March 2006

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NEWS FROM CAPITOL HILL
House Commerce Members Meet on Telecom Bill
Some DTV Issues Could Make Telecom Bill
NAB Sets Sale for Capitol Hill
Senate Panel To Consider Proposal On TV 'Indecency'
Senators Back New Broadband Taxes

NEWS FROM FCC
Tate Pushes Cable on =C0 La Carte
NAB: FCC Indecency Action Likely

MORE ON TELECOM POLICY
Time Running out on the Big Carriers
Communications Policy for 2006 and Beyond
Vive la diff=E9rence!
Vote sends Indiana Telecom Bill to Governor

JOURNALISM
Bush: Media had more details on Katrina than Government
=9148 Hours=92 -- A peek at show-biz =91journalism=92

QUICKLY -- TV May Be Free but Not That Free;=20
Online Colleges Receive a Boost From Congress;=20
Outsourcing Computing Work Overseas; Schools=20
cracking down on MySpace; Think Your Lawmakers=20
Don't Read Bills? Do It Yourself.

NEWS FROM CAPITOL HILL

HOUSE COMMERCE MEMBERS MEET ON TELECOM BILL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
House Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton=20
(R-TX) told a group of broadcasters in Washington=20
yesterday that he and other committee members=20
were having a meeting later that day to try to=20
come to some "bypartisan agreement on a=20
telecommunications bill," which is a rewrite of=20
the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Rep Barton=20
plans to mark up the bill in his committee in=20
March. The Senate Commerce Committee plans to=20
mark up its own version of a telecom bill rewrite=20
in March as well. Rep Barton told broadcasters=20
gathered for an NAB-sponsored State Leadership=20
Conference that the bill's primary component=20
would be a so-called "video services protocol"=20
for telephone companies, wireless companies and=20
cable. He did not explain, though it sounded like=20
a way to address the issue of streamlining the=20
video-franchising process for new video entrants.=20
Rep Barton said he did not see the committee=20
introducing a second bill to handle some of the=20
DTV issues -- cable conversion of a digital=20
signal to analog, for one, multicasting=20
must-carry is another -- that were stripped from=20
the DTV hard date bill because of Senate rules.=20
He also said that he did not think it was likely=20
that those issues would be rolled into the=20
telecom bill rewrite. Rep Barton also said that=20
he didn't see moving a bill in this session that=20
would confine satellite radio to a local-only=20
service or one giving the FCC authority to=20
mandate the broadcast flag digital content-protection technology.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311820?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Barton Voices Support for National Cable Franchising
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=3D9463
(requires free registration)
* No Media Rules, Broadcast Flags In 109th Congress
http://www.billboardradiomonitor.com/radiomonitor/news/business/leg_reg/...
icle_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D1002076444

SOME DTV ISSUES COULD MAKE TELECOM BILL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Lisa Sutherland, staff director for Senate=20
Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens=20
(R-Alaska), says that the senator hopes to roll=20
some of the unresolved DTV issues into the 1996=20
Telecom Act rewrite being marked up in his=20
committee next month. The issues were unresolved=20
after Senate rules required the DTV hard date=20
bill to confine itself to that date and the=20
establishment of a subsidy for DTV converter=20
boxes since both involved money (funds for the=20
converter and revenues from the auction of=20
reclaimed analog spectrum after the DTV=20
conversion), and the bill was a budget=20
reauthorization measure limited to money-related=20
items only. One DTV issue the committee is likely=20
to approve, said Sutherland, is the broadcast=20
flag, which protects DTV broadcasts from=20
unauthorized digital redistribution. At recent=20
hearings, the committee seemed in general=20
agreement on the need for the flag. Other issues=20
that could be added to the telecom bill include=20
cable's downconversion of broadcasters DTV=20
signals, and allowing unlicensed wireless devices=20
in the "white areas" between broadcasters' DTV channels.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311617?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

