For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
The Wolf at the Door
Rita, Katrina Change D.C. Cable Climate
Katrina Relief Leads to Some Bending of Rules
FCC Promises eRate Relief for Storm-impacted Schools
Martin Misses an Opportunity
After The Storm, New Orleans Stations Add Fuel To DTV Transition
Debate
Telecom Firms Offer Discounts In Katrina's Hardest-Hit Areas
LEGISLATION
In Google We Trust (Telecom Reform Legislation)
Consumer Groups Say 'Bag Flag'
CDT Report Raises Concerns About Broadcast Flag
OWNERSHIP
U.S. Is Close to Approving Deals Altering the Telephone Industry
Cox Says System Sale Near; Analysts See $2.7 Billion Price
News Corp. Says No Talks To Sell Stations
Confusion, Tech Issues Delay Legit File-sharing Sites
INTERNET
Rural Areas go it Alone on High-speed Internet
Internet Industry Unease at EU Rules Revision
PEOPLE
CPB Prepares To Replace Tomlinson
NAB's Fritts: Successor Should Have Inside Track In Washington
QUICKLY -- Threat to Reporter's Privilege Is 'Severe'; "Genius" Grants
Announced
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
THE WOLF AT THE DOOR
[Commentary] Hurricane Katrina left no doubt that our nation's leaders have
failed to prepare for the worst. There is nothing new about the need to
establish communications systems that can still operate in the case of a
flood, or high winds, or a terrorist attack. There is nothing new about the
need to establish a reliable means of communication among local and federal
emergency responders. After Katrina swept through, after the levees broke,
millions were left without a communication system, without a lifeline they
had come to take for granted. Newspapers, television and radio broadcasts
were not available. Basic telephone service, cell phone service and
Internet service went down after generators, designed to power the phone
lines, ran out of fuel or were flooded. At a minimum we need advanced
communications networks with more emergency power systems at secure
locations. Spectrum must be set aside for emergency responders' satellite
technologies. With lives at stake, with more hurricanes on the way, with
the wolf at the door, we cannot leave our protection up to the whim of
markets. There should be no confusion about this: The devastation to the
Gulf Coast and to New Orleans was anticipated. The problems with our basic
national communications infrastructure were exposed on 9/11. The call for a
more intelligent use of the electromagnetic spectrum has gone unheeded by
this administration and by this Congress for too long. We need
communications policies established in the public interest, not in the
interest of the highest bidder. Will we go back to taking communications
for granted? "We always discover the same thing," said Reed Hundt, a former
chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. "We need a national
emergency communications network and we don't have one."
[SOURCE: Center for American Progress, AUTHOR: Mark Lloyd]
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=1043053
RITA, KATRINA CHANGE DC CABLE CLIMATE
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have dramatically changed the telecom policy
landscape in DC. Digital television transition legislation has been delayed
(again) and even the indecency debate has also taken a back seat.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6258424.html?display=Breaking+News
(requires subscription)
KATRINA RELIEF LEADS TO SOME BENDING OF RULES
The wake of Katrina has convinced some regulators that the time has come to
break, or at least bend, some rules to help speed assistance to the victims
of the storm. For example, because so many stations were off the air, the
Federal Communications Commission suspended rules prohibiting educational
radio and television stations from airing commercial programming. The Bush
administration did not give the agencies any formal marching orders on how
to proceed, though it said it is working with agencies to expedite relief
initiatives. But some say the disaster should not be an excuse to push
aside important regulatory protections.
[SOURCE: Washington Post]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/)
(requires registration)
FCC PROMISES eRATE RELIEF FOR STORM-IMPACTED SCHOOLS
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has proposed using $132 million in E-rate funds
to support schools and libraries impacted by Hurricane Katrina. The FCC's
eRate program will open a new application window to allow schools and
libraries in the affected areas to resubmit their requests for eRate funds
for the 2005 program year. Schools and libraries affected by Hurricane
Katrina will receive the eRate's highest priority level to ensure they are
eligible for the steepest discounts available. To help schools and
libraries rebuild from the devastation caused by the hurricane and flooding
in the area, the FCC will continue to assign the highest level of eRate
priority to these institutions for the 2006 funding year. Also, schools and
libraries handling increased student and patron populations caused by the
influx of evacuees will be able to amend their applications for 2005 eRate
support.
