The Future of Satellite Broadband

People ask me a lot about what Starlink means for somebody building a rural broadband network. That set me to contemplate the long-term prospects for LEO satellite broadband. Today, the broadband provided by Starlink is a boon to rural subscribers who have had no alternatives. Hundreds of thousands of prospective customers have gotten onto the Starlink waiting list. It's not hard to understand why when the rural broadband alternatives are extraordinarily slow rural DSL, high orbit satellite broadband, or cellular hotspots. more

Unregistered Gems Part 6: Phonemizing Strings to Find Brandable Domains

The UnregisteredGems.com series of articles explores a range of techniques to filter and search through the universe of unregistered domain names, in order to find examples which may be compelling candidates for entities looking to select a new brand name (and its associated domain). The previous instalment of the series looked at the categorisation of candidate names according to the phonetic characteristics of its constituent consonants, using a simple one-to-one mapping between each consonant and a corresponding phonetic group. more

AI Has No Time for “Human” Rights

Popular media have recently reported a White House initiative asserting companies' "moral obligation" to limit the risks of AI products. True enough, but the issues are far broader. At the core of the debate around AI -- will it save us or destroy us? -- are questions of values. Can we tell AI how to behave safely for humans, even if in the future it has a "mind of its own"? It is often said that AI algorithms should be "aligned with human values." more

Why More Registries Should Be Talking About DNS Security

I've been incredibly lucky in my time at Neustar to lead both the exceptional Registry and Security teams. While these divisions handle their own unique product and service offerings, it's clear that they have some obvious crossovers in their risks, opportunities and challenges. Having been closely involved in the strategy of both these teams, it strikes me that there is more we as Registry Operators and service providers can and should be doing to align the world of cybersecurity with that of domain names. more

Combating Counterfeit and Substandard ICT Devices

Counterfeiting is a negative activity that is affecting almost all areas of economies, incidentally it has become a menace in the Internet world. Apart from selling of fake products online, the production and sale of imitated or counterfeit products create huge market for products that hurt the producers of the genuine goods and also create a menancing health risk to the users. more

What Will Shape the Internet in 2026: Power, Politics, and Infrastructure

In 2026, internet infrastructure will be reshaped by geopolitics, grid constraints, and regulatory shifts. Firms that treat data location, power access, and legal compliance as strategic priorities will gain competitive advantage. more

Amazon’s Satellite Ambitions Finally Lift Off: Project Kuiper Enters the Low-Earth Orbit Race

After several delays due to bad weather, Amazon's Project Kuiper finally launched its first batch of low-orbit broadband satellites on April 28. The company says it is in communication with all 27 new satellites. Amazon used a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket launched from Cape Canaveral. Amazon is under pressure to get the launches going and has a commitment to the FCC to launch 1,618 satellites by July 2026. more

Calculating the Return on Investment of Online Brand Protection Projects

In the early days of Online Brand Protection (OBP), before it was commonly understood how damaging to revenue infringements could be, this was an extremely popular topic. I remember delivering webinars on the subject then and even running a couple of half-day in-person workshops for brand owners at major conferences. more

FTC Comment Period Emphasizes the Need for a Better WHOIS System

Late last year, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission - the governmental arm responsible for protecting Americans from unfair trade practices -- opened a comment period on a proposed "Trade Regulation Rule on Impersonation of Governments and Businesses." It's no surprise that those who are victims of or are battling online impersonation saw this as an opportunity to highlight the importance of a working domain name registration data system ("WHOIS") ... more

Google Puts Its Weight Behind FttH

The blogs are flying all around the world -- some seem to get it right but most do not. My analysis of Google's announcement to become involved in building FttH networks is actually the same as the one as I made when that company announced its plans to build wireless city networks, and when it announced its intention to invest in submarine cable networks. more

Data Tsunami and the Looming Broadband Capacity Crisis

There is such a huge volume of genomics (DNA related data) and bio-informatics data being produced that it cannot be transferred over commercial Internet networks, and instead organizations are using FedX and other sneaker nets to ship the data. The same crisis in data volumes is also occurring in the climate modelling and other fields as well. Research and Education (R&E) networks for many years have been warning about this coming data tsunami. more

New Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt about Canada’s Anti-Spam Bill C-28

From time to time, we see unenlightened comments about the efficacy of laws in the fight against spam. "Laws won't stop spam" being the most common. No, they won't. What laws do is dissuade some people from undertaking shoddy mailing practices or even outright spam campaigns. Laws don't stop murder, rape and robbery either, but for those un-dissuaded who undertake such heinous crimes, we, as a society, have laws for punitive effect. They pay the price society exacts for their actions. C-28 will attenuate spam in Canada, and help us to fight spam internationally. more

Unsolicited Smartwatches Bearing Malware Target U.S. Service Members: Army CID Raises Alarm

U.S. military service members around the country have reported receiving unsolicited smartwatches by mail, triggering warnings from the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID). more

Brand Abuse and IP Infringements – Part 1: Brand Impact

In this two-part blog series, we take a closer look at brand abuse and intellectual property (IP) infringements. In this first article, we explore the components making up a company's IP and how online content can affect a brand's value, both actual and perceived... The IP held by an organization -- i.e., the portfolio of brands, trademarks, and other intangible assets that provide it with its distinctiveness, and protect it from unfair competition in the marketplace... more

The Explosive Growth of Worldwide Broadband Usage

Sandvine gathers data from the 160 largest fixed and wireless ISPs on the planet to understand Internet usage trends. The statistics discussed below come from the Sandvine January 2022 Global Internet Phenomena Report. Sandvine identifies several current industry trends... more