Penny for the Guy
Last week the Queen delivered her speech to Parliament which outlined her government's agenda for the next twelve months and included a number of interesting references to computing and communications.
One of the most important was the outline of the Digital Economy Bill which will, as expected, compel ISPs to disconnect users who are found to be persistent file-sharers of copyrighted material. Many have described this legislation as a sledge-hammer to crack a nut, and really there are far bigger issues which the industry should tackle such as the endless spam which clogs our in-boxes.
It was also confirmed that the 50p per month levy on landlines will go ahead, to fund the development of broadband in rural areas, but without going so far as to commit to minimum access standards. Critics such as the Federation of Small Businesses said this additional broadband tax will only serve to deter the private sector from making its own investments in improving its infrastructure.
A bill which would require ISPs to hold much more data on customer's usage of the internet for the benefit of the police was quietly dropped from the Queen's Speech. Meanwhile, work continues on the Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP) which started in April 2006. The IMP is part of the government strategy to combat terrorism and improve its ability to tap phone calls, track mobile phones, and monitor internet activity. In the same month in which Gordon Brown managed to find one million pounds worth of government aid for storm-struck Cumbria, and the BBC raised twenty million pounds in charitable donations for Children In Need, a written answer in Parliament revealed that the Interception Modernisation Programme is going to have cost a massive two billion pounds by the time it is implemented in 2016.
25th November 2009