October 2009

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY OCTOBER 20, 2009

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
   Are We Ready to Act on Net Neutrality?: 10 Key Questions That Need Answers
   Internet leaders Support Network Neutrality
   AT&T, carriers fund democratic reps against Network Neutrality
   Vint Cerf, early Web technologists show support for Network Neutrality
   Wireless Offers Challenges and Opportunities for Broadband
   Net neutrality pitting Web giants against state AGs, mayors
   Groups Say FCC Bloggers Exemption Is Discriminatory
   Net Neutrality: A Historical Timeline

BROADBAND
   NATOA stresses importance of local government "Middle Mile" networks in National Broadband Plan
   Low Country Broadband
   Congressional Staffers Need To Understand The Basics Of Broadband

WIRELESS & TELECOM
   Mobile Marvels
   Report: Cable will have growing backhaul opportunities
   Study: Independent telcos still heavily dependent on access revenues
   Verizon's Quad Play Is Happy to Kick Landlines to the Curb
   Apple Profit Surges on IPhone, Macs
   Sprint to Acquire Affiliate iPCS, Ending Legal Disputes

CYBERSECURITY
   Cybersecurity provider says most agencies have already been attacked
   Commerce aide: Cybersecurity bill moving
   Fake security software in millions of computers

OWNERSHIP
   NAB fights rear guard action on ownership reports
   Chernin, Ex-News Corp Executive, Said to Be a Deal Adviser

TELEVISION
   Broadcast Nets Should Program Digital Risks
   A five-step program to save the BBC

JOURNALISM
   More Bad News for Newspaper Industry
   The news is broken
   Health Care Debate Tops News Agenda

MORE ONLINE ...
   Census predicts big fall in responses
   How to Waste Money and Ruin the Census
   Ad Groups Back Microsoft-Yahoo Search Pact
   Obama Appointments Stalled In Senate
   Former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt Joining Skadden
   Lawyers Worry Blagojevich TV Role Will Taint Jury
   Some hotels serve up free phone calls
   Saudi telecoms newcomers find a tangled web

