BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2014
GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS
President Obama on Ferguson Decision: ‘The Media is Going to Have a Responsibility As Well’
INTERNET/BROADBAND
The Internet's Future is Now - op-ed
Obama's plan for network neutrality makes perfect sense - American Sustainable Business Council op-ed
Obama's Network Neutrality Plan Could Mean New Internet Fees - analysis
Speak Your Piece: Title II and You - Edyael Casaperalta op-ed
Welcome to the World of Title II Regulation - AT&T analysis
Why Mark Cuban opposes network neutrality: ‘I want there to be fast lanes’ [links to web]
New Yorkers Get Worse Internet Service Than People in Bucharest - New America Foundation op-ed
Seattle councillors to vote on funding Internet access at homeless camps [links to web]
Ted Cruz Backs Internet Tax Ban That Would Cost Texas $358 Million a Year - analysis
Sen Durbin: Online sales tax 'up to the House' [links to web]
Could you do your job without a smartphone or a tablet? Or the web? - analysis [links to web]
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
T-Mobile Agrees To Improve Disclosures for Consumers Using Mobile Speed Tests - FCC press release
Auction Raises $35 Billion and Counting - House Commerce Committee press release [links to web]
NAB Targets CTIA 'Smash and Grab' Auction Approach [links to web]
Marriott Wants FCC Guidance on How Far Venues Can Go to Control Their Wi-Fi Networks - analysis
We Now Spend More Time Staring at Phones Than TVs [links to web]
Spectrum Auction Serves Up Dish - Miriam Gottfried analysis [links to web]
DIVERSITY/LABOR
Diversity can work in -- and for -- Silicon Valley [links to web]
What I Learned From Building An App For Low-Income Americans - op-ed [links to web]
President Obama's immigration actions help tech industry - San Jose Mercury News editorial [links to web]
OWNERSHIP
Though cheered by Wall Street, most mergers don't work out for buyers [links to web]
PRIVACY/SECURITY
Rep Schiff to NSA: Forget Congress, Stop Mass Spying Now
Privacy chief for NSA: 'This is a real job' [links to web]
Americans Relatively Sanguine About Online Privacy, Ipsos Study Says [links to web]
We Shouldn’t Have to Give Away Our Identity to Use the Internet - op-ed [links to web]
DHS Set to Destroy Government Network Surveillance Records [links to web]
CBO Scores Cyber Information Sharing Act - research [links to web]
TELECOM
FCC Seeks Comment on Call-Blocking Letter from Attorneys General - public notice [links to web]
Dial N for Nostalgia: Is Anyone Still Using Pay Phones? [links to web]
RESEARCH
The Gates Foundation is pushing to make academic journals free and open to the public [links to web]
CONTENT
Settlement in Apple Case Over E-Books Is Approved
Google: You can pay as little as $1 to see fewer ads [links to web]
ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
Post-Election, Campaigns Try to Link Targeted Ads to Actual Votes [links to web]
Koch-linked organization uses ‘dark money’ to fight political disclosure [links to web]
TELEVISION
Public Knowledge Commends Chairman Wheeler for Pledging to Protect Consumer Rights - press release
Dumb Stuff Said in Washington, DC - NAB op-ed
TV Affiliates Serve Public, Industry By Airing Speech - Harry Jessell editorial [links to web]
OPEN GOVERNMENT
Even with the DATA Act, the Forecast for the Transparency Remains Murky [links to web]
POLICYMAKERS
What a Privacy Activist Turned Top White House Advisor Thinks About Cybersecurity
COMPANY NEWS
Why technology and content are inseparable at Netflix [links to web]
The mis-measure of Netflix - analysis [links to web]
Why T-Mobile subscribers in 21 cities are seeing faster speeds [links to web]
Unlocking the Connection for Austin’s public housing residents - Google press release [links to web]
STORIES FROM ABROAD
ITU releases annual global ICT data & ICT Development Index country rankings - press release
EU digital chief sides with President Obama in defense of network neutrality
British Telecommunications Giant BT Says It Is in Talks to Acquire O2 [links to web]
South Korea targets 5G global supremacy [links to web]
BBC uses “collateral freedom” system to bypass Chinese censorship [links to web]
GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS
THE MEDIA AND FERGUSON
[SOURCE: Variety, AUTHOR: Cynthia Littleton]
After the decision by a Missouri grand jury not to issue an indictment against a Ferguson police officer in the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown, President Barack Obama called on news media to be sure to balance coverage of potential violence with more positive responses to the questions spurred by the Brown case. There were large gatherings of people reported in New York City, Los Angeles and other cities but there were no immediate reports of looting or other dangerous behavior. “We have to make sure that we focus at least as much attention on all those positive activities that are taking place as we do on a handful of folks who end up using this as an excuse to misbehave or to break the law or to engage in violence,” President Obama said. “I think that it’s going to be very important -- and I think the media is going to have a responsibility as well -- to make sure that we focus on Michael Brown’s parents, and the clergy, and the community leaders, and the civil rights leaders, and the activists, and law enforcement officials who have been working very hard to try to find better solutions -- long-term solutions, to this issue. There is inevitably going to be some negative reaction, and it will make for good TV. But what we want to do is to make sure that we’re also focusing on those who can offer the kind of real progress that we know is possible, that the vast majority of people in Ferguson, the St. Louis region, in Missouri, and around the country are looking for.”
