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October 2, 2012
Source 
Benton Foundation
Author 
Michael Copps
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

[Commentary] Go to just about any telecom conference these days, and some industry maven will make the case that restoring competition to the telecom world is so 1990s. Why don’t we all just recognize the inevitable, they ask: telecom is a natural monopoly, competition is a chimera, and the sooner we flash a steady green light for more industry consolidation and less government oversight, the better off we’ll all be. 19 state legislatures have removed regulatory authority from state public service commissions that for years have been trying to protect consumers and preserve competition. The consolidated world of telecom broadband did not evolve from the hand of God, the mysterious workings of natural law, or the inevitability of market-based dynamics. It was enabled by conscious decision-making at the federal level, largely through the abdication of its oversight responsibilities by the Federal Communications Commission over the better part of 30 years. But we can get competition back.

From the Desk of Michael Copps: Why Give Up on Competition?

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Submitted on October 2, 2012

Go to just about any telecom conference these days, and some industry maven will make the case that restoring competition to the telecom world is so 1990s. Why don’t we all just recognize the inevitable, they ask: telecom is a natural monopoly, competition is a chimera, and the sooner we flash a steady green light for more industry consolidation and less government oversight, the better off we’ll all be.

Don’t get me wrong. At first the super-sized telecoms will try to convince you that competition is alive and well. But with two companies controlling over two-thirds of the wireless market, with many areas having only one or two fixed broadband providers, and with never-ending proposals from the giants for more mergers and consolidation, that argument holds up for about 30 seconds. So then one of the vast army of industry lobbyists and hired think-tankers will say something like this: “Well, this is really a natural monopoly anyway and competition can never survive here. So forget the competition-based Telecommunications Act of 1996, ignore the mandate of Congress to encourage competition, and get government out of the way of telecom’s survival of the fittest.” A few of the anti-competition advocates might hint that they’d accept some very minimal government mini-regulations, but let’s be clear—these folks dream of a sugar-plum world of unregulated markets. That’s their goal in Washington, DC. And that’s their goal in state capital after state capital where, working through the special interest-financed American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), they have persuaded some 19 state legislatures to remove regulatory authority from state public service commissions that for years have been trying to protect consumers and preserve competition.

FACT TO REMEMBER: The consolidated world of telecom broadband did not evolve from the hand of God, the mysterious workings of natural law, or the inevitability of market-based dynamics. It was enabled by conscious decision-making at the federal level, largely through the abdication of its oversight responsibilities by the Federal Communications Commission over the better part of 30 years.

Congress made clear its intention to avoid the resuscitation of Ma Bell when it approved the Telecommunications Act of 1996, signed into law by President Bill Clinton. It laid down the principle of competition and charged the FCC with implementing it through strong rules and strict enforcement. New rules were written, but by the time I was sworn in as a Commissioner in mid-2001, dismantlement of those rules by the new Republican majority was in full swing. To make a long story short, the majority weakened and/or abolished recently-passed rules requiring the big companies to provide both reselling rights and wholesale leasing of their facilities to competitors. Other countries took a different route and required such leasing, with the result that today many of them are far ahead of the United States—now Number 15 in the international broadband penetration ranking. [Editor's note: The International Telecommunication Union's latest report ranks the U.S. 18th in fixed broadband penetration and 8th in mobile broadband penetration. The U.S. ranks 23rd in percentage of individuals using the Internet (77.9%)]

The FCC majority went on to allow the Bell companies to enter the long-distance markets (which were of increasing value for data transmission) supposedly in exchange for the opening of their local markets to competition, which Congress had stipulated. The Bells picked up tens of millions of long distance lines, but they were careful not to compete with one another locally. To make the situation worse, the FCC did a dismal job of ensuring that any conditions attached to FCC approvals of all this were enforced. And when it came to rules that the FCC couldn’t abolish with a straight face, it frequently granted the big telcos forbearance from their application. In one case, I remember the Commission saying that a new deregulatory decision would stand even if the courts didn’t agree! Meanwhile, the Commission was busy approving mergers and acquisitions galore. As soon as one transaction was approved, another one came through the door. Sometimes it seemed like the merger approval business was our only business.

Worse than all the above, the FCC voted, over the strenuous objections of Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein and me, to remove advanced telecommunications (broadband) from the purview of Title II of the Telecommunications Act—where consumer protections, competition, privacy, and public safety are clearly mandated—and placed them instead in the nebulous and uncharted land of Title I, where regulatory authority is uncertain, consumer protections are virtually non-existent, and where the huge companies are better positioned to wreak havoc on the promise of competition.

