Sen Al Franken (D-MN) accused Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski of catering his network neutrality proposal to industry in a lengthy floor speech on Dec 18. He said he is "concerned when I hear that the chairman of the FCC is calling the CEOs of companies they are supposed to be regulating, seeking their public endorsement of his net neutrality proposal."
[Commentary] President Barack Obama has called for rebuilding on a new and stronger foundation for economic growth. “We need to do what America has always been known for: building, innovating, educating, making things,” The President said. “ We don't want to be a nation that simply buys and consumes products from other countries. We want to create and sell products all over the world that are stamped with three simple words: ‘Made In America.’ That's our goal.” The President touted investment in infrastructure as a key element for our reaching our goal. Economic competition, he said, “is going to be much more fierce and the winners of this competition will be the countries that have the most educated workers, a serious commitment to research and technology, and access to quality infrastructure like roads and airports and high-speed rail and high-speed Internet.” The investment in broadband should be informed by the investments made possible by the stimulus package and fueled by the reform of the Universal Service Fund.
[Commentary] The intensely competitive nature of the Internet is vital to the American economy and democracy. So we worry that rules proposed this month by Julius Genachowski, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, to guarantee the Internet’s openness may not be able to guarantee the survival of that competition.
Any new rules must prevent broadband service providers from foreclosing on competition. As proposed, the rules appear to come up short. Fortunately, there is time to improve the proposal by Dec 21. It is virtually assured that the two Republican commissioners will vote against the rule. But the three Democratic commissioners should be able to close the gaps and protect open, competitive broadband. Understanding that they can't foresee every eventuality, we suggest that they keep open a Plan B in case their new guidelines don't do the job: the FCC should keep open its proceedings to redefine broadband as a telecom service. That’s what it is.
The Democrats have a message for Democratic Federal Communications Commission member Michael Copps: Don't screw things up on network neutrality.
Democrats allied with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski are working to put public pressure on Commissioner Copps as the network neutrality vote draws near. Chairman Genachowski needs Commissioner Copps to vote for his plan during a commission meeting on Dec 21 if the rules are to pass. As a result, Democrats who support the plan are pushing this message in the media: If Copps doesn't vote for Genachowski's plan, the consequences will reverberate all the way up to the White House. They are arguing that the damage could even hurt President Obama.
A prominent Democrat close to the White House said it this way on Dec 17: "If Copps votes no on Tuesday, he'd be handing the president a huge loss at a time when the Democrats should have a big win."
Did public interest organizations mischaracterize Amazon's stance on the current network neutrality proposal? Well, perhaps not after all.
Amazon is walking a (that is, almost invisible) rhetorical line with respect to this proceeding. Amazon supports the framework the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is using for its proposal; however, it opposes the rules as they are currently written. Amazon's Paul Misener says: "Although we support the chairman’s 'proposed policy framework' — in other words, the division between broadband Internet access service ('BBIAS') on one hand and specialized services on the other — Amazon does not support the currently proposed rules. As I said in my letter, Amazon believes that specialized services 'should not harm the delivery of content via BBIAS, nor impede the growth of BBIAS, nor be offered on unequal terms' (that is, bits are bits). Until the rules are modified to meet these criteria, Amazon does not support the proposal."
America's beloved television is getting an extreme Internet makeover, and questions over what shows viewers will get online and how much they pay for them could soon be resolved by the Federal Communications Commission.
Over the next few weeks, the FCC will decide on Internet access regulation and a proposed merger by Comcast and NBC Universal that could chart a new course for the future of TV. Those deliberations would create first-time rules affecting how television series and movies reach consumers with Internet connections and how much companies can charge for the service. It's the government's strongest effort yet to lay out some boundaries in the headlong rush for online video. The picture looks fuzzy for Internet users. As drafted, the policies under deliberation may slow the trend of consumers breaking free of their cable and satellite bundles to watch cheaper or free episodes of shows such as "Mad Men" and "Dancing with the Stars" via the Internet. The changes also may make it harder for new online start-ups to compete with television giants, some experts say.
Rep Bobby Rush (D-IL) asserts that the network neutrality proposal being considered by the Federal Communications Commission does not help low-income communities as much proponents claim.
Addressing a forum sponsored by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, he said that while he supports proposals to ensure network neutrality, it has limited impact on poor and minority communities. "Even though this issue has been framed in terms of broadband access for poor and minority people to attract people like me to their audience and to add potency to their arguments, the real battle has more to do with which giant can topple or get the best of the other," he told the audience. "It annoys me when people who purport to represent people of color start talking about low-income or poor people, as if they intimately know about their problems and challenges. Unlike those people, I do know and understand." The congressman said regulators should focus more on increasing the number of minority-owned broadcasting and other media companies. "In order to achieve the desired outcomes of inclusion, affordability, ubiquitous access to broadband services and more true universal service reform for the unserved and underserved in the most enduring fashion possible, the door to ownership has to swing open far more widely than where it's perched today," Rep Rush said.
House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Courts and Competition Chairman Hank Johnson (D-GA) wrote to the Federal Communications Commission urging the agency to approve Comcast's proposed acquisition of NBC Universal before the end of the year.
"Based on extensive Congressional hearings and what I have learned in discussions with a wide range of stakeholders, I believe the parties have satisfactorily demonstrated that the proposed transaction will not undermine competition in the media and telecommunications industry," wrote Chairman Johnson. According to campaign finance data from OpenSecrets, Comcast was one of the leading donors to Johnson's campaign committee during the last cycle, contributing $5,000. The entertainment industry was also among his strongest supporters, chipping in a total of almost $15,000.
Google has refused to turn over personal data collected inadvertently by its Street View cars, according to a statement from Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal (D).
“I am disappointed by Google’s failure to comply with my information demands. We will review any information we receive and consider whether additional enforcement steps — including possible legal action — are warranted," Blumenthal said. Friday was the deadline to comply with the request. “Access to information Google improperly collected from unsecured wireless computer networks may be needed to prevent a repeat," Blumenthal said. "Google’s story has changed from claiming it only collected fragments to acknowledging possible capture of full e-mails, making review of the data even more urgent."
The Transportation Department proposed prohibiting commercial truck and bus drivers from using cellphones while behind the wheel.
The rule would affect approximately 4 million drivers, who are already banned by the government from texting while working. The proposal is the latest move in Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's stepped-up campaign against distracted driving in which he has questioned cellphone use in passenger cars and "hands free" communications technology.
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