Don't forget to check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, including an RSS feed - not quite yet online due to a glitch somewhere in cyberspace! Headlines from the 27 August edition of the news will include: Vint Cerf, aka the godfather of the net, predicts the end of TV as we know it | The Tech Lab: Vint Cerf on the evolution of the internet | The future of the Internet | nz: Victoria Uni tech leads internet attack study | The Globe on Terror Goes Digital by Michael Geist | New Paper Discusses Global City TLD?s in the Public Interest by Tom Lowenhaupt | Intellectual Property Holders Press For Access To WHOIS Data | Timeline of the WHOIS saga by Milton Mueller | Whois Privacy Stalemate...Again by Milton Mueller | Businessman loses battle for gripe site domain name | in: Govt expects users to migrate to IPV6 in 3 years | The Hidden Wealth in Domain Names And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. *************************************************** The domain name news is supported by auDA *************************************************** Is the Internet Over? by John C. Dvorak http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2173717,00.asp U.N. Internet Governance Advisory Group to Meet in Rio de Janeiro [news release] http://egovmonitor.com/node/13864 'Cyberwar' and Estonia's Panic Attack http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/cyber-war-and-e.html Brandjacking Big Pharma http://www.forbes.com/technology/2007/08/20/brandjacking-drugs-pharmaceuticals-tech-cx_ag_0820brand.html Whois Privacy Stalemate...Again by Milton Mueller http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2007/8/22/3174023.html What's in a name? Tell that to those arguing the toss over .xxx http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/aug/23/guardianweeklytechnologysection.internet ca: CIRA watchers hope for 'slash and burn' visionary http://itworldcanada.com/a/News/68d4bbf2-cb7b-4e28-a0c7-0c12c023e482.html Mattel sues porn site over use of Barbie name [Reuters] http://news.com.com/2110-1030_3-6203782.html Challenge of implementing IPv6 into the US Army http://military-information-technology.com/article.cfm?DocID=2146 Melbourne IT doubles annual profit [AAP] http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462234346.html Cardiology.com sells for US$550,000 http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2007/domainsales08-14-07.htm ********************** GOVERNANCE ********************** Is the Internet Over? by John C. Dvorak It's old, vulnerable, and overloaded. Yeah, the Net has its problems, but the thing is, it works: I used to joke around about shutting down the Internet so that its protocols and basic architecture could be rewritten from scratch. I was semiserious. More recently, Elton John, who apparently can't use a computer, said the Net should be shut down for five years so that the arts can flourish. Okay, whatever. Myself and Elton John aside, we're actually now seeing serious initiatives that may result in the closing of the Internet as we know it. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2173717,00.asp http://news.yahoo.com/s/zd/20070821/tc_zd/213763 U.N. Internet Governance Advisory Group to Meet in Rio de Janeiro [news release] The mandate of the U.N. Advisory Group for the Internet Governance Forum has been renewed in order to assist in preparations for the next meeting of the Internet Governance Forum. As part of this meeting, to be held in Rio de Janeiro from 12 to 15 November 2007, the Advisory Group has been asked to enhance the transparency of the preparatory process by ensuring a continuous flow of information between its members and the various interested groups. It has also been requested to make proposals on a suitable rotation among its members, based on recommendations from the various interested groups. http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/pi1791.doc.htm http://www.govtech.com/gt/131909?topic=117673 http://www.digitalopportunity.org/article/view/152459/1/1138 http://egovmonitor.com/node/13864 ********************** DOMAIN NAMES ********************** ********************** - DOMAIN SECURITY ********************** 'Cyberwar' and Estonia's Panic Attack ... Writer Joshua Davis was dispatched to the smoking ruins of Estonia to assess the damage wrought by last spring's DDoS attacks against the country's web, e-mail and DNS servers. Josh is a talented writer, and he returned with a story that offers some genuine insights -- a few, though, are likely unintentional. We see, for example, that Estonia's computer emergency response team responded to the junk packets with technical aplomb and coolheaded professionalism, while Estonia's leadership well, didn't. Faced with DDoS and nationalistic, cross-border hacktivism -- nuisances that have plagued the rest of the wired world for the better part of a decade -- Estonia's leaders lost perspective. http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/08/cyber-war-and-e.html Spam study offers statistics on 'brandjacking' MarkMonitor has released its latest survey. During June, MarkMonitor tracked more than 100,000 drug-related spam landing sites and found a majority of these practice poor Internet security and may not be selling legitimate brand-name drugs, which could endanger users tempted by the low prices offered. http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-9762472-7.html Brandjacking Big Pharma ... A study of online pharmacies released Monday by the consultant company MarkMonitor reveals a disturbing rate of fraud among drug-selling sites on the Web. By driving traffic to drug sales sites with spam e-mails, the more than 7,000 online pharmacies tracked by the study drew millions of daily visitors and estimated sales in the billions of dollars annually. Only a tiny fraction of the online businesses possessed the certifications they claimed. http://www.forbes.com/technology/2007/08/20/brandjacking-drugs-pharmaceuticals-tech-cx_ag_0820brand.html MarkMonitor Brandjacking Index Exposes Online Scams That Threaten Top Pharmaceutical Brands and Hurt Consumers [news release] MarkMonitor released the Summer 2007 Brandjacking Index, reporting that online scammers increasingly abuse the top-ranked brands and endanger consumers by selling questionable prescription drugs through dubious online pharmacies. In the case of prescription drug sites that sell the most popular brands, the report showed the majority operate without proper credentials and lack even the most basic e-commerce security features, risking customers? health and putting their personal information at risk. http://markmonitor.com/news/press-070820.html Cyveillance report shows rise in malware and phishing Attacks The Malware will get you if you don?t watch out, says the latest online fraud and identity theft report from Arlington-based Cyveillance. The report says malware distribution has evolved into a sophisticated ?fraud chain? and is on the rise, most targeted at U.S. Internet users. http://techjournalsouth.com/news/article.html?item_id=3737 http://scmagazine.com/uk/news/article/732980/report-cybercrooks-target-us-consumers-often/ Cyveillance Reports 63 Percent of Malware Distributed by US-based Web Sites [news release] Cyveillance, the world leader in cyber intelligence, today announced its latest ?Online Financial Fraud and Identity Theft Report.? The report indicates that United States-based Web surfers are more at risk to malware attacks and online identity theft schemes than citizens from other countries, with more than 63 percent of malware distributed on U.S.