23/08/13 – 13/09/13
Ofcom
Research into consumer understanding of traffic management
Ofcom published a set of documents on traffic management, a research report into buying behaviour and ISP transparency and a guide for consumers to educate them about traffic management.
On the basis of the research, Ofcom concluded that the current self-regulatory approach was broadly supported by the findings. However, some improvement should be made to traffic management key performance indicators (KFIs) and more needs to be done to raise awareness of traffic management among consumers.
The key findings of the report include:
Traffic management policies play only a little role in consumers’ ISP selection decisions with only 1% considering the issue when making a purchase – cost was the most significant driver.
There is a widespread lack of awareness about traffic management information among consumers – 75% of all Internet users had never heard of the term ‘Internet traffic management’ and 69% were not even aware that these traffic management processes were in place.
Few consumers are being made aware of traffic management by their ISP – of the 9% of consumer who were aware of their ISP’s traffic management policy, 18% were told this information by the ISP when they signed up for the service, 17% found the information while browsing the ISP website, 14% found information after experiencing problems and 13% found out about it through advertising.
Traffic management KPIs are regarded as transparent by 73% of consumers that were aware of their ISP’s traffic management policy – KPIs could be improved by clearly explaining the relevance and effects of traffic management, avoiding technical language, providing clear measurement criteria for terms such as “fair use” and providing clear symbols o designate ‘yes’, ‘no’ and ‘not applicable’ responses in the KFI tables.
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Research in copyright and consumer behaviour
Ofcom concluded its 12 month research project into online copyright infringement and consumer behaviour and published the fourth wave of its infringement tracker as well as a high volume infringers analysis report.
The key findings of the report are:
There is clear demand for online access to copyright material, with well over half (58%) of Internet users downloading or streaming at least one item of content during the year.
Infringement was a minority activity – 17% of Internet users consumed at least one item of infringing content which equates to around a third (29%) of all consumers of online content.
On a volume basis, almost a quarter (22%) of all content consumed online during the year was infringing.
Infringement is heavily skewed; a small proportion of infringers account for the large majority of infringements – 2% of Internet users make up the top decile of infringers by volume and accounted for three-quarters of all infringements.
Infringers tend to spend more than non-infringers on legal digital content – the top 10% and top 20% of infringers tend to spend the most, in contrast to the bottom 80%, whose lower spend is more in keeping with non-infringers.
The most commonly given reasons for infringing copyright online were because ‘it’s free’, ‘it’s easy/convenient’ and ‘it’s quick’.
Enforcement measures are more likely to be effective with heavier infringers – the top 10% were more likely than the bottom 80% to claim they would stop if they thought they might be sued (25% vs. 17%); if they received a letter from their ISP informing them that their account had been used to infringe (19% vs. 11%); and if there were articles in the media about people being caught (13% vs. 7%).
The report concludes that no single enforcement solution is likely to address online copyright infringement in isolation and that a complementary mix of measures including better lawful alternatives, more education about copyright matters, and targeted enforcement is more likely to be successful.
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Consultation on TV White spaces
Following on from its decision that white space devices should be permitted to access the UHF TV band, Ofcom published a consultation on its approach for avoiding interference with other spectrum bands and seeks to initially err on the side of caution. Ofcom will also test its proposals later this year. The consultation closes on 15 November 2013.
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Exchange of letters between Ofcom and the Communications Consumer Panel published
The Communications Consumer Panel called on Ofcom to take into account a number of considerations when assessing the impact of policies on consumers. Overall the panel has a positive view of Ofcom’s consumer engagement but believes that Ofcom should:
Take greater account of the information provided by the ADR schemes.
Undertake market research to assess the level of awareness of Ofcom and propensity to contact among different groups of consumers and citizens –particularly those who may be more vulnerable.
Undertake an internal assessment of awareness of the revised documentation and of the toolkit 12 months after completion of this range of activity.
Consider – at the very least, for every consultation – publishing Plain English summaries
The recommendations were made in in response to a letter by Ofcom which outlined a number of initiatives that the regulator had implemented as a part of a review of its Consumer Interest Toolkit.
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Broadband update
Parliamentary Questions
Oral Questions
The issue of broadband was raised Culture, Media and Sport question time. Maria Miller MP, the Culture Secretary, and Ed Vaizey MP, the Communications Minister, generally painted a positive picture of the Government’s record on broadband and outlined:
That the BDUK rollout programme was going extremely well and was due to achieve 88% coverage by the end of the 2015.
The recent National Audit Office report had verified that the value for money controls of the BDUK rollout programme were robust.
That the Government had encouraged local authorities to publish coverage maps.
That Government had regular discussions with Openreach and other providers to ensure that the services provided by ISPs to their customers were good.
