Google Case In Italy Raises Web Freedom Concerns (NPR) {Berlusconi is Italian for "Big Brother"}

[eppur_se_muova]

Sylvia Poggioli and Steve Inskeep

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Italy appears to be unfriendly to the Internet: Broadband is not easily available in parts of the country, and the law requires users to show an ID before getting access at WiFi hot spots.

The ruling against Google came just as the Italian government is about to introduce a decree that would give the state control over online video content — the toughest Internet regulations in Europe.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi owns the biggest private TV conglomerate in Italy.

Google has been hit with a lawsuit for copyright infringement from Berlusconi's company Mediaset, which is seeking nearly $800 million in damages.
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more: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124068000

The transcript does not cover the whole story; audio at the link. Berlusconi (Bu**sh**'s Italian alter ego) is using the gov't to crush competition from the Internet to benefit his media empire.:mad: