COPYCENSE

“U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and FBI Director Robert Mueller last week urged telecommunications officials to record their customers’ Internet activities.

“In a private meeting with industry representatives, Gonzales, Mueller and other senior members of the Justice Department said Internet service providers should retain subscriber information and network data for two years, according to two sources familiar with the discussion who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The closed-door meeting at the Justice Department, which Gonzales had requested, according to the sources, comes as the idea of legally mandated data retention has become popular on Capitol Hill and inside the Bush administration. Supporters of the idea say it will help prosecutions of child pornography because in many cases, logs are deleted during the routine course of business.”

Declan McCullagh. Gonzales Pressures ISPs on Data Retention. News.com. May 26, 2006.

Prior CopyCense coverage:

CopyCense. Congress Considering Online Data Collection. May 18, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Hollywood studios and TV networks are asking a federal court to stop a video recording service that Cablevision Systems Corp. planned to start offering next month.

“The companies sued Cablevision, the nation’s sixth-largest cable TV provider, in U.S. District Court in New York on Wednesday, saying the service, known as a ‘network DVR,’ violated the companies’ copyrights.

“Cablevision announced in March that it would offer subscribers a way to retrieve recorded shows from the cable company’s system, rather than from a hard drive installed on a special set-top cable box.”

Gary Gentile. Cablevision Sued Over Planned DVR Service. BusinessWeek Online. May 25, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Google and Dell have agreed to a first in a series of deals to preinstall Web and desktop search software on the PC maker’s computers, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said.

“Speaking at a Goldman Sachs conference in Las Vegas, Schmidt discussed details of a long-rumored deal between the No. 1 search engine and the No. 1 PC maker, which is a strike against Google rival Microsoft. Under the deal, millions of Dell PCs will be loaded with the Google toolbar for Web and PC search, along with a co-branded home page, before they’re shipped to consumers.”

Stefanie Olsen and Tom Krazit. Dell Embraces Google. News.com. May 25, 2006.

Related Stories & Documents:

Maya Roney. Google-Dell Benefits Aren’t Free. Forbes.com. May 26, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Google and Dell have agreed to a first in a series of deals to preinstall Web and desktop search software on the PC maker’s computers, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said.

“Speaking at a Goldman Sachs conference in Las Vegas, Schmidt discussed details of a long-rumored deal between the No. 1 search engine and the No. 1 PC maker, which is a strike against Google rival Microsoft. Under the deal, millions of Dell PCs will be loaded with the Google toolbar for Web and PC search, along with a co-branded home page, before they’re shipped to consumers.”

Stefanie Olsen and Tom Krazit. Dell Embraces Google. News.com. May 25, 2006.

Related Stories & Documents:

Maya Roney. Google-Dell Benefits Aren’t Free. Forbes.com. May 26, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Applying traditional First Amendment protections to the exploding universe of online journalism, a state appeals court on Friday rejected Apple Computer’s bid to unearth the identities of individuals who leaked inside information on a new company product to bloggers.

“In a 69-page ruling, the San Jose-based 6th District Court of Appeal broke new ground by concluding that bloggers and Web masters enjoy the same protections against divulging confidential sources as established media organizations. Civil liberties groups and journalism organizations have argued that online journalists need to protect the confidentiality of sources just as much as traditional media, such as the New York Times and CNN.

“Apple triggered the closely watched case two years ago when the company went to court to pry loose the identities of individuals who leaked internal company documents on a new product called ‘Asteroid’ to three Web pages devoted to Apple-related news. Among other things, the plans for Asteroid, including an exact drawing of the yet-to-be released digital music device, were posted on a Web site called PowerPage, operated by Pennsylvania blogger Jason O’Grady.”

Howard Mintz. Apple Loses Case Against Bloggers. MercuryNews.com. May 27, 2006.

Related Stories & Documents:

Ellen Lee. Bloggers Can Shield Sources, Court Rules. SFGate.com. May 27, 2006.

Ars Technica. Apple Dealt Loss in Apple v. Does Trade Secret Case. May 27, 2006.

Court of Appeal of the State of California — Sixth Appellate District. Jason O’Grady et al. v. The Superior Court of Santa Clara County & Apple Computer Inc, (H028579) (.pdf) May 26, 2006.

Ina Fried and Declan McCullagh. Apple Thwarted in Bid to Unmask Leaker. News.com. May 26, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Furor and confusion over allegations that major phone companies have surrendered customer calling records to the National Security Agency continue to roil Washington. But if AT&T Inc. and possibly others have turned over records to the NSA, the phone giants represent only one of many commercial sources of personal data that the government seeks to “mine” for evidence of terrorist plots and other threats.

“The Departments of Justice, State, and Homeland Security spend millions annually to buy commercial databases that track Americans’ finances, phone numbers, and biographical information, according to a report last month by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. Often, the agencies and their contractors don’t ensure the data’s accuracy, the GAO found.”

BusinessWeek Online. The Snooping Goes Beyond Phone Calls. May 29, 2006.

Related Stories:

Robert O’Harrow Jr. Agencies Not Protecting Privacy Rights, GAO Says. WashingtonPost.com. April 5, 2006.

General Accounting Office. Personal Information: Agencies and Resellers Vary In Providing Privacy Protection (GAO-06-609T). (.pdf) April 4, 2006. (Abstract: “In fiscal year 2005, the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, and State and the Social Security Administration reported that they used personal information obtained from resellers for a variety of purposes, including performing criminal investigations, locating witnesses and fugitives, researching assets held by individuals of interest, and detecting prescription drug fraud. The agencies spent approximately $30 million on contractual arrangements with resellers that enabled the acquisition and use of such information. About 91 percent of the planned fiscal year 2005 spending was for law enforcement (69 percent) or counterterrorism (22 percent).”)

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.

“Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the Web, has called for clear separation between Internet access and Internet content. Speaking at the World Wide Web conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday morning, Berners-Lee gave his views on the growing battle over Net neutrality.

“Net neutrality is the concept that all Internet content should be treated equally by broadband providers without any kind of discrimination. It has become a hot political topic this year, especially in the U.S., amid fears that telephone companies may start blocking some Web sites or charge users extra to access them.

“Companies such as Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have been lobbying U.S. politicians to introduce laws that would make Net neutrality mandatory. These moves have been opposed by broadband providers and some hardware manufacturers.”

Jonathan Bennett. Berners-Lee Calls for Net Neutrality. News.com. May 23, 2006.

CopyCense™: The law, business, and technology of digital content. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.