Jan 14, 2010 (Google and China)
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, JANUARY 14, 2010
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
Google hack raises serious concerns, US says
US urges China to work with Google on security
Google in China
Discrimination on Trial, but Not on TV
Report Finds Common Ground in Efforts to Balance Public Access, Scholarly Publishing
NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
FCC: We're Not Picking Spectrum Winners, Losers
FCC Seeks Reply Comments on National Broadband Plan
FCC Seeks Comment on Protecting Privacy in the National Broadband Plan
Technology, Learning and the National Broadband Plan
How to Make Municipal Wi-Fi Work
NETWORK NEUTRALITY
FCC faces Network Neutrality hurdles, questions going forward
Life For The FCC After Elimination of Title I Authority
Saving the Internet for Consumers
THE STIMULUS
$7.5 Million BTOP Grant to Increase Broadband Access in Los Angeles
Broadband Funding: Yes, in Your Backyard
CONTENT
FCC, Fox Square Off On Profanity...Again
PBS chief: Kids inundated with ads
World's First Fair Use Day Attracts Interest And Signs that Congress Doesn't Understand It
Neustar gets deal to work on movie download anti-piracy system
POLICYMAKERS
Action Urged On Tech Agenda
White House seeks tech advice from corporate chiefs
Tough Confirmation for E.U.'s Ex-Antitrust Chief
ACCESS
Justice Settles E-reader Cases
Video Relay Defrauders Plead Guilty
HEALTH IT
Clock starts ticking on meaningful use comments
HHS panel to give fresh spin to federal health IT strategy
Key ingredient missing from e-health records, advisers say
HIT security panel troubled by risk assessment void
JOURNALISM
There is no new revenue model for journalism
A broad 'shield' for journalists
"New" Media Crucial in Aftermath of Haitian Earthquake
Roger Ailes' job safe, Fox News says
Public Stays with Health Care, Media Focuses on Terror
MORE ONLINE ...
Notice of Availability of Funds: Public Telecommunications Facilities Program
Bringing the Smart Grid to the Smart Home: It's Not Only About the Meter
AFT: Education must change to move forward
Slim to consolidate telecoms empire
Recent Comments on:
Usage-based pricing gets FCC support
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
GOOGLE HACK RAISES SERIOUS CONCERNS, US SAYS
[SOURCE: IDG News Service, AUTHOR: Robert McMillan]
A coordinated hacking campaign targeting Google, Adobe Systems, and more than 30 other companies raises serious concerns, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday. Sec Clinton said that the U.S. government is taking the attack -- which Google said came from China -- very seriously. "We have been briefed by Google on these allegations, which raise very serious concerns and questions," she said. "We look to the Chinese government for an explanation." While attacks of this nature have hit the military, federal agencies, and government contractors in the past, Google is the first technology company to come forward and acknowledge it has been hit. Google apparently feels strongly that China is behind the attack because the company said Tuesday that the event helped convince the company that it "should review the feasibility of our business operations in China." "China may throw Google out, and it will undoubtedly block Google.cn," said Danny O'Brien, an international coordinator at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group. There is also a concern that all Google services could be blocked in China if the company violates Chinese regulations by stopping its censorship of search results, said Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group in Shanghai. Offerings like Gmail, Google Docs, and Google hosting for businesses all have users in China and could be affected by a move to block the search giant's services. Chinese government censors constantly patrol the Internet for content deemed undesirable, including pornography and discussion of sensitive topics like corruption. They also block access across the country to popular U.S. Web sites including YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. Google is just one of a group of search engines including Microsoft's Bing and Yahoo China that remove certain results from their search engines targeted at the country.
