May 15, 2012 (FCC Commissioners Sworn In)

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY, MAY 15, 2012

Today’s busy agenda http://benton.org/calendar/2012-05-15/

POLICYMAKERS
FCC Commissioners Sworn In
FCC Commissioners Pai, Rosenworcel Pledge Collegiality

SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
   Broadcasters, FCC in spectrum turf war
   US Cellular interested in buying Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
   Fresh study says Verizon beats AT&T in overall data speed
   AT&T’s Chicago problem: Why LTE slows down in the Windy City

INTERNET/BROADBAND
NTIA to Pitch Broadband Loan Successes
California offered piece of the action from Internet poker

OWNERSHIP
   Facebook’s Prospects May Rest on Trove of Data
   How big does Facebook really have to get?
   Poll: 46% say Facebook to fade away
   Court Issues Mixed Ruling in Apple-Samsung Patent Case
   LightSquared, Failed Wireless Venture, Files Bankruptcy
   News Corp. to Take Stake in China Film Distributor

ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
Romney's media handicap - op-ed

PRIVACY
FTC shifts its approach to protecting online privacy

TELEVISION
   Broadcasters, FCC in spectrum turf war
   Liquor Advertising Pours Into TV
   Noncommercial Broadcasters Defend Their Turf in Senate Letter
   Report: Broadcast Tops Cable, Viewers Embrace Key Nets
   Court Upholds FCC On TWC/MASN Ruling [links to web]
   Comcast finds way to deliver ads to subscribers who skip commercials on DVR

CONTENT
   Counting Crows: Don’t bribe radio, use BitTorrent
   Websites Use DNA to Create Family Trees [links to web]
   Schools can give students 10 percent of a book or one whole chapter [links to web]

TELECOM
Is video the future of voice?

HEALTH
E-Prescribing Adoption: A Prescription for Progress [links to web]

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
NTIA asks for input on public-safety network
Extreme-weather text alerts set to begin

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
An Ambiguous FBI Cyber Alert Raise More Questions than it Answers

STORIES FROM ABROAD
UK study finds mobile carriers are filtering too much content with parental control systems
News Corp. to Take Stake in China Film Distributor

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POLICYMAKERS

FCC COMMISSIONERS SWORN IN
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski swore in Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel as commissioners, returning the five-member board to full strength. Pai and Rosenworcel are expected to make their first public appearances as commissioners on May 16 before the Senate Commerce Committee, which will hold an oversight hearing of the FCC.
Jessica Rosenworcel was nominated for a seat on the Federal Communications Commission by President Barack Obama and on May 7, 2012 was confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate. On May 11, 2012, she was sworn in.
Ajit V. Pai was nominated to the Federal Communications Commission by President Barack Obama and on May 7, 2012 was confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate. On May 14, 2012, he was sworn in for a term that concludes on June 30, 2016.
benton.org/node/123081 | Federal Communications Commission | The Hill | B&C | National Journal | B&C – hearing
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PLEDGE OF COLLEGIALITY
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Jessica Rosenworcel and Ajit Pai have released their first statements as FCC Commissioners -- consisting of announcing their arrival and willingness to work together. "I am honored and humbled that President Obama and the United States Senate have entrusted me with the privilege and responsibility of serving as a Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission," said Commissioner Rosenworcel. "I pledge to work with the Administration, the Congress, my fellow Commissioners, and the American people to ensure that everyone across this country has access to the best, most reliable communications in the world. In the 21st century, these are the networks that impact everything we do; they are an essential part of our public safety, our economic security, and our civic life. They are the key to digital age opportunity."
"This morning, I was honored to be sworn in as an FCC Commissioner alongside Commissioner Rosenworcel," said Commissioner Pai. "I am grateful for the warm welcome that was extended to me by Chairman Genachowski, Commissioner McDowell, Commissioner Clyburn, and members of the FCC staff. I also want to thank once again President Obama for nominating me and the United States Senate for confirming me. I look forward to working with my new colleagues at the Commission to promote competition and innovation in the communications marketplace that will work for the benefit of all consumers."
Commissioner Pai made a staff announcement. He appointed Matthew Berry as his Chief of Staff, Gene Fullano as his Acting Legal Advisor, and Lori Alexiou as his Confidential Assistant. Commissioner Pai also announced his intent to appoint Courtney Reinhard as a Legal Advisor. Berry previously served as the FCC’s General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel. In those roles, he was responsible for providing legal advice to the FCC and managing the Commission’s litigation docket. Prior to joining Commissioner Pai’s office, he was a Partner at Patton Boggs LLP, where he was a member of the firm’s Technology and Communications practice group. Berry has also worked at the United States Department of Justice, serving as Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy and as an attorney-adviser in the Office of Legal Counsel. During his tenure there, he earned the Department’s John Marshall Award for providing legal advice related to counterterrorism
policy.
benton.org/node/123108 | Broadcasting&Cable | Commissioner Rosenworcel | Commissioner Pai | Commissioner Pai - staff
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SPECTRUM/WIRELESS

