Information Policy

Montenegro: New Telecommunications Regulator Lacks Independence

ARTICLE 19 is concerned that the regulator being proposed in a new draft Law on Electronic Communications for Montenegro "the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Services" lacks independence even though it would exercise significant regulatory powers over broadcasters. This is in clear breach of international standards and a significant rollback from the current situation, in which an independent Broadcast Agency is responsible for broadcast regulation.

The current Broadcasting Law, adopted in September 2002, establishes a best practice model for the appointment of the Broadcast Agency, responsible for licensing broadcasters and other key regulatory functions. A number of stakeholders nominate members of the oversight Agency Council, with appointments being ratified by the Parliament. In stark contrast, the current (February 2008) version of the draft Law, presently before Parliament, provides that members of the proposed Council of the Agency for Electronic Communications and Postal Services ⌠shall be appointed by the Government, upon the Ministry proposal■. It is very well-established under international law that bodies which exercise regulatory powers over the media should be protected against political interference. A body which is appointed by the government, upon the nomination of a minister, clearly does not meet this standard.

The precise relationship between the old Broadcast Agency and the new Agency is not clear. The draft Law provides for the new Agency to take over the assets and staff of the Broadcast Agency, but it does not appear formally to abolish the latter. It is clear, however, that the new Agency exercises significant regulatory powers in relation to broadcasting, including licensing and planning of the radio frequency spectrum.

ARTICLE 19 calls on the Government and Parliament of Montenegro to revise the draft Law to bring it into line with international standards. The approach taken in the current Broadcasting Law serves as a good model of how this might be done.

Bangkok offers 15,000 free Wi-Fi spots

The Thai capital will offer 500,000 people free Wi-Fi access starting Thursday, in a pilot project that will provide 15,000 hotspots for them to get online, Bangkok's municipal government said. The scheme is part of the city's drive to cut back on its energy use as officials hope residents will drive less if electronic communication becomes more convenient.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20080625/ttc-lifestyle-thailand-internet-214f919.html

Internet phone calls getting popular in European homes

An EU-wide survey of 27,000 households has revealed the emergence of new consumption patterns in telecoms services in Europe. Technological progress and competition have brought more choice to European consumers; 24% of households have given up their fixed telephone in favour of mobile phones while 22% of them are using their computer from home to make phone calls over the Internet. In an increasing number of Member States, European households are using wireless access to connect to the Internet, via mobile or satellite networks. Meanwhile, 29% of European households buy bundled telecoms and media packages, an increase of nearly 10% since last year. Nevertheless, the top priority for consumers in this fast evolving environment remains the quality of services.

http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1049&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

EU to Slash Mobile Termination Rates by 70%

The European Union (EU) has unveiled plans which could lead to a 70% drop in mobile termination rates, although the guidelines could also increase the cost of owning a phone. EU Information Society Commissioner, Viviane Reding said she plans to end big differences in mobile termination rates between EU states and cross-subsidies between mobile and fixed-line termination rates at some operators. Her proposals would edge Europe closer to the "bill and keep" pricing structure obtainable in the United States. Commenting further, EU Competition Commissioner, Neelie Kroes said the plans will eliminate distortions in competition between fixed and mobile operators: "Truly cost-oriented termination rates will increase competition to the benefit of consumers. Consumers should expect to pay lower retail prices as a result."

Regardless of the merits of the new proposal, any noticeable increase in the cost of owning mobiles for those with less disposable income is bound to elicit a torrent of complaints. Global Insight believes that if EU customers are asked to pay to receive calls, populism, coupled with the prevailing anti-EU mood across the region could become an issue.

http://communicationsdirectnews.com/do.php/130/31382

Staff internet policies must be Facebook-ready, warns expert

Dealing with staff who misbehave on the web may be hampered by office policies written without Web 2.0 sites in mind, an employment expert has said. The warning follows disciplinary action against 18 police officers who boasted about crashes on Facebook.

http://www.out-law.com/page-9204

E-commerce laws to be rewritten by European Commission

A new set of consumer contract laws to harmonise the rules that govern online selling across the EU will be proposed this autumn by the European Commission. The EU's consumer chief also promised fresh guidance on viral adverts and profiling technology.

Addressing a roundtable on digital issues in London on Friday, European Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva said that while e-commerce is succeeding at national level, cross-border e-commerce is failing to keep pace. The European Commission believes that simpler and better-harmonised consumer laws will boost the sector.

