January 2015

Former Communications Director to Sen Reid Has Joined Media Matters For America

Zac Petkanas, the former communications director for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), has joined the liberal watchdog group Media Matters For America.

Petkanas will lead MMFA's communications department as the new Vice President of Communication. MMFA is "dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the US media." Petkanas most recently led communications for Wendy Davis' gubernatorial campaign in Texas. Before that he spent two years with Sen Reid, first as Deputy Communications Director on Reid's re-election campaign then as Director of Communications in the Senator's office.

Deutsche Telekom CEO Holds Out Hope for a T-Mobile US Deal

Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges said that for all of T-Mobile’s short-term gains in the United States, the company still needs greater scale in the US to battle AT&T and Verizon.

Sprint and Deutsche Telekom held talks in 2014 over a combination, but the deal fell apart after it became clear that US regulators would block any deal that reduced the number of players in the market from four to three. Hoettges, though, argued that it is the concentration of wealth and spectrum by the two largest players that remains an obstacle to true competition. Hoettges said this is underscored by the huge bids -- likely from AT&T and Verizon -- made in the current Federal Communications Commission spectrum auction.

Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies
Thursday, January 22, 2015
11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (EST)
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/phoenix-center-teleforum-federalism-preempt...

Last year, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler authored a blog entitled Removing Barriers to Community Broadband. Chairman Wheeler held out the municipal system in Chattanooga, Tennessee, as the “poster child” for why “it is in the best interests of consumers and competition that the FCC exercises its power to preempt state laws that ban or restrict competition from community broadband.” In anticipation of his 2015 State of the Union Address, the Obama Administration jumped on Wheeler’s bandwagon both by issuing a formal report and having the President give a speech about helping municipalities build their own broadband networks to compete with privately-funded broadband providers.

To examine this issue in further detail, please join us for an interactive "teleforum" where we will discuss this topic with a panel of experts.



January 20, 2015 (#SOTU; #NetNeutrality)

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2015 (Happy State of the Union Day)

Today’s agenda includes a speech at the U.S. Capitol this evening (previews below) http://benton.org/calendar/2015-01-20

INTERNET/BROADBAND
   A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the State of the Union - analysis
   Two things President Obama left out of his Internet proposal that he’s hoping you won’t notice - analysis
   Dark fiber may help light up competition in broadband market - analysis
   Ting Maryland Gigabit Deal Will Leverage Community’s Dark Fiber [links to web]
   OneWeb Satellite Project Aims to Bring Broadband to Rural Areas [links to web]
   Gov Cuomo re-announces $500 million broadband initiative [links to web]

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
   Shifting Politics of Net Neutrality Debate Ahead of FCC Vote - analysis
   The GOP’s plan to legislate net neutrality is here. And Internet activists might hate it.
   Leading Senate Democrats Join Together To Support Consumers, Open Internet For All - press release
   Sen Markey: Net Neutrality Bill Is Wolf In Sheep's Clothing [links to web]
   Public Knowledge Expresses Strong Concerns About Sen. Thune’s Net Neutrality Discussion Draft - press release [links to web]
   The Turning Point for Internet Freedom - Robert McDowell op-ed [links to web]
   Eight reasons to support Congress’s network neutrality bill - Larry Downes op-ed [links to web]
   Title II Foes To FCC: Give Congress a Chance [links to web]
   Sprint Says Title II Net Neutrality Plan Wouldn't Curb Investments
   Public Knowledge Applauds Sprint for Supporting Net Neutrality, Rebutting Title II Scare Tactics - press release [links to web]
   FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai on Netflix's Conduct with Respect to Open Video Standards - press release
   Does a ban on zero rating risk throwing the baby out with the bathwater? - AEI op-ed [links to web]
   Decoding the Paradox of Rising Cable Stocks - analysis

SECURITY/PRIVACY
   Fact Sheet: US-United Kingdom Cybersecurity Cooperation - White House press release [links to web]
   US Discloses New Trove of Phone Call Records
   GCHQ captured e-mails of journalists from top international media
   NSA Breached North Korean Networks Before Sony Attack, Officials Say
   President Obama backs call for tech backdoors
   Zombie Cookies Slated to be Killed
   New California Assembly privacy panel is 'the key committee to watch' [links to web]
   Our goal is to protect security - American Hotel & Lodging Association op-ed

