What happens to your digital life, if you die? Most of us now live two lives, one in our actual world and the other in the virtual. When we die, our physical existence might come to an end, but the virtual presence lingers on. But what happens to all the content we have created online, our online accounts, our virtual transactions? What happens to stuff we have stored in the cloud and, unknowingly, in servers across the globe? Blogs, photos, financial accounts Like all creative products, literary writings, research notes, photographs, etc, that are created online will pass on to the legal heir of the deceased. There is, however, no specific law in India on this, but they are seen as intellectual property and treated likewise. Similarly, legal heirs have the right to access bank accounts and online records with, say, the Income Tax Department. Companies will have first right to stuff lying in official email services and servers. Facebook When a user passes away, Facebook gives their friends and relatives the option of memorialising their account to protect privacy. "Memorialising an account sets the account privacy so that only confirmed friends can see the profile (Timeline) or locate it in search. Friends and family can leave posts in remembrance. Memorialising an account also prevents anyone from logging into the account," says the Facebook blog. Facebook does not divulge the login details of the account to anyone, but "verified immediate family members" can request the removal of any Facebook account if they do not want to get it memorialised. Google Google has launched an inactive account manager feature that can be used as a digital will. Google is asking people what they want to happen to their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings in case they die or become incapacitated. The Google Inactive Account Manager is not available for Google users with Google Apps accounts. Google says the service is is only available for Google accounts. Yahoo Email accounts of Yahoo are automatically deleted if it stays dormat for over four months. Yahoo will also close the account if a copy of the death certificate is emailed to cc-advoc@yahoo-inc.com. ... AND WHAT OTHERS DO Microsoft-MSN Account data on email or any other MSN service is transferred to legal heir after death if verified and preserved till that time. eBay All data of the user on the buy-sell website is deleted if death certificate is faxed to company. LinkedIn Account is closed if death verification form is filled. Flickr Account is terminated and photographs and content permanently deleted if copy of death certificate is provided. Evernote Evernote does not provide any details regarding the accounts of deceased users. Foursquare Foursquare does not provide any details regarding accounts of deceased users. Orkut Profile removed if death certificate is uploaded and an online form completed. PayPal If a death is reported, the account will be closed and a cheque made out to the account holder is issued to the legal heir. Twitter Account closed if request is received.

What happens to your digital life, if you die? Most of us now live two lives, one in our actual world and the other in the virtual. When we die, our physical existence might come to an end, but the virtual presence lingers on. But what happens to all the content we have created online, our online accounts, our virtual transactions? What happens to stuff we have stored in the cloud and, unknowingly, in servers across the globe? Blogs, photos, financial accounts Like all creative products, literary writings, research notes, photographs, etc, that are created online will pass on to the legal heir of the deceased. There is, however, no specific law in India on this, but they are seen as intellectual property and treated likewise. Similarly, legal heirs have the right to access bank accounts and online records with, say, the Income Tax Department. Companies will have first right to stuff lying in official email services and servers. Facebook When a user passes away, Facebook gives their friends and relatives the option of memorialising their account to protect privacy. "Memorialising an account sets the account privacy so that only confirmed friends can see the profile (Timeline) or locate it in search. Friends and family can leave posts in remembrance. Memorialising an account also prevents anyone from logging into the account," says the Facebook blog. Facebook does not divulge the login details of the account to anyone, but "verified immediate family members" can request the removal of any Facebook account if they do not want to get it memorialised. Google Google has launched an inactive account manager feature that can be used as a digital will. Google is asking people what they want to happen to their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings in case they die or become incapacitated. The Google Inactive Account Manager is not available for Google users with Google Apps accounts. Google says the service is is only available for Google accounts. Yahoo Email accounts of Yahoo are automatically deleted if it stays dormat for over four months. Yahoo will also close the account if a copy of the death certificate is emailed to cc-advoc@yahoo-inc.com. ... AND WHAT OTHERS DO Microsoft-MSN Account data on email or any other MSN service is transferred to legal heir after death if verified and preserved till that time. eBay All data of the user on the buy-sell website is deleted if death certificate is faxed to company. LinkedIn Account is closed if death verification form is filled. Flickr Account is terminated and photographs and content permanently deleted if copy of death certificate is provided. Evernote Evernote does not provide any details regarding the accounts of deceased users. Foursquare Foursquare does not provide any details regarding accounts of deceased users. Orkut Profile removed if death certificate is uploaded and an online form completed. PayPal If a death is reported, the account will be closed and a cheque made out to the account holder is issued to the legal heir. Twitter Account closed if request is received.

