September 2011

4 Reasons Why The Smart Grid Has Failed To Take Off

Why hasn't the U.S. made more progress towards smart grid connectivity?

  1. Industry's lack of stakeholder engagement from consumers (corporate and residential) and politicians. When utilities have in the past held referendums regarding the investment in smart grid technologies, the vote does not always go in their favor. This is often because consumers believe that the costs outweigh the benefits. More needs to be done to clearly establish the business case for smart grid adoption.
  2. Security Concerns. In today's world of heightened concerns over terrorism and increasingly sophisticated hackers, there is no wonder many worry about the vulnerability that our energy system could be exposed to if it truly were as IT-focused (and dependent) as we envision.
  3. Standards. Numerous technology providers are providing a range of technology solutions from smart meters to grid automation software -- and many of them have a vested interest or a desire to use proprietary, closed standards. The smart grid will only succeed on a large scale if technology suppliers agree to work on an open standard.
  4. Regulatory and Policy Support. The U.S. has a difficult landscape for bringing the energy industry into the 21st century. We have a mix of federal regulation and state legislation, as well as some level of autonomy at the municipal level.

This Season of Sesame Street Will Focus on Math and Science

Sesame Street's 42nd season will concentrate on math, science, and technology -- encouraging children to think critically about science, technology, engineering and math. Sesame Street’s furry residents are more curious than ever about the world around them, using a hands-on, ears-on, eyes-on approach to tackle complex problems and understand puzzling phenomena. From observing the properties of bubbles to experimenting to see “what worms like to squirm on best” to engineering a boat for Zoe’s pet rock, Elmo and the gang use the processes of scientific inquiry to make sense of their environment.

FCC must protect consumer in telecom reforms

[Commentary] A debate rages at the Federal Communications Commission that affects your pocketbook and your access to broadband.

The FCC appears poised to adopt a plan from America's largest telecommunications companies, including AT&T and Verizon, that will add billions to phone bills, routing those dollars to some of the country's most profitable phone companies without any real accountability or oversight, and strip states of the ability to protect consumers. At this key turning point in the history of telecommunications policy, the FCC must take seriously its obligation to make decisions that are in the public interest. Customer subsidies for universal access to telephone and broadband must provide results at a reasonable cost — and more, not less, accountability for the companies that stand to gain.

[ffitch is a senior assistant attorney general in Washington state]

Ninth Circuit: Apple did not engage in copyright misuse by restricting OS X to Apple hardware

Back in 2008, Apple sued Psystar for copyright infringement arising from Psystar’s manufacture and distribution of computers preloaded with copies of Mac OS X. Psystar lost at the trial court level, with the judge rejecting its argument that Apple engaged in anti-competitive, “copyright misuse” by requiring in its OS X software license agreement that the operating system be used only on Apple hardware. Psystar sought review of this ruling. On appeal, the Ninth Circuit affirmed.

Copyright misuse is a defense that one sued for infringement can raise. Courts will find that a plaintiff has engaged in copyright misuse if the enforcement of the plaintiff’s copyright will restrain the development of competing products. In this case, Psystar claimed that Apple’s enforcement of its software license restrained the development of competing hardware. The court rejected that argument because Apple’s enforcement of its software license agreement, requiring that the software be used only on Apple hardware, did not restrict Psystar from developing its own software.

Chicago technology mavens to launch startup center

Chicago tech startups soon will have a new place to call home.

A group of the city's tech backers, led by New World Ventures CEO J. B. Pritzker, plans to launch a tech center that will rent space to startups and single entrepreneurs. The non-profit, backed by Pritzker and other companies and individuals, expects to sign a lease for up to 50,000 square feet of space soon, said Matt Moog, CEO of Viewpoints Network, who has been involved in the effort to create the tech center. Among the sites under consideration is the Merchandise Mart in River North, where many of the city's tech startups are based. The group expects to sign a lease in the next eight weeks, so the space can be opened by the start of next year. It could accommodate dozens of startups simultaneously.

Thursday, October 6
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

A roundtable event to discuss recent achievements in the field of transparency and future plans for both caucus events and legislative proposals.

The event will begin with opening comments from Caucus Co-Chairs, Representative Quigley (IL-05) and Chairman Issa (CA-49). Following opening statements, Caucus Members will engage in an open discussion regarding transparency initiatives and objectives for the caucus. Finally, the floor will open for questions from the audience.



