We apologize for the technology glitch that delayed yesterday’s Headlines and sent duplicates to many of you. The squirrels are getting a thousand lashes with a wet noodle as we speak.
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2011
Cloud Computing, the FCC’s Consumer Advisory Committee and the Mobile Informational Call Act on today’s agenda http://benton.org/calendar/2011-11-04/
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
Feds Shift Tracking Defense
Demonstrators Test Mayor, a Backer of Wall St. and Free Speech
NIST: We’re from the government and we’re here to help
FCC Tweaks Nationwide EAS Test - public notice
California Transparency Website Shuttered [links to web]
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Sen Hutchison calls for Senate to repeal FCC’s network neutrality rules
Former ICANN Chairs Voice Concern With Domain Name Plan
Facebook vs. Google: The battle for the future of the Web
CYBERSECURITY
US cyber espionage report names China and Russia as main culprits
Analysis: Cybersecurity puzzle is a tough one to solve
EU and US conduct first cybersecurity test
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
For a Few Mhz more: Spectrum and Emergency Responders
FCC Tweaks Nationwide EAS Test - public notice
CONTENT
Top U.S. companies urge new Internet trade rules
Tech group says lawmakers catering to Hollywood [links to web]
Google Changes Search Algorithm, Trying to Make Results More Timely
Presidential Campaign Heats Up Online - research [links to web]
On Twitter, lines blur between celebs’ thoughts and paid ads [links to web]
TELEVISION/RADIO
MAP to Supremes: Pacifica Can Stand and FCC Indecency Enforcement Regime Still Fall
FCC Tweaks Nationwide EAS Test - public notice
Competition and a weak economy plague cable TV
How Many Broadcast Stations Are There? - press release [links to web]
CEA’s Shapiro: We're Not Saying Get Rid of Broadcasters
Google Ponders Pay-TV Business
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
The State of Mobile Wireless Competition 2010-11 - public notice
Operators better say goodbye to the SMS cash cow - analysis
Generation App: 62% of Mobile Users 25-34 own Smartphones - research
Steve Jobs' legal war on Google, Android rages on
CEA’s Shapiro: We're Not Saying Get Rid of Broadcasters
EDUCATION
E-rate applicants face important changes with this year’s program
The sods must be crazy: OLPC to drop tablets from helicopters to isolated villages [links to web]
POLICYMAKERS
Sen Grassley to hold up Obama's nominees to FCC over LightSquared documents
Demonstrators Test Mayor, a Backer of Wall St. and Free Speech
MORE ONLINE
Waiting For The Cable Guy Hits Pocketbook: Study [links to web]
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
STINGRAYS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Jennifer Valentino-Devries]
The Department of Justice now says its use of a cellphone-tracking device in a controversial Arizona case could be considered a "search" under the Fourth Amendment, a tactical move legal experts say is designed to protect the secrecy of the gadgets known as "stingrays." For more than a year, federal prosecutors have argued in U.S. District Court that the use of the stingray device -- which can locate a mobile phone even when it's not being used to make a call—wasn't a search, in part because the user had no reasonable expectation of privacy while using Verizon Wireless cellphone service. Under that argument, authorities wouldn't need to obtain a search warrant before using one of the devices. The defendant in the case, Daniel David Rigmaiden, is facing fraud charges. His quest to force the government to provide information about the device used to locate him was the subject of front-page article in The Wall Street Journal in September. Legal experts say the government's move fits into its strategy of keeping information about the devices under wraps, and the government continues to maintain that, in general, search warrants aren't required. The government said it is willing to make these concessions in this case alone in an attempt to "avoid unnecessary disclosure" of information about its stingray devices. The judge in the case, David G. Campbell, had indicated he might want to know more about the technical details of the devices before ruling on whether their use constituted a search.
