For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
BROADCASTING
FCC Draft on Kids Programming Obligations Said to Fall Short
ABC's Digital Convention Scam
INTERNET
Suspected File-Sharing 'Hubs' Raided
Broadband Miracle
One Way to Get Online: Piggyback
A Price War Hits Internet Calling
The Day the E-Mail Dies
BROADCASTING
FCC DRAFT ON KIDS PROGRAMMING OBLIGATIONS SAID TO FALL SHORT
The FCC has been considering for four years new rules concerning children's
programming on broadcast digital TV and is expected to adopt new rules
September 9. But childrens' advocates familiar with the proceeding say that
the order being circulated among the Commissioners is not aggressive
enough. Current analog broadcasters are required to air three hours per
week of childrens' educational and informational programming. The draft
does say broadcasters that multicast should air more hours of children's
programming per week, but it isn't clear how many extra hours are required
or on which channel(s) the additional programming must appear. The draft
order apparently doesn't require, but does encourage, broadcasters to
provide additional information to ensure parents know more about the
educational and children's programming available in a digital age and, in
the minds of public interest advocates, is not aggressive enough in
protecting kids from interactive advertising.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Tania Panczyk-Collins]
(Not available online)
ABC'S DIGITAL CONVENTION SCAM
[Commentary] Commercial broadcast television networks will provide the same
slim coverage of the Republican convention as they did for the Democrats
last month. But ABC is boasting of its "comprehensive" coverage. Through
its new, purportedly ground-breaking ABC News Now digital service, the
network promises "a more comprehensive look at what this election and these
conventions mean." Using a combination of broadband streaming (via AOL and
others), Sprint "Vision" phones and a handful of digital TV channels, ABC's
"FAQ" sheet crows that "no other network is offering that kind of
comprehensive coverage across multiple platforms." But only about 500,000
people will actually have access to ABC News Now coverage. That's out of
108 million US TV households and the 68 million US adults who have
high-speed Internet service. ABC parent Disney president Robert Igar told
investment analysts earlier this month that if the FCC or Congress passes
the new rules that Disney and other broadcasters are lobbying for, new
digital news channels like ABC News Now will flourish. In other words,
ABC's new political programming offerings are a digital "Trojan horse" to
help the company achieve a billion-dollar bounty of new corporate welfare.
Disney paid more than $5 billion for a single cable channel (Fox Family)
back in 2001 and has remained extremely profitable. Imagine how the
bottom-lines of the broadcast industry will prosper from a policy which
gives each broadcaster multiple cable channels for free. But Disney/ABC and
other broadcast companies want this new policy without any public-interest
strings attached. They oppose even a modest requirement that they would
actually have to provide additional news and public affairs programming as
a condition for such a policy. It is likely that once the government
approves the cable "must carry" policy sought by Disney, such vaunted
efforts as ABC News Now would be quickly replaced by entertainment, sports
and other ratings-proven fare.
[SOURCE: The Nation, AUTHOR: Jeff Chester]
http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040830&s=chester
INTERNET
SUSPECTED FILE-SHARING 'HUBS' RAIDED
Federal agents yesterday took their first steps to go after individuals who
illegally trade copyrighted music and videos over the Internet, seizing
computers, software and related equipment at five homes around the country.
FBI agents raided residences in Texas, Wisconsin and New York where people
were suspected of operating "hubs" of file-sharers that were part of a
system called the Underground Network. About 7,000 users connected to the
network via file-sharing software known as Direct Connect. Among the
copyrighted works that were downloaded for free by an undercover agent who
signed up for the service was a studio-screening copy of the movie "Cold
Mountain," before it had been released in theaters or on DVD. Altogether,
the agent downloaded about 84 movies, 40 software programs, 13 games and
178 sound recordings from five hub sites.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Jonathan Krim]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33959-2004Aug25.html
(requires registration)
Additional coverage:
LATimes:
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-piracy26aug26,1,60434...
USAToday:
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20040826/1b_piracy26.art.htm
Reuters:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=QZZHYT22CJB0MCRBAEKS...
