August 7, 2012 (US Proposals to World Telecom Conference)
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, 2012
Congress 2.0 today http://benton.org/calendar/2012-08-07/
INTERNET/BROABDAND
Fast Facts on United States Submitting Initial Proposals to World Telecom Conference - press release
Initial Input into the International Telecommunication Union's World Conference on International Telecommunications - press release
Ready to Move to Kansas City? Think Again - analysis [links to web]
Facebook ventures into online gambling
Does Maryland really want to be a pioneer on Internet gambling? - editorial [links to web]
Internet Taxation Will Help States and Local Retailers - op-ed
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
Verizon Wireless spectrum deal in for tough remedy
FCC Consolidates Verizon Spectrum Deals Reviews
CWA Slams Verizon/SpectrumCo Deal It Suggests Is Imminent [links to web]
FCC Continues Wireless Backhaul Reform - press release
After Settling for $1.25 Million, Does Verizon Still Charge for Tethering? - analysis
FCC Chairman Lobbies Pentagon for More Spectrum
Apple Gorging on Mobile Industry Revenue
AT&T to Leave 2G Behind
Rep Clarke Calls For Incentive Auction Hearing [links to web]
Study Reveals a Confused View of Mobile Phone Privacy and Security - analysis [links to web]
Court battle gives glimpse into Apple’s core
Judge rejects Apple's request for sanctions against Samsung [links to web]
Apple expert faces tough questions after saying Samsung infringed patents
Apple Ties To Samsung In Sharp Contrast To Courtroom Clash
How AT&T can create a fat nationwide 4G pipe to match Verizon’s - analysis
Bruised Mobile Carriers Fight Back at Apple [links to web]
ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
Obama and Romney need to weigh in on network neutrality - op-ed
The Biggest Night in $1.3B Presidential Ad Race? Eagles vs. Saints on ESPN
Pollsters Struggle to Pin Down the Right Number
Little Public Awareness of Outside Campaign Spending Boom - research
Crossroads blitzing 5 Senate races [links to web]
Political Ads: How Much Is Too Much?
Report says 15 percent of Mitt Romney Twitter followers are paid fakes
Google to allow candidates to target ads by House district [links to web]
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
How Washington officials bested the media - analysis
Tweets, social media help more officials get the word out [links to web]
CONTENT
Bleacher Report and the evolution of the content farm - analysis [links to web]
Eight-in-Ten Following Olympics on TV or Digitally - research [links to web]
Unintended Consequences of FTC's New COPPA Children's Online Privacy Rules - analysis [links to web]
Leaked: US proposal on copyright's limits [links to web]
Google records show book scanning was aimed at Amazon [links to web]
Internet Pirates Will Always Win - analysis [links to web]
OWNERSHIP
Senators Send Letter on Universal-EMI Deal
Apple and Google both win by killing the native iOS YouTube app, but we all lose
Apple expert faces tough questions after saying Samsung infringed patents
Apple Ties To Samsung In Sharp Contrast To Courtroom Clash
CYBERSECURITY
Republicans Fail a Security Test - editorial
After defeat of Senate cybersecurity bill, Obama weighs executive-order option
Defenseless against cyberattacks - editorial
JOURNALISM
Press Freedom Leads to Happiness, Environmental Quality, MU Study Finds - press release [links to web]
TELEVISION
FCC Accelerates Digital Cable Rollout by Moving to Eliminate Unnecessary Regulatory Barriers - press release
Networks Struggle to Appeal to Hispanics
Rep Clarke Calls For Incentive Auction Hearing [links to web]
The End of Channel Surfing? [links to web]
IOC Says NBC Can Delay Whatever It Wants [links to web]
Council for Research Excellence to Study The Impact of Social Media On TV Viewing [links to web]
Nielsen Uses TV and Web Data in New Targeting Effort [links to web]
POLICYMAKERS
Senate Confirms Four Nominees to Privacy & Civil Liberties Board
Powerful Shaper of U.S. Rules Quits, With Critics in Wake
FTC Announces Appointments to Agency Leadership Positions - press release [links to web]
Dr. Rev. Everett C. Parker: The Communication Industry’s Quintessential Fighter for Diversity [links to web]
STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:
Syrian Students Hold Facebook Protest
With Live Streaming and New Technology, BBC Tries to Be Everywhere at the Olympics
Bureaucratic red tape slowing rural broadband rollouts in Finland
Facebook ventures into online gambling
MORE ONLINE
AT&T Reaches Deal For Contract Covering 22,000 Employees [links to web]
FCC Launches Computer Recycling/Donation Program [links to web]
INTERNET/BROABDAND
US SUBMITS INITIAL PROPOSALS TO WTC
[SOURCE: Department of State, AUTHOR: ]
On August 3, 2012, the United States will submitted its first group of proposals to the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), which will be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 3-14, 2012. The US proposals include:
Minimal changes to the preamble of the International Telecommunications Regulations (ITRs);
Alignment of the definitions in the ITRs with those in the ITU Constitution and Convention, including no change to the definitions of telecommunications and international telecommunications service;
Maintaining the voluntary nature of compliance with ITU-T Recommendations;
Continuing to apply the ITRs only to recognized operating agencies or RoAs; i.e., the ITRs’ scope should not be expanded to address other operating agencies that are not involved in the provision of authorized or licensed international telecommunications services to the public; and
Revisions of Article 6 to affirm the role played by market competition and commercially negotiated agreements for exchanging international telecommunication traffic.