ANOTHER FACT TO REMEMBER: There was no judicial mandate for this action. The big telecoms like to argue that the Supreme Court validated the FCC “reclassification” of broadband in the famous Brand X decision. In reality, the Court was merely according traditional deference to an expert agency, and a number of the Justices remarked that the Commission could just as well have decided to keep access to broadband under Title II. The Court, like the hand of God, bears no responsibility for the errancy of the FCC.

Well, you ask, if we can get competition back, how do we do so?

  1. Competition could grow if we learned to say “No” to more industry mergers. Not all mergers are necessarily bad, but we have allowed far too much industry consolidation over the past 15 years. It was a welcome change when the Justice Department and the FCC put the brakes on the AT&T/T-Mobile transaction. I wish they had done the same with the Verizon-cable deal. Wireline, wireless and cable firms are all broadband companies now. Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T constitute an oligopoly of market power inimical to the interests of consumers and to the growth of competition. In some areas they are a duopoly and in other places sometimes the only option available—a monopoly.
  2. Competition could grow if we encouraged innovative approaches like municipal broadband. “My way or nothing” may be the mantra of the big guys, but that means no broadband in places they don’t wish to serve. ALEC-backed state laws are denying communities the right to serve themselves when others won’t. Those laws need to be reversed, perhaps preempted at the federal level. Over 135 communities got in under the wire, bringing opportunity-creating broadband to areas that otherwise would be locked out of the Twenty-first century’s most important infrastructure.
  3. Competition could grow if our spectrum policy really encouraged it. That doesn’t mean wholesale transfer of big broadcaster spectrum privileges to even bigger wireless companies. It means making careful and balanced decisions about what best serves the public interest. It means more unlicensed spectrum, database-driven spectrum access, shared spectrum, government turning over some of its spectrum rights to commercial use, smart radio technologies, and genuine incentives for minority entrepreneurs. It means clear roaming requirements and strict enforcement. It means doing something—finally—about special access which is a multi-billion dollar disincentive for competition. The potential of special access reform for backhaul, competitive wireless, local governments, schools and universities, and small business is huge. Special access should have been reformed years ago.
  4. Competition could grow if the FCC adopted a rigorous “use it or lose it” spectrum rights policy. While no one knows (unbelievably at this late date) what spectrum is actually being utilized and how much is lying fallow as you read this, the amount of unused spectrum is no doubt very high. Unused spectrum licenses should be reclaimed and the Commission has the authority it needs to reclaim them. It is, after all, the people’s spectrum, and if it is not being used by some to promote the people’s interest, it should be made available to those who will.

So it’s not “game over” yet. We shouldn’t throw in the towel on competition until we give it a chance. Of course it’s late in the day, and each passing month makes the climb a little bit steeper. But if we begin by realizing that policy played a huge role to enable our present oligopoly, perhaps we will come to understand that changing policy can also have real-world results. Our future is not determined by some iron law of telecom thermodynamics. It’s in our hands. Let’s start acting like we understand that.

POSTSCRIPT: Permit this monthly contributor to the Benton blog a moment to congratulate Charles Benton on his receipt last week of the prestigious Everett Parker Award. Just last month, my written piece in this space focused on the legendary Everett Parker, staunch defender of public interest broadcasting and life-long beacon to communications reformers everywhere. Charles Benton is in the same tradition. The intelligence, tenacity, enthusiasm and public-spiritedness he brings to everything he does has inspired me for years. His understanding of the important role of communications in society, his commitment to the public interest, and his dedication to advancing the arts make him one of the nation’s most distinguished citizens. The Parker Award is much-deserved recognition of this good and enormously productive man.

Michael Copps served as a commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission from May 2001 to December 2011 and was the FCC's Acting Chairman from January to June 2009. His years at the Commission have been highlighted by his strong defense of "the public interest"; outreach to what he calls "non-traditional stakeholders" in the decisions of the FCC, particularly minorities, Native Americans and the various disabilities communities; and actions to stem the tide of what he regards as excessive consolidation in the nation's media and telecommunications industries.

