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Submitted on May 16, 2013

Telecommunications is a key element in some of the most headline-grabbing news of the week, especially the report from the Associated Press that the Justice Department secretly obtained telephone records of the news organization’s reporters and editors. But we want to highlight a development at the Federal Communications Commission that garnered almost no press at all.

On May 10, the Federal Communications Commission released a Public Notice seeking public comment on how to structure real world trials that will inform the transition from today’s telephone networks to, well, the networks of tomorrow. The goal of any trials would be to gather a factual record to help determine what policies are appropriate to promote investment and innovation while protecting consumers, promoting competition, and ensuring that emerging networks remain resilient.

The Public Notice comes from the FCC’s Technology Transitions Policy Task Force (1) which was announced back in December 2012. At the time, the FCC noted that the nation’s broadband transition means that communications networks are increasingly migrating from special purpose to general purpose, from circuit-switched to packet-switched, and from copper to fiber and wireless-based networks. In announcing the Task Force, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said its role is answer a fundamental policy question: “In a broadband world, how can we best ensure that our nation’s communications policies continue to drive a virtuous cycle of innovation and investment, promote competition, and protect consumers?” The Task Force is charged with providing recommendations to modernize the FCC’s policies in a process that encourages the technological transition, empowers and protects consumers, promotes competition, and ensures network resiliency and reliability.

Chairman Genachowski admits that the FCC’s rules were written “for a different technological and market landscape”, but that the changes in technology do not change the basic mission of the FCC. That mission, as mandated by law, (2) is to “make available, so far as possible, to all the people of the United States, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex, rapid, efficient, Nation-wide and world-wide wire and radio communication service with adequate facilities at reasonable charges.” In addition, the FCC was created “for the purpose of the national defense” and “for the purpose of promoting safety of life and property through the use of wire and radio communications.” (3)

The Technology Transitions Policy Task Force is tasked, in part, to consider recommendations from the FCC’s Technological Advisory Committee (TAC). In 2011, the TAC , chaired by FCC chairman-nominee Tom Wheeler, recommended that the FCC:

  1. Develop a detailed plan for an orderly transition from the current public switched telephone network (PSTN) system of record to a service rich network for achieving key national goals. The plan should include:
  • A public-private partnership with industry, providers, and relevant organizations and stakeholders.
  • Coordination mechanisms for the ongoing evolution of the network to rapidly incorporate new technologies and capabilities.
  • Establish a task force to conduct a thorough policy and regulatory analysis and review as it relates to the PSTN which results in policies for the new communication environment (Interoperability, Interconnect, E.164, numbering, reliability,…).
  • Identify mechanisms and a migration plan for critical services currently provided by the PSTN. Therefore, ensuring that critical services that need to be carried forward are met by well understood solutions. (E911, Disability access,…)
  • Commit to ensuring ongoing universal access to evolving communication services to enable all Americans to participate in the nation’s economy.
  • Investigate the need for the use of incentives to accelerate the transition to new services.
  • Create a communications and outreach program to educate the public about the transition.
    • Provide the public with the vision of what we are transitioning to: New services and capabilities which can greatly exceed the current services of the PSTN
    • Provide a roadmap and communicate the urgency to take action to avoid the loss of capability to support critical services.

    In the FCC’s new proceeding, it seeks comment on several potential trials relating to the ongoing transitions from copper to fiber, from wireline to wireless, and from time-division multiplexing (TDM) (4) to all-Internet Protocol (IP) networks.

    1. VoIP Interconnection: Concerning the move from TDM to all-IP networks, providers are migrating to voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) interconnection. VoIP interconnection should be more efficient and has the potential to unleash new, innovative services and features. The FCC seeks comment on a VoIP interconnection trial that would gather data to determine whether there are technical issues that need to be addressed and gather information relevant to the appropriate policy framework.
    2. Public Safety - NG911: As we transition away from TDM, the nation’s emergency calling (911) system must also migrate to Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG911). (5) Although there is broad consensus regarding the benefits and potential of NG911, when these new capabilities will be introduced is less certain. The FCC seeks comment on a trial that will assist the Commission, state, local and Tribal governments, and Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) in a few geographic areas to answer important technical and policy questions to accelerate the transition. Beyond NG911, the FCC also seeks comment on how a trial could elicit data on the impact of network resiliency and public safety more broadly as consumers migrate to wireless and IP-based services that are dependent on commercial power. The FCC’s current Strategic Plan notes that the commission continues to facilitate the deployment of 911 services and technologies and to pave the way for greater capabilities, by helping define the system architecture and develop a transition plan to establish a digital, Internet Protocol (IP)-based foundation for the delivery of multimedia 9-1-1 "calls." 911 call centers could receive text, pictures and videos from members of the public, providing additional information to first responders as well as an additional means for persons who are injured, witness an accident or are too disabled to contact a 911 dispatcher. The Commission will also take steps to ensure that all segments of the communications industry can provide effective and technologically up-to-date public alerts and warnings to the American public, including through the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and the Personal Localized Alerting Network (PLAN).
    3. Wireline to Wireless: At least one provider, Verizon, has proposed serving consumers with wireless service in place of wireline service in certain geographic areas. The FCC seeks comment on a trial that would analyze the impact of doing so and, in particular, focus on the consumer experience and ensure that consumers have the ability to move back to a wireline product during the trial. We saw a couple stories related to this transition this week. In Mantoloking (NJ), Verizon has no plans to rebuild its copper-line telephone network that was damaged by Superstorm Sandy. Instead, Verizon says Mantoloking is the first town in New Jersey, and one of the few areas in the country, to have a new service called Verizon Voice Link. Essentially, it connects your home’s wired and cordless telephones to the Verizon Wireless network. There’s a similar plan for Fire Island (NY). But the union representing Verizon workers said the transition will be bad news for both consumers and businesses. During major disasters like Sandy with long power outages, the cellular systems tend to get overloaded, and cell towers can run out of power. And by abandoning landline DSL service, Verizon will be leaving customers to fend for themselves with the cable companies, who won't face any more competition for Internet service.

