Net-Neutrality

What is net neutrality?
Net neutrality is when Internet service providers allow all access to the Internet and don't

restrict particular websites or how fast users can connect to them. This mean they should be all at the same speed and same level of connection.

Is the Internet neutral?
No, I don’t think the Internet is neutral but it’s at its best performance, therefore some may say it’s as neutral as it will ever be.

Should it be?
Yes. I think all Internet service providers should provide everyone with a neutral network to those who pay the same amount and want the same speed. However if Internet users don't like it, there are other Internet service providers.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2011/mar/14/sxsw-2011-al-franken-net-neutrality- Guardian
-SXSW 2011: Al Franken warns of 'outright disaster' over net neutrality

main points:

-The principle of net neutrality, under which all content is delivered equally to Internet users' homes, is "in big trouble",

-"use the Internet to save the Internet",

-"The one thing that big corporations have that we don't is the ability to purchase favourable political outcomes,"

-Net neutrality advocates fear that Internet providers, most pertinently Comcast which controls a large stake in both TV and Internet provision, could downgrade rivals' content and boost delivery of their own.

-"[On today's Internet] you don't need a record deal to make a song and have people hear it, or a major film studio for people to see your film, or a fancy R&D job. But the party may almost be over," Franken said.

-"There is nothing more motivated than a corporation that thinks it is leaving money on the table. They are coming on the internet and wanting to destroy its freedom and openness. All of this is bad for consumers but an outright disaster for the independent creative community."

-"Today SXSW is a hotbed of creative entrepreneurship and innovation.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jXuiZW1R9ZhvJhrBScpf64qZdSgA?docId=7dfa12e01d1642f3ad4dfa74a2dac3e1- USA
-Deal to combine AT&T, T-Mobile raises questions

-WASHINGTON (AP) — AT&T's surprise announcement that it plans to acquire T-Mobile USA will force federal regulators to confront a difficult antitrust question: Can American consumers get good wireless service at a fair price if they must choose between just two national companies?

-the nation's second-largest wireless carrier, with T-Mobile USA, the fourth-largest, which is now owned by Germany's Deutsche Telekom AG.

-"I am not convinced that this deal is unthinkable," said Jeffrey Silva, an analyst with Global Medley Advisors. "But it's a very, very heavy lift."

-"This marketplace doesn't work even before this merger," said Mark Cooper, director of research for the Consumer Federation of America. "I want policymakers to confront the fiction that competition in this market is sufficient to protect consumers."

-He would also like to see government officials impose stronger "network neutrality" rules on AT&T's wireless system to ensure that subscribers can access apps and other online applications without carrier interference.

-At this point, it's too soon to know whether the merger will be approved. But what is clear, Silva said, is that "there will be a rich mix of very important policy and political considerations."

http://wirelessbay.blogspot.com/2009/10/net-neutrality-in-china.html-Net neutrality in China

-China Mobile dominates mobile market. Apple can not make a deal with China Mobile about iphone in China. Apple has a strong position in US while China Mobile has a strong position in China

-They make the rule of network access and speed control.

Facebook photo facts:
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir8WPYxWUY-FvLtCx19OpyyBG_xiHTvqNxUcV161r108RpVtfvU28RLe2-zRLkTGJgRthfajBchYtea8BoVSs6W5DzbJYtLkJHZprXGwHPf5Ji7jee9BBnboMQUFH5dy5U5zDfPD7w83sJ/s1600/fb+facts.bmp

Citizen journalism:Japan earthquake: Footage of moment tsunami hit
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12725646

Japan earthquake: New footage of quake impact in Kashima
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12722105

The men who made millions from Facebook
http://money.uk.msn.com/news/rich-lists/photos.aspx?cp-documentid=156481937

New and Digital Media!

“Digital media have, in many ways, changed how we consume media products” Who do you think benefits the most- audiences or producers?

The revolution of new and digital media has changed the way society has formed in the 21st century era. The changing face of new technology has allowed new and digital media to reach its highest revolution with a great success of online community on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter growing daily with millions joining social networking sites every second. Due to the impact of new and digital media there had been a decline in other media platform such as the print industry including magazine, newspapers,articles and books.

The power of new and digital media has given audiences and producers many ways of consuming and producing news such as through citizen journalism and crowd sourcing which provides a pluralistic model for audiences as the audience play an active role in providing information for producers. This signifies the fact that audiences are no longer passive consumers but also active producers of their own media products.