benton.org/headlines/president-obama-ferguson-decision-media-going-have-responsibility-well | Variety | Broadcasting&Cable
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
THE INTERNET’S FUTURE IS NOW
[SOURCE: Benton Foundation, AUTHOR: Michael Copps]
[Commentary] So 2014 will pass into history without the Federal Communications Commission stepping up to the plate to ensure an Open Internet. Think of the good history the Commission could have made for itself. Instead we got more delay and more uncertainty about whether Title II net neutrality will ever see the light of day. The hoped-for scenario now is that progress will come at the January 2015 FCC monthly meeting. Perhaps, even as you read this, the Commission is reworking its notably deficient and wildly unpopular proposal from earlier this year. There is no reason for this process -- if indeed this is the process now -- to take long. The agency is expert on every aspect of telecommunication law; it has been amassing a comprehensive Title I/Title II/Section 706 record for more than a dozen years; and there are no new arguments to be made that haven’t been made many times before. Time is not the friend of the Open Internet.
http://benton.org/blog/internets-future-now
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NET NEUTRALITY PLAN MAKES SENSE
[SOURCE: US News and World Report, AUTHOR: David Brodwin]
[Commentary] President Barack Obama urged the Federal Communications Commission to regulate the Internet under what is called “Title II of the Communications Act of 1934.” The call for Title II was immediately misunderstood and widely criticized. “Why should we tie the Internet to something set up 80 years ago?” the skeptics ask. It turns out there are several good reasons, and they get to the heart of how the Internet helps our economy. The most important issue is simply the cost and speed of the Internet connections that Internet Service Providers offer to their customers. This has nothing to do with so-called “paid prioritization,” the question of fast lanes versus slow lanes. For most Americans, basic cost and speed is much more important. And it is easier to understand what is at stake. Why turn to the Telecommunications Act of 1934 to regulate the Internet of tomorrow? Because large portions of it still apply. The economics of spanning sparsely populated areas with telecommunications networks haven’t changed much in the past 80 years, and neither have the challenges of too little competition. [Brodwin is a cofounder and board member of American Sustainable Business Council]
benton.org/headlines/obamas-plan-network-neutrality-makes-perfect-sense | US News and World Report
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NEW INTERNET FEES?
[SOURCE: National Journal, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
President Barack Obama thrilled liberals and Internet activists by calling for the "strongest possible" network neutrality regulations to ensure that all Internet traffic is treated equally. But his plan, which is still under consideration by the Federal Communications Commission, has raised a host of thorny regulatory questions unrelated to net neutrality, such as whether to impose government fees on Internet service. The possibility of a new "Internet tax" is sure to enrage Republicans, who are already fiercely opposed to Obama's plan for stronger regulation of Internet service. "The net result is that every single American broadband customer will have to pay a new tax or taxes to access the Internet," FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai warned. "That translates into less broadband adoption, especially among the millions of families that still struggle to make ends meet in this lackluster economy." Technically, the FCC does not have the authority to "tax." But the agency already collects about $8 billion every year from phone companies for its Universal Service Fund. The companies pass those costs on to consumers in the form of monthly fees on their phone bills. So far, the FCC has rejected calls to expand the fees to other services, such as broadband. That could change under the president's net neutrality plan.
