This is about congress taking a good look at the US IP regime, and folks like the RIAA and Sounc Exchange not wanting that. This is whySound Exchange has compromised, and won’t collect the new rates for now.
Intellectual product (IP) is not property. It a temporary exclusive license for the public good.
There are more and more people, including the US Supreme Court, who are finding the US IP regime a hinderance, rather than a help to innovation and art in the US.
This was actually a VERY important decision. If it had gone the other way, you would have seen much of the internet based credit card activity simply stop.
It’s nice that someone has FINALLY found a limitation to “compensatory infringement.
Court upholds ruling vs. publisher
FIRM SOUGHT TO PUNISH CREDIT CARD ISSUERS OVER PIRACY OF ADULT IMAGES
By Dawn C. Chmielewski
Los Angeles Times
San Jose Mercury NewsCredit card companies that process payments for Internet pirates are not liable for copyright infringement, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco decided that a judge in San Jose was right in dismissing a lawsuit brought by a publisher in Beverly Hills against Visa International, MasterCard and other financial companies.
The 2-1 decision found that Perfect 10, a publisher of adult magazines and Web sites, failed to prove that credit card providers were liable because the financial companies played no role in helping people find or download the infringing images.
The decision dealt a setback to Perfect 10’s efforts to cripple Web sites that sell access to its erotic photographs without permission. The company said it would request a new hearing by a larger panel of appeals court judges.
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Ummm…This has fiasco written all over it.
On the other hand, Shatner and Nimoy are sure to get Knighthoods.
Brown calls for e-petitions to get debated in Parliament
By Chris Williams
Published Wednesday 4th July 2007 15:22 GMTGordon Brown has thrown caution to the web, and called for a new e-petitions system which would force Parliament to debate issues popular with internet users.
Buried in a wide-ranging parliamentary statement on constitutional reform yesterday, he said: “I also encourage this House to agree a new process for ensuring consideration of petitions from members of the public.”
In a later briefing with journalists, the Prime Minister’s spokesman explained that a consultation would be held on setting the threshold figure at which a parliamentary debate would be triggered by petitions.
As evidence for the consultation, we’d submit the fact that according to the 2001 census, 390,000 Britons claim to belong to the Jedi religion. Perhaps quite a high threshold would be best, then.
…
Well, it looks like the US hasn’t cornered the market on stupid.
EC wants to suppress internet bomb-making guides
By Lewis Page
Published Wednesday 4th July 2007 13:49 GMTThe European Commission (EC) has announced plans to frustrate terrorism by suppressing online guides on bomb-making.
“It should simply not be possible to leave people free to instruct other people on the internet on how to make a bomb – that has nothing to do with freedom of expression,” EC vice president Franco Frattini said yesterday.
Mr Frattini is “responsible for Freedom, Security and Justice.”
If this guy were responsible for generating electricity from George Orwell spinning in his grave, he’d be doing his job well.
His current job? …. Not so much.
When asked how the EC planned to suppress web bomb manufacture instructions hosted outside EU borders, it appeared that officials planned to act at the level of ISPs in Europe.
The Times quoted a commission spokesman as saying: “You always need a provider here that gives you access to websites. They can decide technically which websites to allow. Otherwise, how would China block internet sites? There are no technological obstacles, only legal ones.”
….
Holding up China as a model of internet access????? Puhleeze.
This should surprise no one, the Bush admin will always make the wrong choice, particularly when it.
Contact your congresscritters about this, and help get a network neutrality bill passed.
FTC abandons net neutrality
End of the internet as we know it
Iain Thomson, vnunet.com 02 Jul 2007
ADVERTISEMENT
Click HereThe Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has decided to abandon net neutrality and allow telecoms companies to charge websites for access.
The FTC said in a report that, despite popular support for net neutrality, it was minded to let the market sort out the issue.
This means that the organisation will not stand in the way of companies using differential pricing to make sure that some websites can be viewed more quickly than others. The report also counsels against net neutrality legislation.
