[governance] Re: FW: [OIA] MS & Skype?

[parminder]

On Wednesday 11 May 2011 01:25 AM, Stephane Bortzmeyer wrote:
> On Tue, May 10, 2011 at 07:49:24AM -0700,
>   Michael Gurstein<gurstein at gmail.com>  wrote
>   a message of 51 lines which said:
>
>> I'm not exactly sure how/where this should be covered in IG
>> discussions but even from a purely self-interested CS perspective
>> there is an absolute need to begin to work towards some sort of
>> global institutional/regulatory framework to ensure the preservation
>> of a public interest in a global virtual public space and public
>> capacity for very low cost IP enabled international communications
>> (a la skype).
> I fail to see why the fate of the private company Skype, which
> produces a closed software using undocumented proprietary protocols
> could be a subject for CS.

In the same way as Google of the closed algorithm is difficult to ignore 
as a subject by civil society. Is there anyone here who doesnt use 
google? Would MS and Google merging be not a big issue for all us?
> I agree that "preservation of a public interest in a global virtual
> public space" and "very low cost IP enabled international
> communications" are good goals. But Skype is the very counter-example
> of what we should aim for.
I agree that is the point. But what do you think we should aim for. Not 
only as our IP based communication system, but also as our search 
engine, and our social networking site,  as out payment gateway ......

The solution lies both in encouraging alternative practises, models and 
software/ applications, but as much in right regulatory frameworks. It 
would never to be possible to get what we seek without the later. That 
for me is one of the biggest IG issue around today. parminder


> Specially, the fact that the source code is
> hidden from its users is there to hide shameful practices such as
> enrolling users as "supernodes" without asking their advice or even
> informing them (see
> <http://www.velocityreviews.com/forums/t727931-skype-fixed-supernodes-list.html>
> and the list in
> <http://cryptolib.com/ciphers/skype/skype_servers.txt>).
>
> So, if CS is interested in "preservation of a public interest in a
> global virtual public space", it should push the use of open protocols
> for instant messaging and voice over Internet (XMPP and SIP), not to
> encourage closed software.
>
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-- 

Parminder Jeet Singh
Executive Director
IT for Change
NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations ECOSOC
www.ITforChange.net <http://www.ITforChange.net/>
Tel:+91-80-2665 4134, 2653 6890. Fax:+91-80-4146 1055


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