All Blogs
Collection of Net Neutrality Definitions
As part of CIS's inquiry into 'Network Neutrality' in the developing world, we have collected a set of definitions of the term from different sources. The definitions were collated and compiled by Manoj Kurbet, Maitreya Subramaniam and Tarun Krishnakumar under the guidance of Sunil Abraham.
Report on Training in Basic Computing with use of NVDA and eSpeak in Hindi
The training programme was held on February 5 and 6, 2015 at National Association for the Blind in R.K. Puram, New Delhi. Fifteen delegates attended.
ICANN accountability, IANA transition and open questions
On February 3, 2015, the Centre for Communication Governance (NLU, Delhi) hosted a pre-event briefing in light of ICANN52 (Singapore, February 7-12, 2015). Geetha Hariharan attended the event.
National IPR Policy Series : CIS Comments to the First Draft of the National IP Policy
The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India invited comments on the First Draft of India's National IPR Policy. The Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) made this submission. The comments were prepared by Nehaa Chaudhari, Pranesh Prakash and Anubha Sinha. We also thank our intern, Varnika Chawla for her assistance.
Telugu Wikimedia Hackathon 2014
Telugu Wikimedia (including their projects Telugu Wikipedia, Telugu Wikisource etc.) is one of the largest and most powerful Indian language Wikimedia projects, and it is growing and expanding everyday. In the last half of 2014, Telugu Wikimedia community members contacted CIS-A2K team with a request to organize a MediaWiki tutorial workshop for them. Following their request, on 28 December 2014, CIS-A2K team organized a MediaWiki hackathon event for Telugu Wikimedia community members to enhance their skills and understanding of technical matters related to MediaWiki usage. The theme of the workshop was “Mediawiki, its extensions and tools to work around” and it aimed at allowing Wikipedians to use MediaWiki tools more effectively.
RTI Responses - MHRD IP Chairs: Details of Funding & Expenditure
In an earlier blog post titled "MHRD IPR Chairs — Underutilization of Funds and Lack of Information Regarding Expenditures", we discussed the lack of information regarding the expenditure by various MHRD Chairs in the country. We sent out RTI requests to find out more. This blog post discusses the responses that we have received so far. (Many thanks to CIS intern Varnika Chawla for her assistance)
Report on Training in Basic Computing with use of NVDA and eSpeak in Tamil
The training programme was conducted on January 27 and 28, 2015 at Karna Vidya Technology Centre, [KVTC] Guindy, Chennai. A total of 15 delegates attended the show.
ଓଡ଼ିଆ ଭାଷା ପାଇଁ ଅନ୍ତର୍ଜାତୀୟ ପ୍ରକଳ୍ପ
This is an op-ed I authored for Odia newspaper the "Samaja" that got published on January 30, 2015. Through this post I intend to highlight the needs for taking the Odia language to international fora instead of keeping it confined within the books. I have covered the focus area of 3 free and open source projects: Odia Wikipedia, Odia Wikisource and Global Voices Odia in the column highlighting the need for more people to contribute.
Response to RTI Applications from Different States on Accessibility
The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) had sent right to information (RTI) applications from various states seeking information on the allocation and expenditure in the budget for implementing various schemes for persons with disabilities. CIS received the first set of documents.
Search Engine and Prenatal Sex Determination: Walking the Tight Rope of the Law
In Sabu George v. Union of India, the Supreme Court is looking at the constitutionality of sex-selection ads appearing on search engines, either as search results or ads placed on the search pages. Balaji Subramanian and Geetha Hariharan analyse the relevant provision of the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994.
Report on Training in Basic Computing for using eSpeak Hindi with NVDA
The training was held at the Conference Hall and Computer Lab, Dr. Shakuntala Mishra National Rehabilitation University, Lucknow from January 20 to 22, 2015.
Training of Malayalam eSpeak with NVDA
NVDA team conducted a two days training on January 24 and 25, 2015 in Tiruvananthapuram. The programme was inaugurated by Dr. Veeramanikandan, Pro Vice Chancellor of the Kerala University and the eSpeak new version was launched by Suresh S, PSC member, who is an advocate for the blind in getting jobs in Kerala government.
National IPR Policy Series : The Development of the National IPR Policy
This is the first blog post in a series of posts on India's National IPR Policy. In this post, CIS intern, Varnika Chawla traces the evolution of the National IPR Policy.
Beyond Alcohol and Angel Investors: Building Business Models in an Age of Mobile Music Streaming (Conference Learnings)
This blog post is the first of a series of blogs to document, synthesize, and analyze learnings from attending various music industry trade conferences. This first post introduces the research question, and highlights learnings about the various business models which can be accessible via the mobile, and broadly how the music industry is attempting to respond to monetization challenges.
Security and Surveillance – Optimizing Security while Safeguarding Human Rights
The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) on December 19, 2014 held a talk on “Security and Surveillance – Optimizing Security while Safeguarding Human Rights.
Disability Exceptions in Copyright Legislations
In the year 2006, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) conducted a study on different national approaches to copyright exception for persons with disabilities. Over 60 countries have an exception in their Copyright laws permitting conversion of works into accessible formats for the benefit of persons who cannot read print. The scope of the exception varies, in terms of the beneficiaries covered, formats permitted, restrictions on who can convert, etc.
Announcing the Institutional Partner for the Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest 2015
We are pleased to announce that National Law University, Delhi will be hosting the fourth edition of the Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest in December 2015.
Indian Netizens Criticize Online Censorship of ‘Jihadi’ Content
The article on online censorship by Subhashish Panigrahi was published in Global Voices on January 6, 2015.
Heads I Win, Tails You Lose: The Intransigenc of STM Publishers
A few commercial publishers dominate provision of access to scientific and technical information sought after by researchers around the world. Increasing subscription prices of journals at rates higher than general inflation caused librarians to think of forming consortia, but publishers started selling online journals as bundles, and libraries ended up with many journals their researchers have very little use for. Scientists and librarians adopted open access, but publishers came up with hybrid journals and article processing charges to beat any adverse effect on their profits caused by the fast-spreading open access movement. We compare the steps taken by scientists and librarians in the West to reclaim ease of access to research findings with what is happening in India. We end with a few suggestions.