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NETWORK NEUTRALITY

10 NET NEUTRALITY QUESTIONS
[SOURCE: Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, AUTHOR: Robert Atkinson]
Ten key questions policymakers should have a better handle on before deciding on Network Neutrality: 1) Does any favoring of some packets over others by ISPs without individual consumer choice represent a per se violation, or is there some discrimination (blocking, degrading, charging for usage and network management) that is pro-competitive and pro-consumer. 2) What is the record of ISPs with regard to engaging in anti-consumer and/or anti-competitive discrimination in the past? 3) What is the likelihood that ISPs will engage in anti-consumer and/or anti-competitive discrimination in the future? 4) What is the risk to innovation and consumer welfare if ISPs engage in anti-consumer and/or anti-competitive discrimination in the future? 5) How easy is it to accurately detect potential anti-consumer or anti-competitive actions by ISPs in a timely manner? 6) How easy it is it to distinguish between pro-consumer and/or pro-competitive discrimination and anti-consumer and/or anti-competitive discrimination? 7) Is differential pricing by ISPs of different users and/or different content and applications inherently bad, or can differential pricing be pro-consumer and pro-competition, and if so, what are the situations in which it is and is not? 8) Does quick discovery of potential ISP transgressions lead to correction in the marketplace due to public outcry and loss of customers or are ISP's likely be able to "get away with" transgressions absent direct government action? 9) Does the FCC have the legal authority it needs to effectively and expeditiously stop potential anti-competitive and/or anti-consumer ISP practices? 10) Does the FCC have the skill and inclination to effectively and expeditiously stop potential anti-competitive and anti-consumer practices by ISPs, and if they don't can Congressional oversight substitute for this?
benton.org/node/28932 | Information Technology & Innovation Foundation
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INTERNET LEADERS SUPPORT NET NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Amy Schatz]
Twenty-four CEOs and Internet company founders wrote in a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski saying, "We believe a process that results in common sense baseline [Network Neutrality] rules is critical to ensuring that the Internet remains a key engine of economic growth, innovation and global competitiveness." The letter is signed by Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter's Evan Williams, Digg founder Kevin Rose and a few CEOs who are veterans of the Net-Neutrality Wars: Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos, Google's Eric Schmidt and Genachowski's former boss, Barry Diller of IAC/InteractiveCorp. Notably, a few non-Internet companies also signed the letter, including Stan Glasgow, president of Sony Electronics, and Charlie Ergen of satellite-TV provider EchoStar. "An open Internet fuels a competitive and efficient marketplace, where consumers make the ultimate choices about which products succeed and which fail. This allows businesses of all sizes, from the smallest start-up to larger corporations, to compete, yielding maximum economic growth and opportunity," they wrote.
benton.org/node/28931 | Wall Street Journal | CEO's letter | Washington Post | TelephonyOnline
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ISPs FUND NET NEUTRALITY CRITICS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
All but two of the 72 Democratic lawmakers who cautioned last Friday against open-Internet rules have received campaign donations this year from Internet service providers, the companies most likely to be impacted by new regulations. For their most recent election campaigns, the House members received a total of more than $405,000 from the nation's largest carriers, AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and the trade associations representing them, according to a Post analysis of data on Opensecrets. AT&T gave the most: about $180,000 to 52 of the 72 Democratic lawmakers. The company has historically been the biggest donor to Congressional campaigns of any company. Verizon and Comcast each made total donations of about $73,000 to various Representatives on the letter. What was curious about the 72 Democratic members who signed onto the letter last week is that several are freshmen members of the House of Representatives who have never previously weighed in on the issue, said Ben Scott, head of policy for public interest group Free Press. "This is a safe issue for them because they don't have to take a position on it for public record but can still get money for their campaigns by weighing in on it," Scott said. "They are all people who need to get reelected and where small amounts of money make a big difference."
benton.org/node/28930 | Washington Post
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WEB TECHS BACK NET NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
Vint Cerf, Stephen Crocker, David Reed, Lauren Weinstein and Daniel Lynch sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski to say that Network Neutrality rules are necessary to ensure the growth of technology on the Web. "We believe that the existing Internet access landscape in the U.S. provides inadequate choices to discipline the market through facilities-based competition alone," they wrote. They also slammed critics for mischaracterizing the effects of such rules on the Web. "One persistent myth is that 'network neutrality' somehow requires that all packets be treated identically, that no prioritization or quality of service is permitted under such a framework, and that network neutrality would forbid charging users higher fees for faster speed circuits," they wrote. "To the contrary, we believe such features are permitted within a 'network neutral' framework, so long they are not applied in an anti-competitive fashion." Cerf, who co-designed the communications protocols used for the Internet, wrote that a push for stronger Web access rules would create competition and ensure companies that produce applications for the Web aren't blocked by the network operators such as Comcast, Verizon and AT&T.
benton.org/node/28929 | Washington Post | Cerf letter
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WIRELESS OFFERS CHALLENGES FOR BROADBAND
[SOURCE: BroadbandCensus.com, AUTHOR: Mercy Gakii]
Any attempts at regulating the Internet may turn back the good that the industry has enjoyed, and may slow down efforts at innovation, said panelists speaking at a Progress and Freedom Foundation event. Many on the panel touted wireless mobile Internet as the means to get efficient and competitive services to consumers, and they identified the wireless sector as a key component of increased broadband deployment and penetration.
benton.org/node/28928 | BroadbandCensus.com
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NET NEUTRALITY PITTING WEB GIANTS AGAINST AGs, MAYORS
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Matthew Lasar]
Attorney Generals from Washington, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and South Carolina have expressed concerns about possible Network Neutrality rules. South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster wrote to the Federal Communications Commission saying he's "very concerned about any new net neutrality regulations that could adversely impact the communications industry's willingness to continue to invest and, thereby, hinder the future growth of the wireless or wireline Internet industry." Similar concerns have been raised by a veritable army of governors, state representatives, mayors, and local Chambers of Commerce presidents who have suddenly discovered an interest in this issue. "While much progress has been made, the FCC's new focus on wireless network neutrality causes me great concern, because of the negative consequences for investment, innovation and jobs in Connecticut," wrote Tom Buzi, First Selectman of Monroe, Connecticut late last week. "More regulation means less investment—and fewer jobs." Some of this feedback is doubtless being encouraged by the telcos, and we'll have more on that later. But interestingly, the organization that has the most direct stake in Internet job creation is sending mixed signals to the FCC on the matter. On October 15 Larry Cohen, President of the Communications Workers of America sent the FCC a letter warning that any new rules must avoid "an adverse impact on investment and job creation." But the filing also acknowledged that some carefully crafted enforcement and transparency regulations might be a good idea. CWA supported the FCC's sanctions against Comcast for BitTorrent throttling in 2008.
benton.org/node/28946 | Ars Technica
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GROUPS SAY FCC BLOGGERS EXEMPTION IS DISCRIMINATORY
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
A quartet of civil rights organizations has asked the Federal Communications Commission to "correct or amend" its decision to allow online commenters to the FCC's blog to weigh in on proposed open Internet rules during the seven-day period when sunshine rules prevent lobbying of commissioners on public meeting agenda items. The FCC last week waived its prohibition on outside (ex parte) contacts with the commissioners on the issue of network neutrality in the seven days before it is to take up that issue Oct. 22, so long as the contacts are via its new openinternet.gov blog. The reason, said the agency, was that those contacts "take place in a forum that is both instantaneously available to all interested parties and will not intrude on the commission's decision making." The Asian American Justice Center, League of United Latin American Citizens, National Urban League and One Economy Corporation, argued in an emergency motion Monday that the waiver is discriminatory. "While undoubtedly intended to facilitate public participation, the practical effect of this action is to bar public input by those who lack Internet access or rely on other means of communication while affording those with Internet access the last word," they said.
benton.org/node/28927 | Multichannel News
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NET NEUTRALITY: A HISTORICAL TIMELINE
[SOURCE: Sidecut Reports, AUTHOR: ]
On February 3, 2003, law professor Tim Wu presented a paper on "Network Neutrality, Broadband Discrimination," at the Silicon Flatirons conference in Boulder, Colo. Wu's paper is believed to be the first use of the term. This timeline follows along the net neutrality debate from the release of that paper through the Comcast appeal of a Federal Communications Commission decision that the cable company violated net neutrality principles.
benton.org/node/28926 | Sidecut Reports
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BROADBAND

