BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 2009
Today -- National Broadband Plan Field Hearing on Energy and the Environment at MIT. But there's much, much more this week, see http://bit.ly/93eCJW
NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
FCC Dec 16 Meeting will offer Broadband Plan Update
AT&T: Restructure USF for Broadband
Gaps in Broadband for Education
Broadband Gaps in the Healthcare Sector
MPAA to FCC: critics of video blocking proposals are lying
SPECTRUM
Putting A Price Tag On TV Spectrum
FCC Seeks White Spaces Database Managers
MORE ON BROADBAND ...
Any Objections? NTIA Requests Access to FCC's Broadband Data
What We Can Be Thankful For About Broadband In America
Internet Gambling Ban Delayed Six Months
Finding Ways to Reach Minorities With Broadband
TELEVISION
Community Standard or Double Standard?
Cable One To FCC: We Need More Time To Roll Out Low-Cost HD Set-Tops
Sagan: TV Survival Means Hyper-Local Online Video
Advertising resurgence hits the spot for TV networks
OWNERSHIP
FCC Seeks Delay Of Court Review of Ownership Rules
A new kind of company, a new challenge for feds
Comcast Could Use Universal to Test New Distribution
EU overcomes final hurdle for overhaul of telecom rules
See also:Viviane Reding picked to re-write EU data protection laws
The Fall and Rise of Media
Companies More Prone to Go 'Vertical'
Google's book-scanning deal is not sealed yet
JOURNALISM
For Novice Journalists, Rising Risks in Conflict Zones
Stressing the Web, 'NewsHour' Begins an Overhaul
MORE ONLINE ...
FCC Chair Genachowski a frequent White House visitor
Open Government Directive?
DoJ Wants Computer Privacy Ruling Reconsidered
WGBH bringing TV shows to radio
Strong Interest in Health Care, Little Interest in Palin
NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
NBP UPDATE
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
On December 16, Federal Communications Commission staff will report on the status of the National Broadband Plan, which the FCC must deliver to Congress on Feb. 17, 2010. The presentation will focus on the policy framework for the plan.
benton.org/node/30089 | Federal Communications Commission
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AT&T: RESTRUCTURE USF FOR BROADBAND
[SOURCE: AT&T, AUTHOR: Mary Henze]
In meetings at the Federal Communications Commission, AT&T offered its view of the current state of the traditional telephone business model. Downward trends, AT&T argues, endanger national broadband goals. AT&T interprets US communications law to allow the FCC to restructure or replace existing current universal service support for traditional telephone service, allowing funds to support broadband deployment and adoption.
benton.org/node/30088 | AT&T
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GAPS IN BROADBAND FOR EDUCATION
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Steve Midgeley]
As the Federal Communications Commission works on the National Broadband Plan as it relates to education, it is focusing on evaluating three key gap areas: connectivity required for schools and applications, the ecosystem necessary for broadband to advance progress in education, and the incentives that need to be aligned to realize the potential of broadband. focusing on evaluating three key gap areas: connectivity required for schools and applications, the ecosystem necessary for broadband to advance progress in education, and the incentives that need to be aligned to realize the potential of broadband. But the key questions are what is the level of connectivity in these classrooms and is it sufficient to meet the needs of students mastering 21st century skills. There is a lot lacking in terms of pervasive and effective use of technology in our classrooms today the broadband ecosystem is weak in multiple dimensions. This is due, in large part, to a lack of innovation in the field. Finally, the education community needs better aligned incentives to realize the potential of broadband in schools.
benton.org/node/30085 | Federal Communications Commission
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BROADBAND GAPS IN HEALTH CARE SECTOR
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Mohit Kaushal]
As the Federal Communications Commission works on the National Broadband Plan as it relates to health care, the FCC has identified important connectivity gaps within healthcare. Many hospitals lack the fiber connections required for 100 mbps broadband which enables a range of applications such as Electronic Health Records, Diagnostic imaging and Tele-radiology. Telemedicine usage is hindered by state physician licensure and credentialing rules. Finally, if broadband is going to further national priorities, incentives need to be aligned. A good example is that of reimbursement policy for telemedicine.