October 2, 2012 (Happy Birthday, Broadband Caps)

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2012

Department of State’s Advisory Committee on International Communications and Information Policy and Improving Indoor Location Accuracy for Wireless 911 at the FCC http://benton.org/calendar/2012-10-02/


EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
   FCC Prepares Spectrum license for First Responder Network Authority - public notice
   Notice of Inquiry on FirstNet Conceptual Network Architecture - public notice

INTERNET/BROADBAND
   As broadband caps turn 4, it’s time for the FCC to take action - analysis
   Which ISPs are capping your broadband, and why? [links to web]
   Web Rivals Want What Google Got

CYBERSECURITY
   General Alexander: Nation needs DHS involved in cybersecurity [links to web]
   Utilities Open to Cybersecurity Dialogue [links to web]

ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
   Hispanic Chamber Says Spanish-Language Media Isn't Sharing in Ad Windfall
   Mainstream media biased against 'flailing' Romney? Four points to consider. - analysis
   'Obama phone' video puts spotlight on FCC
   Pat Caddell: Media is the ‘enemy of the American people’ [links to web]

PRIVACY
   Facebook Lays Out All Of Its New Targeting Techniques In One Easy-To-Read Blog Post
   Advertisers to Microsoft: Reverse Course on Do Not Track Browser [links to web]

WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
   Living in a Modern World with Less Than Modern Regulations - editorial
   With new satellite tech, rural dwellers get access to true broadband
   AT&T Starting New Prepaid Plan in No-Contract Rivalry [links to web]
   Connectivity as a Given [links to web]

OWNERSHIP
   Comcast Class-Action Suit Will Be Heard by Supreme Court

PATENTS
   Judge Koh Ends Ban on Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 [links to web]
   Samsung files lawsuit over iPhone 5 [links to web]

ADVERTISING
   Delayed Viewing Brightens the Outlook for Some TV Series [links to web]
   Why Google Doesn’t Own the Next Chapter in Web Ads [links to web]
   The Digital Stimulus Package [links to web]

EDUCATION
   Does ed tech need its own Consumer Reports? [links to web]

HEALTH
   ONC sets meaningful-use goal for rural providers [links to web]

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
   Clay Shirky on How the Internet Will Transform Government
   Department of Commerce Goes Live with FOIAonline - press release
   Watchdogs Give Multi-Agency FOIA Portal A Thumbs Up [links to web]
   California governor vetoes bill to restrict police power to blackout cellphones [links to web]
   Verizon Exec Picked for President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee - press release [links to web]
   Hey, @SeattlePD: What’s the Latest?

STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:

   Iran Unblocks Gmail
   Apple Facing EU Probe Over Sales of Extended Warranties [links to web]
   Why Japan blew its hardware and mobile edge [links to web]
   Canada Investigates Cyber Attack [links to web]
   New Zealand prime minister defends Hollywood trip in wake of Megaupload mess [links to web]

MORE ONLINE
   Distress Deepening, Postal Service Defaults on $5.6 Billion Benefits Payment [links to web]
   Surprise Grants Transforming 23 More Lives [links to web]
   Mayor Emanuel leading tech recruiting mission to U of Illinois [links to web]

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EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS

FCC PREPARES FIRSTNET SPECTRUM LICENSE
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Public Notice]
The Federal Communications Commission’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau provides notice of its intent to grant to the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), as expeditiously as possible, a nationwide license for use of the existing public safety broadband spectrum and the 700 MHz D Block, i.e., the 758-769 and 788-799 MHz bands, as required by Section 6201(a) of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012. The Bureau is prepared to grant FirstNet its license under a new call sign as soon as possible once the Bureau Report and Order becomes effective, i.e., thirty days after its publication in the Federal Register. Consistent with Section 6201(b) of the Act, the license will be granted for an initial term of ten years and will be eligible for renewal.
benton.org/node/136019 | Federal Communications Commission
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NOT ON FIRSTNET ARCHITECTURE
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration issues this Notice of Inquiry on behalf of the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to seek public comment on the conceptual network architecture presentation made at the FirstNet Board of Directors’ meeting held on September 25, 2012, as well as to invite input on other network design and business plan considerations. NTIA also seeks comment on the general concept of how to develop applications for public safety users as discussed at the FirstNet Board meeting. FirstNet intends to use the input received from this process to shape its efforts to establish the interoperable public safety broadband network based on a single, nationwide network architecture called for under the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (Act). Comments must be received no later than November 1, 2012.
benton.org/node/136017 | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

