April 23, 2007 The Benton Foundation released two new research papers highlighting the international, innovative policy approaches that have propelled other countries into positions of broadband leadership.
GINGRICH ATTACKS PRESS AS OUT OF TOUCH
[SOURCE: New York Times 4/23/1997, AUTHOR: Kevin Sack]
Ten years ago, then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA), who was facing heavy criticism in the press of his ethics record, leveled a brief but blistering attack on the news media and suggested that advertisers should use their financial clout to demand change. Speaking to the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, he complained that it had been difficult for the Republican majority in Congress to convey its themes of individual liberty and limited government. ''It's very hard to communicate that partly because the media, which all of you control with your advertising, doesn't have a clue what we're doing and they don't slow down and pay attention to it and they have editorial boards that are as baroque and out of touch as some tenured faculties,'' said Mr. Gingrich, a former college professor. ''I would say to all of you, the responsibility for a news media that can't report accurately how the world works rests on those who pay for it, and that's the advertisers,'' he continued. ''And I'm not talking about bias. I'm talking about rethinking the whole style of the newsroom and rethinking what we cover. If Thomas Edison invented the electric light today, it would be reported on the evening news that the candle-making industry was threatened. Ralph Nader would announce a lawsuit on behalf of poor people who might get electrocuted. And the candle workers union would have at least two senators introduce a bill to block electricity on behalf of their industry.''
http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F10A12FC385A0C70...
(requires TimesSelect subscription)
VERIZON IS PRESSURED ON NETWORK
[SOURCE: Boston Globe 4/21, AUTHOR: Carolyn Y. Johnson]
Sen John Kerry (D-MA) and Rep Edward Markey (D-MA) on Friday said they would send a letter to Verizon Communications demanding that it finish building a fiber-optic network to deliver TV, phone, and Internet service throughout Massachusetts. The reaction came after reports that Verizon had suspended applications for new cable licenses. The company, now lobbying aggressively for legislation that would allow the state, instead of local governments, to grant cable licenses -- while also opposing Gov Deval L. Patrick's proposal to impose new telecommunications taxes -- emphasized that it is continuing to invest in its fiber-optic service, or FiOS, network and hopes to win franchises in 22 communities where it is negotiating for them.
http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2007/04/21/verizon_is...
* SEN. KERRY. REP. MARKEY ASK VERIZON NOT TO DELAY HIGH SPEED BROADBAND SERVICE IN MASSACHUSETTS
http://markey.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2771&I...
HOW DO THE FEDS FUND BROADBAND? LET ME COUNT THE WAYS
[SOURCE: Reason Foundation, AUTHOR: Steve Titch]
[Commentary] Perhaps the real question to ask about the so-called “digital divide,†isn't how to address it, but whether it exists at all, at least when it comes to rural telecommunications. OPASTCO, the trade group that represents some 520 small rural telcos, says some 90 percent of its membership is offering broadband Internet. And that group of 90 percent makes broadband available to 90 percent of their customers. In addition, half of the OPASTCO membership is offering wireless services and half (not necessarily the same or opposing half) are offering video. True, much of this is due to subsidies, but not all. Although the bloated Federal Universal Service Fund most often comes to mind, there’s almost no end to the federal government’s bounty in funding approaches. First there’s the Rural Utilities Service at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees two federal assistance programs exclusively dedicated to broadband. One program is the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee program, which has $500 million banked for 2007. The RUS also oversee the Community Connect Broadband Grant Program, which has allocated $9 million so far in 2007. These programs are on top of other general federal programs from various departments (HUD, Commerce, Homeland Security, Education) that can be tapped to fund broadband. These include The USF’s High Cost Program, Schools and Libraries Fund and Rural Health Care Fund, but also: Rural Telephone Loans and Loan Guarantees; Community Development Block Grants; Indian Community Development Block Grants; Grants for Public Works and Economic Development Facilities; The Appalachian Regional Commission; The Delta Regional Authority; The Denali Commission; Distance Learning and TeleMedicine Program; Interoperable Communications Equipment Grants; Telehealth Network Grants; Public Telecommunications Facilities Program; Technology programs overseen by the Department of Education; Library grants; Medical Library Assistance.
http://www.reason.org/outofcontrol/archives/2007/04/how_do_the_feds.html
PRIVACY GROUPS CHALLENGE GOOGLE'S DOUBLECLICK DEAL
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Eric Auchard]
Consumer privacy groups on Friday sought to derail Google's $3.1 billion deal to buy online ad supplier DoubleClick, filing a complaint with U.S. regulators to block the merger on privacy grounds. Groups led by the Electronic Privacy Information Center have filed the complaint with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission arguing the merger would violate agreed limits on how much data advertisers collect on consumers and seeking an injunction. "Google's proposed acquisition of DoubleClick will give one company access to more information about the Internet activities of consumers than any other company in the world," the complaint by the privacy activist groups argues.