What happens to your digital life, if you die? Most of us now live two lives, one in our actual world and the other in the virtual. When we die, our physical existence might come to an end, but the virtual presence lingers on. But what happens to all the content we have created online, our online accounts, our virtual transactions? What happens to stuff we have stored in the cloud and, unknowingly, in servers across the globe? Blogs, photos, financial accounts Like all creative products, literary writings, research notes, photographs, etc, that are created online will pass on to the legal heir of the deceased. There is, however, no specific law in India on this, but they are seen as intellectual property and treated likewise. Similarly, legal heirs have the right to access bank accounts and online records with, say, the Income Tax Department. Companies will have first right to stuff lying in official email services and servers. Facebook When a user passes away, Facebook gives their friends and relatives the option of memorialising their account to protect privacy. "Memorialising an account sets the account privacy so that only confirmed friends can see the profile (Timeline) or locate it in search. Friends and family can leave posts in remembrance. Memorialising an account also prevents anyone from logging into the account," says the Facebook blog. Facebook does not divulge the login details of the account to anyone, but "verified immediate family members" can request the removal of any Facebook account if they do not want to get it memorialised. Google Google has launched an inactive account manager feature that can be used as a digital will. Google is asking people what they want to happen to their digital photos, documents and other virtual belongings in case they die or become incapacitated. The Google Inactive Account Manager is not available for Google users with Google Apps accounts. Google says the service is is only available for Google accounts. Yahoo Email accounts of Yahoo are automatically deleted if it stays dormat for over four months. Yahoo will also close the account if a copy of the death certificate is emailed to cc-advoc@yahoo-inc.com. ... AND WHAT OTHERS DO Microsoft-MSN Account data on email or any other MSN service is transferred to legal heir after death if verified and preserved till that time. eBay All data of the user on the buy-sell website is deleted if death certificate is faxed to company. LinkedIn Account is closed if death verification form is filled. Flickr Account is terminated and photographs and content permanently deleted if copy of death certificate is provided. Evernote Evernote does not provide any details regarding the accounts of deceased users. Foursquare Foursquare does not provide any details regarding accounts of deceased users. Orkut Profile removed if death certificate is uploaded and an online form completed. PayPal If a death is reported, the account will be closed and a cheque made out to the account holder is issued to the legal heir. Twitter Account closed if request is received.

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:: Google Augmented Reality Glasses Arriving Soon!! :: The 9to5 Google website has revealed this week that Google’s new augmented reality glasses could be arriving very soon. Providing users that wear the new “Google Goggles” as they have been dubbed. Information as they walk along provided by Google location services and Google’s stored information. A source has now revealed to the 9to5Google website that the new Google glasses look similar to Oakleys Thumps glasses and are equipped with a front a facing camera. Inside the glass lens there will be a heads up display (HUD) which is located in front of one eye and provides relevant information at your current location. The source also suggests that the I/O on the glasses will also include voice input and output, and hardware is near the equivalent of a generation-old Android smartphone, with CPU, Memory and storage provided onboard the glasses. “They are in late prototype stages of wearable glasses that look similar to thick-rimmed glasses that “normal people” wear. However, these provide a display with a heads up computer interface. There are a few buttons on the arms of the glasses, but otherwise, they could be mistaken for normal glasses. Additionally, we are not sure of the technology being employed here, but it is likely a transparent LCD or AMOLED display such as the one demonstrated below: In addition, we have heard that this device is not an “Android peripheral” as the NYT stated. According to our source, it communicates directly with the Cloud over IP. Although, the “Google Goggles” could use a phone’s Internet connection, through Wi-Fi or a low power Bluetooth 4.0. The use-case is augmented reality that would tie into Google’s location services. A user can walk around with information popping up and into display based on preferences, location and Google’s information. Therefore, these things likely connect to the Internet and have GPS. They also likely run a version of Android.”Unfortunately no information on pricing or worldwide availability has been released as yet. Source:- Geeky-gadgets

