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  2. September 2010

September 2010

Senator Hopes for a Vote on Cybersecurity Measure Before Elections

The Senate is considering attaching cybersecurity legislation to a key defense authorization bill as a way to assure passage this year of the measure to reform the way the government safeguards its computer networks and that of key national IT systems, Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Deleware) said.

"It's hard to get a measure like cybersecurity legislation passed on its own," said Sen Carper, who chairs a Senate subcommittee with cybersecurity oversight. Sen Carper said that backers would seek to add cybersecurity provisions to a bill that's likely to pass, such as the National Defense Authorization Act, which likely would be passed before the fall midterm elections. Besides, he said, cybersecurity is a component of national security. "That is a place that makes a lot of sense."

Another reason Sen Carper said he believes the Senate may consider the cybersecurity legislation as part of the defense authorization bill is that the chairman and ranking minority member of the Armed Services Committee -- Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI) and John McCain (R-AZ) -- also serve on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where a major piece of the cybersecurity legislation emanates. Sen McCain also serves as the ranking Republican on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management.

Defense official discloses cyberattack

Now it is official: The most significant breach of U.S. military computers was caused by a flash drive inserted into a U.S. military laptop on a post in the Middle East in 2008.

Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III says malicious code placed on the drive by a foreign intelligence agency uploaded itself onto a network run by the U.S. Central Command. "That code spread undetected on both classified and unclassified systems, establishing what amounted to a digital beachhead, from which data could be transferred to servers under foreign control," he said. "It was a network administrator's worst fear: a rogue program operating silently, poised to deliver operational plans into the hands of an unknown adversary." Lynn's decision to declassify an incident that Defense officials had kept secret reflects the Pentagon's desire to raise congressional and public concern over the threats facing U.S. computer systems, experts said.

Germany Plans to Limit Facebook Use in Hiring

As part of the draft of a law governing workplace privacy, the German government on August 25 proposed new restrictions on employers' use of Facebook profiles when recruiting. The proposed law would allow managers to search for publicly accessible information about prospective employees on the Web and to view their pages on job-networking sites, like LinkedIn or Xing, but would draw the line at purely social-networking sites like Facebook, said Philipp Spauschus, a spokesman for the Interior Minister, Thomas de Maizière. Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet gave its backing to the proposed law Wednesday. The bill will now go to Parliament for discussion, and could be passed as early as this year, Mr. Spauschus said.

September 2, 2010 (FCC Asks for more Input on Network Neutrality)

Secretary Gary Locke Hosts the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship today

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2010

More top stories from last week. Here's articles from Aug 24 http://bit.ly/dAJYKT


AGENDA
   When Congress returns, expect the worst

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
   FCC Asks for more Input on Network Neutrality
   Reaction to FCC's Network Neutrality Notice
   Markey Calls For Hill Bill Or 'Third Way'
   Ensign Responds to Net Neutrality Proceedings
   Copps Displays FCC Leadership

INTERNET/BROADBAND
   Genachowski Criticized for Slow Movement on National Broadband Plan
   M2Z: FCC Closes Door On Free Broadband Proposal
   Latinos Online 2010
   Stimulating Competitive Disadvantages in Broadband
   BRICs, Indonesia to Double Internet Use, Report Says
   National Broadband Plan Translations Released

CYBERSECURITY
   Lawmakers frustrated by Internet "kill switch" reports

HEALTH
   White House To Meet With ICANN On Illegal Online Pharmacies

OWNERSHIP
   Sports: just the most obvious indicator
   ACA Unveils Specific Comcast-NBCU Conditions

TELEVISION
   Apple Tries Again at TV
   Paying for Video Description

MEDIA & ELECTIONS
   Women's groups target sexism in campaigns

STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:

   India to Monitor Google and Skype
   China demands ID from all buyers of mobile phone numbers
   CTIA Effort To Boost Text Campaigns In Latin America

MORE ONLINE
   Judge Rules News Station Is Immune From 'Cyber Libel' Resulting From Commenters
   Suing Silicon Valley
   FTC Subpoenas 48 Food Companies Regarding Marketing to Kids

