Welcome to Net Prophet, a blog tracking new media and tech developments across Central Europe and Eurasia
Karimova gets schooled in Twitter debate
How does she manage it all?
Even though her schedule must be packed, Gulnara Karimova, an ambassador to the UN and daughter of Uzbekistan's President Islam Karimov, still seems to find time to lecture human rights activists, though not too successfully. Read More »
Hungary: Government limits FOIA transparency law
In an unexpected move last week, Parliamentarians in Hungary took action to change the country's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in an effort to limit the scope of data accessible to the public under the law. Read More »
U.S. calls Ukraine the pirate king
U.S. officials are calling Ukraine the world’s “worst abuser of intellectual property rights,” charging that Internet piracy there has gotten so bad that even government agencies are using illegal software, according to AFP. In response, U.S. trade officials said they are considering trade restrictions against Kyiv. Read More »
Azerbaijan legislating civil web discourse
Just as Azerbaijan is being criticized in the Freedom House report, the country’s legislature is considering a measure that would punish untoward statements on the Internet, EurasiaNet.org reports.
Read More »
New app warns Romanian drivers of upcoming potholes
Although a solution to Romania's endemic road problems is still nowhere in sight, a team of Romanian IT specialists has come up with an app for mobile phones that allows drivers to avoid potholes. Read More »
Dimon Don’t Cry
The Russian Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev, doesn't like his online nickname “Dimon,” but whatever we think of Dimon’s playground problems how does one stand up to online bullies? And why are so many of them Russian?
Read More »
Georgian authorities reassure Christians about use of digital IDs
Rumors that electronic ID cards carry hidden satanic symbols have swirled in Georgia since the cards were introduced in 2011. Efforts by the Georgian Orthodox Church to quash the story, even a ruling approving the cards by the church’s Holy Synod, seem not to be working, so the government has stepped in, EurasiaNet.org writes. Read More »
Estonia’s Winny Puhh makes 1 million new Internet friends
The members of Estonian rock band Winny Puhh bear (ahem) little resemblance to the red-shirted, honey-loving cartoon character, but they’ve managed to win over Internet audiences with a 2013 Eurovision-qualifying performance regardless.
Read More »
Kazakhstan climbs up the post-Soviet IT heap
In the annual Global Information Technology Report of the World Economic Forum, Kazakhstan has outshone its Central Asian neighbors – and Russia – to rank 43 of 144 countries, EurasiaNet.org reports. Kyrgyzstan, on the other hand, ranks at the bottom of all post-Soviet nations, at 118. Read More »
Latvia whizzes in as Wi-Fi wonderland
Estonians often boast that free wireless Internet access is available throughout their country — even in remote forests and along deserted beaches. And now neighboring Latvia will be able to tout the same thing. Read More »
Skolkovo police raid fuels Putin-Medvedev split speculation
On 18 April, Russian authorities searched the Moscow offices of the Skolkovo Foundation, a high-tech incubator, in a move certain to fuel speculation of a widening rift between Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Reuters reports. Read More »
How successful are websites in Russia? Ask the police
He’s the Mark Zuckerberg of Russia, creating the Motherland’s most popular social networking site, Vkontakte. And two years ago, Pavel Durov refused Russian security authorities’ order to remove an opposition group from the site. Read More »
Social Media in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
Social media have become one of the few places where young people from Armenia and Azerbaijan can meet. Yet, not without risks Read More »
-
More from Transitions Online- Kazakhstan Shrugs Off Human Rights ConcernsEconomics count for more than rights, and Western governments have little leverage anyway. From IWPR. […]
- Bulgaria’s Leading Party Demands Vote Rerun, Amnesty Slams Ukraine on Gay RightsPlus, Bucharest flouts the EU with new anti-corruption appointments and police in the Balkans nab human traffickers. Police swoop down on human traffickers in Bosnia and Croatia Bosnian and Croatian law enforcement authorities have collaborated in an organized crackdown on human trafficking, Reuters reports. Police in Croatia arrested 25 suspects and were […]
- Moldova's Pesticide Time BombTwo decades after the Soviet Union’s collapse, the country is still struggling with thousands of tons of chemicals, some leaking and unguarded. […]
- Cossacks Go Green, Romanian Priests Spread Regime’s Good NewsPlus, Armenians will feel the Russian gas pinch and Moldova has a new prime minister, maybe. […]
- Young, Loud, and TurkmenAshgabat’s few rock ’n’ rollers keep a low profile and face a limited future. […]
- Hungary Bows to EU Austerity Demands, Tajikistan Debates Ban on Cousin MarriagesPlus, more troubles for Kyrgyz gold mines and signs of a split in the Serbian church over Kosovo. […]
- Budapest’s Smoking GunCould a tobacco corruption scandal finally undo Hungary’s retrograde, hubristic government? […]
- Georgian Deputy Minister in Blackmail Charge, Bulgaria's Far Right Sets Sights on GovernmentPlus, a trial reopens old questions about the sell-off of Czech state companies and a disco divides Krakow's Jewish community. […]
- Kazakhstan Shrugs Off Human Rights Concerns
- Twitter feed loading...
About Us
Net Prophet is a blog supported by Transitions Online tracking new media and tech developments across Central Europe and Eurasia.
Transitions Online is an online magazine that covers political, social, cultural, and economic issues in the former communist countries of Europe and Central Asia. The magazine has a strong network of local contributors, who provide valuable insight into events in the region’s 29 countries.
-
Recent Posts
-
Karimova gets schooled in Twitter debate
May 17, 2013 -
Hungary: Government limits FOIA transparency law
May 10, 2013 -
U.S. calls Ukraine the pirate king
May 8, 2013 -
Azerbaijan legislating civil web discourse
May 3, 2013 -
Picture this: A Latvian startup visualizes the future
May 1, 2013
-
© 2011 Transitions Online. All rights reserved. ISSN 1214-1615
