Incoming: Spare Slots for Freelance Work in 2018

I will soon have spare slots in my freelance writing schedule for regular weekly or monthly work, and major projects. Here are the main areas that I've been covering, some for more than two decades. Any commissioning editors interested in talking about them or related subjects, please contact me at glyn.moody@gmail.com (PGP available).  I am also available to speak on these topics at relevant conferences.

Surveillance, Encryption, Privacy, Freedom of Speech

For the last two years, I have written hundreds of articles about these crucial areas, for Ars Technica UK (http://arstechnica.co.uk/author/glyn_moody/), Privacy News Online (https://www.privateinternetaccess.com/blog/author/glynmoody/) and Techdirt (https://www.techdirt.com/user/glynmoody). Given the challenges facing society this year, they are likely to be an important focus for my work in 2018.

China

Another major focus for me this year will be China. I follow the world of Chinese IT closely, and have written numerous articles on the topic. Since I can read sources in the original, I am able to spot trends early and to report faithfully on what are arguably some of the most important developments happening in the digital world today.

Free Software/Open Source

I started covering this topic in 1995, wrote the first mainstream article on Linux for Wired in 1997 (https://www.wired.com/1997/08/linux-5/), and the first (and still only) detailed history of the subject, Rebel Code (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebel_Code) in 2001, where I interviewed the top 50 hackers at length. I have also written about the open source coders and companies that have risen to prominence in the last decade and a half, principally in my Open Enterprise column for Computerworld UK, which ran from 2008 to 2015.

Open Access, Open Data, Open Science, Open Government, Open Everything

As the ideas underlying openness, sharing and online collaboration have spread, so has my coverage of them. I wrote one of the most detailed histories of Open Access, for Ars Technica (http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/06/what-is-open-access-free-sharing-of-all-human-knowledge/).

Copyright, Patents, Trade Secrets

The greatest threat to openness is its converse: intellectual monopolies, which prevent sharing. This fact has led me to write many articles about copyright, patents and trade secrets. These have been mainly for Techdirt, where I have published over 1,500 posts, and also include an in-depth feature on the future of copyright for Ars Technica (http://arstechnica.co.uk/tech-policy/2015/07/copyright-reform-for-the-digital-age/).

Trade Agreements - TTIP, CETA, TISA, TPP

Another major focus of my writing has been so-called "trade agreements" like TTIP, CETA, TPP and TISA. "So-called", because they go far beyond traditional discussions of tariffs, and have major implications for many areas normally subject to democratic decision making. In addition to 51 TTIP Updates that I originally wrote for Computerworld UK (http://opendotdotdot.blogspot.nl/2016/01/the-rise-and-fall-of-ttip-as-told-in-51.html), I have covered this area extensively for Techdirt and Ars Technica UK, including a major feature on TTIP (http://arstechnica.co.uk/tech-policy/2015/05/ttip-explained-the-secretive-us-eu-treaty-that-undermines-democracy/) for the latter.

Europe

As a glance at some of my 318,000 (sic) posts to Twitter, identi.ca and Google+ will indicate, I read news sources in a number of languages (Italian, German, French, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Dutch, Greek, Swedish in descending order of capability.) This means I can offer a fully European perspective on any of the topics above - something that may be of interest to publications wishing to provide global coverage that goes beyond purely anglophone reporting. The 30,000 or so followers that I have across these social networks also means that I can push out links to my articles, something that I do as a matter of course to boost their readership.

The Rise and Fall of TTIP, As Told in 51 Updates

This year will be make or break for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).  It is already years behind its original, hopelessly-optimistic schedule, and is now running into immovable political events in the form of the US Presidential elections, and the general elections in Germany.  If TTIP isn't wrapped up this year, it is probably dead until whenever the next attempt to push through such a global takeover of democracy begins, as it surely will.

From July 2013 until April 2015 I wrote a series of irregular TTIP Updates, which charted the latest developments of the negotiations.  They form the most detailed description of how TTIP emerged and developed during the first two years of the negotiations.  Although superseded by more recent events, they nonetheless offer a historical record of what happened during that time, and may help people understand the strange beast that is TTIP somewhat better.

