The Senate Commerce Committee has scheduled a hearing on the nomination of
Carlos Gutierrez to be the Secretary of Commerce. For this and other
upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
TELECOM
The Telecom (Better Late Than Never) Revolution
Bells Dig in to Dominate High-Speed Internet Realm
Wireless Net Calling Targets Masses
Cellphones Become 'Swiss Army Knives' As Technology Blurs
BROADCASTING
Citadel Drops Stern's Radio Show
INTERNET
A Year After Legislation, Spam Still Widespread
TELECOM
THE TELECOM (BETTER LATE THAN NEVER) REVOLUTION
[Commentary] The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was supposed to usher in a
great new era of competition and innovation, but regulators at the FCC may
just be realizing that some nine years later. When implementing the Act,
the FCC created new layers of regulation, setting up separate rules for
local phone, long distance, and cable activity, even when all three were
offered by the same company. The dashed promise of telecom reform ought to
be a cautionary tale about what happens when government tries to regulate
an industry evolving faster than even its leading participants recognize.
The essence of the telecom revolution is bundling services -- phone calls,
e-mails, and episodes of "Sex in the City" -- onto one network. McCourt
ends: The good news is that the FCC may finally understand this and stop
trying to establish the structure of the industry from Washington. And it
won't be soon enough. Before long an aspiring entrepreneur will sell video
over the Internet just as Vonage and others are now selling voice over the
Internet, reconfiguring the boundaries of telecommunications all over again.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: David McCourt, chairman and CEO of
Granahan McCourt Capital]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110479489775015825,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
BELLS DIG IN TO DOMINATE HIGH-SPEED INTERNET REALM
The regional Bell companies have made much of their billion-dollar plans to
run broadband networks across the USA. Yet they're also quietly trying to
erect hurdles that would make it hard -- or expensive -- for anyone to
compete with them. The Bells are going after their phone rivals, Internet
carriers, small cities and major metro areas -- anyone with an interest in
building services that might compete with the Bells. "If municipal
governments and others are blocked from entering this market, the vast
majority of Americans are going to wind up on the wrong side of the digital
divide, because they will be unable to afford high-speed services," says
Gene Kimmelman of Consumers Union. Experts say they worry about diminished
competition in broadband services. Unless others can step into the fray and
compete aggressively, broadband could fall under the control of just two
players, just as the cellphone business did for years. With just two
cellphone carriers per market, operators tended to keep prices high.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050104/fibercover04.art.htm
WIRELESS NET CALLING TARGETS MASSES
Vonage, the No. 1 Internet phone company, will unveil plans today to offer
subscribers a wireless Wi-Fi phone that can make calls over the Internet at
homes or at public Wi-Fi hot spots. For Vonage subscribers, the phone could
amount to a kind of limited-use cellphone that would cost nothing extra.
The service poses at least some threat to wireless carriers because Wi-Fi
calls are effectively free. Cellphone calls, by contrast, eat up a monthly
bucket of minutes.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Paul Davidson]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050104/2b_wifiphone04.art.htm
CELLPHONES BECOME 'SWISS ARMY KNIVES' AS TECHNOLOGY BLURS
Cellphones have a decisive advantage over many other electronics devices:
People typically carry them wherever they go, unlike laptop computers, MP3
players or digital cameras. As a result, cellphones have become products on
which all sorts of industries want to attach their wares and services.
Several factors are making such these attachments possible and attractive.
For one thing, cellphone network coverage has improved, even in rural
areas, to the extent that building cellphone headsets into ski jackets and
motorcycle helmets has become attractive. The second factor is new
technology such as a short-distance wireless system called Bluetooth, which
enables cellphone users to don headphones that connect to their phones
without cords. Third, better digital networks and improvements in the
software inside cellphones have made the phones much more powerful and
capable of handling an assortment of accessories. And finally, prices are
coming down, turning the latest high-end features into mass-market
offerings within months
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Christopher Rhoads
christopher.rhoads( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110479366994115788,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
BROADCASTING
CITADEL DROPS STERN'S RADIO SHOW
Because of his constant references to his planned move to Sirius Satellite
Radio, Citadel Broadcasting has decided to drop the Howard Stern radio
show. Citadel owns more than 200 radio stations in midsize markets around
the country including four that aired Stern's show. Citadel's decision to
drop Mr. Stern reduces the number of stations carrying his program to 41.
It also comes almost a year after Clear Channel Communications dropped his
show from six of its stations, citing indecency concerns, Mr. Stern more
than made up for those losses by signing other stations later.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Sarah McBride sarah.mcbride( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110479643493715875,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
INTERNET
A YEAR AFTER LEGISLATION, SPAM STILL WIDESPREAD
The Can-Spam Act, the nation's first law aimed at curtailing junk e-mail,
produced mixed results after a year on the books, inspiring some Internet
service providers to take legal action against spammers but failing to stop
the overall proliferation of the unwanted online messages. Spam levels rose
in 2004, by most accounts. At the beginning of 2003, spam accounted for
about 50 percent of all e-mail, according to Postini, a Redwood City,
Calif.-based anti-spam firm that scans about 400 million e-mail messages a
day for its clients. By the time Can-Spam passed at the end of 2003, that
figure had grown to roughly 75 percent. Throughout 2004, spam accounted for
75 to 80 percent of all e-mail, said Chris Smith, Postini's senior director
of product marketing. As a result, most of the e-mail industry has turned
its attention toward technology, rather than litigation, as the primary
means for combating spam.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: David McGuire]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A46037-2005Jan3.html
(requires registration)
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Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang
(headlines( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
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