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au: Crikey, it's official | Small claims court for .co.za domains | za:
Domain name registrations: what is considered offensive or abusive? |
cn: Ministry recalls private domain name consisting of "Olympic torch"
| Movie Academy sues Oscarwatch Web site | Profiteers snap up shooting
domain names | Some Profit Off Va. Tech Domain Names | The Phisher King
| Cerf seeks acolytes to carry the ICANN torch | Vint Cerf Says: ICANN
Needs You!



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Don't forget to see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for regular updates in between postings.



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Criminal Checks Needed For Tasting, Kiting, Spying
http://ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=607&res=1024_ff&print=0

Apster - APNIC's newsletter for the Asia Pacific Internet community
http://www.apnic.net/docs/apster/index.html

hk: Views sought on domain name administration
http://news.gov.hk/en/category/infrastructureandlogistics/070504/html/070504en06011.htm

55,000 .iran and .ir domain names registered so far
http://payvand.com/news/07/may/1054.html

uk: Nominet board vote passes off without cockups
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/04/nominet_election_result_07/

'Squatters' nab names of victims for Web
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/115514

Mapping the Internet, one node at a time by Kim Davies
http://blog.icann.org/?p=115

Welcome to the Internet .ASIA
http://blog.icann.org/?p=119

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DOMAIN NAMES
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Criminal Checks Needed For Tasting, Kiting, Spying
International organisations should step in to prevent the ?tasting,? ?kiting? and ?spying? related to Internet domain names, say representatives from the US telecommunications and trademark industries. These new activities are dramatically altering online commerce and impacting legitimate businesses, and the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC), WIPO and ICANN should take action, they say. The US Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) had too many loopholes given the actual trends in the domain name secondary market, said Sarah Deutsch, vice president and associate general counsel for Verizon, and Marilyn Cade, former AT&T lobbyist and now consultant on Internet and technology issues.
http://ip-watch.org/weblog/index.php?p=607&res=1024_ff&print=0

Apster - APNIC's newsletter for the Asia Pacific Internet community
For those interested in internet developments in the Asia Pacific, issue 21 of Apster was published in February. Apster is the quarterly journal of APNIC, one of five Regional Internet Registries in the world. Issues covered include the Internet in Indonesia; an economic and social perspective on a future Internet - Geoff Huston?s view of a recent workshop held by the National Science Foundation and the OECD exploring possible futures for the Internet; AAAA in the roots - IPv6 and the DNS; and the installation of the Philippines? first root server and Philippine OpenIX - the economy?s first local common exchange point. For those interested in this edition of Apster, and the previous 20 issues dating back to 2001, go to:
http://www.apnic.net/docs/apster/index.html

hk: Views sought on domain name administration
Views are being sought on the administration of Internet domain names in Hong Kong. The Government Chief Information Officer's Office says the management and administration of ".hk" Internet domain names is undertaken by the non-statutory and non-profit making Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation.
http://news.gov.hk/en/category/infrastructureandlogistics/070504/html/070504en06011.htm

55,000 .iran and .ir domain names registered so far
Official in charge of .ir registrations at Theoretical Physics and Mathematics Research Center in Tehran said on Tuesday 55,000 .iran and .ir Internet domains have been registered in the country, according to Payvand's Iran News reports. Of the total, 2030 domains are .iran and the rest are .ir domains. The article notes "applicants can add a .iran suffix to their .ir domain name, so that they would not have to change their keyboards to one with Persian alphabet."
http://payvand.com/news/07/may/1054.html
http://taliyanews.com/en/archive/2007/05/55k_iran_ir_domains_registered.php

uk: Nominet board vote passes off without cockups
Nominet has elected two new non-executive directors to its influential board. At the not-for-profit's AGM in Manchester this week, Sebastian Lahtinen, who founded adslguide.org.uk (now thinkbroadband.com), and Angus Hanton, who runs a domain registrar, were granted the jobs.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/04/nominet_election_result_07/

Nominet 2007 Board election result
Nominet has announced the results of their 2007 Board election. Angus Hanton and Sebastien Lahtinen have been elected to serve on the Board of Nominet UK for a period of two years.
http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=3829

'Squatters' nab names of victims for Web
The families and friends of the victims of the Virginia Tech shootings are learning the hard way that the "com" in dot-com stands for "commercial." Not only have domain names related to the tragedy been bought by the dozens -- everything from vtmassacre.com to remember416.com -- but the names of the victims have as well.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/115514

