BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for JANUARY 17, 20013 (Happy 100th Birthday, Everett C. Parker)
Privacy and the Open Internet on today’s agenda http://benton.org/calendar/2013-01-17/
VIOLENCE AND MEDIA
President Obama seeks research into violent video games
The White House’s Interactive Push for Gun Control
Missouri lawmaker latest to propose “violent” games tax [links to web]
On Eve of White House Gun Push, NRA Starts a TV Talk Show [links to web]
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Fifteenth Quarterly Status Report to Congress Regarding BTOP
NTIA Administrator Strickling Delivers Remarks at the Brookings Institution on Broadband Technology Opportunities Program - speech
Critics Protest Plans for Unclaimed Connect America Funds
It’s on: Time Warner Cable alleges that Netflix discriminates against its customers
Survey: Users trust social media as news source
SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
The Broadcast Television Spectrum Incentive Auction: A Staff Summary - analysis
AT&T Allows FaceTime for Limited Data Users. What About Unlimited?
AT&T Stalking Europe for Mergers
SEARCH
Battle lines drawn in online search war - analysis
With Graph Search, Facebook is becoming a modern-day AOL - analysis
Facebook Search Could Actually Be Great for Google (Why? Antitrust.)
Social Search and the Difficulties of Discovery [links to web]
OWNERSHIP
Commissioner McDowell: FCC Must Resist Limiting JSAs
Comcast, GE Seen Fast-Tracking NBCU In $16 Billion Deal
TELEVISION
AllVid: Not Dead Yet! (Legally, At Least) - analysis [links to web]
Online News Viewing Cuts into Cable Viewership - research [links to web]
Belo Totals Campaign Airtime Contribution [links to web]
Electing a President: When the Stakes are this High, Local Broadcast Television Delivers - analysis [links to web]
Google: TWC Is 'Withholding' Metro Sports RSN in Kansas City [links to web]
Mobile TV — not a lot to see here [links to web]
HEALTH
Healthcare groups question pace of eHealth records rollout [links to web]
Consumers Conflicted About Tech Impact On Health [links to web]
AGENDA
The Agenda Of The Senate Judiciary Committee For The 113th Congress - speech
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
Lessons from the Derecho: When Industry Self-Regulation Is Not Enough - analysis
NEWS FROM COURT
Supremes Hear FCC's Chevron Defense
Samsung Galaxy tablets do not infringe Apple design: Dutch court [links to web]
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
The White House’s Interactive Push for Gun Control
Justice Department refuses ACLU request for GPS tracking practices [links to web]
US Attorney breaks silence, defends prosecution of Aaron Swartz [links to web]
Google.org donates $2.1 million grant to Sunlight Foundation [links to web]
Transforming the Law on Freedom of Expression - speech [links to web]
STORIES FROM ABROAD
Europe Weighs Requiring Firms to Disclose Data Breaches
Pushing France Onto the Digital Stage
AT&T Stalking Europe for Mergers
German bill would charge for aggregation [links to web]
MORE ONLINE
Military Cyber Assault Testing Yields Real-Life Data Leaks, report Says [links to web]
State University of New York pushing online classes [links to web]
VIOLENCE AND MEDIA
RESEARCH INTO VIOLENT GAMES
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Brett Molina]
As part of a broader gun control plan, President Barack Obama is pushing Congress to fund research into the impact of violent video games. The plan features 23 executive orders focused on gun violence, including "universal background checks" and limits on ammunition magazines. President Obama also calls for the Centers for Disease Control to "research the causes and prevention of gun violence." "I will direct the Centers for Disease Control to go ahead and study the best ways to reduce it -- and Congress should fund research into the effects that violent video games have on young minds," said President Obama during a speech detailing the plan. "We don't benefit from ignorance. We don't benefit from not knowing the science of this epidemic of violence." In a statement released after Obama's speech, industry trade group The Entertainment Software Association welcomed the discussion. "We will embrace a constructive role in the important national dialogue around gun violence in the United States, and continue to collaborate with the Administration and Congress as they examine the facts that inform meaningful solutions," reads a portion of the ESA's statement. Chris Ferguson, associate professor of psychology and communication at Texas A&M University, says research into video games have found little to no effect on violence or aggression. "During the past 20 years as video games became more popular, youth violence plummeted to 40-year lows, the lowest since the 1960s," he says. However, Douglas Gentile, a media violence commission member and associate professor at Iowa State University, says there are signs games can influence aggression. "We do really need to have a serious conversation about what all the serious risk factors are," he says.
