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Dish Network has asked the Federal Communications Commission to halt the regulatory-review “shot clock” for Softbank’s plans to buy a 70% stake in Sprint Nextel. Dish said many issues are unresolved in the acquisition review, which includes Sprint’s deal to buy the rest of majority-owned Clearwire. Dish says that uncertainty surrounding process could lead to major amendments to the Sprint/Softbank review.
Dish Asks FCC to Halt Sprint-Softbank Review Clock
Clearwire shareholder Taran Asset Management is joining the chorus of investors asking Sprint Nextel to raise its bid for the wireless-network operator after a counteroffer from Dish Network. The financial firm plans to file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission Jan 18, arguing that Clearwire is worth more than what Sprint is offering, said Chris Gleason, a principal at New York-based Taran. Taran, which Gleason said owns 3 million shares of Clearwire, is the latest investor to join the rallying cry for a higher bid. Crest Financial Ltd., a Houston-based firm, asked the FCC to block the deal because it undervalues Clearwire’s spectrum -- the airwaves that let mobile devices connect to wireless networks. New York-based Mount Kellett Capital Management LP, meanwhile, sent a letter to Clearwire’s board asking them to consider Dish’s offer.
Clearwire Investor Taran Seeks Higher Bid
Ambassador Terry Kramer said the U.S. delegation succeeded in eliminating around "80 to 90 percent of the objectionable" proposals for a United Nations telecommunications treaty that was negotiated last month.
The U.S. still has concerns with some "ambiguous" definitions included in the final version of the treaty, Ambassador Kramer said. He argued that some countries could point to these definitions when justifying questionable measures they take on the Internet. For example, he said countries could potentially use the treaty's definition for spam to monitor Web traffic or block content they disagree with. However, Ambassador Kramer cautioned that it's too soon to tell what the lasting effect of the treaty will be because it won't go until effect until 2015. "We won't know for the next couple years" what the impact of those definitions will be, he said.
Ambassador Kramer: US eliminated '80 to 90 percent' of objectionable proposals for UN treaty
At the Minority Media and Telecommunications Council summit, former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Reed Hundt reiterated that his FCC, and the Clinton Administration in general, decided back in 1993 that mobile broadband was the communications medium of the future.
Hundt pointed out that the same month he was confirmed -- in November 1993 -- Congress had just authorized the FCC to auction spectrum for mobile communications that allowed the FCC to create a competitive wireless market and the Internet as a commercial enterprise was effectively launched with the launch of browsers optimized for pictures on computers. Asked about the transition to IP delivery of voice and video content, which all the chairmen conceded was underway, Hundt suggested it had been in the process for a couple of decades, a point he has made before in suggesting that his FCC was engaged in promoting the Internet as the new common medium, supplanting broadcasting and cable.
Hundt: Decision Was Made in 1993 to Promote Mobile Policies
Speaking to the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Vice President Joe Biden, outlining the White House's gun violence initiatives, made a pitch for studies "on the impacts of young minds on witnessing repetitive violent acts in movies, on television and video games," but also indicated the industry was intent on helping and encouraged them to better advertise the parental control tools they have. Conducting and funding such research was one of the initiatives Vice President Biden vowed to put all of his office's muscle behind. VP Biden said that did not make him popular with the entertainment industry, but that neither was that an indictment of the industry, but instead was recognition there were no extensive modern studies.
VP Biden: Media Need to Better Promote Parental Control Tools
Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) accused President Barack Obama of giving Hollywood a "free pass" by failing to recommend any steps to curb gun violence in movies or television shows.
"He gave his coziest Hollywood contributors a free pass," Rep Brady told KTRH radio in Houston. "And if there's one industry I think that makes the most money off of glorifying violence, it's that industry." Rep Brady said that in his experience, it is easier for him and his wife to patrol violence in video games, but that violence on television is much more difficult to monitor. "TV, movies, I mean, the violence is everywhere, and we can't get to the remote fast enough in some of these cases," he said. Rep Brady also charged that Obama's decision to exempt Hollywood from the issue shows that the President is continuing to treat his supporters differently than those who oppose him.
Rep. Brady says Obama gave 'free pass' to Hollywood on gun violence
Iran responded to a 2010 cyberattack on its nuclear facilities by beefing up its own cyber capabilities, and will be a "force to be reckoned with" in the future, said General William Shelton, who heads Air Force Space Command and oversees the Air Force's cyber operations.
He declined to comment about Iran's ability to disrupt U.S. government computer networks, but said Tehran had clearly increased its efforts in that arena after the 2010 incident. General Shelton said the Air Force expected orders in coming months to expand its cyber workforce of about 6,000 by 1,000 people. He said he was pressing Air Force leaders to boost funding for cyber operations, but added there were competing demands and the budget outlook remained uncertain.
Iran strengthened cyber capabilities after Stuxnet -U.S. general
The Federal Communications Commission launched a new and improved LEARN (Learn Everything About Reverse-Auctions Now) website with enhanced online resources as a one-stop information resource for incentive auction stakeholders, particularly the nation’s broadcasters.
The new LEARN website provides easy access to a range of useful information and resources that will help broadcasters and other stakeholders make more informed business decisions about participating in the incentive auction, which the FCC anticipates holding in 2014. It also offers valuable information about the proposed incentive auction process, and the unique business opportunities created by the incentive auction. One of the many new features on the website is an 11-page summary of the broadcast incentive auction process, prepared by the Incentive Auction Task Force staff. This FCC Staff Summary highlights the key issues considered in the broadcast incentive auction notice of proposed rulemaking.
FCC Updates LEARN Spectrum Auction Website
Following an uproar over a new target practice game for iOS from the National Rifle Association, Apple has changed its App Store age rating from a benign "4+" to "12+" for "Frequent/Intense Realistic Violence." The updated rating may seem more appropriate than the original rating, but some critics feel the game itself should be banned from the App Store altogether.
Apple raises age limit for “violent” NRA target practice game
The Application Privacy, Protection and Security Act of 2013, drafted by Rep Hank Johnson (D-GA) would require apps to give consumers prior notice about what data it collects and how it will be used, stored and shared, as well as obtain consent for the collection terms. I
t would also allow users to opt out of the service and delete personal data collected by the app. Violations of the Apps Act would be handled by the Federal Trade Commission. Like a lot of bills that impact the Internet and digital media, Rep Johnson is asking the public for their ideas on Apprights.us, a Web-based legislative project he launched last July to solicit ideas from the public for ways the federal government could better protect app users' rights.
Lawmaker Releases Draft of App Privacy Bill