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AGENDA

WHEN CONGRESS RETURNS...
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Ross Baker]
[Commentary] As Congress reconvenes next week after its August recess, the floor speeches and votes of the senators and House members will have more to do with the upcoming congressional elections than they do simply with the substance of public policy. The ferocity of the debate will reflect the stakes involved — which is control of Congress after the November elections. On some issues there might be token bipartisan cooperation. A tax bill that benefits small business is likely to pass the Senate with some GOP support because no group stands taller in the eyes of both parties than small businesses, revered as the indispensable job creators. Aside from these tiny truces in this polarized political world, though, lawmakers know too well that trading with the enemy — except for small trinkets — will attract fire, not praise. Americans, brace yourselves. For the political fireworks and rhetoric that have been exploding at rallies and fundraisers across the country will shift seamlessly into the House and Senate chambers in the days ahead. [Ross K. Baker is a political science professor at Rutgers University]
benton.org/node/41333 | USAToday
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NETWORK NEUTRALITY

FCC ASKS FOR MORE NET NEUTRALITY INPUT
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
The Federal Communications Commission has released a Public Notice seeking further input in its Network Neutrality/Open Internet proceeding. The Notice focuses on two issues. The first is the relationship between open Internet protections and services that are provided over the same last-mile facilities as broadband Internet access service (commonly called "managed" or "specialized" services). The second is the application of open Internet rules to mobile wireless Internet access services, which have unique characteristics related to technology, associated application and device markets, and consumer usage. The FCC's original Notice of Proposed Rulemaking raised both of these issues but addressed them in less detail than many other issues, and the FCC's analysis, it now says, would benefit from further development of these issues in the record. The FCC will soon public the Public Notice in the Federal Register and comments will be due 30 days thereafter. That will be followed by a 55 day period in which interested parties can review the docket and offer reply comments. With 62 days between Sept 1 and the November 2 election, the FCC has delayed a decision in the proceeding launched last October until we know the make-up of the next Congress.
FCC Chairman Genachowski said, "Recent events have highlighted questions on how open Internet rules should apply to 'specialized' services and to mobile broadband -- what framework will guarantee Internet freedom and openness, and maximize private investment and innovation. As we've seen, the issues are complex, and the details matter. Even a proposal for enforceable rules can be flawed in its specifics and risk undermining the fundamental goal of preserving the open Internet."
benton.org/node/41307 | Federal Communications Commission | Chairman Genachowski | The Hill | CongressDaily | CongressDaily
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COPPS DISPLAYS FCC LEADERSHIP
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Art Brodsky]
[Commentary] Federal Communications Commission member Michael Copps has managed the art of saying much in a few words. His latest salvo came in a 245-word letter to the editor in the Washington Post, in which he not only savaged yet another misbegotten Washington Post editorial about Internet policy, but also took on the Verizon-Google joint policy "recommendation" and then noted the cruel reality of the agency to which he has devoted almost nine years of his professional career. He, and others, recognize that this is a unique time in the history of the FCC, and perhaps of regulation and politics. It happens from time to time in Congress that a legislator will vote against a bill that he or she has introduced, usually after an amendment has been added that drastically changes the bill, or in the case of some shift in the political dynamic. Today's situation is much different. It is normal for an FCC chairman to have to work from time to time, sometimes for tedious negotiations and edits with fellow commissioners, to gain a majority vote for an item the chairman wants. Now, however, two FCC commissioners of the chairman's party are ready, willing and able to vote to approve an item proposed by the FCC Chairman, who is, in essence, his own swing vote.
benton.org/node/41318 | Public Knowledge
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

