Blog
09 Oct 2009 By Michael Holloway
Help fight for UK digital rights and get a free signed Cory Doctorow novel
Open Rights Group is funded by people who care about their digital rights.
Find Out More
09 Oct 2009 By Jim Killock
Data retention rejected by Romania’s courts
Members of EDRi, European Digital Rights, and the press are reporting that Romania’s constitutional courts are blocking Data Retention.
Find Out More
05 Oct 2009 By Jim Killock
Royal Mail: closing job search over data dispute while sacking workers
Sometimes the reasons why we need more open data regimes slap you in the face.
Find Out More
02 Oct 2009 By Jim Killock
EU Parliament: save our freedoms
Open Rights Group and La Quadrature are calling on the EU Parliament to save our right to a free trial, to stop Mandelson’s plans for disconnection without trial: amendment 138 currently states that:
“No restriction may be imposed on the fundamental rights and freedoms of end-users, without a prior ruling by the judicial authorities.
Find Out More
01 Oct 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – September 2009
Here’s September’s monthly round-up of our activities and press.
Find Out More
30 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Amendment 138: help Europe defend our right freedom of speech
As we in the UK are defending our basic freedoms on the net, asking for our right to a fair trial, asking that our freedom of speech be protected, another battle is taking place in the EU.
Find Out More
30 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
P2P Consultation: ORG responds
The government’s consultation on P2P legislation closed last night.
Find Out More
25 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Artists need to make money: they need new businesses and licenses
We responded today to news that artists have backed away from disconnection, but still want ‘bandwidth throttling’, which could be just as bad, to say that this approach is both unjust and a distraction.
Find Out More
23 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Leo Boland takes decision to e-count in London 2012
This morning, in a “round table” event to discuss London’s election plans, ORG was told by Leo Boland, London’s Chief Executive and returning officer, that he has personally taken the decision to e-count in London’s 2012 elections, despite the fact that he has not yet received feedback on the GLA’s cost-benefit analysis, which revealed that e-counting would be more expensive and potentially less robust than manual counting.
Find Out More
21 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Disconnection: giving some real answers to Mandelson and his staff
Gerd Leonhard, Peter Jenner, Patrick Olszowski and I met with Mandelson’s top level staff today.
Find Out More
16 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
BBC seeks TV encryption through the back door
A BBC / Ofcom consultation is seeking to rush through permission for the BBC to encrypt the ‘electronic program guide’ and thereby impose new restrictions on HD TV devices in the future.
Find Out More
15 Sep 2009 By Michael Holloway
We have mostly been…
We’re going to use the blog much more to keep in touch with our supporters.
Find Out More
11 Sep 2009 By Michael Holloway
Event: Stop Mandelson’s Disconnection Plans
Event – Stop Mandelson’s Disconnection Plans
Fri 2 Oct, 2009 from 7:00pm – 9:00pm
The Crypt on the GreenSt James Church, Clerkenwell, Clerkenwell CloseLondon, EC1R 0EA, UK
Cost: Free (for new joining supporters) – £15
Click through for event tickets.
Find Out More
09 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Google books hearing: what was, and wasn’t said
The EU Google Books hearing highlighted some very serious concerns with the settlement, but mainly from a rights holder point of view.
Find Out More
09 Sep 2009 By Michael Holloway
New site – hope you like it!
As you can see we’ve redesigned the website to make it easier for supporters to take action for digital rights.
Find Out More
08 Sep 2009 By Michael Holloway
We’re shutting down and relaunching tomorrow so stop commenting!
Attention all users.
Find Out More
07 Sep 2009 By Michael Holloway
Google Books: Open Rights calls for citizens to benefit, calls for copyright reform
Speaking at the EU Commission’s Google Books hearing today, Jim Killock, Executive Director of the Open Rights Group said:
“We must not see this dispute as simply a process to deliver a compromise between two commercial interests.
Find Out More
01 Sep 2009 By Jim Killock
Google books: getting it right in Europe
Next week, Open Rights Group will be one of a number of groups speaking to the EU Commission about what they should do to ensure the right deal is made to ensure online book services grow in Europe.
