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EU court rules that internet providers may have to block pirate sites
Internet providers in Europe may soon have little choice but to filter out pirate sites. In resolving an Austrian case, the European Court of Justice has ruled that EU countries can ask carriers to block copyright infringers, whether or not the networks are involved. The EU's laws don't require that governments limit injunctions to just the parties directly linked to a case, according to the court. While the decision isn't good news for online free speech advocates, there's no guarantee of a chilling effect -- individual nations still have to decide whether or not they'll block sites in the first place. It's the providers who are most likely to face any short-term consequences, since they may have to pay extra to obey local content restriction orders. [Image credit: European Union Naval Force Somalia, Flickr]
UK reportedly wants internet filters labeled as 'default-on,' true or not
It's no secret that some British residents want an active-by-default internet filter to keep kids away from salacious content. However, the BBC now claims that the UK government wants to falsely imply that this filter already exists. According to a reportedly leaked letter, the Department of Education is asking internet providers to refer to their filters as "default on" without changing what's ultimately a voluntary system. As you'd imagine, the companies are supposedly quite unhappy: ISP sources believe the phrasing would mislead customers and encourage complacency. Officials have declined to comment on the demands, but we may know the truth soon enough as the Department of Education's letter says an announcement could come "shortly."
Netflix intros a dedicated ISP speed index page to highlight streaming champions
Netflix has long been judging your ISP's streaming quality, but you've had to dig around blog posts and other less accessible pages to get the low-down on just which networks reign supreme. Its new, dedicated ISP Speed Index page is much more straightforward: stop by and you'll always have a quick glimpse of which internet providers are the most Netflix-friendly across key countries, with more detailed breakdowns for individual nations. Not that there's been an upheaval in the pecking order, at least if you're an American. Google Fiber was once again the clear US speed leader in February, while DSL and Clearwire's WiMAX trailed the pack. The site mostly provides a handy point of reference for ISP shopping, even if it suggests that a cross-country (or cross-planet) move might be in order.
Google Fiber installations begin, come with a larger TV channel choice in the bargain (video)
A lot of readers in the two Kansas Cities are about to see the above sign taped to their door, and they'll be forgiven if it triggers an irrational level of excitement: it's the confirmation that Google Fiber deployments are at last underway. Starting this week in the Hanover Heights district of Kansas state's city, Google is extending fiber drops to the homes of early adopters and arranging for in-home appointments to set up whatever internet and IPTV selections they've made. The fiber team is also widening its pick of TV channels as a last-minute incentive, offering a slew of Fox sports and movie channels as well as Fuel TV, FX, National Geographic and Speed, among others. While we don't know how long it will take before the first wave of 1Gbps deployments are wrapped up, it should finally be safe to add "internet service provider" to Google's increasingly lengthy resume.
EarthLink inks deal with Clearwire to use its 4G WiMAX network
EarthLink has been laying low since its Philly-wide WiFi project failed all those years ago, but now it's back in the limelight with Clearwire's 4G network under-arm. The companies have struck a deal for EarthLink to access Clearwire's WiMAX infrastructure, initially to offer wireless, in-home broadband. This is expected to launch in early 2013, with mobile and small business markets being future goals. An LTE network is also in the pipeline, don't forget, and when it goes live, EarthLink is likely to expand the agreement to cover it. The ISP is obviously putting its eggs in the 4G basket, because no one wants wires anymore, do they?
Google Fiber pre-registration program closes in the Kansas Cities
Gigabit internet speeds are nothing more than a dream for most of us, but for residents of the Kansas Cities, that reality is not far off. The six-week pre-registration program for Google's Fiber network closed yesterday, and at least 180 of the 202 "fiberhoods" earmarked for the upgrade have met their target. That number could rise when all the late entries have been counted, but we won't know until the complete list of areas drops later this week. If yours doesn't make the cut, it's not all bad news: Google's Jenna Wandres told us that although this initial rollout covers Kansas City, KS, and central Kansas City, MO, Fiber will be expanding north and south of the Missouri side in the future. When pre-registration opens for this second round, the 20-some-odd areas that failed to meet the initial criteria will get a second chance to, so start being extra nice to the neighbors if you want to get them on board. Unfortunately, we couldn't confirm even a ball park date for the expansion, but for the 180-plus hoods that qualify on this occasion, it's time to get excited. Any RTS gamer will know the value of getting your openers tight, and El Goog's currently compiling a "build order" so the areas that expressed the most interest in Fiber will have it first. According to Jenna, implementation is coming "very soon," so be ready to repress that hysterical scream when you see a Google truck casing your block.
