January 2011

General Electric agreed to purchase French utility Vivendi S.A. 12.3% stake in NBC Universal for about $3.8 billion, the final installment in a $5.8 billion deal that paves the way toward the closing of its 50-50 joint venture with Comcast.

Vivendi, formerly Vivendi Universal, had sold its Universal Studios and cable channels to NBC in 2004 for $14 billion which created NBCU, but retained a 20% interest in the venture. It was Vivendi's desire to divest of that stake in 2009 that sparked speculation that GE would either sell the unit or seek a partner.

Rep Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) re-introduced a nonbinding resolution calling on President Barack Obama to oppose any efforts by the United Nations to take over governance of the Internet.

"It has become increasingly clear that international governmental organizations, such as the United Nations, have aspirations to become the epicenter of Internet governance. And I'm going to do everything I can to make sure this never happens," said Rep Bono Mack, the new chairwoman of the House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade. She introduced a similar resolution in the last Congress. Rep Bono Mack wrote House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) to urge her to advance the measure. The resolution notes that some countries that favor having the United Nations or another international entity play a bigger role in Internet governance "use the Internet as a tool of surveillance to curtail legitimate political discussion and dissent." Such countries want the United Nations or another international entity to "endorse national policies that block access to information, stifle political dissent, and maintain outmoded communications structures," according to the resolution.

House and Senate committee leaders backed dueling legislation to extend online surveillance provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act that are set to expire at the end of February.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced the bipartisan 2011 USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act, which would continue to allow roving wiretaps of suspects who change computers or phone numbers to avoid monitoring; tracking of "lone wolves" -- people of interest with no known links to terrorist groups; and retrieval of records and other tangible evidence from organizations with a court order. The proposal, which would expire in December 2013, also demands greater judicial supervision. Meanwhile, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) announced he has thrown his support behind a bill, HR 67, that Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) unveiled on Jan. 5 that would extend the three expiring provisions for a shorter period of time, to 2012. It contains no additional oversight provisions. Chairman Leahy said: "Earlier this month, a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives to extend the expiring provisions only until February 2012, an expiration date chosen deliberately to try to force a debate over national security in an election year. My bill sets a longer sunset period, which law enforcement strongly favors." But Chairman Smith defended his approach, calling the short-term extension "a step toward the long-term reauthorization of important and necessary national security provisions. It gives Congress time for an open and meaningful debate, while ensuring that our law enforcement and intelligence communities can continue to prevent attacks and save lives."

The White House took what can best be described as a "blitzkrieg" approach to social media for President Obama's State of the Union address. There were live question-and-answer sessions, Twitter exchanges and the president will take questions via YouTube. Of course, the Obama social media operation was a juggernaut during the 2008 campaign. On Facebook and Twitter, in text messages and on YouTube, there was no comparison between Republicans and Democrats. So the reality just two years later is striking: In social media, Republicans have caught up. That's the conclusion of a report released by the Pew Research Center. "Lots more people — including Republicans, independents, supporters of the Tea Party — are just as active in this space as Democrats used to be," says Lee Rainie, director of Pew's Internet and American Life Project. "So the Democratic advantage, in some sense, is being washed away by the mainstreaming of the populations who are using these tools."