October 2012

Wi-Fi’s annoying little secret: Not all Wi-Fi is created equal

As Wi-Fi expands into ever more unlikely places such as planes or trains, consumers are hopping online and then hopping off in irritation because the connection is expensive and it sucks. The problem is all Wi-Fi is not equal, and the industry and providers of Wi-Fi networks have so far done a poor job trying to explain that to the average consumer. That has to change, and the Wi-Fi Alliance’s Sarah Morris, a senior marketing manager, says the organization’s members are thinking about the problem.

She told me that most of the organization’s service provider members are focused on it because they are offering carrier-supported networks to offload traffic from the cellular networks, and they need the experience to be good because it’s part of the service they offer. Companies like AT&T, Cablevision and Time Warner Cable are used to proving access technologies. But what about hotels, doctor’s offices or shopping malls? In some cases they might contract with a service provider and let them worry about the network, but in others consumers are left to stew. While I can’t improve everyone’s Wi-Fi experience outside of their home or office, I can offer some insights about the technology that might explain why your Wi-Fi is wimping out.

Can Romney close the digital divide?

Mitt Romney’s 120-member digital team has a seat in “the Gov’s” inner circle to push targeted ads on Facebook, Google and Twitter, to build mobile apps and to accept text-based donations, but even GOP operatives say they haven’t closed the digital divide with Barack Obama’s tech machine.

The Obama campaign has spent $47 million on online ads so far, compared to Romney's $4.7 million, according to election filings. The president’s mobile app lets volunteers get lists of homes in their neighborhood that need lawn signs and banners, while Romney’s provides press releases and upcoming events. The Obama camp consistently scores digital “firsts,” such as geotargeting direct messages via Twitter this week. Within minutes of Obama's "horses and bayonets" zinger at the last debate, the campaign had posted video of it on YouTube. Thus, as a tight race winds down and questions remain as to just how decisive a digital campaign is in the end, Romney’s tech operation nonetheless is charged with helping turn momentum into votes. It’s long been assumed that the digital advantage goes to the Obama campaign, which has spent more money, hired more tech staff and developed an in-house voter database that’s rumored to be a game-changer in politics. Still, Romney’s staff contends they have the right stuff.

The Much-Needed and Sane Congressional Office That Gingrich Killed Off and We Need Back

On October 13, 1972, in an act of bipartisanship and scientific literacy that we would be shocked to see come out of Congress today, the Technology Assessment Act was put into law. This act created the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), an organization responsible for providing Congress with authoritative and unbiased reports on a wide range of present and emerging issues in science and technology.

When the OTA was established we were rocketing into, well, space, but also into an age of ubiquitous, pervasive, fast-growing, and complex technologies that simultaneously promised us great benefits and great risks. Throughout its existence it released over 750 studies on an impressive range of topics like the environment (acid rain, climate change, and resource use), national security (technology transfer to China and bioterrorism), health (disease and medical-waste management), and social issues (workplace automation and how technology affects certain social groups). However, regardless of the OTA's pragmatic style, attention to societal impact, and the international praise lauded on its thorough and accessible reports, the 1980 book Fat City: How Washington Waste Your Taxes argued that the OTA was redundant and unnecessary. This signaled the beginning of its long, politically-charged dirge. In 1995 came OTA’s final death knell when it was placed on the Gingrich Republican's altar of slashed budgets.

Comcast Profit Surges After NBC Comeback, Asset Sales

Comcast, the largest U.S. cable company and the majority owner of NBC, said third-quarter profit more than doubled, boosted by advertising revenue, the sale of assets and fewer subscriber losses.

Net income climbed to $2.11 billion, or 78 cents a share, from $908 million, or 33 cents, a year earlier. Excluding some one-time gains, profit was 46 cents a share, in line with the average analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg. Sales rose 15 percent to $16.5 billion, beating the average estimate of $16.1 billion. Comcast has upgraded its video services and broadband speeds and produced ratings gains at the once-struggling NBC, which drew more viewers age 18 to 49 in the first few weeks of the new season. A revival of the network would help Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Brian Roberts capitalize on his $13.8 billion gamble on NBC Universal. NBC’s rights to televise the London Olympics in the U.S. helped the broadcaster double its ad revenue in the quarter to almost $2 billion. Comcast also is benefiting from the sale of assets, such as a stake in A&E Networks that it agreed to sell for $3.03 billion. That deal added 12 cents a share to earnings in the quarter, Comcast said. A sale of wireless spectrum to Verizon Wireless generated 20 cents a share in the period. In that transaction, Verizon agreed to pay $3.6 billion for airwaves from a group of cable companies led by Comcast. The deal won government clearance in August.

