EC starts legal action over Phorm

The European Commission has started legal action against Britain over the online advertising technology Phorm.

It follows complaints to the EC over how the behavioural advertising service was tested on BT's broadband network without the consent of users.

Last year Britain had said it was happy Phorm conformed to European data laws.

But the commission has said Phorm "intercepted" user data without clear consent and the UK need to look again at its online privacy laws.

In a statement, Phorm said its technology was "fully compliant with UK legislation and relevant EU directives".

It added that it did not believe the Commission's legal action would have "any impact on the company's plans going forwards".

At the heart of the legal action by the EC is whether users have given their consent to have their data intercepted by the advertising system.

'Clear consent'

A spokeswoman from the commission told BBC News that the EC wanted the UK to ensure there were procedures in place to ensure "clear consent from the user that his or her private data is being used".

At present, UK law only covers "intentional" interceptions and requires there only to be a "reasonable grounds for believing" that consent to interception has been given.

"Technologies like internet behavioural advertising can be useful for businesses and consumers but they must be used in a way that complies with EU rules," the EU's Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding said in a statement.

She added: "We have been following the Phorm case for some time and have concluded that there are problems in the way the UK has implemented parts of the EU rules on the confidentiality of communications."

Ms Reding said Britain needed to to change its national laws to ensure there were proper sanctions to enforce EU confidentiality rules.

Unless Britain complies, Ms Reding has the power to issue a final warning before taking the country to the 27-nation EU's top court, the European Court of Justice. If it rules in favour of the European Commission, the court can force Britain to change its laws.

BT admitted last year it had tested Phorm's technology on its network with thousands of customers without asking for their consent or informing them of the trials. It later carried out further trials of the service, which it markets as Webwise, with the consent of users.

BT and Phorm have previously said they sought legal advice before carrying out the first trials.

Phorm's works by "trawling" websites visited by users whose ISPs have signed up to the service and for whom the technology is switched on, and then matches keywords from the content of the page to an "anonymous" profile.

Targeted adverts

Users are then targeted with adverts that are more tailored to their interests on partner websites that have signed up to Phorm's technology.

The technology differs from other behavioural advertising systems which tend to use data only from partner websites visited by users, and do not work in conjunction with internet service providers.

The service has proved controversial for some campaigners who believe it breaks UK data interception laws.

Nicholas Bohm, general counsel for the Foundation for Information Policy Research, which has led the criticisms of Phorm's technology, said he welcomed the EC's intervention.

"It will in effect apply pressure to the information commissioner and the Home Office and maybe even the Crown Prosecution Service in its contemplation of the illegality of the BT trials."

Welcomed emphasis

He said FIPR welcomed the emphasis on user consent, but also stressed that the body felt that website owners too should give their consent for their sites to be trawled by Phorm's technology.

"It is pleasing to see the EC is taking this issue more seriously than UK government departments here," he added.

Last year, Phorm received clearance from the Home Office and police closed a file on BT trials of the technology which looked into their legality.

The UK government said last year the technology could only be rolled out if users had given their consent and it was easy for people to opt out.

The European Union Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications requires member states to ensure the confidentiality of their communications and related traffic data. States must, it says, prohibit interception and surveillance unless the users concerned have given their consent.

The commission has also said it is concerned that the UK does not have an independent national supervisory authority to deal with the intentional interceptions of user data.

Mr Bohm suggested that the Information Commissioner's role could be widened to deal with the issue of interception of user data.

Jim Killock, executive director of the Open Rights Group said: "There are big legal questions surrounding BT's use of Phorm, so we welcome the EU taking the government to task.

"BT should respect everyone's privacy and drop their plans to snoop on the internet before they damage their own reputation further. Websites should protect their users and block Phorm now."

BT declined to comment on the EC's actions.

Phil Spector convicted of murder

US music producer Phil Spector has been convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson, after a five-month retrial.

The 68-year-old, famous for the "Wall of Sound" recording technique, faces between 18 years and life in prison.

He had pleaded not guilty to the second degree murder of 40-year-old Ms Clarkson, who was shot in the mouth at Spector's home in Los Angeles.

Spector was remanded in custody until sentencing on 29 May. His lawyer has said he intends to appeal.

"I don't think justice was done today," said lawyer Doron Weinberg.

Spector had looked frail as he entered the Los Angeles Superior Court, dressed in a black suit with a bright red tie.

The jury took some 30 hours of deliberation to reach their unanimous guilty verdict.

As the verdict was read out, Spector remained quiet and his wife Rachelle sobbed.

'Legal errors'

The jury had the option of returning a verdict of involuntary manslaughter, but chose not do so.

