November 2015

As Comcast continues to face criticism over its usage cap tests, the company said none of the policies are new or secret. In fact, a company representative said that Comcast outlined its usage-based pricing philosophy back in May 2012 in a company blog post. The post, written by Cathy Avgiris, at the time executive VP and GM of communications and data services for Comcast Cable, was written as Comcast suspended a 250 GB hard cap on data usage. It outlined the usage-based pricing strategy and trials the company is currently conducting in a handful of markets.

"We are going to trial improved data usage management approaches comparable to plans that others in the market are using that will provide customers with more choice and flexibility than our current policy," Avgiris said. "We'll be piloting at least two approaches in different markets, and we'll provide additional details on these trials as they launch. But we can give everyone an overview today." The purpose of the data-usage limit, Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas said, has always been to "create a more fair approach, where the heaviest data users pay a little more and the light data users get to pay a little less. It means the heavier data users will pay a little more for us to re-double capacity on our network every 12 to 18 months."

The 2015 Digital Cities Survey results are in. Dozens of cities were selected by a judging panel at the Center for Digital Government as the most strategic, efficient and innovative guardians of public-sector tech in the nation. The top-ranked cities will receive an award on Nov. 5 at the annual National League of Cities conference in recognition of their achievements.

The first place winners in four population categories are Philadelphia (PA); Alexandria (VA); Avondale (AZ); and Shawnee (KS). Judges evaluated the survey submissions of each city by considering four elements: citizen engagement, policy, operations, and technology and data. Given this common set of criteria, it's natural that the winners should have some qualities in common, but an unanticipated pattern arose among the winners: The best digital cities have developed a mature infrastructure that affords city leaders a chance to experiment with forward-thinking technology projects that are molded in the image of the average citizen's lifestyle.

Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker is announcing at the Techonomy conference in Half Moon Bay (CA), the Commerce Department’s Digital Economy Agenda, focused around four key opportunities:

1. Promoting a free and open Internet worldwide, because the Internet functions best for our businesses and workers when data and services can flow unimpeded across borders.
2. Promoting trust online, because security and privacy are essential if electronic commerce is to flourish.
3. Ensuring access for workers, families, and companies, because fast broadband networks are essential to economic success in the 21st century.
4. Promoting innovation, through smart intellectual property rules and by advancing the next generation of exciting new technologies.

We understand that virtually every modern company relies on the Internet to grow and thrive. This agenda will help businesses and consumers realize the potential of the digital economy to advance growth and opportunity, at home and around the world. As part of our commitment, we are also in the process of creating a Digital Economy Board of Advisors so that government has a mechanism for getting regular advice from leaders in industry and civil society. We welcome your service and partnership.