benton.org/headlines/obamas-network-neutrality-plan-could-mean-new-internet-fees | National Journal | American Enterprise Institute
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TITLE II AND YOU
[SOURCE: Daily Yonder, AUTHOR: Edyael Casaperalta]
[Commentary] Rural Americans should be pleased with President Obama’s recent call to preserve network neutrality. And the method he wants the Federal Communications Commission to use to protect open access to the Internet means additional safeguards for all consumers. The President explicitly compared telephone and broadband service, thus opening the door to a conversation I really want to have -- how to bring affordable, reliable broadband service to rural communities. [Edyael Casaperalta coordinates the Rural Broadband Policy Group of the National Rural Assembly] [Nov 20]
benton.org/headlines/speak-your-piece-title-ii-and-you | Daily Yonder
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TITLE II REGULATION
[SOURCE: AT&T, AUTHOR: Hank Hultquist]
Occasionally a proponent of Title II regulation of Internet access will ask, in effect, what’s so bad about Title II? What follows is a cautionary tale about the absence of regulatory certainty in the world of Title II regulation; a world into which so many net neutrality proponents want to throw the Internet. I think this story speaks volumes about the kind of regulatory stability – so crucial to maintaining incentives to build world class Internet infrastructure – we can expect from the FCC in the years to come. To fully understand how the Title II world undermines regulatory stability, enables regulatory capture and ultimately harms consumer welfare and innovation, let’s go back to 2010… [Nov 20]
benton.org/headlines/welcome-world-title-ii-regulation | AT&T
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NEW YORKERS’ INTERNET ACCESS
[SOURCE: Slate, AUTHOR: Danielle Kehl]
[Commentary] A recent study by New America’s Open Technology Institute provides more data about what the American broadband market looks from the customer perspective. “Cost of Connectivity” documents the actual high-speed Internet packages available in 24 cities around the world, giving you a glimpse about what, for example, a 25 Mbps connection costs if you live in Los Angeles, London, Hong Kong, or Kansas City. And the results are not very pretty. With information on more than 2,000 home and mobile broadband options in 24 cities scattered across North America, Europe, and Asia, “Cost of Connectivity” shows where the fastest speeds are available, the best deals you can find for less than $40, and what you might expect to pay, on average, for a given speed tier in each of the cities surveyed. Some of the contrasts are stark. In Seoul, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Paris, and Bucharest, $40 a month will buy blazing-fast gigabit service -- while in Los Angeles or New York, a Time Warner Cable customer would the same price for just 15 Mbps. Meanwhile, 3 GB of data costs at least $30 in the United States, but for roughly less than $10 you can get 6 GB in Copenhagen or Bucharest.
[Kehl is a policy researcher the New America Foundation’s Open Technology Institute]
benton.org/headlines/new-yorkers-get-worse-internet-service-people-bucharest | Slate
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ONLINE SALES TAXES
[SOURCE: National Journal, AUTHOR: Dustin Volz]
Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) is lobbying hard to prevent government regulation of the Internet, but one measure he supports is expected to create a sizeable budget hole for his state. Sen Cruz, a likely presidential candidate in 2016, spent ample time last week promoting a permanent extension to an expiring ban on federal, state, and local taxation of Internet access that is currently being considered in Congress. The measure, which passed the House earlier this year, is popular in both parties and considered a lame-duck "must pass," as the ban is set to lift on Dec. 11. But a lesser-known consequence of the bill is that it would also end Internet access taxes currently in place in seven states -- Hawaii, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and, yes, Texas. These states are the only ones that can charge residents for Internet access thanks to a grandfather clause in the original Internet-tax moratorium -- first passed by Congress in 1998 -- that carved out an exemption for states that had already begun to cash in.
