June 2015

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

SENATE TO VOTE ON TRADE PROMOTION AUTHORITY
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate voted 60 to 37 June 23 to invoke cloture (60 votes were needed) and allow a vote as early as tomorrow on a House-passed Trade Promotion Authority bill supported by TV and movie studios, consumer electronics companies, Internet service providers and others. A cloture vote ends debate and allows for a vote on the underlying bill. The bill, the trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015 (HR 2146 ), outlines the negotiating objectives that any administration has to follow in conducting trade talks, and requires Congress and the public to have access to information on trade deals before they are struck. The bill makes Congress a partner in trade agreements. It also deals with cybertheft, trade secrets and intellectual property protection. The last is particularly important to content providers. The bill would, among other things, make it clear that trade protections include digital as well as physical goods. TV and movie producers represented by the Motion Picture Association of America have been strongly in favor of the bill, which also grants the President "fast track" authority to negotiate bills, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership bill, which Motion Picture Association of America also supports. TPP would expand trade and access to creative content to much of the Asia-Pacific region, MPAA has said, including creating what it calls "strong standards for the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights for the 21st century."
benton.org/headlines/senate-vote-trade-promotion-authority | Broadcasting&Cable
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SURVEILLANCE

WIKILEAKS FILES SAID TO SHOW NSA SPIED ON FRENCH LEADERS
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Alissa Rubin]
WikiLeaks published documents that it says shows the United States National Security Agency eavesdropped on the last three French presidents. There was no immediate confirmation of the accuracy of the documents released in collaboration with Libération, a left-leaning French newspaper, and the investigative website Mediapart. A WikiLeaks spokesman, Kristinn Hrafnsson, said he was confident the documents were authentic, saying that WikiLeaks’ previous mass disclosures have proved to be accurate. Claudine Ripert-Landler, a senior spokeswoman for President François Hollande of France, said that President Hollande would convene “the Defense Council to evaluate the nature of the information reported in the media and draw the necessary conclusions.” The council, which is similar to the United States National Security Council, was expected to meet June 24. There was no immediate comment from the White House or from former President Jacques Chirac. An aide to President Hollande’s predecessor, Nicolas Sarkozy, said the former president considered these methods unacceptable, generally speaking and especially from an ally. The aide was not authorized to be publicly identified.
benton.org/headlines/wikileaks-files-said-show-nsa-spied-french-leaders | Associated Press | The Verge
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CYBERSECURITY

COMPUTER SYSTEM THAT DETECTED MASSIVE GOVERNMENT DATA BREACH COULD ITSELF BE AT 'HIGH RISK,' AUDIT FINDS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Eric Yoder]
The computer upgrade that federal officials tout as having detected -- although not prevented -- a massive breach of information on federal employees is itself at high risk of failure, according to a new internal audit. The independent inspector general’s office within the Office of Personnel Management is conducting a thorough review of the upgrade but issued a “flash audit alert” to top agency leaders “to bring to your immediate attention serious concerns we have” that require “immediate action.” “There is a high risk that this project will fail to meet the objectives of providing a secure operating environment for OPM systems and applications,” the alert says. The release of the IG’s audit comes as Congress is set to hold three more hearings the week of June 22 on the issue and amid growing calls for more disclosure and accountability from OPM.
benton.org/headlines/computer-system-detected-massive-government-data-breach-could-itself-be-high-risk-audit | Washington Post
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PRIVACY