benton.org/node/31213 | IDG News Service | State Dept | IDG - China's reaction
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US URGES CHINA TO WORK WITH GOOGLE ON SECURITY
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Doug Palmer]
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke urged China on Wednesday to ensure a "secure" commercial environment for Google and other US companies after the world's top search engine said it may shut its Chinese-language website because of cyber attacks. "The recent cyber intrusion that Google attributes to China is troubling to the U.S. government and American companies doing business in China," Sec Locke said in a statement. "This incident should be equally troubling to the Chinese government. The administration encourages the government of China to work with Google and other U.S. companies to ensure a climate for secure commercial operations in the Chinese market," Sec Locke said. Sec Locke said he has personally raised with Chinese officials several times the importance that President Barack Obama and the U.S. government place on "the full and free flow of information on the Internet."
benton.org/node/31228 | Reuters | nextgov | Reuters - Boon for security firms | NYT - Cybersecurity | NYT - News censored in China | NYT - Baidu | NYT - Other companies | WSJ - US Gov reaction | WSJ - China v US | WP - espionage | WP - China's dilemma | USAToday - Playing hardball | FT -- China's reaction
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GOOGLE IN CHINA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Google has taken a bold stand by saying that it would stop cooperating with China's online censorship and may pull out of the country entirely. Google had many reasons to reconsider its presence, but the discovery that it was a victim of a cyberattack aimed at Chinese human rights activists added a powerful one. There are limits to the price an American company should be willing to pay for access to 300 million Web users. If Google pulls out of China, the biggest losers would be the Chinese people. Google's search engine provides access to vast stores of knowledge. The Chinese government, which heavily censored the news that Google was protesting its censorship, does not appear to realize that the whole nation would suffer. The Internet is one of the great driving forces in global progress. Entrepreneurs, scientists and artists who have the most access to it will be in the best position to invent the future.
benton.org/node/31241 | New York Times | Nicholas Kristof | WSJ - Rebecca MacKinnon | WP - editorial | SF Chronicle -- editorial
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DISCRIMINATION ON TRIAL, BUT NOT ON TV
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] The trial that started on Monday in San Francisco over the constitutionality of California's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage could have been a moment for the entire nation to witness a calm, deliberative debate on a vitally important issue in the era of instant communications. Instead, the United States Supreme Court made it a sad example of the quashing of public discourse by blocking the televising of the nonjury trial. There have been claims that televising the courtroom proceeding would somehow be unfair to defenders of Proposition 8, the California ballot initiative that banned same-sex marriage. They are hazy and unsubstantiated and vastly outweighed by the strong public interest in the airing of a major civil-rights issue. But the Supreme Court's majority bought the false argument.
benton.org/node/31240 | New York Times
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BALANCING PUBLIC ACCESS, SCHOLARLY PUBLISHING
[SOURCE: House Committee on Science and Technology, AUTHOR: Press release]
A group of representatives from university administration, libraries, information science departments, and the publishing industry collectively released a report with recommendations on open access, specifically the public availability of peer-reviewed journal articles containing data and findings from federal research grants. The report's recommendations, endorsed by a majority of the 14 members of the group, called the Scholarly Publishing Roundtable, sought to "balance the need for increased access to scholarly articles with the need to preserve the essential functions of the scholarly publishing enterprise." One key recommendation is the establishment of specific embargo periods between publication and public access, allowing for some variation across fields of science. The report states: "an embargo period of between zero (for open access journals) and twelve months currently reflects such a balance for many science disciplines," but notes for "other fields a longer embargo period may be necessary." The group also emphasized the need for the adoption of common standards to ensure searchability and collaboration across fields and databases and suggested that international cooperation on standards would also be critical. While there was not unanimity on the need for or type of legislation or other government action, members of the roundtable agreed that federal agencies should work together with the publishing community to ensure common core properties and a coherent framework for access and preservation across the government.
benton.org/node/31221 | House Committee on Science and Technology
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NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
FCC: WE'RE NOT PICKING SPECTRUM WINNERS, LOSERS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Phil Bellaria, the Federal Communications Commission's director of scenario planning for the National Broadband Plan, suggests you take a chill pill. He says broadcasters are lobbying against a "worst-case" scenario that is no longer under consideration -- if it ever was. The former Charter Communications executive says the spectrum reclamation plan currently being prepared for vetting by the FCC Commissioners would be voluntary and would not require any broadcaster to sell its spectrum to the government or give up the ability to transmit in high definition, multicast or mobile, at least initially. However, the FCC might have to look at the spectrum issue again later, depending on demand. Bellaria says that suggestions by broadcasters that the FCC or special interests are trying to take broadcasters' spectrum were off the mark. "The reality is that we are not trying to take spectrum from any individual broadcaster unless that broadcaster chooses to do it," he said.
