NEW ORLEANS, September 30, 2009 – The chief of staff at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration said Wednesday that there will be changes in the rules governing the broadband stimulus program, and that the government would begin seeking comments on changes in mid-October.
The Media Access Project will hold the third session in its 2009 MAPPING CHANGE series on October 8 in Silicon Valley for a conference exploring the issue of “smart grids.” MAP aims to bring together experts on communications, information technology, energy, and infrastructure to discuss policy developments and implementation strategies promoting smarter energy management and environmentally sustainable technologies.
As the new Federal Communications Commission takes up the task of changing the Universal Service Fund, the task will be all the more complex because of the intrusion of broadband policy objectives and proposed changes to the contribution methodology, panelists said Wednesday.
ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, announced a newly created position of Vice President, Government Affairs (Americas), with primary responsibility for policy development and advocacy before the U.S., Latin America, and Canadian governments.
The American Cable Association praised the House and Senate Judiciary Committees for recently passing bills that would change the rule allowing for redistribution of copyrighted content by cable television operators. ACA said the rule had been a financial burden on small and mid-sized cable operators, especially operators that have consolidated operations in the pursuit of greater efficiency.
An agreement reached by the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) was praised Wednesday by Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif., Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., Chairman of the Communications, Technology, and the Internet Subcommittee.
WASHINGTON – September 29, 2009 – From the beginning, BroadbandCensus.com has aimed at providing academics, consumers, government officials and industry with the high-quality data needed about the state of broadband throughout the country.
WASHINGTON, September 29, 2009 – Current broadband mapping data is not specific enough in detail to help the Federal Communications Commission produce a national broadband plan, despite recent revisions to agency data-collection practices, staff members said Tuesday.
Notwithstanding a recent proposal by the online advertising industry to strengthen standards governing consumer data collection, some on Capitol Hill still see a need for Congress to enact comprehensive privacy legislation. Indeed, Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., has promised to introduce legislation on this subject this fall. Over at the Federal Trade Commission, Chairman Jon Leibowitz has explicitly warned online advertisers that the FTC will take a regulatory approach if industry does not improve its self-policing efforts.
The United States is losing ground in innovation sweepstakes to Japan, Denmark and other nations, according to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. This is mainly because these and other nations have designed and funded federal policies to spur innovation, while America has not, says the think thank.