benton.org/node/104587 | Wall Street Journal
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CLOUD COMPUTING TECH ROADMAP
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Barb Darrow]
Is cloud computing ready for government work? Not yet, but a new U.S. Government Cloud Computing Technology Roadmap draft sets out action items that government IT gurus say will speed the adoption of safe and secure cloud implementations suitable for government use. While popular among consumers who love their Google Apps, Facebook, and Dropbox, cloud computing still gets a bad rap from some IT buyers who see security problems emanating from the shared infrastructure that underlies the cloud model. There’s also a lack of consistent terms and service level agreements (SLAs) that large government agencies (or any large enterprises, for that matter) want before investing heavily in moving IT from on-premise deployments to the cloud. The draft released this week from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), working with the U.S. Federal CIO Council and others, aims “to make it substantially easier to buy, sell, interconnect and use cloud environments in the government,” NIST Director Pat Gallagher said. ”The roadmap will serve as our action plan, and we expect it not only to drive federal standards efforts, but because our needs are not unique in government, we think it will help the private sector as well.”
benton.org/node/104576 | GigaOm
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
CALL FOR NETWORK NEUTRALITY VOTE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Gautham Nagesh]
Senate Commerce ranking member Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) called for the Senate to repeal the Federal Communications Commission's network neutrality rules. “If ever there was a ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ situation, it is this one. The Internet has flourished; it has created new products, new services, because it is open, because there hasn’t been a gatekeeper," Sen Hutchison said. "So now, the FCC in December came forward with a net neutrality rule to determine what’s reasonable and what isn’t. With such an arbitrary standard, companies are going to be forced to err on the side of caution." "Forcing broadband companies to say, ‘Mother may I?’ to the federal government is going to delay the implementation of the new products and services getting to the market; it’s going to increase costs to consumers. What’s good about that?" Sen Hutchison said. She said she expects a vote on the issue next week, but only because the Congressional Review Act requires an expedited determination on resolutions of disapproval. "Without that force, I guarantee you that the Senate would not be voting on it next week,” she added. The House passed a resolution to repeal the rules in April under the Congressional Review Act. However that bill would require both Senate approval and President Obama's signature, with the latter considered particularly unlikely because net neutrality was part of Obama's campaign platform.
benton.org/node/104595 | Hill, The
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CERF, DYSON VOICE ICANN CONCERNS
[SOURCE: National Journal, AUTHOR: Juliana Gruenwald, Josh Smith]
Two key former officials with the nonprofit group that manages the Internet's domain name system are raising concerns with its plan to allow an unlimited number of generic Internet addresses, the top-level domain name suffixes that come after the dot like .com or .org. Google Chief Internet Evangelist Vint Cerf and tech investor Esther Dyson chaired the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers during its early years, when the group was introducing the first set of new domain names to compete with the only Internet addresses available to the public at the time: .com, .net. and .org. They now said they see several potential problems with ICANN's latest domain name plan, which has sparked strong opposition from major trademark owners. Dyson was ICANN's founding chairman of the board from 1998-2000, while Cerf, one of the pioneers in the Internet's development, succeeded Dyson in 2000 and served until 2007. Despite their past association with ICANN, neither has a formal role with the group any more. Following an appearance at an unrelated event, Cerf said that he's "nervous" about ICANN's new domain name proposal. He cited several potential concerns, including that it could create confusion among Internet users, big problems for trademark owners who may feel forced to register their trademark in all the new names or launch their own Internet addresses, and also logistical headaches if any of the operators of the new domain names go out of business. Dyson has raised similar concerns in recent months about ICANN's plan. In a syndicated column in August, Dyson also said expanding the number of domain names reduces the value of those out there already and questioned the motives behind the plan.
benton.org/node/104591 | National Journal
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FACEBOOK VS GOOGLE
[SOURCE: Fortune, AUTHOR: Miguel Helft, Jessi Hempe]
In the long history of tech rivalries, rarely has there been a battle as competitive as the raging war between the web's wonder twins. They will stop at nothing to win over whip-smart folks, amass eyeballs, and land ad dollars. There's no public trash talking à la the Oracle vs. HP smackdown, nor are the battle lines drawn as clearly as they were when Microsoft took on Netscape, but the stakes are immense. These companies are fighting to see which of them will determine the future of the web -- and the outcome will affect the way we get information, communicate, and buy and sell. In one corner is Facebook, the reigning champion of the social web, trying to cement its position as the owner of everyone's online identity. In the other is Google, the company that organized the world's information and showed us how to find it, fighting to remain relevant as the Internet of hyperlinks gives way to an Internet of people.