BROADCASTERS, FCC IN TURF WAR
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Brooks Boliek]
Broadcast television station owners look at the Federal Communications Commission’s recent drive to move them off frequencies and put their political advertising rates on the Internet and draw one conclusion: The FCC has it in for television. And broadcasters are fighting back by publicly airing that charge in the midst of the ongoing policy debate on freeing up airwaves for wireless broadband. “They keep coming after broadcast TV,” said National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Gordon Smith. “And the broadcast industry is concerned that a bias exists.” Smith and other industry executives are reluctant to level harsh public criticism at the agency, fearing that would cause the FCC to come down harder on the industry. But privately, broadcasters are feeling persecuted. “Of course, there’s a bias against broadcasters at the FCC,” said one industry executive. “Anyone who has objectively watched this commission knows it.”
benton.org/node/123110 | Politico
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US CELLULAR INTERESTED IN VERIZON SPECTRUM
[SOURCE: Fierce, AUTHOR: Phil Goldstein]
According to a filing at the Federal Communications Commission, US Cellular is interested in buying Verizon Wireless' 700 MHz Lower A and B Block spectrum. US Cellular did not indicate how much it would be willing to pay for the spectrum, but said the sale could be beneficial to the industry. US Cellular CEO Mary Dillon met with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski on May 8. At the meeting, Dillon and other US Cellular executives, including CTO Michael Irizarry, said the proposed sale could benefit other carriers that own licenses in Band Class 12 of the 700 MHz band, which include C Spire Wireless and others. Verizon has proposed selling the spectrum if it gets regulatory approval of its purchase of AWS spectrum from a group of cable companies. US Cellular executives also supported the idea of AT&T purchasing the spectrum, as long as AT&T supported the Band Class 12 ecosystem. The carrier also said it would support Verizon simply building out a network using the spectrum (Verizon's current LTE network uses its 700 MHz Upper C Block spectrum). Importantly, US Cellular executives said the sale did not override the need for the FCC to issue interoperability requirements for the lower 700 MHz band. Such a mandate would require carriers to sell phones that support multiple 700 MHz bands, not just the bands they own licenses in.
benton.org/node/123063 | Fierce | read the filing
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WIRELESS DATA SPEEDS
[SOURCE: Fierce, AUTHOR: Tammy Parker]
AT&T Mobility's LTE network is fast, but overall data speeds on the company's mobile networks are not quick enough to dethrone Verizon Wireless as the data king, according to a new report from wireless testing company RootMetrics. While AT&T's transition to LTE is making waves, Verizon continues to dominate, T-Mobile is closer to AT&T than you might expect [and] Sprint is languishing, said the company, referring to results from its latest quarterly assessment of U.S. operator mobile data performance. RootMetrics ranked networks in individual markets based on whether they could maintain certain thresholds of service. These were:
Upper Threshold: Could a carrier deliver download speeds above 3 Mbps in at least 70 percent of tests for a given market?
Lower Threshold: Would a carrier dip below download speeds of 1.5 Mbps in at least 60 percent of tests for a given market?
Middle Path: The percentage of markets in which a carrier neither exceeded the upper threshold nor fell below the lower threshold.
benton.org/node/123068 | Fierce
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AT&T’S CHICAGO PROBLEM
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
AT&T’s new LTE network is blazing fast, with recent nationwide studies showing Ma Bell Mobile is beating out archrival Verizon when it comes to bandwidth punch. But independent network tester RootMetrics just released a new Chicago report finding that AT&T’s typical 17 Mbps-plus speeds are more than halved in the Windy City. The report highlights a problem AT&T has with several of its markets: it doesn’t have the spectrum in place to offer the big fat pipe it offers in the rest of the country.
benton.org/node/123066 | GigaOm
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