Find Out More
28 Aug 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – August 2009
Stop press 1: Please support ORG by setting up a direct debit Stop press 2: 38 Degrees have started a petition telling Mandelson not to rush through extreme internet laws /p>
Here’s August’s monthly round-up of our activities and press.
Find Out More
28 Aug 2009 By Jim Killock
38 Degrees backs campaign against ‘Digital Dictator’ Mandelson
Online campaigners 38 Degrees have launched an attack on Mandelson’s plans to give himself the power to order internet cut-offs without trial.
Find Out More
25 Aug 2009 By Jim Killock
New fast-track P2P clampdown proposals announced today
According to the Guardian and reports this morning, Government officials today have announced that they intend to put in place a strong clamp down on illicit file sharing to ‘support’ record and film industries they wrongly believe are threatened.
Find Out More
01 Aug 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – July 2009
Click through for July’s monthly round-up of our activities and press.
Find Out More
24 Jul 2009 By Jim Killock
Kang-Karoo courts: guilt by accusation, punishment without trial
Largely away from public attention, Karoo in Hull have been operating a ‘three strikes’ policy with the tacit support of rights holders.
Find Out More
23 Jul 2009 By Jim Killock
Welcome Podcasters!
Update: this meeting has been postponed.
Find Out More
22 Jul 2009 By Michael Holloway
Looking for an experienced Joomla developer
We need some volunteer help rebuilding the website in Joomla.
Find Out More
22 Jul 2009 By William Heath
A Malmo Unconference!
As flagged here there’s an EU e-Government summit coming up in November in Malmo, Sweden.
Find Out More
21 Jul 2009 By Jim Killock
National Portrait Gallery vs Wikipedia
National Portrait Gallery’s (NPG) threat to sue a Wikipedia administrator for reposting 3,000 images caused a great deal of discussion on our lists and across the media.
Find Out More
16 Jul 2009 By Jim Killock
Individual voter registration is the current focus for electoral modernisation in the UK
On Wednesday ORG Executive Director Jim Killock and Advisory Council member Jason Kitcat met Michael Wills MP, a minister in the Ministry of Justice.
Find Out More
10 Jul 2009 By Michael Holloway
Sir Bonar on Intercept Modernisation at Open Tech 09
Sir Bonar Neville-Kingdom GCMG KCVO is her Majesty’s most senior civil servant concerned with information and communications technologies (or ‘ICTs’).
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
07 Jul 2009 By Michael Holloway
There’s no excuse for industrial-scale snooping
Following yesterday’s news that BT have ditched Phorm, it is now reported that Carphone Warehouse have joined the list of big-name clients shunning the service.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
06 Jul 2009 By Jim Killock
BT’s decision to ditch Phorm is a victory for privacy
It is reported this morning that BT has dropped Phorm’s Webwise, the controversial behavioural advertising system that profiles internet users based on a reading of their internet traffic.
Find Out More
30 Jun 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – June 2009
Click through for this month’s update, including:
Filesharing will be throttled in digital Britain
Do your MEPs agree with ORG?
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
29 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Lobbying and public policy
Corporate lobbying in the European union has long been recognised as a significant problem for citizens.
Find Out More
19 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Who should help Open Rights Group form policy?
We are looking for nominations to our Advisory Council, who contribute policy guidance to Open Rights on both a strategic and day-to-day basis.
Find Out More
17 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Digital Britain: closing down the open internet
Digital Britain promises to ‘tackle piracy’ online.
Find Out More
15 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
All you can eat? (Within a limited menu)
Virgin have today announced that they are on the way to providing an ‘all you can eat’ music service, although they have so far only secured a deal with Universal.
Find Out More
15 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
mySociety campaign for internet-friendly Speaker
mySociety, as many of you will know, are campaigning for the next Speaker to agree with three internet-friendly principles:
1.
Find Out More
12 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Lord Carter to quit: where will Digital Britain be going?
News that Lord Carter will quit government in July raises serious questions about the future of the Digital Britain proposals, which are due to be released next Tuesday.
