[Cybertel-Ann] 12.18 :: Flawed FCC Forbearance :: Flawed FCC Media Rules :: Flawed Net Neutrality :: Flawed EFF Analysis ::

Wed Dec 19 07:53:21 PST 2007

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             CyberTelecom News  
      Federal Internet Law and Policy
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"[W]ere it left to me to decide whether we should have
a government without newspapers, or newspapers without
a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer
the latter."
Thomas Jefferson, 1787

Inouye Introduces Bill to Correct Flawed FCC
Forbearance Process, Senate
No description
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=249019
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/broadband/forbearance.htm

Philadelphia as a Wi-Fi Case Study - New report
reviews the history of the developing system,
DSLreports
When discussing the state of municipal Wi-Fi in
Philadelphia, the conversation is almost always about
whether or not Earthlink is going to hold up its end
of the deal and build out the system. (That seems
unlikely in the face of their recent Philly no-show.)
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Philadelphia-as-a-WiFi-Case-Study-90254
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/broadband/muni.htm

List of 700 MHz Auction Bidders Yields New Surprises,
IP Democracy
The FCC posted yesterday a list of bidders in the 700
MHz auction (PDF here) and this pre-game rosters of
players yielded a few surprises.
http://www.ipdemocracy.com/archives/2007/12/19/#002815
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/broadband/w700.htm

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia goes Wi-Fi, Muni
Kuala Lumpur residents will be getting free wireless
broadband access for two years, thanks to the KL
Wireless Metropolitan Project. Green Packet, which has
a WiMAX license through its subsidiary Packet One,
signed a memorandum of understanding with Kuala Lumpur
City Hall (DBKL) and the Malaysian Communications and
Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/muniwireless/~3/202678857/
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/broadband/wifi.htm

Customer Proprietary Network Information, Fed Reg
The Commission adopted rules to implement section 222
of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, which
governs carriers' use and disclosure of customer
proprietary network information.
http://thefederalregister.com/d.p/2007-12-13-E7-24105
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/ci/cpni.htm

Crying Network Neutrality Wolf - Every technical
hiccup is not a neutrality violation...., DSLreports
Last year BellSouth users complained they couldn't
access MySpace and YouTube, leading some to issue
cries of network-neutrality violation. As it turns
out, the problem was completely unintentional routing
issue.
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Crying-Network-Neutrality-Wolf-90278
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/ci/neutral.htm

Expert Dismantles EFF&#146;s Analysis of Comcast
Throttling - Says EFF doesn't even understand the
technology, DSLreports
Last week we saw ZDNET take on the EFF with an
accusation that the group has a secret agenda to
impose metered bandwidth on broadband users. This
week, The Register takes a closer look at the EFF and
dismantles the group s analysis of Comcast s
throttling practices. What their expert author
determines is that the EFF doesn t know what it s
talking about.
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Expert-Dismantles-EFFs-Analysis-of-Comcast-Throttling-90237
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/ci/neutral.htm

Notice of Implementation Date for WHOIS National Laws
Procedure, ICANN
No description
http://www.icann.org/announcements/announcement-18dec07.htm
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/dns/icann.htm

The Sprint To IPv6, Internet News
As the federal mandate looms the national carrier is
ramping up.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/InternetnewsRealtimeNewsForItManagers/~3/202559328/3717426
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/dns/ipv6.htm

And Another One: Nortel Latest To Sue Vonage Over VoIP
Patents, Techdirt
A "patent thicket" is when so many different entities
claim patents on a particular space or product, it
becomes nearly impossible for any company to actually
put a product out in that space without either having
to pay ridiculous patent license fees or face a series
of patent lawsuits.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20071216/161500.shtml
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/industry/vonage.htm

Vonage in legal tussle with Nortel, CNET
Vonage is getting sued--again. This time
telecommunications equipment maker Nortel Networks
says the company has violated nine patents related to
its Internet phone service.
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9834803-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/industry/vonage.htm

PRO-IP Act Eliminates Copyright Registration
Pre-requisite for Criminal Enforcement, PK
A lot of the attention on the PRO-IP Act has been on
Section 104’s compounding of damages provision. And
rightly so. However, I want to bring to light the
issue of criminal enforcement of copyright
infringement, and the changes this bill makes to
remove the current requirement of
registration-before-enforcement.
http://feeds.publicknowledge.org/~r/publicknowledge-main/~3/200480791/1313
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/ip/copyright.htm

Chicago Tribune launches local video site, Lost Remote
Newspapers continue their emphasis on video, and the
latest effort is by Chicago Tribune Interactive with
the launch of chicagolive.com. Billed as showcasing
video from professionals and UGC content, the site
already has a hefty collection of video, thanks to the
multiple divisions of the Tribune’s TV, Cable and
Interactive divisions.
http://www.lostremote.com/2007/12/17/chicago-tribune-launches-local-video-site/
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