NAB SETS SALE FOR CAPITOL HILL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Broadcasters are descending on Washington this=20
week -- not to cover the pressing issues of the=20
day, but to lobby lawmakers on their priorities=20
which include a bill requiring satellite radio to=20
be a national-only service, retransmission=20
consent and indecency. The broadcasters -- who=20
will be meeting individually with their Congress=20
folk today -- also got what is in effect an issue=20
order form so that they can record their lobbying=20
progress on key issues, with places to check off=20
the legislator's response: "Supports Our=20
Position," "Opposes Our Position," "Has No=20
Position," "Not Discussed." There will even be an=20
incentive bonus for broadcasters who return the=20
forms: Two names will be drawn at random from=20
those and each will get $100. The seven=20
"color-coded" issues for which Rehr and NAB are=20
looking to get a legislative check-off: 1)=20
Supports broadcasters on down conversion,=20
multicasting, and treating stations the same=20
regarding cable carriage; 2) "Will co-sponsor=20
H.R. 998 (the satellite radio bill); 3) Will give=20
media campaign time to develop before legislating=20
indecency; 4) Will allow industry time to work on=20
audio broadcast flag solution; 5) Will protect=20
digital television content with a broadcast flag;=20
6) Will oppose a performance right tax on local=20
broadcasters; 7) Understands local broadcasters=92=20
community service." Eventually all that=20
information will be collected in books by state, then put into a database.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311574?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

SENATE PANEL TO CONSIDER PROPOSAL ON TV 'INDECENCY'
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
The Senate Commerce Committee will consider=20
legislation on television "indecency" this=20
spring, the panel's staff director, Lisa=20
Sutherland, told a state leadership conference=20
sponsored by the National Association of=20
Broadcasters. She would not specify whether the=20
upcoming bill would be limited to broadcasters or=20
also affect cable and satellite providers. The=20
committee would consider provisions authored by=20
Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) to base indecency fines=20
on stations' ability to pay. The planned bill=20
would be the counterpart to House-passed=20
legislation that would raise fines for broadcast=20
indecency from $32,500 to $500,000 per=20
infraction. In November, Technology Daily=20
obtained a draft measure floated by the Senate=20
Commerce Committee that is similar to the House version.
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-MWJE1141162289209.html
See also --
* Sen. Stevens Needs a Bridge to Decency
[SOURCE: Human Events Online, AUTHOR: Jan LaRue, Concerned Women for Americ=
a]
[Commentary] Concerned Women for America push=20
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens=20
(R-Alaska) to bring S.193, a bill introduced by=20
Sen. Sam Brownback (R.-Kan.), up for a vote. The=20
bill would increase the penalties for television=20
and radio broadcasters who are liable for=20
broadcasting obscene, indecent and profane=20
language to $325,000 for each violation, not to=20
exceed a total of $3 million for a continuing=20
violation. It has 27 co-sponsors, Republicans and Democrats.
http://www.humaneventsonline.com/article.php?id=3D12820

SENATORS BACK NEW BROADBAND TAXES
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Anne Broache]
At a Tuesday hearing convened by the Senate=20
Commerce Committee, several senators from largely=20
rural states called for expansion of the=20
Universal Service Fund (USF), a=20
multibillion-dollar pool of money that's=20
currently used to subsidize 1) local telephone=20
service in rural areas, 2) telecommunications=20
services schools, libraries and rural health care=20
centers and 3) basic telephone service in low=20
income households. Several senators said they=20
want to make USF contributions "technology=20
neutral," which for many means scooping up=20
broadband services both as contributors to -- and=20
benefactors of -- the fund. The debate reflects=20
Congress's broader attempt this year to update=20
the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which critics=20
have deemed outdated because it fails to account=20
for the explosion of the Internet.
http://news.com.com/Senators+back+new+broadband+taxes/2100-1034_3-604416...
tml?tag=3Dnefd.top
* Internet Welfare Program -- You Pay, They Play
http://www.technudge.com/2006/02/internet-welfare-program-you-pay-they.html
* The Drumbeat of Universal Service
http://www.vonmag.com/webexclusives/2006/02/28_Drumbeat_of_Universal_Ser...
e.asp
* USF -- The biggest mess of all
http://paulsblog.pulver.com/archives/2006/02/usf_the_biggest.html

NEWS FROM FCC

TATE PUSHES CABLE A LA CARTE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Speaking at a National Association of=20
Broadcasters State Leadership Conference in=20
Washington, new FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor=20
Tate said she's been talking to cable operators=20
about a la carte pricing. She supports family=20
tiers, but don't think they go far enough for=20
families that complain about cable prices when=20
they have to block half the channels. On another=20
issue, Commissioner Tate said she had been=20
meeting with broadcasters about what positive=20
steps they could take to combat childhood=20
obesity. She repeatedly struck the theme of the=20
industry's power to do good, saying she thought=20
broadcaster efforts were responsible for helping=20
raise immunization rates in her home state of=20
Tennessee, and had come up with an impressive campaign to combat drug abuse.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311589?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Tate Touts "Regulatory Humility"
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311586?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Tate Concerned About Family Tiers
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6311840.html?display=3DBreaking+News
(requires subscription)
* FCC's Tate Pressures Cable on Channel Choice
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D100...
6446

NAB: FCC INDECENCY ACTION LIKELY
[SOURCE: MediaWeek, AUTHOR: Todd Shields]
Marsh MacBride, the top lawyer for the National=20
Association of Broadcasters and a former FCC=20
official, told broadcasters gathered in=20
Washington that press reports are true -- FCC=20
indecency decisions will be issued =93very=20
shortly.=94 She expects defensive legal action by=20
networks affected by the forthcoming decisions.=20
The NAB will join in such defenses, MacBride said.
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D100...
6514

MORE ON TELECOM POLICY

TIME RUNNING OUT ON BIG CARRIERS
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Gary Morgenthaler, Morgenthaler Ventures ]
[Commentary] Some have described the Regional=20
Bell Operating Companies as "glaciers" because=20
they are slow to innovate, but once started,=20
nearly impossible to stop. Five years ago these=20
RBOC companies lived up to that appellation by=20
grinding to dust the dozens of so-called=20
Competitive Local Exchange Carriers that emerged=20
after the 1996 Telecommunications Act to=20
challenge their hegemony. But now they face=20
another entrepreneurial challenge from companies=20
that want to lop off the RBOCs' most reliable=20
source of profitability: traditional voice=20
traffic. Skype, with more than 70 million=20
subscribers and the backing of its new owner,=20
eBay, is the most prominent challenger. But other=20
providers of largely free voice over Internet=20
Protocol are also coming on strong: Google,=20
Microsoft, Yahoo, Vonage and the cable companies.=20
Can RBOCs continue in anything close to their=20
present form? This time, I believe, the answer is=20
"no." I bet within three to five years, all we=92re=20
going to see of RBOCs will be a sizable pool of=20
water. What Internet pioneer Vinton Cerf called=20
the "commoditization of transport" will have=20
forever melted RBOCs and their hopes for market=20
dominance and high profit margins.
http://news.com.com/2010-1037_3-6043751.html?part=3Drss&tag=3D6043751&subj=
=3Dnews
* Net Neutrality Reading List
http://www.iptablog.org/2006/02/28/net_neutrality_reading_list.html

COMMUNICATIONS POLICY FOR 2006 AND BEYOND
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Law Journal,=20
AUTHOR: Reed E. Hundt and Gregory L. Rosston]
Hundt and Rossen propose sweeping changes to the=20
current telecommunications regulatory regime.=20
With impending reform in telecommunications laws,=20
they argue that an important first step is the=20
creation of a bipartisan, independent commission=20
to examine and recommend implementation of more=20
market-oriented communications policy. Through=20
maximizing the operation of the markets, the=20
authors argue that communications policy will=20
better serve its goals of increasing business=20
productivity and consumer welfare through the=20
better services and lower prices. Important steps=20
to achieve optimal market operation include=20
deregulating retail prices where multifirm=20
competition is available, minimizing the cost of=20
public property inputs, overhauling universal=20
service, assigning greater jurisdictional=20
authority to federal regulators, and=20
significantly reorganizing the FCC. The Authors=20
argue that the timely implementation of these=20
policies is crucial for achieving United States=20
telecommunications policy goals.
http://www.law.indiana.edu/fclj/pubs/v58/no1/HundtPDF.pdf

