edX is a new Internet distance learning site that promises to transform education to “enhance campus-based teaching and learning, and build a global community of online learners.” The joint partnership announcement promised that edX will:

…offer online learning to millions of people around the world. EdX will offer Harvard and

Continue Reading Distance Learning on the Internet – Harvard & MIT Change all the Rules

Google was fined $25,000 for not cooperating with an investigation regarding Google’s collection of unencrypted wifi data when taking Street View pictures from 2006-10, but the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reported that Google did not violate any US laws. The FCC’s Report included this conclusion regarding alleged violations of Section

Continue Reading Google Did Not Violate US Law When Collecting Wifi Data

CISPA would permit “Internet companies such as Google and Facebook to collect and share a wide range of user data with the government” as reported by Computerworld. Now the White House is raising concerns about CISPA. Caitlin Hayden (spokeswoman for the White House’s National Security Council) in an interview with

Continue Reading Privacy Controversy about Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA)

“Fair use” of copyrighted works includes criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research, so what about use of public documents? The recent class action copyright infringement suit brought against West and LexisNexis (White v. West) will likely turn on the “fair use” doctrine. The Copyright Office describes “fair use&rdquo

Continue Reading Copyright Infringement or Fair Use of Court Records?

Allegedly MIT’s computer systems were breached by Aaron Swartz who then downloaded millions of scholarly articles, but there are no claims of copyrights infringement. The New York Times reported that in July 2011 Aaron Swartz was indicted on charges that he:

…broke into the computer networks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to

Continue Reading No Copyright Infringement but Criminal Charges for Massive Download