TIME FOR FCC ACTION ON BROADBAND CAPS
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Stacey Higginbotham]
In the four years since Comcast implemented the country’s first real broadband cap (it took effect on Oct. 1, 2008) the percentage of subscribers with caps on their broadband service has risen to 64 percent. Meanwhile, the Federal Communications Commission only began formally wondering if data caps might need some sort of oversight, or at least sort of qualifier in the last few months. This is a dereliction of duty from the agency that’s supposed to ensure that broadband is available across the country, an agency whose chairman gives countless speeches emphasizing how important broadband is in the home and as a source for innovation. Yet as the basic pricing for broadband service has changed, the FCC has not kept up. It hasn’t distributed data on the consumers affected, established any sort of independent group to ensure that ISPs were tracking customers’ broadband usage fairly and doesn’t even insist that ISPs who implement caps provide meters to their customers. There are signals that the agency may be waking up to the problem, so here’s what the FCC at a minimum needs to do if caps are going to be a way of life going forward.
If ISPs cap broadband, the FCC should track how those caps affect consumers.
Would you like a meter with that cap?
If I have a meter, is it accurate?
benton.org/node/136015 | GigaOm
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GOOGLE IN KANSAS CITY
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Shalini Ramachandran]
To entice Google to build its ultra-high-speed fiber network there, Kansas City (KS) and Kansas City (MO) offered the Internet company sweeteners including several free or discounted city services. Now, Time Warner Cable and AT&T the incumbent Internet and TV providers in town, are angling to get the same deal. Among the sweeteners granted Google by both cities are free office space and free power for Google's equipment, according to the agreement on file with the cities. The company also gets the use of all the cities' "assets and infrastructure"—including fiber, buildings, land and computer tools, for no charge. Both cities are even providing Google a team of government employees "dedicated to the project." For the past few months, Time Warner Cable has been negotiating with Kansas City (KS) to get a "parity agreement" granting it the same concessions as Google got, the city and the company says. Time Warner Cable has already signed such a deal with Kansas City (MO).
benton.org/node/136033 | Wall Street Journal
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ELECTIONS AND MEDIA

POLITICAL AD BUYS AND HISPANIC MEDIA
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Obama campaign has spent 9% of its local television political ad budget on Spanish-language media, more than twice as much as the Romney campaign, but that is still only a combined 5%. That is according to a study of spending in 10 states -- Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Mexico, Nevada, Texas and Virginia -- released by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce from Kantar Media local TV advertising data. That is over the entire general election period starting with the effective conclusion of the GOP primary campaign.
benton.org/node/135947 | Broadcasting&Cable | U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
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MEDIA BIAS?
[SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Mark Trumbull]
Many supporters of Mitt Romney argue that his potential path toward the White House has been made a lot steeper by the media, which have piled on about the Republican's alleged gaffes and policy flaws. Is that perception true? Is media bias against Romney rampant, while the press scrutinizes President Barack Obama through a less skeptical lens? With a high-stakes election drawing near, here are some of the main arguments pro and con.
How the news business works
Who's doing the reporting and editing?
Public opinion polls
Is there empirical evidence?
benton.org/node/136029 | Christian Science Monitor, The
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OBAMA PHONE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
Conservatives have seized on a viral video of a woman saying she plans to vote for President Barack Obama because he gave her a free phone, arguing it highlights a wasteful government handout. The conservative Drudge Report displayed the video at the top of its website last week, and radio host Rush Limbaugh pointed to the video to argue that President Obama is making people dependent on the government. Although there is no such thing as an "Obama phone," there is a federal program to help low-income people get access to phones. The program, called Lifeline, is managed by the Federal Communications Commission and began long before President Obama took office. Congress first enacted the Lifeline program in 1985, during the Reagan administration. In 2005, under President George W. Bush, the FCC expanded the program to cover low-cost cellular service. The program pays for phone service, not the phones themselves. But many companies that receive funding through the program offer free and low-cost phones to their subscribers. The discounts average $9.25 per month for qualifying households, and the program is funded through fees that the telephone companies pass on to consumers on their monthly bills. The point of the program is to ensure that everyone has access to basic communications services, especially during emergencies.
benton.org/node/136027 | Hill, The | see the video
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PRIVACY

