- Walled garden (technology)
A walled garden, with regards to media content, refers to a closed set or exclusive set of information services provided for users (a method of creating a
monopoly or securing aninformation system ). This is in contrast to providing consumers access to the open Internet for content ande-commerce . The term is often used to describe offerings frominteractive television providers or mobile phone operators which provide custom content, and not common carrier functions. [FT.com , [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/c83365aa-6b96-11dc-863b-0000779fd2ac,s01=1.html How the ‘walled garden’ promotes innovation] , Thomas Hazlett,September 25 2007 .] Another use of the term refers to quarantiningmalware -infected computers which exhibit symptoms ofbotnet activity in a way that the user can still access tools to disinfect the machine, usually with aWeb browser . [ [http://www.maawg.org/about/whitepapers/MAAWG_Walled_Garden_BP_2007-09.pdf MAAWG Best Practices for the Use of a Walled Garden] ,MAAWG whitepaper, October, 2007.] Yet another example is where an unauthenticated user is given access to a limited environment for the purpose of setting up an account - after they have done so they are allowed out of the walled garden. Some walled gardens are created and maintained by the use of firmware upgrades that wall-out alternatives (eg. Apple iPhone hacks).Examples
Some examples of walled gardens:
*NTT DoCoMo 'si-mode is awireless Internet service popular inJapan and elsewhere.
*America Online . AOL started its business with revenue-sharing agreements with certain information providers in their subscriber-only space, but later offered general Internet access.
*Full Service Network . A pilot project fromTime Warner in the early 1990s, this was an earlyinteractive television system that provided residents ofOrlando, Florida , access to online shopping, grocery order andUS Mail Service .
*Infovía , aSpain -wideIntranet established byTelefónica in the 1990s. It connected content providers andmodem users. Telefonica provided the connection between modems and server over its telephone and data networks.
* Most WAP services were originally set up as walled gardens.
* Apple's prevention of third party software on theiPhone in order to protect their revenue with agreed carriers, e.g. instant messaging and web phone software.
* Comcast technicians use the term Walled Garden when cable modems are not registered on the Comcast network.
* Optimum Online technicians use the term Walled Garden when cable modems are not registered in the IO Cablevision network.
*Virgin Media Technicians use the term walled garden to refer to theMAC Address es of unactivatedCable Modem s andset top box esReferences
Further reading
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