The U.S. will carefully monitor and study the proposals submitted by other countries. The U.S. is concerned that proposals by some other governments could lead to greater regulatory burdens being placed on the international telecom sector, or perhaps even extended to the Internet sector -- a result the U.S. would oppose.
benton.org/node/131563 | Department of State
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INITIAL INPUT INTO THE INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION UNION’S WORLD CONFERENCE ON INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski]
On August 3, the United States submitted its initial input to the International Telecommunication Union’s World Conference on International Telecommunications, or WCIT, which will be held in December in Dubai. I am proud to support the vision for the future put forth by the United States in its filing today, a vision which embraces competition, market-based policies, and the current multi-stakeholder model of Internet governance.
Since the beginning of my Chairmanship, I have fought for Internet freedom. The proposals by some countries to restrict the free flow of information online would threaten one of the most powerful engines for global economic growth and the spread of democracy in the 21st century. As today’s U.S. contribution makes clear, the WCIT must embrace the successes of the last two decades of liberalization in telecommunications regulation and the existing multi-stakeholder model of Internet governance to ensure continued investment and growth of the Internet around the globe.
benton.org/node/131562 | Federal Communications Commission
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INTERNET TAXATION
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Michael Kercheval]
[Commentary] Sen. Jim DeMint's "No Internet Taxation Without Representation" (op-ed, Aug.1) is surprising and disappointing in that it is replete with outdated and inaccurate information. What Sen. DeMint (R-SC) fails to mention is that in states with a sales tax—five don't have one—tax is already owed by consumers when a purchase is made online. This isn't a new tax. It's erroneous to state that the Marketplace Fairness Act would create "taxation without representation," as retailers don't pay sales tax, they collect it. The in-state customer who makes the purchase and pays the appropriate sales tax has an opportunity every election to render judgment on his state's fiscal direction. Furthermore, because of technology advancements, it is patently disingenuous to suggest that collecting sales tax is a crushing burden for online merchants. Since the 1992 Quill Corp. v. North Dakota decision, our marketplace has changed at a dramatic pace. E-commerce has boomed, and with the technological development of smartphones, iPads and the continuous expansion of the Internet, traditional retailers have had the rug pulled out from under them. With the unlevel playing field created by the sales-tax loophole, brick-and-mortar retailers are unable to compete with the artificial price advantage enjoyed by online merchants. This has created a domino effect in communities throughout the nation as local stores are forced to close and jobs are lost. Federal legislation doesn't mean a national mandate. Rather, it restores the states' right to enforce their tax system of choice in a way that is consistent with our ever-evolving, multichannel marketplace.
benton.org/node/131685 | Wall Street Journal | DeMint op-ed
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WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
VERIZON AND DOJ
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Diane Bartz]
Verizon Wireless may need to agree to tough conditions to win approval for its deals to buy spectrum from cable companies and market each other’s products, according to three sources knowledgeable about the negotiations. Negotiations with the Justice Department's Antitrust Division have been bruising, focusing on plans by Verizon Wireless and Comcast, the biggest mobile carrier and the biggest cable company, respectively, to market each other's products. There has also been concern about a plan for a joint venture to develop new technologies, such as one to allow consumers to move seamlessly between wired and wireless hookups. Critics say it could create cutting-edge products only available to the consortium. The path that the talks are on would lead to a consent decree that would forbid the cross marketing agreement where Verizon markets its FiOS product, according to the three sources, who were not authorized to speak on the record. Cross marketing in the rest of Verizon's footprint and the joint research and development project would be allowed but only for a limited period of time, the sources said.
benton.org/node/131586 | Reuters
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FCC CONSOLIDATES SPECTRUM REVIEWS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Public Notice]
The Federal Communications Commission consolidated its review of four sets of applications filed by Verizon Wireless, Leap Wireless, SpectrumCo, Cox TMI Wireless, and T-Mobile License for spectrum suitable for the provision of mobile broadband service. The FCC concluded that there is a commonality of issues, particularly with respect to the aggregation of spectrum and the public interest arguments raised by the applicants and various petitioners and commenters.
benton.org/node/131585 | Federal Communications Commission
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FCC CONTINUES WIRELESS BACKHAUL REFORM
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission adopted measures promoting further deployment of mobile broadband service, continuing its reform of rules governing use of microwave frequencies for wireless backhaul as part of the FCC’s Broadband Acceleration Initiative and its regulatory reform agenda. Building on recommendations in the FCC’s National Broadband Plan, and following up on the Commission’s August 2011 Wireless Backhaul Report and Order, the actions will speed the rollout of fourth-generation (4G) broadband networks, accelerate the role of expanded wireless broadband communications in national economic revitalization and job creation, and bring new broadband services to rural areas. The FCC’s actions also continue the FCC’s regulatory reform agenda by eliminating unneeded regulations and ensuring that necessary regulations reflect current technology.