FACEBOOK’S TARGETING TECHNIQUES
[SOURCE: Forbes, AUTHOR: Kashmir Hill]
In the last few months, Facebook has made significant changes to the way advertising works on its site. As some predicted, Facebook’s going public and needing to drum up more revenue has resulted in the company dipping its hands deeper into users’ data to monetize it. More than that, those hands are starting to pull in data from outside of the Facebook kingdom. Privacy engineer Joey Tyson lays out the three big “innovations” in Facebook advertising from the last few months in a Facebook blog post, and argues that the company “carefully designed our versions of the features with your privacy in mind.” Here’s what’s changed:
Advertisers aren’t just targeting ‘your type anymore.’ They’re actually targeting you.
Advertisers can now target people with Facebook ads based on their Web browsing and searching outside of Facebook.
Facebook is tracking what users buy in stores so it can tell advertisers that their ads work.
benton.org/node/135933 | Forbes | Facebook
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WIRELESS/SPECTRUM

LESS THAN MODERN REGULATIONS
[SOURCE: Minority Media and Telecommunications Council, AUTHOR: David Honig]
In the current economic climate, it is vital that we seek out ways to keep and create jobs locally. As consumers and businesses continue to grow more reliant on broadband and wireless technologies, updating today’s outdated laws becomes even more vital. Current laws were put in place in a different era where Americans were literally shackled to their homes by phone cords. Today, nearly a quarter of American homes have no “home phone,” while another 15 percent consider their wireless phones to be their primary line. Government must match the private sector’s enthusiasm for improving productivity and efficiency. We must modernize our regulatory system if we are to position our economy for success in the 21st century. Properly done, we can produce better regulatory outcomes and a stronger American economy.
benton.org/node/135936 | Minority Media and Telecommunications Council
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HUGHESNET
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
Just three months after settling into geostationary orbit, Hughes Network Systems’ new EchoStar 17 satellite is ready for commercial service. Hughes Net launched new plans offering download speeds as high as 15 Mbps, in the process joining the growing ranks of satellite operators bringing true broadband speeds to rural areas. HughesNet has named the new service Gen4 and the satellite utilizes EchoStar-Hughes’ new Jupiter high-throughput technology, which expands the total capacity of the satellite to 100 Gbps. That has allowed Hughes to distribute that capacity more liberally to its customers, bumping up download speeds from 1-2 Mbps to 10-15 Mbps and upload speeds above a megabit. ViaSat launched a similarly brawny satellite last year, and began offering a $50/month 12 Mbps service in January. Hughes service plans are comparably priced with cable broadband, ranging from $50 to $100 a month, but the satellite’s finite capacity does give the service some stiff limitations. Unlike its previous plans, these newer, faster tiers come with caps. At the low end customers are limited to 20 GB, while the upper tier taps out at 40 GB. By comparison cable operator Comcast recently raised its monthly cap from 250 GB to 300 GB a month. What’s more, customers are restricted when they can consume that data -– on all plans, half of the monthly data bucket can only be tapped between 2 AM and 8 AM. But Hughes also seems to have done away with the old daily throttling policies that irked so many of its customers.
benton.org/node/135950 | GigaOm
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OWNERSHIP

COMCAST CASE WILL BE HEARD BY HIGH COURT
[SOURCE: The Wrap, AUTHOR: Doug Halonen]
A federal court judge’s decision to side with Comcast and not enforce a tentative settlement in a class-action lawsuit will set the stage for arguments before the Supreme Court. In a September 25 order, U.S. District Court Judge John R. Padova in Philadelphia sided with Comcast on the issue, ruling that the tentative agreement “was incomplete in significant respects and cannot be summarily enforced.” The terms of the tentative settlement were not made public. As a result of Padova’s ruling, the Supreme Court -- which had agreed during the summer to rule on whether the class-action lawsuit is legal -- will hear the case on November 5. A federal court judge’s decision to side with Comcast and not enforce a tentative settlement in a class-action lawsuit will set the stage for arguments before the Supreme Court. The long-pending Behrend v. Comcast case, originally filed in 2003, alleges that Comcast’s “clustering” of systems through swaps with other cable operators had given the media giant too much power to increase cable rates and exclude competitors in the Philadelphia area.
benton.org/node/136000 | Wrap, The
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