[SOURCE: eSchool News]
http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showstoryts.cfm?Articleid=5872
MARTIN MISSES AN OPPORTUNITY
[Commentary] If you're going to shake up the FCC's open meeting by focusing
on Katrina and moving to Bell South's emergency HQ, why couldn't Martin
have focused a little bit on the future? Rather than looking at the way in
which technology changed relief, Martin summoned the usual industry
suspects who, unsurprisingly, explained to the FCC why they need regulatory
goodies to better serve the public. Perhaps the Chairman can be persuaded
to hold another meeting or forum a month or two down the road to look at
where we should go, not where we've been. On the whole, I have high praise
for the FCC and its response to Katrina. The agency mobilized quickly and
worked through weekends to provide necessary regulatory permission and
regulatory waivers. The FCC also did its best to help facilitate deployment
of services with FEMA and Red Cross. Ken Moran, Kenneth Carter, and FCC
Chief of Staff Dan Gonzales deserve high marks for their efforts, as do
Peter Doyle and the folks in the Audio Division of the Media Bureau, and
Catherine Bohigian in the Chairman's office. But last week's FCC open
meeting was something of a disappointment. This is the second time Martin
has converted the usually staid ritual of an open Commission meeting, where
everything is decided in advance and the dance plays out in the FCC's
hearing room, into something else. Several months ago, he broke precedent
by inviting witnesses to testify on whether to require voice over IP
services to provide 911 service and then calling an immediate vote on the
item. This time, he moved the FCC down to Bell South's Emergency Control
Center in Atlanta. While done "for the convenience of those testifying," it
also makes quite effective political theater. Martin is no slouch when it
comes to moving his goals forward.
[SOURCE: Tales from the Sausage Factory, AUTHOR: Harold Fel]
http://www.wetmachine.com/totsf/item/352
AFTER THE STORM, NEW ORLEANS STATIONS ADD FUEL TO DTV TRANSITION DEBATE
How your regulation dollars serve you: WWL-TV New Orleans, owned by Belo,
took advantage of the federally mandated conversion to digital television
to revamp its internal disaster preparedness plan. In 1999, the station
replaced its transmitter for digital conversion -- and relocated it to a
more secure site 18 feet above sea level in Gretna, a New Orleans suburb.
But a competing broadcaster warns that the federal government is moving too
quickly to force television stations to relinquish spectrum as part of the
conversion to digital TV. Fred Young, a vice president for Hearst-Argyle,
owner of WDSU-TV in New Orleans, said policymakers should not be so hasty
in their rush to digital. "The critical role the broadcast industry plays
in times of natural disaster may not be fully understood by those who
advocate premature return of the analog spectrum," he said. Although power
outages rendered normal TV reception impossible for most New Orleans
residents, some were able to use battery-operated portable receivers. Those
same sets, in a digital TV world, would require a separate set-top digital
receiver that likely would not operate on batteries. Current law sets Dec.
31, 2006, as the target date for the return of the analog spectrum -- but
it provides exceptions for broadcasters in markets where less than 85
percent of households are able to view digital broadcasts. That threshold
effectively exempts virtually the entire country from the current statute,
and has spurred efforts on Capitol Hill to set a "hard deadline" for the
DTV transition. That threshold effectively exempts virtually the entire
country from the Dec. 31, 2006 deadline. Under the transition to digital
television broadcasts, a portion of the spectrum currently used for analog
television transmission would be reallocated for public safety agencies.