GENACHOWSKI CRITICIZED FOR SLOW MOVEMENT ON NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
[SOURCE: CommunicationsDaily, AUTHOR: Howard Buskirk, Jonathan Make]
Critics say that Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski is not moving fast enough on implementing recommendations included in the National Broadband Plan. The massive plan calls for action on a host of items before October, including a TV white spaces opinion and order, a public safety broadband order and rulemaking notices about broadcast spectrum, dynamic spectrum access, special access, and Lifeline flexibility. Much of the FCC's attention since release of the report has been on network neutrality and reclassify broadband transmission as a common carrier service under Title II of the Communications Act. "The commission is moving apace on a few issues like spectrum policy, where it has clear authority," said Michael Calabrese, vice president at the New America Foundation. "However, the uncertainty surrounding the FCC's authority to regulate Internet access providers has created an enormous bottleneck that threatens progress on the National Broadband Plan overall. The chairman needs to remember he leads an independent regulatory agency and stop looking over his shoulder to Congress and the White House for permission to regulate."
benton.org/node/41313 | CommunicationsDaily
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M2Z PLAN DEAD
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
M2Z Networks, which has been proposing a free, nationwide wireless broadband service, says the Federal Communications Commission has informed it that it has terminated its AWS-3 "public interest" rulemaking, thus putting the kibosh on M2Z's petition to create the service. Former FCC Chairman Kevin Martin had proposed that an auction of the advanced wireless services (AWS) spectrum include a condition that some of it be used for a free lifeline broadband service. But there was pushback, including from the Bush administration, that such a condition would discourage bidders. In its national broadband plan, the FCC proposed going ahead with the AWS-3 spectrum auction as part of an effort to free up 500 Mhz of spectrum for commercial wireless broadband. "We gave careful and thorough consideration to the proposal, but ultimately determined that this was not the best policy outcome," said Wireless Bureau Chief Ruth Milkman. "We remain vigilant in our efforts to facilitate the universal deployment and adoption of broadband, especially through the much-needed reform to the Universal Service Fund." "A new nationwide broadband entrant that provided a free broadband service would have created tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs throughout the country while giving all Americans an equal opportunity to participate in the digital economy," said M2Z CEO John Muleta in response to the FCC move.
benton.org/node/41305 | Broadcasting&Cable
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LATINOS ONLINE
[SOURCE: Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, AUTHOR: Susannah Fox]
The Pew Hispanic Center has found that technology use among foreign-born Latinos continues to lag significantly behind that of their U.S.-born counterparts. Their report, The Latino Digital Divide: The Native Born versus The Foreign Born, shows that the nativity differences are especially pronounced when it comes to Internet use. While 85% of native-born Latinos ages 16 and older go online, only about half (51%) of foreign-born Latinos do so. When it comes to cell phones, 80% of native-born Latinos use one, compared with 72% of the foreign born. In another recent report, How Young Latinos Communicate with Friends in the Digital Age, the Pew Hispanic Project found that, when it comes to socializing and communicating with friends, young Latinos (ages 16 to 25) make extensive use of mobile technology. Half say they text message (50%) their friends daily, and 45% say they talk daily with friends on a cell phone. Other communication platforms are less widely used for socializing. For example, fewer than one-in-five young Latinos (18%) say they talk daily with their friends on a landline or home phone, and just 10% say they email their friends daily.
benton.org/node/41315 | Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project
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STIMULATING COMPETITIVE DISADVANTAGE
[SOURCE: Heritage Foundation, AUTHOR: Diane Katz]
[Commentary] Federal officials failed to determine whether targeted communities for broadband stimulus funding actually lack Internet service options. In a number of cases, in fact, the government subsidies will put existing private service providers at a competitive disadvantage. Some $2.2 billion has already been allocated by the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture to enhance broadband services in "unserved" and "underserved" areas. (The balance of $7.2 billion is scheduled to be awarded by September 30.) But according to a newly released report by the Government Accountability Office, program officials "lack detailed data on the availability of broadband service throughout the country, making it difficult to determine whether a proposed service area is unserved or underserved." This disregard for the private sector is all too reminiscent of the municipal broadband craze that swept the country earlier this decade. Dozens of local governments hatched plans to build and operate broadband networks or develop broadband infrastructure for wholesale lease to commercial service providers. But as they lacked the expertise and flexibility of the private sector, the results weren't pretty. Many of the projects were never completed, while others saddled taxpayers with unwelcome debt. Proponents contend that the broadband subsidies will stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and alleviate computer illiteracy. But that won't happen if, in the process, the subsidized services undermine private sector investment. If public officials are so intent on promoting broadband, the far better alternative is to reduce the tax and regulatory barriers that inhibit universal deployment.
benton.org/node/41314 | Heritage Foundation | GAO
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INTERNET AND EMERGING ECONOMIES
[SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Crayton Harrison, Mark Lee]
Brazil, Russia, India, China and Indonesia will double their Internet users to 1.2 billion by 2015, fueling growth at media companies and phone carriers, according to Boston Consulting Group. The countries will have three times the Internet users of the U.S. and Japan combined by then, up from about two times at the end of 2009. Personal computers will double in the five countries to more than 920 million, and mobile phones with Internet access will aid growth, according to the report. As consumers gain more access to the Net, they'll spend more time online, providing a boon to entertainment providers, Boston Consulting Group said. The surge in Web use will benefit media companies such as China's Tencent Holdings Ltd. and phone carriers including PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia, analysts said.
benton.org/node/41325 | Bloomberg
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NBP TRANSLATIONS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Phoebe Yang]
The Federal Communications Commission released translations of the National Broadband Plan's Executive Summary in six Asian and Pacific Islander languages -- Chinese (Simplified), Thai, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog (no relation), and Samoan. These translations represent an early step ­ but not our last step ­ in our efforts to reach out to AAPI populations about the power of broadband. Yesterday, the two of us were in Los Angeles, holding an outreach event in partnership with the California Public Utilities Commission, the Office of the California CIO, and the Asian-Pacific Chamber of Commerce, and talking to a crowd of community based organizations, small business owners, and consumers about what they can do to help bring broadband to all members of the Los Angeles community. We look forward to working with the Asian American community to make broadband access a reality for all Americans.
benton.org/node/41324 | Federal Communications Commission
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CYBERSECURITY