The Second Report and Order permits fixed microwave operators to use smaller antennas in certain microwave bands, which can result in significant cost savings to operators. The Rural Microwave Flexibility Policy adopted today will provide increased opportunities for broadband deployment in rural areas, increasing coverage and reducing cost. The Commission also updates existing microwave efficiency standards to reflect modern digital technologies.
The Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Second Notice of Inquiry continue the Commission’s effort to reform and modernize its wireless backhaul rules. Among other things, the Commission considers accommodating new types of antennas to reflect advances in technology, and proposes to allow smaller antennas in an additional microwave band.
benton.org/node/131583 | Federal Communications Commission
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VERIZON AND TETHERING
[SOURCE: CommLawBlog, AUTHOR: Mitchell Lazarus]
If you are a Verizon Wireless customer, and want to check if your phone uses C Block, do the following:
Find the phone’s FCC ID number – for a non-iPhone, usually under the battery. (Verizon does not presently offer a 4G iPhone.)
Go to this FCC website. Enter the FCC ID number: the first three characters go in the first field, and all other characters in the second field. Scroll down and click on “Start Search.”
On the next screen, inspect the right-hand column, which lists the frequencies on which the phone is authorized to transmit. Look for a number in the 776–787 range. If you find one, congratulations! You’ve got a C Block phone, and are probably entitled to free tethering (and maybe to free hot spot use as well). We say “probably” because your particular Verizon plan or location may not activate the C Block frequencies.
But even if you qualify, can you actually get free tethering and hot spot service? And refunds for past charges? Neither the FCC nor Verizon is saying.
Run your own experiment, if you have a C Block phone. Using the micro-USB to USB cable that came with the phone, connect the phone to a laptop, and turn both on. On the phone, go into Settings, and possibly More Settings or Advanced, looking for “USB Tethering.” Tap it and see what happens. What happened to us was a “Sign up” screen inviting us to incur that $20 per month. (You can back away without starting the charge.) Let us know your own results by posting a comment below.
On at least some app stores, software to bypass the tethering charges remains freely available, even for a Verizon phone. And besides pocketing the $20 per month, you will have the satisfaction of knowing that use of the software is probably legal, at least for you.
benton.org/node/131557 | CommLawBlog
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FCC, PENTAGON AND SPECTRUM
[SOURCE: National Journal, AUTHOR: Josh Smith]
At a press conference on August 3, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski said on that he is personally lobbying the military to help free more airwaves for private companies. He has recently taken to working with Pentagon officials on plans that would provide more spectrum to companies and help the military manage its resources. "I do see the potential for win-win solutions," Chairman Genachowski said. Direct, high-level engagement with the Pentagon, he said, increases the likelihood that a compromise can be worked out.
benton.org/node/131571 | National Journal
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APPLE GORGING ON MOBILE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: John Paczkowski]
Samsung shipped about 50 million smartphones last quarter — about double the number Apple sold and, according to IDC, the largest number of units ever shipped by a handset vendor in a single quarter. But does it matter? No. Because when you look at the broader mobile industry, Apple — thanks to the higher gross margins of the iPhone and iPad — far outshines its rivals in both revenue and operating profits. Though it shipped only about 6 percent of the industry’s smartphones and tablets in the second quarter, Apple captured about 43 percent of the industry’s revenue, according to Raymond James analyst Tavis McCourt. And it generated an astonishing 77 percent of the industry’s operating profits. This, even in a seasonally weak period for iPhone sales.
benton.org/node/131595 | Wall Street Journal
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AT&T TO LEAVE 2G BEHIND
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Thomas Gryta]
AT&T is shutting down its second-generation, or 2G, wireless networks by 2017 as it continues to upgrade its systems to faster technology and better use its limited airwaves. The telecom giant said about 12% of its contract wireless customers, or roughly 8.4 million people, were using 2G handsets at the end of June, but it will work "proactively" in coming years to move them to more advanced devices. Like the other major carriers, AT&T's customers mostly use phones with 3G, or third-generation, technology, and it is aggressively rolling out a nationwide 4G network.