These Updates were published on Computerworld UK, which has a Web page with consolidated links to the updates.  Unfortunately, re-designs and other changes at the site have led to link-rot setting in.  Although the Computerworld UK page remains the main site for these Updates, I thought it would be useful - and prudent - to offer a mirror here on Open....

Below I have linked to the mirrored Updates, which appear as separate posts on the present blog.  Since I can't extract the final versions of the columns from the Computerworld UK site, I've used my local files.  These may differ slightly from the final, published versions - if there's anything major, I'll try to edit them at some stage.  Similarly, there may be odd typos that I have missed; please feel free to point them out in the comments so that I can fix them.

I should also warn readers that there are many broken links, especially to other Computerworld UK columns, whose URLs have all changed.  If I have time, I will try to fix the more important ones of these, but given that I probably won't have time, please don't hold your breath...

Although I am unlikely to write any more updates, I am most certainly going to keep covering TTIP during this crucial year - indeed, I intend to up my coverage considerably to reflect the crucial stage of the negotiations we have now reached.  I've already written a couple of big features on the topic for Ars Technica UK, which serve as introductions to this whole area for those coming to it for the first time, and as summaries of what has happened for those who are already familiar with the main issues.

The first, entitled "TTIP explained: The secretive US-EU treaty that undermines democracy", is a 6000-word backgrounder to the whole area.  The more recent "How EU nations are being sued for billions by foreign companies in secret tribunals" concentrates on perhaps the most controversial - and dangerous - aspect of TTIP, the so-called "investor-state dispute settlement" (ISDS) mechanism that essentially places companies above national laws by giving them special tribunals in which they can sue governments for alleged "indirect expropriation" of future profits.

If you don't know about this aspect - or about TTIP in general - this is a good place to start.  Once you find out what is proposed for TTIP, I am sure that you will be outraged, and hope that you will join me in trying to do something about it.

TTIP Update l

A review of the few details that emerged from the first round of negotiations, including an attempt by the European Commission to convince us that TAFTA/TTIP is not another ACTA.

TTIP Update ll

An introduction to investor-state dispute resolution (ISDS), and why its presence in TAFTA/TTIP is a grave threat to European sovereignty, open source and the Internet.

TTIP Update III

A point-by-point rebuttal of a document in which the European Commission tries to prove that the presence of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in TTIP is not a problem.

TTIP Update IV

An exploration of how the public is kept in the dark over TAFTA/TTIP, and the dangerous asymmetries it contains.

TTIP Update V

A discussion of a major Wikileaks document discussing intellectual monopolies in TAFTA/TTIP’s sister agreement, TPP, and what it means for TTIP.

TTIP Update VI

An analysis of a leaked document outlining the European Commission’s communication strategy for TAFTA/TTIP, and a look at how disastrous other trade agreements like NAFTA and KORUS have been.

TTIP Update VII

Yet another, increasingly desperate attempt to justify the unjustifiable inclusion of ISDS in TAFTA/TTIP, and why the arguments simply don’t stand up to scrutiny.

TTIP Update VIII

Lifting the lid on how a new transatlantic “TTIP Regulatory Council” would bring in massive deregulation, with a consequent lowering of food, health and environmental standards in Europe.

TTIP Update IX

How an astonishing attack on Corporate Europe Observatory reveals a floundering European Commission increasingly concerned that it is losing control of the TAFTA/TTIP debate.

TTIP Update X

Another (failed) attack, this time by Karel De Gucht, the EU's trade commissioner, who laughably tries to claim that there is no lack of transparency in the TAFTA negotiations, and that it’s worth accepting the threats posed by ISDS.

TTIP Update XI

So it looks like TAFTA/TTIP is, in fact, ACTA by the backdoor – despite what Mr De Gucht has said...

TTIP Update XII

Why the US Fast Track bill guarantees that TAFTA's ISDS chapter will be one-sided and unfair for EU companies.

TTIP Update XIII

Big news: EU pulls ISDS to allow unprecedented public consultation; UK report says ISDS in TTIP would bring little or no benefit.

TTIP Update XIV

What new CETA leaks tell us about EU's plans to re-vamp ISDS - and why they aren’t enough to protect European sovereignty or democracy.