benton.org/headlines/ted-cruz-backs-internet-tax-ban-would-cost-texas-358-million-year | National Journal
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WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
T-MOBILE AGREES TO IMPROVE DISCLOSURES FOR CONSUMERS USING MOBILE SPEED TESTS
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission announced today that T-Mobile US has agreed to take steps to ensure that customers who run mobile speed tests on the carrier’s network will receive accurate information about the speed of their broadband Internet connection, even when they are subject to speed reductions pursuant to their data plans. As part of the agreement, T-Mobile will send text messages to customers that will enable them to more easily get accurate speed information, place direct links to accurate speed tests on customer handsets, and revamp its website disclosures to provide clearer information about the speeds customers actually experience. The FCC and T-Mobile have agreed that T-Mobile will begin implementing the agreement immediately and will fully implement it within 60 days. Specifically, T-Mobile will take the following steps to ensure that consumers have clear and accurate information about the speed of their broadband connections:
Provide a button on customer smartphones linking to a speed test that will show actual reduced speeds;
Modify the text messages it currently sends to customers once they hit their monthly high-speed data allotment to make it clear that certain speed tests may show network speeds, rather than their reduced speed. The modified texts also will provide more information about the speeds that will be available after customers exceed their data cap; and
Modify its website disclosures to better explain T-Mobile’s policies regarding speed test applications and where consumers can get accurate speed information
benton.org/headlines/t-mobile-agrees-improve-disclosures-consumers-using-mobile-speed-tests | Federal Communications Commission
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PROTECTING WI-FI
[SOURCE: CommLawBlog, AUTHOR: Peter Tannenwald]
[Commentary] The Federal Communications Commission whacked Marriott Corporation for a cool $600,000 for messing with guests’ Wi-Fi hotspots. (The hotelier had prevented guests at its Opryland resort from using their own hotspots by transmitting disabling signals to private hotspots, forcing them to pay what the FCC felt were exorbitant rates for the resort’s own Wi-Fi service.) The FCC’s theory was that Marriott was violating Section 333 of the Communications Act, which bars interference with lawful communications. While Marriott appeared to have accepted its come-uppance willingly (by signing onto a Consent Decree), it turns out there was more to the story. While the consent decree was being negotiated, Marriott mustered some reinforcements and took the offensive. Joined by the American Hospitality and Lodging Association and Ryman Hospital Properties, Marriott filed a Petition for Declaratory Ruling or, in the Alternative, for Rulemaking asking the FCC to clarify exactly what operators of large venues may do to protect the security and quality of their own Wi-Fi networks. The petition was filed on August 25, 2014, but it took the FCC nearly three months to invite preliminary comments on it. If you’ve got something to say about this, you’ve got until December 19, 2014 to do so.
benton.org/headlines/marriott-wants-fcc-guidance-how-far-venues-can-go-control-their-wi-fi-networks | CommLawBlog
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PRIVACY/SECURITY
COULD NSA STOP SURVEILLANCE PROGRAM?
[SOURCE: National Journal, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) is urging the Obama Administration to stop a domestic surveillance program on its own. "There's no reason, if you think that this is the correct policy, that you have to wait for the Congress to mandate you to do it," he said. Rep Schiff argued that there's no reason the National Security Agency should be collecting massive batches of data in the first place. The data include phone numbers, call times, and call durations, although not the contents of any conversations. "You don't have to wait for the USA Freedom Act," Rep Schiff said. "There is no statutory mandate of any kind for the government to collect bulk metadata."
benton.org/headlines/rep-schiff-nsa-forget-congress-stop-mass-spying-now | National Journal
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CONTENT
APPLE SETTLEMENT
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Brian Chen, Nicole Perlroth]
A federal judge approved a settlement in which Apple could begin paying $400 million to as many as 23 million consumers related to charges that it violated antitrust law by conspiring with publishers to raise e-book prices and thwart efforts by Amazon. In the hearing, Judge Denise L. Cote of Federal District Court in Manhattan approved an unusual settlement reached this summer in which Apple agreed to pay $400 million to consumers in cash and e-book credits, and $50 million to lawyers. Those figures could still change, however, if an appeals court overturns a 2013 verdict in the case, in which Apple was found to have conspired with five major publishers to fix the price of e-books. The court, which will hear Apple’s challenge on Dec. 15, is not expected to change its previous ruling. In the event the court overturns the verdict and returns the case to Judge Cote, Apple would pay $50 million to consumers and $20 million to the lawyers. [Nov 21]
benton.org/headlines/settlement-apple-case-over-e-books-approved | New York Times
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TELEVISION
KUDOS FOR PROTECTING CONSUMERS
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Shiva Stella]
In a letter to Sens Edward Markey (D-MA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler affirmed his commitment to a workable industry-wide set-top box standard to replace the system removed by Congress in the satellite television reauthorization bill STELAR. Public Knowledge applauds the Chairman for his commitment to leading the charge on consumer protections and choice in the video device marketplace.
benton.org/headlines/public-knowledge-commends-chairman-wheeler-pledging-protect-consumer-rights | Public Knowledge
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DUMB STUFF
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Dennis Wharton]
[Commentary] It’s been apparent for years that there is a concerted effort by broadcasting’s primary competitors to eliminate local TV as a competitive threat to their nirvana world — a world where “free” is eliminated from the telecommunications lexicon and programming content is only made available to those who will pay for it. In their world, the highest and best use of spectrum is used only by those who charge a fee for delivering content. But only of late have we been confronted with the bald-faced falsehood that 'localism is a myth.' [Nov 20]
benton.org/headlines/dumb-stuff-said-washington-dc | TVNewsCheck
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POLICYMAKERS
WHAT A PRIVACY ACTIVIST TURNED TOP WHITE HOUSE ADVISER THINKS ABOUT CYBERSECURITY
[SOURCE: nextgov, AUTHOR: Aliya Sternstein]
Ari Schwartz, who hails from the world of privacy activism, is now the White House senior director for cybersecurity. During the heat of the anti-surveillance movement, he was placed on the White House National Security Council staff to instill civil liberties into cybersecurity and signals intelligence policies. Before taking the White House gig, Schwartz advised three Commerce Department secretaries on, among other tech issues, how to develop voluntary cyber standards in accordance with a landmark executive order.
