Daemonocracy
25-10-2006, 02:00
Forget MS, it is Google who will build the New World Order.
They also are affiliated with many left-wing individuals and organizations which is no surprise to any unbiased and observant reader who takes a look at Google News.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,1930008,00.html
The search for influence: Google becomes a political player
The pre-eminent provider of information is moving into the 'real' world to protect its interests
Richard Wray, communications editor
Tuesday October 24, 2006
Guardian
Last month Washington's political set, always ready for a good gossip, were sent into a flurry of chattering by news that Google had registered a political action committee (PAC) with the US federal election commission.
The creation of Google NetPAC is a first step towards making corporate donations to support candidates seeking elected office. Its foundation less than two months before the mid-term congressional elections, plus the recent appointment of a clutch of Washington movers and shakers to Google's DC office, has observers painting the company as a possible kingmaker.
This side of the Atlantic, Google's chairman and chief executive, Eric Schmidt, has been courted by both main political parties. He lent his Google Zeitgeist conference platform in the summer to David Cameron so he could launch his "happiness" offensive. Earlier this month Schmidt met Tony Blair to discuss the internet, and the next day addressed the Conservative party conference.
Google Europe's hiring policy for its corporate communications unit, meanwhile, also seems to have a political angle as, in the space of a few months, it has brought a former union activist together with the partner of Cameron's chief strategy adviser.
Is the self-appointed organiser of the world's information about to become involved in politics? Or is it just a maturing business beginning to realise that the next challenge may well come from regulators and governments?
Ricardo Reyes, Google's senior manager of global communications and public affairs, maintains that the company will not follow party lines but will focus on specific issues that affect the internet and therefore the business.
"We started this NetPAC in order to be able to support office-holders and candidates who share our vision of promoting and preserving the internet as a free and open platform for information, communication and innovation," he says. "Google has thrived thanks to the opportunities of the free market so we believe it is important to look at policymakers as they make decisions that impact our users and businesses."
This week Schmidt warned an audience in Washington of the struggle Google faced with politicians. "The average person in government is not of the age of people who are using all this stuff," he told a public symposium hosted by the National Academies' Computer Science and Telecommunications Board. "There is a generational gap, and it's very, very real."
Net neutrality
Top of the issues list for the company, which has yet to make any direct contributions through the PAC, is net neutrality. Some of the major fixed-line telecoms operators want new laws that would require providers of high-bandwidth internet services, such as video streaming and downloading music, to pay a "congestion charge" to guarantee their traffic gets through. Some of these large telecoms firms, such as AT&T and Verizon, were major political donors in the 2004 election.
While Google would not be hit directly by a two-tier net, its recently acquired online video site YouTube would, and Google fears that splitting the internet could hamper the creation of other innovative businesses.
"Net neutrality is the most obvious issue for us," says Reyes, who worked at the US state department before joining Google. "But ... Congress and the government are going to take on a whole range of issues that affect us on technological fronts, on legal fronts. This is our effort to play in that game."
Google has an impressive list of players on its team. As well as counting Al Gore among its senior advisers, Google's Washington office was set up about a year and a half ago by Alan Davidson. A well-known Democrat sympathiser, he served for eight years as associate director of the Centre for Democracy and Technology, a thinktank that opposes government and industry control of the web. Alongside him is Robert Boorstin, a former Clinton foreign policy aide from the Centre for American Progress, as Google's communications chief in the capital.
Google's PAC will be run by a five-person board of directors who will be guided by the recommendations of an advisory committee made up of Google employees. It will raise its funds through voluntary donations from staff.
But judging from the fact that in the past Google employees have been involved with leftwing groups such as MoveOn.org, it will be very interesting to see where that cash is headed.
Last month Google co-sponsored its first Washington fundraiser for Heather Wilson, a Republican representative from New Mexico. She is trying to fight off a strong Democrat challenger backed by the left-leaning Emily's List but Wilson won Google's support because she is one of the few Republican supporters of net neutrality. "It goes back to supporting officeholders who have the same goals of preserving and promoting the internet as a free and open platform," Reyes says. "She has been a proponent and a friend on net neutrality and believes in the same things that we do."
So what about this side of the pond? Google only has one lobbyist working the Brussels beat - Patricia Moll, who used to work for the European commission - and she is based in London. Instead, the company seems to be using its corporate communications arm to build up some political nous.
Late last year Google hired Rachel Whetstone to head its European communications and public affairs team in London. A former political secretary to Michael Howard, she is also godmother to David Cameron's first child. Her partner is Steve Hilton, Cameron's head of strategy and a power behind the Tory leader. Whetstone is also a founder of the PR firm Portland, which Google uses in Europe. The head of Portland, Tim Allan, is a former deputy to Alastair Campbell and knows his way around the corridors of power as a lobbyist for BSkyB.