BROADBAND STIMULUS HEARING
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The House Subcommittee on Communications & Technology has scheduled a hearing May 16 on American Recovery and Reinvestment Act broadband loans and grants, and the Obama Administration is expected to argue that those programs are generating jobs and spurring innovation. The National Telecommunications & Information Administration oversees the Broadband technology Opportunities Program grant program, while the Agriculture Department's Rural Utilities Service handles the Broadband Initiatives Program. Look for NTIA to highlight the following at the hearing. NTIA grantees say they have:
Deployed or upgraded more than 45,000 miles of broadband infrastructure
Installed more than 29,000 workstations in public computer centers
Instituted programs that have led to more than 260,000 new broadband subscribers including some businesses
Approximately 300 interconnection agreements in the works
NTIA will also argue that its BTOP projects are "generally" on track, are creating jobs, and spurring economic growth.
benton.org/node/123080 | Broadcasting&Cable
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CALIFORNIA AND INTERNET POKER
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Patrick McGreevy]
As state leaders sweat over another possible round of cuts from schools and social services, casino operators are offering officials a cut of the action if they will legalize Internet poker in California. After two years of hearings and study, the proponents — who are also generous political contributors — say the stars may finally be aligning for them. The California Senate leader this year is co-sponsoring legislation that he hopes will put hundreds of millions of dollars into the state treasury. Further improving the operators' odds, the Obama administration said in December that federal law does not prevent states from allowing some forms of Internet gambling. The gambling industry sees California as the big prize in web-based wagering. An estimated 2 million state residents play Internet poker, according to the California Online Poker Association, a coalition of 46 casino operators that is leading the charge for legalization.
benton.org/node/123107 | Los Angeles Times
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OWNERSHIP