benton.org/node/30084 | Federal Communications Commission
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MPAA ACCUSES CRITICS OF LYING
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Matthew Lasar]
The movie studios have a new Holy Grail, it seems: Federal Communications Commission permission to cable companies to shut down the analog streams on video-on-demand movie programming. As Ars readers know, we've been covering this issue for a while. But the Motion Picture Association of America's latest letter to the FCC pulls out all the stops, rhetoric-wise, calling criticisms of this scheme "complete and utter nonsense that only can be intended to stir up baseless fears among consumers that their equipment will suddenly go dark and be unusable for any purpose." These are "deplorable claims," the MPAA told the FCC on Monday. Plus they "distort the truth." They're also "simply and irrefutably untrue," the trade association adds. The main target of MPAA's outrage is the advocacy group Public Knowledge.
benton.org/node/30082 | Ars Technica | PublicKnowledge
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SPECTRUM
PUTTING A PRICE ON TV SPECTRUM
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Tom Hazlett]
[Commentary] Economist Hazlett knows that television broadcasters are sitting on valuable spectrum needed by mobile devices -- so, he says, it is time to make a deal. He realizes that TV broadcasters' real desire is to secure cable and satellite carriage. He believes broadcasters wouldn't give up any spectrum until they know three things: 1) How much will they be paid? 2) How will their lives change? 3) How can they be sure that they won't get whacked by the opportunists in Congress when they catch a clue that broadcasters are prepared to sell out? The first two questions are answered by seeing what the FCC should do. It should split the TV band into seven overlay licenses of 42 MHz each. Then auction all seven. At the same time, it should provide a mechanism to supply the 10 million households not having a cable or satellite subscription with free broadcast video service for five or 10 years. This can be done by vouchers, as with the DTV set-top box subsidies or via a procurement auction. It won't cost more than $3 billion ($300 times 10 million), a small fraction of the spectrum auction receipts. The overlay licenses will embed encumbrances — TV broadcasters. Existing stations would have the right to continue broadcasting, to relocate to another channel assignment or to go off -air. No worries about coverage. The new spectrum owners will pay cable and satellite operators to guarantee carriage. If not, broadcasters won't vacate. So "free" TV service remains, but the delivery platform will be technology-neutral. And broadcasters will be part of the solution, for which they will be compensated. How does something like $30 billion spread across 1,750 full-power TV stations sound? [Thomas Hazlett is professor of law and economics at George Mason University. He formerly was chief economist of the FCC.]
benton.org/node/30087 | TVNewsCheck
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FCC SEEKS WHITE SPACES DATABASE MANAGERS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
Moving forward with plans to use 'white spaces' for wireless broadband, the Federal Communications Commission is seeking an administrator of a planned TV band database. "The database will tell a TV band device which TV channels are vacant and can be used at its location," the FCC said in its request for proposals, issued Wednesday. "The database also will be used to register the locations of fixed TV band devices and protected locations and channels of incumbent services that are not recorded in Commission databases." With the move, the FCC takes another step toward implementing its November 2008 order allowing the unlicensed use of white spaces -- or the radio airwaves not used by television broadcasters -- for broadband. Proposals are due January 4, 2010; comments on proposals are due February 3, 2010; and replies to comments are due February 18, 2010.
benton.org/node/30077 | Federal Communications Commission | MediaPost | ars technica | Public Knowledge
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MORE ON BROADBAND ...
ANY OBJECTIONS? NTIA REQUESTS ACCESS TO FCC'S BROADBAND DATA
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is evaluating applications and comments to the applications that it has received from broadband service providers in its administration of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP). NTIA requested access to the Form 477 data that the Federal Communications Commission collects from broadband service providers for the purpose of facilitating that evaluation. The Commission collects information about broadband connections to end user locations, wired and wireless local telephone services, and interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services in individual states on FCC Form 477. The Commission allows filers to request confidential treatment for competitively sensitive information in a particular Form 477 submission by making the appropriate selection on the cover page of Form 477. Pursuant to the Commission's regulations, affected parties have until December 7, 2009 to oppose disclosure to NTIA of the Form 477 data that the Commission collects from broadband service providers. If the Commission receives no opposition from affected parties by that date, the Commission will disclose the information requested above to NTIA. If disclosure is opposed, the procedures set forth in FCC rules shall apply.