An earlier trial was abandoned in 2007 after a jury failed to reach a unanimous decision.

Second degree murder falls between first degree murder, which requires proof of pre-meditation, and manslaughter.

Speaking after the verdict, Mr Weinberg congratulated the jury on "trying to do the best honest job they could" with "complete integrity and complete honesty".

But he said the jurors had been flooded with "improper and prejudicial evidence" which made it impossible for them to reach a fair conclusion.

He said he was "very, very certain" that Spector had not been proved guilty "under the proper legal standard".

Mr Weinberg said "the nature of the legal errors" made in the trial were "so significant and so clear that there is every likelihood that this case will be set aside on appeal".

One of the jurors, speaking at a news conference after the trial, said the jury had a "complete picture" from the evidence.

The unnamed woman said they had "gone through all the information and that's what the conclusion was".

Prolific career

Phil Spector worked with some of the biggest names in the pop and rock business, including The Beatles and Ike and Tina Turner.

He produced hits including You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' by the Righteous Brothers and the Ronettes' Be My Baby.

But for all his musical genius, Spector had a dark side.

He was often described as being a bully in the studio, a man with a liking for guns and an eccentric personality.

During the five-month retrial, five female acquaintances testified that Spector had threatened them at gunpoint in incidents dating back to the 1970s.

Mr Weinberg had argued that the evidence from the women should not have been admitted.

The defence said Ms Clarkson's death was a suicide and appealed to jurors not to judge the star on his eccentric appearance.

Spector himself opted not to give evidence.

Stun gun

Actress Clarkson, 40, had been working as a hostess at the House of Blues venue in Los Angeles, and went home with Spector on the night of her death.

After appearing in cult 1980s films such as Barbarian Queen and Fast Times at Ridgemont High, her acting career had hit the rocks.

Spector had arrived at the club with waitress Kathy Sullivan, before setting his sights on Ms Clarkson.

Spector's Brazilian chauffeur, Adriano De Souza, said his boss appeared to be intoxicated and that Ms Clarkson was initially reluctant to go home with the music producer.

She was found dead in the foyer of his house in the early hours of the morning.

A holster that matched the snub-nosed Colt Cobra revolver that Spector used to kill her was found in a drawer in the foyer.

Mr De Souza called the emergency services, saying: "I think my boss killed somebody", after Spector emerged from his home with a gun.

He told jurors Spector had said: "I think I killed somebody." The defence argued he had misheard his employer.

The producer was taken into custody about 40 minutes after the shooting and had to be subdued by officers using a stun gun.

Ancient medicines were alcoholic

A team of researchers in the US has discovered traces of a medicinal alcoholic drink in bottles that are more than 5,000 years old.

The scientists extracted wine compounds and plant-derived ingredients from a jar taken from the tomb of one of the first pharaohs of Egypt, Scorpion I.

This is the earliest sample of a human-made medicine.

The researchers report their findings in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Patrick McGovern, professor of anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania, led the research.

The vessels that he and his team tested came from excavated tombs in southern Egypt - the earliest of which dates from 3150BC.

"This is the earliest Egyptian vessel ever found to have wine in it," Professor McGovern told BBC News.

"It shows that, by trial and error, humans were discovering remedies over 5,000 years ago, and that alcoholic beverages were a key part of the discovery process."

Designing medicine

The team used organic solvents to extract residues from inside the jars.

With extremely sensitive chemical techniques, they were then able to separate the different compounds within the residue.

The jars tested positive for tartaric acid - a reliable chemical marker for grape and wine in the Middle East.

The scientists also found compounds from a number of herbs, some of which have known medicinal properties, and from tree resin.

Professor McGovern pointed out that alcoholic drinks would have been ideal for dissolving these plant-derived substances.

"As well as adding flavour, these compounds were likely to have been used with a medicinal aim in mind," he said.

His team also tested residue from inside a later Egyptian jar, or amphora, dating from between the 4th and 6th Centuries.

He now wants to find out if some of the ancient remedies he found could be revived.

Professor McGovern has started a collaboration with researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's Abramson Cancer Center, testing compounds found in ancient fermented beverages from China, including the earliest chemically confirmed alcoholic beverage in the world, dated to 7000BC.

Drug offers hope on Alzheimer's

A new drug which shows promise as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease has been developed by UK scientists.

The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reports the drug, CPHPC, removes a protein thought to play a key role in Alzheimer's from the blood.

Tests at the University College London found the protein also disappeared from the brains of five Alzheimer's patients given the drug for three months.

Longer and larger scale clinical studies are now being planned.