benton.org/node/131599 | Wall Street Journal
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GLIMPSE AT APPLE’S CORE
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Tim Bradshaw]
Struck by a daily onslaught of rumors and speculation about the next iPhone or iPad, Apple always refuses to discuss future product launches. Surprise is an essential ingredient for Apple’s product launches, generating millions of dollars in free press coverage, as testimony from senior Apple executives in the technology group’s court battle in California with its South Korean arch-rival Samsung showed. However, Apple’s battle over intellectual property rights has undermined its arsenal of marketing strategies and reliance on secrecy as evidence obtained and submitted to the public court by Samsung has spoiled some of its plans with the revelation of discussions last year about a smaller iPad. A San Jose courtroom last week heard detailed testimony from Apple executives who rarely give press interviews, detailing the development and marketing strategies behind the technology industry’s biggest hype machine. The secretive technology group was required to reveal that it spent $535m marketing the iPad and iPhone last year, with the budget for its tablet computer doubling over 2010 to overtake the smartphone’s ad spend, figures it does not usually disclose in financial filings.
benton.org/node/131590 | Financial Times | NYTimes | Christian Science Monitor
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AT&T AND 4G
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
AT&T’s LTE rollout plans are a bit of a hodgepodge. The problem is spectrum. It never managed to piece together the licenses to form a consistent nationwide 4G band like that owned by archrival Verizon. Instead AT&T cobbled together 700 MHz licenses here and Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) licenses there. The result is a network that already has some big capacity shortfalls in key markets and could eventually have gaps in coverage. But AT&T is trying to rectify that situation by tapping spectrum in the most unexpected places. On Thursday, AT&T announced its intentions to buy spectrum squatter NextWave and its big hunk of Wireless Communications Services (WCS) spectrum. Shortly afterward it filed notice with the FCC that it plans to pick up smaller WCS holdings from Comcast and Horizon Wi-Com. UBS Investment Research analyst John Hodulik believes AT&T is now approaching Sprint, which is the last remaining WCS licensee of note. Hodulik said in a research note that those deals will give AT&T almost exclusive ownership of the WCS band, which ultimately would allow it to deploy a 20 MHz LTE network nationwide. Getting all those licenses is key to AT&T’s strategy otherwise WCS will remain useless for mobile broadband services, as it has for the last 15 years. Interference problems with the neighboring satellite radio services have made the band a no-man’s land for terrestrial cellular technologies. But a compromise between Sirius XM Radio and AT&T would solve the problem.
benton.org/node/131569 | GigaOm
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ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
CANDIDATES AND NETWORK NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Michael Livermore]
[Commentary] Within a few months of Inauguration Day, the next president will need to decide on how to deal with serious risks to the Internet’s innovation machine. If it goes the wrong way, online startups could be threatened and users could be in for less high-quality content on the Web. Clearly, that would be a downer, but it would also have significant financial implications, as the online sector powers economic growth with investment dollars. By 2016, US e-commerce retail sales will reach $362 billion dollars, and that's only a fraction of the value of the Web. This value is threatened if network neutrality protections, which ensure that all users are treated equally by their Internet Service Providers, are allowed to lapse. But with the information provided thus far, voters have an incomplete picture of how the candidates will handle upcoming challenges to such a profitable sector. Going forward, President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney should offer a much clearer road map. The next president will wield enormous power over the future of the Internet through his choices for FCC appointments, his veto power, and his ability to make his case to Congress and the public. With such a huge and important sector of the national economy at stake, Obama and Romney should be forced to state their positions in more detail, giving the American people a clear choice on the future of the Internet.
benton.org/node/131652 | Ars Technica
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BIG AD SPENDING DAYS AHEAD
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: Elizabeth Wilner]
Of the $1.1 billion in broadcast TV ad spending and $200 million in local cable ad spend that Kantar Media's CMAG now expects to see in the presidential race, we're nowhere close to the halfway mark. This $1.3 billion estimate assumes no further expansion of the battlefield, currently consisting of eight states plus lower-level bipartisan skirmishing in Pennsylvania and Republican forays into Michigan and Wisconsin. The estimate will rise if any of these three states become as competitive as the Great Eight, or shrink if any of the 11 drop off the list. If the 2012 air war has lacked major milestones, big-event advertising and government oversight until now, you'll see all of the above as we transition to late summer and the all-important fall. Every "watch list" item previewed below bears the stamp of the unprecedented nature of this air war: more money flowing from more deep-pocketed advertisers into fewer markets, resulting in prohibitively priced inventory. If you're a retailer or bank that relies on local spot advertising, your agency presumably has prepped for the months ahead, but even the most experienced agencies may not have anticipated six months ago that $1.3 billion in presidential advertising alone would be squeezed into -- at this writing -- just 67 DMAs. [more at the URL below]
benton.org/node/131577 | AdAge
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POLLING AND CELL PHONES
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: John Harwood]
As they gauge voter sentiment in this tight presidential race, pollsters face a big challenge: more and more voters hang up on them. So it sounds odd that some pollsters have decided to hang up on more voters. Yet that is one way survey researchers have adapted to the communications revolution that has upended old methods of measuring which political party is ahead. In the polarized battle between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, arcane shifts in polling techniques can have important consequences for the results — and public perceptions of the contest. Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster, and Peter Hart, his Democratic counterpart, who conduct the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, proved the point in their latest poll, conducted July 18-22, when they increased the proportion of respondents who rely exclusively on cellphones to 30 percent from 25 percent. To home in on them, the pollsters ended calls answered on cellphones if the respondents said they also had land lines. Their findings affirmed arguments that “cell only” Americans have significantly different, and more Democratic, political views than those with land lines. Over all, the poll showed President Obama leading Mr. Romney by 49 percent to 43 percent — providing a confidence-boosting talking point for Democrats and provoking sharp criticism from Republicans.