TTIP Update XV

There are growing calls to keep data protection out of TAFTA/TTIP – and to reject the agreement if the privacy of European citizens is not adequately protected.

TTIP Update XVI

More details emerge on ISDS provisions, and a rather ironic call for transparency from the paranoically opaque USTR.

TTIP Update XVII

Bad news, lots of leaks, plus debunking another misleading European Commission document.

TTIP Update XVIII

New leaks, new Web sites, a hidden threat from the “most-favoured nation” approach, and an astonishing claim that Germany wants ISDS out of TTIP.

TTIP Update XIX

A newly-discovered CETA bug shows why the European Commission needs transparency; also, why regulatory data must be opendata

TTIP Update XX

All about transparency in TTIP - or, rather, the almost complete lack of it; includes details of three phantom EU consultations I never heard about, and few took part in.

TTIP Update XXI

Why that best-case “ €119 bn” GDP boost to EU economy equates to just an extra cup of coffee every week.

TTIP Update XXII

ISDS attacks on EU nations have begun – and that’s before TTIP would make it even more likely and costly.

TTIP Update XXIII

Why the European Commission’s consultation on ISDS is a sham, and fails to provide the promised "draft".

TTIP Update XXIV

Looking at important research that finds even more holes in the European Commission’s TTIP justifications.

TTIP Update XXV

A report on a desperate high-level attempt by the US and EU to counter German scepticism, plus the video & slides of my re:publica 14 talk about why TTIP's numbers just don’t add up.

 TTIP Update XXVI

An action-packed update that includes fracking, water cannons and cosmetics – but still very little transparency.

TTIP Update XXVII

In which the European Commission’s misleading use of figures from its economic study is criticised, as is the study itself.

TTIP Update XXVIII

A major leak of EU services offer; an introduction to the top-secret TISA; and how the US it trying to buy love for TAFTA/TTIP.

TTIP Update XXIX

More on the secretive TISA negotiations; insight into the US's anti-transparency plans; and how the public is too stupid to understand TTIP.

TTIP Update XXX

More on the huge dangers of ISDS - and lots of help for responding to the European Commission’s travesty of a consultation on the same topic.

TTIP Update XXXI

Designed to be the final information on responding to the European Commission’s ISDS consultation, but we now learn the deadline has been extended because of huge numbers replying.

TTIP Update XXXII

A couple of interesting leaks, and a round-up of how TTIP is starting to enter the mainstream.

TTIP Update XXXIII

In the wake of the incredible 150,000 responses to the ISDS consultation, the revolt against this idea spreads to the highest reaches of the EU.

TTIP Update XXXIV

ISDS drama from Germany again, and how mutual recognition will undermine EU food and animal protection standards.

TTIP Update XXXV

The shape of multi-billion-pound ISDS lawsuits to come; a leak of the complete CETA agreement; and the threats lurking in US "certification".

TTIP Update XXXVI

Lots of news about CETA and ISDS, plus another slap in the face of the EU public.

TTIP Update XXXVII

Lots about CETA, and exciting plans for a European Citizens’ Initiative to let people make their views on TTIP known
TTIP Update XXXVIII

Slaps in the face of the EU public: a refusal to allow the ECI, and a "celebration" of CETA. Plus bad signs from the grilling of the new EU trade commissioner.

TTIP Update XXXIX

Nearly 50% of the claimed trade boost consists of swapping cars across the Atlantic.

TTIP Update XL

Rumours swirl that ISDS will come out of TTIP; even if it does, it's still in CETA and the new EU-Singapore free trade agreements.

TTIP Update XLI

Yet more sound and fury on the topic of ISDS in TTIP, but things remain as clear as mud.

TTIP Update XLII

Devasting new independent economic analysis of TTIP's likely effects on EU shows net losses in terms of GDP and 600,000 job losses.

TTIP Update XLIII

The problem of data flows, and why CETA's ISDS is a disaster.

TTIP Update XLIV

ISDS dangers in CETA and TTIP - and in the EU Singapore FTA.

TTIP Update XLV

They want "facts" and "hard evidence" about TTIP? Here they are...

TTIP Update XLVI

There are *already* more than €30 billion worth of ISDS claims against EU nations.