FACIAL RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGY IS SPREADING, AND SO ARE PRIVACY CONCERNS
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Ben Sobel]
[Commentary] Being anonymous in public might be a thing of the past. Facial recognition technology is already being deployed to let brick-and-mortar stores scan the face of every shopper, identify returning customers and offer them individualized pricing -- or find "pre-identified shoplifters" and "known litigious individuals." Microsoft has patented a billboard that identifies you as you walk by and serves ads personalized to your purchase history. An app called NameTag contends it can identify people on the street just by looking at them through Google Glass. There are no federal laws that specifically govern the use of facial recognition technology. But both Illinois and Texas have laws against using such technology to identify people without their informed consent. The Illinois law is facing the most public test to date of what its protections mean for facial recognition technology. A lawsuit filed in Illinois trial court in April alleges Facebook violates the state's Biometric Information Privacy Act by taking users' faceprints "without even informing its users -- let alone obtaining their informed written consent." This suit, Licata vs. Facebook, could reshape Facebook's practices and may even influence the expansion of facial recognition technology. If the court finds that Facebook can be sued for violating the Illinois biometrics law, and that its opt-out consent framework for Tag Suggestions violated the law, it may upend the practices of one of the world's largest Internet companies, one that is possibly the single largest user of commercial facial recognition technology. And if the lawsuit fails for one reason or another, it would emphasize that regulation of facial recognition needs to take place on a federal level if it is to happen at all. Either way, there's a chance this lawsuit will end up shaping the future of facial recognition technology.
[Ben Sobel is a researcher and incoming Google Policy Fellow at the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law]
benton.org/headlines/facial-recognition-technology-spreading-and-so-are-privacy-concerns | Los Angeles Times
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OWNERSHIP

VERIZON CLINCHES AOL ACQUISITION
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Jeff Baumgartner]
Verizon Communications said it has closed its proposed $4.4 billion acquisition of AOL, a move that aims to beef up Verizon’s mobile, over-the-top video and advanced advertising strategies. Verizon, which did receive some backlash from consolidation critics over the deal, said AOL CEO Tim Armstrong will continue to lead AOL operations “in an expanded role,” and report to Marni Walden, Verizon’s EVP and president of product innovation and new businesses. Bob Toohey, president of Verizon Digital Media Services, the company’s cloud video and advertising unit, will report to Armstrong. In AOL, which will operate independently, Verizon will acquire a portfolio of content brands, including The Huffington Post, TechCrunch, Engadget, MAKERS and AOL.com, as well as a menu of over-the-top (OTT) fare targeted to the coveted millennial audience. Via AOL, which acquired Adapt.TV in 2013, Verizon also gets some key programmatic advertising technologies that could play a part in its coming “mobile-first” offering that will include content from partners such as ACC Digital Network, Campus Insiders, CBS Sports, ESPN, 120 Sports and Awesomeness TV.
benton.org/headlines/verizon-clinches-aol-acquisition | Multichannel News | Verizon press release | New York Times
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BROADCASTING/TELEVISION

CHAIRMAN WHEELER OFFERS NONCOMMERCIAL TV OUTREACH
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Apparently, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler told representatives of noncommercial TV stations in a meeting June 22 that he would be willing to do some personal outreach to stations about the options for participating in the broadcast incentive auction while remaining in the businesses. The meeting followed the FCC's rejection of petitions to reconsider parts of the auction framework. That included a request by CPB, PBS and the Association of Public Television Stations that the FCC make sure that a noncommercial channel be reserved in every market after the post auction station repack, whether or not the only noncom in a market decided to give up its spectrum in the auction. Apparently, reserving the channel would unnecessarily complicate the auction and reduce flexibility, particularly given that there were the other options the chairman is apparently willing to pitch. Those include giving up spectrum but striking a sharing deal with another station, in which case the noncom half of the channel would be a noncommercial license, and the broadcaster would get the same payout as though they had given up the spectrum and exited the business, or giving up UHF spectrum to move to a VHF channel, which would leave them in the business, plus give them a payout, though less than if they were exiting altogether.
benton.org/headlines/chairman-wheeler-offers-noncommercial-tv-outreach | Broadcasting&Cable
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NET NEUTRALITY

THE FIRST NET NEUTRALITY COMPLAINT UNDER THE 2015 RULES IS LIKELY TO LOSE, AND THAT'S A GOOD THING.
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Harold Feld]
[Commentary] A company called Commercial Network Services (CNS) has filed the first network neutrality complaint under the Federal Communications Commission’s new rules -- which went into effect June 12 after the DC Circuit denied a stay request. While I probably should not prejudge things, I expect the FCC to deny the complaint for the excellent reason that -- accepting all the facts alleged as true -- Time Warner Cable did absolutely nothing wrong. I elaborate on what CNS gets wrong, why this differs from other high-profile disputes like Cogent and Level 3, and why such an illustration is good for the FCC’s rules as a whole in this piece. CNS doesn’t allege that TWC suddenly changed their policy or that a facially neutral policy discriminates against a particular application. They basically say, “Hey! I want free peering because that would be good for TWC’s subscribers.” We had that argument in the mid/late 1990’s when differentiation in the network moved us from free peering for everyone that could plausibly lay claim to being a “backbone” provider to formal peering policies that created the modern peering and transit market.
benton.org/headlines/first-net-neutrality-complaint-under-2015-rules-likely-lose-and-thats-good-thing | Public Knowledge
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WIRELESS/SPECTRUM

