Better Broadband Better Lives

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Jonathan Charnitski

Jonathan Charnitski has 50 articles published.

Broadband Mapping/Broadband TV/Broadband Updates/Broadband's Impact/National Broadband Plan/NTIA/Recovery Act

Neville Keynotes June Broadband Breakfast Club Mapping Discussion

WASHINGTON, June 23, 2011 - National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Program Director, Anne Neville, offered the keynote address Tuesday morning at the Broadband Breakfast Club's June event, " The National Broadband Map: Policy, Consumer and Economic Development Implications." Neville, who oversees the development of the National Broadband Map, kicked off the event with an overview of the program, including how the NTIA obtained data, how the data have been used, and the future of the mapping efforts. The National Broadband Map: Policy, Consumer and Economic Development Implications from BroadbandBreakfast.com. Keep Reading

Broadband's Impact

ITIF Panel Debates Government Intervention in Broadband Networks

WASHINGTON, June 2, 2011 - The Information Technology & Innovation Foundation assembled a panel Wednesday to debate the merits and minuses of government support of broadband networks. The Oxford-style debate, "Governments Should Neither Subsidize nor Operate Broadband Networks to Compete with Commercial Ones," included four panelists. Rob Atkinson, President of ITIF and Jeff Eisenach, Managing Director and Principal of Navigant Economics argued against government intervention; Jim Baller, President of Baller Herbst Law Group, and Chris Mitchell, Director of Telecommunications at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance argued in favor. Keep Reading

Copyright/Intellectual Property/People

Pallante Appointed Permanent Head of Copyright Office

WASHINGTON, June 1, 2011 - Librarian of Congress James Billington made permanent the appointment of Maria Pallante to the top post at the U.S. Copyright Office, where she has served as Acting Register of Copyrights since the beginning of the year. Pallante's appointment secures her spot as the successor of Marybeth Peters, who retired from the Copyright Office at the end of 2010 after 16 years of service. Keep Reading

Mobile Broadband/Wireless

T-Mobile to Double 4G Speeds in 55 Markets

WASHINGTON, May 24, 2011 - Wireless phone and Internet provider T-Mobile announced Tuesday that its fastest wireless broadband speeds would increase twofold in more than 50 markets, starting Wednesday. The company boasts speeds up to 42 megabits per second (Mbps) available on the improved 4G networks, though consumers will need to upgrade their equipment to reach advertised speeds. T-Mobile also announced the release of the Rocket laptop stick, the company's first 42-Mbps-capable 4G product. Keep Reading

Broadband TV/Copyright/Intellectual Property/International/Trademarks

Intellectual Property Breakfast Club Examines IP Enforcement

WASHINGTON, May 16, 2011 - The Intellectual Property Breakfast Club last week featured a keynote address by Erik Barnett, Assistant Deputy Director at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and subsequent panel with industry experts, taking a closer look at administration recommendations to expand the scope of IP laws and increase certain penalties for infringement. Barnett's keynote focused on "Operation In Our Sites," an ICE initiative that focuses on stopping Internet counterfeiting and piracy. The initiative seizes U.S.-based sites that provide illegal content via the web. Critics allege that the seizures deprive domain registrants of due process.

Intellectual Property Enforcement: Where Does the Law Need to be Updated?

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FCC/People

Baker to Leave FCC to Lobby for NBCUniversal

WASHINGTON, May 12, 2011 - FCC Commissioner, Meredith Baker, announced Wednesday that she will resign her post on June 3, after which she will begin her tenure as a lobbyist for NBCUniversal. Baker's served as one of the five FCC commissioners for less than two years, after being sworn in by President Barack Obama in July, 2009. Previously, she spent five years during the second Bush administration at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, where she rose to the top spot in that agency. Keep Reading

Congress/House of Representatives/Privacy/Wireless

Barton, Markey Release Draft of ‘Do Not Track’ Bill for Kids

WASHINGTON, May 9, 2011 - Reps. Joe Barton (R-TX) and Ed Markey (D-MD) released a discussion draft of to-be-introduced legislation that would update the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act to reflect changes in current technology. The Do Not Track Kids Act of 2011 would make several changes to the existing law, which dates back to 1998. Since then, says Rep. Barton, the Internet landscape has changed dramatically. Keep Reading

Congress/House of Representatives/Intellectual Property/International/Trademarks

House Subcommittee Scrutinizes Possible Domain Name Expansion

WASHINGTON, May 5, 2011 - The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet held a hearing Wednesday to investigate the possible effects of expanding Internet domain names beyond the traditional suffixes like .com and .net to potentially anything a registrant could type. The subcommittee probed plans by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to expand the generic top level domains (gTLDs) beyond the set menu of familiar suffixes like .org and .gov. The proposed new regime could comprise either an expanded menu of choices or an open door for registrants to create a suffix of their choosing, such as .google or .microsoft. Keep Reading

Asia/Europe/Intellectual Property/International/North America/South America

U.S. Trade Representative Issues Annual Report On IP Infringement Abroad

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2011 - The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative released its annual Special 301 report on Monday, outlining the effectiveness of trade partners in combating infringement of the rights of U.S. intellectual property holders. The U.S. claims 18 million American jobs dependent upon intellectual property. The sector also represents the largest source of export revenue for the U.S. Keep Reading