TTIP Update XLVII

The belated provision of improved transparency shows that public advocacy works.

TTIP Update XLVIII

The people have spoken: ISDS must go - no ifs, buts or maybes.

TTIP Update XLIX

New leaks show how transatlantic regulatory bodies will undermine EU and national sovereignty.

TTIP Update L
Should the views of a three-person tribunal take precedence over society's wishes?

TTIP Update LI

As resistance grows, TTIP is increasingly in trouble.

Bringing Transparency Back To The Patent System With 'Innovation Cartography'

As Techdirt has noted many times, the patent system is broken, and in various ways. One major problem is the way it inhibits innovation, rather than promoting it, as its supporters usually claim. Here's why: 

On Techdirt.

US Court Rules Again That Natural Phenomena Cannot Be Patented, Casting Further Doubt On Gene Patents

Back in June, Mike wrote about the important Myriad Genetics judgment from the Supreme Court, which said that naturally-occuring genetic material could not be patented. However, because of some hedging from the judges, there were concerns about how much this would block gene patents in practice. Last week we had an indication that the impact is indeed likely to be significant, as VentureBeat reports: 

On Techdirt.

India's Approach To Pharma Patents Under US Attack, But Other BRICS Nations Likely To Adopt It

Techdirt has been reporting for a while on India's growing success in providing its population with access to low-cost generic drugs, making use of the permissions to do so granted by TRIPS. That has naturally earned it the ire of Western pharma companies, which now seem to be striking back, as this post on Infojustice.org explains: 

On Techdirt.

Universities Struggle To License Their Patents, In Desperation Team Up With Patent Trolls

A few months back, we wrote about the University of California's plan to lock up even more knowledge in the form of patents, in the hope that this would bring in lots of cash. But as Techdirt has reported time and again over the years, patenting research does not bring in more money to fund further research, in fact it probably doesn't bring in any money at all, once you allow for the costs of running tech transfer offices. Moreover, there's evidence that making the results of research freely available is much better for the wider economy than trying to turn them into intellectual monopolies. 

On Techdirt.

Misleading Figures Used To Puff Up Importance Of Intellectual Monopolies In Europe

We've noted before attempts to inflate the importance of copyright, patents and trademarks by including a bunch of other sectors that are only tangentially related to them when it comes to totting up their economic impact. For example, last year Mike wrote about a joint Department of Commerce/US Patent and Trademark Office "study" that included 2.5 million grocery store jobs in its definition of "IP-intensive" industries. 

On Techdirt.

Copyright Lawyers vs Patent Lawyers Smackdown: And The Winner Is...

You may remember a rather wonderful court case from 2012 that pitted copyright lawyers against patent lawyers over the issue of whether submitting journal articles as part of the patenting process was fair use. Well, we now have the judge's decision, as GigaOm reports: 

On Techdirt.

University Of California Gives Big Boost To Open Access, Still Confused About Sharing Knowledge

Techdirt has been monitoring for a while the inexorable rise of open access in the academic world. But even against a background of major wins, this latest news from the University of California (UC) is still big, not least because it seems to represent a major shift there: 

On Techdirt.

Could Open Source Make GMOs More Palatable?

As a recent DailyDirt noted, opinions on the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are sharply divided. But that heated argument tends to obscure another problem that Techdirt has often written about in other fields: the use of patent monopolies to exert control, in this case over the food chain. By inserting DNA sequences into plants and animals and obtaining patents, the biotech industry is granted surprisingly wide-ranging powers over how its products are used, as the Bowman case made clear. That's potentially problematic when those products are the foods that keep us alive. 

On Techdirt.

Eli Lilly Raises Stakes: Says Canada Now Owes It $500 Million For Not Granting A Patent It Wanted

A few months ago we wrote about the extraordinary -- and worrying -- case of Eli Lilly suing Canada after the latter had refused to grant a pharma patent. Eli Lilly's contention was that by failing to grant its patent (even if it didn't meet the criteria for a patent in Canada), Canada had "expropriated" Eli Lilly's property -- and that it should be paid $100 million as "compensation". 

On Techdirt.

