November 2014

Headlines is taking a break; we will return MONDAY, November 17.

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2014

Today’s busy agenda includes, go figure, a net neutrality discussion http://benton.org/calendar/2014-11-13

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
   FCC’s Sohn: Network Neutrality Rules Unlikely By Year-End
   Why President Obama called out the FCC in public - analysis
   Here’s the latest sign network neutrality is becoming a political football in Congress
   The split between President Obama and the FCC on network neutrality, in plain English - analysis
   FCC Commissioner Clyburn: ‘No perfect pathway’ on net neutrality
   2016 crowd rushes network neutrality
   Public Knowledge Demands FCC Act Immediately on Title II Net Neutrality Rules - press release
   The companies lobbying furiously against strong net neutrality, in one chart [links to web]
   AT&T to pause fiber spending on network neutrality uncertainty
   Verizon optimistic FCC will make 'right' decision on net neutrality
   Willner: Title II Will Stunt Broadband Funding
   Dear FCC: Network Neutrality Is Part of a Social Contract - Victor Pickard op-ed [links to web]
   Obama’s Presidential Moment - Susan Crawford op-ed [links to web]
   President Obama: Don’t mess with “our” Internet! - AEI op-ed [links to web]
   The 'clicktivist' in chief - Lawrence Spiwak op-ed [links to web]

MORE ON INTERNET/BROADBAND
   FCC Commissioner Clyburn Pushes for Lifeline Modernization
   FCC’s Rural Broadband Experiments Draw Interest From Nearly 200 Applicants - press release
   Local Action, State Support Needed for Municipal Broadband Expansion - op-ed

PRIVACY
   Public Perceptions of Privacy and Security in the Post-Snowden Era - research
   Google calls for US to extend Privacy Act protections to EU citizens [links to web]
   We Are All Responsible for Online Security - op-ed [links to web]

SPECTRUM
   Five Ways US Airwaves Auction May Change Mobile Service [links to web]
   Why carrier Wi-Fi will make the mobile market more competitive [links to web]

CONTENT
   The (one) simple thing fueling your social media addiction [links to web]

ADVERTISING
   Here’s how Kasich's big win cost Scripps $10 million [links to web]
   Parents Television Council Releases “Best and Worst TV Advertisers” List - press release [links to web]

GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE
   Bad government Web sites are bad for democracy [links to web]

GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS
   At press conference with President Obama, China’s leader lectures US media [links to web]