The protein - serum amyloid P component (SAP) is always present in both the sticky clumps (plaques) and the tangles of nerve fibres that are found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease, and are thought to damage healthy cells.

It appears to prevent both structures from breaking up, and has also been shown - in lab experiments at least - to promote formation of the amyloid protein which forms the damaging plaques.

There is also some evidence that SAP itself can damage brain cells directly.

Two of the big potential advantages CPHPC are that it is not broken down once inside the body, and it has a very specific action, not interacting with cells at all, thus reducing the risk of side effects.

Molecular process

The researchers expected a depletion of SAP in the five patients' blood - but were taken aback at the drug's apparent effect on the brain.

By using laboratory tests they were also able to reveal both the molecular process underpinning the effect of the drug, and the way in which SAP accumulates in the brain in Alzheimer's disease.

The study also confirmed that use of the drug - and the removal of SAP from the brain - had no side effects on the patients.

CPHPC has already been given to patients with other diseases without any any adverse effects.

Although the three-month treatment period was too short to show any clinical benefit there was no obvious deterioration.

Longer and larger scale clinical studies are being planned to confirm safety and seek evidence of benefit to the patients.

Lead researcher Professor Mark Pepys said: "The complete disappearance of SAP from the brain during treatment with CPHPC could not have been confidently predicted, and the drug, also to our surprise, entered the brain.

"Coupled with the absence of any side effects, these new findings strongly support further clinical studies to see whether longer term treatment with CPHPC protects against the inexorable mental decline in patients with Alzheimer's disease."

Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at the Alzheimer's Society, said: "A key characteristic of Alzheimer's disease is the clumping together of proteins in the brain.

"It's very exciting that this drug could potentially interfere with this process, but it's too early to say how much it will benefit people with the disease."

Rebecca Wood, of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said the study was small, but the results were cause for "cautious optimism".

"New treatments for Alzheimer's disease are desperately needed, and it's possible that this small molecule could be a future candidate."

Bleak prediction for advertising

Worldwide advertising spending could fall by 6.9% this year to $453bn (£304bn), according to media agency Zenith Optimedia.

It put the decline down to the current economic problems, which it said had both hit corporate confidence and put consumers off making major buys.

The agency said newspapers would suffer most, with advertising revenues down 12%, as people turned to the internet.

The internet would be the only medium to attract higher advertising spending.

"Since we released our last forecasts in December the global ad market has taken a substantial turn for the worse," said Zenith Optimedia, whose own customers include British Airways, Hewlett Packard and Nestle.

It predicted that television would boost its proportion of advertising budgets to 38.6% from 38.1%, but the total spent on TV advertising would fall by 5.5%.

Zenith Optimedia also predicted that spending on internet advertising was set to rise 8.6% as shoppers hunt online bargains.

Earlier this month online monitoring firm Hitwise found that visits to classified advertising websites were booming, with visits to such sites in the US up 84% on the same time last year.

Newspapers have been particularly hit by the downturn, from smaller titles in the UK to large papers in the US.

In February, Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation announced a $6.4bn quarterly loss, as falling advertising revenues forced it to cut $8.4bn from the value of assets.

Smeared Tories want No 10 reform

David Cameron has demanded a reform of Downing Street's "culture" after a government adviser sent e-mails about slurs against leading Conservatives.

The Tory leader said Labour had "been in power too long" and Gordon Brown had to end "this sort of nonsense".

Adviser Damian McBride resigned after unfounded claims about Mr Cameron and other senior figures were revealed.

The government has defended its response to the e-mails scandal, saying the prime minister had "taken action".

Mr McBride stood down on Saturday, after it was revealed that he had sent e-mails in January to former government spin doctor Derek Draper, containing allegations about Mr Cameron, shadow chancellor George Osborne and Tory MP Nadine Dorries among others.

'Need for change'

It was suggested the smears be published in a proposed Labour-backing, gossip-led website called Red Rag. The idea was later abandoned.

Mr Brown has written to those mentioned in the e-mails, expressing his "deep regret" and insisting no ministers had been involved.

But the Conservatives have continued to question whether this was the case and, in particular, whether Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson knew about plans to set up Red Rag.

Mr Cameron said: "What this whole episode demonstrates is the need for change - not change in the special advisers code but change in the culture at Number 10 Downing Street.

"I do not think we will get a change in culture until we get a change in leadership and we won't get a change in leadership until we get a change of government.

"These people have just been in power too long; they have forgotten who they are serving, what they are meant to be doing, how they are meant to behave and we need some change.

