Benton RSS Feed
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) wants the Federal Communications Commission to revisit its recent order authorizing early public-safety LTE network deployments on 10 MHz of 700 MHz spectrum and instead open up the full 20 MHz available in that band for public safety.
"NTIA believes that such action would further the critical goal of advancing interoperability as well as mitigating cost concerns associated with the deployment of a nationwide public safety broadband network," wrote Lawrence Strickling, assistant secretary for communications and information, in a letter to FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. On July 30, the FCC adopted an order permitting limited deployment of broadband networks for first responders using the existing public safety broadband spectrum allocation of 763-768/793-798 MHz, which is leased out by the Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST). Only jurisdictions complying with the commission's Special Temporary Authority (STA) rules will be allowed to use this spectrum for early deployments.
NTIA: Give early public-safety deployments the full 700 MHz allocation
[Commentary] Is mobile cybersecurity an area in need of legislative action? It is unclear, though it is clear that secure mobility is integral to both cybersecurity and efforts to increase broadband use for public safety.
In addition to employers and end users, service providers are increasingly finding themselves having to guarantee the integrity, confidentiality, and attribution of all data on the network. Some may argue that existing legislative and regulatory actions may cover this with their interest in putting together safeguards, guidelines and "standards" for critical infrastructure, but it is unclear. How can entities safeguard individual devices to not provide an entry point for cyber attacks in an increasingly open and merged network space? It is one thing to discuss protecting the networks that run the electric grid. It is another to discuss protecting voice, video, and data streams for intelligence, military, public safety, and various private sector communities, which must be protected to safeguard users of these networks.
[Herrera-Flanigan is a partner at the Monument Policy Group]
More than Critical Infrastructure is at Stake in Cyber Debates
[Commentary] There is a huge difference between “it’s bad policy, don’t do it” and “you don’t have authority.” It is unfortunate that those who agree with the Federal Communications Commission on matters of policy increasingly seek to cast their arguments as arguments of regulatory authority. I get that if you don’t like the policy, you would prefer the FCC not have authority to implement it. But just as real lawyers read the footnotes, real lawyers (and non-lawyers) ought to be honest about the difference between policy and authority. Certainly there are times when authority is genuinely contestable, and I will never blame a litigant for making the traditional Hail Mary pass at jurisdiction. But where, as here, the authority of the FCC over reseller agreements is well established, attacks on authority can only be the interpreted as careless or disingenuous.
FCC Authority In VZ/SpectrumCo, or “Real Lawyers Read The Footnotes.” The ugly truth behind the FCC's Verizon-spectrum approval (CNet)
On August 14, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) took an important step in making additional commercial broadband spectrum available by granting T-Mobile USA’s request for special temporary authority (STA) to test the suitability of mobile broadband services in the 1755-1780 MHz band.
The wireless industry is unified in its position that this spectrum, which is used around the world for commercial mobile services and is immediately adjacent to already deployed AWS spectrum in the U.S., is a good candidate to convert to commercial purposes. T-Mobile anticipates the testing, as a part of a joint industry-government effort, along with monitoring existing government uses in the band and other analyses, will demonstrate that this spectrum can be made available for commercial mobile Long Term Evolution (LTE) services and that these services can share the band through an extended transition period, if not indefinitely, with existing federal uses that will either take too long or be too costly to relocate.
T-Mobile Preparing to Test Commercial Mobile Broadband at 1755-1780 MHz
When the educational technology advocacy group Digital Learning Now! revealed its first state report cards gauging where states stand in supporting online learning, it was in part applying the adage that what gets measured gets done.
Observers say the report cards, which were released in 2011 to rate states according to 10 elements of what the group considers high-quality digital learning, have already had an impact on state policy and are likely to help guide future decisions about online learning. "Without question, [the organization's goals] are showing up in the legislation," said Douglas Levin, the executive director of the State Educational Technology Directors Association. "A vast majority of states have put this on their agenda in one way or another."
Digital Advocacy Group Wields Policy Influence
Samsung Electronics is moving to fight back against Apple by strengthening its partnerships with American mobile carriers to develop new technologies to get away from the U.S. firm’s claims on design.
The world’s biggest smartphone maker is in talks with major telecom carriers on Apple’s home-turf such as Verizon Wireless about modified designs in Samsung Galaxy devices. It is also closely partnering with Microsoft (MS) to cut its dependency on Google Android, according to officials. “Samsung has been in talks with major U.S. carriers to jointly develop modified design technology. This will be effective, though we can’t unveil more details for the time being,” said an official from the company’s telecommunications division. On the legal front, its lawyers are making preparations to counter nearly every patent issue which nine jurors found in favor of Apple. Officials said Samsung has been preparing “all measures for all scenarios” to fight Apple in 50 patent disputes in 10 different countries.
Samsung set to strike back against Apple Samsung chairman 'calmed down and slightly closed his eyes' after Apple verdict briefing (Fortune)
If disruption means losing money, then online music services know how to spend like rock stars.
Adoption and revenue growth rates at a few top players like Spotify and Pandora are real -- Pandora reported earnings, breaking even -- but what are the costs to play? It's still unclear in many cases if audience growth will translate to profit. Every few years a new service rises up, captures audiences but then has the same cost-centric problems as every one that has come before: negotiating terms with rights holders. Music labels, music publishers, and in some cases, emerging artists who circumvent traditional music property conventions by going it alone -- think self-managed Taylor Swift -- all want or need a stake in streams or downloads, and that can make or break a deal.
Why the online music industry is a mess
Smartphones are so popular here that it’s difficult to avoid seeing one, and in China, these devices are poised to become even more widespread.
This year, China will account for 26.5 percent of all smartphone shipments, compared to 17.8 percent in the United States, according to a forecast by the International Data Corporation, a research firm. China has surpassed the United States in smartphone sales in the past. However, only in the first quarter of this year did it become clear that the smartphone gap between China and the United States would become a “long-lasting gulf that won’t be bridged,” said Kevin Restivo, a senior research analyst with IDC. What’s driving the spike in China? Cheaper Android smartphones priced below $200, like those made by Huawei, according to IDC.
[And maybe, just maybe, the fact that the population of China is 1.3 billion and the population of the US is 311 million]
The China-U.S. Smartphone Gap Grows Larger
Google is shutting down Google TV Ads, its attempt to create an online marketplace for traditional TV spots.
The idea was Google could make ad buying more efficient and Googley, but buyers, programmers and distributors never embraced the notion. Google sunk 5 years into the project, and eventually boasted that it could reach 42 million households, including agreements with distributors like Verizon and DirecTV. That’s close to half of the pay TV universe, but it’s hard to find evidence that the program really got traction.
Google Pulls the Plug on Its TV Ads Business
Google Inc Chief Executive Larry Page and Apple CEO Tim Cook have been conducting behind-the-scenes talks about a range of intellectual property matters, including the mobile patent disputes between the companies, people familiar with the matter said.
One possible scenario under consideration could be a truce involving disputes over basic features and functions in Google's Android mobile software, one source said. But it was unclear whether Page and Cook were discussing a broad settlement of the various disputes between the two companies, most of which involve the burgeoning mobile computing area, or are focused on a more limited set of issues.
Google, Apple CEOs in secret patent talks Could Apple and Google Be Headed for Detente Instead of Thermonuclear War? (WSJ) Apple, Google CEOs Said To Discuss Patent Disputes (Bloomberg) Apple, Google CEOs discuss patent issues; peace possible? (LATimes)