UK News
Insights from the UK and beyond
from MediaFile:
Rule Britannia? FT fires warning shot at Apple
The release of a Financial Times app that bypasses Apple's App Store is a warning shot at the iPad maker's quest to rule the high seas of digital publishing.
Launched just hours after Apple announced Newsstand, the iPad maker's destination to access digital versions of mags and rags, FT made clear why it created the app:
"We are determined to make it as accessible as possible for the user," John Ridding, chief executive of the FT told Reuters. "Readers will be able to get our journalism through whatever device or channel they may choose."
Of course, that's in addition to the British daily not having to pay a 30 percent commission for the privilege of having its iOS version appear in Apple's Newsstand.
from Davos Notebook:
Tablets take over the world, one Davos at a time
This time last year, the online team here in Davos broke off from its coverage of the WEF for an hour or so to follow another Reuters live event - the unveiling of Apple's iPad.
Back then, there were many gaps in our knowledge of what the iPad could do. We didn't even know what it would be called.
from MediaFile:
Rupert Murdoch’s long crusade to make digital news pay
On the first day of one of my journalism classes, the teacher produced a large metal ring with a short rope fastened to it. The ring was made to be installed in a bull's nose, he explained; and the rope – called a lead – let you guide him wherever you wanted. The point was clear, if somewhat condescending: Writing a good lead lets the journalist guide the reader around like cattle.
That illustration was a lot more powerful before the web, during an era when closed media like print newspapers and television limited interactivity and left consumers with no choice but to passively accept the news as presented. It doesn't make sense on the web, where any reader can challenge news content or even become a publisher in a matter of minutes.
from The Great Debate UK:
Apple iPad: danger or opportunity for mobile operators?
-Ken Denman is CEO of Openwave Systems. The opinions expressed are his own.-
With the launch of the iPad 3G, the industry is holding its collective breath to see the impact that the device will ultimately have on already overtaxed networks.
The iPad is expected to be a home and WiFi-centric, coffee-table device that people use for reading newspapers and browsing the occasional email. But until users get their hands on the 3G device and start to use it how they want to use it, it is all speculation. What is not speculation however, is that usage of the device is going to put more pressure on networks that are already creaking under the strain of the mobile data overload.
Jeremy Hunt unveils Tory technology platform
As the three main UK political parties vie for positioning ahead of a general election to be held by June, the Conservatives unveiled their “Technology Manifesto” on Thursday in London outlining the key issues they would address if they form the next government.
Shadow Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt and Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude presented ideas on everything from improving broadband speeds to making government data accessible online.
from The Great Debate UK:
Does the Internet empower or censor?
What if the Internet is not really a utopian democratic catalyst of change?
The Web is often seen as a positive means of instilling democratic freedoms in countries under authoritarian rule, but many regimes are now using it to subvert democracy, Evgeny Morozov, a contributing editor at "Foreign Policy", proposes.
The Internet can actually inhibit rather than empower civil society, Morozov, argued in a lecture on Tuesday at London's Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.
Will you miss Teletext?
It will be the end of an era. Associated Newspapers has announced that it will shut the analogue Teletext TV service in January next year.
The shutdown was expected to take place in 2012 and the company has also said that it will even close several of its Freeview digital services. The service has been badly hit by a fall in audiences and revenue brought on by the economic downturn.
Which gadgets could you do without in a downturn?
Would you give up your laptop, your iPod or even your mobile to help pay the bills?
Some devices that seemed like luxuries just a few years ago are now seen by many people as necessities.
Will you switch to Google’s shiny new browser?
 The first reviews of Google’s new web browser, Chrome, praise its sleek looks and superfast downloads, but can’t agree on whether it is good enough to persuade people to switch from Explorer or Firefox.
Mike Harvey, of the Times, gives it three out of five stars and says it should spark a “browser war” on the Internet.
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The Wall