“This report recommends that policy makers proceed with caution in the evolving dynamic industry of broadband internet access, which is generally moving towards more, not less, competition,” FTC chairman Deborah Platt Majoras wrote.
“In the absence of significant market failure, or demonstrated consumer harm, policy makers should be particularly hesitant to enact new regulation in this area.”
The report has caused outrage in the online community. Many are worried that any abandonment of net neutrality will harm competition, since it will allow big companies to outspend start-ups.
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I used to work at Jarvis Products corporation, and I worked on meat packing tools including the Bung Dropper.
It looks like this: 
, And it does this: 
Here is the Youtube:
Yep, it literally cuts the animal a new asshole.
Sound Exchange decided to rape online radio stations, and now those stations have the US Congress’s ear. This means that it’s likely that they will get the deal that over the air radio has, which will lose them money relative to the status quo, so congress is poised to cut them a new asshole.
SoundExchange offers royalty compromise
By Austin Modine in Mountain View
Published Monday 2nd July 2007 23:15 GMTMusic industry taxman SoundExchange is offering a new deal to internet radio broadcasters who say upcoming royalty hikes will kill online broadcasting.
The proposed compromise puts a ceiling on the new set of hefty royalty rate hikes that takes effect July 15. Previously, the fee increase called for webcasters to be charged $500 per station per month in royalties. That would spell certain doom for stations such as Pandora and Live364 which offer thousands of streams over the internet.
Under SoundExchange’s latest olive branch, royalties would be capped at $2,500 per service, regardless of the overall number of stations or channels they are streaming.
“The idea that the per-channel minimum might have a disproportionate impact on certain internet radio stations was never presented to the Copyright Royalty Judges,” SoundExchange general counsel Michael Huppe said in a statement. “Nevertheless, at the request of Congress, we are trying to work with the small subset of affected webcasters, and are offering this proposal in the hopes of addressing those concerns.”
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Many of you have only a vague knowlege of the 1988 Internet Worm.
I was not on the net at the time, but a number of friends and relatives were. It took down the net.
It was launched by Robert T. Morris, III. Of note is the fact that RTM, Jr., his father, was chief scientist of the National Security Agency’s National Computer Security Center at the time.
It’s a thing that makes you go hmmm, as in, do federal agencies have back doors written into critical software on the net to cripple it on an as needed basis?
A glitch in the Matrix, or a hungry exploit?
By Sûnnet Beskerming
Published Saturday 30th June 2007 23:37 GMTSûnnet Beskerming researchers observed an interesting deviation in global network traffic over the last 24 hours, particularly for South American, Asian, and Australian networks. Normally, global Internet traffic (as observed by the Internet Traffic Report) oscillates around nine per cent packet loss, with global response times of 138 ms, and the internally derived traffic index at around 79.
Sustained over the last 24 hours, the traffic index has dipped almost five per cent, packet loss has climbed to 11 per cent, and the global response time to almost 150 ms.
…
Sprint updated it’s web page.
God it’s fugly!!!! It’s like 50% goth, and 50% Teletubbies!
It’s interesting how ICANN’s internal meetings are run. This informality is in fact illegal. The by-laws are a legally binding document upon a corporation.
I have had fairly extensive experience with and exposure to (though I am NOT a lawyer) non-profit corporate governance in the US.
It is clear that ICANN is opening up themselves for a lawsuit, and given the millions and perhaps billions of dollars involved in their decisions, if they continue to run their meetings in this manner, they will lose, particularly in California.
Now you see us, now you don’t: ICANN goes transparent
By Burke Hansen in San Juan
Published Saturday 30th June 2007 13:02 GMTICANN San Juan 2007 The Wednesday ICANN-arama wrapped up with a session covering ICANN’s ongoing efforts to improve its management and accountability practices: the “Accountability and transparency management operating principles” workshop.
