July 18, 2008 (Online Consumer Privacy)
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for JULY 18, 2008
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Consumer Privacy and 'Deep Packet Inspection' Explored at House Hearing
Group warns FCC: Comcast's good behavior just a trick
T-Mobile Appeals To FCC To Rethink 'Free Internet' Proposal
Cable Takes Stand Against Child Porn
MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Sirius-XM merger may get OK from FCC
ELECTIONS & MEDIA
Obama and McCain coverage: "Nuts" or a "disgrace"?
Obama Rumors Get More Press Coverage
In Obama Fundraising, Signs of a Shift From Online to In-Person
Obama's Video Guru: How We Owned The YouTube Primary
In Online Politicking, Republicans Play Catch-Up
TELECOM
Consumers: Reject Verizon ETF Plan
BROADCASTING/CABLE
The TV hits that no one watches
LABOR
SAG Formally Rejects AMPTP Contract Offer
Hollywood employment seen dropping in 2008
QUICKLY -- Wilmington Readies for Early DTV Switch; TV Stations Identified as facing Unique Technical Challenges; The Truth About Black America
CONSUMER PRIVACY AND 'DEEP PACKET INSPECTION' EXPLORED AT HOUSE HEARING
[SOURCE: Benton Foundation, AUTHOR: Kevin Taglang]
On Thursday, the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet held a hearing on "deep packet inspection" (DPI) and its implication on online privacy. The Subcommittee is chaired by Rep Ed markey (D-MA) who opened the meeting saying broadband providers deploying deep packet inspection technologies must adopt clear privacy policies: 1) clear, conspicuous, and constructive notice about what broadband provider's use of deep packet inspection will be, 2) meaningful, "opt-in" consent for such use, and 3) no monitoring or data interception of those consumers who do not grant consent for such use. American Civil Liberties Union senior legislative counsel Timothy Sparapani said there is a "massive risk" to privacy from "intrusive deep packet inspection," particularly if the government gets access to it. "Every time we visit the Internet, everything we read, everything we see -- all of it is up for grabs with DPI," he added. "If that information is obtained by the government, then you have exactly zero privacy online." But the ACLU is worried about commercial misapplications, as well, which could lead to discrimination. "DPI could lead to a disparity in Internet speed or pricing based on content, usage or application," Sparapani said. "That would diminish, not help maximize, the Internet's potential."
http://benton.org/node/15330
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GROUP WARNS FCC: COMCAST'S GOOD BEHAVIOR JUST "TRICK PLAY"
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Nate Anderson]
[Commentary] Free Press has filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission noting that Comcast is lying, blocking, flip-flopping, and upping its speeds without making infrastructure investments, but the company's recent public partnerships with companies like BitTorrent are merely a facade designed to keep regulators at bay. But if the FCC's attention falters, says Free Press, Comcast will just do exactly what it did years ago in the old line-sharing debate: beat off regulators, then go back to bad habits. "In short," says the filing, "Comcast's side-deals are the product of government scrutiny and Comcast's desperate desire to frustrate FCC action... We call the Commission's attention to Comcast's pattern of cutting deals when the FCC is looking, and then using market power and bottleneck control to destroy competition when FCC attention moves to new challenges. Indeed, Comcast is using the same playbook with the open Internet that it used a few years ago during the ISP open access debate."
http://benton.org/node/15327
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T-MOBILE APPEALS TO FCC TO RETHINK 'FREE INTERNET' PROPOSAL
[SOURCE: Dow Jones, AUTHOR: Fawn Johnson]
T-Mobile USA, a unit of Deutsche Telekom, flew in its chief technical officer Thursday to plead with the Federal Communications Commission to reconsider an airwave sale in which the winning bidders would have to offer free Internet. T-Mobile is among the most vocal of the companies opposing FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's proposal that firms buying the channels should devote at least 25% to free Internet access for 95% of the country. Other major companies such as AT&T, Texas Instruments, and Motorola, also have weighed in with concerns that the free Internet condition could hurt companies that want their products to be used internationally. John Muleta, who runs M2Z Networks, the startup that originally brought the free Internet idea to the FCC, said opposing companies simply don't want to face another competitor.
http://benton.org/node/15314
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CABLE TAKES STAND AGAINST CHILD PORN
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: ]
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association Thursday announced that 18 of the nation's largest cable and broadband Internet service providers have agreed to block access to any Web sites known to host or distribute illegal child pornography files. The cable operators signed an agreement to work with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG). companies will also report any instances of child pornography they unearth to the NCMEC CyberTipline and, where appropriate, revise their policies around other potential sources of child pornography such as newsgroups and other online bulletin boards. Collectively these companies serve 87% of Internet subscribers (more than 112 million homes). FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell and Sen Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) voiced their support for the deal.