FACEBOOK’S TROVE OF DATE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Somini Sengupta]
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief, has managed to amass more information about more people than anyone else in history. Now what? As Facebook turns to Wall Street in the biggest public offering ever by an Internet company, it faces a new, unenviable test: how to keep growing and enriching its hungry new shareholders. The answer lies in what Facebook will be able to do — and how quickly — with its crown jewel: its status as an online directory for a good chunk of the human race, with the names, photos, tastes and desires of nearly a billion people. In the eight years since it sprang out of a Harvard dorm room, Facebook has signed up users at breakneck speed, kept them glued to the site for longer stretches of time and turned a profit by using their personal information to customize the ads they see. Whether it can spin that data into enough gold to justify a valuation of as much as $104 billion remains unclear.
benton.org/node/123115 | New York Times | WSJ
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FACEBOOK’S FUTURE
[SOURCE: Fortune, AUTHOR: Shawn Tully]
The Facebook IPO scheduled for this week is generating a rush of exhilaration on Wall Street. But big excitement doesn't necessarily translate into big money for investors. So let's pull out our calculators and take a sober, just-the-numbers look at what Facebook needs to achieve to enrich the fans who buy its shares after what is being billed at the debut of the decade. If Facebook is priced at the mid-point of the estimated $28 to $35 a share range, it will start with a market cap of around $86 billion. That's 86 times its 2011 earnings of $1 billion. So let's assume shareholders want 10% annual returns from their investment, then look out seven years from now. What earnings and revenues does Facebook need to produce those 10% returns? Facebook would need earnings of almost $9 billion to hand investors nice -- but hardly spectacular -- 10% gains. That's a compound annual growth rate of 37%. From mid-2018 to mid-2019 alone, Facebook would have to generate an additional $2.5 billion in profits. It would also require extraordinary, 37% gains on each dollar of retained earnings it reinvests to reach our milestone. That's three times the average return on equity of America's large companies.
benton.org/node/123089 | Fortune
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FACEBOOK TO FADE AWAY?
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: MJ Lee]
Almost half of Americans believe Facebook’s success will fade as the social networking site is forced to make way for newcomers, according to a new poll. Forty-six percent of those surveyed in the Associated Press-CNBC poll said they believe Facebook will “fade away,” while 43 percent said they think the company will continue to thrive for a long time. Expectations for the social networking site’s long-term success were even lower among younger adults, 51 percent of whom said they think the company will fizzle. Exactly half of Americans indicated in the poll that they believe Facebook is “overvalued,” while just a third of those surveyed, 32 percent, said the $100 billion valuation is a fair reflection of the company’s worth. Still, 51 percent say buying Facebook strikes them as being a good investment.
benton.org/node/123114 | Politico
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APPLE-SAMSUNG RULING
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Brent Kendall]
In a mixed ruling, a federal appeals court revived Apple's bid to block US sales of Samsung's Galaxy Tab tablet computer, but rejected other Apple legal claims that sought to bar sales of Samsung smartphones. Apple argues Samsung's products copy its patented designs for the iPhone and iPad. The companies are locked in several patent disputes around the globe. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled a California trial judge was too quick to deny Apple's request to temporarily block the sales of Samsung tablets while Apple's patent-infringement claims against its rival proceed in court. A three-judge appeals-court panel ruled the California judge was incorrect in thinking that one Apple patent related to the iPad may be invalid. The court said Apple would suffer "irreparable harm" from the sales of Samsung's allegedly infringing tablets, and it ordered the trial judge to consider again Apple's arguments that sales of the Samsung tablets should be blocked while the legal case proceeds. One judge, in dissent, said the appeals court should have gone further and ordered that sales of the Galaxy Tab be blocked now.
benton.org/node/123113 | Wall Street Journal
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LIGHTSQUARED FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY
[SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Tiffany Kary, Michael Bathon]
LightSquared filed for bankruptcy after its plan to deliver high-speed wireless to as many as 260 million people ran afoul of US regulators. LightSquared listed debt and assets of more than $1 billion each in a Chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan. The filing came after intense negotiations with creditors, who had requested that the company’s backer, Philip Falcone, step aside. Harbinger Capital Partners, Falcone’s New York-based hedge fund, had invested about $3 billion in LightSquared and owned about 74 percent of it as of Jan. 27. Falcone also had served on LightSquared’s board. Creditors asked for Falcone’s departure when they gave the company a weeklong extension on April 30 to stave off a default and keep trying to renegotiate its debt, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.
benton.org/node/123097 | Bloomberg | WSJ
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BONA FILM GROUP
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Laurie Burkitt]
News Corp. will acquire nearly a 20% stake in Bona Film Group, one of China's largest film distributors, in a bid to help the US company gain a stronger foothold in China's booming film market. News Corp., the owner of 20th Century Fox film studio, will take a 19.9% stake in the Chinese film company, buying directly from the firm's founder and Chief Executive Yu Dong. The deal marks the latest in a recent spate of tie-ups between Hollywood and China, where box-office revenue climbed 29% to 13.1 billion yuan ($2.08 billion) last year, according to China's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.
benton.org/node/123103 | Wall Street Journal
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ELECTIONS AND MEDIA

ROMNEY’S MEDIA HANDICAP
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Jonah Goldberg]
[Commentary] The time is coming for Romney to get angry, very angry, with what is increasingly, quaintly called "the mainstream media." The Washington Post’s front-page allegations that he bullied a kid half a century ago in high school is an embarrassment. It was clearly intended to link Romney to the new progressive cause: fighting anti-gay bullying, in the context of President Obama's "sudden" support for gay marriage. It was naked advocacy gussied up as journalistic due diligence. It was also a significant error — if you work from the assumption (as I do) that the Post and other mainstream media outlets are determined to do what they can to reelect Obama — because they tipped their hand too early.
benton.org/node/123111 | Los Angeles Times
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PRIVACY

FTC SHIFTS APPROACH
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Andrew Feinberg]
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has made a major shift in its efforts to protect privacy online by focusing on any information that can “reasonably be connected to a device or a person," according to an agency official. Maneesha Mithal, the associate director of the FTC’s privacy division, said the agency’s latest report on privacy moves away from previous rules and regulations that were focused on securing personally identifiable information such as names, Social Security numbers and addresses. Now, Mithal said, the FTC is taking a broader view of what information is deserving of regulatory protection because the old model is "somewhat obsolete." She conceded the new standard is "unpredictable" and "doesn't provide guidance," but said that the FTC's decisions and enforcement actions will serve a kind of case law to help companies understand what information to protect and how.
benton.org/node/123099 | Hill, The
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TELEVISION