Maybe the title itself had something to do with it, but this very lightly attended workshop had the ring to it of one of those obscure sessions where useful information tends to get swept out of sight and mind. Much of the discussion revolved around making the ICANN board actually accountable to someone other than, well, the ICANN board. There are procedures already in place at ICANN that allow appeals of board decisions, but those procedural appeals always seem to circulate back to the board itself.
Milton Mueller contrasted ICANN’s structure with that of the American Cancer Society, which has a national council that decisions may be taken up with. Mueller also recommended bringing back the short-lived direct election of board members, a suggestion we endorse here at El Reg, too. We believe there are enough clever people at ICANN to work out the technical kinks of direct elections – after all, we’ve given them the authority to run the entire internet.
Of course, ICANN is a California nonprofit corporation, and as such is bound by California law, which means that public or even private attorney general actions are a possibility. However, litigation is never the ideal solution and ICANN is wise to consider some institutional options before someone takes matters into their own hands.
……
Paul Levins, vice president of corporate affairs and moderator of this session, let slip, however, that under Chairman Vint Cerf, formal voting requirements have frequently been relaxed, and the opinions of non-voting members have been given equal weight in the decision-making process. This is clearly a violation of the corporate by laws and clearly not a model for transparent management. That may be a way to encourage wider input and greater consensus, but that also means that non-voting members have more of a say than widely believed, which hardly encourages transparency.
If the board wants those other parties to have a stronger voice, they should amend the bylaws, rather than just ignoring them when convenient. It also creates an unwieldy de facto voting board of 21 members – hardly a model of efficiency. This is also why there is lingering public paranoia about the role the government affairs committee (GAC)-and particularly the US Department of Commerce (DOC)- in the decision-making process, since GAC meetings are typically closed to the public and the GAC is one of these “non-voting” members.
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Emphasis mine. They are admitting breaking the law here.
Rival criminals gangs on the net, sabotaging each other.
On the bright side, no one is being shot gangland style, which implies, contrary to the hype that the Russian Mafia, the Cali Drug Cartel, and al Queida are not involved.
Additionally, any effort spent going after each other is time NOT spent going after us.
This is the real second life.
Rival malware gangs wage turf war
By Dan Goodin in San Francisco
Published Sunday 1st July 2007 07:02 GMTSecurity researchers have uncovered evidence of a turf war between rival criminal enterprises connected to two of the most sophisticated malware toolkits in current use.
Like competing gangs in the Mafia – for those who followed the HBO series The Sopranos, think the New York-based Lupertazzi crime family and its sometimes enemy the DiMeo crime family, which Tony Soprano ran from New Jersey – the malware groups are fighting for turf and control.
But rather than clashing over who gets to skim money off a garbage collection contract or a major construction project, the cyber criminals are battling to own tens of thousands of compromised computers.
Enter the propagators of a piece of malware Symantec dubs Trojan.Srizbi (http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2007-062007-0946-99&tabid=1), one of a handful programs spread by the MPack attack kit (http://www.theregister.com/2007/06/18/hijacked_sites_install_malware/). A trojan that makes infected computers part of a botnet that churns out spam, Srizbi is also known to uninstall competing spam malware being spread by another nasty piece of malware dubbed the Storm Worm.
“The Storm Worm criminals appear to have taken exception to that,” says Lawrence Baldwin, a malware researcher who has recently observed Storm zombies DDoSing the server Srizbi uses to download installation files. Baldwin is unable to estimate how much traffic the Storm bots are sending to the Srizbi server, but he says attempts to get an infected machine in his lab to update the Storm malware makes him believe the attack is significant.
…
These are the guys who invented the internet.
