1. Monthly archive
  2. July 2009

July 2009

Why The BTOP/BIP NOFA Definition of Broadband Is Inadequate

[Commentary] Daily doesn't like that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Rural Utilities Service picked 768Kbps down and 200Kbps up as the minimum speeds for broadband. As Vint Cerf has said: "The definition of broadband sucks so badly it should be used to sequester carbon dioxide." RUS and NTIA favor this broadband speed threshold because it leverages the FCC's expertise, utilizes an established standard, facilitates the use of many currently common broadband applications (e.g., web browsing, VOIP, and one-way video), allows for consideration of cost-effective solutions for difficult-to-serve areas, and is the most technology-neutral option (because it encompasses all major wired and wireless technologies). Daily reads this to mean that they don't want stick their necks out. He writes, "The biggest reason I find this definition inadequate is because of how unbelievably short-sighted it is. Any investment in broadband infrastructure needs to be considered with a horizon of at least five to ten years, and preferably longer. We don't want to have to subsidize the expensive and time-consuming process of deploying broadband again in a couple of years because we invested in inadequate technology today."

Weitzner To Head NTIA Policy Shop

Apparently, Daniel Weitzner will be the next chief of the policy office at the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration. He served as a technology advisor to President Obama's campaign for president. He has been involved in the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-directs MIT's Decentralized Information Group with Internet expert Tim Berners-Lee. Weitzner was a founder and deputy director for the Center for Democracy and Technology and has also been a senior staff counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

States fire shots in Internet sales tax war

A battle is brewing over US state sales taxes on online purchases. Internet retailers Amazon.com and Overstock.com are scaling back their operations in states that demand they collect these taxes. While this won't dent their revenues much, it foreshadows a larger clash over the taxation of Internet commerce. Cash-strapped states are firing the first shots. Most online sales escape being taxed because Internet firms only collect them in states where they have a physical presence. (Buyers are legally bound to pay them, but many do not.) However, Amazon and Overstock allow independent companies to sell merchandise through their systems for a fee. This means the online giants have to collect taxes in any state where their independent partners have operations.

Smaller Newspapers Feel the Squeeze

While they are still better off than their big-city counterparts on average, smaller newspapers are also feeling the effects of the economic downturn and Internet competition, according to a long-term study from the Inland Press Association. The study's findings temper the optimistic view evinced by many publishers in smaller markets, who take pains to distinguish their properties from the big metro dailies. Over five years ending in 2008, newspaper profitability fell across the board regardless of size, the Inland study found. This included large drops at newspapers with circulations of 25,000-50,000 -- one of the segments that was supposed to be faring better than the big metro dailies. If this trend continues, bankruptcy and sale or closure could follow for scores of newspapers, as the plague afflicting big metro dailies infects smaller markets. Their fate will largely be determined by indebtedness, which has proved the bane of big publishers, especially with the global credit crunch. Like any other small business, small newspapers without a lot of debt will be in a much better position to weather an extended downturn than those that borrowed extensively to replace printing presses, buy real estate, or acquire other newspapers.

Honduras new government is censoring journalists

The newly installed Honduran government kept several news outlets closed, detained international reporters, and periodically interrupted the signal of CNN en español. Reporters for The Associated Press were taken away in military vehicles and Venezuela's Telesur network -- and any other station supportive of toppled president Manuel Zelaya -- are still off the air. Stations that are broadcasting carry only news friendly to the new government. Several local papers have yet to publish information about Zelaya's international support in neighboring countries. The crackdown on the media began before dawn Sunday, when hooded soldiers entered the presidential palace by force and captured Zelaya, a leftist firebrand who had vowed to defy the supreme court, congress and the attorney general's office in a quest to hold a referendum. The nation's media went black while Zelaya was flown out of the country. When a new government presided by former head of Congress Roberto Micheletti was installed a few hours later, only the radio and TV stations loyal to the establishment were allowed to broadcast.

