The public startup organization is called WiredWest. Today the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University released a report on the project, which will allow up to 31 towns to collectively finance, operate, and provide services over a fiber optic network—no need for Verizon or other major incumbents.
Source: WiredWest Needs State Help to Bring Broadband to Western MA: Report | Xconomy
The collectives behind the localized project are In-media and Keyboard Frontline and Dr. Lokman Tsui, an assistant professor at the School of Journalism and Communication of Chinese University of Hong Kong and a faculty associate with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University.
Still, despite anxieties over ‘‘going dark,’’ a February report from the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University said the situation was not as dire as law enforcement had described and that investigators were not ‘‘headed to a future in which our ability to effectively surveil criminals and bad actors is impossible.’’
Source: FBI: Using third parties to break encryption not only answer – The Boston Globe
The Consortium of Networked Schools (CoSN), in partnership with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, has released a new online resource to help school districts leverage their options for expanded fiber connectivity opportunities under the federal E-rate program.
Source: CoSN resource aims to help schools with fiber internet connections | Education Dive
It was localised by Hong Kong-based groups In-media and Keyboard Frontline and Dr. Lokman Tsui, an Assistant Professor at the School of Journalism and Communication of Chinese University of Hong Kong and a Faculty Associate with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University.
Source: New app helps citizens find out what Hong Kong companies know about them | Hong Kong Free Press
Similarly, in a panel on the subject the previous day, Patrick Murck, fellow at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society and former executive director of the bitcoin industry trade group the Bitcoin Foundation, said he “chafes” at the term, coined by Nick Szabo in 1997.
Source: R3 Reveals 8 Areas of Focus for Blockchain Bank Trials – CoinDesk
But some observers are skeptical. Susan Crawford, a Harvard Law School professor and director at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, said it’s unclear whether Fios will actually result in lower prices and better service because of the increased competition with Comcast.
Source: City Hopes Verizon Fios Will Boost Local Businesses | WBUR
Plus, encryption poses no existential threat to law enforcement for several reasons, a panel of experts at Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society concluded in a February report.
Source: Secure Cars, but Not Phones? Government Doublespeak on Cybersecurity
End-to-end encryption generally “would conflict with the advertising model and presumably curtail revenues,” Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society noted in a February report.
Source: Will Google and Facebook Follow WhatsApp’s Encryption Lead?
End-to-end encryption generally “would conflict with the advertising model and presumably curtail revenues,” Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society noted in a February report. It concluded that profit-driven tech firms “have little incentive to veer from this model, making it unlikely that end-to-end encryption will become ubiquitous across applications and services.”
Source: Will Google And Facebook Copy WhatsApp’s Encryption Tech? | Foreign Policy