January 2011

We need a serious critique of net activism

[Commentary] Evgeny Morozov's The Net Delusion is the first book from the Belarusian-born foreign policy writer and blogger. Morozov has built a reputation as a sharp and sometimes caustic critic of the Internet and "cyber-utopianism" and Net Delusion expands the arguments he's made elsewhere. I read my review copy with interest; I like Evgeny – the times we've met and corresponded, he's struck me as smart and committed.

At its core, there is some very smart stuff indeed in The Net Delusion. Morozov is absolutely correct when he forcefully points out that technology isn't necessarily good for freedom – that it can be used as readily to enslave, surveil, and punish as it can to evade, liberate and share.

Unfortunately, this message is buried amid a scattered, loosely argued series of attacks on a nebulous "cyber-utopian" movement, whose views are stated in the most general of terms, often in the form of quotes from CNN and other news agencies who are putatively summing up some notional cyber-utopian consensus. In his zeal to discredit this ideology (whatever it is), Morozov throws whatever he's got handy at anyone he can find who supports the idea of technology as a liberator, no matter how weak or silly his ammunition.

Comcast Leaders Aim to Reassure NBCU

Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and incoming NBC Universal CEO Steve Burke moved to reassure NBC Universal staffers that they want the company to be the kind of company where they'll want to work.

Roberts said that new management is bound to make "some mistakes," but that while "we are in business for profit . . .we can stand for so much more than that." Burke said that the new NBCU will have many opportunities to take its programming and put it into new distribution systems. NBC is "the only major broadcast network with multiple entertainment channels and shame on us if we can't find a way to take advantage of that." But Burke made it clear that he wanted things to work Comcast's way. He said Comcast grew through acquisitions and that his strategy was "to hit the ground running and make it very clear what the company's all about." In a year, if he's successful, everyone will "know what this company's all about."

Obama, Mobile Broadband Won't Save Us

[Commentary] I'm all for fast wireless broadband, but relying on wireless to solve this nation’s looming broadband gap is like relying on low-fat Twinkies to solve the nation’s obesity problem.

Mobile broadband is a poor substitute for the faster wireline broadband; it’s more expensive; and it’s not subject to network neutrality rules, which means anyone surfing the web on a wireless connection may end up with a fragmented and bastardized Internet experience. Mobile broadband is a wonderful solution for expanding access to broadband for less money than a wireline connection will cost, but mobile broadband tends to cost more per month, offer lower speeds (even Verizon’s 4G network will offer 5-12 Mbps as opposed to Verizon’s FiOS network, which offers up to 100 Mbps), and the fact that wireless providers don't have to abide by network neutrality rules is hugely problematic. I understand that for some people mobile broadband is the only means of accessing the web, but I don't think the U.S. should accept that as an optimal solution for rural broadband. Especially as we start talking about Universal Service Fund reform and how to support expanding broadband access to those that don't have it, I'd be leery of an agenda that attempts to subsidize or push wireless connectivity at the expense of cheaper and more future-proof wireline networks.

Baltimore Builds Social Media Into Open Data Platform

Open government platforms are becoming a standard for any city looking to push transparency, but Baltimore is looking to go a step further by adding a layer of user interactivity.

The OpenBaltimore portal, announced Wednesday, Jan. 26, will make data sets publicly available, as other similar government websites have done. But in addition to viewing the data, citizens and application developers can use the portal as a tool for interacting with other users, said the city’s new CIO Rico Singleton.

Accountability: Who Else Will Go the Way of Congressman Bobby Rush?

[Commentary] No member of Congress is beyond reproach. Every member of Congress should be open scrutiny of their record, and every member should be judged by his or her record. It's critical to an effective democracy. Last week, Congressman Bobby Rush's record of carrying water for big telecom corporations — at the expense of the communities he represents — came back to haunt him when he lost his bid to become Ranking Member of the subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet. Rep. Rush had been almost certain to get the position until more than 16,000 ColorOfChange.org members opposed his candidacy because of his record of advocating against net neutrality. Now, Congressman Rush is trying to change the subject. But it won't work — not now, at a time when a politician's statements and voting record are readily available for the public to see and evaluate.

[Rucker is executive director of ColorOfChange.org]

New NTCA report answers two of Blair Levin's three Universal Service questions

In response to rural telco complaints that the 4 Mb/s minimum broadband speed recommended in the National Broadband Plan is set too low, NBP crafter Blair Levin has challenged the telcos to answer three questions. What should the speed be? What will it cost? And who is going to pay for it?

