Germany abandons Internet tax

The German government has backed away from plans to tax internet use for businesses. The proposed Finance Ministry rule, which would tax firms every time an employee used the Net for personal reasons, was announced last month but was heavily criticised by IT businesses as unworkable. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder confirmed it would now not come into practice. ...more

Updated: PlusNet hauls services to 2Mbps minimum

PlusNet has announced that with immediate effect all its users will be upgraded to 2Mbps, including customers of its ?14.99 entry-level Broadband Plus package. It is also offering free activation and modem to new customers. ...more

BPI confirms April merger of downloads into the UK Singles Chart

The BPI has confirmed that downloads will be merged into the Official UK Singles Chart from 17 April. Chairman Peter Jamieson described the new countdown as 'the biggest news in charts since the switch away from manual sales diaries to electronic compilation in 1983.' The merger was delayed by concerns that independent labels are under-represented on the major online stores. ...more

HP spots hack in the Toolbox

Hewlett-Packard has warned users of two of its laser printer models that they could pose a security risk to Windows PCs. The vulnerability was discovered in the Toolbox software supplied with the HP Color LaserJet 2500 and 4600 printers and if exploited could give an unauthorised users access to files on machines on the same network as the printer. The flaw can only be exposed if the software is running in default mode. ...more

Google, YouTube sign video content deals with media majors

In a flurry of announcements, Google and YouTube have signed a series of deals with many of the major music and television giants to broadcast their content for free through Google and YouTube video channels. This accompanies the announcement that Google is acquiring YouTube in a deal worth $1.65bn. ...more