FCC wants to know if it's too modest about broadband, gives chance to fight caps and slow speeds
A common complaint with the FCC's National Broadband Plan is its conservative definition of the broadband in question: many would argue that the 4Mbps baseline is an anachronism in an era of 4G, FiOS and Google Fiber. If you've ever wanted the FCC to up the ante, now's your chance. The regulator wants comments on its definitions of fixed and mobile broadband to gauge whether real-world trends like multi-user streaming video should lead to raised expectations for internet providers. Ever been burnt by a too-low bandwidth cap? It's open season on that area as well, with the FCC asking if it should define a minimum acceptable cap and possibly call for better limits than we see today. We just share GigaOM's wish that we could ask if every cap is even necessary, although the Department of Justice might be answering that for us. Americans have up until September 20th to make their voices heard, so get cracking if you'd like to set a higher bar.
IEEE pushes for Ethernet standard between 400Gbps and 1Tbps, hopes to head off big data crunch
Ethernet might seem passé to those of us toting Ultrabooks, but it's important enough to provoke a crisis for internet providers and many of those who depend on high-speed computing networks for a living: based on the rises of streaming video and social networking, the IEEE is worried that many of those large-scale networks will need 10Tbps of total bandwidth just to avoid a logjam in 2020. To that end, the standards body has formed a Higher-Speed Ethernet Consensus group that's mulling a new, breakneck-speed format reaching either 400Gbps or 1Tbps, depending on whose approach you'd favor. Fight the urge to pick the 1Tbps option on instinct, however. Both options would depend on bonding multiple connections together, and the faster of the two formats could lead to some expensive and very ungainly cables if it's not handled well. A meeting is scheduled for late September in Geneva to at least begin hashing out the details. Although we won't be wiring our homes with terabit Ethernet anytime soon, the standard should come quickly enough that the Googles and Netflixes of the world can satisfy our data addictions for a good while longer. [Image credit: Justin Marty, Flickr]
Google Fiber gets formal launch, adds Google Fiber TV (update: event video)
Google just kicked its Google Fiber efforts into overdrive. The company's Kansas City effort is getting a full launch and now includes Google Fiber TV -- a "real" TV service with recognizable channels and its own, fully searchable interface that mixes DVR results with Netflix and YouTube. As many as 500 shows can be stored in full 1080p HD, and several TVs within the home can tune in at the same time.. Not surprisingly, there's also a major mobile component taking advantage of that 1Gbps fiber link, as users will have the option of browsing, sharing and eventually watching live TV directly from tablet apps. The company is also promising an ever-evolving service that includes Google+ video hangouts. For hardware, Google has its own dedicated Network Box with a four-port gigabit Ethernet router and 802.11n WiFi, a TV Box with live viewing and a WiFi access point as well as a Storage Box DVR with 2TB of data and the ability to record eight shows at once. Your remote control? A free, bundled Nexus 7 tablet, naturally. The overall service will come with 1TB of Google Drive space, although it's expensive to get started: there's a $300 "construction fee" (currently being waived) to wire a home for the fiber optics. Three packages will be on offer, starting with a Gigabit + TV package that includes the essentials, all major channels and "hundreds" of fiber channels (plus on-demand content) for $120 a month. Skip traditional TV and it costs $70 a month -- and if you're a local resident willing to pony up the construction free, you can get 5Mbps internet access for free for "at least" seven years. Key institutions are getting the full gigabit access for free, as well. Only small slices of Kansas City in both Missouri and Kansas state should have access at first, but Google is conducting a six-week "rally" where the most people paying a $10 pre-registration fee dictate where Google Fiber goes next. Now if only other cities would go the same route. Update: The full event replay is available for your inspection after the break. %Gallery-161174%
Avanti launches prepaid, Ka-band satellite internet access, wants us Yelping from the Alps
Avanti has been beaming satellite broadband to Europe for awhile, but it's been tied to a subscription through carrier deals. That's a tough sell to customers who, by definition, don't want to be tied to anything -- which is why the company just launched prepaid satellite internet access for the continent. Although the Ka-band service's 4Mbps downstream and 1Mbps upstream speeds won't have anyone dropping their 330Mbps fiber anytime soon, the pay-as-you-go strategy will let travelers and rural dwellers get broadband in a pinch, no matter how spotty terrestrial access might get. Imagine Skype calls during Swiss ski vacations and you've got the gist of it. Carriers will resell the data in healthy doses of 1GB or larger, and Avanti is adamant that there won't be any nasty throttling surprises waiting in store. While exact prices will depend on partners, the provider isn't waiting for those details before it covers much of the Old World: its upcoming HYLAS 2 satellite (what you see above) will share the speed with Africa, the Caucasus region and the Middle East as of August 2nd, making it almost too easy for us to update Google+ in Georgia.