Washington Post cancels lobbyist event amid uproar

Washington Post publisher Katharine Weymouth said Friday she was canceling plans for an exclusive "salon" at her home where for as much as $250,000, the Post offered lobbyists and association executives off-the-record access to "those powerful few" — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and even the paper's own reporters and editors. The astonishing offer was detailed in a flier circulated last week to a health care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he felt it was a conflict for the paper to charge for access to, as the flier says, its "health care reporting and editorial staff." With the Post newsroom in an uproar after reports of the solicitation, Weymouth said in an email to the staff that "a flier went out that was prepared by the Marketing department and was never vetted by me or by the newsroom. Had it been, the flier would have been immediately killed, because it completely misrepresented what we were trying to do." Weymouth said the paper had planned a series of dinners with participation from the newsroom "but with parameters such that we did not in any way compromise our integrity. Sponsorship of events, like advertising in the newspaper, must be at arm's length and cannot imply control over the content or access to our journalists. At this juncture, we will not be holding the planned July dinner and we will not hold salon dinners involving the newsroom. "

Michael Jackson and Iran Grip the Blogosphere

For the week of June 22-26, discussion of Michael Jackson and Iran in general combined to make up almost half (47%) of the links on blogs and social media as measured in the New Media Index by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism. Despite the fact that Jackson's death occurred late in the week, stories about the passing of the pop star led all linked-to topics, accounting for 27% of the links embedded in the social media sites tracked by the monitoring services Icerocket and Technorati. On the evening of his death, interest in Jackson was so high that many of sites with the most popular Jackson pages experienced outages and slowdowns. Accompanying comments from bloggers mostly expressed shock at the singer's death and offered moving accounts of his influence.

The Stupidity of 'Smart' Phones

[Commentary] Smart phones are setting the stage for the future of the mobile Internet. They are revolutionary because they free us from our home or office computers. We can catch breaking news, create and upload content, and navigate online social networks and movements from anywhere. It's the Internet -- some might say "the world" -- in our pockets. Or at least, it could be. But companies like AT&T and Verizon are getting in the way by shackling innovative devices like the iPhone and the BlackBerry Storm to closed networks. These exclusive deals limit consumer choice and stifle innovation. Rural residents who can't get cellular service from the wireless carriers holding exclusive rights to popular smart phones like the iPhone are left watching the commercials for them. If smaller, more local wireless carriers were allowed to service them, these phones could be available to rural America.

Europe tightens broadcasting rules

European pubic broadcasters are unhappy with a rule that means new or significantly modified services must be evaluated in advance against criteria set in Brussels.
The rule is part of revised regulations on state-subsidized public service broadcasting finalized Thursday by the European Commission. Each year European pubcasters pull in €22 billion ($31 billion) in public coin. The evaluation is intended to ensure that new services comply with the broadcaster's overall public service mission, and that any impact on the market is balanced by public gain. European Broadcasting Union topper Jean-Paul Philippot argued that it would have been better to leave the choice of mechanism to national governments, which can respond to local social and cultural needs.

July 2, 2009 (Broadband Stimulus, Mapping NOFAs Released)

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY JULY 2, 2009

The FCC's meeting begins at 11:30 Eastern this morning (see http://www.benton.org/node/25149).

Headlines will return after the holiday weekend -- see you Monday July 6, 2009.


THE STIMULUS
   Biden Announces Availability of the $4 Billion in Recovery Act Loans and Grants to Increase Broadband Access and Adoption
   NTIA Unveils Program to Help States Map Internet Infrastructure
   The Good News and the Bad News In The Stimulus News
   FCC To Seek More Public Input on Broadband Plan
   USDA Broadband Program Exempted from "Buy American", too
   First Lady Obama announces $851M in grants for community health centers

INTERNET/BROADBAND
   Can the Free Market Provide Broadband for Everyone?
   A Roundtable on the End of Scarcity, Open Architecture, and the Future of Broadband Competition Policy

CYBERSECURITY
   Defend America, One Laptop at a Time

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
   China's "Green Dam" Overflows and Bursts
   FEC Web Site and Internet Communications Improvement Initiative

PRIVACY
   Facebook to Offer New Features to Allow Users to Control Privacy of Information
   Industry Tightens Its Standards for Tracking Web Surfers

