For this week's media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/?q=event
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
Katrina Spawned Plague of Misinformation
E-Rate Program Challenged as FCC Proposes Hurricane Relief
Telecom Firms Seek 'First Responder' Treatment
Gulf State Regulators Tackling Hurricane Issues
AT&T Solves VoIP's 911 Issue
INTERNET
The Internet Enters a Bold Second Act
Cyber Loophole
A Capitol Hill Presence in the Blogosphere
OWNERSHIP
FCC Official Warns Against Media Consolidation
Daley: Tribune Makes Chicago a Cubs Town
Public Interest Groups Call for Hearings on 'Broadcast Flag'
FCC Chief Smiles On AT&T, MCI Sales, Sources Say
Sprint Nextel Asks Court to Review Affiliate Buyout
CONTENT
New Poll Finds Escalating Violence in Children's TV Now a Crisis
for Parents
FCC Renews WUPL TV License
Regulation of Obscenity, Indecency and Profanity
Democracy 'At Risk' From Cable, Satellite
ADVOCACY
Unions Consolidate To Face Merged Media
Smart Coalition Pushes for DTV Bills
Google Goes Inside the Beltway
QUICKLY -- Just pull the plug on the CBC already; Fight to Save Pay Phones;
ND Weighs Auction License for Some eBay Sellers; HDTV Sales To See Big
Increase; Communications Towers and Indian Nations; Wireless industry comes
together for faster Wi-Fi; Yahoo Seizes Podcast Initiative; BellSouth in
data deal with Sprint
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
KATRINA SPAWNED PLAGUE OF MISINFORMATION
Much of what was reported as fact by government officials and the media
during the chaotic first week after Hurricane Katrina turned out to be
fiction. John Hinderaker, co-author of the widely read conservative weblog
Power Line, and other media watchers say the media need to take a hard look
at their behavior. "When the mayor said there might be 10,000 bodies, he
was distraught, he was in the midst of a crisis," says Hinderaker. "What
was shocking was that news organizations would just pick it up and keep
repeating it when there'd really been no basis for it." Experts in
emergency management and communications say the real problem was a collapse
of conventional communications systems, like phone systems. Those who had
good information had no way of transmitting it. They say it's time to
create a system that allows facts to be conveyed more quickly to
decision-makers. Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., and Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb.,
have introduced legislation that would give telecommunications companies
financial incentives to build crisis information systems into their
Internet and cellphone networks. That way, information could be sent to
multiple battery-powered laptops and cellphones via e-mails and text
messages. Reed Hundt, former chairman of the Federal Communications
Commission, advocates designating a part of the wireless Internet spectrum
known as Wi-Fi to a new emergency broadcast network. "Wi-Fi networks can be
run on batteries in times of crisis," Hundt says. "You can float the
antennas on boats. They can be dropped on to rooftops by helicopters," he
says. "And laptops run by batteries too. There are darn few TV sets out
there running on batteries." Hundt also advocates equipping all police,
fire and other emergency personnel with Wi-Fi-based, handheld communication
devices.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Mark Memmott]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20051011/a_wrong11.art.htm
E-RATE PROGRAM CHALLENGED AS FCC PROPOSES HURRICANE RELIEF
Critics of the E-rate program are preaching caution as the FCC plans to
make $132 million from the fund available to rebuild the educational
technology capacity of schools hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. They
first want to see audit reports from the FCC Inspector General and to
examine sources of fraud in the E-rate program. "The audits and
investigations performed to date indicated a high level of risk for misused
funds in the E-rate program," said FCC Inspector Gen. Walker Feaster. He
said lack of clarity in the program's rules prompt "inadvertent errors and
deliberate waste" in the bidding process used to purchase E-rate goods and
services. The program's weaknesses could be compounded by overworked school
and library administrators trying to rebuild schools quickly, he said. "I
fear these rule waivers or exemptions will be taken advantage of by
unscrupulous E-rate service providers that federal criminal investigations
have turned up time and again." Feaster was referring to the FCC's decision
in September to temporarily suspend some filing and recordkeeping
requirements related to E-rate funding. Feaster's office has completed 158
audits of beneficiaries of E-rate funds, of which 34% were found to be
improper. Recoveries in those cases would yield $18 million, he said. The
office is providing "audit support" to another 26 investigations and is
monitoring 13 other investigations. So far, $30 million has been recovered
in criminal prosecutions for E-rate fraud. One major area of concern is the
program's reliance of "self-certification" by participants, he said. While
the $2.5 billion program deserves expanded oversight, he said, "we have not
had the resources to establish an effective oversight program."