:: Google Augmented Reality Glasses Arriving Soon!! :: The 9to5 Google website has revealed this week that Google’s new augmented reality glasses could be arriving very soon. Providing users that wear the new “Google Goggles” as they have been dubbed. Information as they walk along provided by Google location services and Google’s stored information. A source has now revealed to the 9to5Google website that the new Google glasses look similar to Oakleys Thumps glasses and are equipped with a front a facing camera. Inside the glass lens there will be a heads up display (HUD) which is located in front of one eye and provides relevant information at your current location. The source also suggests that the I/O on the glasses will also include voice input and output, and hardware is near the equivalent of a generation-old Android smartphone, with CPU, Memory and storage provided onboard the glasses. “They are in late prototype stages of wearable glasses that look similar to thick-rimmed glasses that “normal people” wear. However, these provide a display with a heads up computer interface. There are a few buttons on the arms of the glasses, but otherwise, they could be mistaken for normal glasses. Additionally, we are not sure of the technology being employed here, but it is likely a transparent LCD or AMOLED display such as the one demonstrated below: In addition, we have heard that this device is not an “Android peripheral” as the NYT stated. According to our source, it communicates directly with the Cloud over IP. Although, the “Google Goggles” could use a phone’s Internet connection, through Wi-Fi or a low power Bluetooth 4.0. The use-case is augmented reality that would tie into Google’s location services. A user can walk around with information popping up and into display based on preferences, location and Google’s information. Therefore, these things likely connect to the Internet and have GPS. They also likely run a version of Android.”Unfortunately no information on pricing or worldwide availability has been released as yet. Source:- Geeky-gadgets

:: Google Augmented Reality Glasses Arriving Soon!! :: The 9to5 Google website has revealed this week that Google’s new augmented reality glasses could be arriving very soon. Providing users that wear the new “Google Goggles” as they have been dubbed. Information as they walk along provided by Google location services and Google’s stored information. A source has now revealed to the 9to5Google website that the new Google glasses look similar to Oakleys Thumps glasses and are equipped with a front a facing camera. Inside the glass lens there will be a heads up display (HUD) which is located in front of one eye and provides relevant information at your current location. The source also suggests that the I/O on the glasses will also include voice input and output, and hardware is near the equivalent of a generation-old Android smartphone, with CPU, Memory and storage provided onboard the glasses. “They are in late prototype stages of wearable glasses that look similar to thick-rimmed glasses that “normal people” wear. However, these provide a display with a heads up computer interface. There are a few buttons on the arms of the glasses, but otherwise, they could be mistaken for normal glasses. Additionally, we are not sure of the technology being employed here, but it is likely a transparent LCD or AMOLED display such as the one demonstrated below: In addition, we have heard that this device is not an “Android peripheral” as the NYT stated. According to our source, it communicates directly with the Cloud over IP. Although, the “Google Goggles” could use a phone’s Internet connection, through Wi-Fi or a low power Bluetooth 4.0. The use-case is augmented reality that would tie into Google’s location services. A user can walk around with information popping up and into display based on preferences, location and Google’s information. Therefore, these things likely connect to the Internet and have GPS. They also likely run a version of Android.”Unfortunately no information on pricing or worldwide availability has been released as yet. Source:- Geeky-gadgets

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:: Facebook challenge: Cashing in on mobile devices :: Lots of people love their cellphones. Facebook, so far, is not a big fan. Amid the jaw-dropping financial figures the company revealed last week when it filed for a public offering was an interesting admission. Although more than half of its 845 million members log into Facebook on a mobile device, the company has not yet found a way to make real money from that use. "We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven," the company said in its review of the risks it faces. In a world that is rapidly moving toward an era of mobile computing, this is a troubling issue for Silicon Valley's brightest star - particularly since much of Facebook's growth right now is in countries like Chile, Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil, where people largely have access to the Internet using cellphones. Facebook is not the only company struggling to translate the success of its website to mobile devices, where screen space is at a premium and people have little patience for clutter or slow loading times. It is a problem that plagues companies as diverse as news publishers and the streaming radio service Pandora, and it is likely to loom larger. There were more global shipments of smartphones than of personal computers in 2011, according to a recent report from Canalys, a research firm. But the issue seems particularly urgent in the case of Facebook, which is wildly popular among its users and is seen as a company of the future, a hybrid of social hub and information conduit, platform and publisher. In other words, if Facebook cannot figure it out, who