benton.org/node/31211 | Broadcasting&Cable
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FCC SEEKS REPLY COMMENTS ON NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
The Federal Communications Commission has granted a request from the Media Access Project and now seeks reply comments addressing issues that have been raised during the course of the National Broadband Plan proceeding, noting that the many public notices, workshops, field hearings and recent dialogue on the issues have "cast new light and added new perspectives on many of the questions raised in those notices and meetings." Reply comments should be filed no later than January 27, 2010.
benton.org/node/31219 | Federal Communications Commission
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PROTECTING PRIVACY IN THE NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: Center for Democracy and Technology, AUTHOR: Ari Schwartz]
CDT is urging the Federal Communications Commission to get more public comment on protecting privacy and the use of personal information in broadband applications as the agency crafts a National Broadband Plan. To that end, CDT has crafted a draft Notice of Inquiry for the FCC covering 1) Consumer Expectations of Privacy, 2) Building Privacy by Design, 3) Creation and Use of Transactional Data, and 4) Third-Party Applications.
benton.org/node/31209 | Center for Democracy & Technology | FCC
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BROADBAND AND EDUCATION
[SOURCE: BroadbandBreakfast.com, AUTHOR: Chris Naoum]
Representatives from the federal government, educational organizations, trade associations, and school districts came together to discuss the state of broadband in our educational system and what can be expected from the national broadband plan under development by the Federal Communications Commission. The session, the January Broadband Breakfast Club, commenced with a presentation by Steve Midgley, Director of Education at the Federal Communications Commission. Midgley began with a brief background of the national broadband plan mandate and the national purposes behind it. He said that he believed that aside from the necessary deployment and adoption data that will be included in the plan, the success of the plan hinges on the agency's answer to this specific question of Congress: "why are we building this network?" To address this question, Midgley paired the priorities of the Department of Education with the four core strategies of the broadband plan's education component. The Education Department's plan is to transform education by: Improving standards and assessments, Developing advanced data systems, Fostering support for effective teachers, and Turning around the lowest performing schools. Midgley paired these priorities to the FCC's strategies of: Promoting and developing online learning, Digital content such as e-textbooks, Data standards and interoperability (including standardized education records), and Broadband infrastructure, including ways to drive more bandwidth to more schools where it is most needed.
benton.org/node/31210 | BroadbandBreakfast.com
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HOW TO MAKE MUNICIPAL WI-FI WORK
[SOURCE: Government Technology, AUTHOR: Russell Nichols]
The idea of free Internet for all Americans looks good on screen, but the concept also raises crucial questions. And for the past few years, as cities across the country jumped on the broadband wagon, many government IT leaders kept getting stuck on the first and most important one: How? Not all municipal Wi-Fi networks fell flat. Some cities have succeeded in delivering broadband service to the public. For instance, first responders in New York can access files through the $500 million high-speed New York City Wireless Network (NYCWiN), built and operated for the next five years by Northrop Grumman Corp. Other areas such as Bristol, Va. and Corpus Christi, Texas, have also developed thriving models of a public network. These success stories prove that municipal Wi-Fi can indeed work, but that doesn't mean there's only one way to solve the problem of the digital divide. In the past few months, two major cities -- Philadelphia (PA) and Minneapolis (MN) -- have illustrated two very different ways in which a city can make that big connection.
