May 2007

On the agenda for next week: 1) a hearing on=20
Communications and Taxation, 2) a meeting of the=20
Commercial Mobile Service Alert Advisory=20
Committee, 3) Prologue to a Farce: Communication=20
and Democracy in America, and 4) the=20
International Summit for Community Wireless=20
Networks. For these and other upcoming media=20
policy events, see http://www.benton.org

NEWS FROM CONGRESS
Politicos take on YouTube, video's future
Senator Rockefeller Introduces Broadband Resolution
Hearing: Broadband Mapping and Data Collection
TV violence bill heads to Senate next week

INTERNET/BROADBAND
"National" broadband policy a stalking horse for regulating Internet
Municipal Wi-Fi: A Failure To Communicate
Who's afraid of Google?
Google shareholders vote down proposal on censorship

BROADCASTING/CABLE
TV Station Revs Up 8.2% To $22.5 Billion
Super Bowl ad for $2.7M also buys MySpace posting
NTIA Chief Analyzes FCC Cable Plan
Cable Advertising Hopes to Get Politically Correct
Cable's 'Million Dollar Eyeballs' Study

CONTENT
Local news reporting outsourced to India
Hollywood set to filter on-screen smoking

QUICKLY -- Rural Coalition, Sprint Nextel Escalate Call-Blocking Battle

NEWS FROM CONGRESS

POLITICOS TAKE ON YOUTUBE, VIDEO'S FUTURE
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Anne Broache]
Thursday's House Telecom Subcommittee hearing=20
explored the future of video. It quickly became=20
apparent that the hearing wasn't just a playful=20
show-and-tell for the companies represented, as=20
some politicians proceeded to put YouTube in the=20
hot seat over its copyright policies. YouTube CEO=20
Chad Hurley defended the site's practices as in=20
compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright=20
Act, a federal law designed to shield Internet=20
hosts from liability provided that they meet=20
certain requirements and respond to notices from=20
copyright holders to remove offending content.=20
The event also turned into yet another debate=20
over enacting so-called Net neutrality laws, with=20
Democrats continuing to urge such a move and=20
Republicans decrying them as unnecessary regulation.
http://news.com.com/Politicos+take+on+YouTube%2C+videos+future/2100-1028...
6182900.html?tag=3Dhtml.alert.hed
* Markey Makes First 'HillTube' Clip
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
House Telecommunications Subcommittee Chairman Ed=20
Markey (D-Mass.) pulled out a digital camera at=20
the start of a subcommittee hearing on the future=20
of digital video Thursday and began taking=20
pictures of fellow committee members, the audience, and the press.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6440949.html?rssid=3D193
* Chairman Markey's opening statement
"Today the Subcommittee will explore the future=20
of video more broadly. This inquiry will run the=20
gamut -- from high resolution, high definition=20
digital on big screens to digital wireless video=20
services on mobile gadgets and finally, to the=20
video services and technologies enhanced by a=20
high speed, open architecture Internet. It is a=20
future characterized by services that may compete=20
with the movies or traditional television, as=20
well as by services and technologies that will=20
complement the video experience consumers have been used to for years."
http://markey.house.gov/index.php?option=3Dcom_content&task=3Dview&id=3D...
9&Itemid=3D141
* House Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell's opening statement
"I will pay particular attention to the impact of=20
digital video on local media outlets. This=20
Committee has worked in the past to see that=20
local media outlets, including television=20
broadcasters, adequately serve their local=20
communities. It is clear that the advent of=20
digital video is both an opportunity and a=20
challenge for local broadcasters. It is an=20
opportunity to better serve local communities=20
with increased coverage and more delivery=20
options. It also presents challenges to a=20
business model centered on advertising."
http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_110/110st49.shtml
* Eshoo Troubled By Cable=92s Switch Digital Plans
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) voiced concern Thursday=20
that a new capacity-expanding cable technology=20
would disable digital set-top boxes that rely on=20
CableCards to unscramble content, frustrating=20
attempts by Congress to allow consumers to shop=20
at retail stores for channel-surfing devices.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6441140.html?rssid=3D196
* TV Plugs May Need Regulating, Says Raymond Creator
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Everybody Loves Raymond creator/executive=20
producer Phil Rosenthal said Thursday that the=20
government may have to step in and regulate=20
product integration, which he said adversely=20
affects the creative community and is being=20
forced on it by studios, though he later=20
clarified to say that the key was disclosure to=20
the public that the products were being hawked.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6440974.html?rssid=3D193
* Cuban: 'Net Can't Handle Streaming HD
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
HDNet founder Mark Cuban downplayed the future of=20
live Internet streaming as the Internet is=20
currently configured, a technology he pioneered=20
with broadcast.com, while pitching the future of=20
high-definition television, his latest venture.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6440959.html?rssid=3D193
* Rep Ed Markey Interviews YouTube's Chad Hurley
http://463.blogs.com/the_463/2007/05/rep_ed_markey_i.html
* Mostly Pleasant Surprises and One Expected=20
Unpleasantness at "Future of Video" Hearing
http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/934

