POLITICS & POLICY

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) lost in a court case the regulator filed against search engine giant Google. ACCC complained that Google violated Australia's trade practices law by its using advertisement placements as basis for ranking of search results.

Four years after Australia’ competition watchdog labelled its search results as confusing and misleading, giant internet firm Google won the nod of the court, which declared on Thursday that the company hardly violated any provisions in the country’s consumer law.

Although there is a growing movement within the Labor Party for Kevin Rudd to reassume leadership, current party leader and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has secured sufficient support from powerbrokers. Enough support for her to remain in post amid discontent over her failed Malaysia Solution on border security.

Koalas uniquely represent Australia but their dwindling numbers over the past decade prompted the Senate on Thursday to call on authorities to implement nationwide measures that would significantly cut down unnecessary deaths of the huggable marsupial.

Fighting in the Yemen capital of Sanaa between forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh and troops who defected to the opposition entered its fifth day on Thursday and killed 15 people from both sides.

The AUD has opened this morning below USD0.9800 as market confidence and continued concerns of a global recession hit the markets hard.

South Korea and Washington stand firm on their stance on North Korea's denuclearization process, reiterating that North Korea should first comply with a preemptive measure demanded by South Korea and the United States before the communist country can enjoy economic assistance again.

What's up next for former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin regarding the 2012 U.s. presidential election? More than likely, Palin won't run, but won't state that until absolutely necessary.

US ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas claims 40% of foreign men visiting the Philippines are sex tourists, which actually dismayed Philippine tourism officials.

The Strategic Review of the Student Visa Program, conducted by former Olympics Minister Michael Knight on behalf of the Commonwealth Government was released Thursday by Ministers Evans, drawing mixed reactions.

The US state of Georgia executed Troy Davis on Wednesday despite high opposition and an international outcry due to considerable doubts about his guilt over the 1991 murder conviction.

The United States and its allies South Korea and Japan will boycott six-party talks in Beijing this week on North Korean denuclearization, reports the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun.

Eric Schmidt, Google Inc.'s CEO, stood up to U.S senators Wednesday to defend his company against allegations that it skews search results in favor of its own online services.

Half the fleet of trains servicing the Melbourne railway network are travelling with defective passenger doors, according to an assessment report issued on Monday by Transport Safety Victoria.

Up to $40,000 more of retirement funds was promised on Wednesday to Australian retirees under a proposed upgrade to the country's superannuation scheme. The means a 30-year-old full-time worker who currently earns about $68,000 yearly would receive $150,000 upon retirement.

Opposition leader Tony Abbott challenged on Thursday Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard to resign because of her inability to protect the country's borders.

The World Health Organization confirmed the outbreak of the polio virus in China, a first since 1999, has caused one death and nine others hospitalized.

A day after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downgraded Australia's growth forecast over global recession concerns, a Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) official acknowledged on Wednesday that the country could be affected by the U.S. economic slowdown.

A New Jersey mayor said he will not allow Ecuador President Rafael Correa to attend a high school event in his city in the face of an uproar from Cuban exiles who regard the leftist leader as an "enemy of the United States."

The Australian dollar has fallen overnight as pessimism once again pervaded throughout the financial markets. The AUD is back down near parity this morning and looking vulnerable to another move lower.

A federal judge in Virginia, USA has dismissed a lawsuit seeking $282.5 million in damages from Sudan for allegedly supporting terrorists in the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000.

The Tasmanian Lower House has this afternoon passed a motion of support for full marriage equality in Australia, with 13 voting in favour and nine against.

Independent movement GetUp has released legal opinion that argues the “Malaysia Soultion” and other offshore processing options would be invalid even as the Gillard government makes further proposals to amend the Migration Act.

The princess of pop declared that it would be "cool" if the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge could attend one of her upcoming UK shows.

To show sincere intentions that North Korea is willing to resume talks on its nuclear, Prime Minister Kim Jong-il intends to personally participate in the six-party talks to be held in Beijing this week.

China's technological sleight has taken a new dimension as it plans to launch its experimental aerospace, which is expected to commence on the communist country's attempt to build its own space station, says a report from Reuters.

China has urged ally North Korea to go back to negotiations for peace in the Korean Peninsula and to revive moves for North Korea's nuclear disarmament program.

Australia will call on America and Europe to act quickly and decisively in order to revise the downgraded outlook issued on Wednesday by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on both economic regions.

The Australian Bankers' Association (ABA) has proposed more tax breaks for Australian parents in a position paper it sent to Treasury.