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
   Chairman Wheeler's Response to Senator Klobuchar Regarding E911 Location Accuracy [links to web]

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
   President Obama’s team tailors State of the Union for age of Twitter and YouTube

TELECOMMUNICATIONS
   Chairman Wheeler's Response to Senator Vitter Regarding Waste, Fraud and Abuse in the Lifeline Program [links to web]
   Chairman Wheeler Responses to Members of Congress Regarding Implementation of Phase II of the Connect America Fund [links to web]
   FCC Issues Subpoena for Providers in Special Access Data Collection - public notice
   AT&T to Take $7.9 Billion Pension Hit; $2.1 Billion Copper Retirement [links to web]

CONTENT
   The myth of Amazon's e-book monopoly - analysis [links to web]
   Facebook Offers Artificial Intelligence Tech to Open Source Group [links to web]

DIVERSITY
   Martin Luther King Jr. would be proud of Jesse Jackson in Silicon Valley - SJ Mercury editorial [links to web]
   ABC's Success With Diversity Comes From Focusing on Creators, Not Just Star [links to web]
   Inside a Startup Bootcamp That's Addressing Silicon Valley's Diversity Divide [links to web]

LABOR
   At last, sensible immigration reform may have a chance in Washington - Vivek Wadhwa op-ed [links to web]
   AT&T to Take $7.9 Billion Pension Hit; $2.1 Billion Copper Retirement [links to web]

COMMUNITY MEDIA
   Do libraries still need to provide Internet access? - op-ed [links to web]

ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
   Path to Senate runs through Silicon Valley [links to web]

FCC REFORM
   Update on Advance Posting of Commission Meeting Items - FCC Commissioner O'Rielly press release

STORIES FROM ABROAD
   AT&T goes pan American, closing its $2.5 billion Iusacell deal
   EU Details Tax Case Against Amazon [links to web]
   How Brazil's cell phone boom is shaking up politics and journalism - op-ed [links to web]
   Just how big is the Cuban market for US tech? [links to web]
   EU Considers Taxing Google, Other US Internet Firms [links to web]
   European Official Urges Google to Offer Greater Concessions in Antitrust Inquiry [links to web]

back to top

INTERNET/BROADBAND

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE STATE OF THE UNION
[SOURCE: Benton Foundation, AUTHOR: Kevin Taglang]
[Commentary] President Barack Obama will deliver the State of the Union address on Tuesday, January 20. But a funny thing happened in the run up to the speech: the President delivered all the punchlines. Well, maybe not all the punchlines and, for thems that watch telecommunications policy, it wasn’t all that funny. You see, as the New York Times pointed out, presidents typically keep State of the Union proposals secret until the last minute, hoping to maximize the political power of the speech. But the White House decided to reverse that strategy, rolling out proposals in the hope of building momentum for the address. And, as it turned out, a key issue the White House decided to focus on this week is the future of the Internet.
http://benton.org/blog/funny-thing-happened-way-state-union
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


TWO THINGS PRESIDENT OBAMA LEFT OUT OF HIS INTERNET PROPOSAL THAT HE'S HOPING YOU WON'T NOTICE
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brian Fung]
It's what President Barack Obama didn't say in his municipal broadband speech in Iowa that could wind up having a huge impact on the fate of city-run Internet access. One of President Obama's biggest steps on the issue was to write a letter to the Federal Communications Commission asking it to intervene against state laws that prevent cities from building their own public networks. Supporters of municipal broadband say the agency has all the authority it needs to preempt those laws, under Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act. Critics of the FCC (including some within the agency itself) argue that it actually doesn't have the power to get between states and their cities. Some analysts believe that's why President Obama didn't bring up the prospect of legislation on municipal broadband; if the FCC's authority to act is being questioned, asking Congress for its blessing would simply undermine that authority further. Additionally, President Obama didn't make any specific pronouncements about local regulations, which worries some policy analysts who believe private investment (think the likes of Google Fiber) offer a better alternative than government-run Internet. But it's unclear what, if anything, Obama's promises on municipal broadband will do to make it easier for businesses to negotiate with officials at the local level. Although the White House will be expanding federal grants and loan opportunities for those who want to build more infrastructure that competes with big, traditional Internet providers, they won't help much if the would-be competitors don't find those incentives enough to overcome the annoyance of dealing with city officials.
benton.org/headlines/two-things-president-obama-left-out-his-internet-proposal-hes-hoping-you-wont-notice | Washington Post
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


