1. Monthly archive
  2. July 2017

July 2017

Record 9 million comments flood FCC on net neutrality

The US government has received more than 9 million public comments on rolling back network neutrality regulations, a record response to this hot-button issue that both sides argue plays an essential role in who gets Internet access. The first public comment period ended July 17, and now a one-month rebuttal period is underway. Already, about another million additional comments have been submitted. Those totals were boosted by July 12's online 'Day of Action' conducted by tech companies and liberal privacy rights organizations that support the net neutrality regulations, as well as opposing comments from those in favor of overturning the rules.

Chairman Pai's Response to Sens Wyden, Schatz Regarding ECFS Cyberattack

On July 7, 2017, Sens Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to express concern about the FCC facing a similar cyberattack on July 12 as it did during the May 7-8.

On July 11, Chairman Pai responded, writing, "Over the course of the last two months, the Commission has taken a series of steps to mitigate the chances of a disruption similar to the one that took place on May 7-8 from occurring again...In preparation for July 12, the Commission's IT professionals have taken additional measures to safeguard our comment filing system. Moreover, they will be on high alert over the next 48 hours and ready to respond as quick as possible to any attacks. Given the nature of this situation, however, I believe that publicly disclosing the specific steps that we are taking could undermine their efficacy."

Net Neutrality: The Social Justice Issue of Our Time

[Commentary] The internet plays a critical role in the dissemination of information and services specifically tailored for people of color and other marginalized groups, including LGBT people, because it provides the opportunity for us to tell our own stories and to organize for racial and social justice. That empowerment relies on an open internet and net neutrality...

If you want to weigh in on net neutrality and the Federal Communications Commission’s role in implementing it, you can contribute by submitting a comment no later than August 16th. As the United States transitions towards this internet-based communications network revolution, we must remain focused on the right goals: ensuring that the internet is affordable and accessible for all, not just the privileged. Digital social justice demands no less.

The Internet Ripoff You're Not Protesting

[Commentary] All of this network neutrality action involves just the very last part of the communications grid in the US — the “last mile,” or the part of the network that actually touches consumers. Former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler pushed through the relabeling of the “last mile” as a regulable service. That utility label needs to be retained, as I’ve often argued.

But there’s an even bigger and possibly more insidious policy in the works that will result in far greater woes for consumers. It involves the not terribly well-understood part of the system called the “middle mile.” As with the last mile, the new administration wants to avoid enforcing any legal protections. And it‘s doing this in a manner that just happens to benefit the powerful forces that take citizens’ money while denying them the best services.

[Susan Crawford is the John A. Reilly Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and a Professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.]

Why Does South Korea Have Faster Internet for a Cheaper Price Tag?

The average South Korean can choose between three major private internet providers –SKT, KT and LG U+ – and pay less than $30 a month for the fastest internet in the world. That’s $17 less than what the average American pays for a much slower internet hookup. But why? How is it possible that the citizens of the last developed democracy have a faster and more affordable internet than Americans? The simple answer to this question is that in the 1990s South Koreans decided that their country needed a fast and affordable internet provided by a vibrant private sector, and there was the political willingness, and a national plan, to achieve that goal.

A reporter broke White House rules by streaming live audio of an off-camera briefing

At every White House news briefing since June 29 — and many before, too — President Donald Trump's spokesmen have ordered a room full of smartphone-toting journalists not to film the session or even broadcast live audio. On July 19, one reporter defied the White House by streaming live sound of the briefing online. Ksenija Pavlovic, a former political science teaching fellow at Yale who founded a news site called Pavlovic Today, used the Periscope app to stream audio of July 19's briefing. She tweeted a link to the feed. The sound quality was poor, but deputy White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders could be heard introducing Director of Legislative Affairs Marc Short, who addressed reporters before Sanders took questions. Pavlovic's feed cut out after about 17 minutes, while Short was still talking, but she quickly resumed streaming and tweeted a new link that carried another 31 minutes.

Remarks of Rachael Bender at the 33rd Annual Conference of the Caribbean Association of Network Telecommunications Organizations

[I]t is particularly important that the United States and Caribbean nations collaborate. Our countries share many common interests and significant cultural and economic ties. The U.S. is the leading trading partner for the Caribbean, and we have benefitted greatly from the contributions of the Caribbean diaspora community in the United States. Unlike baseball, this is not a game where there is only one winner. When we expand opportunity and enhance security in one nation, the benefits can flow throughout the region. Recognizing these benefits, Congress last year made it the official policy of the United States to increase engagement with government leaders, the private sector, and civil society groups in the Caribbean region. I am proud to be here in the spirit of this law and want you to know that Chairman Pai is committed to enhancing the FCC’s engagement with the Caribbean region.

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