17 June 2009
Digital Britain report:
Lord Carter’s long-awaited final report presents some new measures but fails to solve thorny issue of the BBC
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jun/16/digital-britain-report
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jun/17/digital-britain-report
Digital Britain: Tax to pay for fast net access
Every Briton with a fixed-line phone will pay a “small levy” of 50p per month to pay for faster net access. The national fund created by the levy will be used to ensure most Britons get access to future net technologies.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8102756.stm
Digital Britain: Report ‘too soft’ on internet pirates
The Digital Britain report has stopped short of delivering the necessary measures to combat internet piracy, according to the music and video industries. The highly anticipated Digital Britain report, has ordered a clamp down on illegal peer-to-peer online file sharing. However, the proposed measures have been met with disappointment by prominent music and video bodies, who have accused the report of “digital dithering”.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/digital-media/5552504/Digital-Britain-report-too-soft-on-internet-pirates.html
Mousavi supporters rally support on Twitter
Supporters of defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mirhossein Mousavi posted defiant messages on Twitter on Tuesday, calling for a second banned pro-Mousavi rally to go ahead and offering security updates. “Alert: Mousavi march still on. 5PM,” read one short message, or “tweet,” on Twitter. “Good luck at the march. Don’t take cars, they will be waiting for you when you return to them,” read another. A U.S. official said meanwhile that the U.S. State Department had contacted Twitter at the weekend to urge it to delay a planned upgrade that could have cut daytime service to Iranians.
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE55F2EB20090616
Twitter responds on Iranian role
Twitter has distanced itself from State Department revelations that it asked the company to delay maintenance so Iranians could continue to communicate. The planned upgrade would have cut the service at a crucial time of the day. “The State Dept does not have access to our decision making process,” wrote Twitter co-founder Biz Stone in a blog. “When we worked with our network provider to reschedule this planned maintenance, we did so because events in Iran were tied directly to the growing significance of Twitter as an important communication and information network.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8104318.stm
GPS Satellite Glitches Fuel Concern on Next Generation
Technical problems are degrading the accuracy of signals from the last GPS satellite launched by the Pentagon, sparking concerns among U.S. military and aerospace industry officials that the next generation of the widely used satellites could face similar troubles.
Concerns over signal quality come barely weeks after a Congressionally-ordered study raised a red flag about potential erosion of GPS accuracy in the next few years due to launch delays and other challenges. If certain launches get delayed up to two years, the General Accountability Office report predicted, the Pentagon could have trouble maintaining the desired fleet of 24 fully-functional GPS satellites in operation.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124520702464422059.html
MySpace Slashes Jobs As Growth Slows Down
MySpace is laying off nearly a third of its U.S. staff, or about 420 employees, as the once highflying Internet business tries to rein in costs and contend with fast-growing rival Facebook Inc. The move comes about six weeks after News Corp., which owns MySpace, replaced the site’s executive team, appointing former Facebook executive Owen Van Natta as chief executive. News Corp. also owns The Wall Street Journal. Since then, the new MySpace leaders have found the business in worse shape than expected, according to people familiar with the matter. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124517308609119651.html
Your iPhone 3G S Is Here. But You Can’t Get It Until Friday.
It looks like Apple is holding back delivery of the iPhone 3G S units that we pre-ordered over the web, until Friday. This, despite the fact that they’re already in the United States, and many had been scheduled to be delivered tomorrow. A lot of people who had pre-ordered were excited to learn their new devices may be here early, but Apple, it seems, is one step ahead. Perhaps if you’re able to track down the UPS warehouse where yours is being held, they’ll let you pick it up early. Let us know if you successfully do that. At least you can still play with the 3.0 software today and tomorrow, despite earlier rumors that it may be held back too.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/06/17/your-iphone-3g-s-is-here-but-you-cant-get-it-until-friday/