NATOA STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT "MIDDLE MILE"
[SOURCE: National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors, AUTHOR: Matthew Johnson]
Representatives of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors met with Federal Communications Commission staff to discuss the importance of local government "Middle Mile" networks and the role they should be asked to play in the National Broadband Plan. The meeting reviewed a series of specific case studies of local government broadband "anchor institution" networks. The participants discussed the commonalities, requirements, and impediments to these networks as described on the enclosed materials. The participants also discussed the role these networks can and should play in bringing high capacity broadband at low cost to anchor institutions and the potential of these networks to provide "middle mile" transport for "last mile" broadband providers. Based on the lessons learned in these case studies, the participants discussed the action steps necessary to facilitate deployment of these networks in underserved communities across the country.
benton.org/node/28925 | National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors
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LOW COUNTRY BROADBAND
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
On a rainy Monday night, in the rural town of Ravenel, SC (pop. 2,288) over 100 people came to the Community Hall for a Consumer Forum on Broadband. After brief remarks from a panel that included Commissioners Copps and Clyburn, the mayors of Ravenel, nearby Hollywood (pop 4,398) and Meggett (pop 1,363), local pastors and community leaders, the floor was open to the public. In an area with more than 18% of the population living below the poverty line (vs. 12.6% nationwide) the issue of what 'affordable service' meant while residents were 'struggling to put food on the table' was a recurring theme. Herman Allen, a local parade float maker, came to the mic to explain that he has been losing business because of the intermittent quality of his Internet service which prevented him from promptly responding to email requests from customers. He then took a moment to apologize to some folks in the crowd and mayors on the dais for e-mails about pending floats that had yet to be responded to.
benton.org/node/28924 | Federal Communications Commission
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CONGRESSIONAL STAFFERS NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE BASICS OF BROADBAND
[SOURCE: App-Rising.com, AUTHOR: Geoff Daily]
[Commentary] Sure, it's easy to say, "Internet for all!" and "The Internet should be open!" But where the rubber of good intentions meets the road of making policy, we can't afford to have policymakers that don't know where they're supposed to be going or how they're supposed to get there. And perhaps even worse: we can't afford to scale back the policies our country needs to move forward because of an assumption that Congress can't or won't understand the issues at stake. I think Congress is ready to listen. But the onus is on us to reach out to them and figure out how to talk about these complex issues in terms that they and the public at large can understand. Because I fear that without an understanding of the basics of broadband, that Congress will never be able to create the kinds of forward-thinking broadband policies that our country needs to make the rapid forward progress required to remain a leader in the global digital economy.
benton.org/node/28923 | App-Rising.com
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WIRELESS & TELECOM

