p2pnet World Headlines: March 12, 2010: 1
Controversial digital economy bill amendment follows lobbyists’ draft Guardian
A controversial amendment to the digital economy bill that could block sites such as YouTube is copied almost word-for-word from a draft written by the BPI, which lobbies on behalf of the British music industry. The BPI confirmed on Thursday that it drafted a letter which was circulated to government and opposition peers containing a suggested draft amendment to the 1988 Copyright, Designs and Patent Act. Earlier this month the Liberal Democrat peer Lord Clement-Jones added the text into the digital economy bill almost exactly as provided as part of amendment 120a. However, the suggested changes – which won approval from peers and will now be considered by the House of Commons – have come under fire from the heads of the four biggest internet service providers in the UK, as well as the UK chiefs of companies including Google, eBay and Yahoo, who said yesterday that they threatened freedom of speech and could lead to British websites being blocked without due judicial process. [Also see Record labels wrote UK 3 Strikes amendment ]
Instant Ads Set the Pace on the Web New York Times
Advertisers have been able to direct online messages based on demographics, income and even location, but one element has been largely missing until recently: immediacy. Advertisers booked slots in advance, and could not make on-the-fly decisions about what ads to show based on what people were doing on the Web. Now, companies like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft let advertisers buy ads in the milliseconds between the time someone enters a site’s Web address and the moment the page appears. The technology, called real-time bidding, allows advertisers to examine site visitors one by one and bid to serve them ads almost instantly.
Cooked ham recall over Listeria fears QMI Agency
News that an Ontario resident has fallen ill after eating something that contained Listeria comes as food safety experts announced a recall of cooked ham sold at deli counters in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Siena Foods Ltd. issued a warning about Siena-brand prosciutto cotto cooked ham, which would have been available for purchase at meat counters in delicatessens, grocery and speciality food stores after Jan. 11. The meat was sliced and repackaged, so consumers might not know if they have the affected product. The CFIA recommends people who do not know the original brand and code check with the store where they purchased the meat to determine if it is affected by the alert.
Microsoft loses appeal in Word patent case BBC
Microsoft has lost an appeal against a court judgement that told it to pay $240m (£160m) in damages. In August 2009, a US court awarded the damages to i4i which claimed Microsoft had infringed its patents. The patents cover the use of XML, a mark-up language that preserves data formats across different programs. The judgement also required Microsoft to remove the i4i technology from its Office software suite and stop selling the infringing programs.
Chinese Consumers Complain About HP’s Products ChinaTechNews
More than 170 consumers from China have jointly filed an appeal, requesting the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China to conduct an investigation on the laptop computers made by HP and order the company to recall all of its substandard laptop products. According to Laweach, a Chinese website that has helped organize these Chinese consumers, some of HP’s laptop computers sold after 2007 have overheating problems. The website states that these problems are caused by the video card made by Nvidia, a chip manufacturer who once reportedly admitted a similar defect of some of its video card products.
FCC Releases Apps To Independently Test The Speed Of Wireless Networks paidContent
Looking for real-time data of its own, the FCC (yes, the regulatory body in Washington, D.C.) has released a mobile app for iPhone and Android. Don’t worry, the feds aren’t interested in listening to your phone conversations, rather they say the purpose of the app is to provide ‘Americans with additional information about heir mobile data connection and to create awareness about the importance of mobile broadband connection quality.’ Essentially, the app clocks how long it takes to download and upload data to the phone. The release of the two apps come just days before the Commission is set to release its new national broadband plan on March 16, which will heavily stress the need for mobile data networks.
..… and identi.ca
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March, 2010
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March 12th, 2010 at 7:38 pm
Record industry hits back at ‘myth’ of go-it-alone stars
http://www.france24.com/en/20100309-record-industry-hits-back-myth-go-it-alone-stars
March 12th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
Obama to ‘aggressively protect’ intellectual property
“As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama was young, a technology fan, and appeared to be an establishment outsider. For those reasons some techies hoped he might be sympathetic to copyright reform.
Those hopes are fading fast as President Obama appears to have lined up on the side of copyright owners. In a speech at the Export-Import Bank’s annual conference in Washington, D.C., President Obama told attendees Thursday that his administration is firmly behind producers of creative works.
“We’re going to aggressively protect our intellectual property,” Obama said.
source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31001_3-20000347-261.html
March 12th, 2010 at 10:58 pm
@ RW ‘Obama to ‘aggressively protect’ intellectual property’
Also see http://www.p2pnet.net/story/36865
Cheers!