U.S. Trade Representative (USTR)

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin circulated a tentative list of witnesses for the commission’s Stanford University hearing on network management April 17. Unlike at an earlier hearing on the subject in Cambridge, Mass., the list doesn’t include representatives of network operators. But, the chairman is considering a representative of “the creative community,” which probably means the Hollywood studios. The first panel is on network management and consumer expectations. Witnesses include Stanford law Professor Lawrence Lessig, Ben Scott of Free Press, Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of America and Ernie Allen of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Panel two is on consumer access to emerging Internet technologies and applications. Witnesses are to include Barbara van Schewick of the Stanford Center for Internet and Society, Harold Feld of the Media Access Project, a panelist from the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies, as well as representatives of RealNetworks and either Sling Media or Vudu. The list probably will change as the meeting approaches, sources said. - HB

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - Mitsubishi will ship a limited-distribution laser-based TV in Q3 under the LaserVu brand, positioning it well apart from lower-priced rear- projection sets in the Mitsubishi line, executives said at the company’s dealer line show Friday.

TORONTO -- Eyeing a hefty hunk of fresh wireless spectrum, more than two dozen companies or partnerships made the grade to bid for hotly contested radio frequencies being auctioned next month by the Canadian government. Prospective bidders include several entities backed by big U.S. investors.

Don’t designate TracFone Wireless an eligible telecommunications carrier unless TracFone commits to collect and remit 911 recovery fees in compliance with state and local government requests, the National Emergency Number Association urged the FCC in comments. The recommendation concurred with February comments by the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate. According to an ex parte, TracFone lawyers spoke about E911 fees Wednesday with Ian Dillner, aide to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. In comments, NENA cited “the emergence of frustrating patterns of behavior by TracFone related to whether or how to apply” 911 and E911 surcharges “commonplace for conventional wire and wireless telephony.” The prepaid carrier’s “apparent practice has been to offer to cooperate with 9-1-1 entities in the search for a fair and practicable way to surcharge prepaid services, only to turn against, and sometimes formally challenge, the legislative result,” NENA said.

The role of the Department of Homeland Security cyber security chief seems to have been usurped by the creation of the National Cyber Security Center under a White House directive, he was told at a House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing Tuesday. Rod Beckstrom, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur who founded business collaborative software provider Twiki.net, was chosen to lead the new DHS unit in March. Beckstrom’s duties sound like that of Greg Garcia, the department’s assistant secretary of cyber security and communications, said Chairman David Price, D-N.C.: “Who’s in charge of this initiative?” Garcia said his division has a much broader role than Beckstrom’s, including protection of the communications networks and emergency response duties. The NCSC is just coordinating various agency cyberdefense efforts, not “operating” them or exercising “direct authority,” he said. Robert Jamison, undersecretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, said the NCSC would mostly “consolidate” information across the government but apologized that he couldn’t discuss much more about the new office, because much of the information is classified. Ranking Member Harold Rogers, R-Ky., expressed frustration that the “lay” lawmakers would have trouble understanding the NCSC’s function: “We need as much elucidation on these things as you can give us.” Clarifying the roles, Jamison said the defense of the .gov network is Garcia’s responsibility. DHS is trying to put the network in a more “defensible position” by deploying more intrusion detection systems, with the eventual goal of analyzing all network traffic in real-time, not just sampling traffic as it does now, Jamison said. It has implemented 39 “Einstein” monitoring sensors and will add more, he said. Jamison told Price that a privacy impact assessment of the new systems would be finished in the “coming weeks.” But he didn’t answer Price directly on whether DHS staff would be reviewing e-mail or “personal files” moving across the network. Price defended the roughly 350 open slots in his directorate by noting that approximately 250 were new additions in the FY2008 budget, and about 200 are in the “late stages of selection.” Garcia said his office is already planning the next Cyber Storm attack exercise for 2010. The second exercise of the series was held last month after 18 months of planning. Jamison assured Rep. Chaka Fattah, D-Pa., that emergency communications wouldn’t be taken down in the event of a repeat undersea-cable outage. The Defense Department is still investigating how multiple cables were cut the past few months but the cause seems to be “legitimate” maritime traffic, Jamison said. A large part of Garcia’s budget is for routing communications on next- generation networks so that they can get priority and circumvent bottlenecks or outages, Jamison said. DHS has a “very close relationship” with the carriers to get such priority for first responders, he said. Garcia assured Rep. Sam Farr, D-Calif., that his BlackBerry would have priority on the wireless network under a government emergency technology program, if he enters a special code on the device.

House Telecom Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey’s Second Life avatar banged a virtual gavel to open a hearing on virtual worlds Tuesday. It marked the first congressional hearing in a virtual world -- a simulcast of the real world version. Markey said his avatar “looks like he’s been working out,” which is “one of the beauties of Second Life.” Joining the Massachusetts Democrat in Second Life were invited journalists, online activists, and representatives of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which has “built an incredible locale in Second Life,” Markey said.

In its March 27, 2008 issue of ShippersNewsWire, American Shipper reported that some truckers were talking about a one-day shutdown across the nation on April 1, 2008 due to the cost of fuel and their inability to pass along fuel surcharges. Industry officials are questioning how widespread this effort to grab the attention of lawmakers might be. (AS, dated 03/27/08, www.americanshipper.com )

The private sector and sympathetic regulators should hammer out global privacy principles before lawmakers and data protection authorities develop rules that can’t be reconciled, the International Association of Privacy Professionals’ Privacy Summit was told Friday. Different regimes worldwide -- especially the comprehensive EU approach contrasted with the sectoral U.S. approach -- not only frustrate multinational businesses, but also paralyze smaller economies, speakers said. Those fearful of the EU imposing its regime on the world have an ally in U.K. Information Commissioner Richard Thomas, who said it may be time to “modernize” the EU Data Privacy Directive.

The FCC hasn’t suspended an inquiry into complaints that Comcast blocked peer-to-peer file transfers via BitTorrent, said four agency officials. A Thursday settlement between the cable operator and the P2P software maker hasn’t prompted Chairman Kevin Martin’s office to tell other commissioners of any changes to the inquiry, said agency officials. “The complaint against Comcast is pending,” said an FCC spokesman. “We are following that complaint as we do any other.” But Commissioner Robert McDowell said the settlement “obviates the need for any further government intrusion into this matter.”