SENATOR ROCKEFELLER INTRODUCES BROADBAND RESOLUTION
[SOURCE: TMCNet, AUTHOR: Greg Galitzine]
Senator John D. Rockefeller IV has introduced a=20
resolution calling for the creation of a National=20
Broadband Policy with the goal of becoming a =93100=20
Megabit Nation=94 by 2015. Sen Rockefeller believes=20
that, =93A national broadband policy is critical to=20
the future of our country,=94 and, =93would provide a=20
tremendous social and economic benefit,=94 to all=20
Americans. He cited popular video and social=20
networking sites such as YouTube and MySpace and=20
how they have become such integral parts of=20
society. He stressed that those popular sites are=20
just scratching the surface when it comes to the=20
transformational power of broadband. Sen=20
Rockefeller proposed a roadmap towards=20
establishing a set of goals. =93The first step in=20
going somewhere is to know where you are going,=20
and the same is true in public policy.=94 By the=20
end of 2007, we should establish a national goal=20
and pass a series of policy actions designed to=20
achieve our national goal. There will likely be=20
multiple parts to the plan, and we will likely=20
need to modify those parts over time. But if we=20
do not have a plan, we cannot expect to=20
accomplish our goal.=94 Sen Rockefeller suggests=20
policy actions such as tax incentives to spur the=20
private sector to act more aggressively in=20
pursuit of this goal. He believes that Government=20
should offer low-interest loans, and he calls for=20
reform of the Universal Service Fund to encourage broadband deployment.
http://internetcommunications.tmcnet.com/topics/broadband-mobile/article...
779-senator-rockefeller-introduces-broadband-resolution.htm

HEARING: BROADBAND MAPPING AND DATA COLLECTION
[SOURCE: House of Representatives Commerce Committee]
The House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and=20
the Internet will hold a Legislative Hearing on=20
H.R.____, a Discussion Draft Addressing Broadband=20
Mapping and Data Collection. Thursday May 17 at=20
2:00 p.m. in room 2322 Rayburn House Office Building
http://energycommerce.house.gov/membios/schedule.shtml

TV VIOLENCE BILL HEADS TO SENATE NEXT WEEK
[SOURCE: Reuters]
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) is set to introduce=20
legislation next week aimed at protecting=20
children from violent television programming. The=20
bill is likely include some of the=20
recommendations from a recent government report=20
that concludes Congress could craft laws to=20
regulate violent content without trampling on=20
constitutional protections for free speech.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=3DtelevisionNews&sto...
D=3D2007-05-10T233123Z_01_N10192976_RTRIDST_0_TELEVISION-VIOLENCE-DC.XML

INTERNET/BROADBAND

"NATIONAL" BROADBAND PLAN A STALKING HORSE FOR REGULATING INTERNET
[SOURCE: Scott Cleland]
[Commentary] A "national broadband plan" is a=20
codeword for a 1970's-style government=20
"industrial policy" where the government decides=20
what technologies consumers get and which=20
companies will succeed of fail. By arbitrarily=20
choosing speeds and arbitrarily setting=20
timetables for deployment, the government is=20
setting itself up to take a much more proactive=20
and interventionist role in heavily regulating=20
and managing broadband competition into a utility-like system.
http://www.precursorblog.com/node/389

MUNICIPAL WI-FI: A FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: ]
EarthLink plans to undercut traditional broadband=20
prices. That starts with a $21.95 monthly plan,=20
or $3.95 per hour, for Internet access anywhere=20
in a city, indoors or out. What that gives you,=20
when it works, is impressive. But the challenge=20
for municipal Wi-Fi providers is to deliver=20
broadband-like reliability. Wireless consultant=20
Novarum found that it got connections only 72% of=20
the time for the 20 Anaheim sites where=20
EarthLink's service was working. Cell phones,=20
Novarum notes, work about 86% of the time.=20
EarthLink maintains that Feather, which is now in=20
40% of Anaheim, connects 90% of the time indoors=20
and 95% outdoors. But in buildings of more than=20
three stories, you need additional receivers to=20
boost the signal. That's also true, I found out,=20
in Starbucks, McDonald's, and other businesses with competing Wi-Fi.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_21/b4035084.htm?campaign...
=3Drss_magzn