Benefits Of Synthetic Blood Could Be Squandered Thanks To Patents

Two of the key arguments during the Myriad Genetics trial were that gene patent monopolies stifle innovation by preventing others from building on and extending key knowledge, and that they can cause unnecessary suffering and even death by driving up prices for medical treatment beyond the reach of many people. Even though the Supreme Court struck down Myriad's key patents, reducing those issues for DNA, a new technology with major ramifications for health runs the risk of suffering from precisely the same problems. 

On Techdirt.

Using Patents To Needlessly Drive Up Healthcare Costs: The Economic Impact Of Evergreening Drugs

One technique in the world of pharma that has started appearing here on Techdirt is "evergreening" -- making small changes to a drug, often about to come off patent, in order to gain a new patent that extends its manufacturer's control over it. The advantages for pharma companies are evident, but what about the public? What economic impact does evergreening have? That's what a fascinating new paper in the open access journal PLoS Medicine seeks to establish: 

On Techdirt.

University Of California's Latest Plan: Privatize Knowledge, Take Out Lots Of Patents -- Profit!

At the end of last year, we wrote about an extraordinary attempt by the University of California (UC) to resuscitate the infamous "Eolas" patents that were thrown out earlier by a jury in East Texas. Clearly, the University of California likes patents, and the way that they can be used to extract money from people with very little effort. In fact, it likes them so much it is trying to privatize research produced by taxpayer-funded laboratories so that even more patents can be taken out on the work, and even more money obtained through licensing them. The background to this new approach, implemented via a new entity provisionally entitled "Newco", is described in a fantastic feature by Darwin BondGraham that appears in East Bay Express: 

On Techdirt.

Google Proposes Clever Video Codec License -- But The Real Problem With Patent Pools Remains

A couple of years back, Techdirt wrote about Google's laudable attempt to open source its VP8 video codec, based around technologies it had acquired with the On2 company in 2009. That was not simply a matter of releasing the code, though, because of claims by some that VP8 infringed on their patents. MPEG-LA, the private company that manages the H.264 patent pool, even went so far as to put out a call for patents that might cover VP8, which in turn led to the US Justice Department investigating whether the move violated anti-trust law. 

On Techdirt.

Why the Idea of the Software Patent Does Not Fly

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about the growing threat of software patents in Europe (again). I was delighted to come across this reply from Martin Goetz, who wrote:

On Open Enterprise blog.

New EU Regulation Threatens Rare Seed Varieties, Agricultural Independence And Food Supply Resilience In Europe

Unless we are farmers, we tend to take seeds for granted. But civilisation is built on seeds: it was the rise of large-scale agriculture, based in part on the skilful breeding of ever-better seeds, that eventually allowed towns and then cities to form; and with them, the trades, arts and sciences that were possible once enough food could be produced by just a fraction of the population. That makes national seed policies -- how governments regulate the production and sale of plant varieties -- a crucial if neglected aspect of our urban lives. 

On Techdirt.

OxyContin And The Art Of 'Evergreening'

A few weeks back, we wrote about the Indian Supreme Court's rejection of Novartis's attempt to use "evergreening" to prolong its patent on Gleevec, sold as Glivec in India. That term refers to the trick of making small changes to a drug, usually one about to come off patent, in order to gain a new monopoly that extends its manufacturer's control over a medicine. But how does that work in practice? 

On Techdirt.

'Pay For Delay' Drug Deals Under Scrutiny In US, EU And UK

The last time Techdirt wrote about "pay for delay" deals, whereby a big pharma company essentially buys off manufacturers of generics so that the former can continue to enjoy monopoly pricing long after its patents have expired, things didn't look too good. Back in 2010, the Second Circuit had refused to re-hear a case on the issue after dismissing a lawsuit arguing these deals were anti-competitive. But now things seem very different, and not just in the US. 

On Techdirt.

The Free, Open Web: 20 Years of RF Licensing

As regular readers of this column know, there's still a battle going on over whether standards should be FRAND or restriction/royalty-free (RF). The folly of allowing standards to contain FRAND-licensed elements is shown most clearly by the current bickering between Microsoft and Google. What makes that argument such a waste of time and money is the fact that for 20 years we have had the most stunning demonstration of the power of RF:

 

On Open Enteprise blog.