-based Web sites. In addition more than 2 million URLs world-wide distributed malicious downloads to site visitors. Cyveillance also determined that despite the rate of traditional phishing attacks leveling off, there was a 20% increase in the aggregate quantity of brands targeted, indicating that phishers continue to change targets. Since 2005 over 1,400 companies have been attacked. http://cyveillance.com/web/news/press_rel/2007/2007-08-20.asp How Spammers Get Around SPF by Terry Zink Sender Policy Framework (SPF) stops novice spammers but not the professionals, says Spammer-X, a retired spammer who has gone into a lot of the details in his book, ?Inside the Spam Cartel?. The best way to beat SPF is to join it. 1. First, Joe Spammer rents a dedicated spam host in a spammer-friendly location, like China. 2. Next, he registers 100 domain names, and each domain is registered under a fake name and address. http://www.circleid.com/posts/782012_spammer_get_around_spf/ ng: Beware of Fake Central Bank, Immigration Service, oil company websites ... Email plays a pivotal role in all these. The scammers after buying domain names that are quite similar to those of the institutions listed above, they then go ahead to create fake email addresses under these domains, and then send mass email to unsuspecting individuals/organizations. http://africanpath.com/p_blogEntry.cfm?blogEntryID=2107 ********************** - ICANN ********************** Whois Privacy Stalemate...Again by Milton Mueller The ICANN Working Group that was trying to reconcile data protection and privacy principles with the domain name system?s legacy Whois directory, which publishes the name and full contact details of all domain name registrants, was finished today. ?Finished off? might be a better term. Despite flirting with the kind of compromises and reforms that might actually reconcile privacy rights with identification needs, in the final weeks of the process trust and agreement among the parties broke down completely. The WG report has zero chance of gaining the 2/3 majority required to become an approved policy of the GNSO Council in its current form. It is unclear what the Board will make of it. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2007/8/22/3174023.html What's in a name? Tell that to those arguing the toss over .xxx The internet's domain name system will soon undergo a major expansion. But wherever there are new resources, there are arguments over how to exploit them. Specifically, the idea of a .xxx web suffix for porn sites, once characterised as the internet's vampire, may have risen from the dead as part of a larger argument over rules for how much discretion will be exercised in accepting or denying applications. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/aug/23/guardianweeklytechnologysection.internet Steve Goldstein and Susan Crawford live Two members of the Board, Steve Goldstein and Susan Crawford, addressed the ICANN fellows during the San Juan meeting. They gave interesting talks about the history of the net and the history of ICANN. http://blog.icann.org/?p=181 A blast from the past on new gTLDs by Kieren McCarthy As anyone reading this will hopefully be aware, starting next year there will be a more consistent and relaxed mechanism for adding new gTLDs to the Internet. Which leads to an inevitable and interesting question: what new gTLDs would be useful and/or successful as the Internet continues to evolve? I have been pondering this on and off for a few months and keep coming up with fairly obvious ones: .blog, .news, .coffee, .google and so on. http://blog.icann.org/?p=183 ICANN Request for Information on Domain Tasting The GNSO is currently conducting fact-finding on domain tasting. ICANN posted a Request for Information on 10 August, and information may be submitted through 15 September 2007. http://blog.icann.org/?p=184 Website Domain Names in the Crossfire ICANN announced August 10th that a 21-day comment period has opened for the public to submit comments regarding ICANN?s proposed policy for approving new gTLDs on the Internet. The Keep The Core Neutral coalition (KTCN) has created a new Action Alert to guide supporters in submitting comments to ICANN. The Action Alert web page can be found here and KTCN appeals to all supporters of free expression to participate in this public action. http://towardfreedom.com/home/content/view/1104/1/ ICANN Launches Latest Consultation ICANN recently announced that it has launched a public consultation on a key report from ICANN's Generic Names Supporting Organization. http://thewhir.com/marketwatch/082107_ICANN_Launches_Latest_Consultation.cfm ********************** - (cc)TLD NEWS ********************** Australian registry reviews local Dispute Resolution Policy Launched 5 years ago, the auDRP is to come under review to ensure that it is still an effective mechanism for resolving domain name disputes. http://domainesinfo.fr/english/089/australian-registry-reviews-local-dispute-resolution-policy.php ca: CIRA watchers hope for 'slash and burn' visionary The announcement earlier this month of Canadian Internet Registration Authority founder and CEO Bernard Turcotte?s stepping down from his long-held post has sparked hope in the Canadian Internet domain world for a successor that could streamline the association?s certification process. http://itworldcanada.com/a/News/68d4bbf2-cb7b-4e28-a0c7-0c12c023e482.html El Reg protests North Korean internet domain The Register isn't too happy about last week's news that North Korea is poised to register its own Internet domain. ... Do they not speak in English in North Korea? Clearly, the country?s domain name should be ?NK? ? not ?KP.? KP is a British peanut company - at best. At worst, it's an American healthcare conglomerate. It is by no means proper material for an internet domain name. