it, advanced
in five states during recent weeks. In addition to an
Illinois proposal offered in 2005, new children e-mail
registry legislation has been introduced in
Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii and Iowa in early 2006.
 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/bna/eip.nsf/eh/a0b2m1h0z8>

th: Government told to give media freedom
Media reform activists and scholars yesterday called
on the caretaker government to keep its hands off the
media and allow it to have freedom in covering the
anti-Thaksin Shinawatra movement. The call was made by
operators of community radio stations, media reform
activists and academics during a press conference on
ethics and the media's stance on political changes,
held at the October 14 Memorial.
 http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=40629

China shuts two popular blogs in latest crackdown
Two of China's most adventurous Web logs closed on
Wednesday under government orders, the latest in a
wave of shutdowns as Chinese censors tighten controls
in cyberspace, especially while the national
parliament meets.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?storyID=2006-03-08T121716Z_01_PEK314460_RTRUKOC_0_US-CHINA-BLOG.xml

Google Brazil unit summoned on chat room complaint
Google's Brazilian unit has been asked to appear
before authorities on Friday to explain what the
company was doing to curb crimes allegedly being
committed through its Orkut chat rooms.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?&storyID=2006-03-10T005226Z_01_N09223634_RTRUKOC_0_US-CRIME-BRAZIL-ORKUT.xml
 http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6048290.html

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CYBERCRIME, CYBERSECURITY AND PRIVACY
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asia: Child sex tourism continues in Southeast Asia
despite legal efforts
Southeast Asia is one of the world's top destinations
for people seeking sex with children, and signs of the
trade are often evident.

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/features/news/20060311p2g00m0fe023000c.html

au: Racist site warnings ignored
A RACIST website where extremists fantasise about
gassing Arabs has been allowed to operate freely for
months, despite warnings sent to state and federal
authorities that it breaks laws prohibiting the
incitement of racial violence.

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,18442097%5e16123%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html

ca: Cyber terror set to worsen
Technology will likely make crimes like identity theft
and "cyberstalking" worse, a veteran judge said
yesterday in delaying the sentencing of a man who
harassed his ex-girlfriend.

http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2006/03/08/1477829-sun.html

il: Internet suppliers may reveal identity of
web-posters
Internet service providers will have to reveal the
identities of people posting anonymous "talkback"
responses on Web sites if a court rules that they
raise a concern of libel with malicious intent, a
criminal offense, according to the Jerusalem
Magistrate's Court.
 http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/691793.html

us: Online Bullying
We often hear about the dangers of allowing kids to
chat with strangers over the internet. But sometimes
it`s the kids who target each other. The internet
provides kids a world of opportunities, including the
opportunity to torment each other.
 http://www.kfyrtv.com/News_Stories.asp?news=1219

US: Third Defendant Pleads Guilty In Prosecution Of
Major International Pornographic Spam Operation
(06-123)
A New Hampshire woman has pleaded guilty to conspiring
to violate the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 ? a federal law
designed to crack down on the transmission of bulk,
unsolicited commercial electronic mail messages...the
third-ever conviction related to the transmission of
obscene e-mails

http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2006/March/06_crm_123.html

Canadian Human Rights Tribunal Issues Internet Hate
Decision
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal has issued a
noteworthy Internet hate decision that focuses on the
applicability of the Human Rights Act to Internet hate
materials. The Tribunal ordered fines against several
individuals for their role in maintaining several hate
websites and newsletters.  The lengthy decision is
worth reading for at least three reasons.

http://michaelgeist.ca/component/option,com_content/task,view/id,1158/Itemid,85/nsub,/

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060311.wxhate0311/BNStory/National/home

fr: Will France, home of copyright, go soft on piracy?
What began late last year as an effort by France to
ratify the European copyright standard is now likely
to produce some of the weakest penalties in the world
for Internet music piracy - the equivalent of a
parking ticket.

