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Controversial Internet Filter Proposal Could Severely Limit User Access

by Chaosmap on January 2, 2009

No Clean Feed
Image by trib via Flickr

What some are calling the “great Aussie Firewall” may make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among democratic countries if the measure is approved, reports Yahoo! Tech News.

The mandatory filter would block access to some 1,300 government prohibited sites, including sites that feature or advocate drug use, terrorism, child pornography, graphically excessive violence and other controversial issues/topics. Critics insist that this measure, if approved is nothing less than censorship and that the money would be better spent on raising awareness about the prohibited topics.

“The filter may not be able to in fact protect children from the core elements of the Internet that they are actually experiencing danger in, “ Holly Doel-Mackaway, an adviser with Save The Children, one of the world’s largest child advocacy groups, told Yahoo recently.

Australian Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, who proposed the filter, told the Associated Press via email that “this is not an argument about free speech.”

“We have laws about the sort of material that is acceptable across all mediums and the Internet is no different. Currently, some material is banned and we are simply seeking to use technology to ensure those bans are working.”

This proposed filter announcement comes in the wake of a recent historic ruling by Australian officials, which allowed a lawyer to serve a lien on behalf of his client via FaceBook.

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Google-Yahoo Search Advertising Deal Met With Protest From Major Advertisers

by Chaosmap on September 9, 2008

September 9, 2008 – search marketing news pick for the day:

A proposed search advertising deal between search engine giants Google and Yahoo has prompted some major national advertisers, including Wal-Mart, Pepsi, Ford, and Sara Lee to send a letter of protest to the U.S. Department of Justice.

According to ComputerWorld.com, the Association of National Advertisers—the group responsible for representing the corporations involved, the letter, sent to Assistant General Thomas Barnett is a result of a “comprehensive independent analysis of the deal, which under Yahoo Inc. would run advertising from Google Inc. alongside its search results.”

“A Google-Yahoo partnership will control 90% of search advertising inventory,” said ANA President and CEO Bob Liodice in a recent post on the ANA website.

 When asked for comment, Google’s senior manager of global communication and public affairs, Adam Kovacevich  released the following statement: “Numerous advertisers have recognized that this agreement will help them better match their ads to user’s interests, and that ad prices will continue to be set by competitive auction.”

The Justice Department is currently reviewing the proposed four-year deal, which would generate an estimated $250 to $50 million in operating cash flow during the first year and up to $800 million during subsequent years.

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