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/21/north_korean_internet_domain/ Icann denies .KP country ccTLD approval [sub req'd] http://telecom.paper.nl/news/article.aspx?id=180669 http://domainnamewire.com/2007/08/21/icann-corrects-false-media-reports-about-kp/ Web Hosting Provider Go Daddy Reports .TV Domain Surge Domain registrar and hosting firm, Go Daddy, says dot TV registration increasing as online video grows in popularity http://www.tophosts.com/articles/005851.html za: New policy formalises SA domain name space The Authority is tabling a policy document, which aims to establish and formalise various role players in the growth, maintenance and security of the South African Internet domain space, for public comment. Businesses and individuals with websites registered in South Africa?s TLD name space (i.e. websites ending in .za) stand to benefit from the standardisation of registration processes as well as increased competition and entrepreneurial opportunities within the South African Internet domain space. http://mybroadband.co.za/news/General/1029.html ********************** - DOMAIN DISPUTES ********************** Mattel sues porn site over use of Barbie name [Reuters] Mattel sued a small company on Tuesday for using the toymaker's famed Barbie trademark as part of the name for a pornographic Web site it owns. The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, said the Web site www.chinabarbie.com has used the Barbie trademark to capture the positive image Mattel has created through its Barbie products. http://news.com.com/2110-1030_3-6203782.html http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6203782.html http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10459204 http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKN2139574720070821 Mattel seeks to shut 'Barbie' porno website [AP] Toy maker Mattel Inc. went to court to declare the name of its clean-cut Barbie dolls doesn't belong on a model's pornographic website. http://www.thewest.com.au/default.aspx?MenuID=27&ContentID=38094 http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/248725 http://eveningecho.ie/news/bstory.asp?j=280087513&p=z8xx88376 Toy firm launches Barbie porn battle Toy-makers Mattel have begun legal action against a porn star named Barbie. http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=62751 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/22/mattel_lawsuit/ Temporary Restraining Order Issued Against Domainer?s Use of ?mylennar.com? Companies sometimes find that opportunistic purchasers of domain names (often referred to as "domainers"), will purchase a domain name quite similar to that of the company, and establish a site at the URL loaded with revenue-generating sponsored ads. To accomplish these purposes, domainers seem to prefer the services of companies like HitFarm and Domain Sponsor. A web user types in the confusingly similar URL and is bombarded with pop-up ads and sponsored links to goods and services, often competitive to the company whose name or trademark is being appropriated in the URL. http://www.circleid.com/posts/782110_temporary_restraining_order_domainer_mylennar/ us: Web wars: Pols spar over domain names A Montgomery County Republican has taken the domain names DamskerHoeffel.com and HoeffelDamsker.com to prevent the Democratic county commissioner candidates from using the most logical Web sites for their campaign. http://phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-08202007-1395088.html us: Does your name belong to you? What's in a name? Maybe not much, but if it's your name, it's nice to believe that it's the one thing nobody can take from you. But not if you're involved in Montgomery County politics. Democrats Joe Hoeffel and Ruth Damsker are running against Republicans Jim Matthews and Bruce Castor in November's election for county commissioner. The top three vote-getters will be elected. Damsker and Matthews are incumbents. Castor is the county's district attorney. Hoeffel is a former commissioner and former congressman. http://phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/137-08212007-1395573.html uk: Christian website investigated The website of the Christian Voice organisation was suspended last weekend following complaints about its content. However, it was reinstated this week after an investigation found it did not breach regulations. The site, which is staunchly anti-gay in its approach, was investigated by Pipex. In a statement they said: "We have received a number of complaints regarding the content of the Christian Voice website, whose domain name was purchased through 123-reg and routed to their hosting account via our nameservers. ?Whilst 123-reg is not a publisher of website material and cannot be held responsible for content, we do take complaints of this nature very seriously. We are obliged to act in accordance with the law and the material complained of does not overtly breach the law. Consequently, we have determined that it is appropriate to reinstate the links to the website. http://www.religiousintelligence.co.uk/news/?NewsID=946 ********************** - IPv4/IPv6 ********************** Challenge of implementing IPv6 into the US Army When the Department of Defense first began implementing communications networks using TCP/IP, network protocols were fairly immature. Configuration of devices was manual, security and prioritization were absent, network management was immature, and communications speeds were incredibly slow by today?s standards. Over time, our IP networks have become more robust, more user-friendly, and equivalently more relied upon by users and managers. Our users now expect a high level of performance from our IPv4 networks. We have in-depth security systems, highly robust network management, auto-configuration, prioritization, converged voice and video, multicast, mobility and high-speed performance capabilities on our IPv4 networks. http://military-information-technology.com/article.cfm?DocID=2146 ********************** - MISCELLANEOUS ********************** Melbourne IT doubles annual profit [AAP] Melbourne IT Ltd is expecting strong growth for the rest of 2007 after the domain name registry business more than doubled first half net profit. Melbourne IT on Tuesday posted a 145.4 per cent increase in net profit for the half year ended June 30, to $6.52 million, which excluded a one-off gain from the sale of the company's 10 per cent stake in .biz registry, Neulevel. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462234346.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462234346.html http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,22282332-15306,00.html Melbourne IT achieves strong growth in first half 2007 [news release] Melbourne IT Limited announced a strong result for the half year ended 30 June 2007, reporting an 84% increase in revenue to $77.3m and a 167% increase in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to $9.1m against the first half of 2006. http://corporate.melbourneit.com.au/news/newsfile.php?docid=258 http://corporate.melbourneit.com.au/news/newsstory.php?id=391 Tots Getting Internet Identity at Birth [AP] Besides leaving the hospital with a birth certificate and a clean bill of health, baby Mila Belle Howells got something she won't likely use herself for several years: her very own Internet domain name. Likewise newborn Bennett Pankow joined his four older siblings in getting his own Internet moniker. In fact, before naming his child, Mark Pankow checked to make sure "BennettPankow.com" hadn't already been claimed. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462302949.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462302949.html http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_6680360 http://www.thestate.com/technology-wire/story/152076.html http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSINESS_OF_LIFE?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-08-21-15-16-11 us: Pornography Web site 'parked' after public outcry Reacting to community pressure, a pornography Web site based in Florida has "parked" its Web site, which is similarly named to Litchfield Elementary School District's. Litchfield officials, who run the district's Web site on www.lesd.k12.az.us, were informed late last week that it was possible to get to a porn site by mistyping the Web address into the browser. http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/0821swv-pornfolo0821-ON-CP.html http://www.azcentral.com/community/swvalley/articles/0821swv-pornfolo0821-ON.html GoDaddy Files Patent for ?Domain Name Expiration Protection? GoDaddy isn?t just the world?s biggest registrar. It might be the biggest filer of patents in the industry as well. http://domainnamewire.com/2007/08/22/godaddy-files-patent-for-domain-name-expiration-protection/ ********************** - DOMAINING ********************** What global online population growth means for domain names The global online population will increase from 1.1 billion users in 2006 to 1.5 billion in 2011, according to recently released research from JupiterResearch. And what does this mean for domain names I hear you ask? Plenty - it can only mean demand for domain names will skyrocket as well. http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=2395 http://domainnews.com/aftermarket/2007082116/what-global-online-population-rise-means-for-domain-names/ SES: Let The Domain Drive Domainers have been enjoying some additional attention these days, and that extends to a session at SES San Jose 2007 where they discussed tips and the power of the domain address bar. http://www.webpronews.com/insiderreports/2007/08/20/ses-let-the-domain-drive SES - Domaining & Address Bar-Driven Traffic Session Plenty of people are searching for things by typing in words into their address bars, slapping on a .com and figuring they'll get to a relevant site. More and more, domainers are ensuring they don't draw a blank. Domainers purchase popular generic domain names and populate the sites with ads from the major search networks. Learn how the business is growing, how it can deliver relevant traffic to advertisers, as well as issues with typo domains and opt-out issues. http://www.webpronews.com/blogtalk/2007/08/21/ses-domaining-address-bar-driven-traffic-session Potential Domain Investment Risks Domainnews.com has an article discussing potential risks surrounding domain investing. Rafael Sosa writes "All of us buying domain names for several years now can share a few stories on the satisfactory return on investment that we?ve had. Nevertheless, when considering investing in more domains (or simply holding to the ones you already own) there are some factors to evaluate on the durability and appreciation of those assets." The article includes a number of potential domain investing scenarios where the asset could depreciate in value. http://domainnews.com/general/2007082018/potential-domain-investment-risks/ Domain Name Parking Report for August 2007 Summer doldrums are ending; are your domains ready for Fall traffic? http://domainnamewire.com/2007/08/21/domain-name-parking-report-for-august-2007/ ********************** - DOMAIN SALES ********************** Cardiology.com sells for US$550,000 Another wave of completed sales from Moniker.com's live auction at the New York T.R.A.F.F.I.C. conference hit the charts this week, led by a trio of six-figure blockbusters. The best of those, Cardiology.com, closed at $550,000. Other to round out the top 3 sales include Bald.com ($400,000) and Supplies.com ($323,530). http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2007/domainsales08-14-07.htm ********************** RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** Navigating the Media Divide: Innovating and Enabling New Business Models [IBM report] Summary: The worlds of traditional and new media are already clashing, and it?s a conflict that continues to expand. However, a second type of conflict is brewing ? one that could cause major rifts among traditional partners. For media companies, it?s time to pursue different and somewhat opposing business models and navigate the media divide. A new media world has arrived. Pioneered by teens and gadget-savvy professionals, it has quickly spread into virtually every consumer segment, and started to encroach on traditional media. The number of unique visitors to MySpace.com has now surpassed the 50 million mark ? something akin to the number of U.S. households that tune into the Super Bowl. Every day, consumers around the world watch about 100 million videos on YouTube ? putting that number in context, the top 15 British primetime television shows combined attract about 100 million viewers, as do the top 4 U.S. shows. To examine the inherent tension between new and traditional media and explore future industry scenarios, we conducted a comprehensive study that included interviews with leaders of media companies and an in-depth analysis of the factors that are shaping the industry outlook. http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1026258 IBM end of advertising survey results The IBM Institute for Business Value provides strategic insights and recommendations that address critical business challenges to help clients capitalize on new opportunities. The Institute is comprised of consultants around the world who conduct research and analysis in 17 industries and across five functional disciplines, including human capital management, financial management, corporate strategy, supply chain management and customer relationship management. The report is available here: http://www.ibm.com/media/thoughtleadership ********************** CENSORSHIP ********************** Free speech in Australia? Not while we're on sheep's back No price is too high to pay to protect the Aussie woolgrower. With marked contempt for the effect it would have on freewheeling public debate, Peter Costello has introduced a little bill to clobber campaigners against the bloody business of mulesing sheep. But not only them: his strategy will snare anyone calling for customer boycotts. