Detailed instructions on how to attack the U.S.-hosted Georgian president’s Web site hit the blogosphere Tuesday night, leading to a sharp rise in attacks against the site’s host, Tulip Systems, of Atlanta, officials said. Other attacks and filtering of Russian-language Web sites in the Republic of Georgia continued Wednesday as military operations declined. Several U.S.-based Web hosting companies may be targeted, they said.
Attacks on Internet sites in the conflict between Russia and Georgia and breakaway South Ossetia have followed Georgian government and broadcast Web sites to the U.S. servers where they're now hosted, to Azerbaijani news sites and possibly to mainstream Internet companies now hosting Georgian government content, industry officials said.
Deaf interest groups, telecom relay providers and others argued details on an FCC plan to give 10-digit phone numbers to deaf people using Internet-based TRS services. They filed comments Friday on a rulemaking (CD June 26 p2) on the 10-digit numbering plan. The FCC sought comment on 911 and other issues, as well as how it might apply customer proprietary network information (CPNI), slamming and other customer privacy rules to relay providers. Relay providers have until Dec. 31 to implement a 10-digit plan.
A 20-market test of a way to send multilingual emergency alerts is off after broadcasters and advocates for non- English speakers couldn’t agree, said discussion participants. In June, the sides asked the FCC to delay issuing rules telling stations how to tell non-English speakers about hurricanes and natural disasters (CD July 9 p6). They proposed to test the so-called designated hitter approach: When a radio station broadcasting other than in English goes off the air in a storm or the like, another station in the market agrees to carry alerts in the station’s language. But broadcasters didn’t get behind the approach.
Some public safety officials are reaching out to both sides trying to mend a rift between APCO and the National Emergency Number Association and the Public Safety Spectrum Trust -- the licensee for the portion of the 700 MHz band reserved for public safety, APCO and other officials said. FCC sources said the fight between the PSST and public safety groups could complicate commission efforts to develop a nationwide network for public safety in the 700 MHz band.
The FCC should deny Level 3’s emergency petition for more phone numbers in area code 603, covering New Hampshire, said the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission. Level 3 asked the Wireline Bureau to direct the North American Numbering Plan Administrator to assign and release a thousands block growth code in rate centers “where exhaust has been reached or is imminent” (CD July 29 p13). Level 3 hasn’t proved that it provides basic local exchange services in New Hampshire as certified, the PUC said. It also cited “missing, incomplete and incorrect state-required documents, as well as questionable NRUF submissions.” Meanwhile, NeuStar scolded Level 3 for errors in its request. The National Pooling Administrator, not the NANPA, administers thousands blocks, it said. NeuStar serves as both NANPA and Pooling Administrator.
During an April 2008 seminar in Austria, Customs and market surveillance authorities from 32 countries (EU; Croatia; Turkey; Norway; Switzerland and the U.S.) agreed to strengthen co-operation to protect the public from imported unsafe products. It was also announced that the European Commission and Hungarian customs administration will host a conference on Single Authorization for simplified procedures/Centralized Clearance as a follow up to the Helsinki Seminar on centralized clearance and to the Vienna Seminar on Single European Authorizsation on October 1-3, 2008. (Information at http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/customs/policy_issues/conference_events/index_en.htm)
KANSAS CITY -- APCO attendees and officials said the group generally remains strongly behind a national license for the 700 MHz D-block, even though some major public safety groups are pushing a regional approach to building a network. Meanwhile, FCC sources said Wednesday they're hearing little from Chairman Kevin Martin’s office about what’s next for the D-block. APCO was to hold its only major session on the topic after our deadline Wednesday.
The World Trade Organization has issued World Trade Report 2008: Trade in a Globalizing World, focusing on the gains and challenges associated with international trade.
KANSAS CITY -- The FCC is on the trail of public safety licensees who haven’t filed 800 MHz rebanding plans or sought a waiver from June’s reconfiguration deadline. Meanwhile, in some areas licensees are ready to reband but have had to stop because systems they're tied into are not, industry players said this week at the APCO annual conference.