The National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA) seems to have answered at least two of those questions in a report that it recently issued.

Fifteen percent of all NTCA member respondents estimated that they could bring all of their customers up to 25 Mb/s service for $1 million or less. An additional 30% could do so for between $1 and $10 million. Twenty six percent more said they could do so for between $10 and $20 million, and another 11% said their cost would be between $20 and $50 million. The final 19% estimated that the total cost would exceed $50 million. The report didn't discuss how those costs should be covered. That wasn't the goal of the report. Based on comments provided by respondents, however, it seems clear that the small telcos are hoping a broadband Universal Service program would operate in a similar fashion to how today’s voice-centric program works. Respondents were asked what obstacles they had encountered in their efforts to deploy fiber to their customers and how conditions would need to change to allow them to successfully overcome those obstacles. A typical response was “As long as we have some sort of USF regime and USDA funding we would continue to deploy.”

Film lobby seeks to regain status

The Motion Picture Association of America used to be one of the premier stops in Washington. Invites to a sit-down meal in its dining room and a viewing of a first-run movie in its posh screening room were coveted by A-listers from government, industry and the press. With a view of the White House, the MPAA building and theater became a symbol of the power and prestige of Hollywood where politicos could experience a little glitz. The projector still rolls — albeit less frequently — but the MPAA’s luster has faded over the years as it finds itself in an identity crisis.

The retirement and death of its charismatic longtime president Jack Valenti and the departure a year ago of former Democratic congressman and Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman left the once-influential lobby searching for a direction. The search for Glickman’s successor, which included a high-profile courtship of former Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Nebraska) that flamed out, contributed to the perception that the association has lost some of its luster. While interim CEO and President Bob Pisano has held down the fort, one industry source said he was unlikely to make it permanent. Among those mentioned for the $1.2 million-a-year job are former New Mexico Gov Bill Richardson, attorney Antoinette C. Bush, retired Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), former Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-MO) and Kevin Sheekey, former aide to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

ISPs Are the New Secret Police, Says Report

More and more European Union member states are delegating online policing to private companies and Internet service providers, according to a study by the organization European Digital Rights (EDRI).

Where law enforcement agencies would traditionally have tackled the problem of illegal online content, more powers are being given to ISPs in the name of industry self-regulation. That trend is likely to become stronger with increasing "extra-judicial sanctions" against consumers, EDRI said. International trade agreements such as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), and bilateral trade agreements the E.U. has signed with India and South Korea, all leave the door open for intermediary liability.

Location Services Have Die-Hard Fans, But Privacy Is A Big Issue

One of the big selling points for consumers deciding to upgrade their feature-phones to smartphones is “location-based services,” like maps that constantly update themselves as you move. A new study commissioned by Microsoft finds that consumers who are aware of location services are very fond of them, but that they’re also seriously concerned about sharing that information with groups like advertisers—and even with their own social set.

Another finding: There’s a fair amount of confusion about what exactly location-based services are, even among some people who say they are users. The study also contained findings about which location services are the most popular, and which demographic groups are the heaviest users of LBS in general. As smartphones take off, location-based services, in particular, are dramatically increasing the amount of data available to advertisers, and potentially the government.

Here are results of the survey, which polled 1,500 people in five different countries: the US, UK, Canada, Japan and Germany:

Consumers who use location-based services (LBS) love it
Only a few want to share their location with others
Privacy concerns loom large
Free stuff rules
Google, Facebook are top dogs in LBS
There’s confusion over just what LBS is

Can Governments Really 'Block' Twitter?

This week, Egypt became the latest Middle Eastern country to see massive anti-government street demonstrations. As in Tunisia earlier this month and Iran last year, activists have made heavy use of social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook -- and the Egyptian regime has responded harshly. On Jan. 25, Twitter officially confirmed reports that access to its site had been blocked. Is it really possible to do that? Yes, but not very effectively. Unfortunately for the censors, Twitter allows other companies to develop their own applications using its programming interface. This has led to the development of a plethora of tools that allow users to post to Twitter without ever pointing their browsers to Twitter.com. These third-party clients still appear to be functioning in Egypt. There have even been reports of activists updating Twitter through the professional résumé-sharing site LinkedIn.

Benton

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