October 2010

Low-power FM stations show future of local radio

[Commentary] What if there were radio stations dedicated solely to serving a specific geographic community rather than the demands of national advertisers and network owners? Would we begin to rethink and reimagine radio's potential and possibilities?

An experiment in reimagining radio was unwittingly set in motion by the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which removed the cap on radio station ownership, produced a frenzy of consolidation and greatly accelerated the disappearance of local voices from our airwaves. The resulting backlash led to the licensing of low-power FM (LPFM) radio stations in 2000, despite strong opposition from commercial broadcasters and NPR, which argued that LPFM stations would interfere with full-power stations. The Local Community Radio Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives last December on a voice vote. With broad bipartisan support, LCRA may be one of the few bills that a highly polarized U.S. Senate can pass in a postelection, lame-duck session. The bill removes constraints imposed on LPFM by network lobbyists and will allow many more Americans to hear for themselves the reimagining of radio.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation to work on universal high-speed broadband

With the eighth Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum set for the coming weekend, all 21 of its economies are expected to focus on almost universal high-speed broadband by 2020. The meeting is due to set a target for all member regions to roll out ultra-fast broadband such as fiber-optics and next generation wireless. Currently there's a digital divide, reports Nikkei, where countries such as Japan and South Korea enjoy wide broadband usage but places like Thailand were only at 1.5 percent usage as of 2008. APEC will be working with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to quicken the installation and operation of networks which will extend the reach of broadband.

German government aims for 75% coverage of 50Mbps broadband by 2014

The German government plans to provide three quarters of the country's households with high speed broadband by 2014.

Under the 'Deutschland Digital 2015' IT strategy - the second phase of its 'National Broadband Strategy' published in February 2009 - at least 75% of households will be provided with broadband at speeds of up at least 50Mbps within four years, while the government estimates that around 30,000 new jobs in the IT and telecommunications industry will be created within the next five years.

Why Broadband Changes Everything

The slow and steady increase in broadband speeds means we are using the Internet more often for more things.

Statistical proof of this trend came via the latest edition of Cisco Systems Visual Networking Index (VNI) Study. According to the study, the average broadband connection is now generating 14.9 GB of Internet traffic per month, up 31 percent from last year when it was 11.4 GB per month. And while a majority of this traffic is coming from online video -- streaming not P2P -- the trends show that we are using the Internet for more than just that. Give us more speed and we will use it all. And then we'll want more of it. Communication services such as Skype only increase the daily usage of the Internet. Add to the mix addictive sites like Facebook, Zynga and Groupon, and you can see that the Internet is becoming deeply embedded in our lives.

There is an interesting dynamic of the web -- the peak traffic -- that is equivalent of prime time on television. Peak-hour Internet traffic is 72 percent higher than Internet traffic during an average hour. In an average day, Internet "prime time" ranges from approximately 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. (for the local time zone) around the world.

FCC to Cablevision: Start negotiating

Cablevision's hopes for Federal Communications Commission intervention in its standoff with Fox over station carriage have dimmed after a senior FCC official weighed in with a blunt message for the cable giant: "Stop the stunts and start negotiating."

"They should spend less time writing publicity-seeking letters to the FCC, and more time at the negotiating table reaching an agreement," a senior FCC official said late Tuesday. "Consumers deserve no less and the law demands it. That's the only way to get programming back on the air. By now the message from the FCC should be crystal clear: Stop the stunts and start negotiating."

TV networks want fair payment from cable, Web TV

The entertainment chiefs of five major U.S. television networks said they need to be fairly compensated if their shows are retransmitted on cable or Google Inc's Web TV, calling it a key industry issue.

"Everyone of these businesses is building these services out on our product," Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly said about devices like Google TV. Reilly called the issue of retransmission fees "probably among the most important" facing network TV, saying it was crucial "to get fairly compensated for the programs we make."

Comcast's Roberts: The Set-Top Box Isn't Going To Disappear

Aside from the poor economy hanging over consumers' heads, Comcast is facing greater competition than AT&T and Verizon. A small number of customers appear to be cutting the cord as well and "going over the air," said Brian Roberts, the company's CEO, during the company's earnings call. In addition to the fact that the number of digital video service subs fell 52 percent in the quarter, the costs related to the pending NBC Universal deal also pushed profits down. But as Roberts noted during the call, with the NBCU financing done, and the number of subs inching up over the latter part of Q3, things were starting to look up. He also noted that, despite its own advancements in the "TV Everywhere" concept, the company expected to rely on the set-top box for a long time to come. As retransmission consent disputes between programmers and distributors have escalated in recent months, Roberts said that the pending joint venture with NBC Universal could have a calming influence on what have been increasingly nasty negotiations.

Those Bits Aren't Free: Netflix Could Be Racking Up a $2 Billion Content Tab

Investors are cheering on Netflix as it moves from DVDs to streaming video, and keeps adding customers along the way. But "digital" doesn't equal "cheap." In fact, the online move has cost Netflix at least $1.2 billion.

That's the amount the Netflix has committed to paying Hollywood studios for the rights to stream their movies and TV shows. And it's up from $229 million three months ago. The magic of the Netflix Web model, though, is that as people consume more on the Web, they cut back on discs.

Google Privacy Probe Dropped by FTC After Assurances

The Federal Trade Commission ended its investigation of Google's collection of data over unsecured wireless networks after the company said it will improve privacy safeguards in its Street View mapping project.

The agency said the company also agreed not to use the data, according to a letter from David Vladeck, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, to Albert Gidari, a lawyer for Google. The company's pledge not to include the information in any Google products "is critical to mitigate the potential harm to consumers from the collection of payload data," Vladeck wrote. "Because of these commitments, we are ending our inquiry into this matter."

Starting in 2011, FTC Will Require EnergyGuide Labels for Televisions

Televisions manufactured after May 10, 2011 must display EnergyGuide labels so consumers shopping for TVs will have more information about different models and how much energy they use.

A recent amendment to the Federal Trade Commission's Appliance Labeling Rule will require the familiar yellow-and-black labels on new TVs. The labels, which have long appeared on home appliances such as washing machines and refrigerators, will provide useful information for TVs, such as estimated yearly energy cost and the cost range compared to other similar models.

The FTC is requiring a label with two main disclosures on new TVs: first, the television's estimated annual energy cost; and second, a comparison with the annual energy cost of other televisions with similar screen sizes.

The final rule requires that the new labels be visible from the front of the televisions. Manufacturers can use either a triangular label or a rectangular label. Beginning in July 11, 2011, the amended rule will require websites that sell televisions to display an image of the full EnergyGuide label. Additional examples of the new labels can be found on the FTC's website.

Benton

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