iWill: Britons leaving heirs “digital inheritance”
Around 11 percent of the 2,000 British people surveyed by the Center for Creative & Social Technology (CAST) at the University of London for their “Cloud Generation” report said they had included internet passwords or plan to include them in their wills in a trend that CAST labeled “digital inheritance.”“It’s an area that will become increasingly important given, for instance, the monetary value of music collections and sentimental value of photograph collections - fewer people now keep hard copies of either,” the report quoted Steven Thorpe, partner at Gardner Thorpe Solicitors, as saying.”Cloud Generation” co-authors Chris Brauer and Jennifer Barth used 15 in-depth case studies and the larger poll to investigate the implications for people whose personal and cultural keepsakes increasingly exist only in the so-called cloud — online services run on remote computers rather than one’s own PC.In the course of their study, they discovered people naturally wanted to save valuable music, photos and videos for their own use during their lifetime, but now increasingly are seeking to preserve those things for their heirs.”It’s that it’s representative of your identity, of who you are,” Brauer told Reuters on Friday.Brauer said they discovered that “digital natives” as — he called them — now instinctively rely on the cloud to interact, save, store and share their personal tastes and data.The idea of digital legacies appeared when they asked cloud users what they would rescue if the house caught fire.”They said: ‘I would go to my computer, email my photos (and other digital treasures) to myself and then leave the house’,” Brauer said.What happens to people’s online identity and activities after they die has become a growing issue with the ubiquity of cloud computing, digital memorabilia, social networking and an aging generation of Internet users.For example, social networking site Facebook allows a deceased user’s profile to be taken down, but will not pass on passwords to give next of kin access to the account.The use of smartphones and other gadgets has also increased the amount of online services people use — including storing movies, emails, family videos and work data.About 25 percent of respondents to the report believed that by 2020 they would no longer print photos and 14.5 percent thought they would not own any physical books.
Cap on card fees can’t be ruled out -EU’s Almunia
“We are observing how the regulation is working, or not, on
the other side of the Atlantic,” Almunia said. “I don’t exclude
(a fee cap) but I’m not announcing new regulation.”Under U.S. regulation effective from Oct. 1, the overall fee
that banks can charge merchants per transaction is capped at 24
cents, down from an average of 44 cents.High fees could be anti-competitive if they block new
entrants, Almunia said.”Eliminating unwarranted rates also reduces the incentives
to protect a system against new and potentially more efficient
payments for users,” he said.The European Commission has battled with banks and credit
card networks over interchange fees as part of a wider offensive
to boost economic growth by making goods and services more
accessible through cheaper banking and card fees.In 2009, MasterCard agreed to comply with this, and
temporarily cut its transaction costs in return for the
regulator dropping an antitrust investigation. However, the
company is now seeking a legal ruling on the case.Visa, the European licensee of Visa Inc , also pledged
to reduce its debit card fees last December to end an antitrust
probe. Regulators are looking into its credit card fees.