    The FCC is asking for public input on these three potential trials including:

    • Legal and administrative issues as well as general structure and design of any trial.
    • How to best coordinate the trials with local, state and Tribal entities.
    • Whether the trials should be conducted in a single geographic area, if there is information to be gained from a general geographic trial that would not be gathered from the more targeted trials, and the costs and benefits of the alternative approaches.
    • How best to ensure a successful trial while also avoiding potential harmful impacts to consumers
    • What data to collect to guide sound policymaking regarding the ongoing technological transitions.

    The FCC is asking if there are other trials that should be considered, such as additional numbering trials, trials to facilitate better access for persons with disabilities, and whether there are additional trials concerning the TDM to IP or copper to fiber transitions. Specifically, the FCC asks if it should conduct trials that focus on consumer protection and universal service. Should there be a trial that focuses on improving access to communications services for low-income Americans and improves the FCC's Lifeline program? Is a trial the right setting for the Commission to explore ways to test the appropriate monthly support amount for Lifeline voice service to better gauge the appropriate price point both for consumers and carriers who provide Lifeline services? Are there other universal service issues that could be tested in a trial? The FCC also seeks input on whether it should have any trials that focus specifically on the delivery of services to consumers and communities on Tribal lands.

    We’re already seeing how the larger questions about the transition are impacting availability and investment of tomorrow’s networks. Google Fiber is expanding from the Kansas City area to additional cities. Just after the announcement of Google Fiber coming to Austin (TX), the local incumbent announced plans for a gigabit broadband network there, too. Bill Smith, President of AT&T Network Operations, said the 1 Gbps plans had already been on the drawing board for a while. And CEO Randall Stephenson told investors this week, “We will probably piggyback on the rules and terms and condition that Google received in Austin and do our own build in Austin.” AT&T has had a tougher time with its own fiber deployment because cities have required it to build its network out to the entire community -- a costly project. But Google has been able to approach it differently, building only to homes and neighborhoods where it makes economic sense – where consumers commit to buy the service. It's a change that AT&T hopes to mimic. Of course, that raises questions about whether tomorrow’s networks will be universally available in areas throughout the country.

    The FCC proceeding (GN Docket No. 13-5, if you’re scoring at home) has not yet been published in the Federal Register. Once it has, the public will have 45 days to comment and 75 days to reply to initial comments. After these comments are collected this summer, it will take some time for the FCC to review them, so this is an issue that will be simmering for the rest of 2013 and beyond. Which brings us back to Tom Wheeler.

    As the Senate considers Wheeler’s nomination to head the FCC, Stephanie Chen of The Greenlining Institute penned an op-ed for The Hill that raises a number of questions senators could ask of him -- just the sort of questions that the FCC will be considering in the coming month:

    Increasingly, telephone service is moving to Internet-based (VoIP) systems, but to the customer, a phone call is a phone call. Customers aren’t concerned with what technology is involved; they care that service is reliable, available and affordable. Given that reality, how should the different technologies used to provide voice services be regulated? Should the type of wires determine the sort of regulation needed, or should the function the technology serves for the customer be the determining factor? And given that it is used to make phone calls, is VoIP a communications service or an information service? What should be the role of the states in regulating those services?

    We’ve tried to make it easier to track the coming IP transition and surrounding policy issues and we’ll be seeing lots of stories, we’re sure. ‘Til then, we’ll see you in the Headlines.

    Notes

    1. The Task Force includes the FCC’s Chief Economist and Chief Technology Officer, as well as representatives from across the agency, including staff from the Wireline, Wireless, Media, Consumer Affairs, and Public Safety Bureaus, as well as the Office of General Counsel and the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis.
    2. 47 U.S.C. § 151.
    3. Id.
    4. Also known as digital circuit switched, TDM has its roots in 19th century technology that created our current public telephone system. Currently, TDM allows several telephone conversations to be transmitted over the same four-wire copper cable.
    5. NG911 refers to an initiative aimed at enabling the public to obtain emergency assistance by means of advanced communications technologies beyond traditional voice-centric devices.