Description
Request for Information
Routing Protocols and Management (RPM) for High Capacity Networks– Request for Information Word Version 01 – Posted on Jun 22, 2007
General Information
Document Type: Special Notice
Solicitation Number: Reference-Number-SN07-39
Posted Date:
Original Response Date: 06 August 2007
Current Response Date:
Original Archive Date:
Current Archive Date:
Classification Code: A — Research & Development
Naics Code: 541710 — Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life SciencesContracting Office Address
Other Defense Agencies, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Contracts Management Office, 3701 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA, 22203-1714, United States
Description
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION – Routing Protocols and Management (RPM) for High Capacity Networks
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Strategic Technology Office (STO) is requesting information on revolutionary ideas and approaches to map administrative, business, and war fighting mission requirements to the supporting networks and information systems. The requested information is sought to determine if industry has ideas that warrant specific project-oriented investment by DARPA in this area. No funding has currently been allocated to this effort. A Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) and/or other solicitation may or may not result from the findings of this Request for Information (RFI).
Introduction
Modern communications networks were designed and developed when memory and processing power were limiting factors rather than plentiful and generally ubiquitous throughout the network. Today’s environment finds memory and processing power available even at the tactical edge of the Global Information Grid (GIG). Routing Protocols and Management (RPM) for High Capacity Networks is considering methods to re-think and potentially redesign some of the basic concepts that have shaped today’s Internet technology. The goal of any DARPA program in this area is to improve transfer speeds, network routing efficiency, reliability, simplify network configuration, and reduce cost.
Problem Definition
Modern communications networks were designed and developed when memory and processing power were limiting factors rather than plentiful and generally ubiquitous throughout the network. Today’s environment finds memory and processing power available even at the tactical edge of the Global Information Grid (GIG). Routing Protocols and Management (RPM) for High Capacity Networks is considering methods to re-think and potentially redesign some of the basic concepts that have shaped today’s Internet technology. The goal of any DARPA program in this area is to improve transfer speeds, network routing efficiency, reliability, simplify network configuration, and reduce cost.
Problem Definition
DARPA is interested in ideas that will lead to the development of new addressing schemes (e.g., a structured hierarchical addressing system) to supplement the current IP scheme. New addressing schemes should make the network faster, cheaper, or easier to administer. Additionally, we hope to implement a prioritization system to allow higher priority traffic faster service through the network, along with the authentication system such a system requires.
This RFI seeks ways to enhance network prioritization and authentication for priority users; create multipath route discovery and distribution; lower manpower requirements for network configuration; and efficiently connect Dense Wave Division Multiplex (DWDM) networks and conventional IP networks. The program assumes the existence of DWDM switched networks and seeks to make the connection between a normal IP network and a DWDM switched network as simple and efficient as possible.
The long-term goal is to develop new systems that use network capacity as efficiently and inexpensively as possible. Ideas that require modifications to addressing schemes (e.g., modifying IP), changes to the Domain Name Server (DNS), or other established Internet Standards are acceptable as long as these changes can be justified.
DARPA is interested in responses describing the solution with low granularity, at the device or process level, rather than at the macro or enterprise level. DARPA is interested in autonomic or semi-autonomic systems that require little manual intervention. Finally, simplicity and ability to transition a solution are of interest – large theoretical systems that require extensive training to operate would be of little value as a potential program.
DARPA is not interested in evolutionary improvements to existing fielded or commercial systems, nor funding requests or investment opportunities to bring existing work into production. This RFI seeks potential high-risk, high payoff research opportunities related to Routing Protocols and Management for High Capacity Networks that may provide revolutionary capabilities for the Department of Defense.
Request for Information Focus Areas
In an effort to shape future work on Routing Protocols and Management for High Capacity Networks, DARPA/STO is soliciting position papers addressing the following areas:
1. Concepts and ideas for novel methods to allow multipath route discovery and multipath route distribution; improve network routing efficiency and reliability; simplify network configuration and management; provide for different levels of priority and precedence; and improve authentication/attribution.2. Technical methods to efficiently and inexpensively interconnect DWDM networks and conventional IP networks. These can be linked to, a part of, or separate from a submission for #1 above.