benton.org/node/143434 | USAToday | The Wrap | Washington Post | B&C | AdWeek | AP
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
BTOP REPORT TO CONGRESS
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) provides this Quarterly Report on the status of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP). This Report focuses on BTOP’s activities from July 1 to September 30, 2012. From July to September 2012, NTIA’s broadband grant recipients continued to demonstrate strong performance and helped to achieve the Program’s FY12 goals. A few projects also completed their activities during this quarter on budget and on schedule, delivering the promised benefits to communities. These positive results have helped the Program deliver significant progress in areas such as new fiber-optic infrastructure construction, the opening of new PCCs, training to drive broadband adoption, and thousands of new broadband subscribers now experiencing the benefits of high-speed Internet service. Recipients deployed more than 6,500 network miles during the past quarter, bringing the total number of miles in FY12 to more than 78,000. This performance substantially exceeded NTIA’s FY12 goal to deploy 50,000 new or upgraded network miles across the country. Last quarter, BTOP recipients connected and/or improved service to more than 1,200 community anchor institutions, which is an increase of 12 percent from last quarter and brings the total number of institutions connected to more than 11,200 across 45 states and territories. Public Computer Centers recipients continued to make considerable progress last quarter, exceeding the FY12 goal to install 35,000 new or upgraded public workstations. Recipients installing workstations also continue to develop and implement training programs and educational courses, including workforce development training. During the quarter, public computer centers provided 1.3 million hours of training to 371,000 users. Through September 2012, 37 BTOP recipients reported that more than 510,000 households and 12,000 businesses subscribed to broadband services after receiving digital literacy classes or job training. New subscribers for the past quarter totaled more than 134,000.
During the fourth quarter of FY12, BTOP recipients spent more than $365 million in Federal grant funds. These funds were matched by recipient contributions of nearly $115 million. Cumulatively, Federal outlays for the Program totaled $2.3 billion, while total recipient matching contributions exceeded $900 million.
benton.org/node/143433 | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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NTIA’S STRICKLING AT BROOKINGS EVENT
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
Governance Studies at Brookings provided an update on the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) three years after Vice President Joe Biden announced the first round of BTOP awards at a factory in Dawsonville (GA). The event featured keynote remarks by NTIA Administrator Lawrence E. Strickling. He highlighted the program’s key achievements over the past three years, including having: deployed or upgraded 78,000 miles of broadband infrastructure; connected 11,200 community anchor institutions—such as schools, libraries and hospitals—to broadband networks; installed more than 38,600 computer workstations in 2,600 public computer centers in 1,500 communities; and generated more than 510,000 new broadband subscribers. “Our promise to communities across the country that would benefit from BTOP funding – was this: The Obama Administration’s investment in broadband would create jobs, stimulate economic development, spur private-sector investment, and open up new opportunities in employment, entrepreneurship, education and healthcare. Most important, it would improve lives. Three years later, I can confidently say we are delivering on those pledges,” said Administrator Strickling.
benton.org/node/143432 | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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UNCLAIMED CONNECT AMERICA FUNDS
[SOURCE: telecompetitor, AUTHOR: Joan Engebretson]
The Federal Communications Commission knew it wasn’t going to be easy figuring out how to allocate $185 million in unclaimed Universal Service Connect America funding aimed at bringing broadband to areas that cannot get broadband (or can only get low-speed broadband) today. But now in addition to previously reported disputes about who should be allowed to get funding, the FCC faces several other criticisms that have come to light in comments filed in response to its further notice of proposed rulemaking about the unclaimed funds.