benton.org/node/31208 | Government Technology
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NETWORK NEUTRALITY
FCC FACES NETWORK NEUTRALITY HURDLES
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
Does the Federal Communications Commission have the authority to enforce proposed network neutrality rules? Last Friday, three federal judges appeared to question the FCC's scope of jurisdiction over ISP services when the agency said in 2008 that Comcast had illegally blocked the Internet file-sharing application BitTorrent. If the court rules against the FCC, the agency weigh options that would give it clear authority as the watchdog of the on-ramps to the Web: Internet service providers. Among ideas is a broad reclassification of broadband Internet services under phone rules (Title II) that would concretely put ISPs under the scope of the agency. Under Title II, blocking rules would apply and the FCC could pursue its net neutrality rules to clarify how discrimination rules would apply to different kinds of broadband providers. It could also use that classification to more easily reform the Universal Service Fund for phone subsidies into one that also includes greater contributions to broadband. But it would also bring greater attention to potential open-access rules that would require the big providers to unbundle their services to be used by new upstarts who would provide more competition and choice. Some economists and scholars say open access rules correlate with greater broadband penetration and adoption. So far the FCC has been reluctant to address such rules in its broadband plan mandated by Congress and expected to be done by the middle of March. Public interest and consumer advocacy groups say they support a re-classification.
benton.org/node/31212 | Washington Post
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LIFE FOR THE FCC AFTER ELIMINATION OF TITLE I AUTHORITY
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Harold Feld]
[Commentary] Consensus is pretty strong that last week's oral argument on the Comcast/BitTorrent argument in front of the DC Circuit was an unmitigated disaster for the Federal Communications Commission. So much so that it appears that the D.C. Circuit may actually strip the FCC of any authority to "regulate the Internet." While one would think Comcast would be cheering at the prospect of eliminating any watchdog over broadband whatsoever, they have been rather frantically backing away and insisting the FCC still has authority to impose network neutrality rules. Why the odd switch? Comcast, and most other major carriers, never wanted to eliminate FCC jurisdiction. Because while everyone wants the freedom of no rules, they also want some reassurance that if something goes wrong, someone has the authority to step in and fix it before it gets too out of hand. While nobody likes getting a speeding ticket, most folks appreciate having a cop on the beat and rules of the road that tell you what side to drive on to avoid getting in a head on collision. The thought of no one having authority to step in if some major crisis hits, for example AT&T deciding it's tired of losing landline customers to Cox and refusing to complete its Voice Over IP calls, is rather scary to anyone who actually makes a living from having a stable, operating, interconnected global network. While an utterly unregulated Libertarian free-for-all appeals to think tank folks, it generally does not go down well with business folks.
benton.org/node/31239 | Public Knowledge
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THE STIMULUS
$7.5 MILLION BTOP GRANT TO LA
[SOURCE: Department of Commerce]
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke , joined by Sen Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa at the South Los Angeles WorkSource Center, announced a $7.5 million Recovery Act grant that will upgrade and expand 188 computer centers that provide the public with free broadband access to the Internet. The investment will help bridge the technological divide and improve access to job and computer training, and educational opportunities.
The grant was awarded to the Los Angeles' Computer Access Network (L.A.-CAN). The L.A.-CAN project proposes to double the number of workstations available throughout the city at public computer centers in libraries, workforce centers and youth and family centers in low-income and non-English speaking communities. The majority of the 188 proposed centers would be located in or within three miles of federal- and state-designated "Enterprise Zones." [more at the URL below]
benton.org/node/31237 | Department of Commerce | BroadbandUSA
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BROADBAND FUNDING: YES, IN YOUR BACKYARD
[SOURCE: Daily Yonder, AUTHOR: Craig Settles]
[Commentary] As technology grant applicants and broadband champions watch developments unfold on various fronts, there's a danger that frustration will drive people to "excuse-driven" broadband strategy: "We can't until...," "We won't unless...," "If they don't...." Look, folks, if people want broadband, they have to look in the mirror for the solutions to obtain it. Many communities know this already, but everyone needs to embrace this same reality. There isn't enough grant money to dent the broadband need, even if Universal Service Fund money shifts to broadband. And despite the Federal Communications Commission's and other agencies' best efforts, a range of formidable obstacles stands in the way of rural broadband, obstacles that the Feds are hard pressed to overcome.