The results of EU surveys among 26,000 consumers and 7,200 businesses were announced by Kuneva on Friday. They show that while a third of the EU's 490 million consumers have bought something online, only seven percent have bought from foreign suppliers. Of those with web access at home, 56% have bought online; but only 13% have made a cross-border purchase.

"These figures underline how much work we still have to do to boost confidence in the online internal market," said Kuneva.

The surveys, conducted this year, also suggest that fewer retailers are selling online. Fifty-one percent of EU retailers sell via the internet – down from 57% in 2006. Retailers said that only 17% of their e-commerce revenue stems from cross-border sales.

Kuneva said that the Commission is working to remove regulatory barriers to cross-border trade and is planning a new set of consumer contract laws.

"This Autumn, the Commission will bring forward proposals for a single framework consumer contract law for Europe's Internal Market," she said. "Currently, we have a jungle of complex laws which have evolved piecemeal over the last 20 years. The result in practice is a maze of different rights and practices, from cooling off periods to guarantees that are as unclear to consumers as they are confusing for business."

http://www.out-law.com/page-9208

A Look Inside Wikipedia's Infrastructure

In an era when Google and Microsoft can spend a half-billion dollars on one of their global data center projects, Wikipedia runs on fewer than 300 servers from a single data center in Tampa, Fla. It also has servers in Amsterdam at the AMS-IX peering exchange.

http://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2008/Jun/24/a_look_inside_wikipedias_infrastructure.html

Indonesian Electronic Information And Transaction Bill Of March 2008

Kelly O'Connell, IBLS Editorial Department

Indonesia has recently passed a bill covering the Internet that focuses upon both web content and business transactions, although the Government admitted one goal of the new legislation was to “block porn sites.” Clamor from some circles for the Government to crack down upon lewd websites is stronger in Indonesia than in the West, given its majority Muslim population and their official emphasis on decency. A former Dutch colony, Indonesia is the world's most expansive archipelagic state and contains the world's largest Islamic population.

This large Asian country is considered an up and coming economic power, having thrown off decades of corrupt tyranny and the mismanagement of state industries and related mis-development of key resources. With 18% living in poverty and 10% unemployed, Indonesia needs years of strong growth to seriously address jobs growth. Indonesia is located in southeastern Asia, radiating an archipelago between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Indonesia is about three times the size of Texas and has about 235 million residents. These questions will be answered about the new law: What Does the Bill Say About Consumer Protection?; What About Cyber Squatting?; What Are the Rules on Electronic Contracts?; How Does the Law Define Offences of Cyber-Crime?; What Are the Punishments for Cyber-Crimes?

The Electronic Information and Electronic Transaction Bill is a wide-ranging text covering extensive subject matter from e-contract to e-signature, from privacy and personal data to cyber-squatting and intellectual property rights, and from cyber-crimes to consumer protection. But the Bill does not give detailed explanation of law except upon cyber-crime, e-contract and related aspects. For other subject matters, the Bill states they will be governed by subsidiary regulations. A main theme of the law is an electronic “Right of Privacy” in electronic realms, the notion of which is seriously impacted by the Government's plan to closely monitor content and an inherent threat of serious sanctions to law-breakers. Article 25(b) sums up the dilemma, “Privacy right is the right to communicate with any other person without any act of investigation.”

http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=7C5C330A-BCAF-4BC1-A4F5-65D8D008F2A6

United States: Cybercrime

Cyber Crime Training Collaboration With The National Center For Justice And The Rule Of Law

As today's technology-driven world provides a new arena for criminals and other unscrupulous actors, the Cyber Crime Project works to provide the necessary training and technical assistance to prosecutors in Attorney General Offices to enable them to successfully investigate and prosecute computer-based crimes. Funded through a cooperative effort between NAAG and the National Center for Justice and the Rule of Law at the University of Mississippi, the Project develops and conducts training seminars throughout the year at the University. Hedda Litwin, NAAG"s Cyber Crime and Violence Against Women Counsel, is responsible for the trainings. As of year end 2005, over 415 prosecutors from Attorneys General offices have attended the trainings. The Project also produces a Cyber Crime e-newsletter for prosecutors six times a year.