    May 16, 2013 (AP Records Seizure)

    BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, MAY 16, 2013

    Follow Benton on Twitter @benton_fdn


    GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
       AP records seizure just latest step in sweeping U.S. leak probe
       Under Fire, White House Pushes to Revive ‘Media Shield’ Bill
       After Attacking The AP, a Peace Offering - editorial [links to web]
       Rep. Conyers to Reintroduce Shield Law [links to web]
       Obama’s War on Journalists - analysis
       Wiretapping the Web - op-ed
       AG Holder backs warrant requirement for most e-mail searches
       How to avoid another Justice raid on reporter phone records - editorial
       New Yorker reveals Aaron Swartz-inspired system to protect sources
       AP case reflects larger government assault on press and privacy - editorial [links to web]

    INTERNET/BROADBAND
       NTIA: 18% of Rural Communities Lack 3 Mbps Broadband
       Faster Broadband Speeds: The View From the FCC - op-ed
       Google CEO: Internet hampered by 'outdated' laws
       AT&T CEO: We'll piggyback on Google's Fiber rollout plans
       Verizon, Comcast Broadband Drop In Speed Rankings [links to web]

    SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
       But What If FCC’s Incentive Auction Flops?
       NY Senators Seek State Department Help in Spectrum Coordination With Canada [links to web]
       Report: Small Cells with Wi-Fi Will Reshape the Wireless Industry
       AT&T CEO: A subsidized mobile internet is coming to an operator near you
       Guess Those Wireless Networks Aren’t Congested After All - analysis
       Dish Network gains edge in battle for Sprint with $9 billion financing [links to web]

    BROADCASTING
       Aereo Flies in the Face of Broadcast Revenues
       Streaming poses ultimate Catch-22 - op-ed

    TELECOM
       Sen. Vitter solicits 'Obama phone' pics on Twitter

    OWNERSHIP
       Tribune CEO Says Protest Over Koch Newspaper Sale Is Premature
       Political ad windfall drives local TV consolidation
       Warner Music Gains Approval to Buy Parlophone, a Last Piece of EMI [links to web]
       Dish Network gains edge in battle for Sprint with $9 billion financing [links to web]
       Copyright owners can't sue Google's YouTube as a group, judge says [links to web]

    CONTENT
       AG Holder: Justice Should Be Able to Go After Some Illegal Streaming as Felony [links to web]
       Why Nielsen isn't watching the cord-cutters [links to web]
       Google Escalates the Competition in Map Services [links to web]
       Copyright owners can't sue Google's YouTube as a group, judge says [links to web]

    POLICYMAKERS
       Wheeler Not Among Senate Commerce Nominees Scheduled for Hearing
       FCC’s Robert McDowell reflects on how he left his mark [links to web]
       COMPTEL Names Former FCC Advisor Angela Kronenberg as Chief Advocate and General Counsel - press release [links to web]

    COMPANY NEWS
       Google to roll out 'conversational' way to search Web [links to web]
       Google Escalates the Competition in Map Services [links to web]

    MORE ONLINE
       The way forward for FWD.us [links to web]
       Social media privacy laws a mixed bag for businesses [links to web]

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    GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

