BBC News body of workers voice concern over organisation tracking cellular devices

BBC News body of workers voice concern over organisation tracking cellular devices 1
Mobile Devices

Survey unearths maximum workforce no longer trusts the BBC any longer to misuse information obtained by monitoring laptops and phones.

Concerns were raised via the BBC News body of workers when they were told the enterprise can tune their paintings cell gadgets even though an inner survey confirmed that most of them do not consider the BBC not to misuse the information.

BBC News is introducing new technology that has a feature that allows organisation-owned laptops and mobiles to be tracked.

The relaxation of the BBC is due to follow the match, and the agency says it is beneficial to know where the devices are inside the event of them being lost, stolen, or, in excessive instances, if a journalist is abducted or a presenter is traveling in a dangerous place.

However, most BBC News staff who have been requested for his or her perspectives on the idea in a survey stated they did not need to be tracked.

While fifty-one% said they did now not want to be tracked in any respect, 27% stated they did now not thoughts if the BBC could reveal the place of their work devices, and 21% stated they might opt to use outside structures consisting of Find My iPhone.

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Perhaps of more concern to the BBC is the locating that, while requested if they relied on the BBC not to misuse the tracking records, eighty-one% said no, and only 5% stated sure.

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The survey changed into carried out to test the team of workers’ reaction to the plan through the BBC’s generation department to introduce a personalized version of an app management gadget, which includes the capability to music devices. However, it subsequently emerged that a pilot had already been finished, and the brand new gadget became up and running.

According to the BBC, if it turns on monitoring, staff can flip it off. However, they had no longer been instructed that, nor have they been advised the way to do so.

A BBC spokesman stated: “The BBC uses a spread of commercially available structures to operate and manage its transportable communique gadgets. Some of these systems have extra features that can permit location facts to be determined wherein the device supports it. These features aren’t becoming on by way of default, and the BBC handiest chooses to turn them on in unique instances, and with the co-operation of the users worried.”

Despite that, a few are still uneasy that they’ll be forbidden to show off the tracking in destiny and expressed their concern on the manner the difficulty changed into treated, particularly coming so soon after it becomes revealed that the BBC’s Investigations unit has been monitoring a few personnel’s electronic mail accounts because of worries approximately confidentiality.

Information from a freedom of information request made with the aid of the Daily Telegraph showed that during 2012 it monitored four bills, the following year, 10 and ultimate yr, 27.

In the remaining 12 months, 56 incidents of investigators hacking into staff emails; a few have been completed due to crook or disciplinary investigations.

A BBC spokesman said: “Monitoring of e-mail bills is continuously undertaken regarding criminal or disciplinary investigations and body of workers are completely conscious that get entry to and tracking can arise in sure circumstances.”

Spotify seeks to expand free streaming to mobile devices
Service in talks with major music companies in bid to gain an edge on rivals such as Napster, Rdio, and Deezer

Spotify wants to boost the amount of free music it offers to smartphone users in the UK, in a move likely to fuel a sharp rise in on-the-go streaming.

At the moment, only Spotify subscribers who pay £9.99 a month can play tracks on mobiles and tablet computers after a free 30-day trial.

The digital music service is expected to enter negotiations with major music companies this month as it hammers out new licensing agreements.

Spotify’s move to expand its free offering would give it an edge over its streaming rivals, Napster, Rdio, and Deezer, all of which charge a monthly £9.99 fee to play music on the go.

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Last year, Spotify launched a free radio player for Apple iPhone and iPad owners in the US, offering unlimited songs and stations alongside advertising. Unfortunately, complex licensing arrangements mean that Spotify has been unable to launch this service in the UK – but a renewed push in the current negotiations with rights holders could see a similar product offered to music fans in Britain.

According to the US technology site, The Verge, Spotify has already started negotiations in the UK with Warner Music – home to Bruno Mars and Fleetwood Mac – and will begin talks with the other two music majors, Sony and Universal coming weeks.

Industry experts believe London-based Spotify is in pole position among streaming rivals to expand its free offering. The company has managed to convert about a fifth of its 20 million active users into paying subscribers and has paid out over $500m (£327m) to rights holders since its launch in 2006. According to the latest available accounts, the loss-making company pays 70% of its revenue to rights holders, which totaled €187.8m (£164m) in 2011.

Spotify faces competition in the UK from US-based Rdio, which launched in Britain last year with a similar pricing model. Deezer is another competitively priced rival but has the advantage of being bundled with Everything Everywhere’s UK 4G service from its launch in October 2012.

Research published by the BPI, the UK music industry trade body, earlier this month showed the increasing importance of streaming services to customers and record labels. According to the research, products such as Spotify and Rdio contribute nearly £50m annually to music labels, accounting for 15.2% of their digital income.