can? Facebook brings in most of its revenue by selling space on its website to advertisers who want to reach its users. Overall spending on mobile advertising in the United States is expected to reach $2.6 billion this year, up 80 percent from $1.45 billion in 2011, according to research by eMarketer. But that will still be just a sliver of what is likely to be a $39.5 billion online advertising market. Google, a Facebook competitor on the Web, was the biggest player in the mobile ad market last year with about $750 million in revenue, and Apple came in second with more than $90 million, eMarketer says. "It's still immature when compared to online, print and TV advertising," said Noah Elkin, an analyst with eMarketer. "But it's growing at a faster pace, even though its revenues are still dwarfed by the other formats." If Facebook were to bring Zynga's games to its iPhone and iPad apps, for example, it would have to share that revenue with Apple, which requires app makers to hand over 30 percent of their proceeds. Google puts no such restrictions on apps for devices running its Android software, but given the increasing rivalry between Facebook and Google in social networking, Facebook is not in full control of its destiny there either. Source - Gesia

:: Facebook challenge: Cashing in on mobile devices :: Lots of people love their cellphones. Facebook, so far, is not a big fan. Amid the jaw-dropping financial figures the company revealed last week when it filed for a public offering was an interesting admission. Although more than half of its 845 million members log into Facebook on a mobile device, the company has not yet found a way to make real money from that use. "We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven," the company said in its review of the risks it faces. In a world that is rapidly moving toward an era of mobile computing, this is a troubling issue for Silicon Valley's brightest star - particularly since much of Facebook's growth right now is in countries like Chile, Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil, where people largely have access to the Internet using cellphones. Facebook is not the only company struggling to translate the success of its website to mobile devices, where screen space is at a premium and people have little patience for clutter or slow loading times. It is a problem that plagues companies as diverse as news publishers and the streaming radio service Pandora, and it is likely to loom larger. There were more global shipments of smartphones than of personal computers in 2011, according to a recent report from Canalys, a research firm. But the issue seems particularly urgent in the case of Facebook, which is wildly popular among its users and is seen as a company of the future, a hybrid of social hub and information conduit, platform and publisher. In other words, if Facebook cannot figure it out, who can? Facebook brings in most of its revenue by selling space on its website to advertisers who want to reach its users. Overall spending on mobile advertising in the United States is expected to reach $2.6 billion this year, up 80 percent from $1.45 billion in 2011, according to research by eMarketer. But that will still be just a sliver of what is likely to be a $39.5 billion online advertising market. Google, a Facebook competitor on the Web, was the biggest player in the mobile ad market last year with about $750 million in revenue, and Apple came in second with more than $90 million, eMarketer says. "It's still immature when compared to online, print and TV advertising," said Noah Elkin, an analyst with eMarketer. "But it's growing at a faster pace, even though its revenues are still dwarfed by the other formats." If Facebook were to bring Zynga's games to its iPhone and iPad apps, for example, it would have to share that revenue with Apple, which requires app makers to hand over 30 percent of their proceeds. Google puts no such restrictions on apps for devices running its Android software, but given the increasing rivalry between Facebook and Google in social networking, Facebook is not in full control of its destiny there either. Source - Gesia

:: Facebook challenge: Cashing in on mobile devices :: Lots of people love their cellphones. Facebook, so far, is not a big fan. Amid the jaw-dropping financial figures the company revealed last week when it filed for a public offering was an interesting admission. Although more than half of its 845 million members log into Facebook on a mobile device, the company has not yet found a way to make real money from that use. "We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven," the company said in its review of the risks it faces. In a world that is rapidly moving toward an era of mobile computing, this is a troubling issue for Silicon Valley's brightest star - particularly since much of Facebook's growth right now is in countries like Chile, Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil, where people largely have access to the Internet using cellphones. Facebook is not the only company struggling to translate the success of its website to mobile devices, where screen space is at a premium and people have little patience for clutter or slow loading times. It is a problem that plagues companies as diverse as news publishers and the streaming radio service Pandora, and it is likely to loom larger. There were more global shipments of smartphones than of personal computers in 2011, according to a recent report from Canalys, a research firm. But the issue seems particularly urgent in the case of Facebook, which is wildly popular among its users and is seen as a company of the future, a hybrid of social hub and information conduit, platform and publisher. In other words, if Facebook cannot figure it out, who can? Facebook brings in most of its revenue by selling space on its website to advertisers who want to reach its users. Overall spending on mobile advertising in the United States is expected to reach $2.6 billion this year, up 80 percent from $1.45 billion in 2011, according to research by eMarketer. But that will still be just a sliver of what is likely to be a $39.5 billion online advertising market. Google, a Facebook competitor on the Web, was the biggest player in the mobile ad market last year with about $750 million in revenue, and Apple came in second with more than $90 million, eMarketer says. "It's still immature when compared to online, print and TV advertising," said Noah Elkin, an analyst with eMarketer. "But it's growing at a faster pace, even though its revenues are still dwarfed by the other formats." If Facebook were to bring Zynga's games to its iPhone and iPad apps, for example, it would have to share that revenue with Apple, which requires app makers to hand over 30 percent of their proceeds. Google puts no such restrictions on apps for devices running its Android software, but given the increasing rivalry between Facebook and Google in social networking, Facebook is not in full control of its destiny there either. Source - Gesia

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:: All that happened on Internet Blackout Day :: January 18 - Internet Blackout Day - is a date that will live in ignorance, as the world's largest encyclopaedia Wikipedia started a 24-hour blackout of the English version of the website. Wikipedia joined other big and small websites in a protest against pending US legislation aimed at shutting down sites that share pirated movies and other content. Wikipedia and other proponents of a free Internet believe that if Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) are passed it "will harm the free and open Internet and bring about new tools for censorship of international websites inside the United States." It is the first time the English site has been blacked out. Wikipedia's Italian site came down once briefly in protest to an Internet censorship bill put forward by the Berlusconi government. The bill did not advance. The decision was reached after polling the community of contributors, but dissenters say political advocacy undermines the site's mission as a neutral source. However, it's not complete: the block could be bypassed by changing browser settings to disable JavaScript, or by using the version of the site designed for cellphone screens. Unlike Wikipedia, Google didn't black out its entire website but only its logo, reminiscent of the doodles that the search engine giant puts up to commemorate special occasions. Google also directed users to a page titled "End Piracy, Not Liberty" that put together information on why SOPA and the PIPA are wrong and users could also add their names to a petition against the bills. "Like many businesses, entrepreneurs and Web users, we oppose these bills because there are smart, targeted ways to shut down foreign rogue websites without asking American companies to censor the Internet," said a Google spokeswoman. The legislation being debated in the US Congress target foreign websites that violate copyrights online by banning US companies from providing them with advertising, payment or other Internet services. The Internet companies are concerned that the legislation, if passed, could be used to target legitimate sites where users share content. US payment processors and advertisers would have to end service to foreign websites that copyright holders say are infringing their rights, or be liable to be sued. Search engines and Internet companies would be banned from providing links to infringing sites. Critics of the proposed legislation argue that the proposals would stifle Internet innovation and online freedom, a key driver of US and global economic growth. The White House raised concerns over the weekend, pledging to work with Congress to battle piracy and counterfeiting while defending free expression, privacy and innovation in the Internet. The administration signalled it might use its veto power, if necessary. With public sentiment on the bill shifting in recent weeks and an implicit veto threat now emerging from the White House, Congressional staffers are resigning themselves to writing replacement language or possibly entirely new bills. Three key section of the existing legislation seem likely to remain. They comprise provisions aimed at getting search engines to disable links to foreign infringing sites; provisions that cut off advertising services to those sites; and provisions that cut off payment processing. But critical provisions that would require Internet service providers such as Verizon Communications and Comcast Corp. to cut off infringing sites through a technology known as DNS blocking are now likely to be eliminated. Critics have said that such measures would only encourage people to navigate the web in riskier ways, with modified browsers or other tweaks that could lead to their Internet sessions getting hijacked by scammers. Lawmakers had already been coming around to the realisation they would have to hold back on the DNS-blocking provisions. Supporters