benton.org/node/143417 | telecompetitor
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TWC VS NETFLIX
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Janko Roettgers]
Time Warner Cable upped the ante in the dicey relationship between Netflix and some of the country’s largest Internet service providers, alleging that the video subscription service discriminates against Time Warner Cable customers. “Netflix is… closing off access to some of its content while seeking unprecedented preferential treatment from ISPs.” The point of contention is Netflix’s recent launch of 3D and Super HD video formats. Netflix launched a limited number of 3D titles during CES last week, and also added the ability to stream many of its titles in Super HD — a better-looking 1080p HD format that features less compression, and thus higher bandwidth requirements, that Netflix’s regular 1080p streams. Both 3D and Super HD are exclusively available to subscribers whose ISPs take part in Neftlix’s Open Connect CDN network, and the company is actively encouraging its subscribers to contact their ISPs and get them to adopt Open Connect. This kind of customer-driven campaign apparently didn’t go over so well with Time Warner Cable.
benton.org/node/143435 | GigaOm | Multichannel News
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SOCIAL MEDIA AS NEWS SOURCE
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Byron Tau]
Voter trust in political information from Facebook, Twitter and other social media services is now on par with that in traditional news sources, according to a new survey. Recent years have seen candidates increasingly devoting time and resources to developing their social media presences, with President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign widely admired by experts in both parties for its massive data and analytics operation. The George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management/ORI survey finds that those campaign efforts are well-placed — social media in some form has reached a critical mass of adopters across age groups, is widely used for sharing political content and is just as well-regarded as traditional news outlets like television, radio and print. The survey finds that nearly two-thirds of voters reported that political information on social media was either higher quality or on par with traditional media outlets. For users younger than 25, 71 percent put the same or greater level of trust in content.
benton.org/node/143441 | Politico
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SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
BROADCAST TELEVISION SPECTRUM INCENTIVE AUCTION
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: ]
Congress, in passing the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 in early 2012, authorized the FCC to conduct incentive auctions, with the first auction to be of broadcast television spectrum. Congress further directed that certain net proceeds from the broadcast incentive auction are to be deposited in the Public Safety Trust Fund to fund a national first responder network, state and local public safety grants, and public safety research, and the balance is to be used for deficit reduction. The incentive auction will present a significant financial opportunity for broadcasters who wish to relinquish spectrum rights, while also allowing other broadcasters to remain on the air and continue providing the public with local, free over-the-air television service. At the same time, the spectrum reclaimed through the auction will promote economic growth; enhance America’s global competitiveness; increase the speed, capacity and ubiquity of mobile broadband service; and accelerate the smartphone and tablet-led mobile revolution, benefitting consumers and businesses throughout the country. The incentive auction proceeding is an important component of the Commission’s unprecedented efforts to make additional licensed and unlicensed spectrum available for broadband. The FCC intends to conduct the broadcast incentive auction in 2014.
benton.org/node/143431 | Federal Communications Commission
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AT&T AND FACETIME UPDATE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Brian Chen]
AT&T said that it would allow more of its iPhone customers to use Apple’s videoconferencing app, FaceTime, over its cellular network. But customers with unlimited data plans are still left out. AT&T published a blog post that said it was letting customers with its tiered, limited data plans use FaceTime over the network. Previously, it had reserved this privilege for customers who subscribed to its newer shared data plans. What about people who have unlimited data plans that they signed up for while they were still being offered? A few months ago, AT&T said it anticipated opening the service to those on “other billing plans in the near future,” which would imply unlimited data customers. But on Jan 16, the company wasn’t firm about that prospect, saying it was still assessing the impact that FaceTime has on its network. Nonprofit groups have threatened to file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission against AT&T for limiting how FaceTime can be used over its network. They claim that it is a violation of the FCC’s network neutrality rules, which say that mobile providers may not block applications that compete with the provider’s voice or video telephony services.