Al Qaeda’s Zawahri calls on Algerians to revolt
He also attacked military rulers in his native Egypt for maintaining close ties with Israel and doing nothing to back the Arab uprisings that brought down Tunisian leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in January and Egyptian ruler Hosni Mubarak in February.”Oh lions of Algeria! Look at your brothers in Tunisia and Libya when they cast their leaders into the dustbin of history,” Zawahri said. “So, why don’t you revolt against your despot?” he added, referring to president Abdelaziz Bouteflika.Libyans managed to bring down ruler of four decades Muammar Gaddafi after protesters inspired by uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia transformed into an armed rebellion backed by NATO.Algeria, which shares a long border with Libya, has so far not seen a popular protest movement like those that swept through other Arab countries.Its neighbor Morocco held a referendum on constitutional amendments in an apparent effort to appease protesters and stave off a bigger movement.”The Muslim nation across the world expects you to deliver a model of jihad and struggle by opposing the corrupt dictators,” Zawahri said, addressing Algerians.Zawahri was named by the Islamist group to succeed Osama bin Laden after U.S. forces ended a decade-long worldwide hunt by killing him in an operation in Pakistan in May.Al Qaeda has tried to wage war on the unpopular rulers over the past decade through creating cells that use suicide attacks on foreigners and government installations and officials.But the Arab Spring has left al Qaeda on the sidelines looking increasingly irrelevant. Largely peaceful protests brought down veteran rulers in Egypt and Tunisia and struggles are continuing in Yemen as well as Syria.ATTACKS EGYPT ARMYZawahri, an Egyptian surgeon by training, also praised August’s militant attack in southern Israel and said Egypt’s ruling military council had done nothing to stop Israel bombing Gaza afterwards or back Arab uprisings generally. He referred to Libyan rebels, who include many Islamists, as “our people.”“I congratulate our brothers, the Mujahideen who carried out the two operations in Eilat (south Israel) and I pray for God to shower them with rewards,” he said.”The military council did not move when Gaddafi’s forces crushed our people in Libya, the military council did not move when Israel bombed Gaza.”Zawahri also urged the Egyptians to keep up pressure against the Israeli embassy in Cairo, which protesters stormed in September after Israel killed five Egyptian border guards during its Gaza operation, causing the ambassador to flee.”You have stormed the Israeli embassy and expelled the Israeli ambassador,” he said. “Don’t allow him to return. You should continue with this popular uprising until the Israeli embassy is closed and the peace treaty revoked.”Zawahri was last seen in July in a video calling on Syrians to direct their protests against Israel and the United States as well as the government of Bashar al-Assad.Zawahri’s whereabouts are unknown, although he has long been thought to be hiding along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Washington is offering a $25 million reward for any information leading to his capture or conviction.
US STOCKS-Wall Street flat before Slovakia votes on fund
* Alcoa starts earnings season after market close* Indexes: Dow, S&P down 0.2 pct, Nasdaq up 0.3 pctBy Ashley LauNEW YORK, Oct 11 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were little
changed on Tuesday, with major indexes seesawing between gains
and losses before a key vote by Slovakia on expanding the euro
zone rescue fund.The back-and-forth moves on Wall Street follow several days
of sharp gains. The S&P 500 has risen 8.7 percent over the past
five days, its biggest five-day move since March 2009, as
stocks recovered from steep losses tied to worries about the
euro zone debt crisis.Markets have been reacting to news from the euro zone where
officials are trying to contain a debt crisis that threatens
large European banks and global financial stability.”It’s been the biggest problem on the front burner for the
U.S.,” said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at
Robert W. Baird & Co in Nashville. “It looks like it’s being
diffused.”With 16 of 17 euro zone states having ratified a pact to
boost the size and powers of the European Financial Stability
Facility bailout fund, all eyes turned to Slovakia. The
country’s finance minister said the country was expected to
approve the changes this week.Any more delays in coming up with a plan intended to head
off crisis could give the market an excuse to sell. Stocks have
reached the top of a recent range, hitting resistance around
1195 on the S&P 500.With earnings season beginning after the close of trading
with Alcoa Inc’s profit report, investors hoped for more
gains.The Dow Jones industrial average was down 17.33
points, or 0.15 percent, at 11,415.85. The Standard & Poor’s
500 Index was down 0.66 point, or 0.06 percent, at
1,194.23. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 8.21
points, or 0.32 percent, at 2,574.26.Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum company, was up 2.6
percent to $10.35, making it the best performer on the Dow.”Expectations are so low that Alcoa doesn’t have to say a
lot in order to beat expectations,” said King Lip, chief
investment officer at Baker Avenue Asset Management in San
Francisco.In the past week, analysts have lowered their consensus
earnings estimates for Alcoa, citing a precipitous drop in
metals prices in recent months sparked by global economic
concerns.At midday, about one stock advanced for every decliner on
the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. About 2.87 billion
shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Amex
and Nasdaq, lower than average.