of the bills include movie and music companies such as Walt Disney, content providers such as the National Football League and News Corp., pharmaceutical companies such as Eli Lilly, and the US Chamber of Commerce. They argue the bills' sweeping provisions are necessary to shutter the burgeoning numbers of foreign-based cybercrime sites that sell counterfeit goods, pirated software or fake pharmaceuticals, or stream copyrighted content like music and movies. Reddit.com shut down its social news service for 12 hours. Other sites made their views clear without cutting off surfers. Wordpress, one of the world's most popular blogging platforms, also put its weight behind the protests by blacking out the homepage of Wordpress.org. Thousands of Wordpress-powered blogs also joined in using one of the many SOPA Blackout plugins made available by developers. Local listings site Craiglist took a middle route, changing its local home pages to a black screen directing users to an anti-legislation page. After 10 seconds, a link to the main site appears on the home page, but some surfers missed that and were fooled into thinking the whole site was blacked out. Topics related to the Internet Blackout Day dominated the top Twitter trends on Wednesday, but the protest did not get Twitter itself getting involved in a direct role. "Closing a global business in reaction to single-issue national politics is foolish," Twitter CEO Dick Costolo tweeted, but he followed up with a Tweet stating the company will continue to take an active role in opposing the bills. That position of criticising the bills, but sitting out the blackout is echoed by many big tech companies, including several who wrote to Congress in November to complain about the legislation, such as AOL Inc, eBay Inc, Mozilla and Zynga Inc. "We are not adjusting the consumer experience on our properties tomorrow, but we will be helping to drive awareness of key issues around these bills to our users," said Tekedra Mawakana, senior vice president for public policy at AOL. In November, a number of technology companies wrote to key lawmakers expressing opposition to the bill, including eBay, Facebook, Google, Twitter and Mozilla. Supporters of the bill were quick to attack the protests. "This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts," said Lamar Smith, chairman of the US House Judiciary Committee and a sponsor of SOPA. "Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy." Former US senator Chris Dodd, who now chairs the Motion Picture Association of America, labelled the blackout a "gimmick" and called for its supporters to "stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy." Internet Blackout Day got thousands of websites to participate and generated public discussion and succeeded in attracting the attention of lawmakers and industry leaders backing the bills. Source:- ibnlive.com

:: All that happened on Internet Blackout Day :: January 18 - Internet Blackout Day - is a date that will live in ignorance, as the world's largest encyclopaedia Wikipedia started a 24-hour blackout of the English version of the website. Wikipedia joined other big and small websites in a protest against pending US legislation aimed at shutting down sites that share pirated movies and other content. Wikipedia and other proponents of a free Internet believe that if Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) are passed it "will harm the free and open Internet and bring about new tools for censorship of international websites inside the United States." It is the first time the English site has been blacked out. Wikipedia's Italian site came down once briefly in protest to an Internet censorship bill put forward by the Berlusconi government. The bill did not advance. The decision was reached after polling the community of contributors, but dissenters say political advocacy undermines the site's mission as a neutral source. However, it's not complete: the block could be bypassed by changing browser settings to disable JavaScript, or by using the version of the site designed for cellphone screens. Unlike Wikipedia, Google didn't black out its entire website but only its logo, reminiscent of the doodles that the search engine giant puts up to commemorate special occasions. Google also directed users to a page titled "End Piracy, Not Liberty" that put together information on why SOPA and the PIPA are wrong and users could also add their names to a petition against the bills. "Like many businesses, entrepreneurs and Web users, we oppose these bills because there are smart, targeted ways to shut down foreign rogue websites without asking American companies to censor the Internet," said a Google spokeswoman. The legislation being debated in the US Congress target foreign websites that violate copyrights online by banning US companies from providing them with advertising, payment or other Internet services. The Internet companies are concerned that the legislation, if passed, could be used to target legitimate sites where users share content. US payment processors and advertisers would have to end service to foreign websites that copyright holders say are infringing their rights, or be liable to be sued. Search engines and Internet companies would be banned from providing links to infringing sites. Critics of the proposed legislation argue that the proposals would stifle Internet innovation and online freedom, a key driver of US and global economic growth. The White House raised concerns over the