BROADCASTING
Unions Blast FCC's Studies on Media-Ownership Rules
Companies Reach Agreement on Digital TV
INTERNET
Internet law: The Year in Review
Bush Administration to Propose System for Monitoring Internet
BROADCASTING
UNIONS BLAST FCC'S STUDIES ON MEDIA-OWNERSHIP RULES
Organized labor has come out in support of a critique of the twelve recent
studies commissioned by the FCC regarding potential changes to media
ownership rules. Several unions, including writers' guilds and the AFL-CIO's
Department of Professional Employees, lent sponsorship to a report published
by Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
The report noted that the FCC studies often failed to support their own
claims regarding levels of media saturation and the robustness of
competition. "The write-ups are often different from what they found," said
Baker. "They were to a large extent poorly designed. The data they actually
found showed there was a danger in consolidation." Empirical evidence of the
potential damages of consolidation is necessary for the FCC rules to stand
up under judicial review. The unions also note that media outlets have
failed to adequately cover this issue.
[SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Brooks Boliek]
(http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hollywoodreporter/media/article_display.j
sp?vnu_content_id=1779922)
COMPANIES REACH AGREEMENT ON DIGITAL TV
Despite potential opposition from content owners, the cable industry and TV
manufacturers struck an agreement yesterday that, if approved by the FCC,
will provide easier access to digital cable programming. The deal calls for
"digital cable-ready" sets that would allow consumers to plug-and-play
without having to rent a converter box from their cable provider, as is the
current practice. The document also discusses the rights of users to record
shows and movies directly through their TV sets, a notion that has the MPAA
and studios concerned about the potential for piracy.
[SOURCE: The Washington Post, AUTHOR: Mike Musgrove]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14906-2002Dec19.html)
INTERNET
BUSH ADMINISTRATION TO PROPOSE SYSTEM FOR MONITORING INTERNET
A forthcoming report from the White House will propose requiring Internet
service providers (ISPs) to build a centralized monitoring network as part
of the nation's Homeland Security initiative. Entitled "The National
Strategy to Secure Cyberspace," the report is designed to forge public and
private cooperation "to regulate and defend the national computer networks,
not only from everyday hazards like viruses but also from terrorist attack."
No technical specifics are listed in the report. ISPs familiar with the
document worry that the broad monitoring directive may amount to
unauthorized wiretapping and are thus leery of the recommendations, which
still must pass Congressional muster.
[SOURCE: The New York Times, AUTHOR: John Markoff and John Schwartz]
(http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/20/technology/20MONI.html)
INTERNET LAW: THE YEAR IN REVIEW
GigaLaw.com publisher Doug Isenberg compiles a list of legal highlights and
lowlights from the year's Internet news. Among his top stories: the recent
acquittal of ElcomSoft; the Amazon e-commerce patent case, which settled
under undisclosed terms; the several misguided attempts at protecting
children online; ineffectual anti-spam laws at the state level; the struggle
between privacy laws and anti-terrorism measures; and of course, the
Microsoft settlement.
[SOURCE: CNET News, AUTHOR: Doug Isenberg]
(http://news.com.com/2010-1071-978449.html?tag=fd_nc_1)
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