MOBILE MARVELS
[SOURCE: The Economist, AUTHOR: Tom Standage]
The reason why mobile phones are so valuable to people in the poor world is that they are providing access to telecommunications for the very first time, rather than just being portable adjuncts to existing fixed-line phones, as in the rich world. "For you it was incremental—here it's revolutionary," says Isaac Nsereko of MTN, Africa's biggest operator. According to a recent study, adding an extra ten mobile phones per 100 people in a typical developing country boosts growth in GDP per person by 0.8 percentage points. In places with bad roads, unreliable postal services, few trains and parlous landlines, mobile phones can substitute for travel, allow quicker and easier access to information on prices, enable traders to reach wider markets, boost entrepreneurship and generally make it easier to do business. A study by the World Resources Institute found that as developing-world incomes rise, household spending on mobile phones grows faster than spending on energy, water or indeed anything else. All this is transforming the telecoms industry. Within just a few years its center of gravity has shifted from the developed to the developing countries. The biggest changes are taking place in the poorest parts of the world, such as rural Uganda
benton.org/node/28922 | Economist, The | audio of interview
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REPORT: CABLE WILL HAVE GROWING BACKHAUL OPPORTUNITIES
[SOURCE: CedMagazine, AUTHOR: Brian Santo]
The explosion of wireless traffic means there will continue to be plenty of opportunity for cable operators to supplement their income with backhaul services, according to a new report from Visant Strategies. "Backhaul cost and capacity challenges exist in the middle and edge of the wireless network, as leased copper lines which backhaul most base stations today are often deemed too costly for the exponential jump in backhaul capacity that will be needed for 3.5G/4G," said report author Andy Fuertes of Visant Strategies. "Fiber is not always available at the base station or at middle elements of the wireless network, such as the RNC/BSC, so carriers are using more wireless backhaul," said Larry Swasey of Visant Strategies. While the report focuses on growing backhaul needs at the core of the network, all reaches of the network are set for growth.
benton.org/node/28921 | CedMagazine.com
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INDEPENDENTS DEPENDENT ON ACCESS REVENUES
[SOURCE: TelephonyOnline, AUTHOR: Joan Engebretson]
Despite significant declines, many small independent telcos are still heavily dependent on access revenues, which they collect from other carriers for connecting calls to and from their customers. This was one of several key findings of a recent study of independent telcos conducted by the Telergee Alliance, a network of seven certified public accounting firms with telecom specialties. For calendar year 2008, the median percentage of total operating revenues comprised of interstate access revenues was 36.6% for the 196 respondents, while intrastate access comprised a median 11.1% of total operating revenues. These high values were particularly surprising, considering that interstate access revenues declined a median of 1.3% between 2007 and 2008, and that intrastate revenues declined a median of 7% during that period. The decline in access revenues was partially a result of fewer access minutes. Interstate access minutes declined a median of 7.7%, while intrastate access minutes declined a median of 10.8%, the study found.
benton.org/node/28920 | TelephonyOnline
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VERIZON'S QUAD PLAY
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Stacey Higginbotham]
Verizon Communications is offering a quad-play bundle — wired voice, data, video and wireless services — in certain parts of the country, though customers can turn it into a triple play by dumping their landlines, a move that underscores just how unimportant the landline had become for telecommunications providers. The ability to dump the wireline voice is a big deal, because carriers, including Verizon, have typically been reluctant to promote unbundling wired voice from wired broadband. According to Verizon, its new services are aimed at putting cable competitors on the defensive by offering wireless services they can't currently offer as part of a service bundle, and the pricing is reasonably aggressive.
benton.org/node/28919 | GigaOm | TelephonyOnline | Reuters
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APPLE PROFIT SURGE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Yukari Iwatani Kane]
Apple continued to power through the downturn as it posted a 47% quarterly profit jump as consumers continued to snap up its iPhones and Macintosh computers. The company also sounded an upbeat note for the holiday season, despite new competition in the smart-phone and PC markets. Shares of Apple surged more than 6% after the results were released, eclipsing $200. Apple sold 7.4 million iPhones in its quarter ended Sept. 26, up 7% from a year ago and 41% more than the previous quarter, bucking concerns of a supply constraint. Demand was fed by a price drop and a faster iPhone model announced in June, which Apple has been gradually rolling out in overseas markets. Apple also sold 3.1 million Macintosh computers in the quarter, up 17% from a year earlier, as it continued to gain ground on Windows-based machines. In the quarter, Apple released Snow Leopard, a major upgrade to its Mac operating system, and it said initial sales have been double that of the previous upgrade two years ago.
benton.org/node/28939 | Wall Street Journal | LATimes | FT | USAToday | SF Chronicle
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SPRINT TO ACQUIRE IPCS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Kerry Grace Benn]
Sprint Nextel agreed to acquire wireless provider iPCS Inc. -- its last major independent affiliate -- for $426 million, ending a legal battle between the companies. Sprint, the third-largest U.S. carrier by subscribers, has been acquiring its wireless affiliates over the past several years after its 2005 buy of Nextel caused headaches for the combined company, including outcry from partners that saw their competitive position compromised. iPCS provides cellular service under the Sprint brand to more than 700,000 customers in seven states. It has sued Sprint several times to prevent the carrier from competing with iPCS in its territory after the Nextel deal. Sprint announced plans in June to sell network assets in several Midwestern states to comply with an Illinois court ruling to divest Nextel assets as part of the iPCS spat. That plan is now off in light of the deal. Under the agreement, expected to close late this year or early next year, Sprint will acquire iPCS for $24 a share, a 34% premium to Friday's closing price on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Sprint will also assume $405 million in debt in the deal, which also eases the way for Sprint to sell both Nextel services and WiMax broadband services, which iPCS was also suing to block, in those territories.
benton.org/node/28938 | Wall Street Journal
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CYBERSECURITY