DARK FIBER AND COMPETITION
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: David Lazarus]
[Commentary] The problem with cutting the pay-TV cord is that you still need a high-speed Internet connection. No surprise, then, that the big telecom companies are jacking up fees for broadband access. But I have two words that should worry the likes of Time Warner Cable, AT&T and Verizon Communications. Dark fiber. What's that? It's all the unused fiber-optic lines out there just waiting to be leased by go-getting entrepreneurs so they can light up boutique broadband systems and compete with the big boys. For an idea of how this can work, check out the example of Bel Air Internet, a local company that went from providing Internet access to a handful of Bel-Air homes about a dozen years ago to serving more than 30,000 customers throughout the region.
benton.org/headlines/dark-fiber-may-help-light-competition-broadband-market | Los Angeles Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

NETWORK NEUTRALITY

NET NEUTRALITY POLITICS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jonathan Weisman]
When President Obama proposed strict rules to prevent broadband companies from blocking or intentionally slowing down the web, Republicans pounced on what they called yet another heavy-handed liberal proposal. Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) pronounced the regulations “Obamacare for the Internet.” But what was, on the surface, a simple fight over big government versus small has put Republicans in the awkward position of aligning themselves with the cable giants, among the most maligned industries in the country, against the sad Netflix viewer waiting for “House of Cards” to break through its “buffering” vortex. In the intervening weeks, politics on the so-called net neutrality issue have shifted so much that House and Senate Republicans are circulating legislation that would ostensibly do exactly what the President wants: ban the blocking or “throttling” of web traffic and prohibit the creation of paid “fast lanes” for Internet content providers willing to pay for faster delivery. But it would also prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from issuing regulations to achieve those goals — the approach favored by the Obama Administration and most Internet companies.
benton.org/headlines/shifting-politics-net-neutrality-debate-ahead-fcc-vote | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


THE GOP'S PLAN TO LEGISLATE NET NEUTRALITY IS HERE. AND INTERNET ACTIVISTS MIGHT HATE IT.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brian Fung]
The text of a bill circulating the House and Senate Commerce Committees would enshrine into law key principles under network neutrality, but crucially, the bill would also restrict the Federal Communications Commission's authority in several ways. Under the legislation, the FCC would be expressly prohibited from trying to regulate broadband using the same legal tools it uses to police phone companies -- something that President Barack Obama and consumer groups have specifically asked for in the push for net neutrality. Conservatives argue that such a step would give the FCC too much power over Internet providers. The bill would also restrict the FCC's ability to regulate broadband under a different part of the agency's congressional charter. That piece of the law, known as "Section 706," is likely to be invoked as the FCC considers preempting state laws banning cities from building their own public Internet networks. So while the bill would quickly settle the net neutrality question, it also effectively clamps down on the FCC's future ability to regulate broadband providers.
benton.org/headlines/gops-plan-legislate-net-neutrality-here-and-internet-activists-might-hate-it | Washington Post | The Hill | Multichannel News
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


SENATE DEMOCRATS RESPOND TO NET NEUTRALITY DRAFT
[SOURCE: US Senate, AUTHOR: Sen Ron Wyden (D-OR)]
Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ron Wyden (R-OR), Al Franken (D-MN), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) issued a joint comment in response to proposed legislation released by Republican members of Congress. “Senator Thune and the Republicans are right to acknowledge what nearly 4 million Americans have said in their comments to the [Federal Communications Commission] in support of net neutrality rules -- that open Internet rules are critical to free speech and innovation. We appreciate that the Republican bill also recognizes that net neutrality principles should apply regardless of the technology used to connect to the Internet. We stand ready and willing to work with our Republican colleagues, but unfortunately, the bill as currently drafted would dramatically undermine the FCC’s vital role in protecting consumers and small businesses online by limiting its enforcement and rulemaking authorities in this critically important area. Further, the Republican bill would severely curtail the FCC’s ability to promote the deployment of broadband service. The FCC has the necessary authority to enact the open Internet rules that millions of Americans have called for and that Republicans finally support. The Commission should act without delay.”
benton.org/headlines/leading-senate-democrats-join-together-support-consumers-open-internet-all | US Senate
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