http://benton.org/node/15328
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SIRIUS-XM MERGER MAY GET OF FROM FCC
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: ]
Federal Communications Commission member Jonathan Adelstein may vote to approve the merger of Sirius and XM satellite radio if the companies agree to tougher conditions. He wants the companies to cap prices for six years and make one-quarter of their satellite capacity available for public-interest and minority programming -- 25 percent of the companies' satellite capacity for public interest programming -- 10 percent for noncommercial programming and 15 percent for minority programming. That potentially would work out to about 75 channels. He is proposing that the companies be required to include a digital radio tuner in any radios they subsidize that also include regular, non-digital AM-FM service. Adelstein also wants to set up an enforcement regime to make sure the companies adhere to the conditions, something that was not outlined in the previous voluntary offer.
http://benton.org/node/15329
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OBAMA AND MCCAIN COVERAGE: "NUTS" OR A "DISGRACE"?
[SOURCE: Media Matters for America, AUTHOR: Eric Boehlert]
[Commentary] Recently entire news organizations opted to throw all sorts of time and attention at what was essentially a pointless campaign-related sideshow, while simultaneously displaying blanket indifference to what should have been the campaign story of the week, if not the month or possibly the entire summer. Last week, the Beltway press unanimously decided that Rev. Jesse Jackson's whispered comments, picked up on a live television set mic, in which he expressed anger with Sen. Barack Obama and used some crude language to convey his sentiments, represented a hugely important event. It was the most-covered campaign story of the week. By contrast, McCain said at a campaign appearance in Denver on July 7 that the Social Security system as structured in America, in which younger people pay taxes to support the benefits of retirees, is an "absolute disgrace" -- but his proclamation was mostly passed over as being irrelevant. The disconnect between the coverage was astounding.
http://benton.org/node/15322
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OBAMA RUMORS GET MORE PRESS COVERAGE
[SOURCE: Project for Excellence in Journalism, AUTHOR:]
As America gets to know Sen Barack Obama better, the media has increased its coverage of rumors that he's a secret Muslim whose patriotism is questionable. The rumors were first circulated via blogs and e-mail and the media narrative about these rumors consumed 0.4% of the campaign newshole from March 13 - April 12. Since then, however, coverage of this storyline has steadily increased -- and in June it gained momentum. The early evidence, at least, suggests, this story line is not going away.
http://benton.org/node/15321
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IN OBAMA FUNDRAISING, SIGNS OF A SHIFT FROM ONLINE TO IN-PERSON
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Matthew Mosk]
Sen Barack Obama reversed a three-month fundraising slide by raising $52 million in June. Obama's campaign would not say how much of his total was raised from small donors who gave online, and official reports are not due to be filed until Sunday. But an examination of his campaign schedule -- which has been packed with high-dollar fundraising events -- would suggest that he relied less on Internet donors than he did in February, when he took in $55.4 million. Campaign aides said that the campaign is no longer seeing the kind of online bonanza that occurred during Obama's long battle with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, when more than $1 million was flowing in each day. The unpredictable nature of Internet giving has added some risk to Obama's decision to forgo federal campaign funding and to commit hundreds of millions of dollars to developing a massive national field operation. By becoming the first to turn away $84.1 million in federal money since it was first made available to presidential candidates, Obama will have to rely heavily on Internet donors to compete with McCain after Labor Day.
http://benton.org/node/15320
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OBAMA'S VIDEO GURU: HOW WE OWNED THE YOUTUBE PRIMARY
[SOURCE: Silicon Valley Insider, AUTHOR: Michael Learmonth]
At the polls, the Democratic primary was a squeaker. Online, however, it wasn't close: Barack Obama dominated the discourse and steamrolled Hillary Clinton in every relevant metric, including the number of people watching Obama-related video online. Indeed, one of the more impressive achievements of Obama's organization is the way it churns out video after video. Much of that is the work of Obama's director of field video production, 32-year-old Arun Chaudhary. Obama's biggest advantage, Chaudhary said, was that his organization took video seriously from the start. Chaudhary's theory on all this: The technology was available to do all of this, at this scale, four years ago. But it has taken this long for mainstream America to get comfortable with online video.
http://benton.org/node/15325
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IN ONLINE POLITICKING, REPUBLICANS PLAY CATCH-UP
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Amy Schatz]
About 400 conservative activists, mostly from Texas, are expected for the "RightOnline" gathering this weekend, which will focus on improving conservative Internet efforts. Studies suggest there's no lack of Republicans online who are looking for political news or reading conservative blogs. But they aren't embracing the Internet for low-cost fund raising and organizing as fervently as Democratic activists. Young Republican Internet strategists argue things may not be that great now, but they're working on it.
