A WTO panel ruled that China violated some global trade rules by imposing duties on U.S. electrical steel, a victory for the Obama administration.
From Technology Review RSS Feeds: Statistics Unmask Phony Online Reviews
Computer analysis spots the fingerprints that fraudulent raters leave behind.
Searching for hotels in cities they’ve never visited, people often turn to customer-written reviews on websites such as TripAdvisor. But how do they know those reviews weren’t written by the hotel manager, or by someone paid to post fake opinions online? The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has issued fines when it has uncovered such “opinion spam,” but there’s no easy way to spot it.
From Geeks are Sexy Technology News: Online Retailer Charges a 6.8% Tax to IE Users
The people running this Australian-based online store are my new heros. If a visitor purchases a product on the site while using IE 7, he gets charged an additional 6.8% tax on top of his order.
And while being on the subject of Internet Explorer, there is still 1% of our visitors that use IE 7 and 1% that use IE 6. Guys, now would be the perfect time to upgrade. Seriously.
From Gizmodo: Comcast Refuses to Help Copyright Holders Sue Its Subscribers
Copyright holders like the RIAA and MPAA think it’s their god-given right to sue BitTorrent users into eternal poverty for illegal file sharing. Well Comcast has had enough. The company is refusing to comply with subpoenas for user data. That’s right, Comcast is sticking up for the little guy. More »
from Gizmodo
From Engadget: Orange San Diego review: Intel does phones, finally
The first generation of Intel-powered Android phones has arrived, and while the chip maker doesn’t appear to be claiming that its initial efforts are world-beaters, we’ve been promised a chipset that prioritizes what people want most: capable web browsing, strong camera performance and robust battery life. Although we’ve sampled plenty of incremental versions of this Medfield tech, Orange UK’s San Diego is the first finished device to land for review. Priced at £200 ($308) it joins a large spread of wallet-friendly, entry-level smartphones in Orange’s lineup. With a (1024 x 600) 4-inch LCD, 8-megapixel camera with flash, micro-HDMI port and 1GB of RAM, it looks to be a respectable, if middle-of-the-road, Android device. But the focus here lays with the 1.6GHz Intel Atom Z2460 CPU and whether it delivers on those performance and battery life promises. Does Intel have a handle on mobile processors? Is the San Diego, near-identical to Intel’s own reference model, going to be attractive enough for buyers? You’ll find our verdict after the break.
Gallery: Orange San Diego review
from Engadget
From Engadget: DOJ looking into whether Comcast, other TV giants are unfairly (knee)capping Hulu, Netflix
The Department of Justice may have taken Netflix chief Reed Hastings’ net neutrality complaints about Comcast as a lot more than just sour grapes. It’s reportedly conducting an investigation into whether Comcast, AT&T and other TV providers are anti-competitive in their data restrictions. The Wall Street Journal cites primary concerns that Comcast’s Xfinity TV cap exemption might unfairly punish competing services, but also claims that officials are worried the caps themselves steer viewers away from internet video, helping the incumbents cling to legacy TV for just a little while longer. On top of its cap anxiety, the DOJ may be looking into policies requiring traditional TV subscriptions just to watch online. None of the involved parties have commented on or confirmed the investigations, so there’s no guarantee of any full-fledged lawsuit. Still, while TV operators insist they’re being fair and need to keep data use in check, that might not deter legal action when the DOJ has supposedly questioned Hulu, Netflix and other relative newcomers who feel they’re being squeezed. When Sony postpones its IPTV goals after fretting over US data caps, it’s hard to imagine that there aren’t at least a few raised eyebrows in Washington.
from Engadget
