Justice Dep't May Expand Use of Cybersecurity Experts

The Justice Department may put national security experts with cybersecurity training into department offices around the country in order to take legal action against computer facilities used in attacks on government agencies and private companies, according to a former high-ranking FBI official. The department would then be able to sue Web-hosting firms and other third parties and get court approval to seize Web addresses or shut down hosting companies to disrupt attack networks, former FBI Executive Assistant Director Shawn Henry said.

James Holmes 'Fan' Pages Ignite Facebook Debate

It's not new for Facebook pages to pop up in support of accused killers and other distasteful figures, but a few dozen James Holmes fan pages -- including one with more than 800 followers that appeared the day Holmes is accused of opening fire on a theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and wounding dozens -- are raising new questions about what constitutes free and appropriate speech in the digital age, especially on Facebook.

  • Read the article: CNN

EU Seeks 'Worldwide' Concessions from Google

EU regulators are seeking concessions from Google which could be applied worldwide to resolve concerns about its business practices, the EU's antitrust chief said, raising the stakes in forthcoming settlement talks. Google, whose search engine is used for around four-fifths of Internet searches in Europe, has been accused by rivals of abusing its dominant market position, and the European Commission said in May it was concerned about its alleged anti-competitive behavior.

Apple Calls Samsung's Patent Royalty Too High

Apple Inc said Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is demanding from the iPhone maker a far higher patent royalty than Apple pays to other companies, at a rate the South Korean company has never sought from any other licensee. The information was contained in portions of an Apple legal brief freshly unsealed in U.S. court, and provides more detail about each side's negotiating position in the run-up to a high stakes trial.

EU Has 'Good Level of Understanding with Google'

Google took a significant step toward resolving its antitrust problems in the EU after regulators warmed to new concessions offered to settle an investigation into alleged anti-competitive behavior and avert a possible fine. The European Commission said that there was a "level of good understanding" with the world's most popular search engine regarding its latest proposals that would form the basis of discussions before the Commission makes a final decision whether to accept them.

Electronic Arts Settles Antitrust Suit for $27 Million

Electronic Arts Inc. reached a proposed settlement agreement in a class-action lawsuit over whether it violated antitrust laws by establishing exclusive licensing agreements for its football videogames. The agreement, disclosed by Seattle-based class-action law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, establishes a $27 million fund for consumers who purchased "Madden" NFL, AFL or NCAA football games published by EA.

Contempt Motion Dropped Against Girl Who Tweeted Attackers' Names

Defense attorneys for two boys who pleaded guilty to assaulting a 17-year-old Savannah Dietrich have withdrawn their motion that she be held in contempt for tweeting the names of her attackers in defiance of a court order. David Mejia, an attorney for one of the teens, said now that the Louisville teen’s story has gone global because of a Courier-Journal article there was no reason to continue the contempt motion.

NTP Resolves E-mail Patent case with 13 Companies

NTP, which some say held the mobile world hostage with its e-mail patents, has signed an agreement that will let companies including Google, Apple, and Microsoft use its patent for allowing e-mail services on handsets. The company announced in a press release that it has reached a mutual resolution with 13 companies, including wireless carriers AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile; smartphone manufacturers Apple, HTC, Motorola Mobility, Palm, LG, and Samsung; and e-mail service and software providers Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo.

In Settlement Talks, Apple, Samsung Disagree on Patent Values

Apple Inc Chief Executive Tim Cook and top Samsung Electronic Co Ltd executives disagreed last week on the value of each other's patents at a settlement conference ahead of a high profile U.S. trial, according to a source familiar with the matter. Apple and Samsung, the world's largest consumer electronics corporations, are waging legal war in several countries, accusing each other of patent violations as they vie for supremacy in the fast-growing market for mobile devices.

Apple, Motorola Appeal Patent Ruling

Apple Inc. and Google Inc.'s Motorola Mobility unit filed separate appeals of a federal judge’s June 22 order dismissing their mutual patent- infringement claims. U.S. Circuit Judge Richard A. Posner threw out the companies’ claims about two weeks after he rejected each mobile- phone maker’s damages theories and canceled a jury trial that had been set for June 11 in federal court in Chicago.

Judge Finds Kodak Patent Invalid in Apple, RIM Case

Eastman Kodak Co. has lost a patent case against Apple Inc. and Research In Motion Ltd., dealing a blow to the onetime film giant's efforts to raise billions of dollars by selling off its intellectual property. Kodak filed a complaint against the iPhone and BlackBerry makers at the U.S. International Trade Commission in early 2010, saying their devices infringed on its patent for previewing images with a digital camera.

Appeals Court Refuses to Lift Ban on Galaxy Tab 10.1

A federal appeals court refused to lift a preliminary injunction that banned sales of Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy Tab 10.1 touchscreen tablet computer at the request of Apple Inc. U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, Calif., issued the injunction last month after finding Apple had made a strong case that Samsung violated its design patent.

Public Places Struggle with Controversial Internet Use

The main public library in San Francisco has been stung by complaints about content, including explicit pornography, that some people watch in front of others. It is an issue playing out not just at libraries, but in cafes and gyms, on airplanes, trains and highways, and just about any other place where the explosion of computers, tablets and smartphones has given rise to a growing source of dispute: public displays of mature content.

Russian Man Arrested for Attacks on Amazon.com

Officials at the U.S. Department of Justice announced that a Russian man has been arrested in Cyprus in connection with attacks on Amazon.com. The man, Dmitry Olegovich Zubakha, 25, of Moscow, was arrested July 18 on an international warrant. Zubakha was indicted in May of 2011 for launching two denial-of-service (DoS) attacks on the Amazon Web site. The indictment, which was unsealed Thursday, also links him to other DoS attacks on Priceline.com and eBay.

  • Read the article: eWeek

White House Tech Panel Urges Sharing Airwaves

Federal agencies should share airwaves with commercial users to ease a shortage of frequencies and help meet surging demand from wireless smartphones and other mobile devices, a White House advisory panel said. President Barack Obama should have U.S. agencies identify twice as much spectrum for shared use as he directed in a 2010 memorandum setting mobile-computing growth as a national priority, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology said in a letter and report.

EU Seeks Concessions from Google on All Platforms

EU regulators, investigating Google for alleged anti-competitive behavior, want the internet search giant to offer concessions that cover all platforms, including computers, tablets and mobile devices, two people familiar with the issue said. If Google is not able to provide satisfactory concessions, it will face charges and potentially severe fines, the EU's competition commissioner, Joaquin Almunia, has said.

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