benton.org/node/30086 | Federal Communications Commission
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THANKFUL FOR BROADBAND IN AMERICA
[SOURCE: App-Rising.com, AUTHOR: Geoff Daily]
[Commentary] What's good about broadband in America? 1) An abundance of long-haul and intercontinental fiber that runs through and from the US. 2) Most Americans do have access to multi-megabit broadband -- it may not be what we want in terms of speed or price, but it's there. 3) The same is true of . While we may be lagging behind some other countries, the wireless coverage we have is better than nothing. 4) Public access centers like libraries. What we should be most thankful for, though, is that we're finally in the midst of turning good intentions into action through the creation of a national broadband plan. The fact that we're at least doing something is terrific. Whether or not that means we're going to end up with a transformative plan of attack or merely some suggestions for small incremental improvements remains to be seen.
benton.org/node/30083 | App-Rising.com
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INTERNET GAMBLING BAN DELAYED 6 MONTHS
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Juliana Gruenwald]
The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve announced Friday that regulations designed to ban Internet gambling are being delayed by six months, giving US financial institutions additional time to comply. The two agencies said the new rules, which were to take effect on Dec. 1, would be delayed until June 1.But it remains in question whether the rules will ever go into force. In their joint notice, Treasury and the Federal Reserve said several lawmakers had sought a delay, arguing there was considerable support for new legislation to clarify the current laws.
benton.org/node/30075 | CongressDaily
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TELEVISION
COMMUNITY STANDARD OR DOUBLE STANDARD?
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Alessandra Stanley]
It wasn't really the man-on-man kiss or the simulated oral sex that marked Adam Lambert's performance on the American Music Awards on Sunday as shocking. Mostly it was ABC's reaction. By rescinding Lambert's invitation to sing on "Good Morning America," ABC self-protectively drew a line that networks usually prefer to keep blurred. Or as Lambert said Wednesday morning on "The Early Show" on CBS, "There's a lot of very adult material on the AMAs this year, and I know I wasn't the only one." Mr. Lambert, runner-up on this year's "American Idol," was referring to other risqué performances Sunday night, including Lady Gaga smashing whiskey bottles, Janet Jackson grabbing a male dancer's crotch and Eminem talking about his character Slim Shady's rap sheet of rape, assault and murder. There is a lot of very adult material on television all the time, and mostly it flows unchecked and unpunished, except when it comes as a surprise and hits a nerve. Community standards are mutable and vague; lots of people don't know obscenity until someone else sees it. Ms. Jackson transgressed during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show because she exposed a nipple, which is one thing that network television normally doesn't show. Mr. Lambert, who just released his first album, startled viewers because he did things akin to what outré rappers and female pop stars have performed onstage to get attention, only he did it as a gay man.
benton.org/node/30081 | New York Times
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TV'S SURVIVAL: HYPER-LOCAL, ONLINE CONTENT
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Diane Mermigas]
[Commentary] Broadcasters are about to experience the equivalent of the Big Bang, warns Akamai Technologies CEO Paul Sagan, a broadcast and cable veteran whose company facilitates more than one-fifth of the world's Web traffic. The ability to match high-definition TV picture quality with Internet interactivity is creating a sea change for online video that will begin rippling through the television industry in 2010. Only TV station owners that leap to the new arena, playing the strength of their hyper-local connections, will survive. "The dominos are going to fall. The television industry is going to feel the impact of the Internet that music and print have suffered through," Sagan said. "It will change everything about television production, distribution, advertising -- where revenues come from and how wealth is created." Traditional content producers and distributors that are among Akamai's deep client base are in peril; their audiences are rapidly migrating to the Internet. Too many broadcasters are obsessing about cannibalizing their content instead of using the efficiency and convenience of interactivity to expand their local power base.
benton.org/node/30074 | MediaPost
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ADVERTISING RESURGENCE FOR TV
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Meg James]
There's finally some new life in old media. After pummeling traditional media companies for nearly two years, the advertising recession is showing signs of a recovery. TV networks -- including Fox, CBS and ABC and such leading cable channels as TNT, TBS, USA, Bravo and Fox News Channel -- have benefited the most as advertisers have been snapping up available commercial spots and agreeing to pay significantly higher prices than they did just five months ago. "In challenging times, people go back to what they know, and what they know best is television," said David Levy, president of sales for Turner Entertainment, which includes TNT and TBS. "It is a little too early to declare victory, but the market is definitely improving."