Mapping the Internet, one node at a time by Kim Davies
In the foyer of the ICANN head office, Kim Davies reports they have hung on the walls a number of interesting maps of the Internet. There are various takes on displaying the Internet on charts and in diagrams. They range from the mind-bogglingly complex to the almost comically simple. One map of the Internet they have not hung on the wall, but derived amusement when passed around in email, was one person?s interpretation of IANA?s IPv4 address space registry. In this registry, IANA coordinates the IP address space - primarily by assigning large blocks to Regional Internet Registries for further allocation. Kim then goes on to write; ?given this, I got to thinking - what if we took the same algorithm used in the hand-drawn map, but plugged in the true allocation data and graphed it to a much more detailed level? After a little time spent fussing around?? well, you can see what he came up with, as well as the rest of the maps by going to:
http://blog.icann.org/?p=115

Welcome to the Internet .ASIA
The first gTLD located in Asia has been added to the root zone reports ICANN Blog. .ASIA was added to the root overnight (2 May), becoming the 16th gTLD under contract with ICANN to be delegated.
http://blog.icann.org/?p=119

IANA Report on the Delegation of the .ASIA Top-Level Domain
This report provides the findings and conclusions of the IANA on the delegation of the .ASIA TLD. ... Conclusion: Based on the foregoing evaluation, IANA concludes that the proposed delegation will promote service to the Internet community and will help assure the continued Internet interoperability through the global technical coordination that ICANN was created to provide. IANA concludes that the .ASIA sTLD should be established and delegated to DotAsia Organisation Limited.
http://www.iana.org/reports/asia-report-12apr2007.html

Domain Name with that Latte? Starbucks founder?s VC firm hedges its Internet bets.
Is Starbucks chairman and founder Howard Schultz a typosquatter? Or is he a typosquasher? Apparently, he?s both. Mr. Schultz, through his venture capital firm, has made a strategic investment decision that is rare, if not unprecedented. He put money into two companies with opposing missions: one that promotes so-called typosquatting, the buying of Internet domain names that closely resemble big brand names, and another that combats it.
http://redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=22184

Cannabis website wins dogfight over stealth jet brand
It can build aircraft that are invisible to enemy radar and travel at three times the speed of sound, but Lockheed Martin met its match when it took on a small shop in Bexleyheath that sells cannabis paraphernalia.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/law/article1749930.ece
http://upi.com/NewsTrack/Business/2007/05/05/smoke_shop_bests_lockheed_martin/
http://economie.moldova.org/stiri/eng/45981/

Netcraft May 2007 Web Server Survey
In the May 2007 survey we received responses from 118,023,363 sites, an increase of nearly 4.4 million sites from last month. The Internet has added 12.8 million web sites thus far in 2007, roughly on pace with growth in 2006, when the Web gained a record 30.9 million sites.
http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2007/05/01/may_2007_web_server_survey.html

Where You Can Get Domain Name Traffic
The traffic statistics a domain name attains is often one of the factors that will make or break a deal between the domain name seller and the domain name purchaser. Various websites on the Internet are set up for the purpose of allowing you to amass more traffic, but knowing which types of traffic you can acquire is just as important.   Missing out on a possible source of traffic, while it may not make an enormous difference, might be regrettable, as every hit makes your domain name that much more valuable.
http://domainnews360.com/2007/05/where-you-can-get-domain-name-traffic.html

Los Angeles Has Its Own Domain Name (news release)
LA Names and CentralNic, Ltd. have completed the transfer of the .LA domain name to the CentralNic system. Dot LA has been available as the domain name designation for Los Angeles since 2001 and is now available on a wide scale. This means that businesses and organizations can now register domains like "MyBusiness.LA" or "MyName.LA."
http://redorbit.com/news/technology/923153/los_angeles_has_its_own_domain_name/
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/070503/0244922.html
http://marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=244922

za: Domain On Demand
Internet Solutions has become the only network service provider in Africa with the power to register domains directly with ICANN.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200705030279.html

Late Breaking Domain Name Additions to Moniker's Silent Auction at the Casino Affiliate Convention Amsterdam 2007 (news release)
Moniker announced additional premium domain names that will be up for auction at the first online silent auction of gaming and casino industry domain names. The auction opened today as a part of the Casino Affiliate Convention 2007 (CAC 2007), in Amsterdam through May 5, at the NH Grand Krasnapolsky Hotel. The auction will continue after the conference is completed until Thursday, May 10.
http://www.pr-inside.com/late-breaking-domain-name-additions-to-r113995.htm
http://prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/05-03-2007/0004580689