Comcast reportedly prepping 305Mbps internet service, aims to put FiOS in its place
Sure, at 300Mbps Verizon's FiOS Quantum is lightning fast -- but reports say that Comcast is prepping a new tier that's just a little faster. According to Broadband Reports sources, Comcast's Neil Smit told employees that the company would be introducing a 305Mbps downstream tier in Verizon FiOS territories "soon," but neglected to mention a strict timetable. Details regarding pricing and data caps are similarly scarce, of course. Comcast has yet to comment on the rumor, but we'll let you know if we hear anything official.
Myanmar plans to open doors to foreign telcos for affordable cellular, internet service
Hefty price tags haven't exactly made cellphones ubiquitous in cash-strapped Myanmar. According to AFP, an estimated 96 percent of the nation's 60 million inhabitants don't own a mobile handset, but that might soon be changing. A new reform plan announced by Myanmar's Post and Telecommunication Minister, Thein Tun, lays out a strategy that could finally give said folks a crack at affordable cellular and internet services. If successful, the initiative will start a bidding process for international telcos to set up shop in the country, allowing the companies to partner with the state-owned telephone provider and the ISP Yatanarpon Teleport. There's no word on when the partnerships may coalesce, but here's to hoping that $200 SIM card registration fees in Myanmar soon become a thing of the past. Full details at the source link below. [Image credit: Shutterstock]
Verizon intros FiOS Quantum, officially priced up to 300Mbps
What's faster than FiOS internet service? FiOS Quantum evidently, as Verizon's latest high-speed internet service gets an official name and pricing. Effectively doubling every tier -- except the entry-level 15/5 -- each can be acquired with or without a custom bundle, double or triple play, and range in price from $65 to $175 a month -- except the 300 down / 65 up which is only available by itself for $210 a month. Willing to commit for two years? Well, then you can save yourself a few extra bucks a month. Existing customers won't have to pay an upgrade fee to take advantage of the new speed, but their bill will probably go up about $10 to $15 a month -- depending on what other changes they might make to their bundle. The real question is can one even take advantage of these crazy speeds, but we for one would love to find out.
Verizon doubles FiOS speeds to 300Mbps, thumb-twiddling waits are officially over
Verizon's IP network traffic jam apparently wasn't that much of an issue, since it just kicked up the speeds for FiOS service by a notch... or ten. Unless you're a spendthrift sticking to the base 15Mbps plan, download speeds have more than doubled across the board -- including to an eye-watering 300Mbps if you opt for the costliest plan. Upload speeds aren't advancing quite so quickly, although those who spring for the two highest tiers will see their upload speeds crack 65Mbps. The fiber speed-up is being attributed to a flood of Internet video and cloud backups, both of which get downright reasonable at 300Mbps; Verizon figures that both a 2-hour HD movie download and a 10GB backup will finish in 22 minutes or less. Whether or not pricing will have changed will have to wait until the speed upgrades take effect in June. Somehow, we can't imagine a drop anytime soon in the $200 monthly outlay for the top tier.
UK department store John Lewis launches broadband service, get in on the ground floor
If you live in the UK, and were thinking "If only I could get my broadband from the same place I get my crystal tumbler set" then maybe now you can. Department store John Lewis, a favorite for wedding lists, furniture and homeware is branching out into the British ISP game. The standard package will be £11 a month (not including line rental,) offering "up to" 16Mb speeds and a 20GB data cap. More eager users can pay an extra £7 to remove that download limit. Both bundles benefit from a free phone support, no activation fee and, of course, wireless router. Sound like your kind of deal? Head down to the source link, or past the haberdashery section to find out more.
