France Seeks Answers From Google

The electorate has spoken, and there will be four more years of a Barack Obama presidency. The Democrats have retained control of the Senate, and the Republicans have a comfortable margin in the House of Representatives. Since neither party has been given a mandate to govern, it means that either gridlock will continue or bipartisanship will return to Washington.  

As part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to promoting the vast economic opportunity of the Internet and protecting individual privacy, the National Science and Technology Council has launched a new Subcommittee on Privacy and Internet Policy. Populated by representatives from more than a dozen Departments, agencies and Federal offices, and co-chaired by the two of us, the subcommittee will develop principles and strategic directions with the goal of fostering consensus in legislative, regulatory, and international Internet policy realms. In this digital age, a thriving and dynamic economy requires Internet policies that promote innovation domestically and globally while ensuring strong and sensible protections of individuals’ private information and the ability of governments to meet their obligations to protect public safety.    Recognizing the global nature of the digital economy and society, the Subcommittee will monitor and address global privacy policy challenges and develop approaches to meeting those challenges through coordinated U.S. government action.  The Subcommittee is committed to fostering dialogue and cooperation between our Nation and its key trading partners in support of flexible and robust privacy and innovation policies. Such policies are essential to the health of competitive marketplaces for online goods and services.

At a Social Media Week panel this week on digital privacy, it became clear how much data companies gather every time people sign in online. Even more concerning, no one seems to have a plan for how to protect that information.

The end is near! No, we’re not talking about the Mayan apocalypse, but rather the federal government’s nearly two-year antitrust investigation of Internet search giant Google. The Federal Trade Commission and the Web titan are nearing a deal that would end the government’s probe into allegations that Google has used its search market power to harm rival companies unfairly, according to multiple reports. Google is poised to offer a set of voluntary concessions addressing complaints about its search practices, according to a D.C. source fanilar with the matter.

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he is searching for a “consensus” within Canada and Parliament on how to contribute to stopping the spread of terrorism in Mali, but he will not allow a direct Canadian military mission into the African country. Harper made the comments Wednesday, just one day before the government’s one-week, “time-limited” military involvement in the matter is set to expire. Canada has provided a single military transport plane — a C-17 — to ferry French troops into Mali, where Islamist militants are threatening the stability of the country.

Today, President Obama declared March 4-10, 2012 as National Consumer Protection Week, building on a coordinated effort that encourages consumers nationwide to take full advantage of their consumer rights and make better-informed decisions. The Commerce Department is using this occasion to showcase the efforts of our I

The European Union's competition watchdog will investigate whether Google Inc. has abused its dominant position in the online search market — the first major probe into the online giant's business practices.

[AP] - The European Union's competition watchdog will investigate whether Google Inc. has abused its dominant position in the online search market -- the first major probe into the online giant's business practices.