Headlines

Network neutrality ruling complicates US transition to IP networks

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:18:39 +0000

The transition from copper-based telephone systems to IP networks in the US could become swept up in political fallout as the Federal Communications Commission figures out how to regulate such networks in ways that will appease the courts.

New owner Glen Taylor: less liberal Star Tribune ahead

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:15:55 +0000

A Q&A with new Star Tribune owner Glen Taylor to talk about the purchase. Taylor, a former state senator, says the Star Tribune, which fellow Republicans criticize as as liberal, will “have better balance,” aided by veteran staffers retiring -- though the shift has been ongoing and would’ve happened even if he hadn’t bought the paper.

Lawmakers Call for Examination of Hate Speech in Media

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:13:21 +0000

Reacting to the recent hate crime at two Jewish centers in Kansas City, Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) introduced a bill to update the government's 20-year-old report on hate speech in the media.

New education technology services aim to stop the ‘summer slide’

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:11:30 +0000

Research suggests that students lose two to three months of grade-level equivalency in math skills over the summer, which affects their readiness for the new school year -- and this problem is more pronounced for students from low-income families.

Time Warner Cable bets big on easy and secure Wi-Fi, rolling out Hotspot 2.0 network-wide

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:07:51 +0000

Time Warner Cable has turned on the Hotspot 2.0 capabilities across its public Wi-Fi network, letting customers with newer smartphones or tablets connect to its 33,000-node wireless network without entering passwords or dealing with login screens.

A few accumulated thoughts on media

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 22:06:01 +0000

What I have learned about media after spending nearly 12 years on GigaOm, pretty much most of my working life in various aspects of media, and two decades on the Internet?

Dee Dee Myers to Join Warner Bros. as Head of Communications

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:37:14 +0000

Dee Dee Myers, once the White House press secretary to President Bill Clinton, will be joining Warner Bros. as executive vice president for worldwide corporate communications and public affairs, the studio said.

Can Google sustain its awesome side projects with decreasing ad revenue?

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:35:57 +0000

With buzz building about Google's newest project, the build-it-yourself smartphone known as "Project Ara," it's worth noting that some company observers are concerned about what Google's side projects are doing to its profit margins.

21st Century Fox Reorganizes Government Relations

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:34:37 +0000

As part of a restructuring of the government relations department, Maureen O'Connell, senior VP, regulatory and public policy, government relations for 21st Century Fox in Washington, is exiting her post after 18 years.

SCOTUSblog Denied Senate Press Credentials, May Sue

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:29:33 +0000

SCOTUSblog publisher Tom Goldstein wrote that the Senate Press Galley has denied its application for a press pass and will not renew a previously granted credential to Lyle Denniston, a veteran Supreme Court reporter who writes for the site.

NPD: Growth in Mobile Broadband May Push Greater Tablet Subsidies

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:27:43 +0000

The number of active mobile broadband devices in Americans’ hands will increase 50 percent to 34 million by year-end 2015, and two-thirds of them will be tablets, according ew market research from The NPD Group.

Recrafting Open Internet Rules

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:26:29 +0000

On April 11, the Benton Foundation responded to the Federal Communications Commission’s request for public comment on how to preserve an Open Internet in the wake of the the ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit which struck down some of the FCC’s Open Internet (or “network neutrality”) rules.

A Robust Health Data Infrastructure

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 21:23:38 +0000

The Department of Health and Human Services posted a report by JASON, an independent group of scientists that advises the Federal government on matters of science and technology, called “A Robust Health Data Infrastructure.”

NBCUniversal Plans Big Digital Video Push

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:15:36 +0000

NBCUniversal said it plans to launch an extensive original programming slate for its digital platforms.

Agencies Model Newsrooms for Real-Time Marketing

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:13:33 +0000

Madison Avenue has long been home to creative gurus who had months to produce an advertising campaign. But an explosion of social media has pushed ad firms to work at faster and to even hire folks who are used to working on tight deadlines: reporters.