benton.org/node/31226 | Daily Yonder
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CONTENT
FCC, FOX SQUARE OFF ON PROFANITY ... AGAIN
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Federal Communications Commission and Fox went at it again Wednesday (Jan. 13) over the issue of swearing in a live broadcast, and a pair of courtroom observers said the FCC had a rough time of it. "This was a slaughter," said Andrew Schwartzman of Media Access Project, which represents the Coalition for Creative Voices in Media and the Future of Music Coalition. Schwartzman essentially dispensed with the usual caveat that it is hard to predict judges in oral argument. "In this case there was no doubt," he said. "There was some discussion toward the end of the argument about how far to go, but all three judges were clearly ready to find that the FCC's policies are unconstitutional. Judges Rosemary Pooler, Pierre Level and Peter Hall heard the case, the same three that presided the first time around. Schwartzman said Judge Pooler was ready to say that the FCC's authority didn't extend beyond the seven dirty words of the Pacifica decision, while Judge Leval wasn't going as far as that, but signaled he thought that the FCC's policy advice was unconstitutionally vague without getting into Pacifica, while Hall was "adamant that this was unconstitutionally vague," said Schwartzman.
benton.org/node/31236 | Broadcasting&Cable
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PBS CHIEF: KIDS INUNDATED WITH ADS
[SOURCE: Hollywood Reporter, The, AUTHOR: Barry Garron]
Commercial broadcasters have been shirking their responsibilities under the 1990 Children's Television Act, according to PBS president Paula Kerger. At the channel's Television Critics Association presentation Wednesday, she said she welcomed an upcoming review of the act and compliance by the Federal Communications Commission. The act was passed to require commercial broadcasters to increase educational and informational programming. Among other things, it stipulated that stations air a minimum of three hours a week of core educational series. "The line between commerce and content are blurred beyond recognition" by commercial broadcasters, Kerger said. "Broadcasters are not holding up their end of the deal." She said the same conclusion was reached by a number of independent researchers. Kerger wouldn't cite specific instances but she invited the audience of TV critics on the semiannual press tour to check out any of the most popular web sites aimed at kids. "Advertising is so thoroughly embedded into the content," she said. "There are a lot of popups. It's on all of them." Compounding the problem is the fact that young children are not sophisticated enough to differentiate between programs and commercials, she added.
benton.org/node/31225 | Hollywood Reporter, The | WashPost
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NEUSTAR GETS DEAL TO WORK ON MOVIE DOWNLOAD ANTI-PIRACY SYSTEM
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Mike Musgrove]
Neustar, formerly a division of Lockheed Martin, has been tapped by a consortium of Hollywood studios and technology companies to manage a database that would limit piracy while giving consumers the ability to watch downloaded video content on a variety of gadgets and devices. The Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem announced this month that Neustar will operate an upcoming "digital rights locker" system, designed to let users who legally purchase movies online view that content on smartphones, laptops or the living room TV. The DECE technology, which is in the design stage, aims to give consumers more flexibility with the content they purchase while still employing digital rights management tools designed to discourage piracy. "Buy Once, Play Anywhere" is the marketing pitch; a launch date has not been announced. The technology is meant to address a market in which consumers are increasingly expecting their electronic devices to connect with multimedia services. Nintendo, for example, announced on Wednesday that it will soon be possible for Wii owners with a Netflix subscription to view movies streamed via the Web to the game console. Neustar was created as a result of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, when consumers gained the right to take their telephone number with them if they switched carriers. The firm manages the central directory of area codes and phone numbers that make calls made across competing service providers possible.
benton.org/node/31234 | Washington Post
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POLICYMAKERS
ACTION URGED ON TECH AGENDA
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Juliana Gruenwald]
As House Democratic members meet this week to outline strategies on important policy issues, the Information Technology Industry Council is urging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to ensure the House addresses key priorities aimed at helping to spur innovation and economic growth, including: 1) extension of the research and development tax credit, 2) develop comprehensive plans to increase broadband deployment and adoption, 3) spur the growth of health information technology, 4) provide investments in a "smart" electric grid and renewable energy, 5) act on immigration and education legislation to ensure that the "best and brightest" foreigners can remain in the United States, and 6) provide domestic workers with the skills they need to fill 21st century jobs.
