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SACRAMENTO A controversial bill that would ban state agencies from regulating telephones that use Internet connections passed a state Senate committee after the measure's author accepted amendments that would strengthen some consumer protections.

The proposal by Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) is backed by AT&T Inc., Verizon Communications Inc., and cable and high-tech companies. They contend they need "certainty" that the California Public Utilities Commission will not try to oversee the Internet and phone companies that transmit voice signals over fiber optic lines.

The suggested amendments, presented by Padilla at a hearing Thursday of the Senate Appropriations Committee, are designed to assuage the fears of PUC members that they'll be stripped of the few powers they still have to protect voice-over-Internet telephone customers.

The new wording, which has not been legally drafted, ensures that Padilla's bill "will not be misinterpreted as going back on any existing consumer protection," he said. No changes will occur to laws that require telephone companies to guarantee service anywhere in California, provide subsidized basic services to low-income customers and maintain a 911 emergency network. The latest proposal also would empower PUC staff to take informal actions to resolve consumer complaints about voice-over-Internet billing or quality problems, Padilla said.

At the same time, the legislation, SB 1161, is aimed at quelling concerns at high-tech companies that the PUC at some point might end its light-handed attitude toward voice-over-Internet phones as well as the Internet.

"We want to continue to foster innovation and enhancement of service," the senator said.

PUC members, meeting in San Francisco at the same time that Padilla's bill was being debated in Sacramento, said they wanted to work with the Legislature to craft a compromise.

The proposed amendments, said Commissioner Catherine Sandoval, "are a great step in the right direction, but we need to go further."

Another commissioner, Mark Ferron, said he respected Padilla's good faith in writing the bill but questioned whether "SB 1161 is a solution in search of a problem."

marc.lifsher@latimes.com

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Internet phone service bill advances in California Senate

Alcatel-Lucent's new 7950 XRS core router can stream 2.5 million HD videos every second.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- In a world where we're constantly connected and video sucks up an ever-growing chunk of precious bandwidth, Internet service providers are getting desperate for ways to crank up their speed.

Networking challenger Alcatel-Lucent (ALU) is about to give them what they want.

The company announced Tuesday that it has developed the "7950 XRS," a core Internet router that is capable of speeds up to five times faster than those of its nearest competitor. Just one 7950 XRS router can deliver 16 terabits of data per second. That's about 2.5 million HD video streams every tick of the second hand.

It's roughly five times faster than the CRS-3, networking giant Cisco's latest and greatest core router, which debuted in 2010.

Core routers sit at the epicenter of the Internet, serving as the traffic cops at the biggest intersections on the busiest data highways. They direct huge amounts of traffic, connecting visitors' requests to sites like Google (GOOG, Fortune 500), Netflix (NFLX) or CNNMoney and sending data back to the right place in return.

It's a crucial part of the Internet backbone, but it's a market in which Alcatel-Lucent hasn't participated until now. Cisco (CSCO, Fortune 500) and Juniper (JNPR) are by far the two largest players in core routing. Few have challenged them since the dawn of the Internet.

"Alcatel-Lucent faces a big challenge," said Michael Howard, principal analyst and co-founder at Infonetics Research. "It is hard for service providers to change or add new products and new vendors in any critical area, and core routing is a critical area."

But if history is any guide, Alcatel-Lucent has a shot at making a serious dent in Cisco's market share. In 2003, the company began challenging Cisco and Juniper in "edge routing," which take individuals' requests and sends them to core routers. Think of edge routers as the on-ramps to the information superhighway.

Starting from a customer base of zero, Alcatel-Lucent now controls 24% of the market, surpassing Juniper as the No. 2 vendor in edge-routing last year and bringing in $2 billion in revenue.

Link:
How Alcatel-Lucent made the Internet 5 times faster

By John D. Sutter, CNN

The Google Chrome logo is displayed at a store in London last year.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

(CNN) -- This might be the start of a new chapter in the browser wars.

Over the weekend, Google Chrome routed more Internet traffic than Microsoft's Internet Explorer, which long has held its spot as the most-used Web browser in the world, according to data from StatCounter, an Internet monitor.

Don't rush to over-interpret this bit of news, though.

Other Internet trackers still show Internet Explorer -- which comes pre-installed on many Windows computers and has long been a default -- in the lead.

And some groups have criticized StatCounter's data collection methods, saying the group does not account for the different ways countries collect Internet traffic data.

Still, the numbers are a sign of the times.

Bonjour Google! Gmail adds auto-translation

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Chrome overtakes Internet Explorer as No. 1 browser -- maybe

LAS VEGAS, NV--(Marketwire -05/22/12)- Atlantis Internet Group Corp. (ATIG.PK), announced today the continued expansion of its Tribal Gaming Network (TGN), a private gaming network that links Indian Casinos nationwide, with the signing of two additional Tribes illustrating its diversity by assisting large and small Native American Indian Tribes in the gaming industry. The latest two Tribes to join the network are the White Earth Nation, the largest Tribe located in Minnesota and Big Lagoon Rancheria from Northern California. White Earth has agreed to launch ATIG's Play-For-Fun games at their Shooting Star Casino and on several additional gaming facilities located on their reservation.