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462353847.html ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ au: AFP playing 'catch up' on internet paedophilia There are concerns the Australian Federal Police (AFP) is having trouble keeping up with internet paedophiles. ... But there are concerns that the AFP, which is part of a virtual global task force, is playing catch-up when it comes to internet policing compared to overseas authorities. http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/22/2011518.htm au: Govt launches free internet filter for parents A central part of the Federal Government's campaign to protect children online has come into force today. http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/20/2010161.htm http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/soa/Government-launches-free-porn-filter-initiative/0,130061733,339281354,00.htm http://euroa-gazette.com.au/articles/8207.aspx http://www.net4now.com/isp_news/news_article.asp?News_ID=4612 Free net nasties filters snapped up THE federal Government distributed more than 850 free internet filters to parents and carers within 12 hours of opening the gate on its $189 million family protection scheme, NetAlert. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,22278781-15306,00.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/20/1187462176198.html http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,22280762-5005962,00.html PM's war on sexy ads to save 'our future leaders' Prime Minister John Howard supports Get Real campaign, which raises awareness of sexualization of children in media ... Federal Parliament last week called for a review of codes for commercial television and radio to specifically look at the sources, beneficiaries and effects of the sexualisation of children. It also directed the Australian Media and Communications Authority to include sexualisation of children in a review due next year. Ms Tankard Reist said the forum was yet to assess whether the Government's recently announced internet pornography filter would adequately protect children from undesirable images. http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article-pacificislands.asp?parentid=76251 SafeMedia Corp. Praises the Australian Government's Efforts to "Improve the safety of the internet" [news release] Australian Communications Minister Senator Helen Coonan recently announced a $189 million package of measures to improve the safety of using the internet, and for a federal police crackdown on predators and national security threats. The package included $84.8 million to provide individual households with either internet filtering software packages or pre-filtered internet connections from an internet service provider. "We applaud the Australian federal Police, who plan to track down online predators and national security threats, and to provide households with either Internet filtering software packages or pre-filtered Internet connections from an Internet service provider," said President/COO Pasquale Giordano, SafeMedia Corp. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/8/prweb547908.htm ISP-level filtering? No problem, says Nominum US software company, Nominum, claims that its technology is able to provide ISP level content filtering with 'sub-millisecond' delays, contrary to many claims that ISP level filtering would inevitably slow down response times for web surfers. http://itwire.com/content/view/14087/127/ ********************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ********************** Cyber boom - social networking online gold rush The new gold rush is on, but it's no longer to the hills of Ballarat or California that people are flocking. Instead, it's to the new frontiers of virtual cyberspace worlds where people are heading in their droves, eager to be among the first to snag themselves some land and set up shop. And it's not just Monopoly money they're playing with. The virtual world of Second Life (secondlife.com), which has almost 9 million "residents", turned over more than 12.5 million Linden dollars during July - cash that can be transferred into real-world bank accounts at a floating exchange rate of about 265 Linden dollars for $US1. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462264230.html Half Of Companies Blocking Workers' Access To Facebook Employers are increasingly blocking access to Facebook because they're concerned about the time wasted and the information leaked when workers use social networks on company time. http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801484 http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/internet/0,39044908,62031185,00.htm Bebo tops Kiwi social networking heap Facebook is the social networking flavour of the month, but Bebo is still the top of the heap. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10459060 Bebo Becomes the Most Visited Social Networking Site in the UK [news release] comScore released a study of UK traffic in July to a selection of leading social networking sites. UK property Bebo.com became the most visited social networking site from within the UK in July, attracting 10.6 million unique visitors, an increase of 63 percent over the start of the year. It was closely followed by social networking behemoth Myspace.com, which enjoyed a 25 percent increase in traffic over the same time period, to reach 10.1 million unique visitors in July. http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=1571 ************************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ************************** Law enforcers plan Canadian cyber-crime centre The Canadian Association of Police Boards? initiative to establish a global centre for cyber crime in Canada got a boost this week with a $100,000 pledge from Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day. http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/70e7bc38-17b7-479d-b320-bccb35683cdd.html uk: Man detained for unlawful use of broadband connection A man has been arrested for using a broadband internet connection in the street without the owner's permission. The 39-year-old was using his laptop while sitting on a wall outside a house in Chiswick, west London, when two community support officers challenged him. He was detained after admitting using the wireless internet connection without permission. http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,2154015,00.