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NETWORK NEUTRALITY

RULES IN 2015
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Appearing on the Diane Rehm show, Gigi Sohn, a top aide to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler, said it is unlikely that the FCC will come up with new network neutrality rules before early 2015. She said the FCC is working with all possible speed. She also said reports that her boss disagreed with the President's call for Title II regulations is off base and that no one should conclude from meetings with stakeholders on the issue that he is either for or against that approach. Sohn argued that comments made by Chairman Wheeler at a private meeting and reported by the Washington Post were "completely taken out of context." But she didn't dispute the idea that the FCC could go in a different direction from the President.
http://www.multichannel.com/sohn-net-net-neutrality-rules-unlikely-year-...
FCC denies it has diverged from Obama's web plan (The Hill)
benton.org/headlines/fccs-sohn-network-neutrality-rules-unlikely-year-end | Multichannel News | The Hill
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WHY THE PUBLIC MOMENT?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Nancy Scola]
Under administrative law, the Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency, not an executive one. (A rule of thumb: Most agencies headed by more than one person -- like the five-commissioners of the FCC -- tend to be independent agencies.) The FCC gets its authority from Congress, under the 1934 Communications Act. How much control the President should have over independent agencies has been debated for a long time, but the working principle is that independent agencies operate outside the command of the President. Trying to influence the FCC from behind closed doors? "That's the no-no," says Reed Hundt, a chairman of the FCC during the Clinton administration. The best course of action for both the President and the commission is to have their discussions happen as in full public view as possible, he said. Which is likely one reason President Obama made, and widely circulated, a video explaining his new stand on matters under the FCC's watch.
benton.org/headlines/why-president-obama-called-out-fcc-public | Washington Post
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NET NEUTRALITY FOOTBALL
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brian Fung]
Republicans charged with overseeing the Federal Communications Commission are lashing out at President Obama's proposal for ensuring network neutrality, the principle that all Web traffic should be treated the same by Internet service providers. In a letter to the FCC, House Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) take aim at Obama's endorsement of aggressive regulation for broadband providers, adding fuel to a growing political dispute between the GOP and Democrats over the future of the Internet. "You are being asked by some to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Communications Act," the members wrote to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. "This isn’t sound policy and would almost certainly mean another trip for the FCC to the Court of Appeals."
benton.org/headlines/heres-latest-sign-network-neutrality-becoming-political-football-congress | Washington Post | Congressional Republicans | The Hill
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OBAMA-FCC SPLIT?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brian Fung]
[Commentary] Where do things stand at the Federal Communications Commission on network neutrality and how might we expect them to unfold next? President Barack Obama wants FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to ensure net neutrality by implementing a certain set of rules. Chairman Wheeler isn't completely sold on the idea. That's exposed a rift between the two men. The question now is whether that rift will grow larger or smaller in the coming weeks. Chairman Wheeler has been trying to find a way to give everyone a little bit of what they want. That's great, except it also means everyone can find something about it they don't like, and legal experts are skeptical in any case that a hybrid approach could survive a court challenge. This leaves us with an FCC that's being hemmed in on pretty much all sides, with consumer advocates, tech companies and now the President pressing for one thing and telecom companies and ISPs [and Congressional republicans] urging another. Chairman Wheeler needs fellow FCC Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel to agree with whatever he decides. But it's more complicated than that. If Chairman Wheeler bucks President Obama and proposes anything short of Title II, Commissioners Clyburn and Rosenworcel will be in the uncomfortable position of having to vote against the President, too. Chances are they would, as the Democrats might prefer non-ideal rules to no rules at all. But a vote with Chairman Wheeler might be easier for his liberal colleagues to swallow if they knew they had the President backing them up. From where Chairman Wheeler sits, Title II may not be the best option for fulfilling the goals of preventing ISPs from slowing or blocking Web traffic, which is why a split, currently, exists between him and President Obama. It's possible that Chairman Wheeler may move closer to Obama's position in the coming weeks. But the FCC is an independent agency that has to follow certain procedures concerning public input, decision-making and rule-drafting. So Chairman Wheeler can't simply wake up tomorrow and decide to go all-in on Title II, even if he believed that was the best course -- which it doesn't seem like he does (yet?).
benton.org/headlines/split-between-president-obama-and-fcc-network-neutrality-plain-english | Washington Post
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NO PERFECT PATHWAY
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Julian Hattem]
The Federal Communications Commission will not end the debate on regulating Internet service providers by choosing which legal authority to use, said FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn. Regulators will have to work to ensure that their principles are carried out no matter how the new rules are written. “If we want some of the questions and some of the barriers and some of the promises to be realized, it’s going take more than pronouncing which pathway to take,” she added. “It’s going to take more granular detail.” Commissioner Clyburn said that she saw herself as a “tortoise” who was “going through the details and really looking in a more clinical, in a more deliberative fashion, exactly what principles need to be part of whatever pathway we take.” Clyburn’s focus on specific details instead of the larger legal framework indicated she could be supportive of a “hybrid” regulatory model like the one FCC Chairman Wheeler was reportedly considering.
benton.org/headlines/fcc-commissioner-clyburn-no-perfect-pathway-net-neutrality | Hill, The
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CANDIDATES WEIGH IN
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Mario Trujillo]
A handful of potential 2016 candidates are rushing to define their position on net neutrality following President Obama’s call for the Federal Communications Commission to impose tougher regulations. The issue is not expected to play a significant role in the 2016 presidential election, but activists on both sides said the issue is important to base voters in both parties. “It is something I think both sides can go to their base on this and point to this as a policy that is relevant in 2016,” said Wayne Brough, the chief economist at the conservative FreedomWorks, which opposes Obama’s plan. “If one is trying to present oneself as a politician of the modern era who is trying to rally the youth vote in particular, I think that it is a very important position,” said David Segal, executive director of Demand Progress, which supports Obama’s plan.
benton.org/headlines/2016-crowd-rushes-network-neutrality | Hill, The
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PK DEMANDS ACTION
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Gene Kimmelman]
We are shocked at disturbing and, we hope, inaccurate reports of [Federal Communications Commission] Chairman Wheeler’s opinion of Title II and urge him to clarify his position. We also request the FCC publicly share any and all questions the agency needs answered this week to move forward with a rulemaking. The agency asked for comments on net neutrality and on reclassifying broadband as Title II. The record is more thoroughly briefed than any other FCC proceeding, including the nearly 4 million Americans clearly arguing for the strongest possible language to protect an Open Internet. It's time for the FCC to take immediate action to declare broadband a Title II service and work quickly to resolve all open legal and analytical questions the Commission believes deserve more attention.
benton.org/headlines/public-knowledge-demands-fcc-act-immediately-title-ii-net-neutrality-rules | Public Knowledge
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AT&T PAUSES FIBER SPENDING
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Marina Lopes]
AT&T Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson said the company will stop investing in new high-speed Internet connections in 100 US cities until regulators decide whether to enact tough network neutrality rules proposed by President Barack Obama. We can't go out and invest that kind of money deploying fiber to 100 cities not knowing under what rules those investments will be governed," Stephenson said
benton.org/headlines/att-pause-fiber-spending-network-neutrality-uncertainty | Reuters | LA Times
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VERIZON ON NET NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Marina Lopes]
Verizon’s chief financial officer, Fran Shammo, told investors, “I think the independent agency of the FCC will make the right decision” on how to regulate how Internet service providers manage their Web traffic. He said the FCC could restrict "paid prioritization" deals, where content companies pay for faster downloads of some websites or applications, without pursuing utility-style regulations under Title II of the Telecommunications Act. "We don’t need to bring Title II into this," he said.
benton.org/headlines/verizon-optimistic-fcc-will-make-right-decision-net-neutrality | Reuters
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MICHAEL WILLNER
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Mike Reynolds]
Michael Willner, president and CEO of Penthera and cable operator GreatLand Connections, opened up NewBay Media’s NYC Television Week by firing away at President Obama’s push toward stricter regulation of the Internet. He said any movement toward Title II reclassification would be “one of the worst policy decisions” not only for the cable and wireless industries, but for consumers. He envisions a repeat of what happened 20-plus years ago after the Cable Act was enacted in 1992. At that time, cable industry was rebuilding its plant, putting in fiber optics to lay the groundwork for the Internet, which no one at that time could fully imagine would become such an integral part of daily existence. With the Cable Act, Willner said, the investment community “turned off the tap.” In turn, capacity slowed as did the formation of programming networks. “Everything came to a screeching halt,” he said. During this slowdown, Western Europe pushed ahead in fortifying its infrastructure and “we fell behind as a country.” Willner said that with the “heavy hand of Title II, we’re asking for the same kind of result. The definition of insanity is to do the same thing and expect a different result…We’re teetering toward a 21st Century repeat of 1992 in an even more competitive world.”
benton.org/headlines/willner-title-ii-will-stunt-broadband-funding | Multichannel News
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MORE ON INTERNET/BROADBAND

