Wireless policies under scrutiny under Obama advisers

While it will be months before President-elect Barack Obama gets his administration in place and begins to roll out policy priorities, the selection of individuals focusing on high-tech agencies and their issues in the transition period suggests industry giants Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility could face greater scrutiny on open access, consolidation and other issues than they have the past eight years. Indeed, two academics assigned to the Federal Communications Commission transition review — Susan Crawford and Kevin Werbach — are vocal advocates of open networks in the wireless and broadband sectors. Both are influential bloggers on cutting-edge telecom and high-tech policy issues. On a related front, the Obama administration could significantly shape the debate on whether short-code texting messaging should be regulated by the FCC. The cellphone industry opposes government intrusion into business decision-making on granting short codes for marketing campaigns. Some proponents of wireless open access and net neutrality are aggressively lobbying the FCC to establish a policy that forbids discrimination when wireless providers issue short codes.