April 2017

The European Union is launching an unprecedented public consultation to find out what Europeans fear most about the future of the internet. A succession of surveys over the coming weeks will ask people for their views on everything from privacy and security to artificial intelligence, network neutrality, big data and the impact of the digital world on jobs, health, government and democracy. A dozen leading European publications, including the Guardian, are to publicise the surveys over the coming three weeks. Results will be compiled in early June.

“Science should be open and freed from its traditional ivory tower; to be discussed, submitted to critique and fed with new perspectives,” said Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European commission, adding that the consultation would “inspire fresh ideas about how to solve some of our society’s most pressing problems”. The project is being led by REIsearch, a non-profit initiative co-funded by the European commission. The aim is to give policymakers a better sense of public priorities in their decision-making.

[Commentary] The ultra high frequency (UHF) Discount is the zombie of media policy, likely to rise from the dead this week at the Federal Communications Commission’s April 20, 2017 meeting. The likely restoration of the UHF Discount raises interesting legal issues, since no one disputes that there the policy rationale for its adoption has long since disappeared. Those arguments will play out at the Federal Communications Commission and, perhaps, in the courts, but this post is about the colorful history of the UHF Discount and why restoring it would likely lead to vastly increased concentration of control of TV stations in this country. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has made plain that he intends to relax or repeal almost all of the Commission’s restrictions on how many media properties a broadcaster can own or operate. However, the very first item on his list, which he has slated for expedited consideration, actually restores a very important, if seemingly arcane, provision that his predecessor had deleted - the so-called UHF discount.
[Andrew Jay Schwartzman is the Benton Senior Counselor at the Public Interest Communications Law Project at Georgetown University Law Center's Institute for Public Representation]

Three members of the Arkansas delegation, Sens Tom Cotton (R-AR), John Boozman (R-AR) and Rep French Hill (R-AR), are asking Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to soften his proposal to deregulate the business data services market.

The lawmakers wrote a letter to Chairman Pai asking that he implement a “reasonable transition period” in the proposed rule so that small businesses can prepare for any price hikes that may result. “A transition period would create a window where all market participants could plan for price increases or the purchase of internet protocol (IP)-enabled equipment, shop for alternative service arrangements, and even solicit build-out proposals from potential market entrants,” the lawmakers wrote. “A reasonable transition would also enable service providers to adapt and remain viable in more markets than will occur in the event of a flash cut to new policies.”