Random House and Penguin Are Negotiating a Merger

In an effort to stave off the challenge from online retailers in a rapidly changing market, two of the world’s largest book publishers, Random House and Penguin, are engaged in talks to combine their businesses.

Pearson, the British media conglomerate that owns Penguin, said that it was discussing a potential deal with Random House’s owner, Bertelsmann of Germany. The merger, if completed, would create a combined entity that would control nearly 25 percent of the United States book market and feature an elite roster of authors like Dan Brown, Toni Morrison and John Grisham of Random House and Junot Diaz and Patricia Cornwell of Penguin. The potential consolidation comes as traditional publishers try to compete with dominant technology companies like Amazon, Apple and Google that have gained power in the e-book market. Lower prices offered by retailers like Amazon have put pressure on publishers to adjust their digital book strategy at a time when brick-and-mortar stores have been disappearing. A deal could signal a move toward further consolidation among the major publishers, much the way the music industry realigned itself as it made the painful transition to the digital marketplace.

ITC Judge Says Samsung Infringes Four Apple Patents

Apple has struck another blow against Samsung in the pair’s sprawling patent battle.

A U.S. International Trade Commission judge on Oct 24 ruled that Samsung infringed four of the six patents Apple asserted against it before the ITC. In his initial determination, ITC Judge Thomas Pender found that Samsung’s products violate Apple’s ’949, ’922, ’678, and ’501 patents. The first refers to touchscreen heuristics and lists Steve Jobs as an inventor; the second describes a “method and apparatus for providing translucent images on a computer display”; the third, elements of the iPhone’s design; and the last, “audio I/O headset plug and plug detection circuitry.” This is an initial determination, so Judge Pender’s findings still need to be approved by the ITC’s full six-member commission. And he did find in Samsung’s favor on two other patents. But, make no mistake, this is bad news for the company.

New York Times website blocked in China

Access to the New York Times’ English and Chinese websites were blocked in China shortly after the newspaper published a report on the vast family fortune of the country’s premier, Wen Jiabao. The story, which suggests Wen’s family used their influence to amass assets worth at least $2.7 billion, comes at a highly sensitive time weeks before a once-a-decade leadership transition. Potentially damaging to Wen and his supporters is how the story contradicts the leader’s carefully cultivated image as a humble populist. Details about the private lives and finances of China’s leaders are strictly off limits for the state-controlled Chinese press.

New coalition for Pandora-backed royalty bill launches

A group of tech trade associations and broadcast radio companies and online streaming service Pandora launched a new coalition on aimed at urging Congress to support legislation that would lower the royalty fees paid by Internet radio stations so they're more in line with the rates paid by other digital radio services.

The Internet Radio Fairness Coalition argues that the current royalty rate-setting standard for Pandora and other Internet radio services is outdated. It contends that the current music royalty rules prevent other Internet-based radio services from getting off the ground because a large chunk of their revenue goes to paying steep royalty fees for streaming songs. Instead, the coalition is calling for all digital radio services — including cable and satellite stations — to be put on the same royalty rate-setting standard. The musicFIRST Coalition slammed the launch calling it a "desperate attempt" by Pandora to build momentum for the Internet Radio Fairness Act co-sponsored by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR).

AFL-CIO Calls on Lawmakers to Oppose Internet Radio Legislation

The AFL-CIO is joining the music industry in opposing legislation favored by Internet radio provider Pandora and some broadcasters that would lower the royalties paid to performers by Internet radio stations.

The labor group said it opposes the legislation introduced last month by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) because it is concerned it will result in much less revenues for musical artists. The bills would require the federal government's royalty rate-setting body known as the Copyright Royalty Board to use the same standard in determining rates paid by Internet radio stations as is used for satellite and cable music providers. Internet radio stations like Pandora complain that they pay much higher royalties than cable and satellite providers. The legislation "would mandate that more than eighteen hundred Internet radio stations pay recording artists and musicians far less than their recordings are worth, just because three digital services do," William Samuel, director of the AFL-CIO's government affairs department, wrote lawmakers last week in a letter released on Thursday. "This would start a race to the bottom in performers' compensation, violating the founding principle of America's labor movement: a fair day's work deserves a fair day's pay."

Cybersecurity legislation makes Panetta's lame duck to-do list

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said passing cybersecurity legislation is one of the top priorities on his congressional to-do list during the lame-duck session. Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon, Sec Panetta noted that the "full agenda" he outlined requires bipartisan cooperation. But cybersecurity legislation faces long odds of moving this year: Congress has been gridlocked on the issue since Senate Republicans blocked a sweeping cybersecurity bill in August.

Benton

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