"I do not know what Gordon Brown knew and when he knew it but what I do know is that he hired these people, he sets the culture, he is the leader and we need change in order to change the culture and stop this sort of nonsense."

Earlier, shadow Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude told BBC Radio 4's World at One: "It is perfectly clear that what Damian McBride was doing was massively in breach of the code for special advisers and if ministers and other special advisers were involved, they would be in breach of the code as well, and we ought to know that."

The row highlighted "the whole culture at the centre of government", which Mr Maude said had "surrounded Gordon Brown all of his political career".

Meanwhile, Frances Osborne, wife of shadow chancellor George Osborne, has complained to the Press Complaints Commission after allegations about her were repeated in the Sunday Times and News of the World.

Action pledge

The government defended its response to the revelations, saying there was a "huge amount of frustration" that the controversy was diverting attention from efforts to deal with problems facing the country.

A Downing Street spokesman said Mr Brown had been aware of the story on Friday but McBride had not resigned until Saturday because the PM had not known the exact nature of the e-mails until then.

He added that Mr McBride would not receive any severance pay.

As well as writing to those named in the e-mails, Mr Brown sent a letter to Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell, saying he was ready to take "whatever action is required" to prevent a repeat of the incident.

He called for anyone caught "disseminating inappropriate material" to lose their jobs automatically, and suggested special advisers should not be allowed to use official resources for party political purposes.

'Spinning new rhetoric'

Communities Secretary Hazel Blears told the BBC: "Damian McBride has gone through the door in pretty sharp order. The prime minister's written personally to the people involved, expressing great regret about what's happened, and he's toughening up the code for special advisers.

"Now that says to me that the prime minister, who knew nothing about these e-mails, has taken action on every single front here."

Ms Dorries, who was the focus of some of the e-mail correspondence, said the current code of conduct already included safeguards to prevent such behaviour.

People wanted to see this adhered to rather than "spinning new rhetoric about writing a new code", she said.

Labour MP Stephen Byers, a former cabinet minister, wrote in the London Evening Standard that he had been the victim of Mr McBride's "aggressive and hostile media briefing" several times.

"As a result I have to admit that I made little effort to suppress a smile when I heard about his enforced departure from Downing Street," he added.

Sri Lanka ceasefire 'a deception'

Tamil Tiger rebels have said that a two-day ceasefire called by Sri Lanka's government is an attempt to deceive the international community.

The rebels called for a permanent internationally supervised truce as the ceasefire entered its second day.

The government announced the halt in fighting to allow civilians trapped in the conflict zone to leave.

The rebels' statement said they were ready for open political talks to end the decades of bloodshed.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's foreign secretary said the Tigers were using the truce to force civilians to shore up defences.

'Ready to comply'

The Tigers said the two-day truce was "merely an act of hoodwinking".

They said there should be an internationally supervised truce and that such a ceasefire should also contain a base for political solutions.

"The LTTE [Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam] has for long been requesting a permanent ceasefire encompassing sensible military and political essence. This, the LTTE still reiterates," the statement said.

"The LTTE desires that it should also create a conducive climate for a permanent political resolution to the national question of the Tamils in a peaceful way. The LTTE is ready to comply without any conditions to a ceasefire as described above."

The rebels accused the army of continuing to shell civilian areas on the first day of the temporary ceasefire. The army has denied the accusation.

Sri Lankan military officials said that the frontlines in the north-east had remained largely quiet except for some minor clashes.

Aid agencies say that tens of thousands of civilians have been trapped in a government-designated no-fire zone - though only 18 came out on Monday.

The government accuses the rebels of holding the civilians against their will. The Tamil Tigers say the civilians do not want to leave the safe zone because they fear the military.

Sri Lankan Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona accused the rebels of rebuilding defences with civilian labour during the truce.

Dr Kohona told the BBC's Tamil service: "Holding anybody hostage is a criminal act."

He indicated that the government had no intention of extending the two-day truce.

"What is the purpose of keeping it extended if they don't let the people go?" he asked.

Meanwhile, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has urged Sri Lanka not to return to all-out fighting against the Tamil Tigers after the end of the truce period.

In a telephone call with his Sri Lankan counterpart, Rohitha Bogollagama, Mr Miliband said the ceasefire could be an important first step towards the end of conflict without further civilian casualties.

In a statement, Mr Bogollagama said "a longer pause was not possible because the Tigers have so far failed to demonstrate any genuine goodwill on their part in allowing the civilians to have free movement".

The authorities were also concerned that the rebels would use the opportunity to consolidate in the ceasefire zone, the statement added.

He said the stance of government of Sri Lanka remains unchanged in not recognising the appointment of a special envoy by Britain.