    SWEEPING US LEAK PROBE
    [SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Mark Hosenball, Tabassum Zakaria]
    The Justice Department's controversial decision to seize phone records of Associated Press journalists was just one element in a sweeping U.S. government investigation into media leaks about a Yemen-based plot to bomb a U.S. airliner. The search for who leaked the information is being led by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington and has involved extensive FBI interviews of personnel at the Justice Department, U.S. intelligence agencies, the White House's National Security staff and the FBI itself. The interviews have been lengthy and thorough, said people who have been questioned in the investigation, but requested anonymity. Two of those interviewed said leak inquiries were always aggressive and that being questioned is a wearing and unpleasant experience. There are signs the administration's efforts to find the alleged leaker were unproductive - at least before the Justice Department seized two months of records of phone calls by the AP and its journalists. "Seeking toll records associated with media organizations is undertaken only after all other reasonable alternative investigative steps have been taken," said the Justice Department’s James Cole in a letter to AP President Gary Pruitt, who has protested the government's action. In that letter, Cole revealed the Justice Department had conducted more than 550 interviews and reviewed tens of thousands of documents before subpoenaing phone company records of AP calls. A law enforcement official said on Wednesday that because officials were so concerned and shocked by the leak, they opened an investigation into how the AP found out about the spy operation even before the news agency ran its initial story. The AP had contacted the government and asked for comment several days before the story was published.
    benton.org/node/151998 | Reuters
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    MEDIA SHIELD BILL
    [SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Charlie Savage]
    The Obama Administration sought to revive legislation that would provide greater protections to reporters from penalties for refusing to identify confidential sources, and that would enable journalists to ask a federal judge to quash subpoenas for their phone records, a White House official said. The official said that President Obama’s Senate liaison, Ed Pagano, called Sen Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), who is a chief proponent of a so-called media shield law, and asked him to reintroduce a bill that he had pushed in 2009. Called the Free Flow of Information Act, the bill was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in a bipartisan 15-to-4 vote in December 2009. But while it was awaiting a floor vote, a furor over leaking arose after WikiLeaks began publishing archives of secret government documents, and the bill never received a vote. The new push comes as the Obama administration has come under fire from both parties amid the disclosure this week that the Justice Department, as part of a leak investigation, secretly used a subpoena earlier this year to obtain a broad swath of calling records involving Associated Press reporters and editors.
    benton.org/node/151931 | New York Times
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    WAR ON JOURNALISTS
    [SOURCE: Slate, AUTHOR: Emily Bazelon]
    [Commentary] Attorney General Eric Holder has said that he doesn’t want the Obama administration’s leak prosecutions “to be his legacy.” But he has also trumpeted the cases—six and counting—in response to criticism from Senate Republicans. “We have tried more leak cases—brought more leak cases during the course of this administration than any other administration,” Holder said before the Senate Judiciary Committee last year. This shouldn’t be a source of pride, even the fake point-scoring kind. In light of the Justice Department’s outrageously broad grab of the phone records of reporters and editors at the Associated Press, the administration’s unprecedented criminalizing of leaks has become embarrassing. This is not what Obama’s supporters thought they were getting. Obama the candidate strongly supported civil liberties and protections for whistle-blowers. Obama the president risks making government intrusion into the investigative work of the press a galling part of his legacy.
    benton.org/node/151928 | Slate
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    WIRETAPPING THE WEB
    [SOURCE: The New Yorker, AUTHOR: Tim Wu]
    [Commentary] The federal power to wiretap, a central issue during the Bush years, has made a comeback. The White House seems ready to endorse an expansion of wiretapping laws to give the federal government greater power to demand access to Web communications like Facebook chats. Meanwhile, the Associated Press just revealed that the Justice Department seized, without a warrant, two months’ worth of its reporters’ telephone records. Critics are, unsurprisingly, up in arms about both matters. House Republicans, recently born again as staunch civil-rights defenders, are depicting the Obama Administration as, in the words of Zeke Miller and Michael Crowley, “a Big Brother–style tyrant in charge of a power-abusing surveillance state.” Techies, for their part, simply hate the idea of Web-tapping. Julian Sanchez, for Wired, writes, “The Obama administration needs to dump this ill-conceived scheme on the trash heap where it belongs.” But the issue, once you get into it, is actually rather complicated.
    benton.org/node/151927 | New Yorker, The
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    WARRANT REQUIREMENT FOR E-MAIL SEARCHES
    [SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
    Attorney General Eric Holder said that the Justice Department will likely support legislation requiring law enforcement officers to obtain a warrant before accessing private online messages, such as e-mails or Facebook messages. "It is something that I think the Department will support," AG Holder said in testimony before the House Judiciary Committee. He urged Congress to exempt "certain very limited circumstances" such as civil investigations. "But the more general notion of having a warrant to obtain the content of communications from a service provider is something that we support," AG Holder said.
    benton.org/node/151971 | Hill, The | Broadcasting&Cable
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    AVOIDING ANOTHER JUSTICE RAID
    [SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
    [Commentary] Americans look to both government and the press to protect their interests. But when the two institutions battle over who better defends those interests – especially on national security – it’s time for each side to strike a deal. That should now be the case in light of the news that the Justice Department had secretly obtained two months’ worth of phone records belonging to The Associated Press. The investigation is part of a hunt for someone in government who leaked information to the AP last year about a thwarted terrorist plot in Yemen. This case highlights the need for a rebalancing of the trust and mistrust between government and the media in dealing with national security. Letting courts have more of a balancing role between the press and executive branch would be a good first step in preventing another case like this.
    benton.org/node/151994 | Christian Science Monitor, The
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    PROTECTING SOURCES
    [SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson]
    News organizations are scrambling to find ways to protect their confidential sources in the digital age as they push back against government attempts to identify whistleblowers. The New Yorker unveiled a nine-step process for sources to send documents and messages to the Condé Nast-owned magazine, saying the system could offer them “a reasonable degree of anonymity”. Called Strongbox, it involves the use of multiple computers, thumb drives, encryption codes and secure networks. The project was started by Aaron Swartz, the internet activist who committed suicide earlier this year, and Kevin Poulsen of Wired, another of Condé Nast’s magazines. They designed Strongbox using open source software, Mr Thompson said, to encourage developers to be able to continue strengthening its security code. Mr Thompson said the system had been designed to be complex to use, which may deter some sources, but that this was necessary to ensure security. “It takes a lot of steps to make it really hard to hack into this. Hackers are clever people. We’ll see what happens.”
    benton.org/node/151993 | Financial Times
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    INTERNET/BROADBAND