[SOURCE: Communications Daily 10/7, AUTHOR: Anne Veigle]
(Not available online)
TELECOM FIRMS SEEK 'FIRST RESPONDER' TREATMENT
What services and companies should get priority when an area is in and
recovering from an emergency? Telecommunications firms would like to argue
that they should be a (not the) priority. The Stafford Disaster Relief &
Emergency Assistance Act spells out priorities for what the government can
do to help restoration, but telecommunications isn't on the list.
Typically, health and human services get top priority and others, including
911, follow. BellSouth has urged Stafford Act amendments to ensure telecom
gets "first responder" treatment in access to power, fuel, water and security.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Dinesh Kumar]
(Not available online)
GULF STATE REGULATORS TACKLING HURRICANE ISSUES
State commissions in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas are starting
to tackle the regulatory aftermath of this summer's hurricanes, as telecom
carriers continue to restore service and rebuild destroyed facilities.
Regulators in states hardest hit by Katrina and Rita are focusing on
recovery. Regulators face major questions: 1) What relief, such as waiver
of deposits and installation charges, to provide phone customers affected
by the storms. 2) Whether to waive service standards such as those for
timely installation and repair until carriers have restored service and
replaced wrecked facilities. 3) Whether to allow regulated carriers a
temporary local rate increase or surcharge so they can recover some
storm-caused extraordinary and unexpected costs. 4) Whether networks should
be restored to prestorm status, or carriers encouraged to replace wholesale
older wires, cables and switches with the latest fiber and digital
technologies. 5) What, if anything, states can do to reduce telephone
carriers' near-total dependence on commercial electric power to keep
outside plant facilities such as cellular towers and loop carrier terminals
operating. 6) How to use state rules to aid electronic communications among
emergency responders and prevent breakdowns. Some issues have seen fast
action; others won't be faced for some time.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Herb Kirchhoff]
(Not available online)
AT&T SOLVES VOIP'S 911 ISSUE
The problem: VoIP users who call 911 from hotels and other remote sites
sometimes can't be found by 911 operators. That's because the correct
locations of these "nomadic" users don't show up on operators' screens.
AT&T says it's solved a problem that has dogged Internet-based phone
service: how to provide emergency 911 to people who use VoIP -- short for
Voice over Internet Protocol -- on the road. AT&T's nomadic solution,
called Heartbeat, uses its Internet network to track the location of users.
Here's how it works: When VoIP customers power down, AT&T's network will
automatically suspend VoIP service. Once the phone adapter is plugged back
in, AT&T will ask the user to verify his or her location. For customers who
indicate they haven't moved, service will be instantly restored. If they
have moved, they'll be directed to an 800 number or a Web page to register
the new location. AT&T's VoIP units -- sold under the CallVantage name --
are programmed to contact the carrier's global network once every 24 hours.
During these communications, AT&T sends software upgrades and does
maintenance. Heartbeat works off that same protocol. The Federal
Communications Commission has given Internet phone carriers until Nov. 28
to make their VoIP services 911-capable. AT&T's rival carriers are still
working on the problem.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20051011/voip11.art.htm
INTERNET
THE INTERNET ENTERS A BOLD SECOND ACT
Led by the Internet, the high-tech industry appears to be entering a
vibrant new phase of both growth and upheaval. It is the Web's sober second
act, characterized not by soaring stock prices but by forces that are
challenging traditional industries - from publishing to telecommunications
- to adopt new business plans. Consumers seem to be the only sure winners.
The maturing of the Internet as an engine of the global economy is being
driven by a handful of important forces: 1) shrinking sizes and prices, 2)
"digital convergence" -- the fusion of computing with other traditional
industries foreseen in the 1990s -- is happening in earnest, challenging
traditional communications industries, and 3) wireless services are making
the Web portable, not just a desk-bound tool. As all these trends shower
consumers with new products and services, corporations face both risks and
opportunities. The good news, experts say, is that the online realm has
reached critical mass.
[SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Mark Trumbull]
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1011/p01s03-ussc.html
CYBER LOOPHOLE
[Commentary] A bill gaining traction in Congress would exempt the Internet
from the type of "public communications" covered by campaign finance laws,
carving a huge cyber-loophole in the recent ban on huge "soft money"
contributions by corporations, labor unions and wealthy individuals. The
growth of the Internet and its emergence as a political force present
complicated questions about how -- and, at bottom, whether -- to apply
campaign finance laws to this new medium. The ability to communicate with
voters through e-mail, the use of the Internet to solicit and collect
small-dollar donations, and the vibrant discussion of politics in the
blogosphere are undoubtedly positive developments that lawmakers and
regulators should take care not to squelch. But that doesn't mean the
Internet should be a campaign finance law-free zone. The concerns about the
potentially corrupting influence of six-figure donations apply just as much
if that cash is spent in cyberspace. This isn't a trivial risk: Internet
politicking now represents a fraction of overall spending, but it's growing
exponentially. One expert told the Federal Election Commission that $14
million was spent on Internet campaign advertising in 2004 -- a 3,000
percent increase over four years earlier.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Editorial Staff]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/10/AR200510...
(requires registration)
A CAPITOL HILL PRESENCE IN THE BLOGOSPHERE
There's a small but growing number of lawmakers on Capitol Hill who have
tried their hands at blogging. More than a dozen have launched blogs or
blog-like pages on their official Web sites in an apparent effort to
sidestep the mainstream media and, like thousands -- possibly, millions --
of other Americans, take their stories directly to the public. Some are
short-lived, beginning and ending with a trip overseas. Others are
permanent. Some are updated daily. Others, once in a while. The sites,
invariably, are much tamer than other, well-known blogs. There is no
fire-breathing partisanship. No snarky dishing. No soul-searching
confessionals. In fact, some appear to be little more than news releases
strung together to look like a blog. Some Internet experts said they are
heartened by the lawmakers' efforts, saying the sites can give constituents
glimpses into their representatives' personalities, opinions and day-to-day
responsibilities. "Anytime they do anything that is more responsive to
constituents' needs and interests, and anytime they're trying to be more
transparent about their work, it's a good thing," said Nicole Folk,
technology analyst at the Congressional Management Foundation. Most
lawmakers still shy away from the sites for any number of reasons: They do
not have the staff to maintain them; their constituents are not demanding
them; they are not comfortable with the loose, freewheeling tone associated
with blogs. But an increasing number appear to have found a sort of middle
ground, focusing less on developing their own sites and, instead, taking
their writings to other, more established blogs with active followings.
More than a dozen lawmakers have written for the Huffington Post, a
celebrity-studded blog run by pundit Arianna Huffington.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brian Faler]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/10/AR200510...
(requires registration)
OWNERSHIP
FCC OFFICIAL WARNS AGAINST MEDIA CONSOLIDATION
FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein railed against media consolidation last
week, speaking to a crowd of 500 people at the University of Iowa. He said
that media deregulation tends to harm small communities, where local
broadcast news dries up. He warned that getting giant media companies to
unmerge is "virtually impossible."
[SOURCE: Des Moines Register, AUTHOR: Jeffrey Patch]
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051006/NEW...
See Also:
* Iowans testify against further media consolidation
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=98
* Iowans Irate With Media, Says Adelstein
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6264343.html?display=Breaking...
DALEY: TRIBUNE MAKES CHICAGO A CUBS TOWN
Mayor Richard Daley is a diehard and lifelong White Sox fan, but he
acknowledged ruefully Thursday that Chicago is a Cubs town. And that's
because Tribune Co., which owns the Chicago Tribune, promotes its sports
team with its media holdings, Mayor Daley asserted. "How can you compete
with . . . Tribune?" he asked. "I mean, give me a break. They own the Cubs,
they own WGN Radio (and) TV and CLTV. Come on. You think you are going to
get any publicity for the White Sox? You can't. Let's be realistic." The
mayor said that if the Sox owned such an array of media outlets, "it would
be great, but they don't, so it is very challenging for them. People love
the Cubs." (The Mayor declined to comment on people's hatred of the
designated hitter rule.)
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune 10/7, AUTHOR: Gary Washburn]
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/chi-0510070321oct07,1,6790149.story...