BT had the smallest monopoly in Europe, Openreach was open to other providers and that the UK had some of the lowest broadband prices in Europe.
BDUK progress
In response to questions from Anne McIntosh MP and Iain McKenzie MP, the Communications Minister, said that 38 local broadband contracts have now been signed, representing over 95% of the total project funding allocations and 10 projects have already provided their first superfast broadband connections. He added £780 million of Government funds had been specifically allocated to support rural broadband delivery.
Progress with Super-Connected Cities Programme
Shadow Minister Helen Goodman MP, asked the Government for an update on the progress it has made with the Super-Connected Cities Programme. Ed Vaizey MP, replied that all 22 participating cities have now approved plans and that the current market test in five cities will end in October with roll-out to the other cities expected to follow soon after.
Superfast broadband in North Yorkshire
In answer to a question from Nigel Adams MP on broadband in rural North Yorkshire, Mr Vaizey said that government-supported projects in North Yorkshire had so far increased superfast broadband availability for over 50,000 premises.
Superfast broadband access in enterprise zones
In response to a question, from Chukka Umunna MP, Mr Vaizey said that the following six enterprise zones have superfast broadband: Cornwall Aerohub; Sandwich Discovery Park; MIRA Leicestershire; Sci-Tech Daresbury; London Royal Docks. There is also partial availability in the following 11 zones: Black Country; Bristol Temple Quarter; Tees Valley; Hereford Skylon Park; North Eastern; Humber; Birmingham; Northampton Waterside; Manchester Airport City; New Anglia; Nottingham.
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European Commission publishes proposals for a single European telecoms market
The European Commission has published a comprehensive set of proposals with the aim of fostering the creation of a single European telecoms market. A full update will be provided in due course to the subgroup lists but the key proposals are: Enabling operators to provide their service across the EU without requiring multiple authorisations form regulators, providing the European Commission with powers to harmonise spectrum allocation and prohibiting ISPs from blocking, slowing down, degrading or discriminating against specific content, applications or service. More information can be found here.
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Online safety
Calls for sex and relationship education to be updated for the digital age
Claire Perry MP, the Prime Minister’s on Children, publicly called for the official guidance on Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) to be updated for the digital age by incorporating online pornography but also the positive aspects of online relationships. Mrs Perry sees this as a complement to the implementation of online filtering tools and education campaigns. She made her intervention in support of the Telegraph’s ‘Better Sex Education’ campaign which also published a public letter of organisation and experts with an interest in this issue. David Cameron MP, the Prime Minister, and Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, have since voiced their support for looking at this issue.
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Motion on Revenge Porn in the Scottish Parliament
Christina McKelvie MSP (SNP) tabled a motion on revenge porn, stressing that it was “every bit as abusive as any other kind of domestic violence”. She commended the work of Scottish Women’s Aid in setting up a website to highlight the issue of revenge porn and stated that she had tabled the motion to help the new “stop revenge porn Scotland site gain the maximum profile.” Jackie Baillie MSP (Lab) and Kezia Dugdale MSP (Lab) both agreed, as did Commonwealth games and sport minister Shona Robison MSP (SNP), who also added that the government was developing a strategy on violence against women.
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Northern Irish Internet Safety Strategy
In the Northern Irish Assembly, Sandra Overend MLA proposed a motion (similar to an Early Day Motion in Westminster), calling for the development of an Internet Safety Strategy for children and their parents designed to improve and strengthen safeguarding in the online world.
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Parliamentary Questions
Oral Questions
The issue of online safety was raised at Culture, Media and Sport question time. Maria Miller MP, the Culture Secretary, and Ed Vaizey MP, the Communications Minister, generally painted a positive picture of the Government’s record on broadband and outlined:
Good progress has been made to implement the actions of the recent summit where it was agreed that the IWF should take on a more active remit and needed more support from ISPs.
ISPs were implementing network level filters and would extend this to existing customers in the future.
Online safety was a shared responsibility and the UK was at the forefront of implementing online safety.
What is illegal offline is illegal online as well and that the issue of people advertising prostitution via social media may need to be carefully looked at.
Ask.fm had taken the issue of online bullying very seriously and taken good action.
Government expects social network to have robust processes in place for dealing with non-criminal content
Caroline Lucas MP asked the Department for Culture Media and Sport about the effects of sexist abuse online on the numbers of women entering journalism, politics and other areas of public life. The Communications Minister answered that Crown Prosecutions Service guidelines stated that in cases where communications constitute credible threats of violence or target individuals, perpetrators should be robustly prosecuted. He added that where content does not cross the criminal threshold Government expects social media companies to have robust processes in place, including removing content and suspending or terminating accounts as appropriate.