LIQUOR TV ADS
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: EJ Schultz]
Lately there has seemed to be a stampede of liquor brands to TV as marketers seek broad awareness for product launches or to build new buzz on old brands. One reason for the new interest is that broadcast networks have loosened their rules, creating more opportunities for national buys. CBS, for instance, began accepting liquor ads during late-night programming within the last year. ABC has been taking hard-booze during "Jimmy Kimmel Live" for several months. And this spring, NBC began accepting spirits shows airing after 11 p.m. Eastern as long as 90% of the audience is of legal drinking age. (Industry self-regulations allow beer, wine or liquor ads only on programs where at least 71.6% of the audience is 21 or older.) More broadcast deals are "in the works," one industry insider told Ad Age. TV grabbed $142 million in advertising from liquor brands in 2010, or about 34% of all media spending by the category. That's up from $102 million and 23% just five years earlier, according to the latest data available provided to Ad Age by the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. (Discus), a liquor trade group. Magazines led with a 41% share, though that was down from 58% in 2005. Liquor brands' TV spending fell to a little more than $141 million last year, according to Kantar Media. But it seems poised to grow again in 2012 as a host of products roll out TV campaigns, from Skinnygirl Cocktails to Wild Turkey, a 157-year-old bourbon brand.
benton.org/node/123075 | AdAge
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NONCOMMERCIAL BROADCASTERS
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Noncommercial broadcasters have sent a letter to every senator arguing for continued Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding following reports that Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) is collecting signatures from colleagues on a letter asking Hill budgeters to zero out funding for CPB. Patrick Butler, president of the Association of Public Television stations, said that axing federal funding for noncommercial stations would only cut the federal budget by "one-hundredth of one percent" -- CPB wants $445 million -- but would have "a devastating effect on all the good work we're trying to do for the American people." He calls public television the backbone for emergency alerts, public safety and homeland security.
benton.org/node/123072 | Multichannel News
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BROADCAST AND CABLE
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Wayne Friedman]
Top-rated networks are generally the brands viewers remember and want to watch. A new marketing survey shows the broadcast networks getting top scores over all cable networks. But top cable-rated networks performed well. These networks include ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, as well as ESPN, Discovery, History, USA, Food Network and TNT --- brands "American consumers can't do without" according to Solutions Research Group. ABC actually scored the best results, getting a 51% score. It narrowly beat out CBS, Fox, NBC. The survey called "Must Keep TV" says this is the fourth time out of five ABC has won -- since the poll started in 2007. Among men, CBS took the top spot, while ABC led in most key female demographics. Though broadcast network has lost some steam over the years, the survey says 77% of Americans would include at least one of the big four networks in their top channels. This has decline from the years 2007 through 2009 period when this was at a 83% number.
benton.org/node/123065 | MediaPost
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COMCAST AD SERVICE
[SOURCE: Fierce, AUTHOR: Steve Donohue]
Comcast has developed technology that would allow the nation's largest cable operator to deliver advertising to subscribers who skip commercials contained in TV shows recorded on a DVR. Subscribers who hit fast-forward, pause and other trick-mode buttons on their remotes would receive an alternate ad displayed in the center of their TV screen or by making the alternate ad partially transparent. Comcast details a strategy for targeting alternative ads to a subscriber who skips commercials based on demographics and the subscriber's viewing habits, including "historical choices made by the recipient whether to skip or watch previous alternate content."
benton.org/node/123062 | Fierce
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CONTENT

COUNTING CROWS AND BITTORRENT
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Janko Roettgers]
Rock band Counting Crows released four tracks of its new album Underwater Sunshine on BitTorrent, complete with artwork and 25 pages of liner notes. Counting Crows singer Adam Duritz said that he can’t think of a better way to get his music in front of people. “I’m surprised everyone isn’t doing it,” he said. BitTorrent is featuring the release on its home page and within its file sharing clients, which are used by 150 million people every month. The company has cooperated with musicians and film makers in the past, but this marks the highest-profile music release for BitTorrent to date. Counting Crows used to be under contract with Universal Music-owned Geffen Records, and Duritz said that the band used to clash with the label about innovative digital release formats. “Now that we are independent, we can do anything we want,” he explained.
benton.org/node/123070 | GigaOm
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TELECOM

