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Articolo lungo: "Big Tech: The New Predatory Capitalism"
by J.C. DE MARTIN Dec. 27, 2017

Dec. 27, 2017

*Big Tech: The New Predatory Capitalism* /The tech giants are menacing democracy, privacy, and competition. Can they be housebroken?/ David Dayen December 26, 2017 /This article appears in the Winter 2018 issue of The American Prospect magazine. Subscribe here. // / “We’re making the world a better place.” The phrase is thrown around so often in the tech world that it became a punch line on the HBO satire Silicon Valley. Executives controlling the largest tech titans—Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft—might even believe it. But in a searing presentation at Business Insider’s IGNITION conference in November, New York University professor Scott Galloway explained that technology and progress have stopped traveling together since the days of the Apollo Project, even as scientists and engineers developed the most sophisticated tools known to mankind. “What has the greatest collection of humanity and IQ and financial capital been brought together to accomplish?” Galloway asked the crowd. “To save world hunger? To create greater comity of man? I don’t think so. … Their singular mission, simply put, it’s to sell another fucking Nissan.” Today’s technologists work at for-profit businesses, doing what for-profit businesses do in America—maximizing shareholder profits by acquiring functional control of markets, as well as intimate details of our lives. Big Tech makes aspects of daily life more convenient (if more fraught), but that’s not the same as making the world a better place. Mainly, the goal has become making more money, via more monopoly. And their success over the past decade has been so unprecedented and damaging that Galloway—a self-described “full-throated capitalist”—sees no choice but to break these companies up. […] Continua qui: http://prospect.org/article/big-tech-new-predatory-capitalism

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[SUSPECTED SPAM] EU Court of Justice rules that Uber provides a transport service and is not a mere electronic intermediary
by oreste.pollicino Dec. 26, 2017

Dec. 26, 2017

A first, preliminary, analysis (co-authored by Enzo Marasà) http://www.medialaws.eu/eu-court-of-justice-rules-that-uber-provides-a-tran… tantissimi auguri a tutti o.

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Happy Holidays Card
by Nexa Media Dec. 23, 2017

Dec. 23, 2017

[image: Immagine incorporata 1]

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UK: "High speed broadband to become a legal right"
by J.C. DE MARTIN Dec. 20, 2017

Dec. 20, 2017

Press release *High speed broadband to become a legal right* /Universal Service Obligation will deliver high speed broadband across the UK/ Published 20 December 2017 From: Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and The Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP The Government has confirmed that universal high speed broadband will be delivered by a regulatory Universal Service Obligation (USO), giving everyone in the UK access to speeds of at least 10 Mbps by 2020. This is the speed that Ofcom, the independent regulator, says is needed to meet the requirements of an average family. After careful consideration the government has decided that regulation is the best way of making sure everyone in the UK can get a decent broadband connection of at least 10 Mbps as soon as possible. […] Continua qui: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/high-speed-broadband-to-become-a-legal-r…

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Transmission de données de WHATSAPP à FACEBOOK : mise en demeure publique pour absence de base légale
by Alberto Cammozzo Dec. 20, 2017

Dec. 20, 2017

l regolatore francese dei dati personali (CNIL) diffida Whatsapp dal trasferire dati a Facebook senza consenso. <https://www.cnil.fr/fr/transmission-de-donnees-de-whatsapp-facebook-mise-en…> La présidente de la CNIL met la société WHATSAPP en demeure de procéder légalement à la transmission des données de ses utilisateurs à FACEBOOK, notamment en obtenant leur consentement. En 2014, la société WHATSAPP a été rachetée par la société FACEBOOK Inc. Le 25 août 2016, la société WHATSAPP a publié une nouvelle version des conditions d’utilisation et de la politique de confidentialité de l’application « WhatsApp ». Il y est mentionné que les données de ses utilisateurs sont désormais transmises à la société FACEBOOK Inc. pour trois finalités : le ciblage publicitaire, la sécurité et l’évaluation et l’amélioration des services (« business intelligence »). A la suite de cette annonce, le G29 (groupe des CNIL européennes) a sollicité des explications de la part de WHATSAPP sur les traitements réalisés à l’occasion de cette transmission de données, tout en demandant qu’elle soit interrompue concernant le ciblage publicitaire. Le G29 a également missionné son sous-groupe en charge de la coopération en matière d’enquêtes et de sanctions (« enforcement subgroup »), notamment pour qu’il coordonne les actions des autorités souhaitant mener des investigations. C’est dans ce contexte que la Présidente de la CNIL a décidé, pour vérifier la conformité à la loi « Informatique et Libertés » des traitements opérés par WHATSAPP, de diligenter des contrôles en ligne et sur questionnaire puis de convoquer la société pour une audition. La CNIL a été informée par la société que les données des 10 millions d’utilisateurs français n’avaient en réalité jamais été traitées à des fins de ciblage publicitaire. Ces investigations ont néanmoins permis de constater plusieurs manquements à loi Informatique et Libertés. Un manquement à l’obligation de disposer d’une base légale pour les traitements mis en œuvre. Il a été constaté que la société WHATSAPP transmet effectivement à la société FACEBOOK Inc. des données concernant ses utilisateurs à des fins de « business intelligence » et de sécurité. Sont ainsi partagées des informations sur les utilisateurs telles que leur numéro de téléphone ainsi que des informations relatives à leurs habitudes d’utilisation de l’application. Si la finalité de sécurité peut être regardée comme essentielle au bon fonctionnement de l’application, il en va différemment de la finalité de « business intelligence » qui via l’analyse du comportement des utilisateurs de l’application, vise à améliorer ses performances et à optimiser son exploitation. La Présidente de la CNIL a estimé que la transmission de données de WHATSAPP vers FACEBOOK Inc. pour cette finalité de « business intelligence » ne reposait sur aucune des bases légales qu’exige, pour tout traitement, la loi informatique et libertés. En particulier, ni le consentement des utilisateurs ni l’intérêt légitime de WHATSAPP ne peuvent être invoqués dans les circonstances de l’espèce. En effet, d’une part, le consentement des utilisateurs n’est pas valablement recueilli car : il n’est pas spécifique à cette finalité - lors de l’installation de l’application les utilisateurs doivent accepter que leurs données soient traitées pour le service de messagerie, mais également, de manière générale, par FACEBOOK Inc. pour des finalités accessoires, telle que l’amélioration de son service ; il n’est pas libre - le seul moyen de s’opposer à la transmission des données pour la finalité accessoires de « business intelligence » est de désinstaller l’application. D’autre part, la société WHATSAPP ne peut se prévaloir de son intérêt légitime à transférer massivement des données à la société FACEBOOK Inc. dans la mesure où cette transmission ne s’accompagne pas des garanties suffisantes permettant de préserver l’intérêt ou les droits et libertés fondamentaux des utilisateurs puisqu’il n’existe aucun mécanisme leur permettant de s’y opposer tout en continuant à utiliser l’application. [...]