benton.org/node/30092 | Los Angeles Times
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OWNERSHIP
FCC SEEKS DELAY OF COURT REVIEW OF OWNERSHIP RULES
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Harry Jessell]
The Federal Communications Commission asked the U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia to once again hold off on considering appeals of its 2008 relaxation of the broadcast-newspaper crossownership rule until it completes its current 2010 review of all broadcast ownership rules. "There is no guarantee that any decision by the court in these cases regarding the reasonableness of the prior commission's 2008 order will bear any relationship to the judgments the current commission makes in the first instance in the already-commenced 2010 ... review," FCC General Counsel Austin Schlick wrote in a letter to the court Wednesday. A law mandates that the FCC review its media ownership rules every four years with the intent of eliminating or relaxing those that no longer makes sense. The 2008 action was the result of the 2006 review.
benton.org/node/30078 | TVNewsCheck | FCC
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COMCAST-NBC REGULATORY CHALLENGE
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
One is a giant of the entertainment world -- a tangle of television networks, a film studio and a stable of hit shows. The other is a cable colossus, the nation's largest provider of cable TV and Internet access. Together, the possibilities are endless. And that prospect has caught regulators' attention. With Philadelphia-based cable operator Comcast apparently hoping to acquire NBC Universal from General Electric, federal regulators are realizing that they may be thrust into a new era. A combination of the two would create the prospect of a single company controlling how customers access information--through cable and online -- and what they watch there. Comcast, for instance, could consider same-day releases of Universal movies for its cable customers. With control over more news and entertainment content, it would have greater flexibility to explore online business models, perhaps offering cable subscribers free online access to certain content, such as the show "30 Rock" or CNBC or USA Network programming. Comcast already is the nation's second-largest provider of Internet access, and NBC owns a large stake in Hulu.com, where television shows can be accessed through any broadband connection. Such are the makings of a complicated regulatory challenge.
benton.org/node/30079 | Washington Post
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COMCAST COULD USE UNIVERSAL TO TEST NEW DISTRIBUTION
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Michael Cieply]
Windows are driving the discussion about Comcast's possible purchase of Universal Studios. Windows are time frames during which pictures can be viewed in theaters, on disc, over subscription cable channels or via video on demand. Universal, hurt by weak films and industrywide erosion in DVD revenue, is expected to become a laboratory for an owner that might have to reformulate the movie industry's approach to its own customers. Anticipate a thrust into digital distribution perhaps as aggressive as that signaled by the Walt Disney Company, which last month announced a new system, Keychest, intended to let consumers own digital entertainment for use on whatever device or viewing system they might like. One obvious possibility could involve selling films to Comcast's 24 million cable customers, via video-on-demand, at or near their DVD release dates, without the expense of a middleman. To date, about 90 percent of Comcast's extensive on-demand offerings have come without additional charge as part of a basic subscription package, a system that has built customer loyalty and taught consumers to select films on cable rather than disc. But the company for two years has been testing fee-based on-demand offerings simultaneously with DVD releases from at least seven companies, including Warner Brothers and Fox, in a number of markets, and has offered films as prominent as "Twilight," "Gran Torino" and "Bride Wars," splitting revenue with the studios that released them.
benton.org/node/30098 | New York Times
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EU TELECOM RULES OVERHAUL
[SOURCE: Dow Jones, AUTHOR: Carolyn Henson]
The European Union Tuesday cleared the final hurdle for sweeping new rules for the bloc's telecommunications sector as the parliament gave its blessing after months of delay. A vote in favor at the plenary session of the European Parliament confirmed a breakthrough reached earlier this month and will ensure the reforms enter into force next month and are transposed into national law by the middle of 2011. The new directive will end the dominance of incumbant telecom companies by requiring them to separate their networks from their telecom services businesses if there is insufficient competition and it will set up a European body of national regulators with greater powers to punish anti-competitive behavior and bring down prices for consumers. The new directive will also boost investment into fiber- optic broadband, bringing faster Internet services throughout the 27-nation bloc, and will modernize the use of the radio spectrum. Consumers' rights will be enhanced by requiring companies to transfer mobile phone numbers to rivals within one working day when customers switch between service providers, and Internet users will need to give their consent to the use of cookies -- personalized information automatically downloaded to a user's computer when they visit a Web site.