Through this people have seeing a great rise in UGC (user generated content) which allows audiences to contribute in making media text as UGC has replaced old forms of media such as newspapers and letters even though those forms are still around, they don't seem to be as appealing to today's audience then they did 10 years ago.For example through the use smart phones and various other devices audiences are able to make and showcase their own news report about event such as the G20 protest, when an officer, from the Metropolitan Police’s Territorial Support Group (TSG), collapsed at his home after realizing he was the person captured on film allegedly pushing newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson to the ground. Mr Tomlinson, 47, is thought to have died of a heart attack. This is clear proof that new applications such as Facebook and Twitter make it increasingly possible for individual journalists to publish outside the constraints of their newspapers and website and develop direct relationships with communities of readers as social networking sites have given audience the power to publish,update and create news texts for millions of readers to see without the need to ask produces or journalists to do as as the citizen journalism's has increased. Other examples consist of the earthquake in Japan, where is shows how people have captured the moment when disaster struck Japan killing thousands. Audiences therefore are able to comment,arguer for and against any media text published and captured by ordinary people on their smart phones such as the iPhone.

It is arguable to say whether audience or produces are benefit the most from consuming media product through the use of new and digital media. Some people may say that social networking sites has given audience the power of freedom to speak out,protest for and against things they may or may not believe in, as the use of social networking sites have allowed audiences to promote and express their feelings through application such as uploading pictures, videos, fan pages and applications that target a wide age range.

All though the online community has given the audience of freedom of speech,Social networking sites have isolated us from ‘real human interaction in a cyber-reality that is a poor imitation of the real world. This fact was identified by Sherry Turkle’s article in the Guardian. It also shows how people of to days generation spend less times interacting in person as statistics shows that 57% of people talk more online than the traditional way of communicating e.g face to face. This shows that people have become more dependent on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate with friends and family, the break down of society can linked to the significant use age of the Internet and social networking sites. Audiences spend more than 5 hours interacting online everyday which can suggest how ‘technology is threatening to dominate our lives and make us less human’. Also according to Sherry Turkle " the future of books are blurred" suggesting that audiences are no loner interested in readying like they used to 10-15 years ago, especial the young audiences of today who read and consume news and gossip through the use of social networking rather then reliable sources such as BBC news.

As well as the positive impact of new and digital media, there are many negatives aspects surrounding social networking site such as privacy concerts,identity fraud,child pornography ect.
In addition, producers can benefit from advertising on websites as well as social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, where adverts are tailored to the audiences' interests. All adverts are created to suit the users interest in order to appeal the them. Producers are able to promote produces by advertising it on social networking such as Facebook and Twitter in exchange to make profit for their own company and institution. However overall i think audiences benefit from the use of new and digital media more then the producers are they gain more UGC and convergence through new applications and technological devices.

Are We Obsessed with Facebook?

Key statistics:

Start of 2011, there are 500, 000,000 active Facebook account t and users.

1 in every 13 people on earth.

48% of 18-34 users check their account when they wake up

28% of people check their Facebook before out of bed.

30% of the entire user bases are 35 and over

The FASTEST growths of users are teenager/college students with a 74% in ONE YEAR.

206.2 MILLION Internet users with 71.2% of the users are on FACEBOOK.

70% of the Facebook user base resides OUTSIDE the U.S.A.

48% of the AMERICAN user find out about the NEWS on FACEBOOK.

2.11% increase in internet search with Facebook being the MOST researched term in 2010.

57% of people communicate and talk on Facebook compared to REAL LIFE!

Interesting New and Digital Media News/Facts

iPad2 tablet unveiled by Steve Jobs:

Apple boss Steve Jobs has returned from indefinite sick leave to declare 2011 "the year of the iPad2".

Mr Jobs is on medical leave from the company and there was much speculation over whether he would take centre stage at the highly-anticipated launch of the new tablet.

Describing the iPad2 design as "completely new", Mr Jobs made a 30-minute presentation at the YBCA Theatre in San Francisco, which was broadcast live via video link in London.

Calling the new device "beautiful", he said: "We think 2011 is clearly going to be the year of iPad2. It is going to be everywhere in the month of March."

Despite rumours that the iPad2 may come in a smaller size, the new tablet will keep its original dimensions. It does, however, boast a sleeker and slimmer design than its predecessor, measuring 33% less in thickness.

Mr Jobs said: "One of the most startling things about the iPad2 is it is dramatically thinner. It feels totally different."

It will also be lighter, weighing in at 1.3lb, 0.2lb lighter than the iPad1. "You can just pick this thing up, it almost floats," Mr Jobs said.

The tablet will be available in both black and white rather than its previous single-colour design. The iPad2 will also be faster than its predecessor, with a new dual processor making it twice as quick and nine times faster in its graphics performance.

Mr Jobs put rumours of a price increase to rest, revealing that the tablet can be purchased in the US for the same price as the iPad1. "We are going to keep the same exact prices as the current iPad but you get a dramatically improved product," Mr Jobs said.

