China, North Korea, Burma…they’re places where protest has been crushed. But yesterday people demonstrated against Net censorship in virtual locations from those countries. Organized by the group Reporters Without Borders, the first Online Free Expression Day invited people to create avatars and take part in demonstrations in virtuallocations where protest would not be allowed in the real world. In a statement RWB said, “From now on, we will organize activities every 12 March to condemn cyber-censorship throughoutthe world. A response of this kind is needed to the growing tendency to crack down on bloggers and to close websites." “Today, the first time this day is being marked, we are giving allInternet users the opportunity to demonstrate in places were protests are not normally possible. We hope many will come and protest in virtual versions of Beijing’s Tiananmen Square,Cuba’s Revolution Square or on the streets of Rangoon, in Burma. At least 62 cyber-dissidents are currently imprisoned worldwide, while more than 2,600 websites, blogs or discussions forumswere closed or made inaccessible in 2007.” UNESCO had originally supported the demonstration, but later withdrew its support. RWB lists 15 countriesas Internet Enemies (Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zimbabwe) which censor Net use and imprisondissenting voices. Another 11 – Bahrain, Eritrea, Gambia, Jordan, Libya, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen – are classed as “countries underwatch.”
Tag Archive: Ethiopia
Cyber Demos Protest Online Censorship
EA Donates Copies of SimCity for Every OLPC
While One Laptop Per Child computers are already slated to have a handful of open-source games included on them, one major game publisher will take that list of games to the next level by donating an old-school classic from its archives. Electronic Arts announced on Thursday that it would donate the original 1989 version of SimCity on every OLPC sold.
Besides being a fun way to get kids using the computer, EA believes SimCity can also help them learn. “SimCity is entertainment that’s unintentionally educational,” said Steve Seabolt, vice president of global brand development for The Sims Label, in a statement. “Players learn to use limited resources to build and customize their cities. There are choices and consequences, but in the end, it’s a creativity tool that’s only limited by the player’s imagination.”
Denmark Tops Global Tech Rankings
The World Economic Forum has published its Global Information Technology Report 2006–2007 “Network Readiness Index” (PDF), an assessment of 122 countries’ ability to take advantage of information and communication technologies, both in terms of their adoption and deployment but also taking into consideration the nations’ overal business climates, government policies and regulation, and the preparedness and technology stances of key stakeholders.
Last year, the United States reclaimed the top spot in the survey; this year, Denmark claims the number one slot, while the U.S. slips six places, also being beaten out by Sweden, Singapore, Finland, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
Worldwide PC Market To Double By 2010
Mature markets in the US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific will add 150 million new PCs to the world market by 2010. More significant growth will come from emerging markets, for which Forrester forecasts that 566 million new PCs will be in use by 2010, up from 75 million in 2003, a 31% CAGR.
Competition for market share will pit industry leaders like Dell and HP against local emerging market manufacturers and fundamentally change the rules of the game. Price will be the key driver of the pace of adoption. “Today’s products from Western PC vendors won’t dominate in those markets in the long term,” says Forrester Senior Analyst Simon Yates. “Instead, local PC makers like Lenovo Group in China and Aquarius in Russia that can better tailor the PC form factor, price point, and applications to their local markets will ultimately win the market share battle.”