CLAY SHIRKY
[SOURCE: The Atlantic, AUTHOR: Megan Garber]
Clay Shirky is one of the most prominent and well-respected thinkers there is when it comes to the political impact of digital media. This summer, he gave a talk at the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh -- subject: how the Internet will (one day) change government -- and the video of that session has now been posted. In this talk, Shirky focuses on the power of community rather than technology, exploring the capabilities of open-source communities like GitHub. There is reason, he says, both to temper our optimism about the Internet and to embrace it. The revolutionary talk we often lapse into when we talk about the Internet -- the idea that it will, in general, change everything -- is not new, Shirky points out. "When the telegraph came along," he notes, "it was clear that it was going to globalize the news industry. What would this lead to? Well, obviously, it would lead to world peace. The television, a medium that allowed us not just to hear but see -- literally see -- what was going on elsewhere in the world, what would this lead to? World peace. The telephone? You guessed it: world peace."
benton.org/node/135953 | Atlantic, The
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FOIAONLINE
[SOURCE: Department of Commerce, AUTHOR: Joey Hutcherson]
The Department of Commerce launched a new online tool through which the public can submit Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. The interface, FOIAonline, will enable the public and departmental FOIA professionals to access an automated online tracking and records management system for the first time. Additionally, the system will eliminate the need for individuals to search for contact information when submitting requests for multiple agencies, thereby speeding up the FOIA process. FOIAonline will also automatically provide tracking numbers for requests much like consumers use to track packages online. The requester can then view the status of the request online, eliminating the wait time for manual replies from agencies. Further, FOIAOnline will enable Commerce to publish FOIA documents in electronic format with the request, which will decrease the duplicate requests workload while allowing the public access to more information. This availability of additional information will allow greater detail for researchers, journalists and the public.
benton.org/node/135952 | Department of Commerce
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SEATTLE POLICE USE SOCIAL MEDIA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Kirk Johnson]
The Seattle Police Department, which presides over one of the nation’s more tech-savvy — if not saturated — cities, began a project last week with 51 hyper-local neighborhood Twitter accounts providing moment-to-moment crime reports. The project, called Tweets-by-beat, is the most ambitious effort of its kind in the nation, authorities in law enforcement and social media say, transforming the pen and ink of the old police blotter into the bits and bytes of the digital age. It allows residents — including, presumably, criminals — to know in almost real time about many of the large and small transgressions, crises, emergencies and downright weirdness in their neighborhoods.
benton.org/node/136036 | New York Times
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
These headlines presented in partnership with:


IRAN UNBLOCKS GMAIL
[SOURCE: Fast Company, AUTHOR: Neal Ungerleider]
Iran has unblocked access to Gmail as of October 1; Google's popular worldwide email service was placed under a HTTPS block on September 24. But while Iranian internet users can now use Gmail securely, the Iranian government has announced plans to enact . Mohammed Reza Miri of Iran's Telecommunications Ministry told the Mehr news agency that the Gmail blockage was an unintended consequence of a new censorship regime for YouTube. “Unfortunately, we do not yet have enough technical knowhow to differentiate between these two services. We wanted to block YouTube and Gmail was also blocked, which was involuntary […] We absolutely do not want YouTube to be accessible. That is why the telecommunications ministry is seeking a solution to fix the problem to block YouTube under the HTTPS protocol while leaving Gmail accessible. That will soon happen.”
benton.org/node/135939 | Fast Company
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October 2, 2012
Source 
New York Times
Author 
Bill Carter
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

The biggest takeaway in the television business from the season’s first week is that first impressions of a new show’s success may mean next to nothing now. With about 20 percent of viewers watching episodes of network series on a delayed basis, the initial ratings have to be seasoned with much larger quantities of salt.

In taking stock of the first three nights of premiere week, each of the networks on Monday pointed to bumps in viewership reported by Nielsen based on three days of playback. All of last week’s shows — from Monday through Wednesday night — got updated on Monday, and the results in many cases were eye-popping. NBC, for example, had reason to promote one new drama, “Revolution,” as the season’s first potential breakout hit. The show added 3.7 million viewers (or 41 percent) to its original total and climbed to a 5.2 rating in the 18- to 49-year-old audience that counts most in ad sales, from a promising 3.4 rating. That represented a record-setting jump (for any new series) of 1.74 rating points, or 53 percent. “Revolution” was the biggest gainer, but the general trend was positive across the board, with an average gain of 26 percent in that 18-49 category. That kind of bounce is so significant that at least one network on Monday was contemplating not releasing or commenting on its ratings in the future until the three-day results were released.