Find Out More
10 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
HADOPI is dead
From LQDN:
The Constitutionnal Council, highest jurisdiction in France gave its decision1 concerning the HADOPI “three strikes” law, final stage before the promulgation of the law.
Find Out More
09 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
What do the EU results and Pirate Party mean for digital rights?
Stand back from the media frenzy concentrating on Labour’s woes for a moment, and ask yourself what these elections mean for digital rights.
Find Out More
04 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Voting in the EU today: why it matters for digital rights
ORG is non-partisan, and the quality and chances of your candidates vary from region to region, so we are not recommending any party over another.
Find Out More
01 Jun 2009 By Jim Killock
Do your MEP candidates care about digital rights?
Update: We have now had a reply for all Conservative candidates.
Find Out More
29 May 2009 By Jim Killock
Fair deals can bring fans back.
Six million UK citizens are infringing copyright daily by downloading material via P2P and other file sharing services, according to the government’s Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property.
Find Out More
29 May 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – May 2009
This month’s supporter update is now available.
Find Out More
07 May 2009 By Jim Killock
Amendment 138/46 adopted again. Internet is a fundamental right in Europe.
Reposted from La Quadrature du Net
The debates on the Telecoms Package, thanks to a remarkable citizen mobilization, led to an extremely strong recognition of the access to internet as a fundamental right with the re-adoption of amendment 138/46 in second reading by a qualified majority.
Find Out More
07 May 2009 By Michael Holloway
Home Office drags its feet on DNA database removals
GeneWatch UK Press Release
GeneWatch UK today questioned the Home Office’s proposed delay in deleting innocent people’s DNA profiles from the police National DNA Database, following last year’s decision by the European Court of Human Rights.
Find Out More
05 May 2009 By Jim Killock
Ask MEPs to adopt Citizens’ Rights Amendments on 6 May.
(This urgent call to action was originally posted by La Quadrature du Net)
ALERT: last minute trick to prevent European Parliament to vote on amendment 138/46 by changing the order of votes.
Find Out More
30 Apr 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – April 2009
Click through for a round-up of another busy month for Open Rights Group, including our new campaigning sites.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
28 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Phorm and the Home Office: cold comfort to citizens
You’ll probably have read today that leaked emails have shown that the Home Office worked with Phorm to offer advice that would give “comfort” to their investors.
Find Out More
23 Apr 2009
Parliament buckles: copyright extension goes through to Council of Ministers
Against widespread dissent and controversy MEPs in the European Parliament voted this morning to allow copyright term extension to pass a first reading.
Find Out More
21 Apr 2009
Last day to tell your MEPs: Do not enclose the cultural commons
Wednesday is the last full day to lobby your MEPs in Strasbourg before this Thursday’s vote on copyright term extension.
Find Out More
17 Apr 2009
European Parliament votes on copyright extension next Thursday
Intense lobbying pressure has resulted in last minute tabling of the copyright term extension proposal, for a full plenary vote in the European Parliament, in Strasbourg next thursday.
Find Out More
17 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Pirate Bay: blame lies with industry failure
Yes, copyright should be respected.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
17 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Goverment announces RIPA review in wake of EU threat
The government has announced a review of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
17 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Wikipedia blocks Phorm
Wikipedia have announced that they are blocking Phorm as they
consider the scanning and profiling of our visitors’ behavior by a third party to be an infringement on their privacy.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
15 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Open Rights Group welcomes decisions to block Phorm
Open Rights Group welcomes decisions by various major websites, including Amazon.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
14 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
EU Commission moves against UK Government and Phorm
The EU Commission has launched proceedings against the UK concerning Phorm, the intrusive behavioural advertising system.
Find Out More
10 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Statebook: because knowledge is power
Today we launched a campaign site, portraying the seemingly unregulated amassing of personal data by the state.
Find Out More
06 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Data retention endangers democracy
European legislation that came into force today requires internet service providers to retain details of user’s emails, net phone calls and other web traffic.
Find Out More
03 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Is Queen Liz a copyright infringer (and Obama, for that matter)?