INTERNET KILL SWITCH
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Gautham Nagesh]
Lawmakers seeking to craft a comprehensive cybersecurity bill are growing increasingly frustrated with characterizations of their legislative efforts as providing the president with a "kill switch" for the Internet. The Senate Homeland Security Committee approved a comprehensive cybersecurity bill in June, only to have it repeatedly criticized in the media as providing the president with the authority to shut down portions of the Internet in the event of an emergency. At the time, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), one of the bill's sponsors, said she was frustrated by what she views as a mischaracterization of the bill. At the heart of the issue is whether the president already has the authority to intervene in private-sector networks in the event of such an emergency. Sen Collins and other supporters of the bill contend the president has had that authority for some time under a little-known provision of the Communications Act passed one month after the December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
benton.org/node/41326 | Hill, The
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HEALTH

CRACKING DOWN ON ONLINE PHARMACIES
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Juliana Gruenwald]
The White House has called a meeting for later this month with the group that manages the Internet's domain name system to discuss ways to crack down on illegal online pharmacies. The meeting with officials from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers will take place Sept. 29 with White House Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator Victoria Espinel and other White House and agency officials, a spokeswoman for the White House Office of Management and Budget confirmed. An ICANN spokesman said he didn't know which ICANN official would be attending the White House meeting yet. The White House also invited ICANN-accredited registrars, firms that sell domain name registrations to the public, and registries, the companies and groups that operate the databases of each domain name such as .org or .com, to attend the meeting. ICANN has been criticized for not doing enough to crack down on registrars who provide domain name registrations to Web sites that sell fake or stolen drugs without a prescription.
benton.org/node/41321 | CongressDaily
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OWNERSHIP

SPORTS PROGRAMING AND COMCAST-NBC
[SOURCE: Susan Crawford blog, AUTHOR: Susan Crawford]
[Commentary] You can't overstate the amount of fear most people have in dealing with the giant cable networks. Programmers are terrified. In particular, Comcast remembers and holds on to grievances. Programmers may even be unwilling to speak to the Department of Justice, because there's a risk the information they give about Comcast's practices will leak over to the Federal Communications Commission and become public. Comcast does not forget. This isn't just a squabble about tiering and channeling. It's not even, really, a tussle over contractual terms of carriage. Nor is this a story about regulating the "speech" of Comcast - although they would undoubtedly claim that it is. This is much a deeper issue. When Comcast controls a dominant pipe into the home for all communications - voice, data, entertainment, interaction, you name it - in the areas in which it operates, it will be able to decide what goes quickly, what goes slowly, and how much Comcast gets paid for everything that passes over its lines. That's enormous power. And if Comcast can keep rivals small so that they can't constrain Comcast's pricing power, there will be nothing stopping prices for its services from creeping steadily -- even if slowly -- upwards. Much of this power already exists. Comcast has 61% of the Chicago market; 63% of Philadelphia; 58% of San Francisco; 59% of Miami. This power will be increased by the addition of NBCU content -- particularly sports content.
benton.org/node/41317 | Susan Crawford blog
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TELEVISION