SPRINT SAYS PRESIDENT OBAMA NET NEUTRALITY PLAN WOULDN'T CURB INVESTMENTS
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Alina Selyukh]
Sprint will keep investing in its networks even if the Federal Communications Commission adopts stricter network neutrality rules as long as they are applied with a "light touch." Sprint's position appears to contrast with other cable and phone companies who have staunchly rejected the possibility that the FCC regulate Internet service providers more strictly under Title II, which would treat them more like public utilities. Sprint wrote, "So long as the FCC continues to allow wireless carriers to manage our networks and differentiate our products, Sprint will continue to invest in data networks regardless of whether they are regulated by Title II, Section 706, or some other light touch regulatory regime.” In this surprise move, it appears Sprint now endorses net neutrality.
benton.org/headlines/sprint-says-president-obama-net-neutrality-plan-wouldnt-curb-investments | Reuters | GigaOm | The Hill | Multichannel News | Washington Post
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


FCC COMMISSIONER AJIT PAI ON NETFLIX'S CONDUCT WITH RESPECT TO OPEN VIDEO STANDARDS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai]
I asked Netflix to respond to the allegation that it had rolled out its new encryption protocols by first targeting those Internet service providers that had installed open caching appliances. The company assured me that this was not true and agreed to submit information after our meeting that would disprove this charge. One month later, that commitment remains unfulfilled. When my office reached out to Netflix for the information (in particular, which ISPs were targeted on which dates), the company refused to turn it over. I am disappointed and perplexed by this decision. If Netflix did not target those ISPs using open caching, why would it withhold information that would disprove this allegation? I hope that the company will reconsider its position and supply the facts that would resolve this matter once and for all.
To be clear, I do not favor additional FCC regulation in this area. However, if a company asks the FCC to impose public utility-style regulation on every broadband provider in the country in the name of preserving the open Internet but then selectively targets open video standards to secure a competitive advantage over its rivals, it should be called to account.
benton.org/headlines/fcc-commissioner-ajit-pai-netflixs-conduct-respect-open-video-standards | Federal Communications Commission
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


RISING CABLE PRICES
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jeff Sommer]
[Commentary] The stock market is often an early indicator of major developments in finance, the economy and geopolitics. But sometimes that collective wisdom generates signals so difficult to decipher that they seem contradictory. That’s the situation right now for net neutrality and the future of the big cable and telecommunications companies. The Federal Communications Commission is expected to issue a draft proposal on Feb. 5 for significantly tighter regulations for Internet carriers. But the issues involved are so complex and far-reaching that the market is having difficulty interpreting them. “I don’t think people in the stock market have caught up to events yet,” Richard Greenfield, a media analyst with BTIG, said in an interview last week. “Big things are happening. The prices don’t seem to reflect all of this yet.”
benton.org/headlines/decoding-paradox-rising-cable-stocks | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

SECURITY/PRIVACY

TROVE OF PHONE CALL RECORDS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Michael Schmidt, Matt Apuzzo]
The Justice Department revealed the existence of yet another database of American telephone records, adding new details to the disclosures in recent years about mass government surveillance. This database was maintained by the Drug Enforcement Administration and contained the records of calls made between phone numbers in the United States and overseas. The phone records were retained even if there was no evidence the callers were involved in criminal activity. The government stored the numbers, the time and date of the call and the length. But, the database did not include names or other personal identifying information or the content of the conversation. It contained records of calls between Americans and people in countries that had connections to international drug trafficking and related criminal activities. Depending on how broadly the government interpreted that definition, it could have collected information on calls to many countries around the world.
benton.org/headlines/us-discloses-new-trove-phone-call-records | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