JOURNALISM
   Does Race Play a Role in Coverage? Black Reporters on the Beat of Michelle Obama
   Is Twitter the news outlet for the 21st century?
   Gannett Memo Lays Out 1400 Layoffs, Restructuring

SPECTRUM
   Senate Commerce Committee to Markup Radio Spectrum Inventory Act Next Week

MORE ONLINE
   Facebook's 'Click-Through Activism' Broad but Fleeting
   Gainers Rare Among TV Groups In '08
   DTV Unready Homes Drop to 1.7 Million
   Projections Show Retrans Fees Increasing to $1.2B by 2011
   BIA Chief Calls For Change in Cross Ownership Rules
   Students want more online learning

back to top

THE STIMULUS


BIDEN ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF THE $4B IN RECOVERY ACT LOANS AND GRANTS TO INCREASE BROADBAND ACCESS AND ADOPTION
[SOURCE: The White House]
Vice President Joe Biden announced the availability of $4 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act loans and grants to help bring broadband service to un-served and underserved communities across America. This is the first round of Recovery Act funding aimed at expanding broadband access to help bridge the technological divide and create jobs building out Internet infrastructure. Vice President Biden was joined by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski and Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper at Seneca High School in Wattsburg (PA), the first stop on the President's National Rural Tour. NTIA and RUS will be accepting applications for loans, grants and loan/grant combinations to be awarded by each agency under a single application form. This collaborative approach will ensure that the agencies' activities are complementary and integrated, make the best use of taxpayer funds and make it easier for applicants to apply for funding. This is the first of three rounds of funding the Agriculture and Commerce Departments will provide. Vice President Biden also announced that Commerce and USDA officials will host public workshops in July to share information about the funding availabilities and the application process. Forums will be held in Boston, Mass.; Charleston, W.Va.; Minneapolis, Minn.; Memphis, Tenn.; Lonoke, Ark.; Birmingham, Ala.; Billings, Mont.; Albuquerque, N.M.; and Los Angeles, Calif. Applications will be accepted beginning July 14, 2009, through 5:00 p.m. EDT on August 14, 2009. The complete details of this Notice of Funding Availability are available at http://www.broadbandusa.gov "Today's announcement is a first step toward realizing President Obama's vision of a nationwide 21st-century communications infrastructure ­ one that encourages economic growth, enhances America's global competitiveness and helps address many of America's most pressing challenges," said Vice President Biden.
http://benton.org/node/26241
Recommend this Headline
back to top


NTIA UNVEILS PROGRAM TO HELP STATES MAP INTERNET INFRASTRUCTURE
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced details of a grant program to fund collection of state-level broadband data, as well as state-wide broadband mapping and planning, which will assist NTIA in creating a national broadband map. This initiative aims at providing consumers with better information on the broadband services available to them and inform efforts to increase broadband availability nationwide. The State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program is a competitive, merit-based matching grant program that implements the joint purposes of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Broadband Data Improvement Act (BDIA). The Program will provide approximately $240 million in grants to assist states or their designees to develop state-specific data on the deployment levels and adoption rates of broadband services. These data, including publicly available state-wide broadband maps, will also be used to develop the comprehensive, interactive national broadband map that NTIA is required by the Recovery Act to create and make publicly available by February 17, 2011. The national broadband map will publicly display the geographic areas where broadband service is available; the technology used to provide the service; the speeds of the service; and broadband service availability at public schools, libraries, hospitals, colleges, universities, and public buildings. The national map will also be searchable by address, and broadband service providers will have the option to make their identity available. NTIA's grant awards can also include funding for state broadband planning. Planning projects may include, for example, efforts to identify barriers to broadband adoption in a state and creation of local technology planning teams. Awardees will be required to provide at least 20 percent non-federal matching funds toward project costs. While the BDIA mandates that each state may have only a single, eligible entity perform the mapping, each state's applicant will be carefully evaluated under the standards described in NTIA's Notice of Funds Availability. If an applicant does not meet the program standards, it will not receive funding and NTIA may perform the necessary broadband data collection.
http://benton.org/node/26242
Recommend this Headline
back to top


