28
June
2007
|
01:52 AM
America/Los_Angeles

Newswatch 6.28.07: FTC cool to net neutrality

By Richard Koman for SiliconValleyWatcher


FTC urges caution on net neutrality

[AP] The chairwoman of the FTC recommended on Wednesday against additional regulation of high-speed Internet traffic. Deborah Platt Majoras said that without evidence of “market failure or demonstrated consumer harm, policy makers should be particularly hesitant to enact new regulation in this area.”


Results in Malibu Rum ad contest spark outcry on YouTube


[NYT] The winner, however, was posted Monday, and finalists were not publicly named. Some consumers who lost the contest were quick to start a rumbling on YouTube message boards that the contest had been rigged — a charge that Malibu denied. One YouTube user even made a six-minute conspiracy theory video that compared images from a professional Malibu commercial promoting the contest with the winner’s video, saying in part: “Wow, the same nose!? The same guy? You be the judge!”

Netflix settles patent claim against Blockbuster

[AP] The secrecy surrounding the settlement raises the possibility that the two rivals had reached a "sweetheart agreement" that may stifle competition, said Scott Kamber, a New York lawyer who has filed a separate lawsuit alleging that Netflix abused the patent process in an attempt to monopolize the market for online DVD rentals. The judge refused to oversee the settlement because Netflix and Blockbuster wouldn't provide him with a copy of the agreement.

Do social nets encourage cyberbullying?

[Totally Wired] What's most interesting to me in this report is the reality that once you make something digital it's very hard to prevent it from being copied, forwarded or misused in some way if someone has it out for you, and that most teens are still shocked that certain photos or communications that were meant to be private turn up in incidents of harassment or bullying. According to the report, "one in 6 teens (15%) told us someone had forwarded or posted communication they assumed was private."

YouTube wins sex-on-the-beach case

[Ars Technica] Brazilian model Daniella Cicarelli and a sex video. Cicarelli and her boyfriend, Tato Malzoni, had sued YouTube after a video of the couple having sex on a public beach in Brazil appeared on the site. The pair argued that YouTube was violating their privacy. Judge Gustavo Santini Teodoro ruled that the couple's privacy claims were unfounded and ordered Cicarelli to pay fees to each of the defendants.

Two iPhones per person

[News.com] Apple announced this morning that iPhone sales will be limited to two per person, max. Interestingly, that's one more than the AT&T stores will allow you to buy. And just so you don't make a trip in vain, Apple is offering a handy-dandy tool for checking iPhone availability at your local store.