JOURNALISTS’ E-MAILS
[SOURCE: The Guardian, AUTHOR: James Ball]
GCHQ’s bulk surveillance of electronic communications has scooped up e-mails to and from journalists working for some of the US and UK’s largest media organisations, analysis of documents released by whistleblower Edward Snowden reveals. E-mails from the BBC, Reuters, the Guardian, the New York Times, Le Monde, the Sun, NBC and the Washington Post were saved by GCHQ and shared on the agency’s intranet as part of a test exercise by the signals intelligence agency. The disclosure comes as the British government faces intense pressure to protect the confidential communications of reporters, MPs and lawyers from snooping. The journalists’ communications were among 70,000 emails harvested in the space of less than 10 minutes on one day in November 2008 by one of GCHQ’s numerous taps on the fibre-optic cables that make up the backbone of the internet. The communications, which were sometimes simple mass-PR emails sent to dozens of journalists but also included correspondence between reporters and editors discussing stories, were retained by GCHQ and were available to all cleared staff on the agency intranet. There is nothing to indicate whether or not the journalists were intentionally targeted. The mails appeared to have been captured and stored as the output of a then-new tool being used to strip irrelevant data out of the agency’s tapping process.
benton.org/headlines/gchq-captured-e-mails-journalists-top-international-media | Guardian, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


NSA BREACHED NORTH KOREA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: David Sanger, Martin Fackler]
The trail that led American officials to blame North Korea for the destructive cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment in November winds back to 2010, when the National Security Agency scrambled to break into the computer systems of a country considered one of the most impenetrable targets on earth. Spurred by growing concern about North Korea’s maturing capabilities, the American spy agency drilled into the Chinese networks that connect North Korea to the outside world, picked through connections in Malaysia favored by North Korean hackers and penetrated directly into the North with the help of South Korea and other American allies, according to former United States and foreign officials, computer experts later briefed on the operations and a newly disclosed NSA document. A classified security agency program expanded into an ambitious effort, officials said, to place malware that could track the internal workings of many of the computers and networks used by the North’s hackers, a force that South Korea’s military recently said numbers roughly 6,000 people. Most are commanded by the country’s main intelligence service, called the Reconnaissance General Bureau, and Bureau 121, its secretive hacking unit, with a large outpost in China. The evidence gathered by the “early warning radar” of software painstakingly hidden to monitor North Korea’s activities proved critical in persuading President Obama to accuse the government of Kim Jong-un of ordering the Sony attack, according to the officials and experts, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about the classified NSA operation.
benton.org/headlines/nsa-breached-north-korean-networks-sony-attack-officials-say | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


OBAMA BACKS BACKDOORS
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Julian Hattem]
President Barack Obama wants a backdoor to track people’s social media messages. The President came to the defense of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s call for tech companies to create holes in their technology to allow the government to track suspected terrorists or criminals. “Social media and the Internet is the primary way in which these terrorist organizations are communicating,” President Obama said during a press conference with PM Cameron on Jan 16. “That’s not different from anybody else, but they’re good at it and when we have the ability to track that in a way that is legal, conforms with due process, rule of law and presents oversight, then that’s a capability that we have to preserve,” he said. While President Obama measured his comments, he voiced support for the views expressed by Cameron and FBI Director James Comey, who have worried about tech companies’ increasing trends towards building digital walls around users’ data that no one but them can access.
benton.org/headlines/president-obama-backs-call-tech-backdoors | Hill, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


ZOMBIE COOKIES
[SOURCE: Pro Publica, AUTHOR: Julia Angwin, Mike Tigas]
Turn said it would stop using tracking cookies that are impossible to delete. "We have heard the concerns and are actively re-evaluating this method," said Max Ochoa, Turn's chief privacy officer. He said the company plans aims to suspend the practice by "early February." Turn's zombie cookie was exploiting a hidden undeletable number that Verizon uses to track its customers on their smartphones on tablets. Turn used the Verizon number to respawn tracking cookies that users had deleted. The company said it will now re-evaluate its practices.
benton.org/headlines/zombie-cookies-slated-be-killed | Pro Publica
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top


OUR GOAL IS TO PROTECT SECURITY
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Katherine Lugar]
[Commentary] President Obama made clear the need to protect American companies, consumers and infrastructure from cyberthreats, while safeguarding privacy and civil liberties. In the same way, the hotel industry seeks to address the challenge of providing access to a secure Internet while ensuring the safety and security of guests' data. With nearly 5 million people checking into hotels each day, this balance is of the utmost importance. To be clear, the hotel industry is not interested in stopping guests from using personal hotspots. Nor do we seek to restrict personal Wi-Fi use. We petitioned the government to provide clarity on the steps a business can legally take to provide secure and reliable Wi-Fi Internet. We've seen too often that it only takes one rogue actor to breach a protected system. Guests can unknowingly click on a hotspot they think is secure only to have their information stolen. Hotel operators need tools to respond to a cyberthreat in real time without fear of legal penalty.
[Lugar is president and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association]
benton.org/headlines/our-goal-protect-security | USAToday
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