Hurricane Katrina consequently has given new urgency to efforts in Congress
to require a "hard deadline" that is earlier than the end of 2008.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Lee Hall]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-ZGEV1127161453771.html
TELECOM FIRMS OFFER DISCOUNTS IN KATRINA'S HARDEST HIT AREAS
The loss of lines and revenue from telephone and cable wires submerged by
Hurricane Katrina will pose long-term challenges for consumers charged for
telecommunications services in the hardest-hit areas -- as well as for
companies that rely on a government-administered fund designed to deliver
phone service to all Americans. After initial repair efforts, the number of
BellSouth lines lost in the hurricane damage stands at 636,000, down from
1.75 million in the immediate aftermath. BellSouth spokesman Joe Chandler
said the company is offering a one-month credit for customers in the
hardest-hit areas, including voice mail and call-forwarding. After that
month, customers must call to reactivate service on their phones, cancel
service, suspend it or transfer it to another number. Those who suspend
service will pay half the normal rate, and features such as voice mail will
be turned off, according to the company. Customers who transfer service to
another line in the nine-state BellSouth region will experience no transfer
changes to the new line or back to the old line. Cellular carriers have
been recovering and restoring service as water is drained from cellular
towers and electricity is restored. Cingular Wireless spokesman Mark Segal
said the company suspended bill collection activity for the hardest-hit areas.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Drew Clark]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-IOJP1127161872360.html
LEGISLATION
IN GOOGLE WE TRUST
[Commentary] As Congress gears up for a potentially significant revision of
the 1996 Telecommunications Act, it's worth pausing to consider what is the
same, and what is different, from a decade ago. The hype about the 1996 law
was that it would usher in the age of the "information superhighway." It
was sold on the premise that competition would replace regulation -- as
cable, long-distance and local telephone companies each got into the
others' businesses. Moreover, the 1996 Telecommunications Act essentially
ignored the World Wide Web. Overlooking the Internet meant the law gave
little guidance on broadband and Internet phones. But on the positive side,
neglect allowed digital applications to develop and flourish in a
laissez-faire climate. Today, the battle lines are different. The
long-promised digital convergence arrived once the Internet triumphed as
the chosen information superhighway. Phone calls, television programs and
Internet content are flowing over the same broadband pipes, and telecom and
the cable giants are pumping up investments and competing aggressively.
Bundles of voice, video and data together make up cable's "triple play" --
and some telecom carriers are seeking a "home run" with the addition of
wireless service. Congress should be on notice that just as paying for
"long-distance" service died as a category in less than 10 years,
conventional "telephone service" is likely to fall even faster. But if
consumers won't pay for long-distance or for local phones, surely they'll
still buy broadband, the necessary ingredient to use a free Internet phone,
right? Not if Google's yet-to-be-announced strategy of free WiFi, or
wireless Internet service, proves successful. The lesson for Congress is
that in drafting Telecom Act 2.0, it should stop trying to craft
inter-industry compromises, and do more to ensure it doesn't get in the way
the next time technology and business models change.
[SOURCE: Wired In Washington, AUTHOR: Drew Clark]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-XMFW1113937467518.html
CONSUMER GROUPS SAY 'BAG FLAG'
In a letter to Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), chairman of the Senate Commerce
Committee, Public Knowledge, Consumers Union and Consumer Federation of
America argue that the broadcast flag digital content-security regime is
superfluous in light of other content-protection technology, will harm
educators and consumers, and would give the FCC "unprecedented" control
over technology.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6258261?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
See Public Knowledge press release:
http://www.publicknowledge.org/pressroom/releases/pressrelease.2005-09-1...
CDT REPORT RAISES CONCERNS ABOUT BROADCAST FLAG
In a new report, the Center for Democracy and Technology closely examines
the Federal Communications Commission proceedings under its short-lived
"broadcast flag" regime in order to draw lessons for the current policy
debate. Although a federal court rejected the FCC's broadcast flag rules,
Congress is now under pressure to reinstate that regime. CDT's report
highlights the ways in which the FCC's process led technology companies to
withdraw valuable product features under pressure from third parties,
confirming that the flag regime carries risks to innovation and consumer
uses of digital television. CDT is circulating its latest report, as well
as a newly revised report outlining the types of safeguards that would be
essential in any flag legislation, to key members of Congress.