These latest agreements are an excellent example of how ATIG's Tribal Gaming Network has something to offer Tribes of all sizes. Big Lagoon Rancheria, a Federally Recognized Tribe that recently won a compact dispute with the State of California, is launching new gaming operations in Northern California. As plans are now in the works to develop a casino resort on their reservation, Big Lagoon called on the technological expertise of ATIG.

The Tribal Gaming Network will allow Big Lagoon to tap into nationwide jackpots made possible by linking with other Tribal casinos and share in the same mega jackpots offered by many larger casinos. This should effectively allow Big Lagoon to bridge the gap between nearby casinos, and effectively compete using the latest state-of-the-art server based technology. "We are proud to add White Earth and Big Lagoon to our Tribal Gaming Network. Our continued growth comes as Tribes nationwide realize the advantage of being first to capture the online gaming market in the U.S., which creates new gaming revenues and exciting online entertainment," said Donald L. Bailey, President/CEO of ATIG.

ATIG has brought together some of the world's most prominent gaming vendors to offer Class III, Class II and online games on its Patent Pending Proprietary Private Gaming Network to link together Indian Casinos nationwide. This first of its kind multi-vendor and multi-game platform offers products from major gaming vendors on one machine including Table Games, Slots, Simulated Horse Racing, Nationwide Poker, Simulated Sportsbook, Live Online Dealer Games, and features only the second Powerball-like Lotto product. "It's the next generation of server-based technology; in short, it's a casino within a casino," stated Bailey.

ATIG is officially launching The Tribal Gaming Network http://www.tribal-gaming-network.com with its Play-For-Fun site this month with the Coushatta Casino from Louisiana. Visit the Coushatta Casino or the Atlantis Internet Group websites for official launch date: http://www.coushattacasinoresort.com/gaming/ and http://www.atlantisinternetgroup.com

About Atlantis Internet Group Corporation (ATIG). http://www.atlantisinternetgroup.com Atlantis Internet Group Corp. is a public Nevada Gaming corporation specializing in the development of casino games, casino management software, slot machine software, gaming networks and land-based casino development. For more information: http://www.atlantisinternetgroup.com or http://www.tribal-gaming-network.com

Forward Looking Statement Any statements made in this press release which are not historical facts contain certain forward-looking statements; as such term is defined in the Private Security Litigation Reform Act of 1995, concerning potential developments affecting the business, prospects, financial condition and other aspects of the company to which this release pertains. The actual results of the specific items described in this release, and the company's operations generally, may differ materially from what is projected in such forward-looking statements. Although such statements are based upon the best judgments of management of the company as of the date of this release, significant deviations in magnitude, timing and other factors may result from business risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, the company's dependence on third parties, general market and economic conditions, technical factors, the availability of outside capital, receipt of revenues and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the company. The company disclaims any obligation to update information contained in any forward-looking statement. This press release shall not be deemed a general solicitation.

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Atlantis Internet Group Adds Two More Tribes to Its Tribal Gaming Network

By Georgina Prodhan

LONDON (Reuters) - A project to allow companies to set up a website with almost any address has relaunched after a software glitch exposed sensitive details of applications last month, forcing it to shut down.

In the most ambitious expansion of the Internet so far, the body that oversees domain names has now given organisations until May 30 to apply for their own Web address endings - for example .london, .eco or .canon - provided they have a legitimate claim to the domain name and can pay a hefty fee.

The new suffixes should allow companies or communities more control over their online presence and send visitors more directly to part of their sites.

But the process was dogged by controversy even before the embarrassing software bug: many brand owners have felt forced to take part in the expensive project or risk rivals bagging domains that could be mistaken for their own.

It has also raised questions of corporate governance at Icann, the non-profit body that manages the Internet's naming system, since some current and former directors of the body stand to make money out of the explosion of new names.

Chief Executive Rod Beckstrom said Icann now hoped to be ready to publish details of who had applied for what before the U.S. organisation's next major meeting in Prague, which will be his last before he hands over to a new CEO.

"I think the team has done a very professional job of dealing with the situation," he told Reuters by telephone. "Now we're able to move on to the next phase."

The new generic top-level domains will expand the variety of possible Web addresses beyond those currently available, which end in a limited number of suffixes such as .com, .org or .edu. The stated goal is to encourage innovation on the Internet.

Many desirable Web addresses, for example toys.com or sex.com, were sold long ago - sometimes to parties who acquired them for their real-estate value but put no content on the sites - and now sell at auction for millions of dollars.

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Internet domain name project relaunches after software bug