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/22/AR2007082202120.html http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/22/chiswick_wardriver/ uk: For Google, a different twist in a trademark dispute In a new trademark dispute, Google Inc. finds the shoe is on the other foot -- and it seems to be pinching a bit. ... Yesterday, a London-based blogger, Frank Fuchs, said Google ordered him to stop using its trademarked logo on his Web site. Fuchs said he is EU product manager for local search at Yahoo Inc. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9031958 http://www.itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/cdb50a0c-5f21-4b8c-8a70-a4aa3944d262.html Canadians watch for Patriot Act abuse The controversial Patriot Act in the U.S. continues to loom over its northern neighbour as the potential risks of cross-border data transfer threaten to undermine Canadian privacy. ... Among the many controversial provisions of the Patriot Act, one in particular presents a potential threat to Canadian privacy. Section 215 of the Patriot Act allows the U.S. FBI to issue national security letters to compel third-party organizations, such as ISPs, financial institutions or telecom firms, to secretly disclose customer information, said Jason Young, an associate at Toronto-based technology law firm Deeth Williams Wall LLP. http://itworldcanada.com/a/Daily-News/58921d20-cd55-4773-af2e-794bf890165b.html ************************** PRIVACY ************************** Oz data privacy landscape called into question When it comes to privacy, bank customers in Australia are left to choose between garbage, trash or junk. That is how Gartner?s vice president of research, Rich Mogull, describes the data privacy landscape there. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/news/EB9F85FDFDE8AEA8CC25733A000811AC Loss of records from Monster.com is a reminder of peril of revealing personal info online [AP] A recently disclosed fraud involving hundreds of thousands of people on the Monster.com jobs website reveals the perils of leaving detailed personal information online, security analysts say. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/23/1187462396486.html ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** Israeli ISP's will Block Pornographic Sites upon Request On July 8, 2007 a bill was approved by the Israeli Government's Ministers' Committee for legislation requiring ISPs to provide to clients a service for blocking websites which are "not fit for children". Such sites are defined websites containing primarily violent, pornographic or gambling content, provided that the websites are not intrinsically of any artistic scientific, news, educational or social value. http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=latestnews&id=1835 Attempts to regulate online hate in Canada Though free speech is generally protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, hate speech is outlawed by the Canadian legislation like the Criminal Code and the Canadian Human Rights Act, among others. Sections 318 through 320 of the Canadian Criminal Code criminalize hate speech and have been upheld as constitutional by the country?s Supreme Court. The Canadian Human Rights Act is a civil measure that targets hate speech. However, it may be difficult to use these laws to prosecute many of the hate web sites themselves due to jurisdictional issues, because these sites can, and do, find homes in the United States, where they are protected by the First Amendment. This article provides an overview of Canadian laws applicable to hate speech, including online hate speech. http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=F6BDECB1-E833-49D3-8ACB-48FA165E60FC ********************** INTERNET USE ********************** IBM Report: Viewers Shifting From TV To Internet Content It was rather timely for VideoEgg's Troy Young to invoke the name of IBM referring to the YouTube advertising news considering that The IBM Institute for Business Value just released a report that offers insightful data on the Internet media space. From April to June the Institute surveyed Internet users in North America, Australian, UK, Germany and Japan. Addressing the hotly contested market of Internet video versus broadcast television, the report states: "Among consumer respondents, 19 percent stated spending six hours or more per day on personal Internet usage, versus nine percent of respondents who reported the same levels of TV viewing. 66 percent reported viewing between one to four hours of TV per day, versus 60 percent who reported the same levels of personal Internet usage." http://blog.wired.com/business/2007/08/ibm-report-view.html http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKN2240696820070823 http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201801806 IBM end of advertising survey results The IBM Institute for Business Value provides strategic insights and recommendations that address critical business challenges to help clients capitalize on new opportunities. The Institute is comprised of consultants around the world who conduct research and analysis in 17 industries and across five functional disciplines, including human capital management, financial management, corporate strategy, supply chain management and customer relationship management. The report is available here: http://www.ibm.com/media/thoughtleadership Navigating the Media Divide: Innovating and Enabling New Business Models Summary: The worlds of traditional and new media are already clashing, and it?s a conflict that continues to expand. However, a second type of conflict is brewing ? one that could cause major rifts among traditional partners. For media companies, it?s time to pursue different and somewhat opposing business models and navigate the media divide. A new media world has arrived. Pioneered by teens and gadget-savvy professionals, it has quickly spread into virtually every consumer segment, and started to encroach on traditional media. The number of unique visitors to MySpace.com has now surpassed the 50 million mark ? something akin to the number of U.S. households that tune into the Super Bowl. Every day, consumers around the world watch about 100 million videos on YouTube ? putting that number in context, the top 15 British primetime television shows combined attract about 100 million viewers, as do the top 4 U.S. shows. http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1026258 Blog: OECD report a wake-up call - Singapore 'gets' what potential exists in technology Singapore really gets technology and how to encourage innovation and investment in the sci-tech area. Its Government is also keenly aware of how important good broadband infrastructure is and has a ten-year "master plan" to become number one in the world in "harnessing infocomm to add value to the economy and society". Here's a flavour of what Singapore wants to achieve by 2015: a two-fold increase in the value-add of the information communications industry to S$26 billion, a three-fold increase in information communications export revenue to S$60 billion, Creation of 80,000 new jobs (55,000 in ICT), 90 per cent broadband penetration (currently 75.5 per cent), 100 per cent computer ownership in homes with school-going children. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/blog/story.cfm?c_id=1501198&objectid=10459412 More women and seniors said online (Reuters) Britons are changing their media habits as more women and people over 65 go online and as more consumers opt for a single provider for their Internet, entertainment and phone services, an industry report says. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKL2270657220070822 Internet bites into audiences for traditional media [Independent] The rising popularity of social networking sites is putting more pressure on the business models of companies in the television and radio sectors, with internet usage eating into consumption of traditional media for the first time. UK citizens spend over 50 hours a week on the phone, surfing the internet, watching the television or listening to the radio, according to Ofcom's annual Communications Market Report. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2886408.ece http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10459396 Google Wins the Most Hearts on the Web It is not enough to be able to state your favorite movie, your favorite song or your favorite color. In the 21st century, you should also be ready to answer this question: What?s your favorite Internet brand? That is what JupiterResearch did recently in a survey, and it should come as no surprise that Google won this popularity contest. Next in line was Yahoo, followed by Amazon, eBay and MySpace. http://nytimes.com/2007/08/19/business/yourmoney/19count.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462197863.html JupiterResearch Finds Google and Yahoo! Favorite Online Brands, with MySpace Ranking High Among Youth [news release] JupiterResearch reports Google and Yahoo! are consumers' favorite online brands, although young adults like MySpace just as much. Marketers can use the results of this consumer survey to target campaigns so they align with consumer affinities. http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.08.20-favorite-brands.html/ JupiterResearch Reports Over One Fifth of the World's Population Will Be Online By 2011 [news release] JupiterResearch found the worldwide online population will increase from 1.1 billion users in 2006 to 1.5 billion in 2011, representing 22 percent of the overall worldwide population in that year. Brazil, Russia, India, and China will provide impetus for future growth of the online population. The rapid expansion of Internet access in the US, Canada, Japan, and Western Europe during the past decade has produced largely mature online populations in those countries and, as a result, they will witness comparatively slower Internet growth rates through 2011. According to the report, North America's share of the worldwide online population is expected to erode from 21 percent in 2006 to 17 percent in 2011. http://jupiterresearch.com/bin/item.pl/press:press_release/2007/id=07.07.23-world-online-population.html/ YouTube features overlay ads Video advertising is coming to YouTube, but it won't be the type common at sites elsewhere. Starting today, the popular video-sharing site plans to feature semi-transparent "overlay" ads at the bottom of selected video clips. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462318442.html nz: Finances worry Kiwis, not personal safety How safe it is to shop on the internet worries New Zealanders more than personal safety issues. The top fear held by New Zealanders is that someone will get their credit card details, according to a survey of attitudes to security issues. The second biggest fear is that someone will get access to personal information and misuse it. http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/4171710a28.html au: Computer games lure teens to enlist There's a war going on in the tight labour market. The Australian Defence Force is seeking to lure teenagers into military careers with an arsenal of devices ranging from new "reality" website videos to shoot-'em-up computer games. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/22/1187462354421.html How a million Windows users killed Skype Skype's developers have just posted a fascinating explanation for last week's massive service disruption, in which millions of people were unable to log in to the popular Internet phone service for more than a day. http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2007/08/20/skype/index.html http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article2292536.ece ********************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ********************** We're all doomed to be surprised Broadcasters and newspapers are set on a course of convergence. But with the outcome uncertain, flexibility is vital: The future is out of our hands. This thought - unnerving and comforting in equal measure - is worth keeping in mind whenever anyone suggests a panel session on Where We Are All Going. Of course it's our job to make educated assumptions and to formulate the smartest strategies we can. But in the end we are all doomed to be surprised. Technology is the most obvious thing over which we have no control. In the last six months I've tried two new gizmos that completely change the experience of reading words on a screen. http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,2152075,00.html China's Mobile Phone User Population Tops 500 Million The latest statistics from China's Ministry of Information Industry shows that by the end of July 2007, there had been more than 880 million telephone users in China, including 372 million fixed-line phone users and 508 million mobile phone users. http://www.chinatechnews.com/2007/08/23/5793-mii-chinas-mobile-phone-user-population-tops-500-million/ It's exclusive: Paramount, DreamWorks choose HD DVD The format war over next-generation DVDs just got a lot murkier. Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks Animation SKG said today that they will offer movies exclusively in the HD DVD format rather than its more popular rival Blu-ray, a surprise move that complicates the technology battle that Blu-ray had been clearly winning. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-hddvd21aug21,1,1821197.story http://nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Dueling-DVD-Formats.html http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKN2028331720070821 http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/08/21/1187462207022.html The next-gen disc format war gets uglier, more ridiculous Paramount and Dreamworks said today that they're abandoning support for Blu-ray Disc and will begin putting out their movies exclusively on HD DVD, one more step in the aggressively consumer-unfriendly march of large entertainment and tech firms (Sony on the Blu-ray side, Microsoft on the HD DVD side) to leave many people sitting with obsolete equipment -- and to drive both of these allegedly next-generation discs into the ground. http://machinist.salon.com/blog/2007/08/20/hd_dvd/index.html Japanese experts demand change to make phones and laptops safe The fundamental technology behind the present generation of lithium-ion cells ? the batteries that power nearly every laptop computer and mobile phone in the world ? is inherently dangerous and must be changed to ensure safety, according to experts. ... ?Battery companies are still learning because the technology is young, but there is a fundamental flaw with the way lithium-ion batteries are currently designed and if the companies genuinely care about safety, they need to completely change their production methods. A lithium-ion battery is quite a dangerous little box of energy,? Professor Wakihara said. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article2295743.ece The question: Do older people really struggle with technology? Just as you can't teach an old dog new tricks, you can't teach the over-50s new manual tasks, such as operating DVD recorders or iPods. Or so new research suggests. On the plus side, older people probably find it easy to turn this page in white-hot rage. Researchers at Heriot-Watt and Strathclyde universities claim that physiological degeneration in the connections between cells in the frontal lobe means that older people are allegedly flummoxed by new-fangled things such as taps that you pull rather than twist. http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2152875,00.html ********************** SPAM ********************** Cyber-criminals unleash spam Storm Security experts have warned of an outbreak of malicious spam emails that use log-in account confirmation details as a hook to get users to visit an infected website. The Marshal TRACE threat research team said that the emails appear to come from a legitimate organisation and provide recipients with temporary log-in confirmation details for a website. The spam uses text like 'for security purposes, please login and change the temporary Login ID and Password', and include a link to an IP address which is in fact a website infected with the Storm Trojan. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2197180/cyber-criminals-cook-spam-storm http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;2091148102;fp;2;fpid;1 New Storm of 'Confirmation Spam' [news release] Email and Internet content security provider Marshal (www.marshal.com) has identified a new outbreak of malicious spam emails that use login account confirmation details as a hook to get email users to visit an infected web site. http://www.marshal.com/pages/newsitem.asp?article=284 How MySpace brought down a spammer by Eric J. Sinrod MySpace.com is well known as a social-networking service that allows members to create unique personal profiles online to find and communicate with other people. But did you also know that MySpace is actively trying to root out spammers? In March, MySpace filed a lawsuit in federal court against Sanford Wallace doing business as FreeVegasClubs.com, RealVegas-Sins.com and Feeble Minded Productions. The company alleged it was the victim of an abusive scheme to disseminate commercial messages and solicitations to MySpace users. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6203779.html ********************** FILE SHARING ********************** us: Comcast throttles BitTorrent users It looks like Comcast, America's biggest cable network, has put the squeeze on BitTorrent users. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/22/comcast_throttles_bittorrent_users/ ********************************* COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS ********************************* Green awareness low but rising in Asia Green IT awareness is low, but rising, and governments in the Asia-Pacific region will be the primary drivers of future eco-friendly initiatives, reveals a new market report. http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/business/0,39044229,62031229,00.htm New Zealand at the World Summit Award 2007 [news release] The World Summit Award (WSA) is a global initiative to select and promote the world?s best e-Content. The WSA was started in 2003 in the framework of the United Nations WSIS. See wsa-awards.org.nz/ for the NZ site and wsis-award.org for the global site. New Zealand has chosen eight projects to enter into all 8 categories for the 2007 World Summit Award. For the first time the NZ is joined by five projects from the Pacific. This gives this region very substantial exposure. This years World Summit Awards Gala event will be held in Venice in early November. http://wsa-awards.org.nz/ ********************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ********************** au: Telstra: Govt broadband 'all about money and Labor' Telstra has accused the Coalition of turning the country's broadband network into an election issue rather than concentrating on how improvements in speed could affect Australians. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Telstra-Govt-broadband-all-about-money-and-Labor-/0,130061791,339281330,00.htm ********************** MOBILE/WIRELESS ********************** Future Of 4G Finally Firming Up? Three different flavors of wireless, 802.16m WiMax, LTE, and UMB, are the top three contenders for the fourth generation of wireless technology. Each has pluses and minuses, as well as corporate backing, says In-Stat. http://informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/08/future_of_4g_fi.html ********************** VoIP ********************** au: VoIP guide has the questions, if not the answers Attracted by the low call costs spruiked by VoIP operators? A newly updated booklet suggests a range of questions to which consumers should seek answers before signing on the dotted line. http://www.itwire.com/content/view/14095/1119/ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2007 --------- David Goldstein address: 4/3 Abbott Street COOGEE NSW 2034 AUSTRALIA email: Goldstein_David §yahoo.com.au phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home) "Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery ____________________________________________________________________________________ Feel safe with award winning spam protection on Yahoo!7 Mail. http://mail.yahoo.com.au -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://lists.cynosure.com.au/mailman/private/dns/attachments/20070827/7dd5f628/attachment-0001.htmReceived on Mon Aug 27 2007 - 05:00:54 UTC
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