NEARLY HALF OF US HOUSEHOLDS ARE NOW WIRELESSLY HOUSEHOLDS, BUT 60 PERCENT MAY BE MORE ACCURATE NUMBER
[SOURCE: telecompetitor, AUTHOR: Bernie Arnason]
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control paints the picture of a growing mobile first society in the US, with nearly half (45.4 percent) of US households wireless only. The data comes from the CDC’s July -- December 2014 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The NHIS captures this data twice per year and provides some of the best data available regarding wireless substitution in the US. Wireless only households is not an issue for just the very young anymore. According to the CDC data, more than two-thirds of adults aged 25–29 (69.2 percent) and aged 30-34 (67.4 percent) lived in wireless only households. That exceeds those in the 18 – 24 demographic, where 57.8 percent were wireless only. For those beyond age 35 – 53.7 percent for those 35–44 were wireless only; 36.8 percent for those 45–64; and 17.1 percent for those 65 and over. Renters (66.2 percent) and adults living with unrelated roommates (81.3 percent) far exceeded the national average of 45.4 percent. Household income is a factor as well. Nearly sixty percent (59.4 percent) of adults living under the poverty line were wireless only, compared to 42.5 percent of higher income adults.
benton.org/headlines/nearly-half-us-households-are-now-wireless-only-households-60-percent-may-be-more-accurate | telecompetitor | CDC National Health Interview Survey | The Verge
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ELECTIONS & MEDIA

PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFULS SELL SWAG, COLLECT DATA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Vanessa Friedman]
“A campaign store is a very significant piece of a modern political campaign,” said Dale Emmons, president of the American Association of Political Consultants. Not just because it enables voters to literally wear their support on their sleeves, or chests (though that is what both Democratic and Republican campaigns emphasize), and not just because it creates a reason for supporters to keep giving (you bought the T-shirt, but have you bought the sweats? How about a pair of flip-flops?), but because of the data acquired. Buy an item from a campaign store, and you are not actually purchasing a product; you are making a donation. According to Federal Election Commission regulations, candidates are not allowed to sell items for personal profit, so the product is the “premium” you get in return for your pledge. As a result, when you put, say, a T-shirt or a coffee cup in your cart and go to checkout, you will, besides being asked for your full name, shipping address, phone and e-mail, be met with the statement, “federal law requires us to collect the following information”: employer, occupation and whether you are retired. So far, so like any other online donation. But when retail is involved, a little something extra is, too: personal preferences at a level beyond candidate. The choice of a product can reveal whether you are a beer drinker, a sports fan or what cellphone you use. It can suggest that there are a lot of joggers headquartered in a specific region of the country, indicating that a campaign may want to direct its health communications to that state; or that you really, really, hate the other guy. It can reveal that you have a baby, or at least are close to someone who has a baby. While the money is nice, the information is invaluable. “It’s all about learning who your supporter base is,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst of the NPD Group. “How do they live? What are their trigger points? What words resonate with them? It’s worth its weight in gold, in the political arena just like the consumer arena. We call it demographic profiling, because voter profiling sounds like a dirty word, but that’s what it is.”
benton.org/headlines/presidential-hopefuls-sell-swag-collect-data | New York Times
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June 2015

Meet The Children Who Live In Ghana's Hellish Digital Dump

June 24, 2015 (Verizon Clinches AOL Acquisition)

Senate To Vote on Trade Promotion Authority

Remarks of Commissioner O'Rielly Before the New York State Broadcasters Association Summer Conference

FCC Publishes List of Extremely High-Cost Census Blocks In Price Cap Areas

WikiLeaks Files Said to Show NSA Spied on French Leaders

Navy pays millions to keep using Windows XP

FCC Opens Charter/TWC docket

Chairman Wheeler Offers Noncommercial TV Outreach

Facebook to Offer South African Cell C Users Free Web Access