Consumer Groups Urge The FTC To Block Google From Acquiring AdMob
In November, Google announced it was acquiring AdMob for $750M. The deal is still in the works, of course—in part, at least, because the FTC is taking a first and, as of last week, second look at the deal. As the FTC continues to scrutinize the search giant buying the mobile ad giant, consumer groups are taking their opportunity to have their say—and it’s not in favor of the deal. Read More…
FTC Demands Full Disclosure From Bloggers
I’m still struggling with the whole full disclosure thing from the FTC. It’s not that I disagree with it–in fact, I think I have been following their guidelines all along. But now I feel like I really need to watch myself or I’m going to jail. All this was brought to mind when Mashable featured the work that Converseon [full disclosure: I am Converseon's Chief Strategist] client Telstra [full disclosure: I have tangentially worked on the Telstra account for Converseon] did to publicize its social media guidelines with an interactive learning module [full disclosure: oh wait, I don't think I need to say anything this time].
The FTC Redefines Honesty For Social Media And Bloggers
So the much-vaunted Federal Trade Commission guidelines for social media came into play today. There’s been a lot said about them on both sides of the fence, with plenty bloggers offering their views for and against. Some say it will inhibit free speech, while others applaud the FTC for getting involved.
Whatever your stance, one thing that is abundantly clear is that it’s not that big a deal.
So what if the FTC have turned their gaze towards social media, and bloggers in particular? There’s a key word that everyone should already be adhering to anyway.
U.S Government Unprepared For Coming Cyber Threats
Warfare is something that through the years has evolved in a technological sense, but fundamentally has stayed the same — have your men kill the other men. In the cyber world, things work a bit differently but there is such a thing as cyberwarfare. And according to the GAO (Government Accountability Office) is a brand of warfare that’s on the rise.
Read More…
Google Fires Back Against FCC Probing
While it remains unclear whether Google Voice should be treated the same way as other telecom companies, the search giant isn’t taking any chances with the rather unpleasant probing it’s receiving from the Federal Communications Commission.
FTC Finally Finalized The New Blogging Guidelines
In case you’ve missed it, the FTC has finally finalized its new blogging guidelines—including an up-to-$11,000 fine for not disclosing free products or other remuneration given for product reviews (or maybe not). Naturally, this has caused an uproar in the blogosphere—and now the president and CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau, Randall Rothenberg, has written an open letter to the FTC objecting to the new guidelines (via).
FCC Probes Call Blocking In Google Voice
Last week, twenty members of Congress sided with AT&T and asked the Federal Communications Commission to take a good look at Google Voice, because the free telephony service doesn’t allow users to call certain rural numbers. Two days later, Sharon Gillett, chief of the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau, sent Google telecom counsel a list of questions about their service. Read More…
US Government Moves Towards Web 2.0 With Apps.gov
Give the government some credit sometimes, the new Apps.gov web site is an open shopping portal based on cloud computing and web 2.0 applications. The web site is clean, sharp, and looks like it will serve a useful purpose if government agencies can get past the old way of doing things and embrace Web 2.0 like New York has.
Underground Military Bloggers, Censorship and Fear
This should be of interesting to almost every blogger out there. We all know that there are some bloggers who maintain their anonymity like Mini-Microsoft; we also know that there are bloggers who have had their identity revealed under court order, or voluntarily before legal action was taken. An article in the NY Times talks about military bloggers, and while in general it is good that military troops are blogging, quite rightly the Pentagon is worried that troops inadvertently will put themselves in danger by revealing where they are and what they are doing.
FCC Begins To Probe Wireless Providers
Imagine this. You are in the wireless industry and you are on the verge of actually fulfilling all of the prophecies about your industry being the future of the Internet and communications in general. The smart phone is now becoming more the norm and the introduction of the iPhone has moved the growth along at an ever accelerating rate of speed. It looks like finally everything is falling into place. So could possibly slow you down now? Take one guess ….. that’s right …. the government.