benton.org/node/30072 | Dow Jones
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THE FALL AND RISE OF MEDIA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: David Carr]
After 2000, jobs in traditional media industries declined at a rate of about 2.5 percent annually and then went into a dive in 2008 or so. That carnage has left behind an island of misfit toys, trains whose cabooses have square wheels and bird fish who are trying to swim in thin air. The skills that once commanded $4 for every shiny word are far less valuable at a time when the supply of both editorial and advertising content more or less doubles every year. Where do all the burgeoning pixels come from? Everywhere, and cheap at that. Web crawlers grab expensive content and replicate it far away from the organizations that produce it. Various media labs are now testing algorithms that assemble facts into narratives that deliver information, no writers required. The results would not be mistaken for literary journalism, but on the Web, pretty good — or even not terrible — is often good enough. So what do we get instead? The future, which is not a bad deal if you ignore all the collateral gore. Young men and women are still coming here to remake the world, they just won't be stopping by the human resources department of Condé Nast to begin their ascent.
benton.org/node/30097 | New York Times
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COMPANIES GO VERTICAL
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Ben Worthen, Cari Tuna, Justin Scheck]
Larry Ellison is known for forward thinking. With his new business model, though, the billionaire chief executive of software maker Oracle Corp. is taking a page from the past. Ellison plans to buy Sun Microsystems Inc. and transform Oracle into a maker of software, computers, and computer components -- a company more like the U.S. conglomerates of the 1960s than the fragmented technology industry of recent years. "It is back to the future," he told financial analysts in October. Ellison is among the executives reviving "vertical integration," a 100-year-old strategy in which a company controls materials, manufacturing and distribution. Others moving recently in this direction include ArcelorMittal, PepsiCo Inc., General Motors Co. and Boeing Co.
benton.org/node/30094 | Wall Street Journal
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GOOGLE'S BOOK-SCANNING DEAL NOT SEALED
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Alex Pham]
Google's settlement with authors and publishers over the digital scanning of books got a preliminary approval from a federal judge last week, but the controversy may be far from over. In fact, legal experts and industry observers who have been closely following the case believe the fight over Google's ambitious book-scanning efforts is just starting all over again. By giving his blessing, U.S. District Judge Denny Chin in essence restarted the clock for critics to lob their complaints, giving them until Jan. 28 to file additional objections. Foes include Google rivals Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp., as well as nonprofit groups such as Consumer Watchdog and the Internet Archive. Both sides are set to square off before Judge Chin at a Feb. 28 hearing in New York.
benton.org/node/30093 | Los Angeles Times
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JOURNALISM
NOVICE JOURNALISTS IN WAR ZONES
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Ian Austen]
Wars have long provided a way into journalism for some adventurous aspiring reporters (as well as death, kidnappings and injury for others). And courageous, if inexperienced, freelancers have brought important stories to light that might otherwise have gone unreported. The Internet, digital photography and affordable, high-quality video cameras now make it easier than ever for anyone to report from just about anywhere in the world. A proliferation of television outlets occurring at the same time that large news organizations are cutting back on reporting potentially creates a bigger market for reporting by newcomers. But those developments also come as, several analysts say, reporting has never been more dangerous, for everyone.
benton.org/node/30096 | New York Times
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NEWS HOUR OVERHAUL
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Elizabeth Jensen]
It has been a tough 19 months for "NewsHour" as it has dealt with a severe budget shortfall as well as the prolonged absence of Mr. Lehrer last year, after an emergency aortic valve replacement. But Mr. Lehrer returned reinvigorated. Instead of stepping down, as some had expected, he pushed for what has been the program's biggest overhaul since 1995, when Robert MacNeil retired as the co-anchor. And PBS hopes the changes will attract new audiences, whether on air or online. Beginning Dec. 7, Mr. Lehrer's name will not be on the program, for the first time since 1976. Instead it is being renamed "PBS NewsHour," which prompted a new streamlined logo and graphics. Mr. Lehrer will have a regular co-anchor; on the first program it will be Gwen Ifill, but Judy Woodruff and Jeffrey Brown are in the rotation. A new correspondent, Hari Sreenivasan, formerly of CBS News, will begin reading a news summary each night. A redone Web site will go up Thursday. It will be easier to find Mr. Brown's popular but often hidden Art Beat blog. Ms. Woodruff and Ms. Ifill, along with much of the rest of the staff, will begin contributing to a news analysis blog, as well. Mr. Sreenivasan, once he settles in, will anchor regular video news updates on the site, which will also feature extended interview material not used on the air. All the show's content will be more easily adaptable to various digital outlets, including, eventually, an iPhone app, said Simon Marks, the show's new associate executive producer. The challenge, Mr. Lehrer said in an interview in his office, is "to find a way to make it all seamless."
benton.org/node/30095 | New York Times | Washington Post
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