benton.org/node/104598 | Fortune | NPR – Fresh Air
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CYBERSECURITY
CHINA, RUSSIA NAMED IN US CYBERSECURITY REPORT
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Ellen Nakashima]
Online industrial spying by China and Russia presents a growing threat to the U.S. economy and its national security, the top counterintelligence agency said, abandoning the caution American officials typically display when asked to name the countries they believe are most responsible for cyber-economic espionage. Billions of dollars of trade secrets, technology and intellectual property are being siphoned each year from the computer systems of U.S. government agencies, corporations and research institutions to benefit the economies of China and other countries, the Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive said. The hackers come from many countries and range from foreign intelligence services to corporations to criminals, according to the report, but the report —titled Foreign Spies Stealing U.S. Economic Secrets in Cyberspace—leaves no doubt as to who are the most intent on stealing secrets. “Chinese actors are the world’s most active and persistent perpetrators of economic espionage,” the report states. In addition, it says, “Russia’s intelligence services are conducting a range of activities to collect economic information and technology from U.S. targets.”
benton.org/node/104586 | Washington Post | Associated Press
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CYBERSECURITY PUZZLE
[SOURCE: FederalComputerWeek, AUTHOR: Camille Tuutti]
Despite increased efforts to implement better cybersecurity, federal agencies continue to succumb to cyberattacks. Could more – or updated – policies stem the tide of these potentially devastating attacks? The topic gained renewed prominence in late October when the Energy Department’s inspector general noted in an audit that cyberattacks targeting federal agencies' systems and websites increased nearly 40 percent in 2010. DOE itself had failed to adequately protect its information systems from the cyberattacks that constantly probed the networks – this after spending “significant resources” on cybersecurity measures, according to the report, released Oct. 20. It is no surprise that cybersecurity has become an increasingly urgent issue for federal agencies, with hackers and nation-states infiltrating the systems to extract sensitive information and data. There are policies and measures already in place to prevent these attacks. The National Institute of Standards and Technology, which provides cybersecurity standards and guidelines to the federal government, has a security control catalog with 18 safeguards and countermeasures that each agency is required to implement. Many people think a policy is “just paperwork, but policies and procedures are critical for setting the tone and establishing the organization’s commitment to doing the right thing with regards to due diligence in the area of cybersecurity,” said Ron Ross, fellow and project leader of the Federal Information Security Management Act Implementation Project at NIST. The policies can address many different areas, and they can be challenging. But if the policy is clear and follows the basic principles that are articulated in the NIST standards and guidelines – and if it’s implemented properly -- it should result in better cybersecurity for the organization, Ross said.
benton.org/node/104572 | FederalComputerWeek
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CYBERSECURITY TEST
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Maija Palmer]
The European Union and US on Thursday conducted their first joint cybersecurity exercise, in a show of strength aimed at criminals and foreign nations who try to hack into critical computer systems. More than 100 government IT security experts from the 27 EU member states and their counterparts from the US department of homeland security convened in Brussels to simulate crisis scenarios, including attempted cyber espionage and an attack on power grid infrastructure. The aim was to find out where the weaknesses of critical national infrastructure were and how security professionals in different countries could rapidly communicate with each other in the event of an attack.
benton.org/node/104596 | Financial Times
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EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
SPECTRUM AND FIRST RESPONDERS
[SOURCE: nextgov, AUTHOR: Joseph Marks]
What could emergency responders do with a little more spectrum, a lot more money and a healthy assist from modern technology? To begin with, they could set up effortless communication between local emergency responders and out-of-towners who are called in for a major disaster but whose equipment works on a different frequency, said Chris Essid, director of the Homeland Security Department's Office of Emergency Communications. A large block of communication spectrum could also enable standardized nationwide systems and protocols so responders' tools would look the same from one county to the next and radios from one county could simply roam onto the next county's network, according to Essid, who was speaking at a Wilson Center for International Scholars event focused on how private sector technologies could aid emergency responders. More spectrum and standardized equipment would also allow police and firefighters to better utilize new technologies, panelists at the event said, such as sensors that tell firefighters which floors of a building are on fire and what chemicals are present there; heat sensors that tell police where a suspect is hiding in a darkened house and space-age band aids that take an injured person's vital signs and match them with a photo and name so family members are able not only to track the victim to a particular hospital or shelter but also to find out how they're doing. New technology could even push mapping data about nearby fire hydrants and building layouts directly to screens on firefighters masks, panelists said.