    NTIA BROADBAND REPORT
    [SOURCE: telecompetitor, AUTHOR: Joan Engebretson]
    The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has done a highly detailed analysis of broadband deployment in the U.S. -– looking at broadband availability by speed, by technology, by state, by county, and by various combinations of these factors. The upshot, the NTIA said, is that although the U.S. continues to make progress on broadband deployment and speeds, gaps between rural and metro areas persist. The report notes, for example, that almost 100% of urban residents have access to download speeds of at least 6 Mbps but only 82% of rural communities can access these speeds. And while almost 88% of urban residents have access to speeds of 25 Mbps, only 41% of rural residents have the same access. One of the most interesting charts in the report was one showing the percentage of counties where people can get broadband at various speeds ranging from basic 3 Mbps downstream service to high-speed 100 Mbps downstream service. In the chart, reproduced here, each speed level has a low and a high mark. The high mark shows the percentage of counties where 25% of the population can get broadband at a certain speed, while the low mark shows the percentage of counties where 95% of the population can get service at that speed. The chart shows, for example, that 5% of the people in 41% of U.S. counties lack even basic 3 Mbps broadband. And 75% of the people in just under 2% of U.S. counties lack broadband at that speed. At the 6 Mbps level, 5% of the people in 62% of U.S. counties cannot get service. And 75% of the people in 4.5% of U.S. counties can’t get 6 Mbps broadband.
    benton.org/node/151968 | telecompetitor
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    FASTER BROADBAND SPEEDS
    [SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski]
    [Commentary] It’s vital that we keep pushing for faster broadband speeds. Google Fiber is an important positive development and has been followed by a growing number of other high-speed broadband deployments, including expansions by AT&T, CenturyLink, and other companies and municipalities. Smart policies at all levels of government are needed to drive capital investment by new entrants and expansion by existing players. Over the past four years, the Federal Communications Commission has adopted significant policies to do so, including rules to lower broadband deployment costs. We’ve also modernized universal service programs from telephone to broadband, creating the Connect America Fund to invest $45 billion in our broadband infrastructure; eliminated outdated regulations that were discouraging network upgrades; and adopted open Internet rules and other policies to spur competition. Particularly in today’s global economy, it’s essential that the FCC — revitalized and focused on broadband — continue to implement policies to unleash private investment and promote competition.
    benton.org/node/151991 | New York Times
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    OUTDATED LAWS AND THE INTERNET
    [SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Amrita Khalid]
    Google CEO Larry Page slammed many of the regulations that govern the Internet at the company's annual conference for software developers, expressing frustration over how institutions such as the law haven’t kept up with the pace of change. “The law can’t be right when it’s 50 years old,” said Page. “It’s before the Internet — that’s a pretty major change.” “There are many exciting, important things that we can do that we can’t do because they’re illegal and they’re not allowed by regulation. And that makes sense — we don’t want our morals to change too fast,” said Page. Page didn't spare the private sector from criticism. The 40-year-old CEO said he felt that the Internet was not advancing as fast as it could be, and mentioned Microsoft as one of the companies that poses a challenge to that advancement.
    benton.org/node/151972 | Hill, The | ComputerWorld
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    AT&T’S GIGABIT PLANS
    [SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Roger Cheng]
    AT&T seems perfectly willing to let Google blaze the trail when it comes to fiber-optic deployment. Google has said it plans to deploy its fiber network in select neighborhoods in Austin, Texas. AT&T said it would also like to build a fiber network -- under the same kinds of terms and conditions. "We will probably piggyback on the rules and terms and condition that Google received in Austin and do our own build in Austin," CEO Randall Stephenson said at a J.P. Morgan tech investor conference. AT&T has had a tougher time with its own fiber deployment because cities have required it to build its network out to the entire community -- a costly project. But Google has been able to approach it differently, building only to homes and neighborhoods where it makes economic sense. It's a change that AT&T hopes to mimic. "I think you are going to see that begin to manifest itself around the United States, and in not just AT&T and Google. You will see others doing this because the demand for really high-speed broadband via gigabit-type fiber-based solutions on a targeted basis is going to be very, very high," Stephenson said.
    benton.org/node/151942 | C-Net|News.com
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    SPECTRUM/WIRELESS

