Stories from Abroad

Supreme Court justices wrestled with Microsoft’s dispute with the US Justice Department over whether prosecutors can force technology companies to hand over data stored overseas, with some signaling support for the government and others urging Congress to pass a law to resolve the issue. Microsoft argues that laws have not caught up to modern computing infrastructure and it should not hand over data stored internationally. The Justice Department argues that refusing to turn over easily accessible data impedes criminal investigations.

Using a 2003–2019 dataset on broadband adoption in Algeria, we explore its pattern and the market structure, institutional, and socio-economic factors that influenced its pace, which was considerably delayed due to political and social instability during the decade of the 1990s. We propose an integrative model selection approach that simultaneously searches for the best diffusion model among the Bass, Gompertz, and Logistic diffusion models, as well as relevant explanatory variables.

On battlefields from Ukraine to Sudan, Starlink provides immediate and largely secure access to the internet. Besides solving the age-old problem of effective communications between troops and their commanders, Starlink provides a way to control drones and other advanced technologies that have become a critical part of modern warfare.

In April 2020, Netflix, Inc. and its Korean subsidiary Netflix Services Korea Ltd. filed a lawsuit against SK Broadband, Inc., seeking confirmation that there were no obligations to bear network costs. On June 25, 2021, the Seoul Central District Court rejected Netflix’s argument and acknowledged the existence of an obligation to negotiate fees. Netflix subsequently appealed the decision on November 5, 2021.

SpaceX’s Starlink touts its high-speed internet as “available almost anywhere on Earth.” In the real world, its reach extends to countries where Elon Musk’s satellite-enabled service has no agreement to operate, including territories ruled by repressive regimes. There are wide-spanning examples of Starlink kits being traded and activated illegally.

In a household-based assessment of digital needs conducted by the University of Liverpool, parents and young people defined what is ‘enough’ for a household with children to feel digitally included. Respondents considered devices and internet services, basic functional skills, and critical skills. This Minimal Digital Living Standard (MLDS) includes:

The European Parliament approved the Artificial Intelligence Act that ensures safety and compliance with fundamental rights, while boosting innovation. The law aims to protect fundamental rights, democracy, the rule of law and environmental sustainability from high-risk AI, while boosting innovation and establishing Europe as a leader in the field.

Doctors' appointments, job applications, personal banking, key services and more are today mostly managed online. While the UK government details its plans for a digital future to transform public services, one in seven Britons are forced to live without the internet. This film is voiced by three individuals experiencing digital exclusion, revealing how varied and complex the repercussions can be. Through enacted scenes from their lives, it makes visible the expanding digital divide—an issue too often unseen or ignored by policy makers, businesses and society at large.

Universal and meaningful digital connectivity (UMC) is crucial in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 2015. Recently, its importance as a public utility was verified when the countries that have achieved digital transformation have been more adept at tackling the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic than those on the other side of the digital divide. This article aims to contribute to the discussion on the global governance of mega satellite constellations as part of global Internet infrastructure.

Apple will allow iPhone apps to be downloaded directly from their developers’ websites for the first time, a major concession to European regulators that marks the third time this year the big tech group has been forced to change its plan to comply with landmark EU rules. The move to allow so-called sideloading in Europe, which will come into effect later this spring, comes after pressure from developers to be able to distribute their software outside the App Store and threatens a core component of Apple’s $85 billion-a-year global services business. As part of the changes, developers launc