The first training, held on February 3-5, 2003, was designed to be a basic "nuts and bolts" course. An advisory committee of prosecutors with experience in cyber crime participated in the development of the three-day agenda, which included sessions on practical issues in computer search and seizure, forensics tools, identity theft and strategies for fighting online child exploitation.

The second basic cyber crime training for state prosecutors was held on May 6-8, 2003. In addition to the topics described above, the training included an expanded session on the psychology of the online predator and a session on the Internet Fraud Complaint Center.

An advanced cyber crime training was held on September 9-11, 2003 for prosecutors who had attended the basic cyber crime training or who had considerable experience with computer crimes. The training utilized a case scenario; session presenters then took that case from investigation and search warrant presentation through trial.

A specialized advanced cyber crime training, focusing on hacking, computer intrusion and computer virus crimes, was held on March 2-4, 2004. Among the topics covered were: ILook and other investigative tools, essentials of wiretaps, and assessment and recovery of damages. The course also featured a presentation by Microsoft on working with law enforcement to identify hackers and virus distributors. This training also included a CLE ethics component.

A Digital Evidence for Prosecutors training was held on September 21-23, 2004, focusing on prosecuting cases with digital evidence. This was the first training to feature a hands-on component as well. Topics covered during the course included chat and instant messaging, e-mail tracing, forensics, obtaining records from ISPs and peer-to-peer networks. The keynote speaker was former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno, and the keynote dinner speaker was Hany Farid, an expert on digital tampering, of Dartmouth.

An Advanced Training on Internet Auction Fraud was held on November 16-18, 2004 and again featured hands-on exercises. Among the many presenters were Jack Christin, Jr., Trust and Safety Counsel for eBay, and Elizabeth Banker, Associate General Counsel for Compliance at Yahoo. The keynote speaker was Howard Schmidt, Vice President and Chief Security Officer for eBay, and the speaker at the welcome dinner was John Malcolm, Senior Vice President and Director of World Wide Piracy Operations at the Motion Picture Association of America.

An Advanced Training on Search and Seizure of Computers and Obtaining of Electronic Evidence was held in conjunction with NCJRL''''s Fourth Amendment Symposium on February 15-17, 2005. Speaking at the Symposium were Professors Orin Kerr of George Washington University School of Law, Susan Brenner of the University of Dayton School of Law and Christopher Slobogin of the University of Florida School of Law. Patrick Corbett, Professor of Law at Thomas M. Cooley Law School, was the keynote speaker at the welcome dinner.

Another Basic Cyber Crime Training was held on May 3-5, 2005. It included a panel on common pitfalls and prosecution issues in computer-related cases, as well as a presentation on spam and phishing by Microsoft attorney Aaron Kornblum.

In response to the growing emphasis on preventing identity theft crimes, a training on Computer-Facilitated Identity Theft was held on November 1-3, 2005. Among the speakers were Joanna Crane, Manager of the Identity Theft Program at the Federal Trade Commission and Victor Lee, a consultant with the International Biometric Group. The program also featured a discussion of the Ohio Attorney General's passport program, presented by Robin McGuire Rose of that office.

http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=sa&id=1294

Sarkozy confirms telecoms tax to fund public TV

Advertising on French public television will be phased out starting next year and the funding made up through a levy on telecoms operators and private broadcasters, President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday. The plans, which have been criticised by telecoms operators and the European Union, are part of a wider overhaul of the sprawling French public broadcasting system proposed by a special parliamentary commission appointed in February. Under the proposals announced by Sarkozy, advertising on public television would not be allowed after 8:00 p.m. starting Jan 1, 2009, and would be banned entirely from December 2011. The move will create a giant funding gap for the four main channels controlled by France Televisions, which raised EUR 834m from advertising and sponsorship in 2006, almost one-third of its total revenue. Sarkozy said fixed and mobile telecoms operators, which increasingly offer television-style content to Internet users, would be taxed at 0.9 percent of sales, a move he said would raise up to EUR 380m. Telecoms operators and European Union authorities say the tax will hurt investment in a key strategic sector. As well as reforming the funding of public television, the plan would also give the government the power to appoint the head of France Televisions, who has previously been appointed by the CSA, an independent audiovisual supervisory body. Culture Minister Christine Albanel denied that the move threatened the independence of the public broadcasters.

http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSL2560119920080625?sp=true