March 2010

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 2010

Next week's busy agenda http://bit.ly/9eTunC

NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
   FCC to endorse broadband goals, but not vote on plan
   How much hate will the National Broadband Plan get?
   Reforming Universal Service For 21st Century Communications
   FCC to create $4.6B broadband subsidy
   Definition of 'broadband' still a secret in FCC plan
   Broadband Plan Winners And Losers
   FCC Chair Julius Genachowski on Broadband, Google and His iPhone
   Observations and Predictions about the National Broadband Plan
   Four Key Factors for Successful Broadband Plan
   Keeping Up With the Joneses
   Broadband: What's Your Need for Speed?
   SBA: Small Telecom Providers Await Definition of Competition in Broadband Plan

THE STIMULUS
   Commerce Department Invests $80 Million in Louisiana Broadband
   Broadband Mapping Grants for Virginia and American Samoa
   Glendale, California signs contract for federal smart grid grant
   See also: Smart Grid and the "Buy American" Rule

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
   Ofcom to examine UK network neutrality
   EFF demands FCC close copyright "loophole" in net neutrality

GOOGLE NET
   Google Should Take Its Broadband to Failing Cities, Not Happy Ones

VIDEO/AUDIO
   Whose Public Interest Is it Anyway?
   House and Senate Approve Satellite License Extension
   The battles to watch over what you can watch
   How Big Were the Winter Olympics Online?

WIRELESS
   Cell Phone Inventor: Spectrum Reclamation Isn't Answer
   Experts question Google phone business model
   Smartphone apps driving mobile marketing

CYBERSECURITY
   Cybersecurity: Progress Made but Challenges Remain in Defining and Coordinating the Comprehensive National Initiative
FBI director warns of 'rapidly expanding' cyberterrorism threat Vs. White House Cyber Czar: 'There Is No Cyberwar'
Government: Cybersecurity IT Skills Scarce | Microsoft's tax-for-hacks 'horrible' idea, say security experts

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
   Emergency communications center stalled, GAO says

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
   Beijing says working with Google to resolve dispute
   Vivek Kundra Outlines Ambitious Government Plans for IT
   Despite New Policy, Pentagon Still Wary of the 'Tubes

OWNERSHIP
   Apple's multitouch lawsuit is both dumb and dangerous
   Google takes aim at Microsoft with acquisition
   RCN To Be Acquired For $1.2 Billion

JOURNALISM
   Westin: News Orgs Must Stay Committed to Investigative Journalism

HEALTH
The next tech goldmine: Medical records | RWJ Foundation gives $2.4M for patient observation studies, two in Bay Area | Meaningful use will slow docs down: MGMA survey

MORE ONLINE
Federal officials address ed-tech concerns | That Whole Internet Thing's Not Going To Work Out | Industry coalition plans interoperability program | Google not very good at attracting search engines to its own Web pages | For young activists, video is their voice

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NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN

FCC TO ENDORSE BROADBAND GOALS
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski is urging his four colleagues on the commission to sign a joint "mission statement" endorsing the overarching goals of the proposed national broadband plan in lieu of an up-or-down vote on the massive technology blueprint. Instead of risking a split vote among the five FCC commissioners on approving the plan, Chairman Genachowski is seeking consensus on a joint statement, which sources said would provide him with some political cover for the controversies that are certain to be triggered by the some of the plan's recommendations. The plan is expected to spawn several legislative and regulatory proposals, setting the stage for protracted battles over implementation. A central recommendation calls for reorienting the multibillion-dollar federal Universal Service Fund from subsidizing telecom costs in low-income and rural areas to reducing monthly broadband bills for eligible Americans. The agency says this goal can be achieved without expanding the program's size.
benton.org/node/32891 | CongressDaily
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REACTION TO BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Matthew Lasar]
What kind of response can the Federal Communications Commission expect to the National Broadband Plan? Well, we already know that television station owners are opposed to any plan that reallocates spectrum from broadcasting to wireless broadband services. Line sharing or "unbundling" -- allowing smaller broadband providers to access the networks of the big cable companies and telcos at wholesale rates -- was suggested by a Harvard study commissioned for the plan, but there's no clear indication that that idea will make it into the final report. Also, in early February, the FCC announced new rules that would give Native American communities "Tribal Priority" when it came to applying for new radio station licenses. The debate leading up to this decision was somewhat contentious, with various groups, including the Catholic Radio Association, contending that Tribal Priority would represent an unfair or even race/identity based form of preference. But Indian country advocate Native Public Media responded that the policy would not run afoul of various affirmative action standards, because Native Americans are classified "not as a discrete racial group, but, rather, as members of quasi-sovereign tribal entities whose lives and activities are governed by the [Bureau of Indian Affairs] in a unique fashion." Native groups insist that their negotiations with the FCC should take place on a "nation-to-nation" basis. What does this have to do with broadband? Well, on Tuesday Genachowski told the Native American Congress that the FCC may extend that "Tribal Priority" concept not only to radio stations but to wireless licenses as well. "The National Broadband Plan will recommend that the Commission look at expanding any Tribal priority policy to include the process for licensing fixed and mobile wireless licenses covering Tribal lands," he told the Congress. If you think that this is a small change question, keep in mind that something close to a third of the state of Arizona is on Indian reservation land. Ditto for Oklahoma. And about a quarter of South Dakota belongs to reservations. Radio's one thing; wireless and broadband's another.
benton.org/node/32890 | Ars Technica
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REFORMING UNIVERSAL SERVICE FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Rebekah Goodheart]
Today, regardless of where individuals live, they have access to telephone service. Congress asked the FCC to create a plan to achieve the same result for broadband service. The draft National Broadband Plan creates a path to ensure that, regardless of where individuals live, they will have access to broadband service by 2020. Doing so requires a transition away from the 20th century programs designed to promote universal voice service to a new, reformed program that is designed to promote universal access to broadband.
A key tool that the FCC has to promote universal broadband is the same tool the agency has used to promote universal voice service: the Universal Service Fund, which will distribute more than $8 billion in support in 2010. But the Universal Service Fund today includes a web of complicated rules designed to support voice service. Funding today is not targeted toward the areas that lack broadband, and there's currently no way to track progress in extending broadband to the unserved. Tinkering with the existing programs and increasing the size of the Fund is not the answer and would not accomplish the goal of ensuring everyone has access to broadband. It is time for comprehensive reform.
The Plan sets forth the following recommendations, which, if implemented, will provide access to broadband for more than 99% of American homes by 2020:
Transition to a new Connect America Fund to extend broadband where it is not available now and to support ongoing service in those areas where it is uneconomic to provide service without governmental support ­ meaning that the total costs to deploy and provide broadband service exceed the total revenues derived from that broadband-capable network. Funding will be provided on a technology-neutral basis and open to any entity that can satisfy the thresholds established by the FCC.
Create a new, targeted Mobility Fund to ensure that everyone in the country has access to 3G wireless services. Some states are significantly lagging behind the national average for 3G coverage. The Mobility Fund would provide a targeted subsidy in such areas to bring those states up to the national average.
Reform intercarrier compensation to gradually phase out per-minute charges, while providing carriers with the opportunity for adequate cost recovery from customers, and, where necessary, from the Connect America Fund. Adopt interim rules to address arbitrage.
benton.org/node/32910 | Federal Communications Commission
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FCC TO CREATE BROADBAND SUBSIDY
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
The Federal Communications Commission will propose creating a $4.6 billion Connect America fund to support the deployment and adoption of high-speed Internet service in low-income and rural areas as part of a 10-year overhaul of an existing telecommunications subsidy program. The initiative would replace a similarly sized program contained within the $8 billion federal Universal Service Fund, which reduces the costs of phone service for eligible Americans and subsidizes wiring of schools, libraries and rural hospitals with high-speed connectivity. During a news briefing Friday, agency officials outlined a three-stage strategy over the next decade to migrate the USF away from traditional phone subsidies and toward exclusively supporting broadband. The proposal will be a centerpiece of the agency's national broadband plan. Commission officials said the changes detailed today can be accomplished without expanding the fund's size and without congressional action. Nevertheless, the broadband plan will recommend that Congress consider approving a one-time, $9 billion appropriation -- to be doled out over three years -- that would enable the FCC to accelerate the fund's transition. "It always turns out that there's more than one way to achieve an objective," said Blair Levin, executive director of the FCC's Omnibus Broadband Initiative. "We're not requiring [Congress] to act. We think there are benefits if they act." Levin said the universal service program would help bring broadband to regions where it isn't available. Some carriers have balked at serving rural areas because of prohibitive costs. The fund also would provide eligible Americans with subsidies to lower monthly broadband bills. In 2020, the FCC envisions that the USF would no longer support phone-related service. Since there may be pockets of the country that would need financial assistance with phone connections, agency officials vowed that the commission would find a way to help those affected citizens pay their phone bills. In concert with the universal service overhaul, the FCC plans to tackle another long-standing challenge: revamping Byzantine rules governing intercarrier compensation, the fees phone companies charge to carry telecom traffic from other providers.
benton.org/node/32909 | CongressDaily | B&C | Benton Foundation | NARUC | NCTA
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DEFINITION OF BROADBAND
[SOURCE: ComputerWorld, AUTHOR: Matt Hamblen]
The National Broadband Plan is due to reach Congress in two weeks, but there is still some mystery about how the plan will define the term "broadband." The plan's chief author, Blair Levin, said in an interview Wednesday that it will set specific minimum speeds that Internet service providers will have to deliver in order to qualify for funds from the Federal Communication Commission's Universal Service Fund. But Levin revealed few details because the plan is undergoing more refinements. Asked how the plan actually defines broadband, Levin was noncommittal and indicated the answer was somewhat controversial. "Let me not answer that," said Levin, the executive director of the FCC's Omnibus Broadband Initiative. He spoke in a wide-ranging interview about some features of the plan and its overarching goals to provide fast Internet connections to more Americans as part of an effort to support economic growth. However, he noted that FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski's call for getting Internet service speeds of 100Mbit/sec. to 100 million U.S homes as one indication of what broadband goals for the nation should be. When pressed to name the minimum speed that will define broadband in the plan, Levin also refused to give one and explained, "We will certainly be saying, Here's what is required under the Universal Service Fund [for Internet service providers] and you'd better be able to produce these speeds."
benton.org/node/32908 | ComputerWorld
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BROADBAND WINNERS AND LOSERS
[SOURCE: Forbes, AUTHOR: Elizabeth Woyke]
Analysts are already picking potential winners and losers in the National Broadband Plan based on key themes that have already been identified, such as mobile broadband networks and spectrum swaps. Fast, new broadband networks will require cell towers, wireless routers and fiber optics. Equipment makers such as Juniper, Cisco and Ciena will likely benefit from the increased spending, says Rebecca Arbogast, a managing director at investment bank Stifel Nicolaus. RBC Capital Markets analyst David Coleman believes Florida-based tower operator SBA Communications will also profit, due to its "rural tower portfolio." A proposal as wide-ranging as the broadband plan also naturally creates losers. Players with "potential downside" include broadcasters, Cisco and Motorola, says Arbogast. Broadcasters may be asked to vacate wireless spectrum to make room for data networks. Cisco and Motorola, along with other companies that make cable set-top boxes, are worried the FCC will include new video-streaming standards in the broadband plan, says Arbogast. Such a move would help consumers share content between devices but could also disrupt a profitable market for manufacturers. The FCC also wants to reform the universal service fund (USF), an $8 billion federal fund built from tolls paid by telecom companies. Historically, the USF has helped smaller carriers subsidize local phone service. To achieve its broadband goals, RBC's Coleman believes the FCC will create a separate USF for broadband service or redirect the existing fund to pay for broadband deployment in "high-cost areas." Tweaks to the USF would probably benefit the largest telcos, such as Verizon, AT&T and Sprint, since they typically pay the most to the fund, says Arbogast.
benton.org/node/32907 | Forbes.com
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GENACHOWSKI INTERVIEW WITH WIRED
[SOURCE: Wired, AUTHOR: Steven Levy]
A Q&A with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski. He says the National Broadband Plan will require a lot of different actions to reach its goal of a hundred million homes at a hundred megabits a second. Healthy competition, Chairman Julius Genachowski says, places discipline on the market and should focus providers on providing the best service at a lower cost. Consumers are confused about their service and the price. They're confused about what speeds they're actually getting, they're confused about what they're paying for. As part of a competition strategy, increasing the transparency to consumers empowers consumers to make the market work. He says universal service needs to be transformed to a broadband universal service fund. That's the path that will be laid out in the broadband plan, transforming it over time so that it doesn't support yesterday's communications technology but supports tomorrow's. The FCC will suggest options to do it over 10 years or faster.
benton.org/node/32906 | Wired
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OBSERVATIONS AND PREDICTIONS ABOUT BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: Connected Planet, AUTHOR: Joan Engebretson]
A few observations and predictions based on information that has emerged so far about the National Broadband Plan:
1) 100 Squared math and Realities: Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski has said the plan will establish a goal of providing 100 million households (90% of the US) with 100 Mb/s connectivity. But will major carriers be interested in delivering that speed in high-cost areas? It might take the FCC allowing carriers to phase out traditional phone service. A transition to voice over the Internet (VoIP) would see the funding mechanism for Universal Service would vanish. VoIP providers, including telcos, also would have to self-organize a way of interconnecting with one another, which probably isn't the best way to help ensure that all the grammies and grampies who just want their phone to work will be taken care of.
2) The reclassification debate: If the FCC doesn't reclassify broadband, the Commission may not have the authority to create the broadband Universal Service fund. Combine that with the VoIP issues and it's easy to see why reclassification of VoIP and broadband are almost certain to be part of the plan.
benton.org/node/32889 | Connected Planet
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KEY FACTORS FOR SUCCESSFUL BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: BroadbandBreakfast.com, AUTHOR: Dan Hays]
[Commentary] PRTM predicts these four areas will be addressed in the National Broadband Plan:
1) Enable new services: The plan must focus on the ultimate goal of delivering services and solutions in far-reaching areas such as education, healthcare, homeland security, and energy -- and must be rooted in facts and specific requirements to deliver high-impact, network- and mobility-enabled applications. Numerous other government organizations -- the departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Energy, Transportation and others -- must rally around the plan. Maximizing the value of expended broadband capability will require standards and unification that only the government can bring.
2) Break down barriers to network investments: Network investment is perhaps the greatest obstacle to widespread availability of high-speed broadband services in underserved areas. Accelerated expansion of broadband networks will be achieved through not only tax breaks, subsidies, and equalizing taxes, but also through the removal of obstacles that increase the cost of network deployment. Improved approval processes like the recently-passed FCC tower siting "shot clock" rule, are needed to improve zoning and deployment, promoting increased investment.
3) Free up spectrum to enable wireless solutions and mobility: PRTM looks forward to the passing of the National Spectrum Inventory Act which will be the first step towards identifying underutilized and inefficiently managed spectrum.
4) Bring broadband access to economically disadvantaged communities: PRTM anticipates a recommended shift for the Universal Service Fund from the provision of traditional telephone services to broadband. This would reduce the recurring cost of broadband service to currently underserved and unserved consumers, enabling them to sign up for currently-unaffordable broadband plans.
[PTRM is a global management consulting firm.]
benton.org/node/32888 | BroadbandBreakfast.com
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KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Nick Sinai]
Our nation's electricity grid is overstretched. Our greenhouse gas emissions continue to climb. What could possibly reverse this trend? Look no further than over your fence. In a Senate hearing last week we heard from Adrian Tuck, CEO of fast-growing technology start-up Tendril that helps consumers understand and manage their energy use. When consumers see their energy consumption information on their Tendril iPhone app or in-home energy display they make smarter decisions and waste less energy. Tuck testified that, generally speaking, consumers are motivated to save energy in one of three ways: saving money, saving the planet, and beating their neighbors. Which one was the most effective at driving consumers to cut their consumption? Yep. You guessed it. It turns out many consumers are more motivated to beat their neighbor in energy savings, rather than save money or save the world. It makes sense when you think about it. We're social beings, and often make decisions in social contexts. The science behind this is called behavioral economics. There is a rich panoply of motivations (social, cognitive, emotional) that drive the economic decisions we make. Think Malcolm Gladwell's Blink and Dick Thaler and Cass Sunstein's Nudge. OPOWER, another fast-growing start-up, is an example of a company that uses behavioral science to improve electric utility energy efficiency programs. How does it work? Working closely with a utility, OPOWER mails a color, one-page report to customers. Although it's branded with the utility logo, the report deviates from the hard-to-understand bill we're accustomed to receiving. To start, less is more. They provide simple graphs that make it easy to understand how much energy you used last month, and how that compares to the months prior. Next, it's not really a bill. OPOWER doesn't show a total bill amount or ask you to send money—it's simply a supplemental information sheet about your energy usage.
benton.org/node/32887 | Federal Communications Commission
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NEED FOR SPEED?
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Joel Gurin]
The Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan recommends different measures to help consumers find their way through the Mbps maze. The plan will outline ways that online tools, labels, and other kinds of information can help consumers understand broadband speeds and choose the plans that work best for them. It will also address wireless broadband, where speeds can vary a lot by local coverage, and where consumers have many more providers to choose from. The FCC is taking steps to help consumers even before the Plan is released. Next week the FCC will launch new media tools to give consumers more information about their broadband connections. And in the months ahead, the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau and others at the FCC will be working hard to help consumers understand and learn about broadband speed.
benton.org/node/32905 | Federal Communications Commission
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SBA BROADBAND PLAN COMMENTS
[SOURCE: Small Business Administration, AUTHOR: Susan Walthall, Major Clark, Radwan Saade]
The US Small Business Administration (SBA) has weighed in on the National Broadband Plan, advising the Federal Communications Commission to start the process of redefining size standards with the SBA. This review is needed, SBA says, mainly to reflect the financial and technological changes that have occurred in the market. There are three North American Industry Classification System Codes defining telecommunications and related services. Additional classifications may be needed to account for small broadband and telecommunications providers, as they are currently "lumped" with one of the categories, and not explicitly accounted for. Small telecommunications providers have seen their fortunes grow and disappear since the passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Those still in existence, as well as new entrants, are anxiously waiting to see how competition will be defined by the Plan.
benton.org/node/32904 | Small Business Administration
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THE STIMULUS