MOST AGENCIES HAVE ALREADY BEEN ATTACKED
[SOURCE: FederalNewsRadio, AUTHOR: Emily Jarvis]
A new survey gauging the vulnerability of companies to cyberattack shows that most believe some sort of attack is inevitable. Cybersecurity provider Solera Networks has recently completed a network forensics survey that looks at what a lot of companies have done, and are in the process of doing, to head off cyberattacks. Here is a breakdown of the numbers: -More than 85 percent have had a major network incident in the past 36 months or expect to have one in the coming 36 months -Nearly half say that when an attack occurs, it can take 2 to 10 or more days to determine the full scope of the incident -92 percent believe that it is important to have network forensics capabilities that can capture and record all network traffic, however, only 28 percent were very familiar with network forensic solutions -24 percent don't have an effective incident response plan in place.
benton.org/node/28918 | FederalNewsRadio
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CYBERSECURITY BILL MOVING
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Andrew Noyes]
Legislation to help the government and private sector better prepare for and respond to high-tech attacks against communications infrastructure has a shot at Senate passage this year despite the crowded calendar and potential turf wars, a top Senate aide said. "Between health care, climate change and a number of huge issues of the day, it can't be lost that this is a critically important issue," said Senate Commerce Committee General Counsel Bruce Andrews at a briefing sponsored by Hewlett-Packard. "We've got to focus and do it." Senate Commerce Chairman John (Jay) Rockefeller (D-WV) and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) introduced a broad cybersecurity bill in April, but it underwent major changes during the August recess and is being fine-tuned. Andrews said Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee leaders have been crafting proposals as Rockefeller and Snowe have focused on the healthcare debate. The issue requires "real cooperation" among committees, he said.
benton.org/node/28917 | CongressDaily
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FAKE SECURITY SOFTWARE
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Diane Bartz]
Tens of millions of U.S. computers are loaded with scam security software that their owners may have paid for but which only makes the machines more vulnerable, according to a new Symantec report on cybercrime. Cyberthieves are increasingly planting fake security alerts that pop up when computer users access a legitimate website. The "alert" warns them of a virus and offers security software, sometimes for free and sometimes for a fee. "Lots of times, in fact they're a conduit for attackers to take over your machine," said Vincent Weafer, Symantec's vice president for security response
benton.org/node/28916 | Reuters
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OWNERSHIP
   NAB fights rear guard action on ownership reports
   Chernin, Ex-News Corp Executive, Said to Be a Deal Adviser

