Archives for the 'Misc' Category
Net neutrality - the European Commission’s vision of an open and neutral internet
Published on 29 Jul 2010 at 3:49 pm.
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Filed under Misc, Internet, Net Neutrality.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
Consultation documents on net neutrality published in June by Ofcom and the European Commission show signs of quite different approaches. In so far as Ofcom perceives competition issues to lie at the heart of the debate it is wrong to do so. Directive 2009/140, part of the telecoms reform package, is directed […]
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The YouTube/Viacom decision: a victory for internet service providers (for the time being)
Published on 25 Jun 2010 at 1:01 pm.
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Filed under Misc, Copyright Infringement, ISPs.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
As between ISPs and rights owners, on whom does the burden of policing online copyright infringements lie? In a judgment delivered on 23 June 2010, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York had no difficulty in deciding that it was a burden for the rights owners to bear.
The […]
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Content regulation on the Internet
Published on 18 Mar 2010 at 10:03 am.
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Filed under Misc, AVMS Directive, Internet, Content Regulation, Social Networking.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
On 12 March it was widely reported that a magistrates court in Wrexham convicted and fined one Darren Mattox for posting a message about his former girlfriend on Facebook. Apparently he had called her by an offensive name.
He was prosecuted for having done so under section 127 of the Communications Act, which […]
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A solution to P2P filesharing remains elusive
Published on 15 Feb 2010 at 11:07 am.
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Filed under Misc, illegal file sharing, HADOPI.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
Illegal peer to peer filesharing continues to test the boundaries of the law. Now the European Court of Justice is to consider it, because the SABAM v Tiscali (Scarlet) case is being referred to it.
When in 2007 a Belgian court ordered Scarlet, an ISP, to filter traffic on its network to identify […]
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Clause 17 of the Digital Economy Bill – should internet law be in the hands of Ministers?
Published on 19 Jan 2010 at 5:46 pm.
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Filed under Misc, Internet, Digital Britain, Copyright Infringement.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
Those who are familiar with the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006 will not be entirely surprised by clause 17 of the Digital Economy Bill or the amendments to it that Lord Mandelson has proposed. They may, however, share some of the concerns that were expressed in 2006 about increasing the powers […]
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Webcasters and mobisode providers face fees for the first time, or a fine
Published on 4 Dec 2009 at 11:11 am.
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Filed under Misc, Broadcasting, AVMS Directive, Internet, IPTV.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
On 19 December 2009 the provision of television programme services on the internet or on mobile platforms without an Ofcom licence becomes an offence.
This is one of the lesser known consequences of the implementation of the AVMS Directive. Since 2003, when the Communications Act was enacted, webcasters and mobisode providers, and indeed […]
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Public service broadcasting and the Digital Economy Bill
Published on 25 Nov 2009 at 3:08 pm.
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Filed under Misc, Broadcasting, AVMS Directive, Digital Britain.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
The Digital Economy Bill proposes a reformulation of the public service broadcasting principle.
Not so long ago, the Government spoke of digital television bringing about the end of television as broadcasting and the beginning of electronic communications as a seamless web which transcended the old distinctions between television, computer and the telephone. It […]
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The Audiovisual Media Services Regulations 2009
Published on 16 Nov 2009 at 4:20 pm.
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Filed under Misc, AVMS Directive.
Blog Author: Tony Ballard
“Would you tell me please,” said Alice, “what that means?”*
After lengthy consultations and the circulation to stakeholders of drafts, the Regulations implementing the AVMS Directive have been made and laid before Parliament. Unless Parliament intervenes, they will come into force on 19 December.
In one sense, the Regulations are a tour de force […]
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Net neutrality is to be imposed on US ISPs under FCC proposals. Is there a judicial trend towards similar principles being imposed in Europe?
Published on 23 Sep 2009 at 4:36 pm.
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Filed under Misc, Broadband, Net Neutrality.
Net neutrality in the US
Last Monday (21 September), the new Chairman of the FCC announced proposals for applying principles of non-discrimination and transparency to companies that control access to the internet. Describing the rules that would implement these principles as not being about government regulation but about fair rules of the road for those companies, […]
Liability of apps providers
Published on 10 Aug 2009 at 4:25 pm.
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Filed under Misc.
Blog Author: Mark Owen
Content is “sold” for the Kindle eBook reader over a private Amazon network, Whispernet. This is only available in the US. Publishers upload content to the network which Amazon then makes available. Warranties are given to Amazon by the publisher as to its right to do this.
Two George Orwell novels, 1984 and […]