The FCC Thursday approved a notice of inquiry asking a battery of questions on Deployable Aerial Communications Architectures (DACA) -- balloon-mounted systems and other aerial base stations that could be quickly dispatched to disaster areas to keep communications alive when other systems falter. The FCC earlier sought comment, only to meet with resistance from wireless carriers, who cited major interference concerns (CD March 2/11 p 7).
Promising broadband speeds a thousand times faster than what Americans have today, Gig.U and Gigabit Squared announced the availability of $200 million to fund the nation’s first multi-community broadband gigabit deployment. Dubbed the “Gigabit Neighborhood Gateway Program,” the project aims to build and test gigabit speed broadband networks by offering them to communities at competitive prices. Community selections will be announced between November 2012 and March 2013. “What makes the Gigabit Squared approach so exciting is that it goes far beyond normal industry business models in how to successfully and creatively improve broadband access for university communities, which is exactly the premise upon which Gig.U was founded,” said Blair Levin, executive director of Gig.U and former architect of the National Broadband Plan, Wednesday. “We intuitively knew this, but to see Gigabit Squared emerge so strongly today proves that yes, America needs an upgrade; and that yes, there are innovators and investors willing to step up to get it done.” FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski called the announcement a “significant accomplishment” that will help ensure America leads the world in bandwidth. “To drive U.S. global competitiveness, it’s vital that we have super-fast broadband testbeds for innovation,” he said. “It’s an important element of unleashing breakthrough innovations in health care, education, business services, and more."
Chinese national Qiang Hu, a/k/a Johnson Hu, 47, was charged in a complaint with conspiracy to violate the Export Administration Regulations and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, in a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts. Hu was arrested May 22 in North Andover. The complaint alleges that Hu's employment at MKS Instruments Shanghai gave him access to MKS manufactured parts, including export-controlled pressure-measuring sensors (manometer types 622B, 623B, 626A, 626B, 627B, 722A, and 722B), which are commonly known as pressure transducers. Pressure transducers are export controlled because they are used in gas centrifuges to enrich uranium and produce weapons-grade uranium, the Justice Department said.
There should be a “presumption” against regulating free flow of information and data on the Internet, panelists agreed at a Google event, but disagreed on what balance to strike between protecting personal liberties and free speech, and national security and social and cultural traditions. There’s no absolute in free expression, but when the state reads citizens emails and monitors Web traffic in the name of security, there should be a “presumption” in favor of the individual, John Kampfner, former CEO of the Index on Censorship, told an Internet at Liberty 2012 panel in Washington. When the state seeks to limit individual expression and privacy, it should do so “apologetically” and in as “narrow a sense” as possible, he said. That there should be a “presumption against regulation is probably true,” and countries need to show why they need the authority to monitor online activity, said Stewart Baker, former assistant secretary of homeland security. Asked if there should be international standards for how and when governments can monitor activity, he said there are no “easy answers.” Norms are slowly emerging on that issue, he said. But every country has criminals and there’s a legitimate security-based reason for monitoring them, he said. Baker defended the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), passed last month by the House, saying it undid two “dumb” privacy rules that were bad for security. The measure helps build barriers to receiving things like malware by allowing sharing of information, he said. “At the end of the day, the government has to be protecting people,” he said. Renata Avila, an advocate for the international blogger network Global Voices, said measures taken by the U.S. and the EU in the name of national and regional security are “threatening the fundamental rights” of citizens elsewhere. Stressing the need for privacy, she said people have to have the right to “express ourselves in an anonymous way.” Saying free flow of information and data on the Internet is under assault, Bob Boorstin, Google public policy director, said many countries, including India and Brazil, are considering legislation or regulations that could slow or “strangle” free flow of online information. More than 600 million people now live in countries that engage in substantive or pervasive filtering of online content, said Susan Glasser, editor-in-chief of Foreign Policy, quoting figures put out by the OpenNet Initiative.
BOSTON -- State telecom regulators took a largely dim view of the FCC’s ability to regulate state and local policy matters, as they grappled with the potential components of a prospective 2013 Telecom Act. Speaking on a Cable Show panel on public utility commissions late Tuesday, state regulators generally agreed that any proposed broad new telecom law should have the FCC set fewer specific rules while allowing them more leeway to regulate local issues as they see fit. Speaking earlier at the conference, aides to legislators had said the 1996 Telecom Act may be updated, though it could take years (CD May 22 p5).
SAN FRANCISCO -- Even including public Twitter posts in information-gathering for marketing purposes unexpected by the writer might be a federal privacy violation, an FTC attorney said. That posts are open to all would weigh against liability but not preclude it, said Laura Berger of the commission’s privacy and identity protection division late Tuesday. She was answering a question from a lawyer at a Practising Law Institute seminar.
The FCC Public Safety Bureau seeks comment on multi-line telephone systems, pursuant to the Next Generation 911 Advancement Act of 2012 (http://xrl.us/bm8xqt). Specifically, the commission seeks comment on the feasibility of multi-line telephone systems to provide the precise location of a 911 caller, and the National Emergency Number Association’s “Technical Requirements Document on Model Legislation E911 for Multi-Line Telephone Systems.” Comments are due in PS docket 10-255 July 5, replies Aug. 6.
Global satellite revenue grew 5 percent last year to about $177 billion, led by revenue increases in the satellite manufacturing and launch sectors, the Satellite Industry Association said in a report. While the rate of net job losses decreased from 2.7 percent in 2010 to less than 1 percent last year, employment in the industry continued to drop in the first three quarters of 2011. The State of the Satellite Industry Report (http://xrl.us/bm8ydw) was done by Futron Corp., SIA said. Futron surveyed more than 80 satellite companies and assessed performance in the satellite services, manufacturing, launch and ground equipment sectors.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski named David Turetsky, a communications lawyer at Dewey & LeBoeuf, as new chief of the Public Safety Bureau. The appointment is effective after Memorial Day. Acting Chief David Furth will return to duty as a deputy chief of the bureau. Turetsky becomes the second chief under Genachowski, following his initial appointment of retired Rear Adm. Jamie Barnett, who left the agency at the end of April.
The national emergency with respect to the stabilization of Iraq declared in Executive Order 13303 of May 22, 2003, and modified several times since, is to continue in effect beyond May 22, 2012, President Barack Obama said in a message to Congress May 18. The emergency would automatically end if the President didn't extend it annually. The notice makes no changes in any provisions, including those affecting trade.