NAB FIGHTS REAR GUARD ACTION ON OWNERSHIP REPORTS
[SOURCE: RBR.com, AUTHOR: ]
The Federal Communications Commission is requiring broadcast station owners to submit a new form that will provide information for study on minority and female stakes in broadcast licenses. The National Association of broadcasters has been fighting the move, wondering why there is a need for a sole proprietor to file the report every two years, once a report is on file, if there are no changes in ownership ­ and pointed out that the FCC should be aware of any such changes since it would have to approve them. NAB argued that "demographic data on sole proprietors should be captured only at the licensing stage or when there is a change in ownership." The FCC ruled, however, that sole proprietors must submit the report every two years to guarantee that they were verifying all data and making sure it's current. The FCC also wants to collect information on certain non-attributable interests for a number of reasons: "(a) the single majority shareholder exemption; and (b) the exemption for interests held in eligible entities that would be attributable but for the higher Equity/Debt Plus ("EDP") thresholds adopted in the Diversity Order."
benton.org/node/28945 | RBR.com
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CHERNIN, EX-NEWS CORP EXECUTIVE, SAID TO BE A DEAL ADVISOR
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Tim Arango]
Apparently, Peter Chernin, the former president of the News Corporation and one of the most prominent media executives not tethered to a major conglomerate, is advising Comcast in its bid to acquire a majority stake in NBC Universal. He has been acting as a paid consultant for the last several months as Comcast, the nation's largest cable company, has been in negotiations with General Electric to acquire NBC Universal. Chernin has not been a part of meetings with G.E. and its bankers about deal terms, but has been an active participant in internal meetings at Comcast. Executives involved in the negotiations said that Mr. Chernin was not expected to take on a management role if a deal was reached.
benton.org/node/28940 | New York Times | Los Angeles Times
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TELEVISION
   Broadcast Nets Should Program Digital Risks
   A five-step program to save the BBC