CDT Report: Broadcast Flag Lessons:
http://www.cdt.org/copyright/20050919flaglessons.pdf
OWNERSHIP
US IS CLOSE TO APPROVING DEALS ALTERING THE TELEPHONE INDUSTRY
Federal regulators are nearing approval of two deals that would reshape the
telephone industry and are in negotiations over likely divestitures and
other conditions intended to preserve competition, especially in the huge
market for corporate customers. Federal Communications Commission Chairman
Kevin Martin is pressing the FCC staff to deliver as early as tomorrow
recommendations to approve Verizon's $8.5 billion purchase of MCI Inc. and
SBC Communications Inc.'s $16 billion takeover of AT&T Corp. FCC votes on
the deals could come as early as the agency's Oct. 12 meeting. At the same
time, Justice Department investigators have concluded that the merging
companies must sell some assets, moves they believe are needed to preserve
competition for high-volume business customers. Antitrust enforcers are
negotiating with SBC and Verizon on the scope of those divestitures. As a
result of both the FCC and Justice Department reviews, regulators are
concerned that consolidation will make it more difficult for business
customers to get discounts on telecom services. In particular, regulators
are focusing on increasing consumer access to digital subscriber line
Internet connections, which consumers are mostly barred from buying unless
they also purchase local-phone service; and on so-called special access
lines, essentially fiber-optic lines used to provide voice and data to
high-volume business customers. Regulators are considering requiring the
merged companies to sell Internet access without requiring consumers --
mostly home users -- to subscribe to phone service. Regulators don't appear
to be considering price controls.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Amy Schatz Amy.Schatz( at )wsj.com and
John R. Wilke john.wilke( at )wsj.com ]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112717595574045627,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
COX SAYS SYSTEM SALE NEAR; ANALYSTS SEE $2.7 BILLION PRICE
Cox, which in March put some systems on the block, is close selling them in
a deal analysts said could fetch as much as $2.7 billion. The sale would
come as some private equity firms have invested in cable. Some analysts
said such a firm could buy the systems from Cox. One likely buyer is Cequel
3, which is run by Jerald Kent, ex-CEO of Charter. Time Warner may also be
a contender.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Jonathan Make]
(Not available online)
NEWS CORP SAYS NO TALKS TO SELL STATIONS
"We're not doing anything to loosen our world-wide grip of media
domination," a spokesperson for News Corp said in response to a story
yesterday about the possible sale of Fox broadcast TV stations in the US.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6258363?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
CONFUSION, TECH ISSUES DELAY LEGIT FILE-SHARING SITES
Getting legitimate online music and video file-sharing programs off the
ground is taking a lot longer than originally promised. At the beginning of
the year, two tiny ventures, Mashboxx and Snocap, said they had come up
with services that could turn unauthorized downloads into legitimate
transactions. IMesh, one of the first digital file-sharing companies, said
it would launch an authorized service this year, but no date has been
revealed. They all have been hampered by technical delays and confusion
over copyright rulings that seek to curb the wildly popular practice of
swapping music and videos online without paying for them.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Jefferson Graham]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050920/p2p20.art.htm
* File-Sharing Services Seek Pact With Record Studios
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/20/technology/20grokster.html
(requires registration)
* File-Sharing Services May Reform Themselves
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-piracy20sep20,1,67643...
(requires registration)
INTERNET
RURAL AREAS GO IT ALONE ON HIGH SPEED INTERNET
Fewer than half of Arizona's rural residents have access to high-speed
Internet. Tired of waiting for big telecommunications companies to bring
broadband access to them, small communities throughout the state are going
after it themselves. More than 850 rural communities across the nation have
established their own municipal high-speed systems. Small and growing
Arizona communities from Wellton to Flagstaff and Littlefield to Queen
Creek are also using innovative ways to gain the faster Internet access
they need. With the improved capabilities, schools could gain access to
online research materials, businesses could reach a broader audience and
residents could better keep up with breaking news. Galen Updike, a
telecommunications development manager for Arizona's Government Information
Technology Agency, said planning is key to a town's success no matter what
option it chooses for high-speed access. "Gone are the days where they
build and they shall come," Updike said. "It doesn't happen anymore. It's
too expensive." He said government officials need to start viewing
high-speed Internet access as a necessity rather than a perk, especially in
rural areas. "We have not elevated broadband connectivity to the level of
what we call critical infrastructure requirement yet, and we need to," he
said. Several Western congressional leaders are working to do just that.
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) has sponsored, and Sens. Jon Kyl, and John McCain,
both R-Ariz., have co-sponsored, a bill that would designate funds to
supply broadband access to everyone. The bill, called the Rural Universal
Services Equity Act of 2005, has been referred to the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science and Transportation. It is similar to the Universal
Connectivity Fee, which charges a fee to all telephone customers to assure
every American has affordable access to telephone service.
[SOURCE: Arizona Republic, AUTHOR: Lisa Nicita]
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0918ruralinterne...
INTERNET INDUSTRY UNEASE AT EU RULES REVISION
European Internet groups are stepping up resistance to controversial
revisions to European Union broadcasting rules, which they fear could lead
to increased regulation and costs for their business. In the biggest review
of the Union's broadcast regulations since 1989, the European Commission
will by the end of the year decide how far Internet service providers
showing audiovisual programmes should be covered by EU laws on broadcasting
content. The current directive covers rules such as airtime quotas for
programmes made in Europe, and advertising and product placement
restrictions. The proposals include a basic set of controls such as the
right to reply, protection of minors, and clear labelling of advertising on
"non-linear" services, which include video-on-demand and web-based news
services. The Commission insists it will not impose on ISPs old rules
designed for traditional broadcasters. It says that it favours a code of
self-regulation by the Internet groups and that the alarm felt in the
industry is unfounded.