3. The impact of your proposed idea(s) on the personnel needed to operate networks
4. Potential metrics to measure the effectiveness of what you proposeWorkshop
DARPA will hold a workshop for selected RFI respondents in the vicinity of Arlington, VA in October 07. The workshop may include an overview of previous DARPA programs, historical assumptions, today’s requirements and challenges, invited presentations, submitter presentations, discussions, and Q&A. Respondents interested in attending should visit the registration website at https://www.enstg.com/Signup/default.cfm?ThisCode=NEX74474
INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPONDERS
This announcement contains all information required to submit a position paper. No additional forms, kits or other materials are needed.DARPA appreciates responses from all capable and qualified sources including but not limited to universities, university affiliated research centers, federally-funded research centers, private or public companies and Government research laboratories.
Position papers have the following formatting requirements:
a) A one page cover sheet that identifies the title, organization(s), responder’s technical and administrative points of contact – including names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, and email addresses of all co-authors;
b) An executive summary with a one page limit summarizing the key ideas;
c) A single overview briefing chart graphically depicting the key ideas;
d) A technical response to one or more of the 4 RFI Focused Areas posed above in question/answer format, with a 10 page limit in 10 point font;
e) An optional list of citations including URLs if available;
f) An optional briefing if the submitter wishes to be considered to present at the workshop;
g) The above should be submitted as MS Word, PDF, and/or MS PowerPoint documents.Respondents are encouraged to be as succinct as possible while at the same time providing actionable insight.
Respondents must submit one original and one paper copy of the full response and one electronic copy of the full RFI response (in Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, and/or Microsoft PowerPoint on a single CD ROM). Disks must be clearly labeled with RFI SN07-39 the offering organization, and points of contact. The full RFI response (original and designated number of hard and electronic copies) must be submitted to: DARPA/STO, Attn: Dr. Timothy Gibson, 3701 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203-1714. Responses to this Request for Information (RFI) are due no later than 2:00pm, Local Time, Arlington, VA, on 06 August 2007. ANY INQUIRIES ON THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION AND/OR WORKSHOP MUST BE SUBMITTED TO RPM07-39@darpa.mil. NO TELEPHONIC INQUIRIES WILL BE ACCEPTED.
DARPA will host a web site in support of RFI SN07-39, Routing Protocols and Management (RPM). The web site will contain information supplementary to this document such as Question & Answer lists in the event that clarifications are needed. The URL for the web site is http://www.darpa.mil/sto/solicitations/RPM/index.html. In the event of any discrepancies between material published on this web site and FedBizOps, FedBizOps takes precedence.
DISCLAIMERS AND IMPORTANT NOTES
This is a Request for Information issued solely for information and new program planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. No proprietary or classified information should be submitted. Respondents are advised that DARPA is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received, or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted under this RFI. It is the respondent’s responsibility to ensure the material has been approved for public release by the organization that funded the research.
In accordance with FAR 15.201(e) responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted glby the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI.
Submissions may be reviewed by: the Government (DARPA and partners including but not limited to AFRL and OSD-NII); Federally Funded R&D Centers (such as MITRE and Massachusetts Institute of Technology/Lincoln Laboratories); and Systems Engineering and Technical Assistance (SETA) contractors (Booz Allen Hamilton and SRS Technologies).
Point of Contact
Timothy Gibson, Ph.D., Program Manager, Email timothy.gibson (at) darpa.mil
Point of Contact
Timothy Gibson, DARPA Program Manager, Phone 000-000-0000, Fax null, Email Timothy.Gibson@darpa.mil
I agree with Mr. Auerbach. ICANN is not much good for anything but collecting fees.
About the only good thing to come out of it this far was that it showed up Esther Dyson for being a poseur.
Read the Interview.
ICANN is the USSR of the internet – Karl Auerbach speaks out
Today, I’ve spent over an hour with my wife on the phone. My parents are in DC, so my wife and kids had lunch with them.
They had a lot of fun.
But……
It was her first time driving in Washington, DC alone EVER.
So, on the way in, and on the way out, she was calling me on her cell, and I was Map Questing (actually, Yahoo, since they have an address book) furiously. She’s on her way home.