benton.org/node/131605 | New York Times
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OUTSIDE CAMPAIGN CASH
[SOURCE: Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, AUTHOR: ]
The public is hearing little about increased spending by outside groups in the 2012 election. Just 25% have heard a lot about outside spending by groups not associated with the candidates or campaigns, while three-quarters are hearing a little (36%) or nothing at all (39%) about this. In fact, the term “super PAC” itself is not widely known: Just 40% can correctly identify the term, nearly half (46%) don’t know what it refers to, while 14% give incorrect responses. When asked an open-ended question about the effect of increased outside spending on the election, a plurality (48%) expresses no opinion. About equal percentages indicate the effect will be neutral (27%) or negative (24%). Just 2% give a positive response about the effect of more outside political spending. Those who have heard a lot about this issue –which includes nearly equal shares of Republicans and Democrats – nearly half (47%) say increased outside election spending say it will have a negative effect, while 35% say it will have a neutral effect. Among those who have heard little or nothing about increased outside spending, most (59%) have no opinion; 24% say the impact will neutral and 16% say it will be negative.
benton.org/node/131555 | Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
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TOO MANY ADS?
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Danny Yadron, Amy Schatz]
Three months from Election Day, some political strategists already are asking if more TV ads really will make a difference. The question arises because of an increase in spending so far on political ads and the big reservations now being made for prime TV spots in the fall. Political ad placements are running higher than local TV stations in some swing states expected. It is the latest sign that record sums of money will be spent chasing a dwindling receptive audience. Just 8% of registered voters remain undecided, according to a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released last month, though some who picked a candidate said they were only leaning toward that choice. Campaigns, political parties and outside groups are expected to spend some $6.5 billion on television and cable ads for federal and state elections this year, up from $4.8 billion in 2008, according to estimates from Borrell Associates Inc., which tracks local TV and online advertising. The numbers have been boosted in large measure by the creation of many new outside groups and super PACs since the last election.
benton.org/node/131668 | Wall Street Journal
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ROMNEY’S FAKE TWITTER FOLLOWERS
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Dan Goodin]
More than 15 percent of Mitt Romney's Twitter followers may be generated by paid services that use fake accounts to artificially inflate the number of people subscribed to the presumptive Republican nominee for US President, according to a new report. The report comes from researchers at security firm Barracuda Labs, and it cites the addition last month of 116,922 followers to @MittRomney in a span of just 24 hours. The infusion on July 21 represented a 17-percent spike in accounts following Romney. A quarter of those new accounts were less than four days old, and 23 percent of them had never issued a single tweet. Ten percent have since been suspended by Twitter for unspecified reasons. "Based on the above distinguishable features, we believe most of these recent followers of Romney are not from a general Twitter population but most likely from a paid Twitter follower service," Barracuda Labs Research Scientist Jason Ding wrote in the report. Such services allow customers to buy followers for any Twitter account, he stressed, so it's not clear if the fakes were purchased by Romney, his supporters, or his political foes.
benton.org/node/131666 | Ars Technica
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
WASHINGTON OFFICIALS AND MEDIA
[SOURCE: CNN, AUTHOR: Ari Fleischer]
[Commentary] Ten years ago when I was White House press secretary, before Twitter and Facebook, in an era when reporters used to pick up their phones to conduct interviews as opposed to e-mailing, I would have been laughed out of the briefing room if I tried to get quote approval for something I said. Occasionally, I talked on background as a senior administration official, but no reporter would ever let me pick and choose which on-the-record quotes they could use nor would anyone let me edit or clean up a quote. My how things have changed -- and the change began, it's important to note -- toward the end of the second term of George W. Bush. Peter Baker, another reporter at The New York Times who has covered the last three White Houses, told me in an (on-the-record) interview that quote approval evolved from something beneficial to a "pernicious practice to be avoided." Like Prohibition, it began with good intent. Reporters covering Bush's second term, under pressure from editors not to use unnamed sources in their stories, started asking their sources if a background quote, attributed to a senior aide, could instead be turned into an on-the-record quote, with the aide's name in print. I e-mailed last week with several former Bush staffers and many confirmed they engaged in that practice. For a very limited number of the most senior aides, that made sense.