Calyx Institute to create ISP that keeps customer traffic private, away from prying governmental eyes
Wouldn't it be nice if we were free to surf the web free from fear of having our traffic monitored and emails scraped by the NSA? Well, if Nicholas Merrill has his way, we won't have to rely on anonymous browsers or proxy servers -- we'll have a new ISP built from the ground up to protect customer privacy. A non-profit, the Calyx Institute, will run the ISP that'll employ end-to-end encryption on web traffic, plus encrypted emails to prevent anyone other than the user, including the ISP itself, from seeing people's internet activity. Because of this structure, Calyx, quite literally, won't be able to comply with governmental requests to obtain customer traffic data under the Patriot or Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Acts. The best part is, such online privacy may cost as little as $20 a month, and Merrill has hopes to provide a similarly secure VoIP service at some point as well. Of course, the venture will only be possible if Merrill can raise the $2 million needed to get it going -- which is why he's pitching the idea to venture capitalists in Silicon Valley and the general public through crowd-sourced funding site IndieGogo. Want to help out? Hit the source below to make a donation.
FCC thinks ISPs should do a better job preventing fraud, theft
Internet fraud and theft are major problems, there seems to be little doubt about that -- according to FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, some 8.4 million credit card numbers are stolen every year. The question, then, is who should be addressing the issue. Genachowski this week called for "smart, practical, voluntary solutions," asking internet service providers to put more effort into helping prevent data theft, hacks and other issues, or risk having "consumers lose trust in the internet," thereby "suppress[ing] broadband adoption and online commerce and communication." The chairman asked ISPs to help avoid hijacking through more efficient traffic routes and to instate DNSSEC to help weed out fraudulent sites.
Hawaii's proposed online tracking law comes under fire from ISPs, civil libertarians
There may be some trouble brewing in paradise, thanks to a seemingly draconian law currently under consideration in Hawaii's state legislature. If passed, H.B. 2288 would require all ISPs within the state to track and store information on their customers, including details on every website they visit, as well as their own names and addresses. The measure, introduced on Friday, also calls for this information to be recorded on each customer's digital file and stored for a full two years. Perhaps most troubling is the fact that the bill includes virtually no restrictions on how ISPs can use (read: "sell") this information, nor does it specify whether law enforcement authorities would need a court order to obtain a user's dossier from an ISP. And, because it applies to any firm that "provides access to the Internet," the law could conceivably be expanded to include not just service providers, but internet cafes, hotels or other businesses. Democratic Representative John Mizuno is the lead sponsor of the bill, though his support already seems to be waning. Not long after H.B. 2288 was introduced, Republican Representative Kymberly Pine told CNET that she would be withdrawing her support for it, adding that her intent was not to track Hawaiian web surfing, but to simply protect "victims of crime." "We do not want to know where everyone goes on the Internet," Pine explained. "That's not our interest. We just want the ability for law enforcement to be able to capture the activities of crime." Pine went on to acknowledge that the proposal has come under fire from many civil libertarians and internet companies within the state, and that the measure will likely be revised. In retrospect, she said, the concept of storing personal information "was a little broad," and Hawaii's lawmakers "deserved" the criticism they received during today's hearing.
Virgin Media to double broadband speeds this year, BT smirks
Virgin Media customers are in for a big treat today, because the UK-based ISP has just announced plans to double the average speed of its broadband service. Over the course of the next 18 months, top speeds will increase from 100 Mbps to 120Mbps, as part of a £110 million ($169 million) initiative. Users on 10Mbps, 20Mbps and 50Mbps plans, meanwhile, will see their speeds and bandwidth usage limits doubled, at no extra charge. The upgrade is slated to begin rolling out in February, and should be complete by the middle of next year. Competing company BT, meanwhile, was quick to point out the similarity between Virgin Media's new campaign and its own upgrade. "It is no surprise to see that Virgin are following our lead by doubling speeds," BT said in a statement. "We announced we would do this for our fiber products last autumn and so they are trying to catch up with us."
Comcast says no to tiered data for its broadband service, hardcore Netflix users rejoice
Looking for a cable operator that won't charge you for all of those Rescue Me marathons you're having? If so, Comcast says it has no plans of implementing tiered data plans for its subscribers, unlike its wireless brethren. Citing that the move wouldn't be advantageous for the company's blooming broadband sector, Comcast Cable president Neil Smit and CFO Michael Angelakis eased the fears of video streaming customers on Monday, at least for the immediate future. Smit went on to say that "we don't want to nickel-and-dime customers at this point" -- so your extreme downloading habits are safe, for now. Bear in mind, Comcast does put a cap of 250GB per month on data consumption, so the idea full-on unlimited broadband is still just wishful thinking.