Journalism Professor Says Citizen Journalists Should
Be Regulated, Techdirt
There's just something about the idea a lack of
"elite" gatekeepers that upsets some people. It's why
you hear complaints about Wikipedia or blogs or home
videos on YouTube. For some reason, there are a group
of folks (often the former elitist gatekeepers) who
feel that since not all of the content is great,
useful or interesting, it all is problematic in some
way or another.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20071214/032247.shtml
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

Senators to Block FCC Funding if Martin Won&#146;t
Delay Vote - Martin says he's going forward anyway,
DSLreports
FCC Chief Kevin Martin had a lot of questions to
answer this week when he faced a Senate committee in a
three hour hearing. Issues that were brought up
included the FCC s failure to educate the public about
the digital TV transition to which Martin responded
that the FCC was doing a terrific job considering that
it had received no funding from the Senate to assist
with the education.
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Senators-to-Block-FCC-Funding-if-Martin-Wont-Delay-Vote-90242
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

F.C.C. Reshapes Rules Limiting Media Industry, NYT
The Federal Communications Commission set new rules
regulating the size and scope of the news and cable
firms.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/19/business/media/19fcc.html?ex=1355720400&en=37cf4a879d2712c2&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

FCC votes to loosen ownership rules, Lost Remote
In a vote that FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said may help
to “forestall erosion of local news coverage,” the FCC
commission approved a rule change that loosens its
newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership rule. For the
first time in 32 years, broadcasters in the top 20
markets could also own a newspaper, assuming a variety
of conditions.
http://www.lostremote.com/2007/12/18/fcc-votes-to-loosen-ownership-rules/
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

FCC's New Media Rules Worse than Advertised, Free
Press
The new media ownership rules passed by a 3-to-2,
party-line vote at the Federal Communications
Commission on Tuesday are far worse for the public
interest -- and more favorable to Big Media companies
-- than anything FCC Chairman Kevin Martin previously
revealed to the public.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/fp_whats_new/~3/202429298/release.php
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

Responding to Kevin Martin and Other Reflections On
Yesterday's FCC Broadcast Ownership Vote, Tales from
the Sausage Factory
(As you may have seen from John's post, we lost
several days worth of material yesterday and couldn't
get this posted promptly. So forgive me for posting
what is literally yesterday's news. And hopefully I
will be able to get back or reconstruct...
http://www.wetmachine.com/item/968
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

Let's See If the FCC Is Serious About Stopping the
Next Media Consolidation, PK
Public Knowledge wasn’t involved in the hellacious
fight at the Federal Communications Commission over
media ownership. Our friends in Free Press and Media
Access Project, among other groups, put forth heroic
efforts and spent uncounted hours at all times of the
day and night to make sure that what would turn out to
be a bad decision could be less bad than had they not
made their presence felt.
http://feeds.publicknowledge.org/~r/publicknowledge-main/~3/202767073/1316
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/media/

The Consistency of Kevin Martin and the Faith Based
FCC, Tales from the Sausage Factory
So many people are mad at Kevin Martin these days, but
for so many different things. He is either a “tool of
industry” or “interfering with the market,” depending
on whom you ask. And no one seems more confused about
this...
http://www.wetmachine.com/item/960
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/notes/fcc.htm

Your Encryption Key Is Protected By The Constitution?,
Techdirt
In an interesting case up in Vermont, a federal judge
has ruled that someone accused of a crime cannot be
forced to reveal his or her encryption key, as it
would be a violation of the Constitution's 5th
Amendment, saying that an individual cannot be forced
to self-incriminate.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20071216/163110.shtml
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/security/crypto.htm

Judge: Man can't be forced to divulge encryption
passphrase, CNET
In what could potentially be a landmark Vermont case,
judge says thanks to the Fifth Amendment, a child
pornography defendant doesn't need to turn over his
laptop's PGP passphrase.
http://www.news.com/8301-13578_3-9834495-38.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
More Info:
http://www.cybertelecom.org/security/crypto.htm

Study: 95 percent of all e-mail sent in 2007 was spam,
CNET
We're being inundated by spam. How could
community-based approaches help?
http://blogs.cnet.com/8301-13505_1-9831556-16.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/spam/

Clinton staffers banned from liberal New Hampshire
blog, CW
Liberal New Hampshire blog site Blue Hampshire has
banned six usernames after they failed to disclose a
connection to Hillary Clinton's campaign.
http://feeds.computerworld.com/~r/Computerworld/News/~3/201811103/article.do
More Info: http://www.cybertelecom.org/vote/

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