Broadband's Impact/Digital Inclusion/Education

AT&T And One Economy Team Up At Broadband Properties Summit

DALLAS, April 28, 2011 - One Economy CEO, Kelley Dunne, and representatives from AT&T delivered a joint keynote address at the Broadband Properties Summit on Tuesday, touting the power of broadband to facilitate the innovation economy and empower minority populations. "I believe [broadband] is changing the way we live, work, and play," said Bob Bickerstaff, vice president of consumer data products at AT&T. Keep Reading

Media ownership/Spectrum/Wireless

Sprint Joins Rural Cellular Association

WASHINGTON, April 21, 2011 - At the group's annual convention in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Rural Cellular Association CEO, Steven Berry, announced the addition of wireless carrier, Sprint to the RCA. "This is a very timely addition to RCA’s membership, and a stronger membership will certainly help ensure that our voices are heard at the Federal Communications Commission, on Capitol Hill, and at the White House and other parts of the Executive Branch,” said Berry through a joint statement released this week. Keep Reading

FCC/Media ownership/Net Neutrality/Wireless

Free Press Panel Blasts ‘Broken’ FCC

BOSTON, April 13, 2011 - Panelists at the Free Press National Conference for Media Reform railed on the Federal Communications Commission over the weekend, debating to what extent the Commission has been "captured" by industry and how to fix it. Joel Kelsey, Political Advisor at Free Press, moderated the panel, entitled "How to Fix the Broken FCC." The event included participants from the public interest, industry and government sectors. Keep Reading

Broadband's Impact/Congress/Digital Inclusion/FCC/House of Representatives/Media ownership/Mobile Broadband/Net Neutrality/Spectrum/Wireless

Copps, Clyburn Push Media Reform In Boston

BOSTON, April 11, 2011 - Speaking to a standing-room only crowd on Friday afternoon, Federal Communications Commissioners Michael Copps and Mignon Clyburn addressed media consolidation and broadband deployment before fielding questions at a town hall meeting during Free Press's National Conference for Media Reform. Media scholar, Robert McChesney, offered the introduction for the event, addressing both the packed auditorium, an overflow room and those watching live via the web. Both commissioners received standing ovations from the crowd as they took the stage. Keep Reading

Congress/FCC/House of Representatives/Net Neutrality/Senate

House To Vote On Anti-Net Neutrality Measure; Administration Threatens Veto

WASHINGTON, April 5, 2011 - The House of Representatives is anticipated to hold a floor debate and vote this week on a measure that would put the kibosh on net neutrality rules passed by the Federal Communications Commission late last year, but the White House has said that it would likely veto such a measure should it come across the President's desk. Keep Reading

Copyright/Intellectual Property/Media

Dodd Addresses Movie ‘Theft’ In First Speech as MPAA Chief

WASHINGTON, March 30, 2011 - Harkening to the days of the director, Cecil B. DeMille, CEO and Chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America, Chris Dodd, delivered his first talk as chief of the organization to theater owners in Las Vegas about the importance of preventing movie theft. Theft from individuals surreptitiously recording movies in theaters and distributing them either in hard copy or on the internet represents the greatest threat to one of the strongest sectors of the American economy, claimed the former Connecticut Senator. Keep Reading

FCC/House of Representatives/Media ownership/Mobile Broadband/Spectrum/Wireless

AT&T Announces $39B Deal To Acquire T-Mobile

WASHINGTON, March 21, 2011 - Nationwide wireless carrier, AT&T announced Sunday that it had finalized an agreement to acquire competitor T-Mobile from Deutsche Telekom for $39 billion in cash and stock. The deal between the nation's second- and fourth-largest carriers would likely create the largest nationwide wireless carrier, topping current leader, Verizon. Keep Reading

Congress/House of Representatives/Intellectual Property/Patents/Senate

Patent Reform Passes Senate; Bill Headed to House

WASHINGTON, March 8, 2011 - The Senate passed a bill Tuesday evening that would significantly reform the U.S. patent system for the first time in nearly 60 years. The bill will now go to the House for consideration. The Senate passed the America Invents Act - formerly the Patent Reform Act of 2011 - by an overwhelming majority of 95-5. Congress has failed to pass comprehensive patent reform in each of the last four Congresses. Keep Reading

Broadband's Impact/Education/Health/Mobile Broadband/National Broadband Plan/Public Safety/Spectrum/Wireless

Obama to Outline High-Speed Wireless Plan Thursday in Michigan

WASHINGTON, February 10, 2011 - President Obama is scheduled to deliver a speech at Northern Michigan University, Thursday, detailing his plan to catalyze his State of the Union pledge to deliver wireless Internet to 98 percent of Americans within five years. In addition to spurring businesses to reach the 98 percent goal, the administration's Wireless Innovation and Infrastructure Initiative (WIII) aims to free up radio spectrum to alleviate an impending spectrum crunch, create a nationwide interoperable wireless network for public safety and drive innovation in the wireless broadband sector. Keep Reading

Broadband's Impact/FCC/National Broadband Plan/Universal Service

FCC Paves Way For Comprehensive USF Reform At Open Meeting

WASHINGTON, February 9, 2011 - The FCC adopted a measure during Tuesday's open meeting that lays the groundwork for revisions to the nation's telephone subsidy systems in the near-term and an eventual overhaul to transition those systems into building and supporting broadband infrastructure. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which was adopted unanimously by the Commission, draws a roadmap to reforming the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the closely related intercarrier compensation (ICC) system. Keep Reading

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