You may have read that President Obama has given Queen Elizabeth an iPod with 40 show tunes on it.
Find Out More
01 Apr 2009
EU governments vote against copyright extension in Brussels
Copyright term extension was dealt another serious blow last week when COREPER, the European Committee representing EU member states and the Council of Ministers, voted against the proposal.
Find Out More
01 Apr 2009 By Jim Killock
Facebook’s theatrical rights and wrongs
In February, Facebook’s newly issued terms of service, which “implied that Facebook owned any content posted to the site, even after an account was terminated, forever and ever”, were hastily revoked.
Find Out More
31 Mar 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – March 2009
Click through for your roundup of an extremely busy month for Open Rights Group.
Find Out More
27 Mar 2009 By Michael Holloway
Event – Doctorow and Stross: Resisting the all-seeing eye
Update: the event video is now available in.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
25 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
Telecom Package in second reading – dangerous amendments?
[ A Black Out Europe campaign has started on Facebook.
Find Out More
22 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
Open Letter – Call for major websites to opt out of Phorm
Open letter, sent to Chief Privacy Officers or equivalent at:
(i) Microsoft (ii) Google / Youtube (iii) Facebook (iv) AOL / Bebo (v) Yahoo (vi) Amazon (vii) Ebay
Dear Sir / Madam,
We are writing this open letter to you to ask you if you will act to protect your users’ privacy.
Find Out More
19 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
MEPs back off from copyright term extension vote!
Amid intense lobbying in the European Parliament next Monday’s vote on the proposal to extend the term of copyright has been struck off in a shock move.
Find Out More
19 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
A Digital Rights Agency: ‘an industry owned, industry led and industry run body’
Last Thursday the Open Rights Group along with many others made a submission in response to the Digital Britain Report.
Find Out More
11 Mar 2009
Copyright extension vote on 23rd March: contact your MEPs now!
With the European Parliament set to vote on 23 March on extending the term of copyright for sound recordings, key European experts opposing the extension have released a new letter to MEPs warning of the dangers.
Find Out More
06 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
Refuse consent for information sharing
Update: Jack Straw last night scrapped clause 152.
Find Out More
04 Mar 2009 By Jim Killock
Good practice in behavioural advertising?
The Internet Advertising Bureau, a digital marketing trade body, have launched Good Practice Principles for companies that collect and use data for online behavioural advertising purposes, which contain a number of clear problems:
The guidelines presume that:
“More relevant advertising is beneficial for both users and businesses: users discover more of what interests them and businesses find a better way to communicate with users.
Find Out More
27 Feb 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – February 2009
Click through for our monthly roundup of activities.
Find Out More
25 Feb 2009 By Jim Killock
Leading Academics Hit Out as Government Abandons Evidence-Based Policy on Copyright.
In an open letter sent today to David Lammy, UK Minister for Innovation, some of the country’s most eminent economists and intellectual property scholars, have hit out at government proposals to consider changing policy on term extension.
Find Out More
16 Feb 2009 By Michael Holloway
ORG and Cory to debate NBC Universal and the chair of the Culture Committee
Policy Exchange, a leading right-of-centre think tank, is holding a lunchtime panel debate to discuss ‘anti-piracy legislation’.
Find Out More
06 Feb 2009 By Glyn Wintle
Lords Constitution Committee report on surveillance and privacy
The House of Lords Constitution Committee report Surveillance: Citizens and the State is out today.
Find Out More
06 Feb 2009 By Jim Killock
Sound Copyright conference attacks the “fairy tale” of copyright term extension.
Consumer groups, musicians, academics and industry stakeholders, together with a cross party panel of MEPs, hit out at the “fairy tale” of copyright term extension at the ORG “Sound Copyright” conference in the European Parliament last week.
Find Out More
30 Jan 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – January 2009
Follow the link for your monthly round-up of our activities.
Find Out More
29 Jan 2009 By Jim Killock
Digital Britain: leaving consumers out of the picture
We are looking at the report in detail, but we are extremely concerned that the voice of consumers and citizens is being marginalised.
