SurfWatch Partners with University of Michigan to Deliver Next Generation Internet Rating System.WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 1, 1997-- Leading Internet filtering See Web filtering and firewall. provider reaffirms commitment to PICS (1) (Pantone Internet Color System) The Pantone implementation of the Netscape color palette. See Netscape color palette. (2) (Platform for Internet Content S standard with the first SurfWatch-branded label bureau SurfWatch Software, Inc., a division of Spyglass, Inc. (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on : SPYG) today announced the first name-brand rating system using SurfWatch's industry leading filtering software. The first public demonstration of this system will be given this week in Washington, D.C., during the "Internet Online Summit: Focus on the Children." "We are excited to demonstrate a leadership position in continuing to develop and deploy the Platform for Internet Content Selection (World-Wide Web) Platform for Internet Content Selection - (PICS) A standard for meta-data associated with World-Wide Web content, originally designed to help parents and teachers control what children access on the Internet, but also used for code signing and privacy. (PICS) standard," said Michael Sears, general manager of SurfWatch and a vice president of Spyglass, Inc. "As the Internet gains popularity, it's important to provide new ways for people to access the filtering that will help make their online experiences more productive." Created in conjunction with the University of Michigan (body, education) University of Michigan - A large cosmopolitan university in the Midwest USA. Over 50000 students are enrolled at the University of Michigan's three campuses. The students come from 50 states and over 100 foreign countries. , this PICS label bureau is a publicly available technology demonstration where people can try SurfWatch filtering with any PICS-compliant browser, such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer Microsoft's Web browser, which comes with Windows starting with Windows 98. Commonly called "IE," versions for Mac and Unix are also available. Internet Explorer is the most widely used Web browser on the market. It has also been the browser engine in AOL's Internet access software. . This demonstration also launches new implementations of SurfWatch ratings, including filtered searches. As founding members of the World Wide Web Consortium PICS working group, SurfWatch and Spyglass helped to develop the original specification for the Platform for Internet Content Selection along with Microsoft, Netscape, AT&T, IBM (International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, www.ibm.com) The world's largest computer company. IBM's product lines include the S/390 mainframes (zSeries), AS/400 midrange business systems (iSeries), RS/6000 workstations and servers (pSeries), Intel-based servers (xSeries) , Oracle, and Disney Online. "It's great to see SurfWatch filtering in this standards-based format," said Paul Resnick, chair of the PICS Internet Group at W3C (World Wide Web Consortium, www.w3.org) An international industry consortium founded in 1994 by Tim Berners-Lee to develop standards for the Web. It is hosted in the U.S. by the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) at MIT (www.csail.mit.edu/index.php). and an Associate Professor at University of Michigan's School of Information. "Using PICS, SurfWatch's powerful content filtering See Web filtering and parental control software. can be utilized in many different ways, such as filtering search engine results or rating specific Web sites." SurfWatch lets parents, teachers, and employers block unwanted sexually explicit and other material from their computers' Internet access See how to access the Internet. without restricting the access rights of other Internet users Internet user n → internauta m/f Internet user Internet n → internaute m/f . The SurfWatch/PICS implementation removes no material from the Internet or any server, but simply blocks inappropriate material at any computer where SurfWatch rating is active. Through this label bureau, SurfWatch Web site ratings are distributed in four different categories: sexually explicit content, violence (including hate crimes), drugs/alcohol/tobacco, and gambling. The SurfWatch label bureau also provides an option for a positive, kidsafe filtering environment containing ratings from the Yahooligans! web guide, appropriate for kids ages 7 through 12, developed in partnership with Yahoo! Users can configure their filtering preferences in any PICS compliant browser to read the SurfWatch labels from a label bureau at the University of Michigan, where SurfWatch ratings are constantly being updated. The demonstration is accessible online at http://www.si.umich.edu/presnick/PICS-incubator . About SurfWatch SurfWatch Software, a division of Spyglass Inc. (NASDAQ:SPYG), creates award-winning Internet filtering products and licenses Internet access control technology. As a founding member of the PICS consortium, SurfWatch supports the development of standards-based Internet rating systems. Since creating the market for Internet filtering technology in May 1995, SurfWatch has become the industry-leading tool for blocking access to unwanted materials on the Internet. SurfWatch Software can be reached at 650/948-9500, info@surfwatch.com or via the World Wide Web at http://www.surfwatch.com . Spyglass Inc. can be reached at 630/245-6500 or via the World Wide Web at http://www.spyglass.com . -0- Note to Editors: Spyglass, SurfWatch and their logos are registered trademarks of Spyglass, Inc. Other products and brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. CONTACT: SurfWatch Software, Inc. Alexandra Salomon, 650/948-9500 asalomon@surfwatch.com or Davey Levy Communications 408/461-4600 daveylevy@marcom.com or University of Michigan Paul Resnick, 313/647-9458 presnick@umich.edu |
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