(requires free registration)
PUBLIC INTEREST GROUPS CALL FOR HEARINGS ON 'BROADCAST FLAG'
The Center for Democracy and Technology joined a coalition of public
interest groups last week in urging Congress to hold hearings before
considering any legislation that would mandate a "broadcast flag" regime
governing devices capable of receiving digital television signals. In a
letter sent to the chairmen and ranking members of the Senate and House
committees with jurisdiction over the matter, the groups listed several
questions that require careful consideration. CDT fears that enacting a
flag regime without fully addressing several key issues would pose serious
threats to innovation and public discourse.
[SOURCE: Center for Democracy and Technology]
Broadcast Flag Letter to House:
http://www.cdt.org/copyright/20051006flagletterhouse.pdf
Broadcast Flag Letter to Senate:
http://www.cdt.org/copyright/20051006flagletterSenate.pdf
FCC CHIEF SMILES ON AT&T, MCI SALES, SOURCES SAY
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin on Friday
proposed approving the acquisitions of AT&T (by SBC) and MCI (by Verizon)
without requiring asset sales. Martin's position may run into resistance
among the other FCC commissioners, particularly over the issue of whether
the companies should sell off some special access lines to lucrative
business customers. Critics say the acquisitions will eliminate the two
biggest players in the market for such lines, allowing SBC and Verizon to
raise prices for smaller competitors who lease them. Another issue likely
to be raised over the mergers is whether Verizon and SBC should be required
to sell stand-alone DSL Internet service to residential customers without
requiring them to purchase local telephone service. That would allow
residential customers to get their phone service from Internet phone
companies, providing competition to firms like SBC and Verizon and
potentially holding down prices. Not requiring asset sales as a condition
of the mergers "would be a devastating blow to competition," said Gene
Kimmelman, director of the Washington office of Consumers Union. "SBC in
its region and Verizon in its region would be the dominant local, long
distance, broadband and wireless providers, able to inflate prices and
control access to the most likely competition, which would be VoIP over
high-speed DSL connections," Kimmelman said. A vote on the mergers could
come at the FCC as soon as October 28.
[SOURCE: Washington Post 10/8, AUTHOR: Arshad Mohammed]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/07/AR200510...
(requires registration)
* MCI shareholders approve Verizon merger
MCI shareholders voted on Thursday to give the $8.44 billion merger with
Verizon Communications the green light. The companies will now focus on
obtaining the remaining federal, state and international approvals. The
merger is expected to close in early 2006.
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com 10/6, AUTHOR: Marguerite Reardon]
http://news.com.com/MCI+shareholders+approve+Verizon+merger/2100-1037_3-...
* AT&T to live on after merger
Apparently, SBC plans to dump its corporate moniker and adopt the fabled
AT&T name once federal regulators bless the two companies' merger.
[SOURCE: USAToday 10/6, AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley]
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2005-10-06-att-usat_x.htm
SPRINT NEXTEL ASKS COURT TO REVIEW AFFILIATE BUYOUT
Sprint Nextel has gone to court to resolve key aspects of a debate over how
much the company must pay to acquire an affiliate. The affiliate, Nextel
Partners, has the right to make Sprint Nextel buy out the 68% of Nextel
Partners that it doesn't already own. The right was triggered by the merger
that created Sprint Nextel, which closed in August. Nextel Partners
shareholders are expected to vote to exercise the option to force a buyout
at a meeting Oct. 24. A subsidiary of Sprint Nextel filed the suit Friday
in Delaware Chancery Court seeking an expedited review. Neither side has
yet said publicly how much it thinks Sprint should pay for Nextel Partners,
but the sides have been sniping over the terms for setting the price since
Nextel Partners indicated it would demand the buyout.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Shawn Young shawn.young( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB112898624960264938.html?mod=todays_us_ma...
(requires subscription)
CONTENT
NEW POLL FINDS ESCALATING VIOLENCE IN CHILDREN'S TV NOW A CRISIS FOR PARENTS
Despite years of studies linking violence in children with violence on
television, a new survey of parents with children aged 1-6 finds that
violence in children's programming still remains a primary problem. The
poll found an overwhelming 82% majority of respondents stating that such
violence is a major concern for them as parents. The poll, conducted by the
American Business Research Corporation, also found that nine in ten
believed that violence in children's programming had a serious negative
impact on their children and eight in ten felt that such programming
created serious behavioral problems for them as parents, now and into the
future. The study was designed to explore the content, educational and
social values most sought after by parents of children at or earlier than
pre-school ages, with an eye toward helping the industry develop programs
more appropriately targeted to accomplish those objectives. Earlier
studies, such as those by George Gerbner, Ph.D., at the University of
Pennsylvania, have shown that children's TV shows can contain as many as 20
violent acts each hour and that children who watch a lot of television are
more likely to think that the world is a mean and dangerous place. Dr. Dale
Kunkel, of UC Santa Barbara, found that children's programming could be
among the worst in the area of violence. He noted that another factor
associated with children's programs is that they often depict violence in a
humorous context, which seems to trivialize violence. Another hot topic
revealed by the ABRC poll was the fact that eight in ten parents were also
extremely interested in any programming that might help their children make
the transition from home life to the pre-school environment.