weekend, pledging to work with Congress to battle piracy and counterfeiting while defending free expression, privacy and innovation in the Internet. The administration signalled it might use its veto power, if necessary. With public sentiment on the bill shifting in recent weeks and an implicit veto threat now emerging from the White House, Congressional staffers are resigning themselves to writing replacement language or possibly entirely new bills. Three key section of the existing legislation seem likely to remain. They comprise provisions aimed at getting search engines to disable links to foreign infringing sites; provisions that cut off advertising services to those sites; and provisions that cut off payment processing. But critical provisions that would require Internet service providers such as Verizon Communications and Comcast Corp. to cut off infringing sites through a technology known as DNS blocking are now likely to be eliminated. Critics have said that such measures would only encourage people to navigate the web in riskier ways, with modified browsers or other tweaks that could lead to their Internet sessions getting hijacked by scammers. Lawmakers had already been coming around to the realisation they would have to hold back on the DNS-blocking provisions. Supporters of the bills include movie and music companies such as Walt Disney, content providers such as the National Football League and News Corp., pharmaceutical companies such as Eli Lilly, and the US Chamber of Commerce. They argue the bills' sweeping provisions are necessary to shutter the burgeoning numbers of foreign-based cybercrime sites that sell counterfeit goods, pirated software or fake pharmaceuticals, or stream copyrighted content like music and movies. Reddit.com shut down its social news service for 12 hours. Other sites made their views clear without cutting off surfers. Wordpress, one of the world's most popular blogging platforms, also put its weight behind the protests by blacking out the homepage of Wordpress.org. Thousands of Wordpress-powered blogs also joined in using one of the many SOPA Blackout plugins made available by developers. Local listings site Craiglist took a middle route, changing its local home pages to a black screen directing users to an anti-legislation page. After 10 seconds, a link to the main site appears on the home page, but some surfers missed that and were fooled into thinking the whole site was blacked out. Topics related to the Internet Blackout Day dominated the top Twitter trends on Wednesday, but the protest did not get Twitter itself getting involved in a direct role. "Closing a global business in reaction to single-issue national politics is foolish," Twitter CEO Dick Costolo tweeted, but he followed up with a Tweet stating the company will continue to take an active role in opposing the bills. That position of criticising the bills, but sitting out the blackout is echoed by many big tech companies, including several who wrote to Congress in November to complain about the legislation, such as AOL Inc, eBay Inc, Mozilla and Zynga Inc. "We are not adjusting the consumer experience on our properties tomorrow, but we will be helping to drive awareness of key issues around these bills to our users," said Tekedra Mawakana, senior vice president for public policy at AOL. In November, a number of technology companies wrote to key lawmakers expressing opposition to the bill, including eBay, Facebook, Google, Twitter and Mozilla. Supporters of the bill were quick to attack the protests. "This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts," said Lamar Smith, chairman of the US House Judiciary Committee and a sponsor of SOPA. "Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy." Former US senator Chris Dodd, who now chairs the Motion Picture Association of America, labelled the blackout a "gimmick" and called for its supporters to "stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy." Internet Blackout Day got thousands of websites to participate and generated public discussion and succeeded in attracting the attention of lawmakers and industry leaders backing the bills. Source:- ibnlive.com

:: All that happened on Internet Blackout Day :: January 18 - Internet Blackout Day - is a date that will live in ignorance, as the world's largest encyclopaedia Wikipedia started a 24-hour blackout of the English version of the website. Wikipedia joined other big and small websites in a protest against pending US legislation aimed at shutting down sites that share pirated movies and other content. Wikipedia and other proponents of a free Internet believe that if Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) are passed it "will harm the free and open Internet and bring about new tools for censorship of international websites inside the United States." It is the first time the English site has been blacked out. Wikipedia's Italian site came down once briefly in protest to an Internet censorship bill put forward by the Berlusconi government. The bill did not advance. The decision was reached after polling the community of contributors, but dissenters say political advocacy undermines the site's mission as a neutral source. However, it's not complete: the block could be bypassed by changing browser settings to disable JavaScript, or by using the version of the site designed for cellphone screens. Unlike Wikipedia, Google didn't black out its entire website but only its logo, reminiscent of the doodles that the search engine