Longstanding investor in Looksmart with a passionate interest in the problems of newspapers and their success with their monetisation attempts, on the web. And the "times are indeed, a changing"..... I feel....

For, history will also show that ACAP (the, Automated Content Access Protocol), that I have been so "passionate" about in many a post made everywhere over the past few years, will not only become a part of our every-day lives, but will be fiercely-enforced along the way.......And rightly so...Where your "free" (Local) "rag", may well even survive and become (as was also predicted by myself back in 2005). the very "lynch pin" between local business and the web!

:)

And it seems that Europe will lead the way....It's a lengthy read, that some will find is well worth-while to do so.

"Publishers demand IP Rights To Protect Journalism"

< I firmly believe that Digital Europe cannot afford to turn a blind eye to its ecological potential, which in turn can open up new business opportunities for European ICT companies.>

<....I therefore hope that, after some weeks of hesitations and doubts, we will now swiftly get back to business. In view of the economic crisis, wait and see is certainly not an option for Europe. I personally feel very confident that with a strong, independent European Commission that seeks inspiration from the principles of the social market economy, we will indeed manage to bring Europe swiftly back on the path of sustainable growth. A clear strategy for boosting a digital economy for businesses and citizens, as outlined in my Digital Europe plan, should play an important role in this.

If we keep Ludwig Erhard, his principles and the importance of psychology for economic development in mind, we may even be able to perform a small "economic miracle" in the coming years.>

<http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0907/S00200.htm>

Cheers!!