[SOURCE: American Business Research Corporation press release]
http://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/main.jsp?resourceid=3051704
FCC RENEWS WUPL TV LICENSE
Viacom, a company suing the FCC over its children's television rules, has
won a license renewal for a TV station it owns in Slidell (LA) which has a
history of not airing the minimum three hours of kids shows per week.
(Hmmm.) The station will be fined $4,000, however, for not filing the
proper paperwork when it has aired children's programming. (Hmmm. And why
would you go to court to overturn such stringent rules? Oh, yes, of course,
principle.)
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6266818.html?display=Breaking...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
REGULATION OF OBSCENITY, INDECENCY AND PROFANITY
On Friday, the Federal Communications Commission launched a new,
user-friendly web site designed to educate the public about the laws
governing the airing of obscene, indecent and profane material and the
Commission's enforcement of those laws. The web site is aimed at adding
transparency to the Commission's work in this area. The site explains how
to file a complaint and what happens to the complaint once the Commission
receives it. In addition, for each year dating back to 1993, it provides
useful statistics on the Commission's enforcement efforts, including the
number of obscenity, indecency and profanity complaints received by the
Commission; the number of Notices of Apparent Liability issued by the
Commission and the total forfeitures imposed by the Commission. Finally,
the site answers frequently asked questions on a wide range of topics
ranging from how a consumer can determine the status of a complaint he or
she filed to what makes material obscene, indecent or profane.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://www.fcc.gov/eb/oip/
* FCC Seeks To Speed Indecency Complaints
Penny Nance, the anti-indecency activist now consulting the FCC on policy,
has launched a Web site at the commission that will make it easier for
viewers to complain about indecent broadcasts, though not quite yet.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6266652?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
DEMOCRACY 'AT RISK' FROM CABLE, SATELLITE
"It is television delivered over cable and satellite that will continue for
the remainder of this decade and probably the next to be the dominant
medium of communication in America's democracy. And so long as that is the
case, I truly believe that America's democracy is at grave risk." That dire
warning about the dangers of cable news and information came from Al Gore,
former Vice President and now co-founder of cable news and information
network, Current TV. But Gore was drawing a distinction between the
established nets "monopolized" by a few big companies, and his own
cable/Internet hybrid. "There is virtually no exchange of ideas at all in
television's domain," he said in a speech in New York Thursday. "My partner
Joel Hyatt and I are trying to change that - at least where Current TV is
concerned. Perhaps not coincidentally, we are the only independently owned
news and information network in all of American television." He said the
same corporate "feudalists" who have gained control of TV are threatening
to do the same with the Web. "We must be prepared to fight for it because
some of the same forces of corporate consolidation and control that have
distorted the television marketplace have an interest in controlling the
Internet marketplace as well," he told his audience.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6265394?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* The Threat to American Democracy (text of Gore's speech)
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/06/D8D2IU703.html
* Al Gore's Code Red
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/26494/
ADVOCACY
UNIONS CONSOLIDATE TO FACE MERGED MEDIA
Ten communications unions representing a million workers are banding
together to provide a united front in the face of "rapid media
consolidation and massive technological shifts." The 10 communications
unions have asked the AFL-CIO to create an Industry Coordinating Committee
to orchestrate that collective response. It will be the first such
committee, which the AFL-CIO proposed forming on a number of fronts at its
July meeting, and will collectively bargain and lobby for legislation and
public policy, pending official approval of the committee by the leadership
of the respective unions. The unions that are marshalling their forces are
Actors Equity, the American Federation of Musicians, American Federation of
Television and Radio Artists, Communications Workers of America,
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, National Association of Broadcast
Employees and Technicians, Screen Actors Guild, The Newspaper Guild, and
the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE).