VIVE LA DIFFERENCE!
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Frazier Moore]
[Commentary] For cable subscribers, "a la carte"=20
sounds appetizing: Pay only for the channels you=20
want. Spare your family from networks you never=20
watch and don't want your kids exposed to. And=20
save money in the process. But what if you like=20
the current pricing system? You subscribe to a=20
tier of cable or satellite service, then get a=20
bundle of channels. The more you pay, the wider=20
the selection of channels. Also viewers may=20
indeed watch only 17 channels. But over time,=20
those 17 could vary. Viewers' tastes change and=20
what they choose to watch can reflect that, if the options are there.
http://www.startribune.com/154/story/276827.html

VOTE SENDS INDIANA TELECOM BILL TO GOVERNOR
[SOURCE: Louisville Courier-Journal, AUTHOR: Lesley Stedman Weidenbener]
A sweeping bill that would remove price controls=20
on local phone service in Indiana and make it=20
easier for telephone companies to compete with=20
cable firms there is on its way to Gov. Mitch=20
Daniels (R) after the House approved it Tuesday.=20
Gov Daniels is expected to sign House Bill 1279=20
into law amid claims by supporters that the bill=20
will create massive telecommunications=20
investments and jobs in the state. But opponents=20
contend that phone rates will increase while=20
service drops. The House approved it 78-18. The=20
bill will make Indiana the second state in the=20
nation to create a statewide video franchise,=20
eliminating the need for companies that want to=20
provide cable or cable-like services to negotiate=20
individually with each community where they want=20
to do business. Instead, phone companies=20
including AT&T (formerly SBC) and Verizon could=20
fill out a single statewide form and then offer=20
television services over their upgraded phone networks.
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=3D/20060228/NEW...
/60228033/1025

JOURNALISM

BUSH: MEDIA HAD MORE DETAILS ON KATRINA THAN GOVERNMENT
[SOURCE: Reuters]
President George W. Bush, who has acknowledged=20
failings in the federal response to Hurricane=20
Katrina, said on Tuesday that the media had=20
better details about the catastrophe than the=20
government did. "There was no situational=20
awareness, and that means that we weren't getting=20
good, solid information from people who were on=20
the ground, and we need to do a better job," Bush=20
told ABC News. "In many cases we were relying=20
upon the media," he said. "And when you have the=20
media have better situational awareness than the=20
government, the American people are saying, 'Wait=20
a minute. What is happening?'" Bush said that=20
during the Gulf Coast disaster that killed about=20
1,300 people and left tens of thousands homeless,=20
the information flow within the government was=20
hampered by difficulties in getting=20
communications equipment to work. He said federal=20
agencies have been working to improve that.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=3DpoliticsNews&storyID=
=3D2006-02-28T214916Z_01_N28171764_RTRUKOC_0_US-BUSH-KATRINA.xml&archived=
=3DFalse
* Bush Cheers Decline of Mainstream Media
[SOURCE: Drudge Report]
President Bush, for the first time, is hailing=20
the rise of the alternative media and the decline=20
of the mainstream media, which he now says=20
=93conspired=94 to harm him with forged documents.
http://www.drudgereport.com/flash3wsb.htm

'48 HOURS' -- A PEEK AT SHOW-BIZ 'JOURNALISM'
[SOURCE: Columbia Daily Tribune, AUTHOR: Henry J. Waters III, Publisher]
[Commentary] A look at how show business=20
masquerading as journalism is practiced on television.
http://www.columbiatribune.com/2006/Feb/20060227Comm001.asp

QUICKLY

TV MAY BE FREE BUT NOT THAT FREE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Dawn C. Chmielewski and Meg James]
Although still far behind music, television shows=20
represent the fastest-growing type of files=20
downloaded online. As Internet speeds increase=20
and software improves, almost anyone can get=20
high-quality bootlegs of such popular shows as=20
"Desperate Housewives," "24" and "The O.C." --=20
minus the commercials that make "free" TV free.=20
In fact, some people now use file sharing as a=20
source of on-demand programming, outpacing the=20
industry's efforts to set up their own=20
pay-for-view services. Instead of programming a=20
VCR or digital video recorder to record the=20
latest episode of FX's "Nip/Tuck," these users=20
simply download it the next day. Clicking the=20
mouse instead of the remote has dramatic=20
implications for the TV industry. Producers of=20
popular programs often take in as much as a third=20
of their revenue from foreign sales =97 a pot of=20
money that would presumably evaporate if overseas=20
downloading catches on. As downloads increase,=20
executives have to figure out how to convince peter it's stealing.
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fi-tvpirate1mar01,1,19...
22.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-frontpage
(requires registration)