http://benton.org/node/15319
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CONSUMERS: REJECT VERIZON ETF PLAN
[SOURCE: hearusnow.org, AUTHOR: Bob Williams]
[Commentary] There are increasing rumors the Federal Communications Commission is about to quietly ram through new rules written by wireless phone industry covering those ubiquitous early termination penalties they charge. Under an all-but-laughable banner of protecting consumers, Verizon Wireless recently presented FCC Chairman Kevin Martin with a plan to take away the current regulatory and legal authorities of states over early termination fees (ETFs), effectively stifling current and future consumer lawsuits at the state level on ETFs. In exchange for this sweeping preemption of state authority by the FCC over ETFs and the accompanying sweeping away of billions of dollars in potential damages in consumer lawsuits, the wireless companies are giving up literally next to nothing.
http://benton.org/node/15326
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THE TV HITS THAT NO ONE WATCHES
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Scott Collins]
this year's Emmy nominations may be most notable for underscoring a growing cultural trend: the yawning gap between what critics and industry veterans cherish and what the rest of the public actually watches. It's the relentless narrowing of what was once, in a pre-Internet era, a mass culture, a shift that mirrors what's happening in movies, books and other art forms. Scripted series traditionally netted some of the biggest audiences in television history. But now TV's comedies and dramas are, with a sprinkling of exceptions, becoming expensive diversions for the cultural elite, akin to opera in the 19th century or foreign films in the 1960s. The TV masses tend to flock these days to major sporting events -- such as February's Super Bowl telecast on Fox, which drew a record audience of 97.5 million -- and live reality shows such as "American Idol" or "Dancing With the Stars."
http://benton.org/node/15317
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SAG FORMALLY REJECTS AMPTP CONTRACT OFFER
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Linda Haugsted]
The Screen Actors Guild has not accepted the June 30 contract offer by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, with the actors' chief negotiator stating that the contract "template" established by pacts with writers and directors does not protect actors. The union cites, as justification for shunning the deal, dozens of investments in media streaming and VOD delivery schemes by major media companies since the beginning of the year. SAG is displeased with the current offer because, for instance, the union believes it gives producers a "pass" on residuals for non-union new media projects, as long as the budget is kept below $15,000 per minute.
http://benton.org/node/15316
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HOLLYWOOD EMPLOYMENT SEEN DROPPING IN 2008
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Paul Bond]
Los Angeles Economic Development Corp estimates that movie and television production employed 157,800 people in the area last year but will drop this year to 151,800. Broken into three subcategories, independent artists, writers and performers will take the biggest hit, losing 8.4% to 9,200 this year. Motion picture and sound is next, with a 4.3% decline to 122,700, and radio, TV and cable broadcasting fares best with 1.6% growth to 20,300. The better news from the LAEDC's midyear report is that growth in the entertainment industry is expected to return next year as the industry makes up for the labor unrest that has hampered it this year.
http://benton.org/node/15315
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WILMINGTON READIES FOR EARLY DTV SWITCH
[SOURCE: tvnewsday, AUTHOR: Kim McAvoy, Harry Jessell]
A look at the voluntary efforts of commercial TV broadcasters in Wilmington (NC) to become the first television market in the US to transition to digital-only broadcasting. With their switch date just 53 days away, the broadcasters are meeting weekly along with representatives of the National Association of broadcasters and officials at the Federal Communications Commission. Their conference calls are aimed primarily at making sure that viewers who rely on the over-the-air analog reception are aware of what's going on and are prepared to receive digital signals on Sept. 8. The market's two public TV stations, WUNJ and WUNU, licensed to the University of North Carolina, have opted out of the trial because the state uses all the stations in the UNC system for emergency communications.
http://benton.org/node/15318
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TELEVISION STATIONS IDENTIFIED AS FACING UNIQUE TECHNICAL CHALLENGE
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
The Federal Communications Commission has determined 20 US television stations face "unique technical challenges" and their digital television construction deadline has been delayed until February 17, 2009.
http://benton.org/node/15324
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THE TRUTH ABOUT BLACK AMERICA
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: Pepper Miller]
[Commentary] Radio One (the largest U.S. radio broadcasting company targeting Black Americans) commissioned a recently released study called "Black America Today." Among the findings presented by study team member Miller: The digital divide is over. Done. Stick a fork in it! Sixty-eight percent of African Americans vs. 71% of all Americans are online and two-thirds shop online. The study identified 11 specific segments within Black America today, ranging from Connected Black Teens, Digital Networkers and Black Onliners at the younger end to Faith Fulfills, Broadcast Blacks and Boomer Blacks at the older end.
http://benton.org/node/15323
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... and we're outta here. have a great weekend.