benton.org/node/104574 | nextgov
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EAS TEST
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Public Notice]
On November 9, 2011, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time1 (EST), the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will conduct the first-ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The purpose of the test is to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a way to alert the public of national emergencies. After a careful review of the technical elements of the test, FEMA and the FCC have concluded that a thirty-second test will allow the agencies to effectively assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a way to alert the public of national emergencies with limited disruption to the public. The test was planned to be 3 minutes long. According to a source, shortening the duration is so that nobody will mistake it for an actual emergency, something some industry players had suggested might happen with such an extended warning.
benton.org/node/104581 | Federal Communications Commission | Broadcasting&Cable
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CONTENT
INTERNET TRADE RULES
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Doug Palmer]
Google, Microsoft, Citigroup, IBM, GE and other top-tier American companies urged the United States to fight for trade rules that protect the free flow of information over the Internet. The unveiling of principles hashed out by the companies over the last nine months comes at a crucial moment, said Rick Johnston, senior vice president for international government affairs at Citigroup. Past trade agreements have largely focused on eliminating tariffs on manufactured and agricultural goods. But "we're now in an era where the economy is literally driven by the Internet. It's a digital economy," Johnston said. The group's report says future U.S. trade pacts must "reflect the new realities of the global economy: specifically, the contribution of the Internet toward economic growth, toward job creation and exports," said Bob Boorstin, director of public policy for Google, which has battled Internet restrictions in China and other countries.
benton.org/node/104593 | Reuters
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GOOGLE CHANGES ALGORITHM
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Claire Cain Miller]
Many Google search results will be more timely after Google made a significant change to its search algorithm, a change that will affect about 35 percent of searches. The change was made because people increasingly expect real-time information on the Web from Twitter and other Web sites, and some Google results seemed dated. For instance, search for the Oscars to find out when the awards ceremony will be broadcast this year, and you might find results about previous awards shows instead. The change, which Google calls a freshness algorithm, gives real-time results for relevant searches, using Google’s Caffeine Web indexing system, which crawls the Web more quickly. Google makes more than 500 changes to its algorithm a year, but most affect only a small percentage of results. Its last change of significant size was in February, when it weeded out low-quality sites like content farms, affecting 12 percent of searches. The new algorithm will bring up minutes-old results for recent events, like an unfolding news story, and for recurring events like the Oscars or the presidential election. It will also show fresher results for topics that are often updated, like reviews of the new iPhone.
benton.org/node/104588 | New York Times
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TELEVISION/RADIO
MAP INDECENCY FILING
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Television and music content creators and their broadcast distributors are on the same page when it comes to opposing the Federal Communications Commission's indecency enforcement regime, but differ on how the Supreme Court should approach its review of those regulations. That was clear in a Media Access Project (MAP) brief filed with the High Court in support of Fox in the case involving the FCC's indecency finding against Fox stations for profanity on a Billboard awards show now almost a decade ago. Both producers and networks support Fox and oppose the FCC indecency enforcement regime as currently constituted, which they argue is unconstitutionally vague, but the networks have long signaled they believe the Supremes should take this opportunity to look deeper into the constitutional issues surrounding regulation of broadcast content than would the content producers and creators represented by MAP. MAP filed on behalf of the Center for Creative Voices in Media and the Future of Music Coalition, which represents creators and producers of TV and shows and music. That brief argues that the FCC's policy is unconstitutional under existing Supreme Court precedent (the Pacifica decision, in which the court upheld the FCC's finding that George Carlin's "Filthy Words" monologue was indecent), and that the court need not overturn Pacifica to find the FCC's current indecency policy unconstitutional. Although it does not take a position on whether Pacifica should remain the law of the land, it does concede in the conclusion that the court may decide to invalidate Pacifica, and MAP does not have a problem with that, but it wants to make it clear the court need not go that far to find the FCC policy unconstitutional. The brief argues that the FCC's indecency enforcement policy is unconstitutionally vague and violates due process, infirmities that cannot be saved by relying on the Pacifica decision, which it says is in any event a narrow opinion that directed the FCC to "tread lightly.” MAP concedes the FCC is permitted to regulate indecency under Pacifica, just not the way it has been doing it since it decided to crack down on fleeting, and not-so-fleeting -- nudity and profanity. "For individual artists and broadcasters seeking to make judgments about content, the Commission‘s decisions not only fail to guide but constitute a blindfold, and a muzzle," MAP says. MAP does, however, make it very clear that the groups do not support the court re-examining the Red Lion Decision, which underpins the FCC's regulation of broadcast content. Broadcast networks have argued that should be up for review in the Fox case, but MAP says that Red Lion is about promoting additional speech, not suppressing it.
