The Commerce Department proposed adoption of fair information practice principles amounting to a “Privacy Bill of Rights” for online consumers, setting up a privacy policy office in the department, and reviewing the Electronic Communications Privacy Act in light of cloud computing, it announced Thursday.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski’s plans to add net neutrality rules under the agency’s existing Title I authority comes as a relief to satellite broadband companies, said an industry executive. Under the Title I approach, satellite broadband would not be subject to Universal Service Fund contributions, as could have been the case had the agency gone forward with Title II reclassification, said Steven Doiron, director of regulatory affairs at Hughes Network Systems. Although the details of Genachowski’s plan haven’t been released, the FCC’s efforts aren’t expected to have major impact on satellite broadband providers’ businesses otherwise, said executives.
Public interest groups are turning up the heat on the FCC to strengthen net neutrality rules regarding wireless and a few other areas, in an order circulated by Chairman Julius Genachowski Nov. 30 for a vote Tuesday. The key question, commission and industry officials said Wednesday, is whether Democratic Commissioners Michael Copps and Mignon Clyburn will prevail on Genachowski to make changes to make the rules tougher, though doing so could blow up industry support for the rules.
House Commerce Committee Democrats probably won’t decide right away whom to vote for to lead Democrats on the Communications Subcommittee, a race that’s being closely watched by the telecom industry, lobbyists from both parties said. They said that those U.S. representatives who are named to the full committee, which will have fewer Democrats come January because Republicans will have a larger proportion of members of the body, likely will meet in January to make their decisions. It’s unclear exactly when the vote will occur because some details of the committee makeup depend on decisions made by the GOP. That party will pick a chairman of the Communications Subcommittee as soon as this week.
Acceptance by opponents and lawmakers of the Local Community Radio Act, awaiting a Senate vote, is sought by those in noncommercial radio. HR-1147 could make it easier to create low-power FM (LPFM) stations in larger markets. The NAB, a major opponent to the bill, has been instrumental in holding it back, some community radio supporters said. The NAB said it has concerns over the bill creating interference to full-power stations.
The San Jose, Calif., City Council voted Tuesday not to join the Bay Area Broadband Enhanced Wireless Project (BayWEB), funded with a $50 million BTOP grant to Motorola from NTIA. The city will send letters to NTIA asking the agency to reallocate the money to Bay area cities and counties, a San Jose official told us. The project will move forward, and if any city drops out of the project, it’s out, an NTIA spokeswoman said. Applying for the money is no longer an option, she said.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the FCC has a big role to play in sparking a national discussion about sexting, texting while driving, and other wireless bad behavior by teenagers. The comments came Tuesday during an FCC “Generation Mobile” forum Tuesday at McKinley Technology High School in Washington. Genachowski also told students that net neutrality rules, set for a vote next week, have broad support.
Getting access to additional spectrum is the consumer electronics industry’s 2nd-highest priority, behind solving the federal deficit and economic issues, CEA President Gary Shapiro said in a meeting with reporters Tuesday. He said there’s bipartisan support for freeing up spectrum, and suggested that ultimately broadcasters might even be in favor.
An FTC official signaled that the commission’s staff is already prepared to back off, in the face of pushback, its proposal this month that an online “do not track” mechanism be browser-based. “We really need to open our minds to some other alternatives,” said Jessica Rich, the Consumer Protection Bureau’s deputy director. Speaking Tuesday on a teleconference of the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section, she said, “Maybe the browser-based system isn’t the best solution.” Rich declined to embrace a new technology offered by Microsoft.
Fights in the court and on the Hill are likely after the FCC’s net neutrality decision, speakers said during a NATOA (National Association of Telecom Officers and Advisors) webinar about top communications issues in 2011 Monday. They urged state and local regulators’ input over issues like taxation, the proposed Comcast/NBC Universal merger and pole attachments.