WHO'S AFRAID OF GOOGLE?
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Verne Kopytoff]
For a company that pledged to not be evil, Google=20
makes a lot of enemies. From Madison Avenue to=20
Hollywood, some of industry's most powerful=20
entities are marshaling their forces to combat a=20
company that has risen to the top of the business=20
world in less than a decade. Fear is the=20
motivating factor. And with every passing=20
quarter, there is more to be worried about if you=20
count Google as a competitor. Since going public=20
in 2004, the Internet giant's market value has=20
grown to dwarf Disney and McDonald's combined.=20
Earlier this year, it became the most visited Web=20
property in the world and was named the world's=20
most valuable brand. And its runaway success in=20
search and advertising has big corporations like=20
AT&T and Microsoft crying monopoly without a=20
trace of irony. In perhaps the greatest testament=20
to Google's power, media reports surfaced late=20
last week that its archival Yahoo was considering=20
teaming up with Microsoft in an effort to=20
compete. "Essentially, the new Microsoft is=20
Google," said Jeff Clavier, a prominent Silicon Valley investor in startups.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=3D/c/a/2007/05/11/GOOGLE.TMP

GOOGLE SHAREHOLDERS VOTE DOWN PROPOSAL ON CENSORSHIP
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Elinor Mills]
Google shareholders rejected a proposal on=20
Thursday to require the search giant to set=20
policies to protect freedom of access to the=20
Internet and not self-censor. Google "must make=20
special efforts to avoid being seen as complicit=20
in human rights abuses...and not be proactive in=20
censorship," said Patrick Doherty, a=20
representative of the New York City Pension Fund,=20
which submitted the resolution. When it created=20
its Web search site for China, Google said it=20
would remove results from its www.google.cn Web=20
site that would likely offend the Chinese=20
government. Yahoo shareholders face several=20
similar resolutions at their annual meeting.
http://news.com.com/Google+shareholders+vote+down+proposal+on+censorship...
00-1038_3-6182997.html?tag=3Dnefd.top

BROADCASTING/CABLE

TV STATION REVS UP 8.2% TO $22.5 BILLION
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
TV station revenue in 2006 was $22.5 billion, up=20
8.2% from the year before, according to financial=20
advisor BIA Financial Network Spanish-language TV=20
beat the average by rising 10.3%. BIA attributed=20
the gain to more widely available programming and=20
predicting it would beat the average in 2007 "and=20
beyond." BIA analyst Mark Fratrick was=20
attributing much of that gain to the cyclical=20
boost in ad spending from the elections and Olympics.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6441114.html?rssid=3D193

SUPER BOWL AD FOR $2.7 MILLION ALSO BUYS MYSPACE POSTING
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Bruce Horovitz]
Super Bowl advertisers who buy time on Fox's 2008=20
broadcast of Super Bowl XLII won't get just a=20
30-second ad slot for $2.7 million. They'll also=20
get a bigger Web pop after the game. Responding=20
to demands from marketers for new-media options =97=20
and to worries the ad market will soften =97 News=20
Corp.'s Fox Sports and MySpace and the National=20
Football League announced a partnership on=20
Thursday that would, for the first time, post the=20
game's ads on MySpace.com and link to the=20
marketers' websites. A Super Bowl spot would go=20
from a TV buy to a multimedia buy.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20070511/foxsuperbowl11.art.htm
* Fox, MySpace team with NFL
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN1127017920070511
* Fox's Nesvig: Super Bowl XLII Sales Hit 30%; Adds MySpace Component
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D100...
3809

NTIA CHIEF ANALYZES FCC CABLE PLAN
[SOURCE: Technology Daily 5/8, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
Highlighting the challenges of the digital=20
television transition, a Commerce Department=20
official said that an FCC initiative governing=20
cable carriage of digital broadcast signals may=20
raise thorny First Amendment issues. John Kneuer,=20
the chief of Commerce's National=20
Telecommunications and Information=20
Administration, said that the proposed rules,=20
which are strongly opposed by the cable industry,=20
might interfere with the transition if introduced=20
"at this juncture." The transition deadline is Feb. 17, 2009.
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/2007/05/by_david_hatch_tuesday_may.html#more

CABLE ADVERTISING HOPES TO GET POLITICALLY CORRECT
[SOURCE: Multichannel News 5/9, AUTHOR: Stuart Schley]
Cable=92s pursuit of billions of dollars in 2008=20
political-campaign advertising may be stymied by=20
what one national-campaign strategist called a=20
=93massive lack of flexibility=94 in the way=20
operators handle the placement and airing of=20
spots. That=92s how political media advisor Kyle=20
Roberts described frustrations common to campaign=20
media strategists, who say cable pales in=20
comparison to over-the-air television in adapting=20
to the urgency and scheduling needs of campaigns=20
that often change out spots on the fly. Roberts,=20
president of Smart Media Group, said close to=20
$1.1 billion of the $2.1 billion in advertising=20
tied to 2006 elections was spent in the final 30=20
days leading up to the election.=20
Local-cable-advertising organizations need to be=20
better prepared to deal with a flurry of traffic=20
instructions and copy changes that typify political advertising, he added.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6440563.html