THE GOOD NEWS AND THE BAD NEWS IN THE STIMULUS NEWS
[SOURCE: PublicKnowledge, AUTHOR: Art Brodsky]
[Commentary] The rules of the road for the $7.2 billion broadband stimulus package hit a lot of high notes, putting public policy in favor of an open and non-discriminatory Internet front and center for projects that would bring the Internet to unserved and underserved areas. The mapping portion is more of a disappointment. On the bright side, the plan for the broadband map calls for a lot more detail than has been reported previously, if the confidentiality portions of the program don't ruin it. On the other side, the special-interest legislation that started the whole mapping craze has fulfilled its ultimate purpose. Sen Dick Durbin's (D-IL) legislation wasn't called the "Connect the Nation Act" for nothing. This was the bill that mandated that only non-profits could receive mapping grants ­ because Connected Nation, a group that exists to protect information submitted by telephone and cable companies, is a non-profit and wrote the bill. And it's wired deeply into many states. Our cautionary tale goes into it in more detail of how Durbin's bill became the gift that kept on giving. The challenge for the government now will be to rescue the data plan from the clutches of the people who want to game the system.
http://benton.org/node/26243
Recommend this Headline
back to top


FCC TO SEEK MORE PUBLIC INPUT ON BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski indicated that the FCC host national discussions across the country as well as online on the National Broadband Plan. The FCC is currently receiving written public comment through July 21; FCC must present the plan to Congress by Feb. 17, 2010.
http://benton.org/node/26244
Recommend this Headline
back to top


USDA BROADBAND PROGRAM EXEMPTED FROM "BUY AMERICAN", TOO
[SOURCE: Department of Agriculture, AUTHOR: ]
The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) is hereby granting a limited waiver of the Buy American requirements of ARRA Section 1605 with respect to certain broadband equipment that will be used in projects funded under the Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP). This action permits the use of certain essential components of a modern broadband infrastructure.
http://benton.org/node/26239
Recommend this Headline
back to top


FIRST LADY ANNOUNCES $851 MILLION IN GRANTS FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS
[SOURCE: HealthcareITNews, AUTHOR: Molly Merrill]
First Lady Michelle Obama announced the release of $851 million in grants to Community Health Centers. The Recovery Act Capital Improvement Program (CIP) grants will support the construction, repair and renovation of more than 1,500 health center sites nationwide. More than 650 centers will use the funds to purchase new equipment or health information technology systems, and nearly 400 health centers will adopt and expand the use of electronic health records.
http://benton.org/node/26231
Recommend this Headline
back to top

INTERNET/BROADBAND


CAN THE FREE MARKET PROVIDE BROADBAND FOR EVERYONE?
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Stacey Higginbotham]
[Commentary] Only 2 percent of the world lives in a country where broadband penetration has exceeded 80 percent, according to a report from TeleGeography. The report noted that worries over broadband saturation are really only appropriate in 10 countries out of the 127 the firm tracks, and the US isn't even one of those saturated markets. There are 36 countries where broadband providers serve less than 5 percent of the population. So while there's concern in the U.S. cable and telecommunications industries over growth in their fixed line businesses, what we really should be pondering is whether or not the low-hanging fruit of fixed-broadband access has been plucked, and if so, how do we get broadband to the rest of the world? The government can subsidize a wired infrastructure much like Australia's government is doing today with its $31 billion investment in fiber, or providers can focus on wireless if it's not cost-effective to build out wired broadband.
http://benton.org/node/26240
Recommend this Headline
back to top


A ROUNDTABLE ON THE END OF SCARCITY, OPEN ARCHITECTURE, AND THE FUTURE OF BROADBAND COMPETITION POLICY
[SOURCE: Information Technology & Information Foundation, AUTHOR: Robert Atkinson, Phil Weiser]
On May 5, 2009, the Silicon Flatirons Center and the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF) brought together leading individuals from the telecommunications industry, academia, and public interest community to discuss the state of broadband competition policy. The discussion touched on a number of topics, which fell under the broad questions of what policy goals should guide broadband policy and what institutional strategies are best positioned to advance them. The roundtable left three questions on the table for further discussion. First, as to the nature of broadband competition, the level of competition and the role of next generation wireless networks were questions about which the participants either remained uncertain or had different opinions. Second, the roundtable participants did not achieve consensus on the optimal nature of network management. Finally, there was no consensus on what strategy should be used to guarantee that broadband providers continue to provide robust and growing levels of basic best efforts access to the public Internet.
http://benton.org/node/26232
Recommend this Headline
back to top

