by Hunter Patterson | Nov 18, 2011 | News Slider
The Internet is changing…sort of. Earlier this year one of the biggest blogging sites, Tumblr, starting adding the infinite sign to the beginning of its URLs because it had ran out of numbers. Now, the Internet is adding domains with the suffix “.xxx” specifically for pornographic sites. The change has sparked universities across the nation to buy up their respective domains, protecting their names from being tarnished. The URLs are coming cheap now, too. Both Vanderbilt and the University of Tennessee and Knoxville bought their addresses for less than $200 each. Vanderbilt registered “vanderbilt.xxx” and four other domain names: “commodores.xxx,” “vandy.xxx,” “vanderbiltuniversity.xxx” and “vanderbiltcommodores.xxx.” Not Lipscomb, though. Other schools and big businesses are buying up the domains quickly, sparking the launch of the .xxx top-level domain. The domains will become available to public within the next month. Per usual, though, those with trademarks got the first chance to purchase the URLs and safeguard them. Lipscomb has decided not to purchase the domains, no matter the price, because the “.xxx domain is intended for material that is counter to any university’s mission,” said Kim Chaudoin, director of university communication and marketing at LU. Chaudoin said there are two schools of thought among institutions of higher education. “One is that an institution would reserve the domain to protect its trademark and brand identity,” she said. The other is that the domain is not intended for the university and does not represent what the university was founded upon. Vanderbilt would be in the first school of thought. Maggie Huckaba, the university’s diretor of trademark licensing, told The Tennessean Vanderbilt wanted to trademark...
by Hunter Moss | Nov 2, 2010 | News Slider
On Monday night, COMMA (Communication Majors and Minors Association) students had their November meeting featuring Gregg Morton, President of AT&T in Tennessee. He spoke on the future of telecommunications locally in the state and nationwide. Morton agreed with common thinking, stating that personal landline telephones are diminishing in American households. “About 30 percent of Americans have cut the cord completely with traditional land-line telephones and have wireless only in their home,” Morton said. Please upgrade your browser Students raised interesting questions about how technology is converging on a various platforms. “The convergence of the three screens (computer, smart phone and television) will continue to be technologically evident,” says Morton. “Consumers will still hold preference for mobility.” The executive reiterated that AT&T provides a strong wireless and broadband service to consumers. Morton emphasized that Tennessee receives the most capital investment from AT&T than any other state in the United States. AT&T is committed to provide network availability for the entire state. He concluded his remarks, saying the future will offer emerging devices with technological advances. For example, pill bottles could notify individuals to take their medications and a dog collar might soon contain a tracking chip, making owners aware of their pet’s location. Being a South Carolina native, Morton graduated from Clemson University’s College of Business and Behavioral Science. The 31-year AT&T veteran is highly involved in the Nashville community, as he is a board member of the Nashville Symphony and chairman of Tennessee Chamber of Commerce. In his role at AT&T, Morton works closely with community leaders and state policymakers to bring the best new technology to consumers. He...