I’m getting kosher Chinese takeout, David Chu’s…Yum!!!!
The content providers are so worried about “piracy” that they will impale themselves on the stakes of AT&T and Comcast, who will extract usurious fees.
Make no doubt. These folks will lose far more than someone download a star wars movie if the telcos and cable companies are allowed to go through with this.
Will H’wood take a stand on Net neutrality?
Congloms may be forced to choose as telcos fish for fees
By WILLIAM TRIPLETT“Net neutrality” may sound like something only a Web geek could love, but at some point showbiz, largely indifferent to it so far, will have to start declaring an interest — perhaps passionately.
Why? Because Net neutrality — or, as some call it, Net regulation — has the potential to affect content protection, otherwise known as Priority No. 1 of the entertainment industry.
Access to online content, itself no small concern, could also be at stake.
Even the term “Net neutrality” is the source of some controversy. Is the issue “neutrality” or “regulation”? It depends on who’s talking.
From its inception, the Internet has always delivered information on a first-come, first-served basis, whether it’s your music download, your neighbor’s porn or your office’s email.
Thus the Net has always been “neutral.”
But there’s no rule that says it has to be that way. If you get your Internet from Time Warner Cable, for example, there’s nothing to stop it from sending you content from Time Warner sites first and doling out content from the competition with whatever bandwidth happens to be left over.
Nor is there anything to keep an Internet service provider like Earthlink from taking fees from Disney or NBC Universal to give some sites priority — and to block other sites altogether.
That would give Web sites with deep pockets behind them a new advantage in getting their content in front of Web users, while sites that can’t afford those fees could be kicked to the virtual curb.
Those who value the current “neutral” state of the Internet are seeking legislation to protect “Net neutrality.” Many of the companies involved, though, see an opportunity to make money. They, along with those who generally favor free markets, condemn such legislation as “Net regulation.”
Fears that the current Net neutrality could be lost erupted at last year’s Telecom Next show after AT&T topper Ed Whitacre (who retired June 4) was quoted as saying that Google and other content providers were getting a free ride.
He told Business Week, “The Internet can’t be free in that sense, because we and the cable companies have made an investment, and for a Google or Yahoo or Vonage or anybody to expect to use these pipes free is nuts!”
Whitacre later backtracked, noting that customers would desert any provider who blocked some sites, but it was too late. The push to protect Net neutrality is on.
Given the potential for chaos if some content gets priority to some customers but not to others, as the pro-NN faction calls it, you’d think the entertainment industry would be all for passing laws that enforce Net neutrality.
You’d be wrong. Very few industry companies have publicly taken a position on NN to date, preferring a wait-and-see approach to the volatile issue.
How volatile? Only one industry exec agreed to be quoted by name on the subject.
“Intellectual property protection is our litmus test,” says Rick Cotton of NBC U, who could easily be speaking for the entire content industry.
As one industry lobbyist notes, showbiz tends to favor the side of the broadband providers, who oppose any mandated Net neutrality, because the providers can help identify and pursue online bootleggers and pirates.
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Sorry, but I want my women in meat space, not cyber space.
Playboy takes a ride to Second Life
Adult magazine unveils virtual rabbit head-shaped island populated with female avatars and merchandise.
June 12 2007: 1:07 PM EDTNEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Playboy Enterprises, Inc. slipped into the virtual world known as Second Life Tuesday with the launch of Playboy Island.
The adult entertainment company said it is offering Second Life residents a taste of the Playboy lifestyle on a rabbit head-shaped island, which houses a retail store and will feature events and social opportunities.
Video More video
Fortune’s David Kirkpatrick talks about what he sees as the future implications for Second Life and the 3-D Internet.
Play videoThe virtual Playboy store includes merchandise from PlayboyStore.com and ShoptheBunny.com, and is staffed by female avatar employees wearing Playboy-branded apparel or Playboy Bunny costumes. Playboy-branded apparel can be purchased in the virtual store for real-world wear or Second Life avatars.”