Regulators
Joining them earlier this summer was David Collins, the former head of news and strategic planning at the Department for Education and Skills and a one-time bag-carrier and chief spokesman for Ken Jackson, leader of the AEEU, the union now called Amicus.
Despite all the obvious political connections contained within Google's European operations, Collins maintains: "We are not looking to become a political organisation. But where politicians and regulators affect the internet, and therefore Google, we make sure that our voice is heard. We are not interested in politics per se but we are interested when politicians and regulators affect the internet."
Others in the industry reckon it is that second force - regulators - that is most likely to cause problems for Google in the future. The European commission's moves to regulate video over the internet as part of its Television Without Frontiers agenda, is just one major obstacle but there is also growing unease that the business is just getting too large and entering too many markets.
"As Google moves far beyond search to become a global media owner, it is throwing its tendrils out into non-search related areas," says Warren Cowan, head of the London-based search marketing consultancy Greenlight. "If its business had been based more in the 'real' world rather than online, then the regulators would have eyed it up long ago."
They may well do so soon but Google seems to be building the political muscles to fight back.
Don't be what?
For a company that has "don't be evil" as one of its founding principles, Google often seems to find itself in the firing line ...
China
A year after its launch in late 2000, Google's Chinese-language service accounted for a quarter of all search requests in the country. Then the authorities started blocking the site with what became known as "the great firewall of China". Google concluded that it needed a presence in China and launched a censored service, Google.cn, in January this year. The following month, Google executives were hauled in front of a Congressional hearing to be accused of "sickening collaboration" with a repressive regime.
Google News
Last month a group of Belgian newspapers had their results taken off the Google system after a court order threatened the search engine with a fine of €1m a day. The case goes to appeal next month.
Google Book Search
Google is working with esteemed university libraries including those of Oxford, Stanford and Harvard to digitise books. Access to books still under copyright is limited to a couple of "snippets" but the fact that Google has a full digital copy of copyrighted books annoys publishers such as Bloomsbury, publisher of the Harry Potter series. The French publisher La Martinière and Germany's WBG have taken legal action, though WBG's request for an injunction was thrown out by a Hamburg court. There are also two current lawsuits in the US, brought by the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers.
Dun Dun DUUUUUUUUN...
They also are affiliated with many left-wing individuals and organizations which is no surprise to any unbiased and observant reader who takes a look at Google News.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,1930008,00.html
The search for influence: Google becomes a political player
The pre-eminent provider of information is moving into the 'real' world to protect its interests
Richard Wray, communications editor
Tuesday October 24, 2006
Guardian
Last month Washington's political set, always ready for a good gossip, were sent into a flurry of chattering by news that Google had registered a political action committee (PAC) with the US federal election commission.
The creation of Google NetPAC is a first step towards making corporate donations to support candidates seeking elected office. Its foundation less than two months before the mid-term congressional elections, plus the recent appointment of a clutch of Washington movers and shakers to Google's DC office, has observers painting the company as a possible kingmaker.
This side of the Atlantic, Google's chairman and chief executive, Eric Schmidt, has been courted by both main political parties. He lent his Google Zeitgeist conference platform in the summer to David Cameron so he could launch his "happiness" offensive. Earlier this month Schmidt met Tony Blair to discuss the internet, and the next day addressed the Conservative party conference.
Google Europe's hiring policy for its corporate communications unit, meanwhile, also seems to have a political angle as, in the space of a few months, it has brought a former union activist together with the partner of Cameron's chief strategy adviser.
Is the self-appointed organiser of the world's information about to become involved in politics? Or is it just a maturing business beginning to realise that the next challenge may well come from regulators and governments?
Ricardo Reyes, Google's senior manager of global communications and public affairs, maintains that the company will not follow party lines but will focus on specific issues that affect the internet and therefore the business.
"We started this NetPAC in order to be able to support office-holders and candidates who share our vision of promoting and preserving the internet as a free and open platform for information, communication and innovation," he says. "Google has thrived thanks to the opportunities of the free market so we believe it is important to look at policymakers as they make decisions that impact our users and businesses."
This week Schmidt warned an audience in Washington of the struggle Google faced with politicians. "The average person in government is not of the age of people who are using all this stuff," he told a public symposium hosted by the National Academies' Computer Science and Telecommunications Board. "There is a generational gap, and it's very, very real."