http://iht.com/articles/2006/03/12/business/copyright13.php

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GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
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au: Foxtel wants rules for the Internet
Just in case media reforms and daily battles with
Telstra weren't enough to keep Communications Minister
Helen Coonan busy, Foxtel chief executive Kim Williams
yesterday put another item on her agenda: internet
regulation.
 http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=40570

us: FTC Retains Children?s Online Privacy Protection
(COPPA) Rule Without Changes (news release)
The Federal Trade Commission today announced its
decision to retain, without changes, the Children?s
Online Privacy Protection (COPPA) Rule, which
implements the Children?s Online Privacy Protection
Act.
 http://ftc.gov/opa/2006/03/coppa_frn.htm

us: FTC retains Children?s Online Privacy Protection
Rule
The Federal Trade Commission has decided to retain a
rule implementing the Children's Online Privacy
Protection Act (COPPA), which demands that website
operators obtain parental consent to their collection
of children?s personal information.
 http://www.out-law.com/page-6719

us: Suits Stifle Effort to Shelter Kids Online
It seemed like a good idea: enact a federal law to
protect children from sexually explicit material on
the Internet. But eight years after Congress passed
the Child Online Protection Act, legal challenges from
sexual health sites, the online magazine Salon.com and
other Web publishers have kept it from being enforced.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/10/AR2006031000189.html

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SPAM
*****
nz: Spam king sets up in New Zealand?
An unsolicited bulk email campaign for broadband and
telephone calling rates may have flushed out a
notorious US spammer from a low-profile existence in
Auckland.

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/59EBE43733ED0C51CC25712D0009505F

ITU Calls For Enforceable ISP Codes of Conduct to
Combat Spam
The International Telecommunications Union is holding
a World Telecommunications Development Conference this
week and has reportedly used the opportunity to
release a new study on combatting spam.  The Financial
Times reports that the ITU concludes that while all
countries need anti-spam legislation, a more effective
approach would be to require the establishment of
enforceable codes of conduct by ISPs.  In particular,
the ITU recommends codes to require ISPs to prohibit
their customers from spamming and not to enter into
peering arrangements with ISPs that do not accept
similar codes of conduct.

http://michaelgeist.ca/component/option,com_content/task,view/id,1154/Itemid,85/nsub,/

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INTERNET & NEW TECHNOLOGY USE
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au: Aust internet crawls along
AUSTRALIAN internet users are barely moving along the
information superhighway compared with other nations,
a study shows.

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,18411988%5e16123%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html

http://smh.com.au/news/breaking/australia-lags-on-internet-front/2006/03/10/1141701658354.html

nz: Fast web could benefit economy
Some new research on the positive impacts of broadband
uptake shows New Zealand could benefit by billions of
dollars if the process was speeded up.
 http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/411419/680701

nz: Broadband can make us better off
The Economist Intelligence Unit says New Zealanders
would be $2700 a year better off on average by 2030 if
the time it takes to get most people their own
broadband connection could be brought forward 11
years.
 http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3602391a28,00.html

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&ObjectID=10372313

us: As Internet TV Aims at Niche Audiences, the
Slivercast Is Born
Thousands of producers are creating programming for
the Internet aimed at very dedicated small audiences,
on everything from vegan cooking to poker.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/12/business/yourmoney/12sliver.html

jp: Internet suicide pacts a chilling reminder of
Japan's social woes
The scene has become chillingly familiar. A group of
young Japanese were found dead from asphyxiation in a
sealed car Friday, charcoal stoves still smoking
beside them -- thought to be the latest victims in an
alarming surge in suicide pacts arranged over the
Internet.

