The BBC's TV detector vans are simply a form of psychological warfare

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The UK’s Information Commissioner, who’s been a very busy man/department recently, declined a freedom of information request to reveal how many TV license detector vans the BBC operates – because it might stop people believing they exist.

The shadowy fleet of TV-detecting vans is supposed to be able to pick up tell-tale signs that a TV’s being used inside a house, but the ICO ruled that revealing how many vans the BBC actually operates – and the technology they use – might undermine the level of threat they pose. And lead to us not bothering to pay our licence fees any more…

Google planning offshore, tax-evading, auto-powering, floating data warehouses

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Google is planning to launch a fleet of ships to house its search operations. These ships will power themselves by harnessing wave energy. The “water-based data centres” will cool themselves using the sea.

This staggering and frankly unbelievable lurch into piracy was revealed by The Times, which says Google will also benefit by avoiding paying tax on its data warehousing spaces by housing some of its facilities in international waters…