Freedom of Expression
We fight for your right to speak freely, which is critical for demonstrating dissent, guaranteeing a free press, and defending human rights.
Blog
Keeping IP out of TAFTA
On the heels of the announcement of the newly kicked off EU-US Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA), also known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), Access joined a group of roughly 35 internet freedom organizations, public health groups, activists, and other public interest leaders to urge both the US and the EU to keep copyright, patents, trademarks and geographical indications — so-called “intellectual property” — out of the negotiations.…
18 March 2013
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Telecom Industry Dialogue to collaborate with GNI on freedom of expression, privacy rights
Access welcomes the announcement of a new collaboration between the Telecommunications Industry Dialogue on Freedom of Expression and Privacy, and the Global Network Initiative. Beginning with a two-year trial, this collaboration holds the potential for meaningful engagement that yields more rights-respecting policies and actions in the telecoms sector.…
12 March 2013
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WSIS+10: Taking stock and driving the global internet policy agenda forward
Last week, a review marking ten years since the UN World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) kicked off in Paris at UNESCO. WSIS was a pair of UN-sponsored conferences held in 2003 in Geneva and 2005 in Tunis, aimed at bridging the digital divide and generally advancing the global discussion about the internet and ICTs. …
4 March 2013
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AT&T wins Telco Hall of Shame Network Interference award
After two weeks of voting, the “winner” of our Telco Hall of Shame is AT&T, who was nominated for being BFF’s with the NSA. The US-based telecommunications company won with nearly a quarter of the the vote, followed by another American telco, Verizon, with 17%.
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28 February 2013
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Chile takes blogger to court over Twitter parody account
Today, Access filed a Freedom of Information Act request before the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Justice to ask which governments are requesting user information through mutual legal assistance treaties. This filing comes two days after a blogger and lawyer Rodrigo Ferrari was formally charged by Chilean prosecutors, who obtained his Twitter information through such a process, which was seemingly executed improperly.…
21 February 2013
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Russia blacklists site hosting blogs of prominent journalists
The Russian government has blocked access to a blog-hosting site that publishes reports from at least two prominent independent journalists often critical of the Kremlin. The site has been added to the country’s recently established official “internet blacklist.”…
8 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: Huawei
Inductee: Huawei Headquarters: China CEO: Ren Zhengfei Deputy Board Director: Ken Hu Huawei Board of Directors. CORPORATE INFO Network Size: Not Publicly Available Countries of Operation: More than 150 countries Finances: 11.6 billion CNY in net profits for 2011. HUMAN…
8 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: ZTE
Inductee: ZTE Corp Headquarters: China Board Chairman Hou Weigui and the ZTE Board CORPORATE INFO Countries of Operation: Australia, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Argentina, Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Belarus, Bolivia, Brasil Brasilia, Brasil Sao Paulo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Czech, Cyprus, Canada,…
8 February 2013
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Iraqi parliament moves toward revoking draconian Cyber Crime act
On January 22nd 2013, the long-running campaign against the draft Iraqi Cyber Crimes law finally bore fruit: the Iraqi Speaker of the House approved a request to the Parliamentary Committee for Media and Culture to permanently revoke the proposed legislation.…
8 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: TeliaSonera
Inductee: TeliaSonera AB Headquarters: Sweden Acting CEO: Per-Arne Blomquist Board Chairman: Anders Narvinger TeliaSonera Board of Directors CORPORATE INFO Network Size: 170 million subscribers. Countries of Operation: Azerbaijan, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Nepal, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Tajikistan,…
7 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: Telstra
Inductee: Telstra Headquarters: Australia CEO: David I. Thodey Telstra Board of Directors CORPORATE INFO Network Size: 13.8 million mobile subscribers, 2.4 million retail fixed broadband customers and more than 2.5 million mobile broadband customers. Countries of Operation: Telstra Global has partner carrier…
6 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: Verizon
Inductee: Verizon Communications Company Headquarters: USA CEO and Board Chairman: Lowell C. McAdam Board of Directors Verizon Wireless is a joint venture between Verizon Communications and Vodafone. CORPORATE INFO Network Size: 144.8 million customers Countries of Operation: More than 150 countries Finances:…
5 February 2013
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Filipino Supreme Court once again blocks controversial cybercrime law
In a victory for digital rights and democracy activists in the Philippines, the Filipino Supreme Court today indefinitely extended a temporary restraining order (TRO) on a controversial cybercrime law. The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 was signed into law by President…
5 February 2013
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Intellectual property and the implementation of US Free Trade Agreements in Latin America
From 2004, the United States has signed onto free trade agreements with nearly half of the countries in Latin America. As a product of these agreements, Peru, Colombia, Chile, Panama and other Central American countries agreed to enact new and more restrictive copyright laws, which can place important threats on the fundamental rights of internet users across the region.
…4 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: MTN
Hall of Shame: MTN Group Inductee: MTN Group Headquarters: South Africa CEO: RS Dabengwa Board Chairman: MC Ramaphosa MTN Board of Directors Corporate Info Network Size: More than 176 million people Countries of Operations: Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Cote d’Ivoire,…
4 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: Blackberry
Blackberry / Research in Motion Inductee: Blackberry, formerly Research in Motion (RIM) Headquarters: Canada CEO: Thorsten Heins and the Executive Team CORPORATE INFO Countries of Operation: Canada, USA, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK, Austria, Turkey, Russia, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore,…
1 February 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: Nokia Siemens Networks B.V.
Inductee: Nokia Siemens Networks B.V. Headquarters: Finland CEO: Rajeev Suri Board Chairman: Jesper Ovesen Nokia Siemens Networks Board CORPORATE INFO Network Size: Sells network equipment to more than 600 operator customers, serving 2.5 billion subscribers. Countries of Operation: Corporate customers…
31 January 2013
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Amid crackdown in Azerbaijan, blogger gets the harshest sentence
This past week has been particularly difficult for human rights activists in Azerbaijan, the host country of the 2012 UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF). Last Wednesday January 23, protests over corruption erupted in Ismayilli, northwest of the Azerbaijani capital Baku,…
30 January 2013
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Telco Hall of Shame: France Telecom / Orange
Inductee: France Telecom S.A. Headquarters: France Corporate Governance: CEO and Board Chairman: Stéphane Richard France Telecom Board CORPORATE INFO Network Size: 226+ million people. Countries of Operation: Armenia, Belgium, Botswana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Egypt, France, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry, Equatorial…
30 January 2013