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Preliminary assessment in Facebook proceeding: Facebook's collection and use of data from third-party sources is abusive
by Alberto Cammozzo Dec. 20, 2017

Dec. 20, 2017

Autorità tedesca per la concorrenza avvisa FB che sta abusando della posizione dominante. <http://www.bundeskartellamt.de/SharedDocs/Meldung/EN/Pressemitteilungen/201…> The Bundeskartellamt has informed the company Facebook in writing of its preliminary legal assessment in the abuse of dominance proceeding which the authority is conducting against Facebook. Based on the current stage of the proceedings, the authority assumes that Facebook is dominant on the German market for social networks. The authority holds the view that Facebook is abusing this dominant position by making the use of its social network conditional on its being allowed to limitlessly amass every kind of data generated by using third-party websites and merge it with the user's Facebook account. These third-party sites include firstly services owned by Facebook such as WhatsApp or Instagram, and secondly websites and apps of other operators with embedded Facebook APIs. Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt: /""We are mostly concerned about the collection of data outside Facebook's social network and the merging of this data into a user's Facebook account. Via APIs, data are transmitted to Facebook and are collected and processed by Facebook even when a Facebook user visits other websites. This even happens when, for example, a user does not press a "like button” but has called up a site into which such a button is embedded. Users are unaware of this. And from the current state of affairs we are not convinced that users have given their effective consent to Facebook's data tracking and the merging of data into their Facebook account. The extent and form of data collection violate mandatory European data protection principles."/ [...] According to the Bundeskartellamt's preliminary assessment, Facebook's terms of service are at least in this aspect inappropriate and violate data protection provisions to the disadvantage of its users. In view of the company's dominant position, it can also not be assumed that users effectively consent to this form of data collection and processing. In this proceeding the Bundeskartellamt focuses on the collection and use of user data from third party sources. The proceeding does not concern the collection and use of data on the Facebook network itself. The Bundeskartellamt leaves explicitly open whether this also constitutes a violation of data protection provisions and the abuse of a dominant position. Users cannot expect data which is generated when they use services other than Facebook to be added to their Facebook account to this extent. Data are already transmitted from websites and apps to Facebook when a user calls them up or installs them, provided they have an embedded API. There are millions of such APIs embedded in German websites and apps. In the authority's assessment, consumers must be given more control over these processes and Facebook needs to provide them with suitable options to effectively limit this collection of data. /[...]/

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Uber is officially a cab firm, says European court
by Luigi Scorca Dec. 20, 2017

Dec. 20, 2017

https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/business-42423627?__twitter_impression=true

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Uber to face stricter EU regulation after ECJ rules it is transport firm
by fabio chiusi Dec. 20, 2017

Dec. 20, 2017

"Uber is a transport services company, the European court of justice has ruled, requiring it to accept stricter regulation and licensing within the EU as a taxi operator. The decision in Luxembourg, after a challenge brought by taxi drivers in Barcelona, will apply across the whole of the EU, including the UK." https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/dec/20/uber-european-court-of-j… f.

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New York City moves to create accountability for algorithms | Ars Technica
by J.C. DE MARTIN Dec. 19, 2017

Dec. 19, 2017

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/12/new-york-city-moves-to-create-a… (Sent from my wireless device; please excuse brevity and typos (if any))

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Foto: 9° Convegno Nexa (18/12/2017)
by Andrea Pellegrini Dec. 19, 2017

Dec. 19, 2017

Ciao a tutti, Ieri ho fatto un po’ di foto durante l’interessantissima conferenza organizzata da Nexa e CINI al Politecnico di Torino. Ecco il link: 2017.12.18.9.Conferenza.Nexa.Etica.e.Governance.AI.DAUIN.PoliTo-Torino-JPEG-WEB <https://oc.p3ll3.eu/s/RZG59vjTYLT0w7U> Grazie mille a tutti gli organizzatori dell'evento. Colgo l’occasione per ringraziare anche tutti coloro che propongono su questa lista spunti di riflessione sempre molto interessanti. Ciao Ciao Andrea Pellegrini 346 705 0039 Via Superga 5 Pino Torinese (TO) Italy pelle(a)andreapellegrini.net <mailto:pelle@andreapellegrini.net> andreapellegrini.net <http://andreapellegrini.net/>

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