January 2014

African Americans and Technology Use

This report on African Americans and technology is the first in a series of demographic snapshots of technology use and adoption among different groups of adults in the United States. Based on a survey of 6,010 American adults, including 664 who identify as African American, it offers a detailed look at a number of key subgroups within the black population such as: men vs. women, old vs. young, low income vs. high income, and parents vs. non-parents. Among the findings:

African Americans trail whites by seven percentage points when it comes to overall internet use (87% of whites and 80% of blacks are internet users). At the same time, blacks and whites are on more equal footing when it comes to other types of access, especially on mobile platforms.
Overall, 73% of African American internet users -- and 96% of those ages 18-29 -- use a social networking site of some kind. African Americans have exhibited relatively high levels of Twitter use since we began tracking the service as a stand-alone platform.
92% of African Americans own a cell phone, and 56% own a smartphone.

Google aims to put Android in cars

Google has announced a partnership with four leading car companies and a global technology firm to make it easier to use Android devices while behind the wheel.

The Open Automotive Alliance (OAA) will work to help drivers seamlessly use the platform in cars and “enable the car itself to become a connected Android device,” it said. The move follows a similar 2007 campaign to integrate the operating system with cellphones, which helped turn the Android platform into major competitor in the market. “Today, millions of people already bring Android phones and tablets into their cars, but it’s not yet a driving-optimized experience. Wouldn't it be great if you could bring your favorite apps and music with you, and use them safely with your car's built-in controls and in-dash display?” said Android engineering director Patrick Brady. “Putting Android in the car will bring drivers apps and services they already know and love, while enabling automakers to more easily deliver cutting-edge technology to their customers.” In addition to Google, Audi, Honda, General Motors, Hyundai and the visual computing company Nvidia are signing on as part of the OAA.

AT&T wants to delve deeper into the connected car with Drive Studio

AT&T plans to work more closely with automakers on their connected car technologies through a new program called AT&T Drive.

AT&T announced the program at CES in Las Vegas with the idea of turning its recent 4G-car connectivity wins into broader relationships with the automakers. According to AT&T President of Emerging Enterprises and Partnerships Glenn Lurie, AT&T wants to put its expertise in mobile app development and management and data billing as well as its global relationships with other carriers to use for the benefits of automakers. AT&T isn’t interested in building connected car platforms or infotainment systems – automakers and their suppliers are all pursuing their own technologies in that area. But AT&T can help them build services like vehicle telematics apps, design dashboard user interfaces, host and parse connected car data in the cloud, and manage and bill for millions of mobile data connections across dozens of different carrier networks worldwide.

Sen McCain: Near-Blackouts Argue for FANS Act

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) used the weekend's NFL wild card game blackout threats to push for his bill, the Furthering Access and Networks for Sports (FANS) Act, that would remove the antitrust exemption for any sports league that does not prohibit or limit sports blackouts in their video contracts, including during retransmission consent impasses.

“The potential local television blackout of NFL playoff games this weekend in Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Green Bay -- only narrowly averted, according to news reports–should serve as an example to all sports fans of how poorly many rules and regulations are serving consumers and taxpayers today," Sen McCain said.

Apps for mobile viewing challenge cable operators, TV networks

US cable and satellite television operators, already locking horns with programmers over subscriber fees, are now squaring off over the mobile apps that viewers are increasingly using to watch TV. Internet-based services such as Netflix have gotten millions of viewers accustomed to catching shows on tablets and phones.

And as the incumbents are getting in on the act with apps of their own, that has become a sticking point dragging out major programming negotiations, as in the case of Dish Network Corp and Walt Disney Co, which are trying to reach a new rights agreement. These disputes increase the dangers of further blackouts and may mean delays in the development of apps that combine the content, technology and marketing muscle of both sides of the industry. Missteps by cable and satellite operators also raise the danger that some consumers will rely more on Netflix, and other such services, and cancel their pay-TV subscriptions, causing a major drop in industry revenue. Meanwhile, both sides are scrambling to draw consumers to their apps and get the most appealing and profitable deals in place for the future.

Apple Facing Criticism About Diversity Changes Bylaws

Apple, facing behind-the-scenes pressure from some shareholders to add more female directors and executives, has taken a step to address the criticism and diversify its board.

The world’s most valuable company recently added language to a board committee charter vowing to diversify its board. The move follows objections from shareholders Trillium Asset Management LLC and the Sustainability Group, who said they’re disappointed that the iPhone maker has only one woman on its eight-member board, and one incoming female member of the executive team that reports to Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook. The shareholders met with Apple representatives several times in the past few months and said they would bring the issue to a vote at a Feb. 28 shareholder meeting. They said they backed off after Apple added language to the charter that promises to consider women and minorities as board candidates, without making any specific commitments. The new language shows how scrutiny of Apple’s diversity practices has now ramped up after other Silicon Valley companies faced questions over their male-dominated leadership ranks.

Biannual NTIA/FCC Spectrum Planning Meeting (Jan 2014)

Joint statement from Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and NTIA Administrator Lawrence E. Strickling on the NTIA and FCC’s Biannual Spectrum Planning meeting on Friday, January 3rd to discuss their agencies’ complementary roles with respect to commercial and Federal use of spectrum, including efforts to make available 500 MHz of spectrum for wireless broadband:

“NTIA and the FCC are committed to working together to make more spectrum available to meet the nation’s growing demand for wireless broadband technologies and services. We discussed and agreed to a number of actions to maintain and improve our collaboration over the coming year with respect to the continuing proceedings on the AWS-3, 3.5 GHz and 5 GHz bands.”

Chairman Upton Releases Report Chronicling House Commerce Accomplishments in 2013

House Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) released a report on the work of the committee in 2013.

The update is part of the committee’s effort to increase transparency and ensure the public has easy access to the panel’s work. Continuing the committee’s strong record of success, the House is poised to consider several committee bills this week as the second session of the 113th Congress commences. The year-end report provides highlights of the work done by the full committee as well as each of the Commerce Committee’s six subcommittees throughout 2013, outlining each subcommittee’s legislative efforts, major hearing series, and other key initiatives. The report also details a comprehensive list of committee legislation signed into law. The committee balanced aggressive oversight on behalf of taxpayers with a bold legislative agenda to deliver a series of victories for the American people in 2013. This required an active committee schedule that included 112 days of hearings and 29 days of markups, which resulted in a total of 22 bills and resolutions reported to the House, and 13 of its legislative initiatives reaching enactment through 9 public laws. The committee chalked up more than 344,000 visitors to its website, with 1.6 million page views on the site as the public engaged with the committee and its members online.

Detecting time travelers on the Internet is remarkably difficult

Could there be an indication of visitors from our future lurking in the vast collection of data present on the Internet? That question was tackled by two physicists from Michigan Technological University, Robert Nemiroff and Teresa Wilson, but the answer they came up with was pretty unsatisfying. Within the limit of their ability to check, there's no sign of anyone with knowledge of the future living among us. But the limitations are so large that the search doesn't really tell us anything much.

Data privacy: What school leaders should know

[Commentary] 2013 will be known as the year the American public began to focus on privacy. Now is the time for school leaders to wake up and review their data privacy policies and procedures … before severe restrictions are imposed. As this issue grows, more resources are being offered to help district technology leaders navigate the complex data privacy landscape. Every school system should consider leveraging these resources and proactively think about data privacy now. This issue cannot be ignored, and we all have to get it right.

[Krueger is CEO of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN)]

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