Code of conduct for social networks
Elfyn Llwyd MP asked whether the Government had plans to introduce a code of conduct for social media providers on preventing online stalking and harassment. Home Office Minister Jeremy Browne replied that the Government was taking the issue seriously and was working with other departments, the police and social networks to identify effective practice and improve the response to online harassment and stalking.
Resourcing of CEOP
In response to a question from Helen Goodman MP, Policing and Criminal Justice Minister, Damian Green MP said that the work of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) and its budget had been protected (as compared to other areas of law enforcement). He also stated that by becoming part of the National Crime Agency (NCA), CEOP will have more capacity and will be able to draw on support from other
NCA specialist functions, such as the National Cyber Crime Unit, and the Border Policing Command.
Pornography depicting rape
In an answer to another question from Ms Goodman, Justice Minister, Helen Grant MP, said that following the Prime Minister’s announcement in July, the government will bring forward legislation on making the possession of pornography depicting rape a criminal offence when parliamentary time allows.
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Cyber-Security
Directive on Network and Information Security – Government publishes consultation responses
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) published a summary of the submissions it has received in response to its call for evidence on EU proposals for a new Directive on Network and Information Security. The Directive’s key proposal is the extension of security breach reporting requirement to a wide range of businesses.
The summary can be found here and the BIS concluded that whilst the UK shares the Commission’s desire to improve levels of network and information security across the EU, the Government will negotiate at EU level for an instrument that does not overburden business, the public sector or other organisations; that encourages economic growth and innovation; and that fosters positive and sustainable behaviour change.
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Cyber-crime responsibility within the police force
James Brokenshire MP, the Crime and Securities Minister, outlined the police’s responsibility in relation to cybercrime. He explained that the new National Crime Agency will be the national lead on cyber-crime and that the City of London police will continue to act as the national police lead on fraud and work closely with the Economic Crime Command in the NCA. He also pointed out that the Home Office is providing £26 million to improve regional policing capabilities in England and Wales, including fraud and cyber related crime.
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Communications data and law enforcement
Takedown of extremist and radicalising material
Lord Moonie, a Labour Peer, asked the Government how many websites the Government had compelled ISPs to take down in the last 12 months for illegal or immoral content and security threats Lord Taylor of Holbeach, a Home Office Minister, explained that the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) could compel ISPs to remove illegal extremist and radicalising material. However, he said that in practice providers co-operate willingly and CTIRU have never served any ISPs with a formal notice and take-down request under Section three of the Terrorism Act (2006). He added that since the CTIRU was established in February 2010, approximately 6,500 pieces of online content have been removed (3538 in the period April 2012 to March 2013).
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Surveillance in an independent Scotland
Patrick Harvie MSP, a member of the Scottish Green Party, asked whether an independent Scotland would have the technical capability to protect Internet traffic from surveillance by UK intelligence agencies. Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Justice, replied that an independent Scotland would work in very close collaboration with the remaining UK and with wider international partners on security and intelligence matters and that it was in everyone’s interests to keep the islands secure. He added that RIPA would continue to operate in an independent Scotland at the point of independence.
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PRISM and security of online banking and medial records
In a press briefing on the 6th September, the Prime Minister’s spokesperson (PMS) was asked about whether the PM was concerned that banking and medical data was not secure because encryption codes were easily cracked by security services. The PMS said that he did not comment on security issues.
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Yahoo transparency report
Yahoo published its first transparency report detailing government data requests from January to June 2013. Similar to report by other global online companies, the report covers request in relation to content and subscriber information and the data for the UK can be found here
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New Government adviser on intellectual property
Mike Weatherley, the Conservative MP for Hove and former vice-president for Europe at the Motion Picture Association, was appointed as the Prime Minister’s adviser on intellectual property. He will focus on intellectual property enforcement issues relating to the creative industries. The FT reported that Weatherley stated that “there was ‘a debate to be had’ about whether access to the Internet should be taken away from persistent copyright infringers” and that “to discourage piracy, he said he would push for a ‘three-pronged attack’ of ‘education, carrot and stick’.”
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Digital Inclusion
Shadow Minister Helen Goodman MP asked a number of questions on digital inclusion. Nick Hurd MP, the Minister for Civil Society, indicated that Government was setting up a cross-Government team to lead and coordinate Government’s work on digital inclusion. The will work closely with existing partners in this space such as Go ON UK. Matthew Hancock MP, the Skills Minister, explained that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not run any digital inclusion programmes itself but funded programmes run by other organisations.
Employment Minister, Mark Hoban MP, also replied to a question from Helen Goodman MP and said the Department for Work and Pensions will install 6,000 computers in Jobcentres across the country to help claimants who are digitally excluded make online transactions. He added that the universal credit programme is also investing in local authority-led pilots to test how to support digital inclusion and that the department have provided funding to the Tinder foundation (formerly Online Centres Foundation).