CABLE'S 'MILLION DOLLAR EYEBALLS' STUDY
[SOURCE: AdAge 5/9, AUTHOR: Andrew Hampp]
The cable networks have coined all types of=20
phrases to describe their coveted, upscale=20
viewers -- Discovery's "slambrosia" and Bravo's=20
"affluencers" are two of the more colorful=20
examples -- but a recent survey from Monroe=20
Mendelsohn Research is helping those networks put=20
their viewers where their mouths are. The=20
"Million Dollar Eyeballs" study, conducted=20
between June and September 2006, tabulated how=20
many hours viewers in households above and below=20
the $1 million mark in total income and=20
investments watched cable TV over a seven-day=20
period. Though the usual suspects cropped up (Fox=20
News ranks No. 1 for the upscale set with 7.9=20
hours, Discovery's "slambrosia" watched 3.8 hours=20
to rank sixth in the same category), there were a=20
few surprises. CNBC, the No. 2 network above $1=20
million, had the biggest disparity between its=20
two categories, with 7.3 hours watched in upscale=20
households and 2.6 hours on the other end of the=20
income spectrum. Fox News, while top-ranked among=20
the affluent, dipped to No. 6 in the "under=20
million" category, with ESPN taking top honors among that segment.
http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=3D116591&search_phrase=3D...
lion+eyeballs

CONTENT

LOCAL NEWS REPORTING OUTSOURCED TO INDIA
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Alex Pham]
When is local journalism not really local? When=20
it's about Pasadena and written by someone in=20
India. James Macpherson, editor and publisher of=20
the Pasadena Now website, hired two reporters=20
last weekend to cover the Pasadena City Council.=20
One lives in Mumbai and will be paid $12,000 a=20
year. The other will work in Bangalore for=20
$7,200. The council broadcasts its meetings on=20
the Web. From nearly 9,000 miles away, the=20
outsourced journalists plan to watch, then write=20
their stories while their boss sleeps =97 India is=20
12.5 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time. "A lot=20
of the routine stuff we do can be done by really=20
talented people in another time zone at much=20
lower wages," said Macpherson, 51, who used to=20
run a clothing business with manufacturing help=20
from Vietnam and India. So, on the Indian version=20
of Craigslist, he posted an ad that said in part,=20
"We do not believe that geographic distance=20
between California and India will present=20
unsurmountable problems, and that working=20
together with you will result in your development=20
of a keen working knowledge of this city's=20
affairs." Dozens replied. One of the two chosen=20
had attended the UC Berkeley Graduate School of=20
Journalism. Rob Gunnison, the director of school=20
affairs there, is dismayed. "It just seems so=20
fundamental to journalism to be there," Gunnison=20
said. "I still can't quite believe it's not a hoax."
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-pasadena11may11,1,984...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)

HOLLYWOOD SET TO FILTER ON-SCREEN SMOKING
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Jim Puzzanghera]
Under a policy announced Thursday, the Motion=20
Picture Assn. of America said its movie raters=20
would take into account "depictions that=20
glamorize smoking or movies that feature=20
pervasive smoking outside of a historic or other=20
mitigating context." That makes smoking a major=20
factor to be considered alongside violence,=20
profanity, nudity and drug use by the MPAA's=20
rating board, the Classification and Rating=20
Administration, when deciding the warning parents=20
will get. For filmmakers and studios, the new=20
policy complicates the creative process because a=20
stricter rating can hurt ticket sales. The change=20
in policy is a partial victory for anti-smoking=20
advocates and researchers, who have pressured the=20
MPAA for years to take a tougher stance on the=20
issue. The trade group, however, resisted calls=20
for an even more radical proposal to give films=20
with smoking a mandatory R rating, meaning=20
children under 17 would not be allowed to see=20
them without a parent or guardian.
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fi-moviesmoking11may11...
6942623.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-frontpage
(requires registration)
* Hollywood Ads Adult Smoking To Ratings System
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6441178.html
* Put It Out, Shweetheart
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/10/AR200705...
1347.html
(requires registration)

QUICKLY

RURAL COALITION, SPRINT NEXTEL ESCALATE CALL-BLOCKING BATTLE
[SOURCE: TelecomWeb, AUTHOR: ]
In a continued effort to fight the rise of=20
alleged call-blocking by major telecom players,=20
more than a dozen rural local exchange carriers=20
(LECs) and conferencing providers have banded=20
together to form the Coalition for Carrier=20
Neutrality. On the flip side, Sprint Nextel is=20
taking at least 10 Iowa rural LECs to court.
http://www.telecomweb.com/tnd/23178.html
--------------------------------------------------------------
...and we're outta here. Thanks for reading us. Happy Mother's Day!
http://womenshistory.about.com/od/howejwriting/a/mothers_day.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------
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.
--------------------------------------------------------------