CYBERSECURITY


DEFEND AMERICA, ONE LAPTOP AT A TIME
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jack Goldsmith]
[Commentary] Our economy, energy supply, means of transportation and military defenses are dependent on vast, interconnected computer and telecommunications networks. These networks are poorly defended and vulnerable to theft, disruption or destruction by foreign states, criminal organizations, individual hackers and, potentially, terrorists. Acknowledging such threats, President Obama recently declared that digital infrastructure is a "strategic national asset," the protection of which is a national security priority. One of many hurdles to meeting this goal is that the private sector owns and controls most of the networks the government must protect. This is a dangerous state of affairs, because the firms that build and run computer and communications networks focus on increasing profits, not protecting national security. They invest in levels of safety that satisfy their own purposes, and tend not to worry when they contribute to insecure networks that jeopardize national security. This is a classic market failure that only government leadership can correct.
http://benton.org/node/26250
Recommend this Headline
back to top

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS


CHINA'S "GREEN DAM" OVERFLOWS AND BURSTS
[SOURCE: The Huffington Post, AUTHOR: Leslie Harris]
[Commentary] Chinese Internet users won an important victory this week when the Chinese government indefinitely delayed implementation of the widely condemned "Green Dam" filtering mandate. For Internet and technology companies now facing censorship and surveillance demands around the world, the lesson out of China blows up the conventional wisdom that there is nothing that companies can do when China makes unreasonable demands that risk user rights. Instead of asking " how high" when told to "jump," the big lesson is that push back can work if companies are willing to collaborate on a strategy to resist such demands and if democratic governments are prepared to put their weight behind that resistance. The second piece of conventional wisdom that the Green Dam fiasco swept away was the view that the only Internet companies like Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft faced Internet human rights challenges and that the rest of the sector didn't have to think about these issues when entering new markets or launching new products services in risky places. Now, the broader technology industry surely understands that software and hardware manufacturers are at risk of becoming the target of repressive laws intended to limit users' online freedom.
http://benton.org/node/26229
Recommend this Headline
back to top


FEC WEB SITE AND INTERNET COMMUNICATIONS IMPROVEMENT INITIATIVE
[SOURCE: Federal Election Commission, AUTHOR: ]
The Federal Election Commission has adopted an initiative to seek public comment on how to improve all aspects of how the Commission discloses information to the public on its Web site and through the use of Internet communications. The FEC has never before sought formal public comment on the means by which the Commission discloses information to the public. As part of these efforts, the Commission is seeking written comments and will conduct a public hearing on ways the Commission can improve how it communicates to the public using the Internet and, specifically, how it can improve its Web site to ensure that the FEC Web site is a state-of-the-art resource for disclosure of information to the public including (1) disclosure of campaign finance data, (2) information about Federal campaign finance laws, and (3) the actions of the Commission. Comments must be received on or before July 21, 2009. A public hearing will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, July 29­30, 2009.
http://benton.org/node/26228
Recommend this Headline
back to top

PRIVACY


FACEBOOK TO OFFER NEW FEATURES TO ALLOW USERS TO CONTROL PRIVACY OF INFORMATION
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jenna Wortham]
Facebook's biggest asset — its population of more than 200 million users — is also part of its Achilles' heel. As more people join and connect with more people they know, the chances grow that one's embarrassing photographs from a night of carousing might be seen by the wrong person. To help remedy this, the company is testing new controls that will allow members to specify which groups or individuals are able to see each text update, photo or video they post on the site. For now the new features are available only to a limited number of users, but the company said it planned to provide them eventually to everyone on the site. The changes are part of Facebook's effort to simplify its privacy settings, which had ballooned to more than six pages and 40 different options. The company said that fewer than a quarter of its users regularly adjusted privacy settings, so it planned to condense them into a single, easy-to-navigate page.
http://benton.org/node/26249
Recommend this Headline
back to top