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN2040687820070421
* EPIC Files Complaint at FTC to Block Google Acquisition of DoubleClick
http://www.privacy.org/archives/001978.html
* FTC Filing today on GoogleClick First in a Series of Steps
http://www.democraticmedia.org/jcblog/?p=250
CLEAR CHANNEL TO SELL TV GROUP FOR $1.2 BILLION
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Megan Davies]
Clear Channel said on Friday it will sell its television group to private equity firm Providence Equity Partners for about $1.2 billion. Providence Equity will get 56 television stations in 24 markets across the United States as well as their related Internet sites and wireless projects. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter, subject to regulatory approval. Clear Channel said it continues to pursue the divestiture of 287 radio stations in 54 markets, having already reached agreements to sell 161 radio stations in 34 markets for a total of $331 million.
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSWNAS703520070420
* Clear Channel Sells Its TV Stations for $1.2 Billion
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=arAJ25YnL.OA
* Behind Clear Channel Stations Sale
Veteran broadcaster Sandy DiPasquale, who will head up the 56 stations that Providence Equity Partners has agreed to acquire from Clear Channel for $1.2 billion, will focus on news, sales and online as he takes over their stewardship.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6435489.html
IMUS' DOWNFALL SENDS MESSAGE TO BROADCASTERS
[SOURCE: Orlando Sentinel, AUTHOR: Christopher Boyd]
Freewheeling shock jocks beware: In the age of the Internet your words can not only haunt you, they can end your career. Don Imus learned that last week when a sound bite from his morning talk show became a dagger that an angry public turned at his throat. The episode brought the tight-wire act of talk radio into fresh focus. Broadcasters like controversial talk when it draws an audience, but turn on it when advertisers complain or regulators pounce. The digital age has put radio under new scrutiny. When Imus started his career, a flip remark usually vanished in the ether. Today, digital sound bites can be lifted, critiqued and disseminated on the Internet in moments, leading to firestorms like the one that pulled Imus down. That means new risks for broadcasters. But few expect maverick announcers will go away, or even tone down their shows very much. In a competitive, fragmented medium, edgy talk show hosts have a very valuable asset: fiercely loyal audiences.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/orl-radio2007apr20,0,2815707.sto...
* Howard Kurtz's Imus Amnesia
Critic forgets requests to shun racist show
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3089
INTERNET USER RATINGS DRAW FIRE FROM TRADE GROUP
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Paul Thomasch]
The Interactive Advertising Bureau, a trade group, raised fresh concerns about the measurement of Internet users' behavior and called on Friday for two leading market research companies to submit to audits. The IAB's complaints about the Internet audience ratings issued by comScore Inc. and Nielsen//NetRatings come as advertisers shift increasing amounts of money into online digital media. That shift has made precise measurements of how and where users spend time on the Web more important, and comScore and Nielsen//NetRatings issue the most closely watched audience data. In particular, their data on Web media companies Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc. is used by investors and analysts to gauge their progress throughout the quarter.
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN2030152520070420
SENATE: DOES BROADBAND ROLLOUT MEASURE UP?
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate Commerce Committee has scheduled a full-committee hearing on the state of U.S. broadband deployment, "Communications, Broadband and Competitiveness: How Does the U.S. Measure Up?" The hearing will be held April 24 at 10 a.m. Congressional and FCC Democrats have been generally critical of the state of the broadband rollout, citing statistics that place the U.S. out of the top-15 in broadband deployment. Also on Tuesday, the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a hearing "Broadband Lessons from Abroad."
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6435463.html
WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY TO DRIVE GLOBAL INTERNET
[SOURCE: mediacaster]
While dial-up access to the Internet continues its slow death globally, the number of
Internet adults utilizing ‘wired’ broadband connections may also be peaking, according to results released from Ipsos Insight’s annual The Face of the Web study. It is estimated that over three-quarters (77%) of the global online population was utilizing a broadband connection to access the Internet, at the end of 2006, in comparison to just 21% utilizing a dial-up connection. And though the prevalence of broadband access continued its steady growth trend through 2006, growing an additional seven percentage-points from 2005 (70%), the salad days of robust annual growth for broadband penetration may soon be coming to an end.
http://www.mediacastermagazine.com/issues/ISArticle.asp?id=67877&issue=0...
* Wired broadband adoption to slow, but wireless shows potential
http://www.rfdesignline.com/news/199103197;jsessionid=D3WUD121HOBRQQSNDL...
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