Gig.U Executive Director Blair Levin is “very supportive of the notion” of the FCC’s Gigabit City Challenge, announced earlier this year, he told the Institute for Local Self-Reliance during a Tuesday podcast (http://bit.ly/10H08Dy). In January, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski urged that every state include at least one gigabit-speed city (CD Jan 22 p1). Levin managed the creation of the National Broadband Plan and has focused on helping to create such fast networks. “The question to me is what does the FCC do about it?” Levin said. “The FCC is an agency with immense powers in a variety of different ways, and I'd love to see them actively engaged in the pursuit of this goal and not just simply saying others should do it.” He said it “remains to be seen” how effective the initiative will be, citing the FCC’s announced workshops and a hope they'll invite “the right people” in evaluating policies across all government levels. “I don’t want to use universal service as a way of keeping everybody low,” Levin reflected later, noting it shouldn’t be used as an excuse not to innovate. “It troubles me when you look at the fastest cities in the world that none of them are in the United States because I think that’s where innovation is going to come from.” One key going forward will be to figure out how to ensure networks meet certain societal needs, which the free market may not do on its own -- needs such as 911 service, network resiliency during disasters and wiring schools, he said. The FCC’s November 2011 USF order contained good things but isn’t “a once-in-a-generation transformation of universal service,” Levin said, describing a coming transformation from the four major telcos bringing wireless 4G broadband into rural areas. He noted that “undoubtedly” the government will “need to look at the system again” when that happens.
CBS said it will syndicate its show The Good Wife on Amazon Prime Instant Video beginning immediately. In September, previous seasons of the show will be available on Hulu Plus, and in January the show will be re-run on the Hallmark Channel, CBS said. The show has sold well on Amazon Instant Video, a fact that gave the distributor confidence to do the deal, said Brad Beale, director of digital video content acquisition for Amazon.
An Alaskan broadcaster asked the FCC not to toss its petition to deny certain wireless and broadcast license transfer applications because of procedural flaws. Fireweed Communications owner Jeremy Lansman admitted he failed to serve his late-filed petition to deny transactions involving ACS Wireless License Sub, The Alaska Wireless Network, GCI and Affiliated Media, Inc. One party had complained that it was never served with Fireweed’s petition and another said it should be dismissed both on procedural and substantive grounds, he wrote. But Lansman said he should be given some leeway because he’s representing himself. “Where a pro se litigant makes procedural errors, courts have ruled that leniency is called for so long as judicial neutrality is maintained,” he wrote in a reply to the oppositions to his petition (http://bit.ly/ZLaTG5).
House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., said there’s a “distinct possibility” that no broadcasters will participate in the incentive auction if the FCC fails to consider their concerns, according to a news release Wednesday. In order for the auction to be a success, the commission “must encourage as many broadcasters as possible to participate … and maximize the amount of money it raises,” he said. Walden referenced a recent FCC filing by the Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition, a group of owners and potential owners of more than 40 large-market TV stations (CD March 12 p13). “In one of the most important filings in the FCC proceeding to implement the law, the coalition listed three critical elements for a successful auction,” he said. First, the commission must not artificially limit the potential compensation to broadcasters; second, the Commission must not exclude potential wireless bidders; and third, the FCC must auction all the airwaves it clears rather than giving some away for unlicensed use, Walden said. “We have an unprecedented opportunity before us to help meet Americans’ growing thirst for mobile Internet service, advance the public safety network, and even raise needed federal revenue. Let’s not squander it.”
Minnesota has increased its broadband adoption by six percentage points since 2011, Connect Minnesota said Wednesday, releasing its 2012 residential survey findings (http://bit.ly/Yo7Li8). The group surveyed 1,201 residents last fall in collecting this data. In 2012, mobile Internet usage rose from 39 to 51 percent primarily due to residents’ desire to access the Internet remotely, Connect Minnesota found. In Minnesota, 78 percent of households subscribe to broadband now compared to 72 percent in 2011, according to the survey data. It also showed that rural residents are less likely to own desktop computers and that data caps don’t seem to be a particularly large barrier for those subscribing to mobile broadband. There are still 904,000 adults who lack high-speed Internet, it said.
It’s important to Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., that the government doesn’t “stop you” from being “allowed to remain competitive,” he said at the American Cable Association conference in Washington Wednesday. He predicted “we're done with tax policy for a while” and current spending limits “will stick.” Blunt reiterated in his speech and in answering a question from the audience by ACA CEO Matt Polka that he doesn’t want federal money used to overbuild existing broadband networks. “Other than must-pass stuff” that lapses without legislative action, “ain’t nothing that’s going to get done that’s not fo’ sho,” said Rep. John Barrow, D-Ga. “If it takes an act of Congress to direct a regulation, we're in trouble,” given the “snail’s pace” of movement in that body, he said in a speech and Q-and-A that followed Blunt. Partisanship is bad for oversight of agencies, Barrow said. Members of Congress “are more interested in fighting among themselves than actually cooperating to oversee these agencies,” he said. Congress is “more screwed up than it has to be and it was designed to be at the outset,” because extremely partisan House legislators are now more numerous, not because they're more dogmatic in their politics, Barrow said. Congress “is unrepresentative of the country as whole,” but is representative of “the extreme liberal base” and the conservative equivalent, he said. Members of Congress are “products of a hyperpartisan selection process,” he said.
Missouri consumers of local and intrastate long-distance wireline service will pay a lower USF surcharge as of July 1, the Missouri Public Service Commission said Tuesday. “Currently, the surcharge percentage of .0025 translates to 12.5 cents on a $50 bill,” the PSC said (http://on.mo.gov/16shQ1T). “With this reduction, the percentage of .0017 translates to 8.5 cents on a $50 bill."