ONLINE COLLEGES RECEIVE BOOST FROM CONGRESS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Sam Dillon]
Colleges will no longer be required to deliver at=20
least half their courses on a campus instead of=20
online to qualify for federal student aid. That=20
change is expected to be of enormous value to the=20
commercial education industry. Although both=20
for-profit colleges and traditional ones have=20
expanded their Internet and online offerings in=20
recent years, only a few dozen universities are=20
fully Internet-based, and most of them are=20
for-profit ones. The provision is just one sign=20
of how an industry that once had a dubious=20
reputation has gained new influence, with=20
well-connected friends in the government and many=20
Congressional Republicans sympathetic to their entrepreneurial ethic.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/01/national/01educ.html
(requires registration)

COMPUTING ERROR
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Editorial Staff]
[Commentary] The outsourcing of computing work=20
overseas may not be as bad as you think. In fact,=20
it probably isn't bad at all. Consider one recent=20
study that says the problem isn't so much the=20
competition from high-tech workers in places as=20
far-flung as India and Romania as it is the=20
discouragement caused by the doomsayers=20
themselves. The Association for Computing=20
Machinery, the professional organization that=20
issued the report, says that there are more=20
information technology jobs today than at the=20
height of the dot-com boom. While 2 to 3 percent=20
of American jobs in the field migrate to other=20
nations each year, new jobs have thus far more=20
than made up for the loss. Information technology=20
jobs won't go away unless we let them. Computing=20
in the past five years has become, according to=20
the report, "a truly global industry." In the=20
next few years, jobs won't just land in our laps.=20
We have nothing to fear but the fear of competing itself.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/01/opinion/01wed3.html
(requires registration)

SCHOOLS CRACKING DOWN ON TEEN WEB SITE MYSPACE
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Jason Szep]
Is it a virtual hangout for millions of=20
American teenagers, like a sprawling electronic=20
shopping plaza, or a magnet for sexual predators=20
and pornographers? MySpace.com is a bit of both,=20
say Rhode Island education officials who have=20
banned the fast-growing teen social networking=20
Web site from 80 percent of their schools out of=20
concern is was putting children at risk.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=3DinternetNews&storyID=
=3D2006-03-01T010911Z_01_N28170656_RTRUKOC_0_US-LIFE-MYSPACE.xml

THINK YOUR LAWMAKERS DON'T READ BILLS? DO IT YOURSELF.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Zachary A. Goldfarb]
Rafael DeGennaro has launched the nonprofit=20
ReadtheBill.org to pressure Congress to post=20
bills online 72 hours before they can be called=20
up on the floor. He hopes citizens will search=20
through proposed legislation for questionable=20
items. Bills -- hundreds of pages long and full=20
of legal and bureaucratic jargon -- are usually=20
drafted in public. But lawmakers are able to=20
slide in questionable provisions when public=20
attention is not focused on legislation,=20
especially during the conference sessions between=20
House and Senate committees that negotiate=20
differences in legislation -- behind closed=20
doors. Thomas E. Mann of the Brookings=20
Institution said lawmakers have increasingly=20
abused the earmarking practice. Still, he said he=20
doubts ordinary citizens would read through the=20
bills. Rather, "it would be available for people=20
with an interest one way or another to see what got put in."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/28/AR200602...
1471.html
(requires registration)
--------------------------------------------------------------
...and we're outta here. See you again on Tuesday.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online=20
news summary service provided by the Benton=20
Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday=20
through Friday, this service provides updates on=20
important industry developments, policy issues,=20
and other related news events. While the=20
summaries are factually accurate, their often=20
informal tone does not always represent the tone=20
of the original articles. Headlines are compiled=20
by Kevin Taglang headlines( at )benton.org -- we welcome your comments.
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