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The UK's Digital Economy Bill (DEB) may have a negative effect on establishments that offer open Wi-Fi access to users. Libraries, Universities, Cafes and other small businesses will not be exempt from anti-piracy policies in the Digital Economy Bill, meaning that a small business offering WiFi might be warned and held responsible for copyright infringement of somebody using their WiFi access.

A sour economy and civil litigation - including one suit filed by Titan Media Group's parent company - have prompted video website Veoh.com to file for bankruptcy. Veoh co-founder Dmitry Shapiro wrote in a blog post that despite "great vision, a passionate team, tens of millions of users, millions in revenues and victory in court were not enough."

"An article published in, The Guardian, discusses a debate taking place in the British Parliament around a new "digital economy bill. One amendment in particular is stirring a lot of discussion about its impact on content online. The Guardian writes: The new proposal - which was passed in the House of Lords by 165 votes to 140 - gives a high court judge the right to issue an injunction against a Web site accused of hosting a "substantial" amount of copyright infringing material, potentially forcing the entire site offline. Critics say the major problem with this amendment is that ajudge could shut down a Web site because of copyright infringement, even if thesite's manager didn't put the content online."

An article published on Thursday in, The Guardian, discusses a debate taking place in the British Parliament around a new "digital economy bill." One amendment in particular is stirring a lot of discussion about its impact on content online. The Guardian writes: The new proposal - which was passed in the House of Lords by 165 votes to 140 - gives a high court judge the right to issue an injunction against a Web site accused of hosting a "substantial" amount of copyright infringing material, potentially forcing the entire site offline. Critics say the major problem with this amendment is that a judge could  shut down a Web site  because of copyright infringement, even if the site's manager didn't put the content online. What is left unanswered is how a company can be held accountable for every piece of content placed on its site.  Many critics of this bill and others in Europe say it is most likely to result in the stifling of creativity, innovation and free speech. In the United States, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act offers some protection against liability to Internet service providers and Web sites that host copyrighted material uploaded by third parties.

"News Corp. agreed to pay $70 million for a stake in the media company owned by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, one of its largest shareholders. The New York media conglomerate will take a 9.1% stake in Rotana Group, with an option to double its holdings in 18 months. Corp. will have two seats on Rotana's six-person board. The investment gives News Corp its first significant foothold in the Middle East, where it expects economies to grow quickly."

"Walt Disney Co.'s fourth-quarter results should cheer media investors fretting about whether legacy businesses can thrive postrecession. The Burbank, Calif. company just about matched its profit for the last three months of 2008 thanks to strong performances by its cable channels and movie studios. Theme parks, however, stalled in the bad economy as families cut back on luxuries."

Silicon Valley economy is slow to rebound. Concerns re high costs and poor schools. Also less immigration to the valley.

Provides official categorization of all information/media sectors of the economy

Despite a down economy, CA and NY compete for screen productions with tax incentives and other perks. Both say it's about jobs.

"A group of 25 Liberal Democrat candidates has penned an open letter urging the party to rethink its bid to cut off sites accused of copyright infringement. The Lib Dems' Lord Clement Jones successfully tabled an amendment to the Digital Economy Bill which would give courts the power to force ISPs to block sites accused of copyright infringement." The policy has been attacked as "dangerous" by civil liberties campaigners, who \nfear it swings the balance of power in favour of copyright holders and could harm free speech."

Op Ed Exploring the rates and speeds available in other countries, and the fact that the United States has among the slowest speeds and the highest prices of advanced economies. Also discusses the proposed FCC National Broadband Plan.

It is intriguing to me that when Hulu decides to promote social interaction, or a sharing economy as Lessig would put it, they focus on prank videos and game based viewing.

Internet companies trying to prevent copyright bill from infringing on privacy.

PBS reporting on media ownership

PBS' 2003 reporting on media ownership

As the economy recovers, advertising spending for print, television, and online media is expected to increase this year.