OneWeb turns to SpaceX for satellite launches after Roscosmos snub

OneWeb is turning to rival SpaceX to launch its LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellites after Russian space agency Roscosmos snubbed the British firm.

A rocket carrying 36 of OneWeb’s satellites was due to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome earlier this month.

In the fallout of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Roscosmos refused to launch the satellites unless OneWeb accepted two demands—for the British government to sell its stake in the firm, and to guarantee they will not...

22 March 2022 | Broadband

The key to complete online independence is through crowdsourced VPNs

Geolocation is a key pillar of how the internet functions. Previously founded on the egalitarian principle of complete transparency and total openness is now routinely altered by geolocation services. Simply put, this means that users can access various sets of websites based on where they are surfing the web from. This results in online information silos, which have negative consequences such as restricting knowledge sharing, limiting cultural interchange, and allowing political discourse...

14 September 2021 | Telecoms

FCC wants the public to help measure actual broadband speeds

The FCC is encouraging the public to download and use its Speed Test app to help the regulator gain a greater understanding of the speeds consumers are actually receiving.

Data used by regulators is often not representative of real-world experiences. The FCC’s broadband coverage maps, for example, have come under repeated scrutiny for being inaccurate—predominately due to what internet access advocates claim is a weak definition of coverage by the FCC which allows carriers to...

13 April 2021 | Broadband

Web 3.0 storage provider Filecoin reaches 2.5EiB capacity

Filecoin, the largest decentralised storage provider, has surpassed 2.5 exbibytes (2.5 billion gigabytes) of capacity.

The provider is aiming to be the storage backbone for Web 3.0, the next evolution of Tim Berners-Lee’s invention which returns to his original vision of a medium where “no permission is needed from a central authority to post anything ... there is no central controlling node, and so no single point of failure ... and no “kill...

17 February 2021 | Telecoms

FBI used the Patriot Act to gather web records without a warrant

The FBI used controversial provisions of the Patriot Act to gather the records of website visitors without a warrant.

According to the New York Times, the specific provisions the US government is using to justify its actions can be found in Section 215 of the Patriot Act—which lapsed, along with two other bits of surveillance legislation, earlier this year.

Data collected about Americans includes who has visited specific web pages. Federal investigators stop short of...

4 December 2020 | Legislation & Government

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is stepping down after eight years

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is stepping down from his role after eight years at the US telecoms regulator.

Pai was appointed to the FCC as commissioner in 2012 by President Obama and was promoted to chairman in 2017 by President Trump. Pai has now served notice that he will be stepping down when President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated on January 20th.

“It has been the honour of a lifetime to serve at the Federal Communications Commission, including as Chairman of the FCC...

30 November 2020 | Legislation & Government

Berners-Lee is attempting to fix the web (again) with Inrupt venture

World Wide Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee is attempting to fix his wonderful but problematic creation with his Inrupt venture.

The web enables us to access information and stay connected even when we’re stuck in our homes. At the same time, it provides a gateway to our lives, minds, and homes that is often taken advantage of by companies, governments, and hackers.

Berners-Lee has often been outspoken on the web’s problems.

Last November, the father of the...

10 November 2020 | Telecoms

Mozilla wants to ‘Unfck The Internet’ with new campaign

Mozilla wants to fix the problems with the invention we all hold dear with its new “Unfck The Internet” campaign.

The internet is not in a healthy state. Last year, Tim Berners-Lee – creator of the World Wide Web – launched a “contract” to fix it. Needless to say, a lot more still needs to be done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeu0oKBThMg

COVID-19 has brought to light some of the best and worst aspects of the internet. The internet has helped us to...

1 October 2020 | Telecoms