Among other new accessories, the sleek redesign of the iPad cover raised eyebrows. With a magnetic grasp attaching to the tablet, the cover provides a book-like front to the iPad and comes in 10 colours.

Links:
http://tech.uk.msn.com/news/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=156334389 (HOTMAIL NEWS)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12620077 (BBC NEWS ONLINE)
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30 million Facebook users in UK:

The number of Facebook accounts held in the UK has reached 30 million, around half the population of the country.

The milestone is an increase of four million from the number of registered UK users last July.

Vice president of Facebook Europe Joanna Shields told a conference in London that the company was "really excited" about now having 30 million active users, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Facebook, which was founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, has more than 500 million active users around the world, meaning those users who have logged in during the past 30 days.

Half of the website's users log in on any given day, with a total of more than 700 billion minutes spent a month on the site - the equivalent of 1.3 million years. The average user has 130 friends and will create 90 items of content every month.

The website employs more than 2,000 people and can even now claim to be Oscar-nominated, following the critical acclaim for The Social Network, a film about Facebook.

Link:
http://tech.uk.msn.com/news/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=156334649 (HOTMAIL NEWS)
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/03/03/facebook-has-30million-uk-users-115875-22962276/ (MIRROR ONLINE)

The impact of new and digital media on socail networking sites:

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

The impact of new and digital media on socail networking sites:

View more presentations from kareenaa.

The mutualisation of news

“Gone are the days of "us and them" journalism”, suggests that there is no longer any different between the audience and the journalists with the increasing level of normal people becoming “citizen journalists”. The use of new and digital media has given the audiences the power to produce their own media product and level up with the journalists, according to Editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger, now our journalists and readers as equal partners.

"The mutualisation of news is a very powerful idea that particularly works for the Guardian, as our relationship with our readers is very strong. We can use the community of our readers in ways we would not have been able to in the past."

Rusbridger says that in order to make the members feel involved and more interested, the Guardian should build trust by behaving like the old-style mutual building societies. The web has led to a news community where ideas and news are shared rather than delivered, as new and digital media has become more accessible through the use of the Internet world wide. He also suggests that, "By continuing to go down this route, we will be more diverse and genuinely more plural than other media organizations and create a huge external resource. We need to continue breaking down the perceptions of a remote journalist who is a preacher, living distantly, and newspapers as being in bed with power and on the side of power, rather than the reader.

Rusbridger believes that new applications such as Twitter make it increasingly possible for individual journalists to publish outside the constraints of their newspapers and website and develop direct relationships with communities of readers.

An example of this would be Guardian journalist Jemima Kiss, who had more than 12,000 followers on Twitter in June 2009 and uses them to get help in researching stories, this method can also be referred to as “Crowd sourcing”, as Jemima uses all the information she gets from the crowed and makes news out of it as they often bombard her with all the information she needs. It represents a blurring of the lines between journalism and readers. She says: you help me with researching this story and I will let you know when it is ready.

". The Guardian technology pod had 682,000 followers on Twitter in June 2009, which is nearly twice as large as the number of people who buy the Guardian every day. The idea of journalists publishing directly is no longer shocking to the audience or publishers. "The way we tend to work is that there are always early adopters of these new technologies, and it works best when individual journalists who have a passion for it, use and explore it says Rusbridger.An example of this is that the Guidelines has gone online for Twitter. "These are a general common-sense guide rather than being prescriptive."

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The policeman suspended over the death of a G20 protester in London has been signed off sick - following a suspected heart attack. The officer, from the Metropolitan Police’s Territorial Support Group (TSG), collapsed at his home after realizing he was the person captured on film allegedly pushing newspaper seller Ian Tomlinson to the ground. Mr Tomlinson, 47, is thought to have died of a heart attack.



Alan Rusbridger says: "At the heart of this story was reporter Paul Lewis doing what a traditional reporter should do. The death of Tomlinson raised barely a mention in the other media. The official police version was that he died of a heart attack while they were trying to rescue him under a hail of bottles.

Paul Lewis (Gaurdian) doubted this online and this helped to raised qquestions in the paper and also on Twitter, which as a result led the people to look through their cameras and mobiles in order to catch the killer of Mr Tomlinson, as this is where the power of the crowd comes in and a fund manager from New York realized he had captured the assault on Tomlinson and it was an extremely dramatic piece of film.

In some cases “citizen journalists or “Crowd sourcing” is not as important, however in the case of the G20 protests, this seemed to be the most important part and it shows that sometimes a footage can be more important than it first seemed.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1169384/Officer-G20-protest-death-signs-sick-following-heart-attack.html#ixzz1FGYHc5Xo