BROADCAST NETS SHOULD PROGRAM DIGITAL RISKS
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Diane Mermigas]
A case can be made just a month into the new TV season that the Big 4 networks are not taking enough strategic risk to ameliorate the continuing erosion of ad revenues, audiences and content economics. Indeed, all four broadcast networks are missing a major economic opportunity to experiment more online and in wireless mobile with creative and financial models that will define their future. The $2 billion less in upfront advertiser spending (nearly one-quarter of the broadcast networks' prior year's take) was not only a byproduct of the recession. It also signals the steady shift of dollars to digital and advertisers' reluctance to automatically invest it all in broadcast TV. Broadcast network revenues and the ratings estimates have become so anemic that the risk of trying something different can only bring improvement. Here are strategic risks the broadcast networks should take: 1) Create interactive connections between select advertisers and their target consumers. Broadcasters can charge a facilitation fee, rather than slapping TV commercials online. 2) Selectively charge consumers to download popular TV episodes from Hulu. 3) Build social-networking elements into Hulu using Twitter and Facebook. 4) Launch other new low-cost, innovative content in prime time. "American Idol" works thanks to real intrigue around real people. 5) Use prime-time TV as a creative platform to introduce and develop new content that can morph into paid shows online. 6) Work with major cable operators to minimize the damage their TV Everywhere experiment in usage-based pricing is likely to have on broadcasters' free lunch video economics and consumer expectations.
benton.org/node/28914 | MediaPost
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A FIVE-STEP PROGRAM TO SAVE THE BBC
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Philip Stephens]
[Commentary] Here is a five-point plan that might persuade the politicians that Britain still needs a vibrant, albeit rather slimmer, BBC. First off, the corporation should show some humility. To secure its future, the BBC needs to stop behaving as if it is trying to crush its competitors. Second, the BBC should reduce the pay and benefits of top managers ­ and cut the number of those managers. Likewise, the BBC must fess up to the earnings of its talent. Third, the corporation must rebuild the quality of its journalism. It should start by ensuring that programme editors demand accuracy instead of "impact" from the BBC's large pool of talented journalists. Fourth, the BBC should think strategically about the space a publicly funded broadcaster should be occupying 10 years hence. Some of what the BBC does speaks for itself ­ national and regional news, current affairs, original drama and comedy, talk radio. There is a strong case that these services should be available through the web as well as more traditional broadcasting channels. But the BBC must eschew the desire to be a monopoly supplier. Pluralism helps everyone. Finally, and most importantly, the BBC must rediscover the difference between ends and means. The licence fee is the means by which the BBC can provide the sort of programming beyond the reach of commercial rivals; it is not, repeat not, an excuse for the BBC to justify permanent ratings wars with competitors in the name of something called audience "reach". The BBC's future lies in being distinctive in the range and quality of its output.
benton.org/node/28933 | Financial Times
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JOURNALISM

MORE BAD NEWS FOR NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Frank Ahrens]
Gannett, the nation's largest newspaper chain and publisher of USA Today, said Monday that its third-quarter profit plunged 53 percent from a year earlier, but the results still beat analysts' forecasts, a sign of how low expectations are for the battered newspaper industry. The company reported a profit of $73.8 million (31 cents a share) on $1.3 billion in third-quarter revenue this year, compared with a profit of $158.1 million (69 cents) on $1.6 billion in revenue in the third quarter of 2008. Gannett publishes 84 newspapers in the United States and 200 in Britain. The company also owns 23 television stations and CareerBuilder.com. The New York Times Co. said Monday that it plans to cut 100 newsroom jobs by the end of the year.
benton.org/node/28937 | Washington Post
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THE NEWS IS BROKEN
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: ]
In the current media environment, where it's more important to have it first than to get it right, it won't be long until the next mix-up. Exhibit A: Breaking news that the US Chamber of Commerce will no longer oppose climate change legislation. Exhibit B: Balloon Boy.
benton.org/node/28936 | Washington Post
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HEALTH CARE DEBATE TOPS NEWS AGENDA
[SOURCE: Project for Excellence in Journalism, AUTHOR: Mark Jurkowitz]
A vote by a key Senate committee, and the role of one of the Senate's few swing voters, pushed the health care debate to the top of the news agenda last week. For the week of October 12-18, the health care battle accounted for 21% of the newshole studied, according to the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism. That marks the highest level of coverage since the week of September 7-13, when Barack Obama delivered a prime-time speech on health care and a formerly obscure Congressman named Joe Wilson made headlines by shouting "you lie" at the President. Last week, the catalyst for much of that coverage was a 14-to-9 vote in the Senate Finance Committee to approve a bill crafted by chairman Senator Max Baucus—a milestone in a legislative process that had plodded along for weeks. A key character in that story was the lone Republican who broke ranks to vote with the Democratic majority. Maine Senator Olympia Snowe—who also cast a rare GOP vote for Obama's stimulus package—found herself back in the headlines, generally portrayed in the media narrative as a savvy power broker.
benton.org/node/28913 | Project for Excellence in Journalism
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