Ben Werdmuller

Month: January 2012

  • How Europe can save the Internet

    I wrote a piece about ACTA for Imperica: When the French MEP Kader Arif stepped down last week from scrutinizing the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, declaring that he “would not participate in this charade”, it was the culmination of eight years of political lobbying, back-room deals and undemocratic conniving that now threatens to undermine the entire […]

  • Die, Hollywood, die!

    Paul Graham’s Y-Combinator request for startups that will kill Hollywood has opened up a can of exploding radioactive mega-worms – and this time, they’re angry. In the wake of the Internet industry’s fight against SOPA and PIPA, he posed the problem: The main reason we want to fund such startups is not to protect the […]

  • Grassroutes: how three students helped save the Internet

    Like many of you, I blacked out my site for the protests against SOPA and PIPA. These are bad laws that describe themselves as being anti-piracy but will hinder business, destroy jobs, undermine the working of the Internet, and – to add insult to injury – won’t stop piracy. Khan Academy has a great overview; […]

  • Identity is the operating system

    I’ve got a phone number: +1 (312) 488-9373. Feel free to call or text it. If I’m walking around, you’ll get me on my Samsung Galaxy S II. If I’m in transit (but not driving), you’ll probably get me on my iPad. If I’m at my desk, I’ll answer and take the whole call through […]