Find Out More
22 Jan 2009 By Jim Killock
Online activism leads to important transparency victory
A legislative proposal to exempt MPs’ expenses from the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act has been hastily withdrawn, with the media reporting cross-party support dissolved in the face of mass public outcry.
Find Out More
21 Jan 2009 By Jim Killock
Consumers, citizens and information professionals around the world unite to condemn copyright extension
Update (22.
Find Out More
16 Jan 2009 By Becky Hogge
Come to Brussels and demand sound copyright
The European Parliament is set to vote on whether to double the term of copyright in sound recordings in early 2009.
Find Out More
08 Jan 2009 By Jim Killock
A crucial year for ORG – let’s make sure our voice gets heard
I’m delighted to be writing this as the new Executive Director of the Open Rights Group, whose work I have been watching with enthusiasm for the last few years.
Find Out More
07 Jan 2009 By William Heath
Welcome to Jim Killock, ORG’s next Executive Director
ORG is pleased to announce the appointment of Jim Killock as the next Executive Director of the Open Rights Group.
Find Out More
02 Jan 2009 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – December 2008
Follow this link for the December 2008 supporter update.
Find Out More
19 Dec 2008 By William Heath
Changes to the ORG Board
We have two fresh faces and one departure from the Open Rights Group Board, which oversees the running of ORG.
Find Out More
18 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
UK Government launches new consultation on copyright
When Andy Burnham indicated last week that he was willing to consider extending copyright term despite robust, independent evidence that it would cost consumers dear and benefit artists little, many in the Open Rights Group community were outraged.
Find Out More
Digital Privacy
17 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
Who’s been losing your data?
You hand over your personal details to councils, hospitals, employers and businesses all the time.
Find Out More
15 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
Lessons and questions for the IWF
Last week’s outrage over the blocking of Wikipedia by the UK’s major ISPs after the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) added, and then removed, an image hosted by the online encyclopedia to their blocklist may have died down.
Find Out More
11 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
Screw the evidence, says Burnham, let’s extend copyright term anyway think about extending term, maybe, perhaps…
Update (15/12/08): The Department of Culture Media and Sport have now released the full text of Burnham’s speech last Thursday, and it appears the report we referenced in Music Week was misleading.
Find Out More
11 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
Home Office respond on Intercept Modernisation Programme – sort of
The Home Office have sent back a deeply disappointing response to our Freedom of Information request about the Intercept Modernisation Programme.
Find Out More
08 Dec 2008 By Becky Hogge
IWF censors Wikipedia, chaos ensues
Update #2 (09/12/08): The IWF has just announced that they have removed the Wikipedia url from their blocklist.
Find Out More
28 Nov 2008 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – November 2008
Here’s an update on our works for this month, which is basically your quick and easy roundup of our campaigning and community efforts.
Find Out More
26 Nov 2008 By Becky Hogge
From bad to worse: MEPs to rush through disembowelled term extension directive.
The flawed proposal to extend the term of copyright protection afforded to sound recordings, robbing consumers in the name of performers but for the benefit of the world’s four major record labels, is being fast-tracked through the democratic process.
Find Out More
19 Nov 2008 By Becky Hogge
Our busiest year so far – and what lies ahead…
Today I’m proud to release ORG’s annual Review of Activities [.
Find Out More
13 Nov 2008 By Becky Hogge
Council of Ministers move to delete vital safeguards from EU Telecoms Package
Update (17/11/08): Write to your UK representatives today!
Find Out More
03 Nov 2008 By Becky Hogge
Illicit filesharing: don’t legislate, innovate!
ORG has submitted a response to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform’s consultation into legislative options to tackle illicit peer to peer filesharing [pdf].
Find Out More
31 Oct 2008 By Becky Hogge
Remix the Big Picture
As regular readers will know, on 11 October 2008, thousands of images of the database state sent in from around the UK by citizens fed up with Government’s cavalier attitude to their civil liberties were combined to show Parliament what will happen if it continues to allow itself to be frogmarched away from freedom.
Find Out More
31 Oct 2008 By Michael Holloway
Supporter update – October 2008
Read on for the monthly roundup of our works.
Find Out More