Silicon Valley and the next $100 billion stimulus

A handful of companies in the technology sector are sitting on a combined cash hoard of over $100 billion. The biggest cash reserve belongs to Apple, which is currently sitting on more than $76 billion in cash. Meanwhile, Google has $37 billion, Dell $11 billion, Qualcomm $5.6 billion and Accenture has $5.3 billion — all in cash on hand. To put this into perspective, the deficit-ridden Federal Government has less than $74 billion in cash at its disposal. At a time when every single measure to resuscitate the economy seems to have been exhausted, is it possible that Silicon Valley could be tapped to provide one last stimulus? You can think of that $100 billion in cash the same way you would think about cash in your own personal portfolio: It’s nice to have around for a rainy day, but inflation gradually erodes its value over time. Hoarding cash on your balance sheet is the corporate world equivalent of hiding cash under your mattress and waiting for the right opportunity to come around. Which is why, of course, Wall Street investors and investment bankers have been putting so much pressure on companies like Apple to do something — anything — with all that cash.

$100 billion is New Deal territory. As a result, maybe the best use of all that cash is on capital-intensive projects that can put engineers and skilled IT workers to work now. Now is Apple’s chance to do something big, something that people will be talking about as part of Steve Job’s final legacy. What if, on October 4, in addition to announcing whatever new technology the company plans to introduce, it also announces a massive capital spending project that acts as a stimulus for the economy?

Privacy group asks FTC for Facebook inquiry (updated)

The Electronic Privacy Information Center is asking the Federal Trade Commission to look into Facebook's tracking of users after they log off the service.

The group is also asking the FTC to examine if Facebook's new Ticker and Timeline features pose privacy risks for users. Privacy rights advocates say they want the FTC to investigate if the new features constitute unfair or deceptive business practices. "Facebook's frictionless sharing and post-log-out tracking harms consumers throughout the United States by invading their privacy and allowing for disclosure and use of information in ways and for purposes other than those to which users have consent and relied upon," the letter reads.

The letter is signed by other consumer groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union, the Center for Digital Democracy and Consumer Action.

Update:

Facebook says the incident did not represent a security or privacy breach and that it did not store any of the information from the cookies in question. A spokesman also called attention to Facebook’s new “Bug Bounty” program that rewards people who point out security risks. The company is emphatic that it does not “track” users outside browsing habits: "Said more plainly, our cookies aren’t used for tracking. They just aren’t. Instead, we use our cookies to either provide custom content (e.g. your friend’s likes within a social plugin), help improve or maintain our service (e.g. measuring click-through rates to help optimize performance), or protect our users and our service."

Social Media Discuss Tech Changes

From iPhones and Netflix to Facebook and Google+, the talk in social media last week was about new developments in technology.

For the week of September 19-23, blogs and Twitter were eager for new products and angry about changes to old ones, according to the New Media Index from the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism. In particular, commentators were excited about the upcoming version of the iPhone and the expansion of the new social networking site Google+. But they were mostly unhappy about changes to sites they had become accustomed to, particularly Netflix and Facebook. The top subject last week, Apple's iPhone, has been of particular interest to bloggers for some time now. Rumors about new versions of the device have been among the most discussed subjects on blogs in seven out of the last eight weeks.

The No. 2 subject on blogs was the entertainment site Netflix. In July, the company announced a price hike for its popular service. Last week, the company declared it was going to split into two parts-one for the DVD rental service and another for online streaming to be called Qwikster. Bloggers railed at the price increases and last week the company's CEO, Reed Hastings, tried to explain why the changes were necessary. His letter, however, did little to quell objections.

Should Google Tweak the News We Consume?

Should Google play an editorial role in presenting readers with news?

That question was a matter of debate at Zeitgeist, a Google conference this week in Paradise Valley (AZ), where Larry Page, Google’s co-founder and chief executive, said that Google had a responsibility to improve media. The question came up when Ted Koppel, the longtime broadcast journalist, complained that too much news was drivel, as reporters cover the Casey Anthony trial instead of life-and-death issues in Africa. People are being fed the news they want instead of the news they need because that makes news organizations money, he said. Nicholas Thompson, a senior editor at The New Yorker, then asked Koppel if Google should tweak its algorithm to deliver people the news they need instead of entertainment-as-news. “That wouldn't be a bad idea,” Koppel said.