benton.org/node/143436 | New York Times
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SEARCH
ONLINE SEARCH WAR
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Richard Waters]
It’s not what you get out of it that matters, it’s what you put in. That is the real significance of Facebook’s inelegantly named Graph Search, the new “social” search engine it unveiled this week. The company that probably already knows more about you than any other single business would now like you to divulge one other, extremely valuable thing: what you want. A deeper move by Facebook into search has been widely expected for a long time, and no wonder. It is hard to overstate the commercial significance of being able to divine someone’s needs and intentions at the very moment that they are at their strongest. There is nothing that does that quite like the search box. It was in preparation for just this day, after all, that Google came up with its Google Plus social network. The battle lines in the new search wars have now been drawn. From Amazon, which handles more product-related searches than any other company, to Apple’s iPhone-based Siri and now Facebook’s social search, the new combatants are starting from their own positions of relative advantage. The outcome of this battle, as much as the clash of smartphone hardware and operating systems, will determine the shape of the digital future.
benton.org/node/143442 | Financial Times
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FACEBOOK
[SOURCE: CNNMoney, AUTHOR: Adrian Covert]
All the vast possibilities of Graph Search boils down to something simple and profound: Facebook finally has a search technology that works. Facebook has just taken one big step closer to becoming what America Online used to be: an all-inclusive Internet experience. (Minus the dial-up service and monthly fee, of course.) It's an isolated island of content walled off from the rest of the online realm. The similarities between the two companies have been pointed out before, and a return to this model of the Internet isn't quite as regressive as it may seem. Once upon a time, in an effort to make the chaos of the Web palatable to the uninitiated, AOL (AOL) offered up a singular Internet shard with a consistent look and feel. Many more of us are now well-versed in the ways of the Internet, but the sheer volume of information available has become overwhelming. Social networks thrive, in many ways, as filters. You tell the network what and who you like, and it gives you the information you want. The arrival of Graph Search doesn't mean that Facebook instantly transformed into its own self-sustaining network, or that it will do so anytime soon. It merely put the first pieces in place for people to get everything they need out of the Internet without ever setting foot outside Facebook's domain.
benton.org/node/143391 | CNNMoney
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FACEBOOK AND GOOGLE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Liz Gannes]
Because it’s barely launched yet and not fully fleshed out, financial analysts are saying today that they don’t see Facebook’s new search product as a big competitor to Google, for now. But the fact that Facebook has finally made its search intentions known could actually be really good for Google. That’s because regulators — especially those in Europe, who are in the thick of deciding whether to settle with Google over antitrust — now have the prospect of additional search competition to consider. Facebook’s notion of search — which ends in people and pictures and recommendations — lends credence to Google’s defense that modern search is about answers to questions, not simple links to Web pages.
benton.org/node/143429 | Wall Street Journal | Washington Post
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OWNERSHIP
MCDOWELL ON JSAs
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Federal Communications Commission member Robert McDowell took aim at a proposal to extend the FCC's attribution rules to some television joint sales agreements, saying they increase diversity; called on the FCC to conclude diversity studies that have yet to see the light of day, and suggested the newspaper-TV cross-ownership restrictions limit diversity in the name of preserving it. Commissioner McDowell said the FCC "must resist calls for limiting, and therefore discouraging, the use of joint sales, shared service, and local news service agreements." He said he has been told by "many broadcasters" that shared arrangements have both directly and indirectly helped women and minority-owned stations to "enter markets and improve programming." Commissioner McDowell called on the FCC to complete court-ordered diversity studies -- a Groundhog Day-like moment since it echoed a call he has made repeatedly. That will allow the FCC to proceed with the six -- of 13 -- diversity initiatives Commissioner McDowell helped adopt in 2007 but were remanded back to the FCC for better justification.
benton.org/node/143426 | Broadcasting&Cable | Commissioner McDowell
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GE TO EXIT NBCU?