benton.org/node/104592 | Broadcasting&Cable
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COMPETITION, ECONOMY AND CABLE
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Marguerite Reardon]
Cable operators all over the country have been steadily and slowly losing TV subscribers quarter after quarter. A year ago, some people wondered if Internet TV services like Netflix and Hulu were attracting so-called cord cutters. But Craig Moffett, an analyst with Sanford Bernstein, thinks there are other forces at work. Increased competition from satellite and phone companies offering TV service is the main reason that cable operators are losing TV subscribers. But the sluggish economy is also contributing to the malaise. "The category itself isn't growing, and that's a function of two things," Sanford Bernstein analyst Craig Moffett said. "First, there's almost no new household formation, so there are no newly occupied homes to serve. And second, the low-end consumer is being priced out of the market." Even though some people may be forgoing cable TV for services they can get online, the majority of Netflix and Hulu viewers are also subscribing to a paid TV service, Moffett said. "The Internet TV thesis is the sexiest [one to explain subscriber losses]," he said. "But it has the least amount of evidence to support it."
benton.org/node/104578 | C-Net|News.com
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CEA NOT OUT TO END BROADCASTING
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Consumer Electronics Association President Gary Shapiro says his association is only looking for voluntary incentive auctions of "some" of the broadcast spectrum. "We're not saying get rid of over-the-air, free broadcasting," he said. Shapiro said there is plenty of spectrum available in each market. He said auctioning that broadcast spectrum could bring anywhere between $15 billion and $40 billion to the US Treasury. He said that it is a mathematical certainty that, long-term, wireless devices will not work as they are expected to without more spectrum, including being able to watch full-motion video, while traveling on a train. Asked if device-makers, like his members, don't also have a responsibility to make their devices more spectrum-efficient, he said "absolutely," and added that there was "every incentive" to do so. He said that included relying more on local Wi-Fi networks. But he insisted that when most people have smart phones and tablets, the country will need a system to support them. Shapiro said he thought that if the supercommittee does come up with a deficit reduction package, incentive auctions are "almost certainly" going to part of it. The supercommittee has until Nov. 23 to come up with its deficit-reduction solutions.
benton.org/node/104600 | Broadcasting&Cable
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GOOGLE CONSIDERS PAY-TV
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Sam Schechner, Amir Efrati]
Google is considering a plan to offer paid cable-TV services to consumers, a move that could unleash a new wave of competition within the traditional TV business.
Google has looked at ways to expand a previously announced project to build a high-speed Internet service in Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kan., adding video and phone service in a mirror of offerings from cable and telecom companies. As a result, Google has discussed distributing major TV channels from companies like Walt Disney Co., Time Warner Inc. and Discovery Communications Inc. as part of the video service, though the discussions were exploratory and no final decisions have been made. Google hired a former cable-TV executive, Jeremy Stern, who is spearheading talks with media companies. The discussions underscore the intensifying battle for control of the TV set. In recent years phone companies have jumped into a market previously dominated by cable-TV operators and satellite-TV providers. Now companies such as Amazon are bulking up their content offerings, while Apple and others are trying to reinvent the viewing experience with iPads and other devices, and potentially a new type of television set. Meanwhile, Comcast Corp. and other incumbent cable and satellite operators are fighting back, creating their own apps and lining up Internet-rights to programs that tie into their existing offline TV subscriptions. Much is at stake. Television reaps more than $150 billion per year in the U.S. from advertisers and consumers paying monthly fees.