BTOP GRANT FOR LOUISIANA
[SOURCE: BroadbandBreakfast.com, AUTHOR: Sharon McLoone]
The Commerce Department announced an $80 million broadband investment in Louisiana on Friday morning, during a conference call hosted by Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA). The investment will make more affordable high-speed Internet access for 100,000 households, 15,000 businesses and 1,200 anchor institutions such as libraries and public safety offices. The money will help the state expand broadband throughout 3,500 square miles that includes 12 impoverished parishes, many of which didn't even have phone service a few years ago, said Sec Locke
benton.org/node/32886 | BroadbandBreakfast.com | www.ntia.doc.gov
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NTIA AWARDS GRANTS FOR BROADBAND MAPPING AND PLANNING IN VIRGINIA AND AMERICAN SAMOA
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
The Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today announced that it has awarded grants to fund broadband mapping and planning activities in Virginia and American Samoa under NTIA's State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program.
American Samoa: NTIA has awarded the American Samoa Office of the Governor approximately $558,000 for broadband data collection and mapping activities over a two-year period and $500,000 for broadband planning activities over a two-year period in American Samoa, bringing the total grant award to approximately $1.1 million. The Office of the Governor is the designated entity for the territory of American Samoa.
Virginia: NTIA has awarded the Virginia Center for Innovative Technology $1,799,979 for broadband data collection and mapping activities over a two-year period and $500,000 for broadband planning activities over a two-year period in Virginia, bringing the total grant award to approximately $2.3 million. The Virginia Center for Innovative Technology is the designated entity for the state of Virginia.
benton.org/node/32903 | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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SMART GRID PROJECT IN CA
[SOURCE: Electric Light and Power, AUTHOR: ]
Glendale Water and Power signed a contract for a $20 million federal Smart Grid Investment Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, becoming the first city in the nation to receive smart grid funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grant will help GWP fund implementation of $51 million for the city of Glendale AMI-Smart Grid Initiative. The first significant milestone will be a demonstration project to prove the smart meters portion of the project this spring. The demonstration project will include the installation of a meter data management system, 1,000 electric meters, 500 water meters and 300 in-home displays, with plans to have all meters replaced by September 2011. The new smart meters will allow for two-way communication between customers and the utility, and for the first time will provide customers with real-time electricity usage data to help them save on their bills. In addition to replacing all electric and water meters with new smart meters, receipt of the $20 million in DOE grant funds will allow GWP to expand the project scope and accelerate implementation to include the following additional smart grid activities: Distribution automation, New enterprise data storage system, Residential and small business smart grid devices, Thermal energy storage, Demand response, Expanded Wi-Fi backhaul.
benton.org/node/32874 | Electric Light and Power
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NETWORK NEUTRALITY