LIFELINE MODERNIZATION
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Julian Hattem]
Federal Communications Commission member Mignon Clyburn said that the FCC’s Lifeline program should be expanded to cover broadband Internet access and reformed in other ways so that it helps everyone connect in the 21st century. “If we fail to take the next step and provide a mechanism to ensure that broadband rates are affordable for low-income consumers as required by the statute, we risk investing billions of dollars building technology bridges to nowhere,” she said during a forum at the American Enterprise Institute. She called for the FCC to establish minimum service standards for any company that gets the subsidy, she said, and the approval process for those companies to participate should be streamlined. She called on the FCC -- not individual companies -- to be responsible for determining who is eligible for the program. Finally, she called for changes to make it easier for people to enroll in the program while signing up for other government benefits and called for non-governmental organizations to get involved.
benton.org/headlines/fcc-commissioner-clyburn-pushes-lifeline-modernization | Hill, The | Commissioner Clyburn
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RURAL BROADBAND EXPERIMENTS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission’s experiment exploring how to expand robust broadband in rural America in the most cost-effective way has attracted almost 600 project bids from 181 applicants, representing nearly $885 million worth of projects. In total, the 181 applicants proposed to serve over 76,000 census blocks in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
In the coming weeks, staff will identify the provisionally winning bidders, who then will be required to submit information demonstrating their financial and technical ability to participate in the $100 million experiment. Finalists that are able to meet financial, technical and other regulatory requirements could launch their experiments as early as spring 2015.
The FCC’s rural broadband experiments will inform the agency’s broader effort to expand rural broadband through its Connect America Fund. They will also inform the FCC’s efforts to ensure that consumers everywhere can benefit from the sweeping technological advances occurring now in the communications industry, while preserving consumer protection, competition, universal service and access to emergency services during these transitions.
The $100 million available for the experiments is divided into three groups as follows:
$75 million to test competitive interest in building networks that are capable of delivering 100 Mbps downloads and 25 Mbps uploads – far in excess of the current Connect America Fund standard of 4/1 – for the same or lower amounts of support than will be offered to incumbent carriers in Phase II of Connect America
$15 million to test interest in delivering service at 10/1 speeds in high cost areas
$10 million for 10/1 service in areas that are extremely costly to serve.
benton.org/headlines/fccs-rural-broadband-experiments-draw-interest-nearly-200-applicants | Federal Communications Commission
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MUNI BROADBAND EXPANSION
[SOURCE: National League of Cities , AUTHOR: Angela Siefer]
[Commentary] According to the Institute for Local Self Reliance, over 400 communities in the United States have a publicly owned broadband network. But how did they get there? How did they access the poles? Where did they find existing assets? Are those assets available for anyone to use? How was the network paid for? In some cases, these projects were made possible with support from state partners. Projects that increase broadband availability, affordability and adoption tend to occur at the local level but they need state level support. That support can come in the form of access to open networks, state rights of way, dig once policies and facilitating coordination. If you think of the Internet as a highway system, the middle mile is the highway and the on/exit ramps and the streets are the last mile. Government funded broadband build-out (by the National Telecommunications Information Administration and the US Department of Agriculture) tends to focus on middle mile construction. Owners of middle mile networks choose whether or not to make their fiber open to use by competitors. State governments that mandate their fiber be open to use by anyone (at reasonable cost based rates) can help decrease the cost of build-out, whether by for-profit companies, non-profits or governmental entities. Here are several examples of state level policies supporting local work to build out community broadband networks.
benton.org/headlines/local-action-state-support-needed-municipal-broadband-expansion | National League of Cities
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PRIVACY

PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS OF PRIVACY AND SECURITY
[SOURCE: Pew Internet and American Life Project, AUTHOR: Mary Madden]
The majority of adults in a new survey by the Pew Research Center feel that their privacy is being challenged along such core dimensions as the security of their personal information and their ability to retain confidentiality. When Americans are asked what comes to mind when they hear the word “privacy,” there are patterns to their answers. As the above word cloud illustrates, they give important weight to the idea that privacy applies to personal material -- their space, their “stuff,” their solitude, and, importantly, their “rights.” Beyond the frequency of individual words, when responses are grouped into themes, the largest block of answers ties to concepts of security, safety, and protection. For many others, notions of secrecy and keeping things “hidden” are top of mind when thinking about privacy.
Most are aware of government efforts to monitor communications
Widespread concern about surveillance by government and businesses
There is little confidence in the security of common communications channels, and those who have heard about government surveillance programs are the least confident
Most say they want to do more to protect their privacy, but many believe it is not possible to be anonymous online
Not everyone monitors their online reputation very vigilantly, even though many assume others will check up on their digital footprints
Context matters as people decide whether to disclose information or not
Different types of information elicit different levels of sensitivity among Americans
benton.org/headlines/public-perceptions-privacy-and-security-post-snowden-era | Pew Internet and American Life Project
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