Delayed Viewing Brightens the Outlook for Some TV Series

Topics

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October 2, 2012
Source 
New York Times
Author 
Kirk Johnson
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

The Seattle Police Department, which presides over one of the nation’s more tech-savvy — if not saturated — cities, began a project last week with 51 hyper-local neighborhood Twitter accounts providing moment-to-moment crime reports. The project, called Tweets-by-beat, is the most ambitious effort of its kind in the nation, authorities in law enforcement and social media say, transforming the pen and ink of the old police blotter into the bits and bytes of the digital age. It allows residents — including, presumably, criminals — to know in almost real time about many of the large and small transgressions, crises, emergencies and downright weirdness in their neighborhoods.

Hey, @SeattlePD: What’s the Latest?

Topics

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October 2, 2012
Source 
New York Times
Author 
Harriet Edleson
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

Flight time is work time as airlines increasingly offer Wi-Fi connections on their planes. Wi-Fi Internet access has expanded to 153 million passengers in 2011 from 153,000 in 2009, according to Gogo Wireless, a Wi-Fi provider for airlines.

According to a report this year from the Chaddick Institute, the percentage of air travelers using technology at “random selected points” on a flight was 28.4 percent in 2011, up from 23.2 percent in 2010 and 17.6 percent in 2009. The report found that more travelers were bringing their own devices, including tablets and e-readers, with them on planes. One in 12 airline passengers is now using a tablet, and that number continues to grow. Tablets account for almost 30 percent of all technology use on commercial flights, and that share is also likely to grow. The use of tablets and technology, in general, tends to be “significantly higher on business-oriented flights,” the report said.

Connectivity as a Given

Topics

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October 2, 2012
Source 
Wall Street Journal
Author 
Shalini Ramachandran
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

To entice Google to build its ultra-high-speed fiber network there, Kansas City (KS) and Kansas City (MO) offered the Internet company sweeteners including several free or discounted city services. Now, Time Warner Cable and AT&T the incumbent Internet and TV providers in town, are angling to get the same deal.

Among the sweeteners granted Google by both cities are free office space and free power for Google's equipment, according to the agreement on file with the cities. The company also gets the use of all the cities' "assets and infrastructure"—including fiber, buildings, land and computer tools, for no charge. Both cities are even providing Google a team of government employees "dedicated to the project." For the past few months, Time Warner Cable has been negotiating with Kansas City (KS) to get a "parity agreement" granting it the same concessions as Google got, the city and the company says. Time Warner Cable has already signed such a deal with Kansas City (MO).

Web Rivals Want What Google Got

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October 2, 2012
Source 
Wall Street Journal
Author 
Ina Fried
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

A federal judge ended a sales ban on the Samsung Galaxy 10.1. Judge Lucy Koh had issued the injunction in June based on the likelihood that a jury would find that a specific Apple design patent had been infringed. Although the jury largely sided with Apple in the case and awarded more than $1 billion in damages, the jury didn’t find Samsung’s tablet infringed on that particular product. “The Court agrees with Samsung that the sole basis for the June 26 Preliminary Injunction was the Court’s finding that Samsung likely infringed the D’889 Patent,” Judge Koh said in her ruling. “The jury has found otherwise. Thus, the sole basis for the June 26 Preliminary Injunction no longer exists.”

Judge Koh Ends Ban on Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

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October 2, 2012
Source 
Financial Times
Author 
Simon Mundy
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

Samsung Electronics has filed court papers accusing Apple’s iPhone 5 of infringing its patents, as it seeks to regain ground following a $1 billion US court defeat in August.

The South Korean company said that it had added Apple’s flagship smartphone to the list of devices that allegedly misuse its wireless data technology, according to a complaint filed at a California court in April. Samsung had indicated its intention to make the amendment shortly after Apple unveiled the iPhone 5 on September 12. A person close to Samsung said that it could not rule out pushing for a sales ban on the new iPhone, although it was not clear when its complaint would be heard in court.

Samsung files lawsuit over iPhone 5

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October 2, 2012
Source 
Christian Science Monitor
Author 
Mark Trumbull
Coverage Type 
Lauren Frayer

Many supporters of Mitt Romney argue that his potential path toward the White House has been made a lot steeper by the media, which have piled on about the Republican's alleged gaffes and policy flaws. Is that perception true? Is media bias against Romney rampant, while the press scrutinizes President Barack Obama through a less skeptical lens?

With a high-stakes election drawing near, here are some of the main arguments pro and con.

  • How the news business works
  • Who's doing the reporting and editing?
  • Public opinion polls
  • Is there empirical evidence?
Mainstream media biased against 'flailing' Romney? Four points to consider.

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