September-October Digital Media News Stories

October 2008


Privacy/Social Networking:
Cory Doctorow on privacy in the digital age (31st Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/oct/31/civil-liberty-information-database-jacqui


Print:
A breakthrough deal between Google and the US book industry to sell book content online (29th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/29/google-books-publishing-online-royalties


Security:
The government’s official privacy watchdog warns of the security dangers of bigger databases (29th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/29/data-security-breach-civil-liberty


Computing:
Microsoft unveils Windows 7 (29th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/29/microsoft-windows-7


Music:
UK Music, A new umbrella organisation, is formed to represent the British music industry and fight piracy, headed by Feargal Sharkey (27th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/27/feargal-sharkey-music-piracy


Virtual Worlds/Crime:
Associated Press in Tokyo report: ‘A 43-year-old Japanese piano teacher's sudden divorce from her online husband in a virtual game world made her so angry that she logged on and killed his avatar digital persona. The woman, who used his identification and password to log on to the interactive game Maple Story in May, was arrested on suspicion of illegal access to a computer and manipulating electronic data, police in Sapporo City said. If charged and convicted she could face a prison term of up to five years or a fine of up to £3,100. The man complained to police when he discovered that his online avatar was dead’ (24th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/24/4


Music:
An article on the continuing popularity of sampling (24th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/oct/24/electronicmusic-urban


Piracy:
Chinese internet users are angry after Microsoft launch an anti-piracy tool to combat fake software (23rd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/23/microsoft-china-software-piracy


Video games:
An article on the problems of the UK games industry (23rd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/23/games-industry


War/Terrorism:
Analysts suspect a systematic cyber-attack on Al-Qaida websites by western security services (22nd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/22/alqaida-terrorism-internet


Television:
A complaint that rural viewers will be hit by the digital television switchover as the government has refused to make sure all the broadcasters using Freeview will offer a full service for every home (20th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/20/freeview-rural-country-digital-discrimination


Crime:
A motorcyclist is jailed for 12 weeks after posting videos of himself doing stunts and speeding at 130mph on Youtube (21st Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/20/youtube-ukcrime


Crime:
A secret website for fraudsters to buy and sell stolen credit card details has been shut down (18th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/18/internet-identityfraud-darkmarket


Video:
A new viral video success – footage of a UK basketball player running rings around a visiting US NBA professional (17th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/oct/17/gbbasketball-ussport


Censorship:
The website of turkey’s third largest-selling newspaper has been blocked after a complain by an Islamic creationist (17th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/17/turkey-religion


Crime:
A man murders his wife because of posts she made on Facebook after they split up (17th Oct): http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7676285.stm


Internet/Future:
On the movement towards an ‘internet of things’ (16th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/16/internet-of-things-ipv6


Privacy:
The government is drawing up plans for new powers for the security and intelligence agencies allowing them to access personal data online (16th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/16/internet-uksecurity


Virtual Worlds/Video Games:
A new football game will offer off-pitch action as well as matches, mixing the appeal of console games with virtual worlds (14th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/14/games-digitalmedia


Cyberwar:
Hackers force a leading pan-Arab TV station to change its internet domain name (13th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/13/middleeast-internet


Radio:
Hard-up Channel 4 axes its plans for a string of new digital radio stations to challenge the BBC (11th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/11/digitaltvradio-channel4 See also the article at (13th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/13/channel4-radio-digital A few days later figures show that despite C4’s fear digital radio listening continues to increase (17th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/oct/17/digitaltvradio-channel4


Information:
A computer hard-drive with the private details of 100 000 armed forces personnel has gone missing (11th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/oct/11/military-defence


Future;
An article on developments in artificial life (9th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/09/artificial.intelligence.ai.robots


Censorship/Law:
South Korea plans to use the law to control internet postings and content (9th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/09/news.internet


Video:
The rise of ‘the Youtube generation’ (6th Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/06/youtube.youngpeople


Mobile Phones/Music:
Nokia seeks to challenge the iPhone with the launch of a new touchscreen phone with unlimited music (the ‘Comes With Music’ service) (3rd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/03/nokia.nokia


Video:
A University investigates a drunken student initiation videoed by a journalism student (3rd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/oct/03/students.highereducation


Print:
Cambridge scientists launch a three year project to create the next generation of epaper, allowing full-colour, interactive electronic magazines and newspapers (2nd Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/09/news.internet


Mobile Phones:
A Spanish mortuary has begun offering condolences by text message for time-pressed or distant mourners (1st Oct): http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/01/spain



September 2008


Television:
BSkyB loses its legal battle over its 17.9% stake in ITV (30th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/sep/30/bskyb.itv


Video:
An article on the new viral web video craze – subtitled Hitler videos (28th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/sep/28/youtube.internet


Music:
The charts try to keep pace with the changing consumption of music by including a ‘subscription plays chart’ (24th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/sep/24/internet


Mobile Phones:
Google makes its handset debut with its first mobile phone, the G1 (22nd Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/22/google.mobilephones
See also (24th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/23/google.apple


China/Internet:
A story about China’s online ’50 cent army’ – how it is paying people to post online messages promoting or supporting government policies (22nd Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/sep/22/chinathemedia.marketingandpr


Security:
A strike threat by prison officers after data is lost containing the personal details of 5000 justice staff (8th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/sep/08/prisonsandprobation.justice


Internet:
An article on Google on the occasion of its launch of a new browser, ‘Chrome’ (7th Sept): http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article4692267.ece


Television:
TV’s viewing decline slows but the young are still turning the TV off. Mainstream TV is trying to find new ways to attract desirable audiences (6th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/sep/06/television.bbc


Print:
The launch of the new Sony Reader, a £199 electronic reader that holds up to 160 books (5th Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/sep/05/ebooks.sony


Music/Mobile Phones:
Nokia’s assault on the iPhone arrives: a range of phons that will allow the downloading of up to 2.1m songs onto their computer and then their phone for no extra charge for 12 months (2nd Sept): http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/sep/02/nokia.nokia