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6264723?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
SMART COALITION PUSHES FOR DTV BILLS
The Coalition for a Smart Digital TV Transition held a press conference on
Capitol Hill this week pushing the committees to deal with the issues of a
digital-to-analog set-top subsidy, consumer education campaign, and
multicast must-carry. The coalition includes unions, minority advocates,
farm organizations, and network affiliate groups. The coalition's agenda
includes mandatory cable carriage of all a broadcaster's multiple digital
TV channels and aiding rural viewers in the transition, including funding
set-tops and a consumer education campaign about when, where and how the
transition is being accomplished.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6266219?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
GOOGLE GOES INSIDE THE BELTWAY
Google, the once-upstart search outfit, has hired its first full-time
lobbyist in Washington, technology-law expert and Washington veteran Alan
Davidson. "Our mission in Washington boils down to this: Defend the
Internet as a free and open platform for information, communication, and
innovation," Andrew McLaughlin, Google's senior policy counsel, wrote in an
Oct. 6 company blog. The move to beef up lobbying coincides with forays by
the online giant Google into a host of new markets and services beyond
basic Web search. Google's push into Internet-calling service Google Talk
and a plan to provide Wi-Fi for San Francisco threatens to tread on turf
dominated by the biggest phone carriers. With an overhaul of landmark
telecom legislation pending and legal battles brewing, Google needs to
widen its influence in Washington while its developers dream up
pie-in-the-sky projects in Silicon Valley. "The company is bleeding into so
many new sectors and businesses that there are any number of government
policies the company should be involved in," says Blair Levin, a managing
director at Legg Mason and a former chief of staff at the Federal
Communications Commission. Davidson, who joined Google on May 31, is
well-suited to wave the company flag in the nation's capital. A
Massachusetts Institute of Technology-trained computer scientist and
graduate of Yale Law School, Davidson served for eight years as associate
director of the Center for Democracy & Technology, a nonprofit think tank
and initiative group that opposes government and industry control of the
Internet, while advocating user privacy. Associates say Davidson is best
known for his work on intellectual-property and Internet-privacy policy
issues. He has argued against the mandatory inclusion of special content
locks in digital-recording devices and testified before Congress for
increased measures to protect personal privacy online. Alan also enjoys
long walks in parks that offer Wi-Fi access and crunching statistics on the
Washington Nationals.
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Burt Helm]
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/oct2005/tc20051010_0156_t...
QUICKLY
JUST PULL THE PLUG ON THE CBC ALREADY
[Commentary] The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's (CBC) plan to increase
its number of contract workers caused the CBC's biggest union, the Canadian
Media Guild (CMG), to object and the CMG soon found themselves locked out.
And the CBC found itself airing Coronation Street reruns, BBC news,
Antiques Roadshow, management-hosted radio shows consisting only of music,
and movies. With hockey season upon us, an agreement was reached, just in
time for the CBC to carry out its lucrative contract with the NHL
(apparently, many Canadians like to watch figure skating with sticks). The
CBC, on both television and radio, is taxpayer funded to the tune of just
under $1 billion (Canadian) a year. True believers in Canada maintain it
keeps Canadians connected to each other, and above all, keeps us from
becoming American. The latter is a peculiar concern, since, even operating
at full force, CBC's English-language television is ever defeated in the
ratings by American networks and cable stations. According to a Decima
Research poll taken during the lockout, 61 percent of respondents said the
labor dispute had no impact at all on their lives. Only 10 percent
considered it a "major inconvenience." Most telling was that, in the 10
percent who felt seriously inconvenienced, most were those who voted for
Canada's left-of-center Liberal and New Democratic parties. And many were
older people, for whom the CBC has no doubt played a larger role, than for
someone who grew up with the Internet and hundreds of radio and TV
stations. Should the unprecedented ever happen, and Canadian politicians
develop the backbone required to pull the CBC's plug, the death knell would
be most welcome and overdue. (What say you, York University?)
[SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Rondi Adamson]
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1011/p09s02-coop.html
CELLULAR-FREE ENCLAVES FIGHT TO SAVE PAY PHONES
Laws in New Hampshire, New York, California, Maine and elsewhere sprang
from the 1996 federal telecommunications act, which deregulated pay phones
but allowed states to enact "public interest" laws to save endangered
phones. Generally the laws call for a committee to decide whether a phone
is worth saving. If so, it is subsidized by money from various sources;
Kentucky, for example, uses money from the universal service fund fee
collected on phone bills. New Hampshire will use unclaimed telephone
company deposits. With the proliferation of cellphones, BlackBerries and
other devices that operate on digital technology rather than dimes, pay
phones are a disappearing species. There were about 2 million pay phones
nationwide in 1997; about 1.3 million were operating last year, according
to the Federal Communications Commission.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Katie Zezima]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/11/national/11phones.html
(requires registration)
NORTH DAKOTA WEIGHS AUCTION LICENSE FOR SOME eBAY SELLERS
In many states, the growing popularity of online auctions is prompting
closer scrutiny from regulators. The North Dakota Public Service Commission
already licenses auctioneers and is asking the state attorney general for a
legal opinion about whether the definition of an auctioneer covers eBay
sellers. Although eBay is often called an online auction service and uses
many traditional auction terms, its sales are technically not auctions,
said a company spokesperson. For one thing, he said, eBay sales give buyers
a fixed amount of time to bid for merchandise, while a traditional auction
is held open as long as there are bidders.
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/11/national/11auction.html
(requires registration)
HDTV SALES TO SEE BIG INCREASE
JupiterResearch is predicting that 64% of U.S. households will own a
high-definition/digital television set by 2010. The company also predicts
that HDTV sets will comprise 70% of all U.S. television sales by 2010.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Joel Meyer]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6264636?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
NATIONWIDE PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENT APPLY TO INDIAN TRIBES AND NATIVE
HAWAIIAN ORGANIZATIONS
Last week, the Federal Communications Commission released a Declaratory
Ruling clarifying portions of the Nationwide Programmatic Agreement (NPA)
that apply to the participation by federally recognized Indian tribes
(Indian tribes) and Native Hawaiian organizations (NHOs) in the review of
proposed communications towers or antennas on properties to which they
attach religious or cultural significance. The NPA was adopted by the FCC
in September 2004 to streamline and tailor the review process for
communications towers and other FCC-licensed facilities under the National
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). Today's action specifically addresses
situations where Indian tribes or NHOs do not respond to efforts by members
of the industry or the FCC to determine whether the Indian tribe or NHO has
an interest in participating in the review of the proposed construction of
a communications tower or antenna.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-261512A1.doc
WIRELESS INDUSTRY COMES TOGETHER FOR FASTER WI-FI
A group of 27 technology companies said on Monday they would collaborate on
a new, faster Wi-Fi wireless Internet connection standard for computers and
other portable devices. The alliance, dubbed Enhanced Wireless Consortium,
joins previously separated camps that were heading toward separate
standards for wireless networking. It includes some of the biggest wireless
chipmakers such as Broadcom and Intel as well as network equipment maker
Cisco and portable computer makers Lenovo, Sony and Toshiba.
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Lucas van Grinsven]
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID...
YAHOO SEIZES PODCAST INITIATIVE
Yahoo introduced a test site yesterday devoted exclusively to downloadable
audio programs known as podcasts, a move that some say puts the search
engine on the forefront of a cutting edge technology and puts it ahead --
at least in this arena -- of its biggest competitor, Google. The site, at
http://www.podcasts.yahoo.com , offers not only a search feature for
podcast fans but also a lineup of podcasts that are new, noteworthy or just
popular. By far, most of the programming is produced by amateur Web users
armed with a microphone, an Internet connection and a desire to share some
opinions or expertise -- the audio equivalent of Web logs or "blogs."
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Mike Musgrove]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/10/AR200510...
(requires registration)
* Yahoo is betting podcasts will sizzle
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/technology/12871562.htm
* Yahoo puts news, blogs side by side
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID...
BELLSOUTH IN DATA DEAL WITH SPRINT
BellSouth reached a networking agreement with Sprint Nextel that will
enable to two partners to offer advanced data services to business
customers across the US. Under the terms of the agreement with Sprint
Nextel, BellSouth's IP (Internet Protocol) network across nine states in
the southeast US will be linked to Sprint's existing network in other
regions using multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) technology. The deal is
viewed as an important strategic move that will enable BellSouth to compete
more effectively with its rivals, SBC Communications and Verizon
Communications, in the expanding advanced business communications market.
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Paul Taylor]
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/7c60480e-39da-11da-806e-00000e2511c8.html
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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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