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News

• EU companies get green light to send private data to Israel

  European companies can now send personal data to Israel, after the European Commission deemed its data protection laws on a par with those of the European Union.

• Throwing away your old computer just got harder in Europe

  New rules on disposing of your old laptop, printer or mobile phone look set to come into force in the European Union. The European Parliament on Thursday voted to pass stricter laws on how the bloc deals with electronic and electrical equipment waste.

• Retaining data does not help fight crime, says group

  Retaining telecommunications data is no help in fighting crime, according to a study of German police statistics, released Thursday. Indeed, it could even make matters worse, according to a civil liberties group.

• EU to get feedback on its public procurement policy

  The European Commission will launch a consultation Thursday to get feedback on modernizing the European Union's public procurement policy.

• EU to fund research into cloud storage technologies

  The European Union is giving €15.7 million (US$21.4 million) for a research project that will explore new technologies around cloud computing, including data mobility and secure access control.

• EU losing the race to fund IT research

  The European Union is currently losing the race to fund and foster research, but the game isn't over, says Europe's digital agenda commissioner.

• IBM and EU establish cloud-computing consortium

  IBM on Wednesday said it was establishing a consortium with the European Union and universities to research new cloud-computing models to reduce the cost of hosting and maintaining Internet-based services.

• EU publishes 'Digital Agenda' five-year plan for IT

  On Wednesday, the European Commission announced its Digital Agenda, a five-year plan that will set the pace for telecommunications in Europe. The plan includes measures to boost legal music downloads, speed up broadband adoption and set up a rapid response system for cyber-attacks, the Commission said.

• EU IT ministers endorse open standards in tech procurements

  European IT and telecom ministers called for the introduction of open standards and interoperability in government procurement of IT on Monday, sparking applause from the industry.

• IE's share tumbles in some EU markets after ballot debut

  Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) has lost three times more share than usual in some European countries since the company issued a ballot that lets users choose an alternate browser, according to a Web measurement company.

• Parliament report stirs lobbying drive on Internet piracy

  Should teenagers who illegally download music, films and the like in their bedrooms be treated like criminal gangs counterfeiting everything from life-saving drugs to Gucci handbags?

• European Parliament demands transparency in ACTA talks

  The European Parliament demanded Wednesday that the European Commission open up secret negotiations about an anticounterfeiting trade agreement (ACTA) to the public.

• Google to call for creation of EU privacy, security panel

  Google is pushing for the creation of an E.U. group to look at security and privacy policy, the company's top privacy lawyer, Peter Fleischer, said Tuesday.

• EU accepts Microsoft's commitments to offer browser choice

  Microsoft's promise to allow Windows users to choose which Internet browser they use has been accepted by the European Commission, ending its antitrust investigation of the company's position in the browser market.

• Viviane Reding picked to re-write EU data protection laws

  Viviane Reding, the European Commissioner who for the past five years has championed consumer rights in the telecommunications and IT arenas, has been picked to take charge of a re-write of the European Union's 15-year-old data protection laws due to start next year.