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How Steve Jobs missed knighthood in 2009
Apple CEO Steve Jobs has received a number of accolades over the years, but now The Telegraph is reporting that he missed out on an honor that Bill Gates received way back in 2005 -- an honorary knighthood. Jobs was apparently nominated for an honorary knighthood in 2009 by a senior Labour Party Minister of Parliament, who felt that "Apple has been the only major global company to create stunning consumer products because it has always taken design as the key component of everything it has produced. No other CEO has consistently shown such a commitment." The honor was, however, allegedly blocked by then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who had invited Jobs to attend the Labour Party's annual conference. Jobs declined to attend, either because he just didn't have the time to spare or because he didn't wish to be associated with a UK political party. As a result of Jobs snubbing the invitation and destroying a PR coup for the Prime Minister, the honorary knighthood was blocked by Brown. A spokesperson for Brown, who is no longer the Prime Minister, denied the snub but refused to discuss the incident further with The Telegraph. We can only hope that David Cameron, the current Conservative PM, is presented with a nomination for a similar honor for Jobs, and that this time Steve Jobs kneels before the Queen of England. [via MacStories, Gizmodo Australia]
Steve Jobs' knighthood rejected by Gordon Brown?
As a loyal iPod user, you'd have thought that Queen Elizabeth II would have seen fit to bestow an honorary knighthood on a certain Steven Paul Jobs by now. After all, Sir Bill received his back in 2005 even though his company couldn't quite get its cellphone or tablet strategies to stick with consumers. According to an anonymous senior Labour MP who left Parliament in the last election, Jobs had reached the final stages of approval for "services to technology" only to be rejected in 2009 by the then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Why? Well, according to The Telegraph, Jobs had the audacity to turn down an offer to speak at Labour's annual conference. In retaliation we hear that Apple is holding Jony Ive -- himself, an honorary Commander of the British Empire -- hostage in an infinitely looping orange grove somewhere in northern California. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
UK election campaign spills over into 3D Dot Game Heroes
If you're in the UK and are having a hard time getting a handle on the upcoming general election, perhaps seeing how the three party leaders perform as blocky, giant-sword-wielding heroes will help your decision-making. SouthPeak has added downloadable 3D Dot Game Heroes characters based on party leaders Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg. (Perhaps Southpeak is semi-overtly referring to the UK's top politicians as blockheads?) The downloadable politicians are accessible from the "Vault" section of the 3D Dot Game Heroes EU website, which is also home to the web-based character editor. For those of you outside of the UK, there are three new "Guy in a Suit" characters on the site. 3D Dot Game Heroes will be released in Europe on May 14 and in North America on May 11.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown commends U.K. game industry
[Flickr user Cory M. Grenier] U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown recently recorded a podcast -- yes, a podcast (mp3) -- which aired right before the kickoff ceremonies for the Global Investment Conference held in London on Monday. During the podcast, Brown commended the efforts of the U.K.'s game developers and publishers, stating, "we're leading the way in creative industries, by far the biggest producer of computer games in Europe." TIGA, the U.K. game industry trade organization, is hoping Brown's address is a sign of support for the game developer tax relief plan the group has been trying to push through parliament for more than two years now. Had they listened to Brown's other podcast, "The Uber1337 Video Game Talk Show," they would have heard a much stronger sentiment much earlier. [Via Edge Online]
Free laptops and broadband promised for 270,000 poor UK families
This isn't quite on par with Finland's contention that 1Mb broadband is a "right," but UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged £300 million ($484 million) for the provision of laptops and broadband connections to low income families. The idea is for parents to be connected to their children's school, so that they may access reports and track progress online. We don't know if broadband is going to be quite the panacea that it's being promoted as, but at least an effort is being made to make internet access truly universal. The new initiative is part of an education bill being debated in the House of Commons right now, but given the PM's low popular and parliamentary approval, there's no certainty that this pledge will come to pass. Let's just hope it does.
British PM loves Wii, fails at Wii Sports
It sounds as though the Wii has friends in high places, at least in the UK. Queen Elizabeth II recently talked about getting her Wii on, and now British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has revealed he's also a fan of Nintendo's console and that he and Liz get together for a spot of Wii Sports boxing every other Sunday.Brown hasn't shied from criticizing video games in the past, but admitted in a BBC interview that the Wii was a hit at 10 Downing Street, and also that his four-year-old son could run rings around him at Wii Sports tennis: "I have played a game of tennis. It didn't leave me out of puff, but that was because I was beaten pretty early on by my son, and he's only four." Not your greatest moment, Gordon.boomp3.com[Via Go Nintendo]
UK think-tank argues for 'legal right to copy' one's own CDs
The Institute for Public Policy Research, a British progressive think-tank, has just released a white paper called "Public Innovation: Intellectual Property in a Digital Age," which urges the UK government to set up a "legal right to copy." Unlike in the US, which has a "fair use" doctrine, British citizens do not have an inherent right to rip their own CDs to their MP3 player of choice. However, Kay Withers, one of the authors of the report, told Engadget that while no Briton has ever been prosecuted for the crime of ripping one's own CDs, "we feel that it's important that the law get updated with technological progress and public preference." Withers and the IPPR hope that the recommendations will be taken into account by the government, which is currently undertaking a study of intellectual property laws. This study is being headed by the former editor of the Financial Times, Sir Andrew Gowers; his report is expected to be returned to Chancellor Gordon Brown sometime this autumn. [Warning: PDF link][Via BBC]
