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Can the Feds enforce Net neutrality? Maybe not
,----[ Quote ]
| Federal regulators may be probing Comcast's throttling of BitTorrent
| filesharing traffic, but can they actually take action, if they choose,
| against the company or any other broadband provider on Net neutrality
| grounds?
|
| The answer may not be simple. And if the FCC and other regulators are really
| powerless--in other words, if they need Congress to enact new laws--it means
| that any threats to take action against Comcast, based on alleged violations
| of the law today, are merely empty ones.
`----
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9945418-7.html
1984: The amendments on the Telecom Package are killing fundamental freedoms
,----[ Quote ]
| Brussels – Guy Bono is indignant about the freedom-killing amendments that
| have been submitted in the framework of the “Telecom Package”, that is
| currently being discussed in the European Parliament.
|
| [...]
|
| For the socialist member of the European Parliament: “What Orwell predicted
| in “1984” is becoming reality: one wants to know everything about you, trace
| you, spy everything you are doing, and direct your behaviour. The only
| difference is that the dictator is not a politician, but made up by large
| multinationals!”
`----
http://www.laquadrature.net/en/1984-the-amendments-telecom-package-are-killing-fundamental-freedoms
Microsoft plays a role here too. It actively collaborates with the parties
involved (MPAA, RIAA, Comcast and so forth).
Recent:
Study: Comcast, Cox blocking BitTorrent throughout US
,----[ Quote ]
| The Max Planck Institute for Software Systems released a study Thursday
| showing that Cox Communications and Comcast have been blocking BitTorrent
| transfers within the United States at both peak and non-peak hours.
|
| [...]
|
| The study also finds that both Comcast and Cox block BitTorrent uploads
| during both peak hours and during mornings and weekends, when traffic is
| typically less heavy. Comcast, for instance, blocked BitTorrent traffic on
| just over 60 per cent of all tests conducted on Saturdays, which is a
| slightly higher percentage of tests blocked during weekdays; on Sundays, the
| percentage of blocked tests drops significantly to just over 50 per cent.
| Cox, on the other hand, was more likely to block BitTorrent traffic on the
| weekends than on the weekdays, with nearly 70 per cent of all tests conducted
| on Saturdays and Sundays blocked. The institute qualifies the Cox data,
| however, by noting that Cox tests comprised a much smaller sample size than
| the Comcast tests.
`----
http://www.linuxworld.com.au/index.php?id=1291520067&rid=-50
Microsoft Misleads on Copyright Reform
,----[ Quote ]
| The Hill Times this week includes an astonishingly misleading and factually
| incorrect article on Canadian copyright written by Microsoft.
`----
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2670/125/
RIAA, MPAA urge pro-copyright vows from presidential candidates
,----[ Quote ]
| One question, for instance, asks: "How would you promote the progress of
| science and creativity, as enumerated in the U.S. Constitution, by upholding
| and strengthening copyright law and preventing its diminishment?"
`----
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9821141-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Related:
Comcast admits paying attendees at FCC hearing
,----[ Quote ]
| Comcast Corp. admitted yesterday that it paid people to attend a government
| hearing. Company critics say the freelance attendees were there to crowd them
| out; Comcast says they were merely saving seats for employees.
`----
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/front_page/20080228_Comcast_admits_paying_attendees_at_FCC_hearing.html
Comcast stacked Net Neutrality meeting
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/02/27/comcast-stacked-net-neutrality
Allegations fly in FCC hearing aftermath
,----[ Quote ]
| Comcast Corp. on Tuesday acknowledged hiring people to fill seats before the
| start of a contentious federal hearing on how the company manages its
| broadband network, allowing its employees to take those seats when the
| filled-to-capacity hearing started.
`----
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080227/ap_on_hi_te/internet_regulation
US senator accuses FCC of rigging 700MHz auction
,----[ Quote ]
| Wireless watchers are still waiting for the final results of the The Great
| American Wireless Auction, but that hasn't stopped at least one US Senator
| from dubbing the FCC's $20bn bid-off "a disaster".
