All Blogs
Spectrum auctions - 'Jhatka' or 'Halal'?
The choice is between sudden death and a slow one. The article by Shyam Ponappa appeared in the Business Standard on 3 February 2011.
Thomas Abraham's Rebuttal on Parallel Importation
We engaged in an e-mail conversation with Thomas Abraham, the managing director of Hachette India, on the issue of parallel importation of books into India. We thought it would be in the public interest to publish a substantive part of that conversation. In this post he points at great length how our arguments are faulty. While we still believe that he doesn't succeed, we hope this will clarify matters a bit.
Open Letter to the Finance Committee: Finance and Security
This note explores the three connections between finance and security and demonstrates the cost implications of operating a centrally designed identity management system as proposed by the UID. In doing so, it shows how the monitoring, storing, and securing of transactional data in a centralized database fall short of meeting the project's objectives of authentication, and thus is an additional cost. Further, it is argued that the blanket monitoring of the transaction database is not an effective method of detecting fraud, and is an expensive component of the project.
A FLASH of Change
A fortnightly column on ‘Digital Natives’ authored by Nishant Shah is featured in the Sunday Eye, the national edition of Indian Express, Delhi, from September 2010 onwards. In this article published on February 6, 2011, Nishant Shah writes that citizens are organising, congregating, acting and thereby creating revolutions.
Conference Report: 'Privacy Matters' Bangalore
On February 5th the 'Privacy Matters" conference was held at the TERI Regional Center in Bangalore. The event was a full day and centered around issues of privacy including: privacy rights of minorities, privacy and open government data, and privacy and identity.
Indian Law and "Parallel Exports"
Recently, a lawyer for the publishing industry made the claim that allowing for parallel importation would legally allow for the exports of low-priced edition. Here we present a legal rebuttal of that claim.
E-Governance Interoperability Framework — Meeting in Iraq
A meeting to create a plan of action for the development of e-Governance Interoperability Framework (e-GIF) in Iraq and include formulation of an e-GIF policy and technical document within the larger framework of public sector modernization, was held from 25 to 27 January 2011. Sunil Abraham was the main resource person for this meeting.
Analysing the Right to Privacy and Dignity with Respect to the UID
In the below note, Deva Prasad, LLM Candidate at NLSIU, explores the challenges that the UID project faces from a legal perspective.
Why Parallel Importation of Books Should Be Allowed
There has been much controversy lately with some publishers trying to stop the government from amending s.2(m) of the Indian Copyright Act, clarifying that a parallel import will not be seen as an "infringing copy". This blog post argues that the government should, keeping in mind the larger picture, still go ahead and legalise parallel imports.
The Online Video Environment in India - A Survey Report
iCOMMONS, the OPEN VIDEO ALLIANCE, and the CENTRE FOR INTERNET AND SOCIETY have initiated a research project which seeks to survey the online video environment in India and the opportunities this new medium presents for creative expression and civic engagement. This report seeks to define key issues in the Indian context and begins to develop a short-term policy framework to address them.
Accessibility in Telecommunications
CIS seeks to gather information about the accessibility of telecommunications products and services for persons with disabilities and elderly persons in India.
Privacy Matters — Conference Report
A one-day conference on Privacy Matters was held on Sunday, 23 January 2011 at the National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS) Law School in Kolkata. This was the first of a series of eleven conferences on ‘privacy’ that Privacy India is scheduled to host in different Indian cities from January to June this year. Members of Parliament, Sri Manoj Bhattacharya from the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and Sri Nilotpal Basu from the Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI (M) spoke in the conference. Students, the civil society and lawyers also participated in it.
Wiki changes the world
A fortnightly column on ‘Digital Natives’ authored by Nishant Shah is featured in the Sunday Eye, the national edition of Indian Express, Delhi, from September 2010 onwards. This article was published in the Indian Express on January 23, 2011. In this Nishant Shah explains how Wiki changes the world by making the ordinary person the expert and knowledge free.
4 Popular Myths about UID
By now, there is already a lot of material in the public domain that is critical about the UID/Aadhar project, writes Prashant Iyengar in this blog entry published in Privacy India on January 22, 2011.
The Digital Tipping Point
Is Web 2.0 really the only reason why youth digital activism is so successful in mobilizing public engagement? A look into the transformation of Blank Noise’s blog from a one-way communication medium into a site of public dialogue and collaboration reveals the crucial factors behind the success.
Privacy Matters Conference Agenda
The "Privacy Matters" conference is taking place on Sunday January 23rd, at NUJS Law school at 10:30. It is a full day event that will discuss the challenges and concerns of privacy in India. Below is the agenda for the event. We look forward to your participation and attendance.
New Release of IPR Chapter of India-EU Free Trade Agreement
A draft of the IPR chapter of the EU-India FTA, made publicly available now for the first time, provides insight into India's response in July 2010 to several EU proposals on intellectual property protection and enforcement.
Rising Voices Seeks Micro-Grant Proposals for Citizen Media Outreach
Rising Voices is seeking project proposals from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or individuals for funding of up to $4,000 USD for digital media outreach projects around the world. Application Deadline: Friday, February 4, 2011 at 11:59 PM GMT.
Is That a Friend on Your Wall?
Before you start reading today’s column, have a look at the person sitting next to you. It might be a family member if you are at home, a friend in the club, a stranger in a cafe or a fellow commuter on the bus. Now take a moment to figure out how much you trust that person. The intensity of your trust would depend upon your familiarity, your social relationship and the time you’ve known that person.
The policy langurs
The comforts of civilised living for all Indians require dedicated collective effort. The article by Shyam Ponappa was published in the Business Standard on 6 January 2011.
