Africa needs a unified policy approach to its domain name market, speakers said Monday at an ICANN virtual forum on the African domain name system. Among other problems are widely divergent charges for domain names, ranging $3-$500 across the continent, said Moctar Yedaly, African Union Commission information society division head. The COVID-19 pandemic offers lessons for the African continent, said South Africa Central Registry CEO Lucky Masilela. In addition to harmonizing domain prices, the sector must address issues of trust and security, he said. Africa is a youthful continent, and younger people must be empowered to have their own internet identities, he said. Business barrier issues are hampering DNS markets, said Ghana Dot Com Chairman and former ICANN board member Nii Quaynor. The DNS is a public good that exists only because people are willing to use its identifiers, he said: The DNS community must manage it responsibly to ensure the internet is stable, inclusive and accessible globally. Governments should foster a friendly policy environment to allow trust, and refrain from getting into managing top-level domains, he said. As Africa migrates business to the local internet, governments must address governance through more bottom-up, multistakeholder processes, Quaynor said. They must lower business barriers through such things as a continental free trade area, and should commit to using their own country-code domains, he said. It's in every administration's best interest to safeguard the DNS, said South Africa Domain Name Authority Chairperson Palesa Legoze, whose organization manages the .za ccTLD. Countries' whose country-code top-level domains (ccTLD)s have few registrants should look at the pricing and quality of service offered, she said. Governments can fund ccTLD managers until they're viable and have the volume of domain name registrations needed, she said. Nigeria has over 200 million people and not many domain names, but it's working to correct that through offering flexible policies and pricing, encouraging the hosting of local content and creating good content, said Nigeria Internet Registration Association Executive Secretary Edith Udeagu. Foreign domain names are viewed as better than local, so her organization tries to encourage enterprises to use .ng names and websites rather than just social media platforms, and tries to spur websites that host local content, she said. Quaynor warned against nationalism. A business that serves a particular area will want a domain that shows that, but Africa-wide companies should choose, for example, .africa or .com. Legoze urged Africans to coalesce on DNS policies, to "come together and speak with one voice."
The FCC Wireless Bureau granted emergency authorization for standard reviews to proceed for public safety in Michigan’s Charlevoix and Washtenaw counties. The bureau June 25 released an electronic process for licensees to apply for expedited historic review or emergency authorization of wireless facilities during the pandemic (see 2006260028).
More than six in 10 seniors agree that stay-at-home mandates swayed them to embrace technology more, and nearly half regularly binge-watch TV shows, a healthinsurance.com survey found. The healthcare website canvassed 1,000 U.S. adults 65 and older online July 20-21, finding tech ownership is high among Medicare-eligible seniors. Three-quarters own a smart TV or streaming device, 89% have a smartphone and 68% use a tablet. Two-thirds subscribe to cable. Sixty-four percent say they left the house only to visit the supermarket or pharmacy. Sixty-eight percent of those who haven’t used telehealth during the pandemic say it’s because they haven’t had to. Ten percent used it before the crisis, 44% have used it since and 43% plan to continue using it after COVID-19.
Public Knowledge's IP3 Awards event Sept. 24 -- covering areas of intellectual property, information policy and internet protocol -- will be virtual due to the pandemic, PK said Monday.
Americans are increasingly worried about returning to offices amid spikes in COVID-19 cases, and most expect more fall outbreaks, IBM’s monthly consumer attitudes survey found. It canvassed 7,000 respondents in July, finding 84% would prefer working from home indefinitely, at least occasionally, up 3 points from June. More than six in 10 say employers need to communicate clearly what they're doing to sanitize, up from 54% in June. And 58% say employers need strict social distancing protocols, up from 49% in June. Telehealth use is rising, with 40% having participated in a virtual medical visit the past month, up 6 points from June. Half the June respondents planned to keep using telehealth after the pandemic, and 60% expressed those intentions in July. Only 19% said they used telehealth sessions before COVID-19.
CTA will move CES 2021 to an all-virtual event on Jan. 6-9 from a physical show at the Las Vegas Convention Center, said the association Tuesday.
Despite Apple’s “hit” with the $399 SE, the company’s quarter will be "suppressed” due to smartphone weakness in the U.S., said eMarketer Friday, before the company's Thursday earnings report for the period ended June 30. Most analysts expect Apple revenue to struggle to match last year's numbers as a result, but services will likely remain a growth area, with people spending more time on their smartphones during the pandemic, said Yoram Wurmser. The research firm expects Apple’s share of U.S. smartphone users to remain flat, at a 45.6% share by year-end; Android’s share will be 53.8%, dominating smartphone usage through 2022.
Logitech, a COVID-19 pandemic related sales beneficiary, teamed with Herman Miller on “high-performance” gaming furniture and accessories line (see 2007210047). Typical esports athletes and streamers sit at desks nearly three times as long as a typical officer worker. The companies found players’ postures could have a negative impact on performance “and potentially damage their health over time,” said Herman Miller Chief Marketing Officer Tim Straker. Also last week, Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter called gaming a Logitech “compelling growth" story, “as people continue to work from home to prolong safety, particularly in the U.S. where [coronavirus] cases have continued to rise and spike regionally."
The daily share of time spent consuming audio content on digital devices in Q2 by U.S. listeners 13 and older surpassed that of listening on traditional, linear devices -- a first -- Edison Research reported last week. Before COVID-19 disruptions, 55% of the daily total share of time spent listening was done on traditional, linear devices, and 45% on digital devices; during Q2, digital jumped to 53%. Digital devices in the May study include smartphones, computers, internet-connected TVs and smart speakers. Traditional devices include AM/FM receivers, SiriusXM receivers, CD players, turntables and TV channels. Results showed an acceleration of a trend that was occurring pre-pandemic, said Director-Research Laura Ivey.
Counterfeiting isn’t a new problem, but “getting worse” and proliferating online, Patent and Trademark Office Director Andrei Iancu told the National Association of Manufacturers Thursday. The pandemic “has shown just how dangerous inaction can be,” he said. E-commerce’s “appeal of contact-free, front door delivery is undeniable,” he said. “Increased prevalence” of counterfeit goods sold online brings “increased dangers” during a pandemic, he said. “It is nothing short of grotesque that in the middle of this pandemic -- the worst international health crisis in a century -- criminals are taking advantage of scared and unsuspecting consumers. Frankly, the last thing our first responders should worry about is whether their” personal protective equipment is real.