[Ari Fleischer, a CNN contributor, was White House press secretary in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2003]
benton.org/node/131648 | CNN
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OWNERSHIP
SENATORS QUESTION UNIVERSAL DEAL
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Ethan Smith]
Adding to the challenges facing Universal Music Group's plan to acquire rival EMI Music, the two ranking members of the Senate's subcommittee for antitrust issues said in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission that the proposed deal "presents significant competition issues that merit careful FTC review." The FTC is already reviewing the $1.9 billion deal to determine if it would harm U.S. consumers, and the subcommittee's letter carries no formal authority. But it was nonetheless noteworthy for several reasons. Indicating unusual consensus on the gravity of the deal's potential implications, the letter was sent by Democratic Chairman Herb Kohl (WI) and Mike Lee (UT), the ranking Republican, who have never previously co-signed such a letter analyzing a merger. The senators' letter identified the growing digital music market as the area where the deal's effects would need the most scrutiny. "The effect of the proposed acquisition on digital distribution of music, and particularly on the ability of new entrants to launch new services, is particularly critical to determining whether the acquisition will have any substantial anticompetitive effects."
benton.org/node/131598 | Wall Street Journal
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APPLE DROPS YOUTUBE
[SOURCE: The Verge, AUTHOR: Nilay Patel]
News that Apple will not include a native YouTube app in iOS 6 in favor of a forthcoming standalone app to be built by Google marks another endpoint for the Apple-Google partnership. The two sides are pulling apart, each new split has different motivations, and both Apple and Google stand to win and lose in different ways. And the specific repercussions of YouTube no longer being bundled in iOS are no different. Google will have a lot more flexibility with a standalone YouTube app. It will be able to update the app much more frequently — and hopefully bring it up to date with the mobile web YouTube experience, which is markedly better than the native app. Perhaps more importantly, Google can now control how it displays lucrative pre-roll advertising in the app. Apple, on the other hand, no longer has to pay whatever license fee may have existed for including YouTube in iOS. What's more, Apple doesn't have to pay its own developers to build an app for a service operated by a direct competitor. Instead, it can assume Google will want to keep YouTube in front of the huge numbers of iOS 6 users and build its own app. Which is exactly what's happening.
benton.org/node/131644 | Verge, The
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APPLE-SAMSUNG TRIAL
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Howard Mintz]
An Apple design expert told a federal jury that Samsung's smartphones and tablets violated the patents on the iPhone and iPad but encountered rough sledding as relentless grilling by Samsung's lawyers challenged his conclusions. With the Apple vs. Samsung trial moving into its second week, Peter Bressler, a professional design expert, testified throughout the day on his evaluation of a range of Samsung products he determined infringed Apple's patents. Apple's bid for $2.5 billion in damages is relying on such expert testimony to prove that Samsung "slavishly copied" the iPhone and iPad. "It is my opinion there are a number of Samsung phones and two Samsung tablets that are substantially the same as the designs in (the iPhone and iPad) patents," Bressler testified. But Charles Verhoeven, Samsung's understated lead attorney, spent hours trying to take apart Bressler's findings, repeatedly showing diagrams of distinctions in Apple and Samsung smartphones and tablets to undercut the expert's position.
benton.org/node/131678 | San Jose Mercury News | WSJ
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APPLE’S TIES TO SAMSUNG
[SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Ian King, Adam Satariano]
Whatever the jury decides at the end of Apple-Samsung trial, Apple’s deep ties to Samsung are becoming more apparent even as the two companies clash in court. Apple’s reliance on Samsung chips for its best-selling phones and tablets will be worth as much as $7.5 billion to Samsung this year, a 60 percent jump from 2011, Gartner estimates. Because Apple would struggle to find an alternate supplier for the main processor in its mobile devices, the computer maker can’t quit buying from its competitor anytime soon, whatever the trial’s outcome. “As much as these companies go head to head, there’s a definite intertwining there that makes it a real ugly divorce if it were to take place,” said Len Jelinek, an analyst at market researcher IHS Inc. “Apple cannot, under any circumstances, be caught in a capacity-crunch situation.”
benton.org/node/131677 | Bloomberg
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CYBERSECURITY
REPUBLICANS FAIL SECURITY TEST
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Senate Republicans regularly promote themselves as the true custodians of national security. This claim seemed particularly hollow last week when they helped block a new measure aimed at protecting America’s vulnerable computer networks from attack by, among others, potentially hostile foreign governments. The legislation would have required companies to share data about cyberattacks with the government, and would have created a framework for minimum security standards to toughen computer protections. But the Chamber of Commerce and other business interests said the rules would be too costly and intrusive, and the Republicans went along. The result was to postpone action until after the August recess, and even then the bill may go nowhere given the pressures of election-year politics. The cost of inaction is already high.
benton.org/node/131603 | New York Times
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CYBERSECURITY EXECUTIVE ORDER?
