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Politics and Law

U.N. summit implodes as U.S., others spurn Internet treaty

U.N. summit implodes as U.S., others spurn Internet treaty

In a stunning repudiation of a United Nations summit, an alliance of Western democracies including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada today rejected a proposed treaty over concerns it hands repressive governments too much authority over the Internet.

"This conference was never meant to focus on Internet issues," said ambassador Terry Kramer, head of the U.S. delegation to the Dubai summit. "The Internet has given the world unimaginable economic and social benefit during these past 24 years -- all without U.N. regulation."

Delegates from the Netherlands, New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden, the Philippines, … Read more

iPhone infringes on patents from MobileMedia, jury rules

iPhone infringes on patents from MobileMedia, jury rules

Apple has lost a few rounds in a courtroom case pitting it against patent holder MobileMedia.

A U.S. court ruled today that the iPhone infringes on three patents held by MobileMedia, a spokesperson for the patent holder told CNET.

One of the patents, No. 6,427,078, refers to a camera phone technology, according to the spokesperson. The other two patents, No. 6,253,075 and No. 6,070,068, deal with call handling.

A document of the verdict posted on Scribd shows the jury found that Apple directly infringed on the three patents in question. The jury also … Read more

U.N. summit derailed over human rights controversy

U.N. summit derailed over human rights controversy

A United Nations summit suddenly ran aground today after China, Algeria, and Iran objected to a U.S.-backed proposal that would include a mention of "human rights obligations" in a proposed telecommunications treaty.

Algeria's delegate warned at the U.N. summit in Dubai that there were many other nations -- calling them "silent member states" -- that also opposed the human rights language and forced a temporary adjournment of the proceedings.

China criticized the human rights language as well, saying "we also have a very serious question about the necessity of the existence … Read more

U.N. summit rejects U.S., Europe hands-off-the-Internet plea

U.N. summit rejects U.S., Europe hands-off-the-Internet plea

Delegates to a United Nations summit agreed today that a U.N. body should take a more "active" role in shaping the future of the Internet, a move that had been opposed by the United States and its allies that had warned of greater government control.

The agreement by delegates from the International Telecommunication Union's 192 member nations, a majority of whom raised their placards in support of the language, took place after 1:30 a.m. local time in Dubai. It came after the head of the ITU, a U.N. agency, had promised not to … Read more

Guatemala to deport McAfee to U.S., says report

Guatemala to deport McAfee to U.S., says report

After weeks of running from authorities in Belize, tech businessman turned fugitive John McAfee will come back to the United States, Reuters reported today.

Update, 4:30 p.m. PT: McAfee has landed in the U.S., according to the Associated Press.

McAfee was detained in Guatemala last week after illegally crossing over the border from Belize, and the Guatemalan government has decided to deport him to the U.S., an immigration official told Reuters.

McAfee told Bloomberg TV that he was "being expelled" from Guatemala and was headed to Miami.

A judge reportedly approved McAfee's release on Tuesday, … Read more

FCC makes progress on freeing up spectrum

The Federal Communications Commission is making progress in its effort to free up 500MHz of additional wireless spectrum by 2020, but much work is still needed in order for the FCC to meet its goal.

On Tuesday, the commission approved rules that would free up 40MHz of satellite spectrum that had been allocated for satellite use to be used for wireless broadband service. And it also moved forward with setting up an auction next year for 10MHz of wireless spectrum in the PCS H block. The H Block spectrum that will be auctioned off sits next to the satellite spectrum … Read more

U.N. proposal renews concerns of Internet power grab

U.N. proposal renews concerns of Internet power grab

A United Nations agency has used a summit in Dubai to renew its efforts to gain more control over how the Internet is managed.

The International Telecommunication Union, a U.N. agency, has circulated draft language, which was leaked today, that would let the organization take what it describes as a more "active" Internet role in the future.

It shows that the ITU would become involved in "Internet-related technical, development and public policy issues" -- a broad phrase that sweeps in hot-button areas including cybersecurity, spam, surveillance, and censorship.

The draft document (PDF) was disclosed the … Read more

Amazon wins its insane gadget-airbag patent

Amazon wins its insane gadget-airbag patent

Amazon has been granted a patent for protecting gadgets from accidents by using tiny airbags and even jets of air.

The patent application made waves immediately after it was published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office last August. Amazon filed for it in February 2010 and was granted it today, Engadget notes.

At its core, the patent details a system that uses your gadget's built-in gyroscope, accelerometers, camera, and other onboard sensors to figure out if the device has gone airborne. If so, a system can keep the device from getting too badly damaged by changing its … Read more

Patriot Act can 'obtain' data in Europe, researchers say

Patriot Act can 'obtain' data in Europe, researchers say

European data stored in the "cloud" could be acquired and inspected by U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies, despite Europe's strong data protection laws, university researchers have suggested.

A research paper written by legal experts at the University of Amsterdam's Institute for Information Law and titled "Cloud Computing in Higher Education and Research Institutions and the USA Patriot Act" supports previous reports that the antiterror Patriot Act could theoretically be used by U.S. law enforcement to bypass strict European privacy laws to acquire citizen data within the European Union.

The Patriot Act, … Read more

Guatemala denies asylum for McAfee

Guatemala denies asylum for McAfee

The Guatemalan government has denied the asylum request of tech entrepreneur-turned fugitive John McAfee, the Associated Press reported today, which means police in Belize expect the eccentric millionaire to be flown back to Belize soon.

Update, 12:30 p.m. PT: ABC News is reporting that McAfee, who complained about chest pains earlier, had a possible heart attack while at the detention center. Two ambulances were seen outside the center, and medics are attending to him after he was reportedly found unresponsive on the floor of his cell.

Update, 1:45 p.m. PT: McAfee's lawyer tells Reuters that … Read more