    INCENTIVE AUCTIONS
    [SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Doug Halonen]
    If the Federal Communications Commission’s plan to hold an incentive auction to repurpose broadcast spectrum for smartphones and other wireless devices blows up in the agency’s face in the next couple of years, some industry analysts say broadcasters could get another shot to cash out — through a market-based system that might give the broadcasters a bigger payday. Among market-based alternatives to the incentive auction that are being talked about quietly in Washington policymaking circles, broadcasters would simply be freed to sell or lease parts or all of their TV channels to wireless companies — a concept that even Tom Wheeler, who President Obama has tapped to be the next FCC chairman, once endorsed. Another approach, also potentially lucrative for broadcasters, would be a so-called overlay auction, in which wireless carriers buy TV spectrum at government auction. The winners get the rights to use the spectrum, but only if they can first persuade broadcasters using that spectrum to vacate it for money. Not all the incentive auction alternatives are so accommodating to broadcasters.
    benton.org/node/151943 | TVNewsCheck
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    SMALL CELLS
    [SOURCE: telecompetitor, AUTHOR: Andrew Burger]
    Incorporation of Wi-Fi functionality into small-cell base stations “will be a game changer for cellphone service providers,” affording them the means to offload traffic from heavily congested channels while “linking together billions of devices into a single network architecture,” according to a new report from IHS. IHS expects large-scale deployment of small cell Wi-Fi base stations to begin in 2014. As IHS explains, deploying small cells, also known as metro cells, affords service providers a means of supplementing network coverage and capacity in heavy-traffic and dense urban areas. Being low power base stations capable of supporting wireless telecommunications of between 100-200 users simultaneously, small cell Wi-Fi base stations are likely to be “installed in public facilities, such as malls, railways and subway stations, the sides of public buildings, and on street or traffic lights.”
    benton.org/node/151933 | telecompetitor
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    SUBSIDIZED MOBILE INTERNET
    [SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
    If you’re waiting for the days of a “toll-free” mobile internet, you may not have to wait much longer. Speaking at a Morgan Stanley investor conference, AT&T Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson said he expects content providers and app developers soon to starting paying the network freight for their content. Content providers could do this through direct payments to carriers, but hey could subsidize data costs through some kind of advertising revenue share. The end result, though, would be the same: content providers who pay would see their traffic exempted from customers’ mobile data caps. Stephenson comments come a week after reports that arch-competitor Verizon Wireless is in discussions with ESPN for just such a toll-free data deal. What seemed like a crazy suggestion from AT&T and other carriers last year, now looks like it might become reality. But is it a reality we really want?
    benton.org/node/151940 | GigaOm | Fierce
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    WIRELESS CONGESTION
    [SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Michael Weinberg]
    [Commentary] The announcement that ESPN was in talks with at least one major wireless carrier to exempt its video from data caps raised fundamental network neutrality issues. But it also raised an important question about the robustness of wireless networks. If wireless networks were really as congested and starved of spectrum as some carriers like to claim, why would they be negotiating to bring more video onto them?
    benton.org/node/151939 | Public Knowledge
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    BROADCASTING

    AEREO AND BROACASTER REVENUES
    [SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Miriam Gottfried]
    Aereo is starting to sprout wings. Its liftoff could ground a key source of broadcaster revenues. The Internet-TV startup launched service in Boston on Wednesday, its first move beyond New York City. Atlanta is scheduled to follow June 17. The expansion moves Aereo beyond the experimental phase, offering consumers in those markets the ability to stream broadcast signals over the Web or record shows to a cloud-based DVR for as little as $8 a month. All this poses a threat to broadcasters, which reap roughly $2.4 billion in fees charged to pay-TV providers and local stations to carry their signal, according to Janney Capital Markets. Janney expects this revenue to grow faster than that from advertising, reaching an estimated $4.1 billion by 2017. Aereo has argued that it shouldn't have to pay such fees, as broadcast signals are transmitted free. Broadcasters disagree, and some have sued already. But with Aereo having won two rulings in federal court in New York, it is better placed to face any further legal challenges as it expands.
    benton.org/node/151985 | Wall Street Journal
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    AEREO, BROADCASTING, AND SPECTRUM
    [SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Thomas Lenard, Lawrence White]
    [Commentary] Barry Diller’s new Aereo venture may turn out to be the ultimate Catch-22. Aereo is possible only because of the existence of broadcast television, but broadcasters view it as a threat and have warned that they may stop broadcasting. If that happens, broadcast television and Aereo could both cease to exist. Unlike the iconic fictional Catch-22, however, this outcome would yield benefits to society: Hastening the demise of broadcast television would accelerate the transfer of spectrum to higher-value uses. Only a small fraction of TV viewers — about 10 percent — still rely on over-the-air broadcasts to receive their programs; the remaining 90 percent view their programs through subscription TV services like local cable or satellite transmissions. The current over-the-air broadcasters occupy a large block of spectrum that would most likely be more valuable if converted to mobile broadband use. The effective supply of spectrum for such mobile broadband uses hasn’t expanded sufficiently to keep up with the exploding demand, contributing to a growing and widely acknowledged scarcity problem. [Thomas M. Lenard is president of the Technology Policy Institute; Lawrence J. White is professor of economics at the NYU Stern School of Business.]
    benton.org/node/151983 | Politico
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    TELECOM

    VITTER AND LIFELINE
    [SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Amrita Khalid]
    Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) asked his Twitter followers to send pictures of locations offering free cellphones in Louisiana. “I'm collecting photos of #freecellphones booths around #Louisiana. If you see one, take a picture and send to me at david@davidvitter.com. — David Vitter (@DavidVitter) May 15, 2013” The tweet is the latest in Vitter's effort to roll back the federal government's Lifeline program that provides basic cellphones to people who are at or below 135 percent of the poverty line. Vitter recently began tweeting photos that constituents have sent him of booths they have encountered, offering free cellphones.
    benton.org/node/151967 | Hill, The
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    OWNERSHIP