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
Senate Republicans recently blocked cybersecurity legislation, but the issue might not be dead after all. The White House hasn't ruled out issuing an executive order to strengthen the nation's defenses against cyberattacks if Congress refuses to act. “In the wake of Congressional inaction and Republican stall tactics, unfortunately, we will continue to be hamstrung by outdated and inadequate statutory authorities that the legislation would have fixed," White House press secretary Jay Carney said. "Moving forward, the President is determined to do absolutely everything we can to better protect our nation against today’s cyber threats and we will do that," Carney said. The White House has emphasized that better protecting vital computer systems is a top priority.
benton.org/node/131589 | Hill, The
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DEFENSELESS AGAINST CYBERATTACKS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] In the final weeks before Congress left for its August break, Sens. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-CT) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), took a gamble. They watered down their own cybersecurity legislation in hopes of winning passage. But last week on the Senate floor, their compromise died. The sponsors could muster only 52 votes, short of the 60 needed. Sens Lieberman and Collins went a long way. Their original legislation would have set mandatory cybersecurity standards for companies that run critical infrastructure, such as electricity, water, nuclear, communications and financial networks. Ripping the heart out of their bill, they made the standards voluntary but still found no takers. The influential U.S. Chamber of Commerce opposed it, saying the legislation took an “adversarial” approach to the private sector. The group has endorsed other bills with less rigorous requirements. This was a moment when the business lobby put its head in the sand. The threat posed to the private sector in cyberspace cannot be wished away — it is large and growing. Most companies realize this from their own experience. They are being battered by cyber-exploitations and theft, losing customer records and intellectual property. Instead of torpedoing legislation, they ought to be leading the way, pressing Congress to act.
benton.org/node/131684 | Washington Post
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TELEVISION
FCC ACCELERATES DIGITAL CABLE ROLLOUT BY MOVING TO ELIMINATE UNNECESSARY REGULATORY BARRIERS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to modernize and reform its cable television technical rules, facilitating the cable industry’s widespread transition from analog to digital transmission systems. The proposed rules reflect the Commission’s ongoing commitment to regulatory reform and will permit the industry to utilize their existing spectrum more efficiently, while also ensuring good quality signals for digital cable customers and will protect against digital signal leakage.
The NPRM proposes to update the Commission’s signal quality rules, which were established when analog technology was predominant and digital technology was nascent. The proposed revision will streamline compliance for operators of digital cable systems. The NPRM also proposes to modernize the Commission’s cable signal leakage rules that were also designed with analog systems in mind. The proposed revision will protect the spectrum used for aeronautical communication and navigation services from interference by cable signal leaks, while enabling digital operators to more efficiently use their systems. Finally, the NPRM proposes a number of minor technical revisions, and seeks comment on any other technical changes necessary to bring the Commission’s cable rules into the 21st century.
benton.org/node/131581 | Federal Communications Commission
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TV AND HISPANICS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Tanzina Vega, Bill Carter]
The ratings numbers for popular television shows like “Modern Family,” “Two and a Half Men,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Glee,” and “NCIS” encapsulate the problem facing English-language television executives and advertisers: they desperately want to appeal to the more than 50 million Latinos in the United States (about three-quarters speak Spanish), especially those who are young, bilingual and bicultural, but those viewers seem to want very little to do with American English-language television. They do, however, continue to watch Spanish-language networks in huge numbers. In May, on the final night of the most recent season of “Modern Family,” far more Hispanic viewers were watching the top Spanish language show that week, the telenovela “La Que No Podía Amar,” on Univision, which attracted 5.2 million viewers. At this spring’s upfronts, the meetings hosted by network executives to sell advertising airtime, there were nine presentations to advertisers by broadcast and cable channels including ESPN and Discovery aimed at creating content for Hispanic viewers. In 2011, there were only five such presentations.
benton.org/node/131602 | New York Times
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POLICYMAKERS
SENATE CONFIRMATION
[SOURCE: The White House, AUTHOR: Michael Daniel, Danny Weitzner, Quentin Palfrey]
On August 2, the Senate advanced the cause of protecting Americans’ privacy and civil liberties by unanimously confirming four of the President’s five nominees to the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB): Rachel Brand, Elisabeth Cook, Jim Dempsey, and Judge Patricia Wald. While the Senate has yet to vote on the President’s highly qualified nominee David Medine to serve as the Board’s chair, the confirmations give the Board a quorum and will allow it to begin performing its important work.
benton.org/node/131565 | White House, The
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CASS SUNSTEIN RETURNING TO HARVARD
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: John Broder]
Cass R. Sunstein, who wielded enormous power as the White House overseer of federal regulation, came to Washington to test his theories of human behavior and economic efficiency in the laboratory of the federal government. Now he is departing with a record that left many business interests disappointed and environmental, health and consumer advocates even more unhappy. Sunstein, 57, who projected an air of disheveled academic detachment while becoming one of the Obama administration’s most provocative figures, announced August 3 that he was leaving government to return to Harvard Law School. Applying a cost-benefit analysis to his reviews of proposed rules, he said his goal was simply to make the nation’s regulatory system “as sensible as possible.” His critics saw it differently. “Cass Sunstein is the most well-connected and smartest guy who’s ever held the job,” said Rena Steinzor, president of the Center for Progressive Reform and a professor at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. “But he’s also done untold damage.” As administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, he reviewed the rules implementing President Obama’s health care act and the Dodd-Frank financial regulatory reform law.