OFCOM TO INVESTIGATE NETWORK NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Telegraph, AUTHOR: Claudine Beaumont]
Ed Richards, chief executive of Ofcom, said that several media companies have raised concerns about the issue of network neutrality -- the principle that all Internet traffic should be treated the same by Internet service providers -- in the last few months. "It has been a big issue for historic reasons for many years in the US. It is now beginning to be an issue here," he said. "The deployment of traffic management techniques and policies is now happening in scale." Richards said that Ofcom would publish its initial findings in the spring. "Traffic management policies need to be very clearly explained and very transparent," he said. Richards has indicated that the highly interventionist approach seen in the United States might not be appropriate for the UK and Europe, and that it was "even harder to justify blanket net neutrality rules when we consider the risks they could pose to potential collaborative and desirable investment in networks." "In the US, limited competition, both at the network and the ISP level, means that the potential for consumer detriment through traffic management is greater," he said. "In Europe, as recent research for the FCC indicates, the mixed model -- investment in infrastructure complemented by unbundling of the local loop -- has delivered a more competitive market structure from the exchange back into the network." Richards also said that service providers needed to be more open with consumers about their traffic management policies. "Even if consumers have access to transparent information, they need to understand how traffic management practices will affect their day-to-day experience of a service and be able to assess which product best meets their needs," he said. "This may require substantial effort and time, particularly if the information provided about traffic management practices is fairly technical."
benton.org/node/32885 | Telegraph.co.uk
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EFF DEMANDS FCC CLOSE COPYRIGHT LOOPHOLE
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Nate Anderson]
The Electronic Frontier Foundation might be expected to love the Federal Communications Commission's "Open Internet" push, but the group has one big concern with the rulemaking: the presence of "a loophole for copyright enforcement in its proposed regulations for network neutrality." The EFF has now submitted a petition to the FCC with 7,000 signatures, asking for the provisions to be stripped from the final rule. "Before the ink is dry on net neutrality regulations, we already see corporate lobbyists and 'public decency' advocates pushing for loopholes," said EFF Civil Liberties Director Jennifer Granick. "A loophole like this could swallow network neutrality, with ISPs claiming copyright enforcement as a pretext for all sorts of discriminatory behavior." At issue is the "reasonable network management" exception to net neutrality. The FCC makes clear that network neutrality rules only apply to "lawful content," and neutrality does not apply to the illegal transmission of copyrighted work. Despite the EFF's concern, this exception has been in place for years already.
benton.org/node/32884 | Ars Technica
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GOOGLE NET