benton.org/node/104599 | Wall Street Journal
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WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
THE STATE OF MOBILE WIRELESS COMPETITION
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Public Notice]
This Public Notice solicits input and data on mobile wireless competition for the Federal Communications Commission’s Sixteenth Annual Report on the State of Competition in Mobile Wireless, including Commercial Mobile Radio Services. The FCC is required to submit annual reports to Congress analyzing competitive conditions with respect to commercial mobile services. On June 27, 2011, the Commission released its Fifteenth Mobile Wireless Competition Report. With this Notice, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau seeks to update the information and metrics used in the Fifteenth Report, as well as to enhance the FCC’s analysis of mobile wireless competition for the Sixteenth Report. This Notice seeks data and information on industry structure, firm conduct, market performance, and consumer behavior with respect to mobile wireless services, as well as on input and downstream segments, intermodal competition, urban-rural comparisons, and international comparisons. The FCC requests that commenters provide, to the extent possible, information and insights on competition across the mobile wireless ecosystem using this framework. The FCC also asks parties to comment on whether the framework used in the Fifteenth Report was adequate for analyzing mobile wireless competition or whether changes should be made for the Sixteenth Report.
For the Sixteenth Report, the FCC requests that commenters submit data and statistics for the calendar-year 2010 time period, as well as information on any trends and developments that have occurred during 2010 or 2011. In particular, the FCC seeks information on events or developments that arose after release of the Fifteenth Report.
Comments are due Dec 5, 2011; reply comments are due Dec 21, 2011.
benton.org/node/104583 | Federal Communications Commission
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TEXT CASH COW
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Stacey Higginbotham]
Expect more texting and data plan changes, and a continued focus on machine-to-machine communications, as well as more apps that try to make third-party messaging across different platforms easier. The irony is that carriers could implement a text messaging service easily in their new LTE networks, for a fee. The question is if that fee will be low enough (or the service valuable enough) to keep users from defecting to third-party “free” options that they get through their data plans. Finally, as the future of SMS changes, it’s worth considering who might stick with paying for it a decade from now. Ironically, as the world moves closer to free, carriers may find themselves marketing to an ever shrinking group of privacy-conscious people. Maybe that will make them think twice about becoming accomplices in government wiretapping?
benton.org/node/104575 | GigaOm
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GENERATION APP
[SOURCE: Nielsen, AUTHOR: ]
Nielsen’s third quarter survey of mobile users reveals that while only 43 percent of all US mobile phone subscribers own a smartphone, the vast majority of those under the age of 44 now have smartphones. In fact, 62 percent of mobile adults aged 25-34 report owning smartphones. And among those 18-24 and 35-44 years old the smartphone penetration rate is hovering near 54 percent. Other groups show slightly lower penetration rates. Around 40 percent of 12-17 year-old teens and 40 percent of 45-54 year-olds reported owning a smartphone, as opposed to a more basic feature phone. After younger adults, the segment with the second fastest-growing smartphone penetration rate is those aged 55-64. Smartphone penetration among this older group is only 30 percent, but it jumped 5 percent this quarter. As the smartphone market continues to expand, Android remains the most popular smartphone operating system in the United States, with 43 percent of the market, while Apple is the top smartphone manufacturer, with 28 percent of smartphone consumers sporting an Apple iPhone.
benton.org/node/104589 | Nielsen | The Hill | Fortune
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APPLE’S PATENT WAR
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: David Sarno]
Steve Jobs launched Apple's all-out legal war on Google, unleashing a patent-suit blitzkrieg on its Silicon Valley rival, filing 10 lawsuits in six countries that accuse the Internet search giant of stealing its smartphone and tablet computer technology. The campaign is rooted in Jobs' belief that Google and mobile device manufacturers that use its Android software copied key design and technology features from Apple's iPhone and iPad. Google and manufacturers using Android are vigorously contesting Apple's claims, which could take years to play out in court. But one thing is certain: There is a lot at stake for the company Jobs built. If it is unable to protect the iPhone's distinctive look and feel, lower-cost competitors emulating its technology could threaten the future of its most profitable products, analysts say. "Unless they can keep Android at bay, they cannot sustain their incredibly high margins," said Florian Mueller, a patent specialist who has been closely following the disputes. "They'll have to compete with much lower-priced devices with essentially the same features coming out of China and other places." Alternatively, victories by Apple would enable it to extract hefty ransoms from any phone maker that uses Apple-like technology, or even force its rivals to water down or remove popular features from their smartphones, including screens that respond to multiple finger touches, the graphical display of text messages, and the way users send email and browse the Internet.