IS VIDEO FUTURE OF VOICE?
[SOURCE: The Verge, AUTHOR: Chris Ziegler]
Telephone voice quality has remained essentially unchanged for a century, seemingly immune to the advances in technology that have relentlessly occurred (and continue to occur) around it. Of course, there's more to the story than that — telephone lines have moved from analog to digital and audio codecs have become more efficient over time — but the goal has always been to reduce the amount of bandwidth required to transmit voice at roughly the same quality, not to improve it. VoIP services — most famously Skype — would seem to have advanced the conversation by putting the concept of lifelike voice quality front and center for its millions of users around the globe, and voice over LTE (VoLTE) gives carriers both the bandwidth and the infrastructure to launch so-called HD voice service with little challenge.
benton.org/node/123061 | Verge, The
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EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS

NTIA SEEKS INPUT ON PUBLIC SAFETY NETWORK
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will ask for comments on a planned nationwide public-safety broadband network. In a speech at the National Broadband Summit and Expo, NTIA head Larry Strickling said the Department of Commerce will ask for input on the distribution of $135 million in grants for state and local governments to plan the deployment of the network. Congress set aside wireless frequencies and $7 billion in funding for the national public-safety network, called FirstNet, as part of the payroll tax cut extension earlier this year. The network, which would help first-responders from different agencies communicate during emergencies, is one of the last outstanding recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Report. FirstNet would also allow emergency responders to send video and other data in real time. Strickling said he wants more detailed information about the technical needs of first-responders. He will also requested input on how to select the board of directors that will head FirstNet.
benton.org/node/123078 | Hill, The
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EMERGENCY TEXT SERVICE
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Doyle Rice]
Wireless carriers and the federal government are launching a system to automatically warn people of dangerous weather and other emergencies via a special type of text messaging to cellphones. The Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) service, which begins this month, is free, and consumers won't have to sign up. Warnings will be location-based: If you're traveling, you'll get an alert for whatever emergency is happening where you are. "Wireless carriers representing more than 97% of subscribers voluntarily agreed to develop and offer free, geographically targeted wireless emergency alerts," said Amy Storey, spokeswoman for the CTIA— The Wireless Association. AT&T, Cellcom, Cricket, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and Verizon Wireless are participating. Alerts will be issued for such life-threatening events as tornadoes, flash floods, hurricanes, typhoons, tsunamis, dust storms, extreme winds, blizzards and ice storms.
benton.org/node/123076 | USAToday
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

AN AMBIGUOUS FBI CYBER ALERT RAISES MORE QUESTIONS THAN IT ANSWERS
[SOURCE: nextgov, AUTHOR: Aliya Sternstein]
A vague FBI warning about bad actors infecting U.S. computers in foreign hotels is raising questions about whether authorities are withholding information to avoid rattling relations with a foreign country, possibly China. The bureau’s Internet Crime Complaint Center on May 8 issued an alert about pop-up messages “targeting travelers abroad” that prompt users to download an update for a “widely used software product” that then installs a virus when clicked. The warning does not say American vacationers are at risk -- just people conducting business. “The FBI recommends that all government, private industry and academic personnel who travel abroad take extra caution before updating software products on their hotel Internet connection,” the notice states. One cybersecurity researcher suggested the FBI omitted certain details that could more effectively protect computer users, but such information might unsettle U.S.-China diplomacy. In October 2011, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued a report calling “Chinese actors” the “world's most active and persistent perpetrators of economic espionage.” The study added U.S. corporations and cybersecurity specialists have reported an onslaught of intrusions traced back to computer addresses in China, with some alleging Chinese government sponsorship, but the intelligence community has not been able to link many of the breaches to a state sponsor.
benton.org/node/123092 | nextgov
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STORIES FROM ABROAD

UK FILTERING REPORT
[SOURCE: The Verge, AUTHOR: Adi Robertson]
A report by Britain's Open Rights Group and the LSE Media Policy Project claims that content filtering on mobile phones is being applied in a way that's both over-broad and non-transparent. Site blocking is common practice by UK mobile carriers; it's intended to prevent minors from seeing objectionable material and can be turned off by contacting the phone company. The Open Rights Group, however, says it has found several problems with the system. Blacklists can be overzealous, and getting an item removed from the list (as opposed to simply having it unblocked on a single phone) is difficult. It's also not always clear when something has been blocked or how the blacklists work. Some carriers, like O2, offer a way to check URLs against the blacklist and appeal a decision, but even these are hard to find and offer little feedback.
benton.org/node/123088 | Verge, The
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