WHERE SHOULD GOOGLE BUILD NETWORK?
[SOURCE: PCWorld, AUTHOR: David Coursey]
[Commentary] Wouldn't it be great if Google installed its gigabit broadband network in cities that could really use the help? Instead of holding a beauty pageant, in which cities such as Topeka and Duluth, can nominate themselves and find novel ways to get the company's attention, perhaps Google should do its own research and choose cities that would most benefit from a bandwidth boost. I'm offering Google the chance to prove the impact superfast Internet could have. This project could also help Google change its corporate mantra from "Don't Be Evil" to the more optimistic, "Do Good." Here's my proposal: Google should install its gigabit network in places like Cleveland; Stockton, California; Memphis, Tennessee; Detroit; and Flint, Michigan. Last month, these five cities, in that order, were ranked as the "Most Miserable" cities in America by Forbes magazine. I'm thinking that a superfast network could improve the business environment in these places, help education, create new jobs, and provide entertainment for the presumably miserable residents. Won't solve their problems, but certainly might help.
benton.org/node/32902 | PC World
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VIDEO/AUDIO

WHOSE PUBLIC INTEREST IS IT ANYWAY?
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Harry Jessell]
[Commentary] At the Federal Communications Commission's Future of Media workshop, Jerry Fritz of Allbritton Communications was asked whether there were any stations not fulfilling their public interest programming obligations. Fritz challenged the FCC's right to define what those obligations are for every TV and radio station in the country. The problem the government faces ... is, whose public interest are we talking about?" he said. "Everybody here has a different sense of how they would program their station. There isn't anything called the public interest." In his opening remarks, Fritz said broadcasters take the job of figuring out what's in the public's interest rather seriously. "Notwithstanding historical attempts to impose someone else's idea of necessary programming, broadcasters, as content creators, monitor what the public wants on a daily basis," he said. "We evaluate what they are, what they watch, when they watch and how they watch. We even speculate on why they watch." To some, Fritz's combativeness yesterday might be seen as a tad excessive. Truth is, broadcasters don't have much in the way government-imposed public interest programming obligations today. Essentially, they are required to air three hours of decent educational or informational programming for children each week. That's about it. But Fritz is rightly concerned that the regulatory pendulum that swung so far toward deregulation in the 1980s is swinging back toward regulation now.
benton.org/node/32899 | TVNewsCheck
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