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[Commentary] A get-rich-quick atmosphere is enveloping Silicon Valley at the moment, with Wall Street investors competing to buy privately traded shares in social media companies such as Facebook, Twitter and their imitators.
It has a mysterious newcomer in Color, a photo-sharing application for mobile devices that has puzzled many users but which easily raised $41million – several times the usual amount – in its first funding round. As Color launched last week, the veteran investor Warren Buffett spoke out about social networks, declaring: “Most of them will be over-priced ... Some will be huge winners, which will make up for the rest.” Buffett has long shunned technology companies as having uncertain prospects compared with the insurance and food and drink companies he prefers, and he is right about the latest craze.
When the networks bubble over
In a culture where people cradle their cellphones next to their heads with the same constancy and affection that toddlers hold their security blankets, it was unsettling last month when a study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association indicated that doing so could alter brain activity.
The report said it was unclear whether the changes in the brain — an increase in glucose metabolism after using the phone for less than an hour — had any negative health or behavioral effects. But it has many people wondering what they can do to protect themselves short of (gasp) using a landline. “Cellphones are fantastic and have done much to increase productivity,” said Dr. Nora Volkow, the lead investigator of the study and director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health. “I'd never tell people to stop using them entirely.” Yet, in light of her findings, she advises users to keep cellphones at a distance by putting them on speaker mode or using a wired headset whenever possible. The next best option is a wireless Bluetooth headset or earpiece, which emit radiation at far lower levels. If a headset isn't feasible, holding your phone just slightly away from your ear can make a big difference; the intensity of radiation diminishes sharply with distance. “Every millimeter counts,” said Louis Slesin, editor of Microwave News, an online newsletter covering health and safety issues related to exposure to electromagnetic radiation. So crushing your cellphone into your ear to hear better in a crowded bar is probably a bad idea.
Cellphone Radiation May Alter Your Brain. Let’s Talk.
In letters to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, Rep Jo Bonner (R-AL) and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) urge the FCC to shape policies so they don't threaten radio and TV broadcasters.
Rep Bonner wrote, "Americans should not lose reliable access to quality broadcast programming as a result of spectrum policies that could reduce the viewer reception of local stations." He has said he wants to see the wireless and broadcast industries both thrive, but members of Congress are questioning whether he really has the best interests of broadcasters in mind. "Millions of Americans rely on free over-the-air television as their primary source of news, information, and entertainment," wrote Rep Rogers." He said that although broadband adoption is important, "it is equally important that Americans continue to receive the benefits promised by the DTV transition."
House Republicans to FCC: Back off 'detrimental' spectrum policies Republican Sticks Up For Broadcasters (Broadcasting&Cable)
During a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski ducked questions on a possibly stalled investigation into a major consumer privacy breach by Google, refusing to give an update on the investigation.
FCC's Genachowski ducks Google 'Wi-Spy' questions
Testifying before the House Appropriations Committee, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski said, "With limited resources, the FCC has been making significant progress toward fulfilling its Congressional mandate to ensure that all Americans have access to a robust communications infrastructure for a wide range of purposes - including public safety, personal communications, consumer services, medical care, business expansion, employment, and education."
He noted the work the FCC's Managing Director has done to "develop lean and flexible mechanisms and methodologies that make use of the resources that we already have first - before considering alternatives that might require additional financial resources." He outlined the work the FCC has done over the last year developing the National Broadband Plan, launching reform of the Universal Service Fund, identifying and freeing up spectrum for private sector use, spurring broadband deployment, protecting consumers, fostering public safety, and reforming agency operations.
The FCC is requesting a budget of $354,181,000 for fiscal year 2012. The FCC would continue to raise all of its funds through assessment of fees and permissible auction proceeds. Base funding increases are set at $2.5 million and programmatic initiatives are expected to cost $15.9 Million. Most of the base funding increase is for the Office of Inspector General. The requested budget includes $15.9 million in programmatic initiatives to: (1) finalize and support ongoing FCC-wide technology initiatives designed to improve efficiency and save costs; (2) implement specific components of the National Broadband Plan; (3) support the Commission's public safety role; (4) follow-through on studies necessary for finalizing a statutorily required report; and (5) upgrade and maintain services in the Office of Inspector General to combat fraud, waste, and abuse.