giant puts up to commemorate special occasions. Google also directed users to a page titled "End Piracy, Not Liberty" that put together information on why SOPA and the PIPA are wrong and users could also add their names to a petition against the bills. "Like many businesses, entrepreneurs and Web users, we oppose these bills because there are smart, targeted ways to shut down foreign rogue websites without asking American companies to censor the Internet," said a Google spokeswoman. The legislation being debated in the US Congress target foreign websites that violate copyrights online by banning US companies from providing them with advertising, payment or other Internet services. The Internet companies are concerned that the legislation, if passed, could be used to target legitimate sites where users share content. US payment processors and advertisers would have to end service to foreign websites that copyright holders say are infringing their rights, or be liable to be sued. Search engines and Internet companies would be banned from providing links to infringing sites. Critics of the proposed legislation argue that the proposals would stifle Internet innovation and online freedom, a key driver of US and global economic growth. The White House raised concerns over the weekend, pledging to work with Congress to battle piracy and counterfeiting while defending free expression, privacy and innovation in the Internet. The administration signalled it might use its veto power, if necessary. With public sentiment on the bill shifting in recent weeks and an implicit veto threat now emerging from the White House, Congressional staffers are resigning themselves to writing replacement language or possibly entirely new bills. Three key section of the existing legislation seem likely to remain. They comprise provisions aimed at getting search engines to disable links to foreign infringing sites; provisions that cut off advertising services to those sites; and provisions that cut off payment processing. But critical provisions that would require Internet service providers such as Verizon Communications and Comcast Corp. to cut off infringing sites through a technology known as DNS blocking are now likely to be eliminated. Critics have said that such measures would only encourage people to navigate the web in riskier ways, with modified browsers or other tweaks that could lead to their Internet sessions getting hijacked by scammers. Lawmakers had already been coming around to the realisation they would have to hold back on the DNS-blocking provisions. Supporters of the bills include movie and music companies such as Walt Disney, content providers such as the National Football League and News Corp., pharmaceutical companies such as Eli Lilly, and the US Chamber of Commerce. They argue the bills' sweeping provisions are necessary to shutter the burgeoning numbers of foreign-based cybercrime sites that sell counterfeit goods, pirated software or fake pharmaceuticals, or stream copyrighted content like music and movies. Reddit.com shut down its social news service for 12 hours. Other sites made their views clear without cutting off surfers. Wordpress, one of the world's most popular blogging platforms, also put its weight behind the protests by blacking out the homepage of Wordpress.org. Thousands of Wordpress-powered blogs also joined in using one of the many SOPA Blackout plugins made available by developers. Local listings site Craiglist took a middle route, changing its local home pages to a black screen directing users to an anti-legislation page. After 10 seconds, a link to the main site appears on the home page, but some surfers missed that and were fooled into thinking the whole site was blacked out. Topics related to the Internet Blackout Day dominated the top Twitter trends on Wednesday, but the protest did not get Twitter itself getting involved in a direct role. "Closing a global business in reaction to single-issue national politics is foolish," Twitter CEO Dick Costolo tweeted, but he followed up with a Tweet stating the company will continue to take an active role in opposing the bills. That position of criticising the bills, but sitting out the blackout is echoed by many big tech companies, including several who wrote to Congress in November to complain about the legislation, such as AOL Inc, eBay Inc, Mozilla and Zynga Inc. "We are not adjusting the consumer experience on our properties tomorrow, but we will be helping to drive awareness of key issues around these bills to our users," said Tekedra Mawakana, senior vice president for public policy at AOL. In November, a number of technology companies wrote to key lawmakers expressing opposition to the bill, including eBay, Facebook, Google, Twitter and Mozilla. Supporters of the bill were quick to attack the protests. "This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts," said Lamar Smith, chairman of the US House Judiciary Committee and a sponsor of SOPA. "Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy." Former US senator Chris Dodd, who now chairs the Motion Picture Association of America, labelled the blackout a "gimmick" and called for its supporters to "stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy." Internet Blackout Day got thousands of websites to participate and generated public discussion and succeeded in attracting the attention of lawmakers and industry leaders backing the bills. Source:- ibnlive.com

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