Archive for the ‘Internet’ Category
Who are the best providers of communications services?
September 19th, 2018 by Roger Darlington
Choosing a communications provider should not be simply a matter of price but also of service quality – but which provider is the best for fixed, mobile or broadband? Fortunately Ofcom provides some very helpful data and I’ve reviewed the latest statistics in my new column on IT matters here. Today, at Ofcom headquarters, I’ll […]
Posted in Internet, Science & technology | Comments (0)
Why and how we could regulate Internet content
September 18th, 2018 by Roger Darlington
Ofcom has today published a discussion document examining the area of harmful internet content. The document is designed to contribute to the debate on how people might be protected from online harm. It considers how lessons from broadcasting regulation might help to inform work by policymakers to tackle the issue. This follows an interim report […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Can we really control the tech giants?
May 21st, 2018 by Roger Darlington
The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media & Sports Matt Hancock has said that the Government will enact legislation to control social media firms and online abuse but, in a television interview this weekend, he admitted: When he called in representatives of 14 leading Internet companies to discuss his concerns, only four turned up. […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Liberal Democrat leader calls for tech giants to be broken up
April 24th, 2018 by Roger Darlington
Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable has called for Google, Amazon and Facebook to be broken up, comparing them to US oil monopolies that exploited their market power more than a century ago. In an under-reported speech, Cable said recent scandals including the Facebook Cambridge Analytica revelations meant the tech giants had “progressed from heroes to […]
Posted in Consumer matters, Internet | Comments (0)
The Internet in China
February 27th, 2018 by Roger Darlington
I have just returned from a two-week visit to China – my fourth trip the country. In China, most web sites – including my own and usually the BBC – are usually accessible but over 3,000 sites are blocked including the American tech giants Google, Twitter and Facebook – what is often called the Great […]
Posted in Internet, My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
What has caused this growing tech-lash?
February 7th, 2018 by Roger Darlington
It seems as if almost every day there is a story expressing concern about some aspect of the Net and attacking the likes of Facebook, Google and Amazon. Why is this? “Governments are concerned that they are not paying their fair share of taxes in the countries where they generate the most revenues; regulators are […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Is it time to control the tech giants?
November 14th, 2017 by Roger Darlington
Five behemoths bestride the Internet world. They are Amazon, Apple, Alphabet (owners of Google), Facebook and Microsoft – all American-owned and all simply enormous. Do you have any idea what these companies are worth? Do you realise the reach of their operations? Do you think that governments and regulators need to do more to control […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
What is this thing called the Internet of Things?
June 20th, 2017 by Roger Darlington
You might have heard of something called the Internet of Things or IoT. You might have wondered what it’s all about. My 94th column on IT issues looks at the current state of IoT in the UK and beyond. You can read this short piece here.
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
What do you think is the most popular section of my web site? It’s quite a story.
March 7th, 2017 by Roger Darlington
My web site – including my two blogs – receives around 4,000 visits a day or 120,000 a month or almost 1.5M a year. The blogs are actually the most popular locations, but which section on the actual web site do you think is the most visited? It is, in fact, the section titled “Stories […]
Posted in Internet | Comments (0)
Ever heard of the Internet of Wings?
February 13th, 2017 by Roger Darlington
You may have heard of the Internet of Things – the connection of millions and millions of devices through the Net. Now let me introduce you to a project sometimes dubbed the Internet of Wings but properly called ICARUS. ICARUS is short for ‘International Cooperation for Animal Research Using Space’ and it is a global […]
Posted in Environment, Internet | Comments (0)