Mark's Blog

Unless you’ve been living under a rock (or living in another country, in which case I’m sure you have your own privacy battles to face ) you’ll realise that Phorm is well on its way to launching properly in the UK. Now, putting aside if it is legal or not (it isn’t, by the way, and the EU seem to have realised this as well – BBC & El Reg) we need to all come together and take steps to put this beast out of business permanently.

So, if you are currently with an ISP that is thinking about Phorm inform them in the strongest possible terms of your viewpoint. If they continue with the roll-out then switch supplier to somebody who isn’t going to snoop on your browsing habits.

I’ve also taken steps to get this site removed so that the crawlers are no longer able to visit and use this site’s data to send targeted ads to you. I’ve done this by emailing website-exclusion@webwise.com stating that I wish to remove this domain from their systems. One fully hopes that they comply with this request, and I’ll have no hesitation in taking more formal proceedings against them if they don’t. I’ll also be posting the full transcripts of both my email and the response(s) that I receive on my writings page, so check there for updates.

Thus, if you currently operate a site I would request that you email the above address detailing all your domains and requesting that you don’t wish to be a part of their system. If you want more information on Phorm, there is plenty available online and elsewhere, I’m sure.

…until the first round of the 2009 FIA Formula 1 World Championship. At 6am GMT in Albert Park the five red lights will go out and “The World’s Greatest Car Chase” will begin .

By far the biggest change in terms of coverage (in the UK at least ) is the switch from ITV to the BBC. If you’ve been paying attention to the press pack released by the BBC you’ll realise that the coverage is far more comprehensive than ITV have ever offered, and is akin to the style that F1 Digital+ offered back in 2002. Unfortunately we aren’t going to get HD due to the fact that FOM seem insistent on not providing a HD “world feed”; Bernie is probably trying to work out how to monetise it .

Quite possibly the biggest shock during pre-season testing is the blistering form of the ex-Honda team, Brawn GP. For a team that only secured its position a few weeks ago they are putting in a great performance and are fighting in the top half of the timesheets. No wonder the team were raving about the quality of the 2009 car during 2008 before Honda pulled the plug. I’ve been fan of Brawn since the Ferrari “dream team” days and I think that team will do very well over the coming seasons.

Lewis will attempt to defend his title but with the car in its current form that may be easier said than done. McLaren-Mercedes will be competing additional testing in Jerez next week while most teams start preparing to fly out to Australia. However, it is my understanding that Brawn GP will also be in Jerez so it should be interesting to compare the two teams.

All in all, 2009 should be a very interesting season. If you are a F1 fan you must be looking forward to it; if you aren’t then you will be by the end of the season .

Photo by cotxe87 from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons license; Thanks!

Unless you’ve been living in a hole, not living in the UK or just don’t like F1 you’ll be well aware that ITV had the rights grabbed (albeit in a mutual backslapping ceremony ) away from them and passed to the BBC.

There has been much talk about the new team that the BBC would put in place; many fearing that we would lose the excellent commentary splashed with some dry wit of Martin Brundle as the transition takes place. However, I am pleased to report this is not the case! He, along with Ted Kravitz have jumped ship in the ocean of broadcasting and will be resuming their positions on the BBC. Our old pal Murray also makes a return appearance; this time answering questions online rather than in the commentary box.

With no adverts and what appears to be a great team in place it should be a good season for F1 coverage .

Original BBC News Article