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060311p2a00m0na002000c.html

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=115&art_id=qw1142061845671R131

Cebit rings mobile phone changes
The future of the mobile phone in all its hi-tech
glory is on full display at the Cebit technology fair.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4796118.stm

Digital media 'empowering users'
A different mantra is replacing "content is king" as
the new slogan of the media industry, delegates at a
London conference on new media have been told.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4781590.stm

Wi-fi promises internet shake-up
By Mark Ward
Technology Correspondent, BBC News website

Men using wi-fi
There is a good reason why the biggest wi-fi zones in
the UK are in the City of London and Canary Wharf,
with widespread wireless access being touted as the
force behind the net's next wave of innovation.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4779124.stm

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FILE SHARING
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France forced to backtrack on piracy drive
France's attempts to tighten its Internet piracy law
were once again in disarray Thursday, after the
government was forced to backtrack over a key point of
its planned legislation.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=115&art_id=qw1141924683917B216

French download fee is officially out
MPs from the conservative UMP part in the French
parliament today voted to officially eliminate an
article in a copyright bill which would have allowed
unlimited downloading for a monthly fee.
 http://dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=14052

French MPs debate file-share law
Members of France's National Assembly have begun
debating government proposals to crack down on
file-sharing on the internet.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4789128.stm

Online music
Apple's fight with the music industry now involves the
competition authorities

http://economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?story_id=5611933

Amazon Considering Downloads
Amazon.com is in talks with three Hollywood studios
about starting a service that would allow consumers to
download movies and TV shows for a fee and burn them
onto DVD's.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/10/technology/10movies.html

http://iht.com/articles/2006/03/10/technology/web.0310skilos.php

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RESEARCH PAPERS
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OECD: Making the link
Can technology bring better government? Anyone who has
filled a tax return online would probably answer yes.
But is that enough? The answer is, probably not. A new
report, E-Government for Better Government, the second
phase of an OECD project launched in 2001, suggests
that while in principle, e-government instruments can
improve efficiency, increase citizen awareness and
help promote new initiatives, it is not enough just to
open a website.

http://www.oecdobserver.org/story.php/eid/127/aid/1780

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COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
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Hungarian signs on for cyber law project
Victoria University and InternetNZ have appointed a
Hungarian academic as the university's first Cyber Law
Fellow.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3602379a28,00.html

Kiddy tech comes of age
With the threat of saturation in the telephone and TV
markets IT and consumer electronics companies are
looking to children to rev up the sector.

http://smh.com.au/news/breaking/kiddy-tech-comes-of-age/2006/03/13/1142098380498.html

Microsoft Faulted on Response to Antitrust Ruling in
Europe
An independent monitor called the software company's
responses "incomplete, inaccurate and unusable."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/11/technology/11soft.html

Brussels denies Microsoft claims
Brussels on Friday hit back at claims by Microsoft
that its technical experts had been colluding with the
software company?s rivals, as it condemned information
provided by the company as ?incomplete, inaccurate and
unusable?.

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/9ea2fb22-b05f-11da-a142-0000779e2340.html

EU warns Microsoft over ?2m daily fine
The European Commission has moved a step closer to
fining Microsoft, warning that the software giant has
not complied with a landmark anti-trust ruling

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9075-2079715,00.html

Google buys maker of online word processing program
Google has bought the maker of Writely, an online word
processing program that gives the online search engine
leader another potential weapon in its escalating
battle with Microsoft Corp.

http://news.findlaw.com/ap/o/51/03-10-2006/2fe300080f2ee5e1.html

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/373b76e4-b00f-11da-82fe-0000779e2340.html

Listening to the internet Premium content (reg req'd)
Companies are eavesdropping on online discussion
forums to find out what their customers really think
about them

http://economist.com/science/tq/displayStory.cfm?story_id=5571524

Attack of the Eurogoogle Premium content (reg req'd)
Can an ambitious new European search engine, backed by
the governments of France and Germany, challenge
Google?

http://economist.com/science/tq/displayStory.cfm?story_id=5571496

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ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
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au: Man charged over child porn
A MAN has been charged after police seized a stash of
child pornography from a Margaret River house in West
Australia.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,18417431-1245,00.html

http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,18414166%255E29277,00.html

au: Accused paedophile may face more charges: police
Police are continuing their investigations into the
activities of a 56-year-old man from the Margaret
River region after charging him with child sex and
pornography offences.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200603/s1589083.htm
 http://au.news.yahoo.com/060311/2/y73i.html

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Also see
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Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and
BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.

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(c) David Goldstein 2006

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


	

	
		
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