benton.org/node/31227 | CongressDaily
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WHITE HOUSE SEEKS TECH ADVICE FROM CORPORATE CHIEFS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
The Obama administration has invited dozens of the nation's top executives to the White House on Thursday seeking tips on how the federal bureaucracy can become leaner and meaner. That means thinking of ways to cut costs and getting federal agencies to place a higher priority on better serving the public, in areas including immigration, education and the census. White House officials are hoping to use new technologies, such as the Web and text messaging, to make that all happen. But the private sector's entrepreneurial zeal may not translate so easily to federal agencies. For example, the Census Bureau spent $600 million on a project to make its 2010 count electronic, but the effort failed and the census will be conducted by paper this year. Attendees are expected to include Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer, Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, Sprint Nextel chief executive Dan Hesse, PepsiCo chief executive Indra K. Nooyi, and Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes. The executives will break out into three working groups and then present their ideas to all attendees, including Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Obama, and Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget. The government has started to implement some of the administration's ideas. It's cut nearly a dozen information technology contracts that appeared wasteful. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is using text messages to inform applicants for citizenship when their paperwork moves through the seven steps of the application process.
benton.org/node/31233 | Washington Post
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TOUGH CONFIRMATION FOR EU'S EX-ANTITRUST CHIEF
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Kevin O'Brien]
With her aggressive antitrust prosecutions, Neelie Kroes, the European Union's former competition commissioner, should be one of the last officeholders on the Continent who needed to prove her pro-consumer credentials. But that is exactly what Ms. Kroes, a 68-year-old Dutch economist, is expected to do Thursday when she answers questions from a committee of the European Parliament considering her nomination as commissioner for the bloc's digital agenda, which includes telecommunications and the Internet. And despite bringing the technology giants Intel and Microsoft to heel, as well as reining in Europe's largest energy and asphalt companies, support for Ms. Kroes is not a given. Despite her successful five-year tenure, which cemented Europe's position as the world's technology regulator, Ms. Kroes remains relatively unknown among many in Parliament, who play no direct role in competition cases and until now have had few dealings with her.
benton.org/node/31232 | New York Times
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ACCESS
JUSTICE SETTLES E-READER CASES
[SOURCE: Department of Justice, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Justice Department announced separate agreements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Pace University in New York City and Reed College in Portland, Ore., regarding the use in a classroom setting of the electronic book reader, the Kindle DX, a hand-held technological device that simulates the experience of reading a book. Under the agreements, the universities generally will not purchase, recommend or promote use of the Kindle DX, or any other dedicated electronic book reader, unless the devices are fully accessible to students who are blind and have low vision. The universities agree that if they use dedicated electronic book readers, they will ensure that students with vision disabilities are able to access and acquire the same materials and information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services as sighted students with substantially equivalent ease of use. The agreements that the Justice Department reached with these universities extend beyond the Kindle DX to any dedicated electronic reading device.
benton.org/node/31224 | Department of Justice
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VRS DEFRAUDERS PLEAD GUILTY
[SOURCE: Department of Justice, AUTHOR: Press release]
Two former Viable Communications executives have plead guilty to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program of more than $2.5 million. VRS is an online video translation service that allows people with hearing disabilities to communicate with hearing individuals through the use of interpreters and web cameras. A person with a hearing disability who wants to communicate with a hearing person can do so by contacting a VRS provider through an audio and video Internet connection. The VRS provider, in turn, employs a video interpreter to view and interpret the hearing disabled person's signed conversation and relay the signed conversation orally to a hearing person. VRS is funded by fees assessed by telecommunications providers to telephone customers, and is provided at no cost to the VRS user.
benton.org/node/31223 | Department of Justice
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