    TRIBUNE RESPONDS TO KOCH PROTESTS
    [SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Edmund Lee]
    Tribune Company Chief Executive Officer Peter Liguori, responding to a protest over a possible sale of the Los Angeles Times to Koch Industries Inc., said speculation over potential buyers of the company’s papers is “premature.” “There’s been a lot of noise recently about the possible sale of our newspapers and speculation on who the interested parties might be,” Liguori said in a memo to employees. “From the get-go, such speculation has been and is premature. A sale transaction is only one of our possible strategic options, and there are many others.” Koch Industries has been cited among several potential buyers -- a group that includes News Corp., Berkshire Hathaway, Wrapports LLC and Freedom Communications Inc., people familiar with the negotiations said in March. Labor groups, including the AFL-CIO, have raised concerns about a Koch purchase, citing the Koch brothers’ support for initiatives such as California’s Proposition 32, a failed ballot measure that would have prohibited unions from using payroll deductions for political purposes without permission.
    benton.org/node/151986 | Bloomberg
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    LOCAL TV CONSOLIDATION
    [SOURCE: Columbia Journalism Review, AUTHOR: Sasha Chavkin]
    As campaign ads saturated the airwaves during the 2012 campaign, and piles of campaign cash buoyed stations’ balance sheets, media watchers wondered: how would the windfall revenues affect the local TV industry, and the news coverage it produces? We now have a partial answer: the ad-buying binge has accelerated the ongoing trend toward ownership consolidation in the industry. According to a report by Moody’s Investor Service, large broadcast television companies have launched a new wave of acquisitions. Industry heavyweights such as Sinclair Broadcast Group, LIN Television, and Nexstar Broadcasting are looking to expand their reach by buying up local stations, the report found. The value of merger and acquisition deals among pure-play broadcasters—companies devoted entirely to television and not owned by major networks—will likely range from $3.5 billion to more than $6 billion in 2013-2014. The buying spree is fueled in part by the record advertising revenues that local broadcasters reaped in the run-up to the 2012 elections.
    benton.org/node/151959 | Columbia Journalism Review | Moody’s Investor Service
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    POLICYMAKERS

    NOMINATION HEARINGS
    [SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
    Senate Commerce Committee Chair Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) has scheduled a May 22 nomination hearing for two new department chiefs, but it did not include Federal Communications Commission chairman nominee Tom Wheeler. Chairman Rockefeller had said earlier in the month that he might schedule a Wheeler nomination hearing as early as the end of this month, and a source at the committee had suggested that might be packaged with that of Transportation secretary Anthony Foxx, whose nomination was announced in tandem with Wheeler's, and the Department of Commerce secretary Penny Pritzker -- Commerce overseas government spectrum holders. But while Foxx and Pritzker will get a hearing May 22 and 23, respectively, there was no mention of Wheeler.
    benton.org/node/151961 | Broadcasting&Cable
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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    Reuters
    Author 
    Mark Hosenball
    Tabassum Zakaria
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    The Justice Department's controversial decision to seize phone records of Associated Press journalists was just one element in a sweeping U.S. government investigation into media leaks about a Yemen-based plot to bomb a U.S. airliner. The search for who leaked the information is being led by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington and has involved extensive FBI interviews of personnel at the Justice Department, U.S. intelligence agencies, the White House's National Security staff and the FBI itself.

    The interviews have been lengthy and thorough, said people who have been questioned in the investigation, but requested anonymity. Two of those interviewed said leak inquiries were always aggressive and that being questioned is a wearing and unpleasant experience. There are signs the administration's efforts to find the alleged leaker were unproductive - at least before the Justice Department seized two months of records of phone calls by the AP and its journalists. "Seeking toll records associated with media organizations is undertaken only after all other reasonable alternative investigative steps have been taken," said the Justice Department’s James Cole in a letter to AP President Gary Pruitt, who has protested the government's action. In that letter, Cole revealed the Justice Department had conducted more than 550 interviews and reviewed tens of thousands of documents before subpoenaing phone company records of AP calls. A law enforcement official said on Wednesday that because officials were so concerned and shocked by the leak, they opened an investigation into how the AP found out about the spy operation even before the news agency ran its initial story. The AP had contacted the government and asked for comment several days before the story was published.

    AP records seizure just latest step in sweeping U.S. leak probe

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    San Francisco Chronicle
    Author 
    James Temple
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    [Commentary] The Justice Department’s secret seizure of Associated Press reporters’ private telephone records is a slap in the face to a free press — and a free people. But it’s part of both a larger assault on the traditional function of the media by the Obama administration, as well as a broader government intrusion into the privacy of U.S. citizens.

    Under Obama, the government has pursued six cases against individuals suspected of handing over classified information, more than under all previous presidents combined, as the Associated Press pointed out. Meanwhile, disturbing news about the government’s ability and willingness to use electronic surveillance on Americans has continued to mount. It adds up to a chilling effect on citizens, journalists and potential whistleblowers, who rightly now must think twice about offering information concerning government misdeeds or secrets. That comes at an incredibly high cost for society.