`----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/02/26/fcc_accused_of_rigging_700mhz_auction/
BitTorrent Admin Monitored by US Government, Forced to Dump Linux
,----[ Quote ]
| Sk0t, an ex-administrator of the EliteTorrents BitTorrent tracker is to have
| his internet connection forcibly monitored by the US Government. If that
| wasn’t bad enough, the monitoring software is Windows based - which means he
| is being forced to ditch Linux - or face being barred from the internet.
`----
http://torrentfreak.com/bittorrent-admin-monitored-by-us-government-forced-to-dump-linux/
Is Comcast's BitTorrent filtering violating the law?
,----[ Quote ]
| Assuming that the SYN packet goes through, the three-way handshake is allowed
| to happen, then the two hosts will be able to begin communicating. Your ISP
| can still kill the connection later, should they wish to, merely by blocking
| the transmission of future packets.
|
| According to Torrent Freak, Comcast is not doing this. They are instead
| sending a reset (or RST) packet to the Comcast customer, pretending to be
| from the host at the end of the BitTorrent connection.
`----
http://www.cnet.com/8301-13739_1-9769645-46.html
Windows' Genuine Disadvantage
,----[ Quote ]
| When you install Vista, Microsoft claims that you consent to being spied
| upon, through the "Windows Genuine Advantage" system. This system tries to
| identify instances of copying that Microsoft thinks are illegitimate. This
| system includes a "kill switch" which allows Microsoft to remotely deactivate
| your copy of Vista. This deactivation, whether deliberate or by accident --
| as has been the case in some 500,000 cases already according to a study last
| year -- locks you out of your computer, and forces you to contact Microsoft
| to get access to your files.
`----
http://badvista.fsf.org/blog/windows-genuine-disadvantage
Anti-Features
,----[ Quote ]
| DRM and trusted/treacherous computing systems are, in many ways, an extreme
| example of anti-features.
|
| [...]
|
| Unfortunately for the companies and individuals trying to push anti-features,
| users increasingly often have alternatives in free software. Similar to
| Mozilla's pop-up blocking feature, RAW was low-hanging fruit for the free
| software developers working on CHDK. The absence of similar anti-features
| form some of the the easiest victories for free software. It does not cost
| free software developers anything to avoid anti-features. In many cases,
| doing nothing is exactly what users want.
`----
http://www.fsf.org/blogs/community/antifeatures
Avoid the Vista badge, it means DRM inside
,----[ Quote ]
| The root of this crappy DRM infection is Microsoft. It is the driving
| force here. This has nothing to do with protecting content, as we
| keep pointing out, there has never been a single thing that has had
| a DRM infection applied that didn't end up cracked on the net in
| hours. DRM is about walled gardens and control.
|
| He who controls the DRM infection controls the market. DRM is
| about preventing you from doing anything with the devices
| without paying the gatekeeper a fee. This is what MS wants,
| nothing less than a slice of everything watched, listened to
| or discussed from now on. DRM prevents others from playing
| there, thanks to the DMCA and other anti-consumer laws.
|
| Make no mistake, MS is pushing the DRM malware as hard as
| it can so it can rake in money hand over fist with no
| competition. It is really good at lock-in, in fact, the firm
| based its entire business model on harming the user so they
| have to comply and spend more.
`----
http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=38926
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Forget-about-the-WGA-20-Windows-Vista-Features-and-Services-Harvest-User-Data-for-Microsoft-58752.shtml
Microsoft patents the mother of all adware systems
,----[ Quote ]
| The adware framework would leave almost no data untouched in its quest to
| sell you stuff. It would inspect "user document files, user e-mail files,
| user music files, downloaded podcasts, computer settings, computer status
| messages (e.g., a low memory status or low printer ink)," and more. How could
| we have been so blind as to not see the marketing value in computer status
| messages?
`----
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070717-microsoft-patents-the-mother-of-all-adware-systems.html
New software can identify you from your online habits
,----[ Quote ]
| That is the spectre raised by new research conducted by Microsoft.
| The computing giant is developing software that could accurately
| guess your name, age, gender and potentially even your location,
| by analysing telltale patterns in your web browsing history. But
| experts say the idea is a clear threat to privacy - and may be
| illegal in some places.
`----
http://www.newscientisttech.com/article.ns?id=mg19426046.400&feedId=being-human_rss20
http://tinyurl.com/2lrazk
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