[SOURCE: Investor's Business Daily, AUTHOR: Reinhardt Krause]
General Electric and Comcast could speed up the cable TV firm's plans to take full ownership of NBC Universal, in a deal valued at around $16 billion, analysts say. GE, which aims to expand in industrial markets, would step up acquisitions if it negotiates an earlier exit from NBCU, analysts say. Comcast, meanwhile, could be motivated to accelerate its purchase of NBCU by a turnaround in the media business. "It's clear that GE wants to exit NBCU in its entirety," Citigroup analyst Deane Dray told IBD. "If Comcast were to look to do it earlier, GE would be perfectly fine with that." Comcast acquired 51% of media giant NBC Universal from GE in early 2011. Comcast has been slated to buy GE's remaining stake in two stages, in 2014 and 2018. In September, however, Michael Angelakis, Comcast chief financial officer, floated the possibility of Comcast buying all of GE's remaining stake in 2014. Analysts have estimated that Comcast would pay anywhere from $7.8 billion to more than $10 billion for half of GE's remaining stake, with a price set at a market multiple of NBCU's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization).
benton.org/node/143394 | Investor's Business Daily
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AGENDA
AGENDA FOR SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
[SOURCE: US Senate, AUTHOR: Sen Patrick Leahy (D-VT)]
At the Georgetown Law Center, Sen Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, discussed the panel’s agenda for the 113th Congress. That agenda includes:
Immigration reform;
Gun violence – including how we manage the exposure of children to violence in popular media;
The Public’s Right To Know: Transparency that keeps the government accountable to the people. Legislative efforts to prevent classified leaks should not infringe upon our fundamental freedoms, including freedom of the press;
Privacy: Update our privacy laws to address emerging technology and the Internet, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and cybersecurity laws;
Satellite TV : reauthorize the satellite TV license; and
Accessibility: making books accessible to those with visual disabilities.
benton.org/node/143415 | US Senate
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EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
UNDERSTANDING THE DERECHO REPORT
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Harold Feld]
[Commentary] The Federal Communications Commission released a fairly thorough report on the widespread 9-1-1 failure that followed the June 2012 “derecho” windstorm. The report concluded that both Verizon and Frontier failed to follow industry best practices or their own internal procedures. To be clear, this was not a massive dereliction of duty. But the accumulation of some corner cutting over here, some poor practice over there, meant that when the unpredicted crisis hit the system suffered critical failures precisely when most needed. Unlike just about every other part of the network, where providers balance the cost of hardening a network against potential events with a number of other factors, the core 9-1-1 system is explicitly supposed to remain operational in even the most extraordinary circumstances. It is the foundation of public access to emergency services. As long as I can contact the phone network, I should be able to get 9-1-1 service. Public safety responders rely on the public reporting emergencies so that they can efficiently deploy resources as much as the public depends on its ability to contact emergency services through 9-1-1. It is particularly shocking to see this happen with Verizon which generally prides itself on maintaining a high-quality network. What happened in the derecho illustrates the problem of relying on general incentives and industry best practices instead of regulation for critical safety and reliability issues. In understanding this lesson, we need to understand that it is not that Verizon (or Frontier, or other companies) are evil or greedy or callous or any of the other delightful adjectives people like to use to personalize this. It’s not. Verizon and Frontier understand about keeping 9-1-1 going just fine. They are all for it. They are part of the group that develops the industry best practices, which they supplement with their own internal procedures. Nevertheless, in economic terms, maintaining 9-1-1 is a deadweight cost of doing business.
