September 2014

Momentum is building for a net neutrality compromise

Internet service providers (ISPs) and network neutrality activists appear increasingly interested in a proposal that would give consumers more control over their Internet service, a hopeful sign for compromise in the debate about whether all Internet traffic should be treated equally.

Speaking at a Federal Communications Commission roundtable, Stanford University net neutrality scholar Barbara van Schewick said that, under certain conditions, letting Internet users individually control which Web sites were delivered at a faster or slower speed by their ISP would not violate the principle of net neutrality. Van Schewick's idea is similar to a proposal that AT&T outlined this summer that would ban Internet providers from manipulating Web content — which is the FCC's goal — unless users specifically requested it. Under these approaches, known as "user-directed prioritization," consumers could ask their ISP to give streaming video priority over cloud storage traffic, or to give streaming music preferential treatment over online video games. Broadly, the practice could shift economic power for potentially determining the rise and fall of Internet businesses from ISPs to consumers; if implemented under the right conditions, user-directed or user-controlled prioritization could prevent ISPs from abusing their potential role as a gatekeeper.

Network Neutrality meetings for Facebook and Google

Facebook and Google executives recently met with top officials at the Federal Communications Commission to discuss their opposition to “fast lanes” on the Internet.

Two of the FCC’s five commissioners -- Jessica Rosenworcel and Michael O’Rielly -- held separate meetings with top Facebook officials. Rosenworcel’s meeting included Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg. She also met separately with Google executives. Facebook stated that the company would like to see the Internet remain “free and open” and urged the FCC to enact rules against “fast lanes." It warned against the notion that websites should have to pay Internet service providers like Comcast or Cox for faster service — a prospect that would seem to be allowed under the proposal from FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. Google’s filing made clear that it feared the FCC could allow companies to create “scarcity and congestion” on Internet networks in order to force websites to pay for quicker access to Web users.

Some Diversity Groups Diverge Over Net Neutrality

Over three dozen diversity groups have told the Federal Communications Commission that the current proposal to use Section 706 authority to restore network neutrality rules is the way to go, while a handful of groups calling themselves the "new generation of civil rights leaders" appears just as convinced that the FCC needs to reclassify Internet service providers under Title II common carrier rules to close the digital divide.

The Minority Media & Telecommunications Council and its coalition partners say Sec. 706 would be a sufficiently robust and legally enforceable means for achieving their goals for communities of color, which is to prevent digital redlining and insure them "first-class digital citizenship." The coalition said a big advantage of Sec. 706 is that it will "will maintain a critical baseline level of regulatory certainty by preserving the current, bipartisan approach to regulating broadband communications..." By contrast, they argue, reclassifying broadband under Title II would introduce "unnecessary uncertainty" into the process and by discouraging investment and undermining adoption.

In the other corner are National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC), ColorOfChange.org, 18MillionRising.org, joined by long-time Title II fans Free Press and the Voices For Internet Freedom. They argue that Sec. 706 would "destroy" the Internet as we know it and that Title II is the only way to prevent ISP's from "blocking and discriminating against content, exacerbating the digital divide.

ALA, CDT seek stronger network neutrality protections than “commercially reasonable”

The American Library Association and the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) urged the Federal Communications Commission to adopt strong, enforceable network neutrality rules essential to preserving freedom of speech, educational achievement and economic growth online. The organizations call for the FCC to set the bar higher than the “commercially reasonable” standard the agency had proposed -- whether using Title II or Section 706 of the Communications Act -- to preserve the open nature of the Internet.

"At this moment, we owe it to the nation’s library patrons, students, entrepreneurs and consumers to adopt enforceable net neutrality policies that prohibit practices such as 'paid prioritization' that would undermine Internet openness,” said ALA President Courtney Young. “The FCC’s proposed ‘commercially reasonable’ standard is not strong enough to preserve the culture of the Internet as an open platform for free speech, innovation, education, research and learning. We are concerned that the FCC’s original proposal would allow Internet providers to prioritize or degrade Internet traffic—specifically content, services, or applications offered by libraries and educational institutions," Young added. "Libraries, educational institutions, innovators and consumers increasingly operate as both consumers and content creators, and the Commission’s rules must protect both sides of the Internet access equation."

AFL-CIO Backs AT&T/DirecTV

The AFL/CIO has asked the Federal Communications Commission to approve the AT&T/DirecTV merger, saying it is to the benefit of its 12 million members.

