The family of Joan Miro was upset to discover elements of several works by the Spanish surrealist incorporated into Google's logo. Google has since taken the logo off its site.

"There are underlying copyrights to the works of Miro, and they are putting it up without having the rights," said Theodore Feder, president of Artists Rights Society.

In a written statement to the Mercury News, Google said that it would honor the request but that it did not believe its logo was a copyright violation.

Feder said the society had raised the issue of copyright violation with Google at least once before when the Mountain View-based company incorporated work by Salvador Dali into its logo in May 2002.

"It's a distortion of the original works and in that respect it violates the moral rights of the artist," Feder said.

A proposed copyright law seen by CNET News.com would expand the DMCA's restrictions on software that can bypass copy protections and grant federal police more wiretapping and enforcement powers.

The draft legislation, created by the Bush administration and backed by Rep. Lamar Smith, already enjoys the support of large copyright holders such as the Recording Industry Association of America.

Such changes are necessary because new technology is "encouraging large-scale criminal enterprises to get involved in intellectual-property theft," Gonzales said, adding that proceeds from the illicit businesses are used, "quite frankly, to fund terrorism activities."

The 24-page bill is a far-reaching medley of different proposals cobbled together. One would, for instance, create a new federal crime of just trying to commit copyright infringement. Such willful attempts at piracy, even if they fail, could be punished by up to 10 years in prison.

Instead of merely targeting distribution, the new language says nobody may "make, import, export, obtain control of, or possess" such anticircumvention tools if they may be redistributed to someone else.

Apple has long boasted of its culture of innovation, and how this led to such products as the original Mac and the iPod. However, it turns out that, at least in the case of the iPod, Apple had a hidden ally: the US government. During a speech at Tuskegee University, President (and iPod user) George W. Bush told his audience, "the government funded research in microdrive storage, electrochemistry and signal compression. They did so for one reason: It turned out that those were the key ingredients for the development of the iPod."

Warner Home Video has begun trial sales in China of a movie DVD priced at just Rmb12 ($1.50), a move likely to anger consumers in developed markets such as Europe and the US, who typically pay $20-$30 for a recently released film on DVD.

The "simple pack" edition of the Oscar-winning epic, which comes in a cardboard folder rather than the standard DVD plastic box, went on sale earlier this month in selected Chinese cities, said Christine Hu, CAV Warner public relations manager.

Pirate producers have long benefited from loose enforcement of intellectual property laws in China and from state censorship that complicates DVD imports.

Low prices are vital for a mass market used to cut-price pirate discs, but Ms Hu said there had been surprising demand for pricey box sets.

The man who judged the provisions of the Geneva convention as 'quaint', US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is apparently planning new legislation to monitor the Internet.

Gonzales is sending to Congress a legislative package that includes greater penalties and "improved cooperation" from Internet service providers.

The laws will mean that ISPs will have to monitor their systems for child porn or else face criminal action for failing to report it.

As part of the lead up to what will be a fairly controversial law, Gonzales is telling the world it needs these them to crack down on crimes against children.

Reporters Without Borders has obtained a copy of the verdict in the case of Jiang Lijun, sentenced to four years in prison in November 2003 for his online pro-democracy articles, showing that Yahoo ! helped Chinese police to identify him.

"Little by little we are piecing together the evidence for what we have long suspected, that Yahoo ! is implicated in the arrest of most of the people that we have been defending," the press freedom organisation said.

Jiang Lijun, 40, was sentenced to four years in prison for "subversion" on 18 November 2003, accused of seeking to use "violent means" to impose democracy. Police believed him to be the leader of a small group of cyberdissidents, which included the young Internet-user Liu Di. She was imprisoned between November 2002 and November 2003.

Following last week's Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday, apparently today is Obvious Wednesday. First, the news that gee, internet users really do use the internet, and now News.com has an article with the breaking news that kids can figure out how to circumvent web filters their schools use to try to keep them from accessing undesirable sites. The only surprise here is that the reporter seems surprised. What's next? Kids sneaking into R-rated movies? Hiding Playboys under the bed? It's been proven time and time again that filters don't work -- so, again, why not use the time and resources spent on these filters and tracking kids' ways around them on teaching critical thinking and good judgment instead?

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has hit Symantec Corp. with a $1 billion tax bill for allegedly under-reporting the value of intellectual property that the software vendor transferred to two Irish subsidiaries.

The IRS claims that both Symantec and Veritas Software Corp. under-priced intellectual property the two companies licensed to their Irish subsidiaries, said Symantec spokeswoman Genevieve Haldeman. Both Symantec and Veritas, which was purchased by Symantec in 2005, set up the Irish subsidiaries for the purpose of doing business outside of the U.S., she said.

Starting with last week's release, 5.9.5.6, the program will remove CD DRM infections and corporate malware disguised as copy protection.

Since the virus scanning companies apparently had their silence bought by the media mafia, someone had to stand up and be counted, and it looks like Slysoft is that someone.

Basically, any of the root-kitting malware from Sony, and the newer root-kitting-ish Macrovision CDS-300 system software will be removed for you. Corporate evil removed, happy users can play the CDs like any old red book audio, it just works.

Blizzard, maker of online fantasy fest World of Warcraft has recently banned 5400 players and suspended 10700 more for cheating in its Online game.

Blizzard says it "banned over 5400 accounts and suspended 10700 more for participating in activities that violate the game's Terms of Use."

Most of the bans come from direct tip off from players who have reported suspicious antics to the WoW informer email address.

Blizzard has said that all reports are investigated and if you grass up someone who turned out to be innocent your online life will not be affected in any way.