benton.org/node/143398 | Public Knowledge
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NEWS FROM COURT
CHEVRON DEFENSE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Supreme Court heard arguments on whether the Federal Communications Commission, or any other regulatory agency, has the authority to determine the limits of its jurisdiction when there is ambiguity in the statute over whether Congress has given it that authority. Traditionally, under the Chevron doctrine stemming from an earlier Supreme Court decision, courts hearing appeals of agency decisions give deference to agencies' subject matter expertise. But there is an outstanding legal question about whether that should include decisions on whether Congress gave them that authority, or whether a court should consider that question "de novo," -- without that thumb on the scale in favor of the FCC's expertise. At issue is not just the FCC's decision in the case at issue, but the authority generally of regulators to make such jurisdictional calls. That could affect the FCC's determination of its authority in the Open Internet order argue those, including Verizon, challenging that decision.
benton.org/node/143425 | Broadcasting&Cable
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
THE WHITE HOUSE’S INTERACTIVE PUSH FOR GUN CONTROL
[SOURCE: nextgov, AUTHOR: ]
Shortly after President Obama announced his comprehensive plan to reduce gun violence Wednesday, the White House launched a new highly interactive webpage describing the recent history of gun violence and detailing the president’s plan.
benton.org/node/143418 | nextgov | White House
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
EUROPE WEIGHS BREACH DISCLOSURE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Kevin O’Brien]
To combat a rise in cybercrime, the European Commission is considering a plan to require companies that store data on the Internet — like Microsoft, Apple, Google and IBM — to report the loss or theft of personal information in the 27-nation bloc or risk sanctions and fines. The proposal, which is being drafted by Neelie Kroes, the European Union’s commissioner for the digital agenda, aims to impose, for the first time, E.U.-wide reporting requirements on companies that run large databases, those used for Internet searches, social networks, e-commerce or cloud services. The proposed directive would supplant a patchwork of national laws in Europe that have made reporting mandatory in Germany and Spain, but voluntary in Britain and Italy. While European lawmakers are trying to limit cybercrime, the plan by Mrs. Kroes has generated controversy because it would extend the obligation to report data breaches beyond traditional compilers of customer databases — telephone, transport and utility companies. The technology industry supports the idea of a more systematic approach to the flagging of security breaches, but says the proposal needs more specific guidelines to ensure that notifications are required only when necessary and useful to consumers.
benton.org/node/143445 | New York Times
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FLEUR PELLERIN
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Eric Pfanner, David Jolly]
When the most prominent new face in France’s effort to oversee the new economy speaks, her pronouncements may be followed almost as closely in Silicon Valley and Seoul as in Paris. Fleur Pellerin, a deputy finance minister, is the point woman in President François Hollande’s campaign to stimulate innovation. But in trying to put a French imprint on the digital economy, she has been drawn into a growing number of disputes with U.S. technology companies like Google, Twitter and Amazon. In one of the clearest signals yet from the French Finance Ministry that the government is intent on making the Internet conform to French law and custom, Ms. Pellerin last week waded into a dispute involving Google, whose advertising had been blocked by a French Internet service provider, Free. The move was widely seen as an attempt by Free to force Google to pay for network access. As a preliminary step, Pellerin ordered Free to restore full service, but she made it clear that she thought the French company had a legitimate grievance.
benton.org/node/143444 | New York Times
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AT&T LOOKS TO EUROPE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Anton Troianovski, Anupreeta Das, Dana Cimilluca]
AT&T is considering buying a counterpart in Europe, a bet that it can best escape constraints on growth at home by getting into a new wireless market where it can upgrade technology and roll out more lucrative pricing strategies, people familiar with the carrier's thinking said. The company is currently studying targets, and a deal—if one happens–could come before the end of the year, those people said. Such a deal would carry a lot of risk. Wireless companies have pursued international strategies before with mixed results. There would be few opportunities to make the deep cost cuts that are typically needed to justify big acquisitions because the networks wouldn't overlap. AT&T also would be stepping into a much more competitive market than it has in the U.S. and would face a new set of regulators.
benton.org/node/143443 | Wall Street Journal
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