Net neutrality
Top of the issues list for the company, which has yet to make any direct contributions through the PAC, is net neutrality. Some of the major fixed-line telecoms operators want new laws that would require providers of high-bandwidth internet services, such as video streaming and downloading music, to pay a "congestion charge" to guarantee their traffic gets through. Some of these large telecoms firms, such as AT&T and Verizon, were major political donors in the 2004 election.
While Google would not be hit directly by a two-tier net, its recently acquired online video site YouTube would, and Google fears that splitting the internet could hamper the creation of other innovative businesses.
"Net neutrality is the most obvious issue for us," says Reyes, who worked at the US state department before joining Google. "But ... Congress and the government are going to take on a whole range of issues that affect us on technological fronts, on legal fronts. This is our effort to play in that game."
Google has an impressive list of players on its team. As well as counting Al Gore among its senior advisers, Google's Washington office was set up about a year and a half ago by Alan Davidson. A well-known Democrat sympathiser, he served for eight years as associate director of the Centre for Democracy and Technology, a thinktank that opposes government and industry control of the web. Alongside him is Robert Boorstin, a former Clinton foreign policy aide from the Centre for American Progress, as Google's communications chief in the capital.
Google's PAC will be run by a five-person board of directors who will be guided by the recommendations of an advisory committee made up of Google employees. It will raise its funds through voluntary donations from staff.
But judging from the fact that in the past Google employees have been involved with leftwing groups such as MoveOn.org, it will be very interesting to see where that cash is headed.
Last month Google co-sponsored its first Washington fundraiser for Heather Wilson, a Republican representative from New Mexico. She is trying to fight off a strong Democrat challenger backed by the left-leaning Emily's List but Wilson won Google's support because she is one of the few Republican supporters of net neutrality. "It goes back to supporting officeholders who have the same goals of preserving and promoting the internet as a free and open platform," Reyes says. "She has been a proponent and a friend on net neutrality and believes in the same things that we do."
So what about this side of the pond? Google only has one lobbyist working the Brussels beat - Patricia Moll, who used to work for the European commission - and she is based in London. Instead, the company seems to be using its corporate communications arm to build up some political nous.
Late last year Google hired Rachel Whetstone to head its European communications and public affairs team in London. A former political secretary to Michael Howard, she is also godmother to David Cameron's first child. Her partner is Steve Hilton, Cameron's head of strategy and a power behind the Tory leader. Whetstone is also a founder of the PR firm Portland, which Google uses in Europe. The head of Portland, Tim Allan, is a former deputy to Alastair Campbell and knows his way around the corridors of power as a lobbyist for BSkyB.
Regulators
Joining them earlier this summer was David Collins, the former head of news and strategic planning at the Department for Education and Skills and a one-time bag-carrier and chief spokesman for Ken Jackson, leader of the AEEU, the union now called Amicus.
Despite all the obvious political connections contained within Google's European operations, Collins maintains: "We are not looking to become a political organisation. But where politicians and regulators affect the internet, and therefore Google, we make sure that our voice is heard. We are not interested in politics per se but we are interested when politicians and regulators affect the internet."
Others in the industry reckon it is that second force - regulators - that is most likely to cause problems for Google in the future. The European commission's moves to regulate video over the internet as part of its Television Without Frontiers agenda, is just one major obstacle but there is also growing unease that the business is just getting too large and entering too many markets.
"As Google moves far beyond search to become a global media owner, it is throwing its tendrils out into non-search related areas," says Warren Cowan, head of the London-based search marketing consultancy Greenlight. "If its business had been based more in the 'real' world rather than online, then the regulators would have eyed it up long ago."
They may well do so soon but Google seems to be building the political muscles to fight back.
Don't be what?
For a company that has "don't be evil" as one of its founding principles, Google often seems to find itself in the firing line ...
China
A year after its launch in late 2000, Google's Chinese-language service accounted for a quarter of all search requests in the country. Then the authorities started blocking the site with what became known as "the great firewall of China". Google concluded that it needed a presence in China and launched a censored service, Google.cn, in January this year. The following month, Google executives were hauled in front of a Congressional hearing to be accused of "sickening collaboration" with a repressive regime.
Google News
Last month a group of Belgian newspapers had their results taken off the Google system after a court order threatened the search engine with a fine of €1m a day. The case goes to appeal next month.
Google Book Search
Google is working with esteemed university libraries including those of Oxford, Stanford and Harvard to digitise books. Access to books still under copyright is limited to a couple of "snippets" but the fact that Google has a full digital copy of copyrighted books annoys publishers such as Bloomsbury, publisher of the Harry Potter series. The French publisher La Martinière and Germany's WBG have taken legal action, though WBG's request for an injunction was thrown out by a Hamburg court. There are also two current lawsuits in the US, brought by the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers.
Dun Dun DUUUUUUUUN...