On Monday, September 29th at 10:00 AM, Council Member Gale A. Brewer (D-Manhattan), Chair of the Technology in Government Committee, will hold a hearing regarding the FCC’s plans to shutdown the analog frequency in 2009, which will create a huge “white space.â€
Continue reading
government
Senate Hearing – Why Broadband Matters – 9/16/08
On Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 10:30 AM (EST) The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation will receive testimony regarding the consumer benefits of broadband service in areas such as education, job opportunities, telemedicine, and access to government resources. link
See https://isoc-ny.org/?p=409 for webcast
Continue reading
NYC Broadband report presentation Wednesday
On Wednesday, July 30th at 11:00am there will be a briefing from the Mayor’s Office and Diamond Consultants for the Broadband Advisory Committee regarding the Bloomberg Administration’s plans for bridging the digital divide in New York City.
Diamond Consultants was hired by the New York City Economic Development Corporation to determine the breadth of the digital divide in New York City and develop programs and initiatives to provide greater digital inclusion for all residents. Chris O’Brien, a Partner in Diamond’s Public Sector practice, will be detailing Diamond’s findings and its recommendations for the City’s next steps.
FTC issues report on phishing
The Federal Trade Commission today released a staff report on a Roundtable Discussion on Phishing Education that it hosted in April. Approximately 60 experts from business, government, the technology sector, the consumer advocacy community, and academia met at the FTC to discuss strategies for outreach to consumers about avoiding phishing.
“Participants indicated that the best anti-phishing messages are behavioral rather than technical,” the report states. Evaluating whom to trust on the Internet can help prevent users from becoming victims.
Supreme Court agrees to review ISP suit against AT&T
On Jun 23 the Supreme Court agreed to review a California suit where Linkline, an ISP, had accused AT&T of charging so much for wholesale access that the ISP could not compete. AT&T argues that they are under no obligation. An appeals court found for Linkline. The Bush administration persuaded the Supreme Court to review the case.
The outcome has serious inferences for access competition in the nation.
FCC Announces Public Hearing on “Broadband and the Digital Future”
The Federal Communications Commission today announced a public hearing to be held on Monday, July 21, 2008. It will be held at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time) at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The hearing is open to the public, and seating will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
FCC requests comments on plan for free, censored broadband
We previously reported that the FCC plans to provide universal wireless broadband with content filtering. In a press release on Friday, June 20th they request comments on the plan to license access to the 2.1GHz Advanced Wireless Spectrum (AWS). The winning bidder must use 25% of the spectrum for free two-way broadband Internet service at a minimum rate of 768kps downstream. They must be able to provide the free service to 50% of the U.S in four years and at least 95% by the end of the 10-year license term. Continue reading
Supreme Court to review case of independent ISP vs. AT&T
There’s been some discussion on the ISOC-NY discuss list as to whether a free market solution or government initiatives are best way to improve broadband access in the U.S. Part of that discussion is the question as to whether there actually has been an open and competitive market for broadband services.
A case where an independent ISP, Linkline Communications, alleged that AT&T charged excessive access fees that prevented them from competing in the broadband market will now be reviewed by the Supreme Court. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco had ruled against AT&T but the Bush Administration’s Office of U.S. Solicitor General sided with AT&T, maintaining that federal antitrust laws don’t cover the LinkLine claims. Continue reading
Markey introduces bipartisan telecom accessibility bill
Representative Edward Markey (D-MA), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet today introduced the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act. Rep Heather A. Wilson (R-NM) joined Rep Markey as an original co-sponsor of the bill.
The bill would amend the Communications Act to ensure that new Internet-enabled telephone and video services and equipment are accessible to and usable by people with disabilities and closes existing gaps in telecommunications laws. Provisions include hearing aid compatibility and Internet closed captioning to real-time text support for emergency services.
Continue reading
Broadband Policy Summit IV under way
Pike & Fischer’s 4th annual Broadband Policy Summit is being held in Washington DC yesterday and today.
Continue reading
Cuomo forces ISP’s to block USENET groups / censor websites
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has announced an agreement with Sprint, Time Warner Cable, and Verizon, that will see them block subscriber access to newsgroups that distribute child pornography, and act to purge any images from them that are stored on their servers.
Jeff Jarvis Op-Ed in today’s NY Post
In “WAVELENGTH WAR” – an Op-Ed piece in today’s NY Post – CUNY journalism Prof. Jeff Jarvis gives unqualified support to the Google ‘white space’ proposal to open up to community wireless IP the bandwidth freed by the changeover to digital tv. Continue reading
FCC wants free broadband service, plus content filtering
An ars technica article reports that the Federal Communications Commission is looking for a bidder to provide nationwide free broadband service. A spokesperson for the Commission has told Ars that the FCC wants it to include “content filters.” Continue reading
Conyers introduces Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act
U.S. Rep. John Conyers, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, has introduced legislation that addresses Network Neutrality’s fair trade aspects by labeling it an antitrust matter. Conyers’ H.R. 5994 would ban discriminatory network management practices by amending the Clayton Act.
The bill, labeled the Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act, would require carriers to promote competition and allow people to use any device they want to on the carriers’ networks. The bill makes exceptions for emergencies, criminal investigations, parental controls, marketing, and improvements to quality of service. Continue reading
House hearing on Net Neutrality today
The United States House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet is today holding a hearing to discuss Network Neutrality legislation (HR 5353) introduced by subcommittee chairman Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA).
Update: Archived video is available from CSPAN. (RealVideo) Continue reading