//

” the beginning of the end of the INTERNET as you know it”

“The deal marks the beginning of the end of the internet as you know it,” said Josh Silver, president of the Free Press consumer group, talking about the Google-Verizon tie-up. A lot of concerned groups think that if it came to pass, would change the very nature of the internet and how it operates

Talks about US regulators having closed-door meetings intended to find a way to make sure all web data is treated equally, has stopped, according to BBC News.

The Federal Communications Commission began the meetings after a court limited its net regulation powers.

Read more here.

What is Net Neutrality?

Network neutrality (also net neutrality, Internet neutrality) is a principle proposed for user access networks participating in the Internet that advocates no restrictions by Internet Service Providers and governments on content, sites, platforms, on the kinds of equipment that may be attached, and no restrictions on the modes of communication allowed and to treat all web traffic equally, regardless of content type or origin – serving only as a one-size-fits-all pipeline for whatever data is passing from content providers to end users.

That extends to the idea that ISPs should not block any lawful content or control their infrastructure to preferentially deal with any kind of data.

The issue now is how much ISPs should be allowed to control the size of the pipes – that is, actively controlling the bandwidth available to certain websites based on the type of content they provide, and thus the internet speed that users perceive from the site.

Here’s a video that explains it in a simplified manner.

Lebanon sees Blackberry as “Security Risk”

Lebanon will assess security concerns relating to the use of BlackBerry phones in the country, the acting head of the Telecoms Regulatory Authority said on Thursday. This came up after the arrest of several telecoms employees suspected of spying for Israel.

Overall, about 100 people have been arrested on suspicion of spying for the Israeli agency Mossad since April 2009, when the government launched a nationwide crackdown on alleged rings.

TRA would start talks with the BlackBerry’s Canadian maker, Research In Motion, over its concerns.

In a statement, RIM founder and co-chief executive Mike Lazaridis has said that allowing governments to monitor messages would imperil the firm’s ties with customers, including major corporations and law enforcement agencies.

Read more here.

GE invites you to join $ 200 million “Ecomagination Challenge”

GE recently unveiled the “Ecomagination Challenge: Powering the Grid” which basically is an open call to action for businesses, entrepreneurs, innovators and students seeking breakthrough ideas to create a cleaner, more efficient and economically viable grid, and accelerate the adoption of smart grid technologies.
The Challenge invites people to come together to take on one of the world’s toughest challenges – building the next-generation power grid to meet the needs of the 21st century.

Selected Ecomagination Challenge entrants will be offered the opportunity to develop a commercial relationship with GE through:

1. • Investment: the $200 million capital pledge of GE and its partners will be invested globally into promising start-ups and ideas
   • Validation: evaluation of entrant’s business strategy through in-depth discussions with GE‘s technical and commercial teams
   • Distribution: exploration of partnership opportunities with GE to scale a business and create global reach
   • Development: leveraging of GE‘s technical infrastructure and GE Global Research Centers to accelerate technology and product development
   • Growth: exploration of opportunities for utilizing existing GE customer relationships for your go-to-market strategy

   Continue reading here.

Kanye West’s Power Video

After Eminem released the video “Love the Way You Lie,” with Rhianna, which features Megan Fox and Dominic Monaghan, it’s now Kanye West’s turn. With a religious-themed video in honor of his latest single, “Power”, Kanye teams up with director/artist Marco Brambilla.

“I’ve always wanted to do something that would visualize power, to do a portrait of what power would look like in a sort of timeless way and being able to have him framed in that portrait, essentially doing a video portrait of Kanye as a symbol of power, was very consistent with my art practice and what I explore in my artwork.”

Watch it here.

Swedish mountain climber Frederik Ericsson Dies in K2

Citing officials in contact with the expedition, the Austrian Press Agency APA reported that Swedish mountain climber Frederik Ericsson has been killed while on an expedition on the K2 mountain in the Himalayas.

The expedition involves the Austrian climber Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner who seeks to conquer the world’s second- tallest peak at 8,611 metres. She is regarded as one of the world’s best female mountain climbers, although she has failed several times to conquer the extremely difficult K2 on the Chinese-Pakistan border.

Read the rest of story here.