The union says the deal poses few antitrust concerns since the phone and satellite companies are in primarily different markets and because the result will be a stronger competitor to cable operators and putting pressure on prices and service improvement by offering one-stop shopping for bundled broadband and video. It also helps that AT&T is the largest union employer in the country. DirecTV, by contrast, is non-union. The Communications Workers of America, which represents AT&T workers, supports the merger.

Public Knowledge Files Petition to Deny in AT&T/DirecTV Merger

Public Knowledge and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance filed a Petition to Deny in the Federal Communications Commission's AT&T/DirecTV merger proceeding.

This merger could cause public interest harms in a number of ways. Among other things, it would increase AT&T's incentive to push customers away from wired connections onto wireless ones that might not suit their needs, reduce the number of pay TV options customers have in U-Verse territories, and increase AT&T's incentive to discriminate against online video. The Commission cannot approve this merger unless it is satisfied that it can eliminate these harms, and unless it is satisfied it can verify and enforce any promises of broadband deployment. The most straightforward way for the FCC to protect TV viewers and internet users from the harm this merger would cause would be to block it.

Public Knowledge Sends Letter To Senators Rockefeller and Thune With STAVRA Concerns

Public Knowledge, Consumers Union, and the Free Press Action Fund sent a joint letter to Sens Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and John Thune (R-SD), expressing concern over the lack of consumer protection in the Satellite Television Access and Viewer Rights Act (STAVRA).

STAVRA is an important piece of must-pass legislation, but it should not make it through Congress with provisions that harm consumers, limit innovation, and reduce consumers' choices for set-top boxes and other video devices. Since 1996, Congress has made it clear that consumers should have the option to buy their own set-top boxes if they don't wish to pay the increasingly high costs to rent them from their cable provider. As written, STAVRA would eliminate this important consumer protection. It is curious why this language, straight out of the cable industry wish list, is even included in a must-pass bill about satellite TV. This provision is not necessary, but fixing it is simple: Congress should direct the FCC to set a new technological standard for keeping competitive video devices, before eliminating the old rules. We understand that Senator Markey plans to introduce a simple amendment to STAVRA that will ensure consumer choices in the video device market. We support that amendment.

How Much Television Can the TV Biz -- and Viewers -- Handle?

Industry executives are quietly starting to use the B-word -- “bubble” -- in surveying the landscape of scripted shows across the dozens of broadcast, cable and digital outlets that are serving up original programming.

That growth has been fueled by the windfall of licensing revenue from expanding international sales and digital platforms that barely existed a decade ago. But after a more than 1,000% spike since 1999 in the number of scripted series produced for just pay and basic cable, there are growing concerns, even among those in the production world, about the unwelcome consequences of so much capital chasing talent, viewers and, most important, off-network profits.

Industry veterans said that the biggest issues resulting from the gusher of production include:

A significant spike in the cost of securing top talent and sought-after source material, from hot scripts to life rights to existing books and movies.
Rising prices for crews, equipment, stages and locations, among other necessary ingredients for production.
Higher demand for promotional time coupled with declining ratings for linear channels, making marketing campaigns more costly and less effective.
Top cable nets cutting back on off-network buys because of increased commitments to original programming.
Netflix gaining outsized influence due to its growing clout as an off-net buyer.

Roberts Says Comcast Working on Future of Advertising

CEO Brian Roberts says Comcast is working to create advertising products that will deliver more value to marketers. With digital advertising growing, the goal is to figure out "how do we deliver a more computer-like experience for [advertisers'] investment , the way they're getting it on the Internet," but on the TV, which offers a more robust experience for consumers. Roberts pointed to the way Comcast is able to insert current commercials into video on demand viewing of earlier episodes of a show. "All of a sudden, advertising's more valuable in that on demand episode," he said, adding that that process would repeat itself in mobile viewing, Internet protocol streaming and shared viewing experiences over multiple locations.

FCC Plans $493,327 Fine Against Philadelphia Phone Card Company for Customer Privacy, Federal Fund Rules and Other Violations of FCC Rules

The Federal Communications Commission plans to fine PTT Phone Cards, Inc., a Philadelphia company, $493,327 for allegedly providing international telecommunications services without FCC authority and disregarding virtually all of its regulatory obligations for over three years. The FCC found that PTT apparently failed to certify that the company had protected customers’ proprietary network information and failed to contribute to the Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) Fund, a government fund designed to help people with hearing and speech disabilities make phone calls.

Benton

Search