Legislators and regulators from both parties said there’s broad support on Capitol Hill and in industry for some sort of do-not-track standard for websites targeting children. Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., used his time at a children’s media conference Thursday to push for passage of the Do Not Track Kids Act (HR-1895) sponsored by him and Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the other co-chairman of the Congressional Privacy Caucus. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., would like to see similar legislation advance in the Senate, though he said it’s unlikely any such bill would pass this year. FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz noted at the Capitol Hill event that there’s bipartisan support for a DNT system, and Democratic FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and ex-GOP FCC Commissioner Deborah Tate said any solution must involve the largest number of possible stakeholders.
The potential 700 MHz spectrum that Verizon’s willing to sell to get regulatory approval of its cable deal doesn’t interest T-Mobile USA, CEO Philipp Humm said during a conference call Thursday. He declined to comment on reports that parent company Deutsche Telekom is discussing with MetroPCS a potential tie-up (CD May 10 p7). The carrier grew its Q1 profit to $200 million, from $135 million a year ago, partly helped by its prepaid subscribership growth.
BRUSSELS -- Preliminary results of a European Commission study to boost efficiency of spectrum use to spur mobile broadband and other applications is focusing on bands used for satellite, terrestrial, aeronautical and defense applications, speakers told a European Commission workshop. The EC-funded study is a pilot program, or prototype, for the EU spectrum inventory, said Scott Marcus of WIK Consult. The inventory should identify candidate bands for improvement in use and assist in determining what might be done, the cost and expected benefits, said Marcus, who is project manager.
NEW ORLEANS -- The expected spectrum crunch was a hot topic at CTIA’s annual meeting, which ended Thursday. Numerous carrier officials told us spectrum remains a major concern, especially in light of the recent NTIA report on the 1755-1850 MHz band, which said clearing the band would cost $18 billion. Many questions remain about the pending FCC voluntary incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum and the extent to which there will be broadcaster buy-in, especially in major markets.
Netflix made a rare visit to the FCC to lobby against three top ISPs’ exclusion of some video transmitted by Internet Protocol from broadband data caps. The company said the exclusion is a net neutrality issue and doesn’t necessarily fall under statutory exemptions on preferential treatment of cable programming. The online video streamer took aim at AT&T, Comcast and Time Warner Cable, during executives’ first visit to lobby the FCC in two years.
Acquiring more shares of Sirius XM could help Liberty Media make a better case to the FCC for its intent and refile a new application seeking a de facto transfer of control, attorneys and analysts told us. Liberty Media acquired about 60.3 million shares of stock in Sirius XM as it tries to obtain de facto control. Liberty bought the stock Tuesday and Wednesday, according to an SEC filing (http://xrl.us/bm64cp). The purchase follows Liberty CEO Greg Maffei saying Tuesday that the company will seek a review of the FCC’s dismissal of its application for de facto control over Sirius (CD May 9 p6).
NEW ORLEANS -- The U.S. needs to move quickly to adopt a next-generation 911 system, panelists said Wednesday at the CTIA annual meeting. David Furth, acting chief of the FCC Public Safety Bureau, said a recent Verizon Wireless announcement that it would introduce a feature enabling users to send texts to 911 (CD May 4 p11) is a potentially important breakthrough.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski was prodded by Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., about the agency’s role on protecting consumer privacy, at a budget hearing Wednesday. Genachowski said the FTC has the “lead” on privacy issues and held his cards close on the FCC’s position on News Corp. allegations of journalists hacking U.K. cellphones.
A potential T-Mobile USA/MetroPCS combination would face few regulatory hurdles, but a deal might not solve either company’s problems, analysts said. Deutsche Telekom was reportedly discussing a merger of its U.S. unit with the prepaid carrier in a stock-swap transaction Wednesday. The potential deal would give the German company control over the combined entity, which would be publicly listed, reports said. The companies were also reportedly in talks with other entities.
A working group is drafting legislative language incorporating the Obama administration’s privacy “blueprint,” Cameron Kerry, general counsel at the Department of Commerce, told the Senate Commerce Committee. “We stand ready to work with the committee and other members of Congress to put baseline privacy legislation into law,” he told a committee hearing Wednesday on the need for privacy protections.