benton.org/headlines/what-privacy-activist-turned-top-white-house-advisor-thinks-about-cybersecurity | nextgov
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
MEASURING THE INFORMATION SOCEITY
[SOURCE: International Telecommunication Union, AUTHOR: Press release]
Over three billion people are now online and information and communication technology (ICT) growth remains buoyant in just about every country worldwide, according to the International Telecommunication Union’s flagship annual Measuring the Information Society Report. The report is widely recognized as the repository of the world’s most reliable and impartial global data and analysis on the state of global ICT development, and is extensively relied upon by governments, financial institutions and private sector analysts worldwide. Latest data show that Internet use continues to grow steadily, at 6.6% globally in 2014 (3.3% in developed countries, 8.7% in the developing world). The number of Internet users in developing countries has doubled in five years (2009-2014), with two thirds of all people online now living in the developing world. Of the 4.3 billion people not yet using the Internet, 90% live in developing countries. In the world’s 42 Least Connected Countries (LCCs), which are home to 2.5 billion people, access to ICTs remains largely out of reach, particularly for these countries’ large rural populations. In the mobile cellular segment, the report estimates that by end 2014 there will be seven billion mobile subscriptions, roughly corresponding to the total global population. But it warns against concluding that everyone is connected; instead, many users have multiple subscriptions, with global growth figures sometimes translating into little real improvement in the level of connectivity of those at the very bottom of the pyramid. An estimated 450 million people worldwide live in places which are still out of reach of mobile cellular service. Encouragingly, the report notes substantial improvements in access to international bandwidth in poorer countries, with developing nations’ share of total global international bandwidth rising from just 9% in 2004 to over 30% today. But lack of sufficient international Internet bandwidth in many of the LCCs remains an important barrier to ICT uptake in these countries, and often limits the quality of Internet access. By the end of this year, almost 44% of households globally will have Internet access at home, up from 40% last year and 30% in 2010. In the developed world, 78% of households now have home Internet access, compared to 31% in developing countries, and just 5% in the 48 UN Least Developed Countries.
Internet access in schools has made important strides forward over the past decade. In developed countries, the vast majority of schools now have broadband Internet, with many industrialized nations having already reached 100% school connectivity. In developing countries substantial progress has also been made, but access levels vary widely, not just from country to country, but also across different regions within nations.
The report notes that the potential for public libraries and post offices to service as public ICT access points has not been sufficiently exploited. Worldwide, only 10% of post offices offer public Internet access, despite the fact that 20% of post offices globally have a broadband connection. According to ITU’s sister UN agency the Universal Postal Union, increasing the proportion of post offices offering public Internet services to 45% of all establishments would provide one third of all rural areas and towns worldwide with Internet connectivity.
The Measuring the Information Society 2014 report also warns of a growing divide between urban and rural ICT uptake, even in the world’s richest nations. The difference is lowest in highly developed economies such as Japan and the Republic of Korea, where household Internet penetration is just 4% higher in urban zones than rural areas. But it widens markedly to as much as 35% in developing nations such as Colombia and Morocco, with the gulf estimated to be greater still in poorer nations, for which data is rarely available. Overall, the report notes, rural access is growing much more slowly than urban access, and connecting rural households to broadband Internet should remain a key priority for policy-makers in every country.
benton.org/headlines/itu-releases-annual-global-ict-data-ict-development-index-country-rankings | International Telecommunication Union
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NET NEUTRALITY IN EUROPE
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: David Meyer]
Andrus Ansip, the European Commission’s new digital chief, has said that he is “really worried” about proposals that would water down the European Union’s new neutrality laws before they are finalized. He said that US President Barack Obama’s intervention into that country’s network neutrality debate took a cue from the fairly strict net neutrality rules that the European Parliament passed back in April 2014: “All the traffic has to be treated equally. The Internet has to stay open for everybody. The president of the United States is using our wording — the wording of the European Parliament in the United States of America… It is allowed to have higher speeds -- but not at the expense of others.”
benton.org/headlines/eu-digital-chief-sides-president-obama-defense-network-neutrality | GigaOm
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