Verizon has no intention of cutting its prices on broadband to match an SBC promotional price of $14.95 a month for new DSL customers, CEO Ivan Seidenberg said Tues. He declined to provide numbers on VCast, the Verizon Wireless platform that lets customers watch TV- style offerings on special video over EVDO phones.
Potential for breaches and simple bureaucratic abuse is high under a system set up by the Real ID Act, panelists at an Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) conference said Mon. The Real ID Act, signed by President Bush last month and to take full effect in 3 years, mandates new rules for issuing driver’s licenses and orders states to open their databases to all others. A strong argument for the bill was tracking possible terrorists to prevent another 9/11. Dennis Bailey of the Coalition for Secure Drivers License, the lone group supporting the law at the event, endured friendly jabs from panelists and several heated audience questions.
BRUSSELS -- European Commission (EC) oversight of content, TV, radio frequency management, and Internet security would be viewed through the lens of convergence, under a proposal being presented today (Wed.) by Information Society & Media Comr. Viviane Reding. The perspective shift would mean “putting all the eggs in one basket,” Reding said here Tues. at a European Telecom Network Operators’ Assn. (ETNO) conference on next- generation networks (NGNs). Acknowledging the political risk, Reding said the convergence approach is the road to success in this “fascinating time.”
BRUSSELS -- European Commission (EC) oversight of content, TV, radio frequency management and Internet security would be viewed through the lens of convergence, under a proposal being presented today (Wed.) by Information Society & Media Comr. Viviane Reding. The perspective shift would mean “putting all the eggs in one basket,” Reding said here Tues. at a European Telecom Network Operators’ Assn. (ETNO) conference on next- generation networks (NGNs). Acknowledging the political risk, Reding said the convergence approach is the road to success in this “fascinating time.”
Berlin’s successful cutoff of the analog TV service in Aug. 2003 was a key case history for the House Commerce Committee as it compiled its recently released draft legislation setting Dec. 31, 2008, as a hard DTV deadline in the U.S. But a House Telecom Subcommittee hearing on the draft last Thurs. (CD May 27 p1) revealed that Berlin’s smooth imposition of tuner subsidies for low- income families would likely prove a tough act to follow here. Judging from that hearing, it also may represent a make-or-break issue in how DTV legislation advances through Congress.
Berlin’s successful cutoff of the analog TV service in Aug. 2003 was a key case history for the House Commerce Committee as it compiled its recently released draft legislation setting Dec. 31, 2008, as a hard DTV deadline in the U.S. But a House Telecom Subcommittee hearing on the draft last Thurs. (CED May 27 p1) revealed that Berlin’s smooth imposition of tuner subsidies for low- income families would likely prove a tough act to follow here. Judging from that hearing, it also may represent a make-or-break issue in how DTV legislation advances through Congress.
Nintendo said Thurs. revenue from strong sales of its DS dual-screen handheld game system “more than offset” declines in sales of its GameCube console and Game Boy Advance (GBA) handheld system, as well as “an unfavorable exchange rate for dollar-based sales” in the fiscal year ended March 31. The company said through March 31 it globally shipped a total of 5.2 million Nintendo DS units -- “far eclipsing initial estimates of 3.5 million.” But it wasn’t clear Thurs. how many DS units sold through to consumers.
According to sources, the House Ways and Means Committee is in the process of developing legislation to correct certain problems caused by the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004 that have been identified by the International Trade Commission (ITC). Sources state that this technical correction bill, which has not yet been introduced, is separate from the new Miscellaneous Trade Bill that the House Ways and Means Committee is developing.
FCC Comr. Adelstein restated the need for reform of govt. video news releases (VNRs) and “covert” commercial pitches. Speaking at a Media Institute lunch, Adelstein also attacked undisclosed product placements that look like ads. “My preferred outcome is that this scrutiny results in compliance with the rules, not in us catching violations. That is why I am here today to sound the alarm to you, as well,” Adelstein said.
Comments filed Mon. in the FCC’s massive intercarrier compensation (ICC) proceeding drew the same strong disagreement that has marked the proceeding since it began several years ago. The FCC has proposed moving to a “unified” system for the various carrier charges in the industry today and encouraged industry, consumer advocates and others to develop joint plans for how to do that.