March 2013

What makes a good broadband network for schools?

A panel of broadband experts recently agreed that high-quality access for schools and districts means more than providing a connection to the internet—good broadband provides a foundation for innovative initiatives, cloud services, telecommunications, and much more. Hosted by the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), the panel discussed the power of broadband access in schools and how it takes extensive planning, research, and legislative backing to ensure not just access, but high-quality access that can sustain growth.

Data Caps Could Dim Online Learning's Bright Future

[Commentary] Will the Internet remake education? Prestigious universities like Stanford and Georgetown now offer free classes to any student with an Internet connection and an attention span. Educators and policy makers believe these new online courses could make higher education more available and affordable for all. The key word here: could. As people struggle to sort the good from the bad in the world of massive open online education, some are already asking, as The Chronicle did recently, "For Whom Is College Being Reinvented?" But even that debate rests on a fundamental assumption that access to the courses themselves is not a barrier.

Today, data caps—monthly limits that force Internet users to pay for a specific amount of data and bill them even more if they exceed the limit—are proliferating. They threaten to put the brakes on this potential online revolution. Although much of the data-cap debate has focused on how these restrictions affect streaming-video services like Netflix, a recent study by the Open Technology Institute found that the caps also create barriers to using other data-intensive services, including online education. Sites like Coursera and Udacity, which offer free online lectures and interactive feedback, are growing in popularity, as are downloadable lectures on iTunes. As a nation, we should embrace the potential benefits of online education. But we must not ignore the disparities that may keep many from taking advantage of those innovations. In the 21st century, ensuring equal access to education may also depend upon equal access to broadband.

[Benjamin Lennett is policy director and Danielle Kehl is a program associate at the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute.]

A Connection for All Ages: Enabling the Benefits of High-Speed Internet Access for Older Adults

In an increasingly digital world, where a new generation of Internet-based services promises vast opportunities and benefits, many older adults do not have affordable, high-speed Internet connectivity at home. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) highlighted the need to increase the use of high-speed Internet technologies among older Americans as part of the 2010 National Broadband Plan. Three years later, a review of the National Broadband Plan suggests slow and uncertain progress to address key barriers to broadband adoption and use among older adults.

Entertainment industry, Internet service providers roll out anti-piracy system

After several months of anticipation, the copyright alert system managed by major Internet service providers (ISPs) and Hollywood groups is now in effect. Skepticism has surrounded the new system, which is aimed at reducing peer-to-peer online file sharing of blockbuster movies, TV shows and hit songs. The members of the organization that helped craft the framework for the new alert system took to Capitol Hill on March 8 to cut through some of the rumors circulated about it and urge skeptics to give the new anti-piracy program a chance.

Iran blocks use of tool to get around Internet filter

Iranian authorities have blocked the use of most "virtual private networks", a tool that many Iranians use to get around an extensive government Internet filter. A widespread government Internet filter prevents Iranians from accessing many sites on the official grounds they are offensive or criminal. Many Iranians evade the filter through use of VPN software, which provides encrypted links directly to private networks based abroad, and can allow a computer to behave as if it is based in another country. But authorities have now blocked "illegal" VPN access, an Iranian legislator told the Mehr news agency on Sunday. Iranian web users confirmed that VPNs were blocked.

First thoughts on Tunisia and the role of the Internet

[Commentary] News from Tunisia looks good. For better or worse, many of us will be pondering the role that the Internet played or didn't play in the events of the Jasmine Revolution. One thing to keep in mind is that revolutions will continue and Twitter won't go away anytime soon. So, it's reasonable to assume that there WILL be some new-media activity for any social or political turmoil. But correlation, as well all know, doesn't always mean causation.

To reiterate: Yes, there will be YouTube videos, Flickr photos, and Twitter messages -- some written by people on the ground and some by those outside -- accompanying any revolution, successful or not. To deny this would be silly. What strikes me about events in Tunisia is that social media seems to have failed in what many of us thought would be its greatest contribution (outside of social mobilization) -- that is, in helping to generate and shape the coverage of events in the mainstream media. On the contrary, despite all the buzz on Twitter it took four weeks to get the events in Tunisia on the front pages of major newspapers, at least here in the U.S. (the situation in Europe was somewhat better -- and it was way better in the Middle East -- for all the obvious reasons).

Internet Censorship is a Trade Issue Too

Government Internet censorship doesn’t just hurt people inside a country; it may also damage companies outside that country, said former White House deputy chief technology officer Andrew McLaughlin. When China and other nations block the websites of U.S. companies but the United States doesn’t respond in kind there’s a strong argument that creates an unfair trade barrier.

McLaughlin cited the example of Facebook, which is blocked in China, and Renren, a Chinese social networking service colloquially known as the “Facebook of China.” Renren became publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011. “At the same time the U.S. sits here and watches Facebook get blocked in China, we allow Renren . . . to come to our capital markets to raise $780 million in an IPO from investors we’re facilitating,” McLaughlin said. “We give them access to our markets; they block us from their markets. That seems like a classic trade barrier and one that the United States should take seriously.”

Implementing Public Safety Broadband Provisions of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012

The Federal Communications Commission seeks comment on certain proposals to implement provisions of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 governing deployment of a nationwide public safety broadband network in the 700 MHz band.

The FCC is considering the adoption of initial rules to protect against harmful radio frequency interference in the spectrum designated for public safety services, as well as other requirements related to FirstNet's license and to facilitating the transition directed under the Public Safety Spectrum Act. Our proposals in this Notice are intended to provide a solid foundation for FirstNet's operations, taking into account FirstNet's need for flexibility in carrying out its statutory duties under the Public Safety Spectrum Act to establish a nationwide public safety broadband network.

FTC Request Puts Nielsen-Arbitron Merger on Ice

The Federal Trade Commission asked for additional information from Nielsen and Arbitron regarding their proposed merger, the companies said. The request could indicate regulatory complications that will prolong the closing of the merger.

Nielsen withdrew and modified its original notification to the FTC last month hoping to forestall a so-called "second request" for information. After the companies comply with its request, the FTC will have 30 days to make a decision. It's unclear how long the companies will need to get the necessary information. Some industry executives, who spoke not for attribution, believe the combined companies could monopolize the still nascent market for cross-platform measurement that put TV, radio, digital, print, outdoor and other media on a common metric.

Computer Coding: It's Not Just for Boys

Three years ago, Belinda Parmar founded Lady Geek, a consulting firm that helps technology companies connect with female customers and bolster the number of women in work forces. Convinced that the paucity of women in technology has its roots in earlier life, Parmar last fall started Little Miss Geek, a non-profit aimed at convincing girls that programming is not a solitary grind but creative and eventually lucrative work.

Both sexes love gadgets — but while girls may enjoy owning the latest devices, parents and teachers do not point out that they also have the brains to build them, Parmar says. “They’re dreaming of using the iPad mini and the latest smartphone, but they’re not dreaming of creating it,” she said. As a consequence, Parmar said, women are missing out in an industry that is changing the world and growing and paying handsomely, as other sectors shrink.

Benton

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