INDUSTRY TIGHTENS ITS STANDARDS FOR TRACKING WEB SURFERS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Stephanie Clifford]
In an effort to fend off federal regulation, major trade groups in the advertising industry have announced stricter guidelines on how their members use and collect online data. In a report to be released Thursday, a consortium of the trade groups intends to address a growing concern in Washington and among consumer advocates that people are being tracked too much online, with information about their Web surfing, shopping habits and overall interests being collected for advertising purposes. The report, "Self-Regulatory Principles for Online Behavioral Advertising," reflects several of the commission's suggestions from February. The principles are meant to go into effect in 2010, affecting the more than 5,000 companies that belong to the sponsoring organizations.
http://benton.org/node/26248
Recommend this Headline
back to top

JOURNALISM


DOES RACE PLAY A ROLE IN COVERAGE? BLACK REPORTERS ON THE BEAT OF MICHELLE OBAMA
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz]
[Commentary] A number of beat reporters following First Lady Michelle Obama are African American women. Perhaps this gives them a richer cultural understanding of Obama as a trailblazer. Indeed, most write with enthusiasm, in some cases even admiration, about the first lady as a long-awaited role model for black women. But if their bosses hoped these staffers would receive special access, some secret-handshake entry into the East Wing -- or even a casual wave at a health clinic -- they were mistaken, at least thus far. None of the beat writers has been granted an interview since the inauguration. Instead, they must piece together a mosaic from glimpses of Obama, who has a limited public schedule and a staff that fiercely guards her privacy and her image. Whether racial and gender identification produces a gauzier, more favorable portrayal of Obama is perhaps too early to judge. After all, no one raises questions when an Irish American male reporter covers a pol named Murphy. And with her carefully crafted focus on her children, affordable fashion and such reduced-fat apple pie issues as healthy eating, Obama has done little to warrant sharp criticism.
http://benton.org/node/26246
Recommend this Headline
back to top


IS TWITTER THE NEWS OUTLET FOR THE 21ST CENTURY?
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Jake Coyle]
The extraordinary amount of news coverage the mainstream media has recently devoted to Twitter has led some to think the press is in love with the 3-year-old microblogging service. But it's a jealous love. Twitter's constantly updating record of up-to-the-minute reaction has in some instances threatened to usurp media coverage of breaking news. It has also helped many celebrities, athletes and politicians bypass the media to get their message directly to their audience. Make no mistake about it, Twitter has in many ways been a boon to the media. It's one more way a story might go viral and it's arguably the best way for a news outlet to get closer to its readership. Most outlets now have a presence on Twitter with a feed directing readers to their Web sites. But even in an Internet world that has for years eroded the distance between media and consumer, Twitter is a jolt of democratization to journalism. To date, the most salient, powerful example of Twitter's influence has been Iranian protesters using the service (among many other methods) to assemble marches against what they feel has been an unjust election.
http://benton.org/node/26245
Recommend this Headline
back to top


GANNETT MEMO LAYS OUT 1400 LAYOFFS, RESTRUCTURING
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: ]
Newspaper publisher Gannett Co. plans to cut 1,400 jobs in the next few weeks, about 3 percent of the work force, as it faces a prolonged slump in advertising revenue. The move follows a 10 percent cut at Gannett last year.
http://benton.org/node/26233
Recommend this Headline
back to top

SPECTRUM


SENATE COMMERCE COMMITTEE TO MARKUP RADIO INVENTORY ACT NEXT WEEK
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate Commerce Committee has slated a July 8 markup for the Radio Spectrum Inventory Act. The bill was introduced by Communications Subcommittee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) back in March. It would give the FCC and National Telecommunications & Information Administration, which manages government spectrum, 180 days to report back to Congress with an inventory of the spectrum they manage and how it is being used. That would include how much unlicensed use is allowed, how much spectrum is being used in each band, including the TV and radio bands.
http://benton.org/node/26235
Recommend this Headline
back to top

© 1994-2026 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.