Demand Media Sees Uptick In .TV Registrations
Santa Monica-based Demand Media said this afternoon that its recent release of .TV domain names resulted in $500K in .TV domain names sold in the first 24 hours.
http://socaltech.com/demand_media_sees_uptick_in_tv_registrations/s-0008938.html

Cobb.com Goes to Auction: Hot Domain Market Puts Venerable Name in Play (news release)
One of the oldest 'dot com' domain names, cobb.com, will go up for sale next week in an auction conducted by Sedo, a global leader in domain marketing. The auction commences 12PM EDT, May 7 (sedo.com).
http://prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/05-03-2007/0004580394
http://www.pr-inside.com/cobb-com-goes-to-auction-hot-domain-r113679.htm

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RESEARCH PAPERS
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A Typology of American Information and Communication Technology Users
Half of all American adults are only occasional users of modern information gadgetry, while 8% are avid participants in all that digital life has to offer
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/213/report_display.asp

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OTHER INTERNET NEWS
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Media - Free or Afraid?
The media is more diverse and free that at any time in the history of the world ? if you are a blogger. It is under extreme, often violent, pressure ? if you are a Russian journalist. That was the major faultline that emerged from a debate ? ?Is world press freedom in retreat?? ? held in London to mark World Press Freedom Day (3 May).
http://us.oneworld.net/article/view/148788/1/3319

us: Tighter restrictions on military blogs anger US soldiers
US troops in Iraq have reacted angrily to Pentagon restrictions aimed at curbing internet postings from war zones. The Pentagon cited the risk of providing sensitive information to insurgents. Blogs and emails from troops in the field can often be extraordinarily vivid and indiscreet. One last weekend from a soldier in Iraq advised a trooper in the US who was about to deploy in Iraq on ways to watch for and detect explosive devices planted by insurgents.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2072982,00.html

Web revolution forces ?censorship? site U-turn
Digg.com, one of the world?s most popular news websites, was forced to pull the plug after a massive revolt from its readers
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1739123.ece

In Web Uproar, Antipiracy Code Spreads Wildly
Does encryption of media files unfairly limit consumer freedom? Sophisticated Internet users have banded together over the last two days to publish and widely distribute a secret code used by the technology and movie industries to prevent piracy of high-definition movies. The broader distribution of the code may not pose a serious threat to the studios, because it requires some technical expertise and specialized software to use it to defeat the copy protection on Blu-ray and HD DVD discs. But its relentless spread has already become a lesson in mob power on the Internet and the futility of censorship in the digital world.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/technology/03code.html

Paedophiles use Skype ?loophole? to woo children
Internet chatrooms run by Skype have become a magnet for paedophiles and sexual predators who want to groom children as young as 10 for sex, an investigation has found. The software has become the preferred method for many paedophiles to find their victims. Other internet chat facilities have strengthened their child protection measures or closed down entirely because of concerns over internet ?grooming?.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article1752240.ece

au: Porn filters free from July
Content filtering software -- from five vendors -- is set to become freely available from July as part of the government's program to combat offensive online content.
http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Porn-filters-free-from-July/0,130061744,339275813,00.htm

uk: Modern life 'has turned children into loners'
Children are struggling to make friends at school because they spend too long playing computer games and listening to MP3 players, according to teachers. An increase in "solitary pastimes" has damaged children's social skills and fuelled feelings of loneliness among a generation of young people, they say. The findings, in a survey of primary teachers by Save The Children, come amid growing concerns that the toxic mix of modern life, including exposure to electronic entertainment, junk food and over-competitive schooling, is poisoning childhood.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/05/04/nkids04.xml

Save the Children Study Shows Primary School Children?s Ability To Make Friends Deteriorating across Britain (news release)
Childhood is often a time remembered by playground antics with friends, a knock about with a football, a game of hopscotch or a game of tag however recent research by Save the Children shows that many children?s experience of play and friendship in their early years is deteriorating. Save the Children conducted a study with primary school teachers across Britain; teachers who witness primary school children?s play and interaction with their peers on a daily basis.
http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/scuk/jsp/resources/details.jsp?id=5005