The FCC should revise its band plan for the incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum to focus on just spectrum above TV Channel 37, “with the allocation of additional spectrum below TV Channel 37 if technically feasible,” CTIA said in its reply comments on auction rules. “Numerous commenters highlighted the interference challenges created by the Commission’s proposed band plan, and noted that many of these problems could be prevented by focusing on reallocating spectrum above Channel 37,” CTIA said (http://bit.ly/WHtRPg). “Specifically, such a band plan -- unlike that proffered by the Commission -- would prevent interference caused by television broadcasters operating in the duplex gap between uplink and downlink frequencies.” A band plan that focused on just spectrum above Channel 37 also would simplify device design, CTIA noted. “As Qualcomm observed, the Commission’s proposed band plan ‘cannot be supported with a single antenna system’ and that ‘[a]dding an additional antenna into smartphones and tablets to support this band increases device size, complexity, and cost, and thus introduces potentially insurmountable design challenges given consumer demand for wireless devices with smartphone-sized form factors.'” The record also shows “overwhelming support” to the commission that the spectrum be sold in 5 MHz “building blocks.” The band plan should also provide a duplex gap of at least 10 MHz and “technically reasonable” guard bands, which allow for unlicensed uses “to the extent unlicensed use does not cause interference to primary licensed services.”
FCC commissioners were not given a chance to vote on an order approving the combination of T-Mobile and MetroPCS, released Tuesday (CD March 13 p1), but four of the five commissioners released statements after the fact that were generally supportive of the transaction. The deal was approved by the Wireless Bureau. Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said she agrees the deal “would not likely result in competitive harm to wireless consumers” and should promote LTE. “Some commenters such as Communications Workers of America raised significant concerns with regard to whether, post- merger, the new company would pursue non-network synergies and efficiencies that could lead to significant job losses, a reduction in employment standards, and an adverse impact on customer service,” Clyburn said (http://fcc.us/Y9sx5S). “In this regard, T-Mobile and MetroPCS made a statement that they have no plans to move call centers offshore or to reduce employment levels at T-Mobile call centers. They also stated that, over the last six months, the company has hired more than 3,600 employees in its 17 domestic call centers, and plans to continue hiring in those call centers, increasing the number of overall U.S. positions, to support its customers. I hope that the new company, in fact, pursues a course that increases employment opportunities.” Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel also stressed the importance of jobs. “I have expressed to the parties my concern that as they move ahead, American workers do not get left behind,” she said (http://bit.ly/14WriqA). “Major job losses are not in the public interest. The companies have pledged to me that they have no plans to close any domestic call centers, to move them offshore, to close any retail stores, or to reduce retail positions as a result of this deal. ... I expect that the company will keep its word and live up to these promises.” Commissioner Ajit Pai said he was pleased the order had been approved by the bureau. “When markets are competitive, consumers are better off when the government forbears from intervening and allows private parties to negotiate and enter into voluntary agreements,” he said (http://bit.ly/YaFzNg). “As I have said before, mutual consent implies mutual benefit, and it is accordingly in the public interest for freely-negotiated contracts to be allowed and enforced so long as third parties are not harmed.” Jeff Silva, analyst at Medley Global Advisors, said the merger presented a political problem for the administration. “T-Mobile/PCS presented a political quandary for the Obama administration, which again sided against organized labor in yet another review of a telecom transaction with potential implications for jobs,” he noted. “Pro-Obama labor backed the failed AT&T/T-Mobile merger, while opposing successful government approvals of Verizon/Cable and, now, T-Mobile/PCS.” The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division said in a news release it had also cleared the transaction. “After a thorough review of the proposed transaction, the Antitrust Division has determined that the combination of T-Mobile and MetroPCS is unlikely to harm consumers or substantially lessen competition and has closed its investigation,” DOJ said (http://1.usa.gov/16szdQ2).
European businesses and governments must take urgent action against emerging cyberattack trends, the European Network and Information Security Agency said Wednesday. The cyberwatchdog’s “flash note” (http://bit.ly/XsWxMD) cited a spate of recent reports about targeted cyberassaults directed at governments and critical infrastructure operators, saying they “follow a common and well-known pattern.” Attackers send an apparently legitimate email that’s actually a phishing attempt. The email contains a link to an Internet page containing malware or a maliciously prepared attachment. The malware can exploit software vulnerabilities such as a flaw in the Adobe Acrobat Reader, allowing the attacker to gain sufficient control over the target to gather intelligence. That information is often used to go after other victims or machines in the same organization. The technique has also been used in attacks aimed at financial fraud, such as cyberattacks on online banking called “High-roller,” ENISA said. The recent events highlight several issues, it said. Cyberspace has no borders, making it difficult to find out who’s behind the attacks. The incidents use a combination of two methods -- an innocent-looking spear-phishing email and a software vulnerability. Many organizations have phishing filters and antivirus products, but they often don’t seem to be working when cyberassaults take place over a long time period. Moreover, ENISA said, there are many ways for cybercriminals to stay below the radar. The recently discovered incidents had gone unnoticed for years, probably because attackers were targeting few victims, ensuring that antivirus companies couldn’t easily spot them, it said. It’s possible those attacks are “only the tip of the iceberg,” it said. ENISA recommended: (1) Proactive prevention should be the primary defense against cyberincidents, because prosecution after the event may not always be possible. (2) Email is insecure. In the short run, organizations in critical sectors should mitigate the risks by using encryption solutions and/or send authentication to avoid becoming an easy target for spear-phishing. (3) There are trade-offs between software features and software security. The more features and interoperability attributes software has, the harder it is to ensure it’s free of vulnerabilities. Organizations should reduce the attack surface by using less complex software on user devices and reducing user permission to access other devices, services and applications.