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Sarah Laitner and Emiko Terazono]
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/bda7fd98-2940-11da-8a5e-00000e2511c8.html
(requires subscription)
PEOPLE
CPB PREPARES TO REPLACE TOMLINSON
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is holding an open meeting Sept.
26. One of the agenda items will be to elect a new chairman to replace Ken
Tomlinson, whose tenure ends that day. Already scheduled to get five
minutes apiece during the public comment portion of the meeting are Chellie
Pingree of Common Cause and Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital
Democracy. Both groups are part of a wider coalition pushing for more CPB
transparency and accountability. They sent a letter to CPB President
Patricia Harrison last week calling for more accountability, and renewed
that call Monday in an ad in Current magazine.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6258229?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
See also:
* CPB Board of Directors Meeting Notice
The CPB Board of Directors will meet Monday, September 26, 2005, 2:00pm -
4:30pm. On the draft agenda: Chair's and Directors' Remarks; President's
Report; Report on Public Broadcasting's Response to Katrina; Report on the
Public Radio Consultation regarding Community Service Grant Policy;
Resolution to Adopt Public Radio Community Service Grant Policy
Recommendations; Report on the CPB Opportunity Fund and Masterpiece
Theatre; Resolution to Adopt the FY2006 Affirmative Action Plan; Election
of Board Chair and Vice Chair; Resolution to Adopt 2006 Calendar Year
Meeting Dates. Except for the executive session, the public may attend and
observe this meeting in the Board Room, Corporation for Public
Broadcasting, to the extent that space and occupancy regulations permit,
unless otherwise specified.
[SOURCE: Corporation for Public Broadcasting]
http://www.cpb.org/pressroom/release.php?prn=486
NAB'S FRITTS: SUCCESSOR SHOULD HAVE INSIDE TRACK IN WASHINGTON
NAB President/CEO Eddie Fritts says that it took him a long time to get
acclimated in Washington, and politics today is so intense that someone
without strong connection inside the beltway could let to much grass grow
under his or her feet before being effective. What would Fritts tell his
successor, if asked about how to lead the nation's largest trade
association for broadcasters? "There are a lot of things I would think
about saying, but I'm confident that a new person will come in with fresh
ideas and be able to take the reins and move forward successfully," he
replies. "I would say, however, that it would be more difficult for a
hard-core partisan to be successful in this job than it would be for
someone who has a bipartisan background. I also would urge my successor to
remember there are no final victories and no final defeats. This is a
unique industry; it's a unique city. Congress and the government makes it a
unique work environment, but when it's all said and done, what you lose
today you have a chance to win tomorrow. Conversely, your wins could be
short-lived if you don't live up to your reputation or the promises you've
made."
[SOURCE: RadioInk]
http://www.radioink.com/HeadlineEntry.asp?hid=130530&pt=todaysnews
QUICKLY
THREAT TO REPORTER'S PRIVILEGE IS 'SEVERE'
The government threat to journalistic privilege is now as great as it has
been since the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press began its
annual Homefront Confidential report six years ago. The report, which
studies how the war on terrorism has affected access to information, rates
several categories according to a scale that mimics the color-coded threat
level of the Department of Homeland Security.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6258419?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
'GENIUS" GRANTS ANNOUNCED
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation will today name 25 new
MacArthur Fellows for 2005. Each received a phone call from the Foundation
this week informing them that they will be given $500,000 in "no strings
attached" support over the next five years. MacArthur Fellows are selected
for their creativity, originality, and potential. By providing resources
without stipulations or reporting requirements, the MacArthur Foundation
offers the opportunity for Fellows to accelerate their current activities
or take their work in new directions. The unusual level of independence
afforded to the Fellows underscores the spirit of freedom intrinsic to
creative endeavors.
[SOURCE: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation press release]
http://www.macfound.org/programs/fel/announce.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------
See ya in Milwaukee. Go Cubs!
--------------------------------------------------------------
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.
--------------------------------------------------------------