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As China hosts executives from global tech companies at its World Internet Conference, human rights advocates are warning that online censorship in the country is only getting worse.

Representatives of US firms will rub shoulders with their counterparts from Chinese tech giants at the event, which begins Nov 16 in the sleepy river town of Wuzhen in eastern China. Chinese leaders have typically used the conference to push their doctrine of "internet sovereignty," under which countries would impose their own online borders and regulations. China's goal "poses a real threat to the global and open nature of the internet," said Patrick Poon, a researcher at Amnesty International. The government's use of the grand title "World Internet Conference" despite China's restrictions has spawned a mocking nickname from local web users who've labeled it the "local area internet conference."

AT&T and Time Warner think their $85 billion merger makes strategic sense. Now comes the tough part -- convincing skeptical investors that the deal won't be the second coming of AOL Time Warner. The stocks of both companies fell after the opening bell: Time Warner lost 3% and AT&T dropped 2%. Why? It's because AT&T is paying cash for half of the deal. The remainder will be financed with stock. AT&T's stock is falling -- and dragging down Time Warner -- due to concerns the deal could fall apart following what is expected to be intense regulatory scrutiny.

The Internet is a vital tool for education, work, socializing -- and, in some countries, for stifling citizen discontent. An unprecedented Internet blackout in the Central African country of Gabon is the latest in a trend of communication censorship.

On August 31, President Ali Bongo was reelected for a second term, a contested result that was followed by protests in which several people died. The Internet shut down completely for four days, according to Internet performance management company Dyn. And even after it was restored, there has been an "internet curfew" with connectivity being nonexistent between 6 pm and 6 am every day. Social media services including Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp remain entirely blocked at all times of the day. The government of Gabon publicly denied that it had blocked Internet access after the election.

The ultra-slow Wi-Fi at your local coffee shop could soon be getting a big boost. Qualcomm announced plans for new technology that it says could triple Wi-Fi speeds in homes, offices and on public networks.

The company's new approach, which follows seven years of research, allows networks to transmit data to multiple groups of users simultaneously using algorithms that adapt on the fly to changes in usage. The technology is known as "MU-MIMO," which stands for "multi-user, multiple input, multiple output."

Qualcomm plans to sell MU-MIMO-enabled chips to manufacturers of wireless routers and access points, as well as to companies that make smartphones, tablets and other consumer electronics. When both the network and its users are employing the technology, Qualcomm claims it will boost speeds by two to three times.

"Using MU-MIMO is like using the carpool lane: the Wi-Fi Highway doesn't change, but grouping up with other users lets you go much faster while de-congesting the other lanes," the company said.