    AP case reflects larger government assault on press and privacy

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    New York Times
    Author 
    Editorial staff
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    [Commentary] After coming under scorching bipartisan criticism for secretly going through the phone records of reporters at The Associated Press in a leak investigation, the Obama administration now says it supports a law that might have prevented this outrageous conduct. The idea of a national shield law is a good one — many states now have laws protecting journalists from those trying to get notes or sources or outtakes. But any such law must provide the maximum protections for a free press. For years, there have been administrative guidelines about how to get information from the media. The Justice Department apparently decided not to use the guidelines in the A.P. case. This scandal shows that there is a desperate need for more protection of press freedoms.

    After Attacking The AP, a Peace Offering

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    Christian Science Monitor
    Author 
    Editorial staff
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    [Commentary] Americans look to both government and the press to protect their interests. But when the two institutions battle over who better defends those interests – especially on national security – it’s time for each side to strike a deal.

    That should now be the case in light of the news that the Justice Department had secretly obtained two months’ worth of phone records belonging to The Associated Press. The investigation is part of a hunt for someone in government who leaked information to the AP last year about a thwarted terrorist plot in Yemen. This case highlights the need for a rebalancing of the trust and mistrust between government and the media in dealing with national security. Letting courts have more of a balancing role between the press and executive branch would be a good first step in preventing another case like this.

    How to avoid another Justice raid on reporter phone records

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    Financial Times
    Author 
    Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    News organizations are scrambling to find ways to protect their confidential sources in the digital age as they push back against government attempts to identify whistleblowers. The New Yorker unveiled a nine-step process for sources to send documents and messages to the Condé Nast-owned magazine, saying the system could offer them “a reasonable degree of anonymity”.

    Called Strongbox, it involves the use of multiple computers, thumb drives, encryption codes and secure networks. The project was started by Aaron Swartz, the internet activist who committed suicide earlier this year, and Kevin Poulsen of Wired, another of Condé Nast’s magazines. They designed Strongbox using open source software, Mr Thompson said, to encourage developers to be able to continue strengthening its security code. Mr Thompson said the system had been designed to be complex to use, which may deter some sources, but that this was necessary to ensure security. “It takes a lot of steps to make it really hard to hack into this. Hackers are clever people. We’ll see what happens.”

    New Yorker reveals Aaron Swartz-inspired system to protect sources

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    New York Times
    Author 
    FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    [Commentary] It’s vital that we keep pushing for faster broadband speeds. Google Fiber is an important positive development and has been followed by a growing number of other high-speed broadband deployments, including expansions by AT&T, CenturyLink, and other companies and municipalities. Smart policies at all levels of government are needed to drive capital investment by new entrants and expansion by existing players.

    Over the past four years, the Federal Communications Commission has adopted significant policies to do so, including rules to lower broadband deployment costs. We’ve also modernized universal service programs from telephone to broadband, creating the Connect America Fund to invest $45 billion in our broadband infrastructure; eliminated outdated regulations that were discouraging network upgrades; and adopted open Internet rules and other policies to spur competition. Particularly in today’s global economy, it’s essential that the FCC — revitalized and focused on broadband — continue to implement policies to unleash private investment and promote competition.

    Faster Broadband Speeds: The View From the FCC

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    Financial Times
    Author 
    Paul Davies
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    Apparently, Dish Network has lined up financing on its $25.5 billion bid for Sprint Nextel, overcoming attempts by its rival suitor SoftBank of Japan to persuade banks to boycott the US group.

    The US satellite broadcaster, run by billionaire entrepreneur Charlie Ergen, has now lined up a consortium of four banks – Barclays, Jefferies, Macquarie and Royal Bank of Canada – to fund its bid. They have agreed to arrange a $2.5 billion bond deal for Dish and to provide at least $6.5bn in syndicated loans, which would later be refinanced with bonds. Dish has said it needs $9 billion of financing to back its bid for Sprint.

    This was flagged up as a big weakness in the US group’s proposal by SoftBank’s chief executive Masayoshi Son during the public war of words between the rivals. SoftBank tried to thwart Dish’s financing talks by telling banks that it could threaten their chances of being involved in the $60bn-plus share listing of Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce group in which SoftBank holds a one-third stake, according to two people familiar with the situation. However, it is widely expected within the financial industry that the nine banks which recently agreed to lend Alibaba $8 billion to refinance older debt will be in pole position to secure the prime roles on the initial public offering. Those banks were ANZ, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, DBS of Singapore, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JPMorgan, Mizuho of Japan and Morgan Stanley.

    Dish Network gains edge in battle for Sprint with $9 billion financing Sprint Faces Mounting Pressure as Dish Lines Up Financing (Bloomberg)

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    May 16, 2013
    Source 
    Reuters
    Author 
    Nate Raymond
    Coverage Type 
    Lauren Frayer

    U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton in Manhattan denied class-action status to copyright owners suing Google over the use of material posted on YouTube without their permission. Judge Stanton denied a motion to certify a worldwide class of copyright owners in a long-running lawsuit over videos and music posted to popular website. "The suggestion that a class action of these dimensions can be managed with judicial resourcefulness is flattering, but unrealistic," Judge Stanton wrote. Each copyright owner's case would need to be decided based on facts particular to their individual claims, Judge Stanton ruled.

    Copyright owners can't sue Google's YouTube as a group, judge says

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