Google's data retention challenged

European data protection officials have written to Google warning the search giant may be in breach of EU privacy, because of the way it retains data on individual searches, reports PC World.

The EU's Article 29 working party, made up of data protection officials from 27 European countries, asked Google to justify why it needed to retain the data for up to two years, and whether the company had "fulfilled all the necessary requirements" on data protection.

Google has not yet replied to the letter, but the company's global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer defended its privacy protection measures.

Sony has found itself in legal hot water as a small technology company, Target, has alleged the Blu-ray format infringes on patents that Target has held since 2006, reports Pocket-lint.

Three Sony divisions have been named in the suit: Sony Computer Entertainment America, Sony Pictures and Sony DADC US. California-based Target claims it invented the silver-based alloy film found in the Blu-ray. It says it was created to be used on optical discs.

In all, three suits have been filed, the other two going against Williams Advanced Materials and its customers for a patent on another optical disc alloy. Sony has not commented on the lawsuit yet, and may have little to say as Target is seeking a jury trial.

Novell has published details of its landmark November 2006 Linux partnership agreements with Microsoft, reports Info World.

Novell published on Friday redacted versions of the three agreements it signed with Microsoft in its annual 10K filings to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, providing the public with its first detailed look into a deal that some see as critical to the future of Linux.

The 10K filing had been delayed by an internal stock options review at Novell, which was concluded on Wednesday.

Microsoft is launching a slew of initiatives to help Web sites identify visitors, reports eWeek. First, the company is kicking off four open source projects to support the development of ID cards for online users.

Microsoft is also releasing one of its identity management specs, Identity Selector Interoperability Profile, under its Open Specification Promise, meaning the specification is clear of licensing fees or patent worries.

Finally, Microsoft is responding to users' requests for better direct synchronisation of identity information between Active Directory and the OpenLDAP Directory using Microsoft Identity Lifecycle Manager (ILM) 2007 by collaborating on an open source project with Kernel Networks and Oxford Computer Group to create an OpenLDAP adapter for Microsoft ILM 2007.