Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell on Thursday announced a statewide technology education initiative to maximize student engagement and learning opportunities (http://bit.ly/19ER0Vt). The five-year initiative would link teachers, courses and students from across Alaska, said the Republican. It will use digital and distance delivery models such as a small studio with cameras and computers in one location and technology in a rural classroom to maximize student engagement, said Parnell. Middle and high school math and science courses will be prioritized for this digital learning, he said.

DigitalGlobe joined the Satellite Industry Association. DigitalGlobe provides high-resolution earth observation and advanced geospatial services and solutions, SIA said in a press release.

Merit Network engineers completed a 10 Gbps network connection between Alpena and Powers, Mich., said the nonprofit in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/H5ceSB). The 3,000-foot-long segment of the fiber-optic network is Merit’s second 10 Gbps network path in the Upper Peninsula, after the path from St. Ignace to Sault Ste. Marie, it said. The REACH Michigan Middle Mile Collaborative, funded by NTIA’s Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, has built more than 2,100 miles of fiber infrastructure in Michigan and the new network will connect more than 190 community anchor institutions, said Merit.

Surveillance was “the elephant in the room” during the 2013 Internet Governance Forum in Bali, Indonesia, which concluded Friday, the organization said in a Friday release (http://bit.ly/1g0lqXg). The four-day event brought together government officials from 111 countries for “the largest global multi-stakeholder meeting on Internet governance,” the release said. The U.S. State Department said Monday (http://1.usa.gov/1a08r1N) it was sending three officials to the event: U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy Ambassador Daniel Sepulveda; Coordinator for Cyber Issues Christopher Painter; and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Scott Busby. The State Department called the event in its release “an important venue through which to promote the kind of multi-stakeholder processes that have made the Internet an engine of global economic growth and innovation.” Many of the forum’s 135 workshops and discussions focused on governments’ need to restore “trust” in the Internet. Busby acknowledged at the event widespread concerns about intrusive U.S. government surveillance, saying the U.S. “welcomes a discussion about privacy and security” that includes “the views and practices of everyone around the world.” He insisted the U.S. “does not use intelligence collection for the purpose of repressing the citizens of any country for any reason, including their political, religious, or other beliefs."

The Nebraska Public Service Commission partnered with Mobile Pulse to crowd source mobile broadband performance data, said the PSC in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/1ePO36C). Mobile Pulse is a mobile network analytics firm that develops an inventory of local networks and creates comprehensive performance reports for providers, said the PSC. Mobile Pulse tests wireless broadband networks through a free “Mobile Pulse” app that runs automatically in the background without interaction, said the PSC. The information could ultimately be used for “national consumer advocacy” on broadband issues to the FCC, said the PSC. Nebraska residents are encouraged to download the free testing app from iTunes or the Google Play store.

Allegations the U.S. monitored e-communications of millions of French citizens and tapped the phone calls of German Chancellor Angela Merkel led to strong words at news conferences Friday from French President François Hollande and Merkel after the first day of a Council of Europe meeting in Brussels. Government leaders had a “comprehensive” debate on privacy, in which they informed each other about possible U.S. eavesdropping and voiced concern about what that means for Europeans, said Merkel. The EU-U.S. partnership needs mutual trust and respect, she said. France and Germany decided to take the lead in negotiating a framework for the cooperation of their respective intelligence services with the U.S., she said. Asked whether she expects an apology from the U.S. for allegedly tapping her mobile phone, Merkel said the most important thing at this point is to find a path for the future. European “trust has been severely shaken” and must be rebuilt, she said. There are some behaviors and practices “that cannot be accepted,” said Hollande. He called for a code of good conduct for European intelligence services, and for French and German discussions with the U.S. to arrive at the truth about what happened and a common future path by year’s end. European governments are aware that intelligence and security services must be fully involved with each other to deal with security threats, but fundamental rights must also be safeguarded, he said. France has already asked the U.S. for access to the documents some media organizations have seen, he said. In their conclusions (http://bit.ly/1gLz2qJ), all council members cited the “deep concerns” possible intelligence issues have raised among European citizens. They “underlined the close relationship between Europe and the USA and the value of that partnership,” but said the relationship “must be based on respect and trust, including as concerns the work and cooperation of secret services.” Council members stressed that intelligence gathering is vital to the fight against terrorism, but that “a lack of trust could prejudice the necessary cooperation in the field of intelligence gathering.” They also called for “rapid and constructive progress” in the existing EU-U.S. Working group on the related issue of data protection. In his statement after the first session of the council powwow, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso said, “The revelations over recent months and days have shaken trust in privacy and data security.” The EU will keep pushing for adoption of proposed data protection legislation, he said. On the meeting’s main topic, the digital economy, innovation and services, the council cited an “urgent need for an integrated single digital and telecoms markets” that benefits consumers and companies. As part of its growth strategy, Europe must boost digital, data-driven innovation across all sectors, it said. The conclusions called for investing in the digital economy by accelerating deployment of new technologies such as 4G and maintaining technology neutrality. Legislative measures to reduce the cost of broadband rollout should be adopted rapidly, it said. Europe also needs to be at the forefront of big data and cloud computing, council members said. They urged that a strong network of national digital coordinators be created to encourage cloud, big data and open data development. Officials also want to promote a consumer- and business-friendly digital single market. “No efforts should be spared to accelerate work on the pending legislative proposals,” particularly on e-identification and trust services, e-invoicing and payment services, the Council said. Timely adoption of data protection reform and the cybersecurity directive is essential to complete the digital single market by 2015, it said. Officials also pushed for concrete steps to address the growing lack of digital skills and for more investment in research and innovation. The European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association said Friday it “fully shares the sense of urgency” conveyed by the council’s call to accelerate key initiatives of the digital agenda, and appreciated governments’ vision in seeking an EU strategy on cloud computing and big data.

