• Amazon To Pay Some Authors Based On Pages Read
    Amazon will start paying some authors based on the number of pages read, Ars Technica reports. The system applies only to authors who self-publish, and only when readers borrow the titles for free. “The change ... is a reminder that Amazon is watching your progress through a borrowed book, something readers might not have been aware of before,” ArsTechnica says of the initiative.
  • Time Warner Hit With Net Neutrality Complaint
    The San Diego-based livestreaming company Commercial Network Services has filed a Federal Communications Commission complaint alleging that Time Warner Cable is violating net neutrality rules. The complaint alleges that Time Warner is restricting traffic by charging “nnterconnection” fees. But some industry observers are skeptical, noting that the net neutrality rules don't prohibit those fees.
  • Comcast Must Unmask Commenter Accused Of Defamation
    The Illinois Supreme Court has ruled that Comcast must unmask an anonymous Freeport Journal Standard commenter who compared local political candidate Bill Hadley to Jerry Sandusky -- the Penn State football coach convicted of molesting children. Hadley intends to pursue a defamation lawsuit against the commenter, ArsTechnica reports.
  • Google To Remove 'Revenge Porn' Images From Search Results
    Google will start honoring requests to remove sexually explicit images that shared without the subject's permission, the company said on Friday. "Revenge porn images are intensely personal and emotionally damaging, and serve only to degrade the victims--predominantly women," Google said in blog post. "So going forward, we'll honor requests from people to remove nude or sexually explicit images shared without their consent from Google Search results."
  • Facebook Won't Launch Moments Photo App In Europe
    Facebook won't launch its Moments photo app in Europe due to privacy concerns, BBC News reports. The app, which allows people to share mobile phone pictures with friends, uses facial recognition technology. Privacy officials in Europe have said that the company can only launch that service if it first obtains people's opt-in consent.
  • Blogger Sues Gawker For Defamation
    California-based blogger Charles Johnson has brought a defamation lawsuit against Gawker for allegedly publishing untrue statements about him in pieces like, “What Is Chuck Johnson and Why? The Web’s Worst Journalist, Explained” and “Which of These Disgusting Chuck Johnson Rumors are True?” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The lawsuit, filed Thursday in St. Louis County Circuit Court, alleges that the Gawker posts damaged Johnson's reputation. Last month, Johnson was banned by Twitter after he asked for money to “take out” civil rights activist DeRay McKesson. “I have confidence that the good people of Missouri will see Gawker’s malicious lies …
  • FCC To Explore Broadband Subsidies
    Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 Thursday to explore a proposal to allow low-income households to decide whether to spend a $9.25 monthly Lifeline subsidy on phone or broadband service. The Lifeline program, funded by the universal service fee on phone bills, now serves around 12 million people, according to Cnet.
  • Verizon Must Complete Fiber Build In New York, Mayor Says
    New York City officials are demanding that Verizon fulfill its promise to build out its fiber network to every household in the city, Ars Technica reports. Verizon said in 2008 that it would offer FiOS to every household in the five boroughs, in exchange for a cable television franchise. An audit unveiled today concluded that Verizon failed to do so. “As I’ve said time and again, Verizon must deliver on its obligation to the City of New York and we will hold them accountable,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
  • Live Streaming Company Preps Net Neutrality Complaint Against Time Warner
    The San Diego-based company Commercial Network Services, which operates live streaming Webcams, intends to bring a net neutrality complaint against Time Warner Cable, the Washington Post reports. Commercial Network Services says that Time Warner charges “unreasonable rates” to deliver streaming video. The Post points out that the net neutrality regulations don't spell out “how companies should negotiate the private agreements that ensure Web traffic flows smoothly into an Internet provider's network.” Time Warner says its practices “are not only 'just and reasonable' as required by the FCC, but consistent with the practices of all major ISPs and well-established industry standards.”
  • Amazon Touts Privacy Record
    Amazon recently published its first “transparency report,” which says that the company didn't particpate in the NSA's PRISM program" and that it had challenged government subpoenas for information. Techdirt writes that Amazon's move “is a step towards being even more engaged” on privacy issues, but that the company still “needs to be a stronger champion for privacy and against unnecessary surveillance.”  
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