BROADBAND MIRACLE
[Commentary] 78% of South Korean households subscribe to broadband, the
highest penetration rate in the world and well over twice that of the US.
How did that happen? Hazlett credits deregulation in South Korea that
allowed competitors to the state telecom monopoly to invest in new
broadband networks. Unlike the US policies to encourage competition, Korea
did not allow new competitors to use the existing phone network facilities
at prices set by regulators. By using fiber-optic capacity leased from a
power company, cable TV lines, and new transmission facilities built from
scratch, competing networks emerged and broadband services took off.
Korea's deregulatory climate, Hazlett notes, has protected investments in
new infrastructure, inducing capital to flow freely into broadband. He
concludes: In campaign 2004, Americans have already been treated to the
candidates jockeying over the broadband problem. President Bush stated the
basic position of both candidates when he declared: "[W]e rank 10th amongst
the industrialized world in broadband technology and its availability.
That's not good enough for America. Tenth is 10 spots too low as far as I'm
concerned." The policies are far more troubling than the rounding error.
The lesson offered by the country in first place is that deregulation, cold
turkey, may actually work a lot better than the alternative.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Thomas Hazlett, a senior fellow at
the Manhattan Institute]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109347596701001364,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
ONE WAY TO GET ONLINE: PIGGYBACK
Having trouble getting or paying for broadband access? Try sharing someone
else's access through a wireless router. As high-speed Internet service
evolves from a luxury to an expectation, many cash-strapped students are
beginning the school year looking for ways to acquire it at a reduced cost
- or no cost at all. Most universities and colleges in the United States
provide free high-speed Internet connections to every part of campus,
including dormitories. And after experiencing those speeds, students who
move into private housing are often reluctant to settle for dial-up access.
But cable or phone companies charge $30 to $60 a month for residential
broadband service. So students use various ways to get high-speed access on
the sly, the most common of which is simply piggybacking off of an
unprotected wireless network in the vicinity, whether in a workplace or in
another home.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Sandeep Junnarkar]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/26/technology/circuits/26shar.html
(requires registration)
See also a story about the darker side of Internet use...
Internet Gives Teenage Bullies Weapons to Wound From Afar
[SOURCE: New York Time, AUTHOR: Amy Harmon]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/26/education/26bully.html?hp
A PRICE WAR HITS INTERNET CALLING
Internet calling, known as VOIP, short for "voice over Internet protocol,"
is fairly easy to set up -- customers are able to use their standard phone,
which they plug into an adapter that links to their computer. The computer
routes the calls over the Internet. VoIP providers are slashing prices,
charging as little as $20/month for unlimited local and long distance
calling. Prices are likely to keep dropping in the months ahead because it
is so much cheaper for companies to run an Internet phone service than a
conventional phone network. They no longer have to buy and maintain
hundreds of millions of dollars worth of telephone equipment. For
consumers, making calls over the Internet can cost a third to two-thirds
less than a traditional phone plan. One reason is that the assorted taxes
and fees that traditional and cellphone companies tack onto their
advertised monthly rates generally don't apply to Internet calls. That's
because the government classifies Internet calls as "data" rather than
phone traffic, meaning regulatory fees aren't levied on the providers. The
net effect is that with Internet plans, the advertised rate is often what
consumers end up actually paying. But buyer beware: Internet calling is
only as reliable as your Internet service and when calling 911, dispatchers
don't know where Internet phone calls are being placed from.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Shawn Young shawn.young( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109347766653601422,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
THE DAY THE E-MAIL DIES
The number of daily e-mails in North America has tripled since 1999, to
11.9 billion. The ePolicy Institute, a Columbus (OH) consulting firm, says
48% of all office workers spend one to two hours a day on e-mail. Some 10%
spend more than half the day on the stuff. One executive at a Californian
software company decided to decree Fridays as "e-mail free days" and began
to fine employees in his division one dollar for each e-mail they sent on
Fridays. The goal was to get employees to call eachother or talk in person
-- and the get people to think about what they send electronically.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Marlon A. Walker marlon.walker( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109347131099501222,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
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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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