Google in talks with Belgian papers over links to articles
Google and the French-language newspapers of Belgium said Thursday that they had begun discussions aimed at defusing a legal battle over what content Google could index. The newspapers complained that the search engine's "cached" links, which show material that may have been taken off the Web by the site owner, offered free access to archived material that the papers normally sell.
http://iht.com/articles/2007/05/03/business/google.php
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/03/google_resumes_linking_belgium_newspaper_sites/

Google's Belgian broil cools (AP)
Belgian French-language newspapers were back on Google on Thursday after agreeing that the search engine can link to their websites, the first signs of a thaw in a bitter copyright dispute. But neither has so far settled on a key part of the dispute: the use of newspaper story links used on Google News.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/05/04/1177788351542.html
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BELGIUM_GOOGLE_VS_NEWSPAPERS

us: Net fosters terror: report
Extremist Islamic groups have come to value the internet so much for its ability to spread their message that some have said the keyboard is as important as a Kalashnikov rifle, a report for the US Congress says. The report, to be presented to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Thursday, says terrorists have increased their use of the internet to make their activities faster, cheaper and more secure. Use of the internet for communications, propaganda and research has grown to include recruitment and training, says the report prepared by a panel of experts brought together by George Washington University's Homeland Security Policy Institute and the University of Virginia's Critical Incident Analysis Group.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/05/03/1177788289491.html

Starbucks is among the targets of the phishing scam
Computer users have been warned of the dangers of using wi-fi hotspots after it emerged that cyber-criminals are targeting the networks in caf? chains including Starbucks. Times Online has uncovered evidence that criminals are using a technique known as an 'evil twin attack', where victims think that they are logging on to the genuine network in a caf? but are in fact being diverted to a 'rogue' connection.
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article1728634.ece

nz: E-Commerce And The Code For Consumer Protection (reg req'd)
Are you aware of your rights when buying or selling on the internet? Annabel Sheppard, an associate with the Christchurch Lawlink firm of Wynn Williams & Co, outlines some concerns and how the proposed Code for consumer protection will work.
http://mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=47790

Defiant Web users expose a 'secret' entertainment industry cipher
There is open revolt on the Web. Sophisticated Internet users have banded together over the last two days to publish and widely distribute a secret code used by the technology and movie industries to prevent piracy of high-definition movies. The broader distribution of the code may not pose a serious threat to the studios, because it requires some technical expertise and specialized software to use it to defeat the copy protection on Blu-ray and HD DVD discs. But its relentless spread has already become a lesson in mob power on the Internet and the futility of censorship in the digital world.
http://iht.com/articles/2007/05/03/business/code.php

au: Aussie girl stalked and threatened American Idol
A Melbourne cyber stalker who harassed and blackmailed an American Idol star walked from court yesterday. Tanya Maree Quattrocchi, 21, of Oak Park, was released on a community-based order and ordered to serve 150 hours of community service after she was convicted of stalking and blackmail.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,21675067-401,00.html

Got a wireless network? It?s Time to Shore Up Security (FBI news release)
Some words to the wise: if you have a wireless Internet or network connection, make sure you?ve got the best possible security measures in place. And don?t delay. Why? We?ve recently learned that the basic protection against intruders?Wireless Encryption Protocol, or WEP?is increasingly vulnerable to accomplished hackers.
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/may07/wireless050407.htm

us: Bills propose reporter's shield for bloggers
Bloggers engaged in journalistic pursuits would be granted immunity from divulging confidential sources under a new bill pending in both chambers of Congress.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6181531.html

U.S. to keep Internet gambling ban (Reuters)
The United States will maintain a ban on Internet gambling services despite an adverse World Trade Organization ruling, the U.S. Trade Representative's office said on Friday.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKWAT00742720070506

ITU Internet Report 2006: digital.life report
ITU Internet Report 2006: digital.life is the eighth in the series of "ITU Internet Reports" originally launched in 1997 by the International Telecom-munication Union. For previous titles in the series, such as "The Internet of Things" see the    homepage of the ITU Internet Reports. Written by a team of analysts from ITU's Strategy & Policy Unit (SPU), this eight edition of the ITU Internet Reports, entitled "digital.life", focuses on consumers and looks at how human lives are being continuously shaped and re-shaped by advances in digital technologies. The report begins by examining the underlying technologies for new digital lifestyles, from network infrastructure to value creation at the edges. In studying how businesses are adapting to fast-paced digital innovation, the report looks at how they can derive value in an environment driven by convergence at multiple levels. Moreover, a great challenge lies in extending access to underserved areas of the world. In light of
 media convergence, a fresh approach to policy-making may be required, notably in areas such as content, competition policy, and spectrum management. And as our lives become increasingly mediated by digital technologies, digital identities (both abstract and practical) take on a new dimension. Concerns over privacy and data protection do not seem to be sufficiently addressed by today's online environments. In this context, the report examines the changing digital individual, and outlines the need for improving the design of identity management mechanisms for a healthy and secure digital world.
http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/digitalife/