APPLE TV
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Yukari Iwatani Kane, Shira Ovide]
Apple Inc. is making another push to bring Internet-delivered television to the living room, but Chief Executive Steve Jobs's plan to offer 99-cent TV-show rentals is getting limited support from media companies. In four years, Apple has made little headway with its Apple TV, a $229 device with a hard drive for storing movies and other purchased content. On Wednesday, Apple introduced a $99 replacement that relies on streaming rented movies and TV shows. The 99-cent rentals will be limited to a selection of shows from Fox, ABC, ABC Family, Disney Channel and BBC America. General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal, Time Warner Inc. and CBS Corp., turned down Apple's new pricing options and don't expect to sign up for TV-show rentals as currently configured. Episodes would be available starting the day after they air, and without commercials. Only hours later, Amazon.com Inc. matched Apple's price for TV shows from ABC, Fox and the BBC. Its 99-cent streaming-video offering includes more than 260 shows.
benton.org/node/41332 | Wall Street Journal | WSJ - Netflix | FT | WashPost
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PAYING FOR VIDEO DESCRIPTION
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Kim McAvoy]
Legislation moving through Congress would require the Big Four broadcast networks and their affiliates in the top 25 markets to provide four hours per week of primetime and children's programming with video descriptions which aids viewing for the visually impaired. The numbers rise over time, to seven hours after four years and the top 60 markets after six years. After 10 years, the FCC would be authorized to extend video description duties to up to 10 additional markets each year until all 210 markets are covered. (The tougher House bill would require all stations to offer descriptions after six years.) The legislation also require local TV broadcasters to make emergency crawls audible to the blind in the top 60 DMAs, but would otherwise exempt live or near-live programming. The nation's top five cable TV networks would also have to provide the service. Video descriptions enhance programming for the nation's 25 million blind and visually impaired by describing characters and action between the dialog in programming. Just like foreign-language soundtracks, descriptions constitute their own audio channel. Advocates for the blind have been fighting for descriptions for years and they thought they had won the battle in 2000 when the FCC adopted rules similar to the pending legislation. But the parties that would have had borne the cost of the service -- broadcasters and program producers -- challenged the FCC's authority to mandate it. A federal appeals court agreed and threw out the rules in 2002. With the exception of CBS, commercial broadcasters have mostly failed to provide descriptions on a voluntary basis.
benton.org/node/41304 | TVNewsCheck
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MEDIA & ELECTIONS

SEXISM IN ELECTIONS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Krissah Thompson]
The list includes the radio talk show host who called a female senator a "prostitute" for cutting a deal to benefit her state, the male challenger who referred to his female rival "attractive" and "probably a good mother," and the TV host who noted that the candidate's wife looked like an angry woman. Those comments and others have been collected by a group of advocates for women running for office who are monitoring what they consider a "highly toxic" media environment that makes it difficult for female candidates. The effort to track sexist comments and put pressure on advertisers that help bankroll the media figures responsible for some of the remarks comes as women campaign in several high-profile races this year, including for governorships in South Carolina and California as well as Senate seats.
benton.org/node/41331 | Washington Post
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:


INDIA TO MONITOR GOOGLE AND SKYPE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Prasanta Sahu, Romit Guha]
India on September 1 expanded its drive to monitor Internet and telecommunication networks for security threats. The government said all communication-services providers operating in India, including Google Inc. and Skype Technologies SA, will need to open up their data within two months to be scrutinized regularly to ensure national security. "They have to install servers in the country," said federal Home Secretary G.K. Pillai, referring to the communications companies. Servers in India will enable local agencies to monitor the services. The latest move comes two days after Research In Motion Ltd. of Canada averted a ban in India by offering technical solutions to monitor its heavily encrypted BlackBerry services.
benton.org/node/41312 | Wall Street Journal
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CHINA DEMANDS ID FOR CELL PHONES
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: ]
China began requiring identification from anyone buying a new mobile phone number today in what it says is a bid to stamp out junk messages. But critics say the move gives the government a new tool for monitoring its citizens. The rules apply to everyone, including foreigners visiting the country for a short stay. The regulation is the latest campaign by the government to curb spam, pornographic messages and fraud on cellular phones. The ID requirement is raising new privacy concerns and is likely to upset some customers unwilling to give out personal information for fear it will be.
benton.org/node/41303 | Associated Press
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When Congress returns, expect the worst

[Commentary] As Congress reconvenes next week after its August recess, the floor speeches and votes of the senators and House members will have more to do with the upcoming congressional elections than they do simply with the substance of public policy.