Oct. 28 FCC monthly meeting, 11:30 a.m., rescheduled from Oct. 22, Commission Meeting Room -- http://fcc.us/1gqLlbQ

TiVo customers can now stream and download live TV and recorded content on Apple devices at no extra cost, said the company in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/1hcdzVz). Through TiVo Roamio Pro and TiVo Roamio Plus DVR, customers will be able to watch TV or recorded shows remotely anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection, said the company. Customers can also do remote scheduling and get personalized recommendations through the TiVo app, said the company. In 2014, streaming over 4G LTE will be available and Android devices will get access to the streaming product, said TiVo.

The Software and Information Industry Association was critical of European and Brazilian data privacy legislation, in comments filed to the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board ahead of PCLOB’s Nov. 4 event on the U.S. government’s surveillance programs (http://bit.ly/1aIlIef). The European Parliament this week approved new data privacy regulation “that creates a Catch 22 for U.S. companies, requiring them to obtain approval from European regulators prior to responding to U.S. government requests for information -- under this approach, U.S. companies could not effectively comply with conflicting national laws,” said SIIA President Ken Wasch in a statement. Another proposal under consideration in Brazil would “require IT companies to operate within their borders to house all operations there or restrict the transfer of data outside their jurisdiction,” he said. Together, these two regulations “would not only have a significant negative impact on U.S. businesses, but would also undermine IT innovation and economic growth around the world,” Wasch said.

The author of an Internet Innovation Alliance paper responded to claims of poor scholarship by Comptel. That association of CLECs had argued the paper incorrectly analyzed cherry-picked data to show that unnecessary regulation forces ILECs to make significant investments in outdated facilities (CD Oct 22 p6). Comptel’s analysis is “deeply flawed,” said the author, Georgetown Visiting Policy Scholar Anna-Maria Kovacs. “In an attempt to claim that ILECs have only minimal fixed-cost left in their networks, Comptel depreciates ILEC networks fully without crediting the new investments they have made. Comptel simply ignores the $175 billion the ILECs have invested in their networks between 2006 and 2012.” Comptel makes an “equally extreme claim” when it says ILECs make no investments in obsolete technologies, Kovacs told us. In so doing, it dismisses a Columbia Institute for Tele-Information study done by a team led by Robert Atkinson, she said. That study found that between 2006 and 2011, legacy infrastructure consumed 53 percent of the RBOCs’ capital investment, she said. “While there was gradual improvement, legacy investment still consumed 42% of the ILECs’ capital expenditures in 2011,” Kovacs said. “Comptel ignores the statistics but selects a few quotes that indicate some broadband deployment. It then assumes that if the ILECs make some broadband investment, then none of their investment is legacy.” The consumer communication market is “highly competitive,” Kovacs said. “It is time to plan a rational transition that will encourage investment and innovation while ensuring the achievement of key public policy goals such as consumer protection and public safety."