15% of Americans are ?off the network?!
A new report from Pew Internet & American Life Project has some disturbing statistics based on a survey of 4001 people on the state ? or otherwise ? of the connected union.
http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/11893/1103/

Online TV viewing 'on the rise' in Europe
Almost half of European broadband users are using their computers to watch television online, a survey claims. The ability to "take control" of their viewing was the motivation for many users said Motorola, which interviewed 2,500 people including the UK.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6617013.stm

Japanese find sleep, shelter in cyber cafes (Reuters)
Takeshi Yamashita does not look like a homeless person. From his carefully distressed jeans to his casual-cool navy striped T-shirt, he is every bit the trendy Tokyoite. Yet the 26-year-old has been sleeping in a reclining seat in an Internet cafe every night for the past month since he lost his steady office job and his apartment. It's cheaper than a hotel, offers access to the Internet and hundreds of Manga comic books, and even has a microwave and a shower where he can wash in the morning before heading off to one of his temporary jobs ranging from cleaning to basic office work.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKT34112620070507

Study Finds Europeans Dominate Second Life
Germans outnumber U.S. residents in popular virtual world, but U.S. growth rates are the highest, comScore reports.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,131578-c,games/article.html

Second Life Users Top 1.3 Million in March
Participants of the virtual-world Web site rose by 46 percent from January to March this year.
http://clickz.com/stats/sectors/demographics/article.php/3625769

comScore Finds that ?Second Life? Has a Rapidly Growing and Global Base of Active Residents: Germans Represent a Substantial Proportion of Second Life Residents (news release)
comScore released a comprehensive worldwide analysis of the active users of Second Life, the 3-D virtual world that is entirely built and owned by its ?residents.?  The study revealed that approximately 1.3 million people ran the official software and logged-in to Second Life in March 2007.  This represents an increase of 46 percent in the number of active residents from January 2007.
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=1425

Snowflakes promise faster chips
Chips could run faster and be more energy efficient thanks to a process from IBM that copies nature's creation of seashells and snowflakes.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6618919.stm

YouTube facing UK football lawsuit
The English Premier League is to sue YouTube for alleged copyright infringement. The football organisation said YouTube had "knowingly misappropriated" its intellectual property by encouraging footage to be viewed on its site.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6627135.stm

Microsoft and Yahoo enter talks to combat Google
Microsoft and Yahoo are in talks about a joint venture or some other form of cooperation as both companies continue to try to combat Google's pre-eminence in Internet advertising, people briefed on the discussions said Friday. The discussions are part of an ongoing dialogue that the two companies have been holding for more than a year, but are still in preliminary stages, these people say.
http://iht.com/articles/2007/05/04/business/msft.php

Microsoft weighs $50bn tilt at Yahoo!
Shares in Yahoo! jumped 18 per cent in pre-market trade in New York today on reports that Microsoft is once again weighing a bid for the embattled internet giant and has asked for formal talks to be renewed.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article1747293.ece

Microhoo? Web giants 'in merger talks' (AP)
Microsoft Corp is resuming its pursuit of search engine operator Yahoo Inc that could help it better compete with Web search leader Google Inc, published reports said on Friday. Yahoo shares surged more than 17 per cent in premarket trading.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/05/05/1177788416607.html

But then:
Microsoft-Yahoo talks no longer active
Friday's dramatic bounce in Yahoo's stock on reports of a deal with Microsoft - later discredited - reflects the pressure facing the third- and second-largest internet companies as they struggle to gain market share from Google.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/05/07/1178390184477.html

Online payments: A battle at the checkout
PayPal dominates electronic payments, but Google's growing checkout service may prove a vigorous challenger
http://economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9122582
 
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Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.

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(c) David Goldstein 2007


---------

David Goldstein
 address: 4/3 Abbott Street
           COOGEE NSW 2034
           AUSTRALIA
 email: Goldstein_David &#167;yahoo.com.au
 phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home)

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