UPDATING THE STATE OF THE UNION
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune, AUTHOR: Kathleen Hennessey, Christi Parsons]
The State of the Union address is a century-old tradition that has served to set the president's agenda for the coming year and reflect on the previous one in front of Congress and the country, but in 2015, just giving a speech in prime time is no longer enough. The platform that introduced to the world the Four Freedoms and the War on Poverty is now a Twitter-friendly, YouTube-able event to be consumed in as many ways as Americans have screens. The current state of the State of the Union is either the handiwork or the fault of the Obama White House, depending on your point of view. This White House believes it brought the civic ritual into the social age, adapting as necessary to keep it relevant. Others say the speech, as an annual American moment, is going the way of the fireside chat. "Social media is killing the State of the Union," said presidential historian Allan Lichtman, "and the White House is doing everything it can to use social media to keep it alive."
benton.org/headlines/president-obamas-team-tailors-state-union-age-twitter-and-youtube | Chicago Tribune
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

TELECOMMUNICATIONS

FCC ISSUES SUBPOENA FOR PROVIDERS IN SPECIAL ACCESS DATA COLLECTION
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Public Notice]
The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau has ordered providers of special access service to submit the customer-related information sought in the special access data collection. This subpoena addresses the concerns raised by the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and United States Telecom Association (USTelecom) about the applicability of federal privacy statutes when responding to the collection with customer information. The data sought are necessary for an analysis of the special access market to better target regulatory relief where warranted, promote competition, and increase consumer welfare through competitive rates and increased service offerings. The Bureau appreciates the privacy interests of consumers in their information and will protect reported information from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with the protective order previously issued for this collection.
benton.org/headlines/fcc-issues-subpoena-providers-special-access-data-collection | Federal Communications Commission
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

FCC REFORM

POSTING COMMISSION MEETING ITEMS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly]
In August 2014, I wrote a blog post urging the Federal Communications Commission to post on its website the actual text of the items to be considered at our Open Meetings at the same time they are provided to Commissioners. I made the suggestion because the inability of the public to obtain a complete picture of what is in a pending notice of proposed rulemaking or order routinely leads to confusion over what exactly is at stake. Making matters worse, Commissioners are not allowed to reveal the substantive details to outside parties. We can’t even correct inaccurate impressions that stakeholders may have received, and we are barred from discussing what changes we are seeking. This barrier to a fulsome exchange can be extremely frustrating for all involved. Four months later, we have yet to post a single meeting item in advance. Why? 1) It could be harder to comply with the Administrative Procedure Act (APA); and 2) It could be more difficult to withhold documents under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). I do not find either argument persuasive or insurmountable.
benton.org/headlines/update-advance-posting-commission-meeting-items | Federal Communications Commission
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

STORIES FROM ABROAD

AT&T GOES PAN AMERICAN ,CLOSING ITS $2.5 BILLION LUSACELL DEAL
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
AT&T announced it has finalized its $2.5 billion acquisition of Mexico's lusacell from Gurpo Salinas, making AT&T now officially the first North American mobile carrier to run networks on both sides of Rio Grande. The deal doesn’t bring that many new subscribers to its network -- Iusacell’s 9.2 million subscribers puts it in a distant third place to Mexican wireless giant América Móvil -- but it gains access to a GSM and CDMA network covering 120 million people. AT&T is promising to create a unified network covering 400 million people in North America, though some doubt that will mean the in-network coverage on a standard AT&T plan will suddenly extend to Mexico City and Oaxaca. Chances are AT&T will start marketing specific plans for frequent cross-border travelers in both countries as well as sell calling features that make it cheap or free to call Mexican landlines and mobile numbers from the US and vice versa. AT&T has also committed to bring LTE services to Mexico.
benton.org/headlines/att-goes-pan-american-closing-its-25-billion-iusacell-deal | GigaOm
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top

Shifting Politics of Net Neutrality Debate Ahead of FCC Vote

When President Obama proposed strict rules to prevent broadband companies from blocking or intentionally slowing down the web, Republicans pounced on what they called yet another heavy-handed liberal proposal. Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) pronounced the regulations “Obamacare for the Internet.” But what was, on the surface, a simple fight over big government versus small has put Republicans in the awkward position of aligning themselves with the cable giants, among the most maligned industries in the country, against the sad Netflix viewer waiting for “House of Cards” to break through its “buffering” vortex.

