Wednesday 8 December 2010

Wikileaks and government censorship

Two excellent academic blogs on the issue: IGP on US hysteria from the military-industrial complex, and Technollama on theory brought to life. If I use AMEX, is that a blow for freedom against Visa and Mastercard and Paypal? Thought not...but there are over 1000 mirrors of Wikileaks out there, and the hydra has too many heads for the NSA.
UPDATE: ONI details the private censorship so far.

Monday 6 December 2010

EU Council agrees to move towards First Reading agreement with Parliament on web blocking

The deed is done - against all sensible opposition, the Council agreed to words (p.23) that where it cannot take down websites, it will block - which in effect means unfocused approach to the former, and heavy attention on the latter. Insanity.
This will run and run next year - and don't expect non-Pirate Parliamentarians to grow a pair and oppose this. I look forward to seeing what anti-regulation, anti-neutrality MEPs make of this disgraceful over-regulation - will they show consistency?

Friday 3 December 2010

Chapter headings updated

Chapter 1: States, firms and legitimacy of regulation
Chapter 2: Internet Co-Regulation and Constitutionalism
Chapter 3: Self-Organisation and Social Networks
Chapter 4: Standards, Domain Names and Government
Chapter 5: Content Regulation and the Internet
Chapter 6: Private ISP Censorship
Chapter 7: Analyzing Case Studies
Chapter 8: Internet co-regulation as part of the broader regulatory debate

Web blocking mandatory in Europe in 2011?

Coimmissioner Malmstrom from Sweden proposes that to the Justice Council - and it is to be debated by the European Parliament in February. Interesting Swedish radio interview with her Pirate Party MP who runs rings around her: "what Cecilia Malmström is proposing is to just put a blanket over the problem to hide it."