October 2008

Michael Calabrese, director of the foundation's Wireless Future Program, said policymakers should "Take TV off the air" in a few years because smart radio technology is ready to provide wireless broadband without interference. To open all TV spectrum to wireless broadband, over-the-air broadcasts should be replaced entirely by cable, satellite and Internet viewing, he said. All channels should be available by broadband, with the government possibly subsidizing cable and satellite providers to deliver free Lifeline service, Calabrese said.

[Commentary] White-space wireless promises to fix one of rural America's big problems: a lack of broadband connectivity. Because it takes a lot of money to run miles of wires, plenty of people in rural areas are stuck with slow dial-up or unreliable satellite connections. Most exciting is the possibility that white-space wireless might be unlicensed: It might be open to anyone who can build a qualifying device­not just to one big company that can buy up the rights. Unlicensed spectrum creates low prices, competition, and innovation­just look at Wi-Fi. The FCC already has approved white-space broadband for "fixed" devices like home modems; now it's debating "mobile" devices like phones and laptop air cards. Yes, we need to make sure that white space doesn't interfere with TV, our precious, precious TV. But we need to keep up pressure on our Members of Congress and the government to tell them we want unlicensed white-space access. Everyone deserves the Internet.

MPG, an agency owned by global advertising and communications services group Havas, is predicting that Sen Barack Obama will win the 2008 presidential election. OK, sure, a number of people are doing that, but MPG is even providing the margin of victory in the battleground states, as opposed to identifying which candidate is ahead at the present time, which is what most polls indicate. According to Joe Abruzzo, evp, research at MPG who oversaw the development of Resonance, the tool uses "agent-based" algorithm modeling to predict consumer behavior. The shop is rolling out the new tool to clients to help them predict behavior and consumer attitudes toward products and brands. For the election prediction, MPG tabulated the responses of 1,200 "likely" voters that were quizzed on a number of issues concerning the two presidential candidates such as trust, leadership and consistency of their stands. Also tossed into the mix: views being expressed across the blogosphere, as well as the media strategies and messages that the candidates are likely to use in the remaining weeks of the campaign.

European Union Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding said the global financial crisis may hit new telecommunications operators harder than the established firms and argued against calls for lighter regulation of the industry. Attending an event in Venice organized by the European Telecommunications Network Operators' Association (ETNO), she told more than a dozen chief executives of European telco operators and suppliers, "Some of you also have come to me in the past weeks and told me that now, because of the financial crisis, it would be time to soften or even to abandon telecoms regulation." But she argued the financial crisis had strengthened the case of those who argued for closer regulation of that sector. "There is a very interesting lesson from the ongoing financial crisis for the overall perception of regulation. It is certainly not over-regulation that has caused the financial crisis," Reding said.