“For the last three and a half years,” said President Obama, “Cass Sunstein has helped drive a series of historic accomplishments on behalf of the American people. From putting in place lifesaving protections for America’s families, to eliminating tens of millions of hours of paperwork burdens for our nation’s citizens and businesses, Cass has shown that it is possible to support economic growth without sacrificing health, safety, and the environment. Cass has shepherded our review of existing rules to get rid of those that cost too much or no longer make sense, an effort that is already on track to save billions of dollars. With these reforms and his tenacious promotion of cost-benefit analysis, his efforts will benefit Americans for years to come. I can’t thank him enough for his friendship and for his years of exceptional service.”
benton.org/node/131600 | New York Times | B&C | The White House
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:
SYRIAN STUDENTS HOLD FACEBOOK PROTEST
[SOURCE: Fast Company, AUTHOR: Neal Ungerleider]
An organization called the Union of Free Students in Syria is using a new tactic to promote Internet security among Syrian rebels: Facebook protests. In the face of widespread hacking by supporters of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, Syrian exiles are trying a new tactic: Internet literacy protests. Members of the Union of Free Students in Syria, an inter-university resistance organization, held an Internet-based protest in the city of Homs and in Saudi Arabia. Protesters held signs with slogans like “Protecting Your Account = Protecting Your Friends: A Different Password for Each Account,” and “Assad's Supporters Are Sending Dangerous Files With Hacked Accounts. Don't Be Tricked: Check With Your Friends Before Opening An Attachment.” There's one very interesting thing about the signs: Most of them were written in English, not Arabic. The use of English indicates that the Union of Free Students' audience isn't just Syrian students. Instead, the Union is directly speaking to both the Syrian diaspora and to non-Arabic speaking Western sympathizers. By reminding associates to keep their accounts secure and to brush up on their online security, the organization is unintentionally recalling the frequent use of online security training among the Tibetan exile community in response to suspected attacks by Chinese hackers.
benton.org/node/131659 | Fast Company
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WITH LIVE STREAMING AND NEW TECHNOLOGY, BBC TRIES TO BE EVERYWHERE AT THE OLYMPICS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Eric Pfanner]
While some American television viewers are grumbling about the retro feel to NBC’s London Olympics coverage, with tape-delayed broadcasts of the opening ceremony and other events, audiences in Britain are getting a more contemporary — even futuristic — TV Games. There, BBC is providing marathon coverage — 2,500 hours of programming during the more than two weeks of the Games. At the touch of a button on their remote controls, viewers can choose among as many as 24 live feeds of various events, whether basketball or fencing.
benton.org/node/131657 | New York Times
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BUREAUCRATIC RED TAPE SLOWING RURAL BROADBAND ROLLOUTS IN FINLAND
[SOURCE: Fierce Telecom, AUTHOR: Jim Barthold]
Finland's broadband push is being hampered by "the bureaucracy surrounding state aid for the installation of the networks," according to telecom operators, cooperatives and other service providers looking to build into the country's remote villages, with at least one carrier reporting delays of up to one year to obtain funding. Much like U.S.-based carriers that have to deal with the rules, regulations and overall temperament of federal regulatory agencies, Finland's service providers must navigate intricate red tape to get a share of limited resources, the Helsingin Sanomat reports. On a positive note, the Finnish government and European Union have earmarked €91 million ($113 million) to make broadband a reality in the more sparsely populated areas of the country. On a negative note, the newspaper said, "only a fraction of the allocated funds have been spent."
benton.org/node/131656 | Fierce Telecom
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FACEBOOK AND ONLINE GAMBLING
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Christopher Thompson, April Dembosky]
Facebook is venturing into the world of online gambling with the launch of its first application where punters can stake real money. Facebook will offer users in the UK aged 18 and over the opportunity to play online bingo and slots for cash prizes. “Gambling is very popular and well regulated in the UK . . . for millions of bingo users it’s already a social experience [so] it makes sense [for us] to offer that as well,” said Julien Codorniou, Facebook’s head of gaming for Europe, Middle East and Africa. There has long been speculation among investors as to whether Facebook and other social networking sites would introduce gambling products to boost revenues. Zynga, Facebook’s largest gaming partner, is hoping to introduce real-money gambling versions of its poker, bingo and slot machine games in 2013.
benton.org/node/131681 | Financial Times
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