In the intervening weeks, politics on the so-called net neutrality issue have shifted so much that House and Senate Republicans are circulating legislation that would ostensibly do exactly what the President wants: ban the blocking or “throttling” of web traffic and prohibit the creation of paid “fast lanes” for Internet content providers willing to pay for faster delivery. But it would also prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from issuing regulations to achieve those goals — the approach favored by the Obama Administration and most Internet companies.

The Turning Point for Internet Freedom

[Commentary] The Federal Communications Commission is about to answer the most important question in its 80-year history: Does the agency intend to protect the open Internet, or is it lunging to seize unlimited power over the Web? We’ll find out on Feb. 26 when the FCC votes on “net neutrality” rules that would treat the Internet like a public utility, with regulators potentially setting rates, terms and conditions for providers.

Meanwhile, the new Congress is maneuvering to change the network neutrality equation, with hearings in the House and Senate beginning. Republicans circulated draft bills to pre-empt the FCC’s overreaching new rules while still attaining the White House’s ostensible policy goals. Even congressional supporters of net neutrality, wary of increasing FCC power over something as vast and crucial as the Internet, are working to draft an alternative. While Republicans and Democrats try to work out a deal, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler should hit the pause button on next month’s vote and let the elected representatives of the American people try to find common ground. At the end of this constitutional process, all sides may be able to claim victory.

[McDowell, is a former commissioner of the FCC, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and a partner in the communications practice at Wiley Rein]

Eight reasons to support Congress’s network neutrality bill

[Commentary] Here are the top eight reasons why passage of the GOP’s network neutrality bill would most benefit consumers:

  1. It grants clear authority
  2. Avoids legal limbo
  3. Checks the power of future FCC chairmen
  4. Adds consumer protections well beyond the earlier FCC efforts
  5. Flexible, case-by-case enforcement
  6. Recognizes the Internet as a global network
  7. Preserves a role for the Federal Trade Commission
  8. Ends the endless debate

[Downes is a project director at the Georgetown Center for Business and Public Policy]

Dark fiber may help light up competition in broadband market

[Commentary] The problem with cutting the pay-TV cord is that you still need a high-speed Internet connection. No surprise, then, that the big telecom companies are jacking up fees for broadband access. But I have two words that should worry the likes of Time Warner Cable, AT&T and Verizon Communications. Dark fiber.

What's that? It's all the unused fiber-optic lines out there just waiting to be leased by go-getting entrepreneurs so they can light up boutique broadband systems and compete with the big boys. For an idea of how this can work, check out the example of Bel Air Internet, a local company that went from providing Internet access to a handful of Bel-Air homes about a dozen years ago to serving more than 30,000 customers throughout the region.

Martin Luther King Jr. would be proud of Jesse Jackson in Silicon Valley

[Commentary] On the holiday honoring the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., it's a safe bet that the civil rights leader would be proud of the work the Rev. Jesse Jackson is doing to improve racial, ethnic and gender diversity in Silicon Valley's tech workforce. But King would also remind us -- in that unique, eloquent way we could never match -- there's still work to be done.

AT&T to Take $7.9 Billion Pension Hit; $2.1 Billion Copper Retirement

AT&T will take a $7.9 billion charge for pension-related costs at least partially because people are living longer. The company said the losses were in part due to “updated mortality assumptions” in addition to a decrease in the rate it uses to measure its pension obligations. The nonprofit Society of Actuaries recently updated its mortality tables for the first time since 2000 to reflect the longer lifespans, estimating today’s retirees will live about two years longer than in 2000. That means companies will have to sock away more money to pay benefits for those added years. AT&T, along with about 30 other companies, in the past few years has switched to mark-to-market pension accounting to make it easier for investors to gauge plan performance. In 2014, AT&T posted a $7.6 billion pretax gain tied to pension accounting.

AT&T also said it would take a $2.1 billion noncash charge in the fourth quarter after it determined that certain copper assets won’t be necessary to support future network activity, because of lower demand for legacy voice and data services and the move toward new technology. It said those copper assets will be abandoned in place.