benton.org/node/104597 | Los Angeles Times
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EDUCATION
E-RATE CHANGES
[SOURCE: eSchool News, AUTHOR: Laura Devaney]
As schools get ready to apply for federal E-rate discounts for the 2012 funding year, applicants and service providers will notice some new changes to the nearly $2.3 billion-a-year program that helps schools and libraries acquire telecommunications services and internet infrastructure. The two biggest changes to the program are new gift enforcement rules and updates to the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). New gift rules have been “the most talked-about” changes, said Mel Blackwell, vice president of the Schools and Libraries Division of the Universal Service Administrative Co. (USAC), which administrates the E-rate under the direction of the Federal Communications Commission. The new rules are intended to prevent service providers from currying favor or influencing the bidding process by bestowing gifts on school employees. They come in response to controversies that have played out in districts such as Houston and Dallas, which have landed in hot water with the U.S. Justice Department for accepting gifts that violate federal competitive-bidding requirements.
benton.org/node/104577 | eSchool News | eSchool News – 5 tips
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POLICYMAKERS
GRASSLES HOLDS UP FCC NOMINATIONS
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) will place a hold on the two nominees to the Federal Communications Commission that will take effect once the nominations reach the Senate floor. "I will object to proceeding to the nomination because the FCC continues to stonewall a document request I submitted to the FCC over six months ago on April 27, 2011, regarding their actions related to LightSquared and Harbinger Capital," Sen Grassley said. "It not only sets a dangerous precedent for a federal agency to unilaterally set the rules on how it engages with Congress — it also prevents any meaningful ability for the vast majority of Congress to inform themselves of how an agency works." "I strongly believe that it is critical for Congress to have access to documents in order to conduct vigorous and independent oversight. It is unfortunate that this administration, which has pledged to be the most transparent in history, disagrees," Sen Grassley said. "As long as they continue to do so, I will be forced to take steps like this in order to ensure that Congress receives a complete picture of this administration’s actions."
benton.org/node/104585 | Hill, The | National Journal
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BLOOMBERG AND OCCUPY WALL STREET
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Kate Taylor]
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s evolving response to the Occupy Wall Street protest has come to embody a central tension in his third term, between his celebration of free, and at times cacophonous, speech as a hallmark of New York, and his emphasis on bolstering the city’s economy by improving its appeal to residents, employers and tourists. Mayor Bloomberg, who is generally known for his decisiveness, at first emphasized his disagreements with the protesters, then began describing them as peaceful dissenters exercising a fundamental liberty. In the last several days, he has sounded increasingly exasperated, a reflection of complaints from neighbors and accusations of criminal activity in Zuccotti Park. “There is no easy answer,” Mayor Bloomberg said. “But there is a right answer, and the right answer is allow people to protest, but at the same time enforce public safety, provide public safety and quality-of-life issues, and we will continue to do that.”
The mayor is in an awkward position — while the protesters proclaim themselves “the 99 percent,” Mayor Bloomberg, with a net worth estimated by Forbes at $19.5 billion, is an elite member of the top 1 percent, the 12th richest person in a nation of 312 million. His wealth derives from Wall Street, the target of the protesters’ ire, and he has repeatedly made clear that he does not support the demonstrators’ arguments or their tactics. Mayor Bloomberg has managed simultaneously to be less sympathetic to the protesters’ point of view, and more sympathetic to their right to protest, than some other elected officials around the nation. “There’s nobody that’s more of a defender of the First Amendment than I am,” he has often said.
benton.org/node/104601 | New York Times
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