Dish To Refund $2 million To Washington State Customers

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:10:19 +0000

Dish Network will reimburse Washington state customers about $2 million for a surcharge officials called deceptive, but the satellite TV provider denied wrongdoing in the agreement announced by the state attorney general's office.

AT&T threatens to boycott airwave auction

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:08:46 +0000

AT&T is threatening to sit out the Federal Communications Commission’s highly anticipated spectrum auction in 2015, which will sell billions of dollars’ worth of airwaves.

FCC Makes It Tough To Get JSA Waivers

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:06:15 +0000

In its March 31 ruling giving broadcasters two years to unwind joint sales agreements used to get around the long-standing ban against owning two stations in small and medium markets, the Federal Communications Commission said it would consider requests for waivers.

Broadcasting Anew

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:04:34 +0000

It is always special to be in attendance at the annual National Association of Broadcasters Show, and 2014 was no exception.

Google: Still no plans to bring Fiber to New York

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:02:38 +0000

A Google Fiber job posting in New York City has a bunch of tech news sites excited about the prospect of Google bringing its fiber Internet service to the Big Apple.

Verizon led massive astroturf campaign to end NJ broadband obligation

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 20:01:17 +0000

Verizon doesn't want to deploy high-speed wired broadband service to all New Jersey residents, despite receiving financial perks from the state for the past 20 years in exchange for building a statewide network.

Pay TV Subscribers to Increase (Just Barely) in 2014

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:57:45 +0000

The rapid emergence of over-the-top (OTT) and Internet TV alternatives, as well as cloud services, has posed stiff challenges for US pay-TV service providers in recent years.

Senate power players quarrel over fate of e-filing

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:56:28 +0000

Millions of Americans e-filed their income taxes, but when senators submitted required reports about their campaign fundraising and expenses, most ignored computers in favor of paper.

Comcast & TWC: Playing multidimensional digital chess

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:54:54 +0000

Humility is not a Washington strong suit, and so the Senate Commerce Committee questioned Comcast and Time Warner Cable, often skeptically, over the former’s proposed $45 acquisition of the latter.

FCC Requests Comments on Proposal to Require Multilingual EAS Alerts

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:52:32 +0000

There is one interesting and important proceeding that the Federal Communications Commission has recently resuscitated and is worthy of mention -- the proposal to mandate multilingual emergency alerts by broadcast stations.

Laws and Ethics Can’t Keep Pace with Technology

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:48:51 +0000

Employers can get into legal trouble if they ask interviewees about their religion, sexual preference, or political affiliation. Yet they can use social media to filter out job applicants based on their beliefs, looks, and habits.

Comcast's Enemy May Be Comcast

Benton Foundation — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 11:55:26 +0000

Comcast and Time Warner emerged pretty much unscathed from their encounter with the Senate Judiciary Committee. And why not? Even senators get the basic argument. In their cable TV businesses, their merger wouldn't reduce competition because the duo already don't compete against each other, even as they compete with a growing array of third parties, including satellite everywhere, telephone companies in numerous markets, and Netflix and other "over the top" providers wherever customers have access to decent broadband. In their broadband business, they also don't compete with each other, even if consumers and politicians might wish for more competition generally.

Cell carriers clashing over auction rules

Benton Foundation — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 11:53:51 +0000

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plans to auction off valuable low-frequency airwaves while balancing its congressionally mandated goal of raising revenue for the government with the competing business interests of wireless companies.

Google Unveils Project Ara, a 'Modular' Smartphone

Benton Foundation — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 11:52:48 +0000

Google is planning a "modular" smartphone that consumers can configure with different features.

Public officials in a wired world: How much privacy should they get?

Benton Foundation — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 11:52:01 +0000

New technology often challenges society's long-standing assumptions and standards, but sometimes courts -- and others -- lose sight of common sense as they grapple with the changes.