Web freedom faces greatest threat ever, warns Google's Sergey Brin | Technology The principles of openness and universal access that underpinned the creation of the internet three decades ago are under greater threat than ever, according to Google co-founder Sergey Brin. In an interview with the Guardian, Brin warned there were "very powerful forces that have lined up against the open internet on all sides and around the world". "I am more worried than I have been in the past," he said. "It's scary." The threat to the freedom of the internet comes, he claims, from a combination of governments increasingly trying to control access and communication by their citizens, the entertainment industry's attempts to crack down on piracy, and the rise of "restrictive" walled gardens such as Facebook and Apple, which tightly control what software can be released on their platforms. Revealed: US and China's cyber war gamesWashington's plan to beat web censorsChina struggle to regain control of the internetHow open is your internet? "There's a lot to be lost," he said.
How Yahoo Killed Flickr and Lost the Internet Google Removes 1 Million Infringing Links Monthly | Threat Level Each month, Google removes more than 1 million links to infringing content such as movies, video games, music and software from its search results — with about half of those requests for removal last month coming from Microsoft. The search and advertising giant revealed the data Thursday as it released sortable analytics on the massive number of copyright takedown requests it receives — adding to its already existing data on the number of times governments ask for users’ personal data. The Mountain View, California-based company removes links to comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The DMCA requires search engines to remove links to infringing content at a rights holder’s request or else face liability for copyright infringement itself. Google said it complies with about 97 percent of requests, which are submitted via an online form and usually approved via a Google algorithm. Removal of links has become big business, as rights holders often farm out such duties.
Quebec Erupts 100. One hundred days have now passed since the “Printemps Érable” (“Maple Spring”)began in February 2012. Students have been protesting on the streets of Montreal each night against announced increases in their tuition fees, ordered by government of Jean Charest, the Canadian province’s premier. Fees would jump from $2,168 to $3,793 Canadian dollars a year by 2017, a rise of 75% in five years. While that might seem low in comparison to rates in the US, it is intolerable to a population who traditionally believe education should be financially accessible to all – if not free. Last week a special bill was passed following a debate that lasted some 21 hours. The bill has drawn the ire of the highly unionised workers of Quebec, helping spread the protests far beyond just the student world. This law was expected to bring order, but it is about to become the very purpose of the protests. Brutality Avis donné à la foule : #manifestation illégale, les gens doivent quitter immédiatement.
It starts in Quebec: Our revolution of love, hope and community In almost every report on the social movement now sweeping Quebec, including my own, words like conflict, crisis and stand-off figure prominently. Anger is omnipresent. The anger of protesters, the anger of government, the anger of those supposedly inconvenienced. Don't get me wrong, there is anger, present of course. As I write these words there are demonstrations going on in every neighborhood of Montreal. The prevailing question in the media is, how do we end this? As this movement goes on, and grows by leaps and bounds, it is increasingly clear that it is not a movement of anger, of rage or of hate. Perhaps the most lasting effect of this movement will be to build stronger, more connected communities. This is what Charest is afraid of. The most honest reason which can be given for why people are in the street is the simplest. If you do not live here, I wish I could properly convey to you what it feels like . . . We walk past each other every day, but we do not smile.
Amnesty International seeks George W. Bush's arrest - Tim Mak The human rights group Amnesty International called on Canadian authorities Wednesday to arrest former President George W. Bush when he attends an economic summit in the province of British Columbia next week. The group accused Bush of “responsibility for crimes under international law including torture.” Continue Reading Amnesty International asked that Canada either prosecute or extradite Bush for violations that they allege took place during the CIA’s secret detention program between 2002 and 2009. The organization wrote a 1,000 page memorandum addressed to Canadian authorities to make the case for human rights violations by the 43rd president. “Canada is required by its international obligations to arrest and prosecute former President Bush given his responsibility for crimes under international law including torture,” Susan Lee, Americas Director at Amnesty International, said in a statement.
Fetishism of Digital Commodities and Hidden Exploitation: the cases of Amazon and Apple | Wu Ming Foundation Italiano – Français - Español . [The original version of this essay was published on Giap on 26 September 2011, which means several days before Steve Jobs died. The French version was published on Article XI on the eve of Jobs' death. The piece had already received a lot of attention, backlinks and comments when the news arrived. Last week a Pennsylvanian daily newspaper, The Morning Call, published a long and detailed inquiry – entitled Inside Amazon’s Warehouse – on the appalling work conditions at Amazon warehouses in the Lehigh Valley. Jeff Bezos. Judging by online comments, many people were taken by surprise, finding out for the first time that Amazon is a mega-corporation and Jeff Bezos is a boss who – as bosses customarily do – seeks profits at the expenses of any consideration for dignity, justice, and safety. What I just wrote should be obvious, but it is not. iPhone, iPad, youDie Fetishism, Subjugation, Liberation “Fantastic form of a relation between things”. Heron's Aeolipile
Italian Wikipedia Shuts Down In Protest Of Proposed Law In the true spirit of online activism, the entire Italian Wikipedia website has voluntarily taken itself down in order to protest a bill being proposed to Parliament. The law (“DDL intercettazioni,” roughly translated as Wiretapping Act) would require every website to publish within 48 hours a correction or comment relating to any content an applicant has deemed “detrimental to their image,” as they put it. If that sounds vague, broad, and onerous, that’s because it is. If this law were passed, Wikipedia and other websites would have to post unedited and unsolicited “corrections” to any content deemed objectionable by any person. This content would have to be displayed without any review of the offending content or the “correction.” It doesn’t take an expert to see that this law is contrary to the principles of truth and openness. In case it isn’t clear, let me just sketch out an example. Update: It seems the law has been amended to apply only to “official” press outlets.
Declaration of the Occupation of New York City | NYC General Assembly We encourage the public to participate and collaborate with each other using NYCGA.net and other digital properties established by the New York General Assembly. Be advised that all postings, including any links to 3rd-party sites, shall be subject to limited monitoring for violations of this and any other policy. The following types of content are considered inappropriate for posting on NYCGA digital properties: commercial; self-promotional; prurient; abusive; discriminatory speech, including but not limited to, hate speech based on race, gender, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, religion or disability; disclosure of a user’s personal contact information without permission from the user. If content is determined to be inappropriate, such content will be removed from the website. Participants should note the following prior to posting content: (a) Regarding community-moderated content, a participant may flag content he or she believes to be in violation of this Terms of Use.
Italy prepares 'one strike' anti-piracy law - intellectual property, legal The Italian government is preparing an anti-piracy law that could ban Internet users from access after one alleged infringement, a lawyer and an analyst warned. ISPs would be required to use filters against services that infringe copyright, trademark or patents under terms of the draft law. The proposed changes to Italy's e-commerce directive were drafted in July by members of parliament belonging to the Il Popolo della Libertà (PdL) party of prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. Citizens could be disconnected from the Internet if a provider is notified of an alleged copyright, trademark or patent infringement on the Web, Brini said. "Some parts of the draft law are clearly not applicable in real life, while others have the power to crumble ISPs and hosting e-commerce," Brini said in a written analysis published on Monday. It remains to be seen how the technical implementation of the law would be performed. Currently, the draft is with a parliamentary committee for the first check.