Chairman Genachowski Testifies on FCC Budget Genachowski Outlines FCC Budget (B&C)
Federal Trade Commission member J. Thomas Rosch said that he's concerned that four major Web platforms — Google, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft — could skew the Internet advertising market to the detriment of competitors and potential upstarts.
"We have to be careful about letting the current players manipulate the market in such a way that it does tip prematurely [in their favor] and that it hurts rivals," Rosch said after his talk at an antitrust conference held by the American Bar Association. Commissioner Rosch declined to say specifically what activities or potential activities worry him. But he singled out the four Web giants that he has his eye on, all trying to monetize their large audiences through advertising, albeit in different ways. "For example, Google is trying to do it though its search methods. Facebook is trying to do it though its huge population of friends," Commissioner Rosch said. "Apple's trying to do it though its app stores. Microsoft is trying to do it through its alliance with Facebook." "This is a pretty highly concentrated market, as far as I'm concerned," Commissioner Rosch added.
FTC Commissioner Rosch: Beware of Google, Facebook, Apple, Microsoft
The Congressional Budget Office has scored H.J. 37 which would disapprove the rule adopted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on December 21, 2010, that is intended to preserve the Internet as an open network. Report and Order FCC 10-201 establishes rules that would bar broadband providers from blocking lawful content and discriminating in transmitting lawful traffic on the network. The rule also would require broadband providers to disclose to the public information about network management practices, performance, and terms of service.
H.J. Res. 37 would invoke a legislative process established by the Congressional Review Act (Public Law 104-121) to disapprove the open Internet rule. If H.J. Res. 37 is enacted, the published rule would have no force or effect. Based on information from the FCC, CBO estimates that voiding this rule would have no effect on the budget. Enacting H.J. Res. 37 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. H.J. Res. 37 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
CBO Score Resolution to Disallow Network Neutrality Rules
As recommended in the National Broadband Plan, the Federal Communications Commission has initiated a proceeding to ensure that the public has access to broadband technologies to communicate with 9-1-1 dispatchers and to accelerate the deployment of next generation 9-1-1.
The FCC issued an order to improve 9-1-1 by enhancing location-accuracy requirements for wireless service providers to be sure first responders can find those who call 9-1-1 from their mobile phones. And next month, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski will ask the FCC commissioners to consider a proposal to help improve the reliability and resiliency of our emergency response infrastructure. All of these efforts are being driven by Admiral Jamie Barnett and the outstanding staff working on public safety issues at the FCC.
FCC's Genachowski on Modernizing 911
In October 2009, a Shared Services Agreement (SSA) among three of the five television stations in Honolulu, Hawai’i went into effect. As a result of the SSA, three stations, KIVE, KHNL and KGMB combined their news operations as a new entity entitled Hawai’i News Now. Even before the SSA became a reality, there were serious concerns expressed by local citizens regarding the effect such an arrangement would have on the diversity of news in the market. Media Council Hawai’i (MCH), a local non-profit organization, filed a complaint and a request for emergency relief with the Federal Communications Commission to stop the implementation of the agreement. MCH contended that the SSA would negatively affect the content, diversity and competition of the Honolulu television market. The SSA owners argued, on the other hand, that television news in the DMA would be improved.
This research, Local TV & Shared Services Agreements: Examining Content in Honolulu, essentially tested those propositions. It was a content analysis of the daily newscasts of all five of the television stations in the Honolulu DMA and a comparison of their newscasts before and after the Shared Service Agreement went into effect. What was the result of the analysis? The short answer is that the implementation of the Shared Services Agreement had a profound effect on the local news broadcasts in the market. The most significant finding is that two stations that were part of the three-station SSA group simply duplicated their newscasts through the mechanism of a simulcast.
Local TV News & Joint Services Agreements
The Federal Communications Commission's Spectrum Management, Resources and Technologies Division in the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau has a new name: the Technologies, Systems and Innovation Division (or the Tech Division). The Tech Division is primarily responsible for developing and managing the Wireless Bureau’s information technology tools, systems and programs. This includes managing multiple automated systems, developing innovative web-based tools and providing advanced mapping and data analysis capabilities.
What’s In a Name?