The ferocity of the debate will reflect the stakes involved — which is control of Congress after the November elections. On some issues there might be token bipartisan cooperation. A tax bill that benefits small business is likely to pass the Senate with some GOP support because no group stands taller in the eyes of both parties than small businesses, revered as the indispensable job creators. Aside from these tiny truces in this polarized political world, though, lawmakers know too well that trading with the enemy — except for small trinkets — will attract fire, not praise. Americans, brace yourselves. For the political fireworks and rhetoric that have been exploding at rallies and fundraisers across the country will shift seamlessly into the House and Senate chambers in the days ahead. [Ross K. Baker is a political science professor at Rutgers University]

Apple Tries Again at TV

Apple is making another push to bring Internet-delivered television to the living room, but Chief Executive Steve Jobs's plan to offer 99-cent TV-show rentals is getting limited support from media companies.

In four years, Apple has made little headway with its Apple TV, a $229 device with a hard drive for storing movies and other purchased content. On Wednesday, Apple introduced a $99 replacement that relies on streaming rented movies and TV shows. The 99-cent rentals will be limited to a selection of shows from Fox, ABC, ABC Family, Disney Channel and BBC America. General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal, Time Warner Inc. and CBS Corp., turned down Apple's new pricing options and don't expect to sign up for TV-show rentals as currently configured. Episodes would be available starting the day after they air, and without commercials. Only hours later, Amazon.com Inc. matched Apple's price for TV shows from ABC, Fox and the BBC. Its 99-cent streaming-video offering includes more than 260 shows.

Women's groups target sexism in campaigns

The list includes the radio talk show host who called a female senator a "prostitute" for cutting a deal to benefit her state, the male challenger who referred to his female rival "attractive" and "probably a good mother," and the TV host who noted that the candidate's wife looked like an angry woman. Those comments and others have been collected by a group of advocates for women running for office who are monitoring what they consider a "highly toxic" media environment that makes it difficult for female candidates. The effort to track sexist comments and put pressure on advertisers that help bankroll the media figures responsible for some of the remarks comes as women campaign in several high-profile races this year, including for governorships in South Carolina and California as well as Senate seats.

Suing Silicon Valley

[Commentary] Paul Allen became a billionaire by co-founding Microsoft, whose software dominates the personal computer industry. Now Allen is seeking to expand that fortune by suing some of Silicon Valley's biggest companies, which he accuses of violating heretofore unheard-of patents on some core Internet technologies. The sad thing about the case is that it's not unusual; a whole industry has developed around these battles. Many of the largest U.S. technology firms have urged Congress to end patent shakedowns. Their proposed solutions, however, have been resisted by pharmaceutical companies and honest-to-goodness inventors whose interests are protected, albeit imperfectly, by the current system. Congress should be able to resolve these issues without reducing the incentives for inventors that patents were supposed to safeguard. A good starting point would be to give the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office the resources needed to examine patent applications more thoroughly. If not, we hope the courts will continue to restore balance to the patent system case by case.

FTC Subpoenas 48 Food Companies Regarding Marketing to Kids

The Federal Trade Commission is once again handing out subpoenas to companies that market food to children and teens. Three years after initially delivering what is technically known as "orders to file special report" to 44 marketers, the FTC last week began sending subpoenas to 48 companies in order to prepare a follow-up to its 120-page report issued in 2008, "Marketing Food to Children and Adolescents: A Review of Industry Expenditures, Activities and Self-Regulation."

"This is a follow-up to measure the effects that self-regulation has had over the last three years," said Carol Jennings, spokeswoman for the FTC's Division of Advertising Practices/Bureau of Consumer Protection. "We are supportive of industry voluntary efforts to limit their marketing to kids and this will see whether more is needed."

Markey Calls For Hill Bill Or 'Third Way'

On September 1, Rep Ed Markey (D-MA) registered his concerns about allowing what he called "discriminatory fast lanes" and said that excluding mobile broadband from an open Internet framework could "widen the digital divide."

He said that if Congress does not step in "this month" with a legislative fix, the Federal Communications Commission should go ahead and reclassify broadband under some Title II common carrier regs, the so-called "Third way" proposal by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

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