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Above the Law: AT$T, Verizon, BellSouth, and the Executive Branch
from: Vox.com
Above the Law: AT&T, Verizon, BellSouth, and the Executive Branch
Jan 26, 2008 at 3:29 PM
The Bush Administration has been pushing hard for the Congress to grant retroactive immunity to telecom companies that cooperated with its domestic wiretapping program, the legality of which is still in question. For most Americans, this story falls in the category of boring, but important. Most aren't even aware that we're facing a Constitutional question that could fundamentally change the way we govern ourselves, and how we hold each other accountable.
Phone Giants’ Rising Rates Questioned
Note: Yet another example of the "competition=lower prices" myth - and the triple play trap.
from: USA Today
Phone Giants’ Rising Rates Questioned
From USA Today, January 28, 2008
By Leslie Cauley
AT&T and Verizon are raising prices for caller ID and other popular phone services by as much as 300%, even as they continue to push regulators to loosen up because of increased competition.
Alert: Congressional Hearing on PEG Jan 29
Note: Saveaccess will be liveblogging this hearing - join us online Tuesday at 1:00 pm (EST)
TO ALL MEMBERS OF THE ALLIANCE FOR COMMUNITY MEDIA
A rare and historic Congressional hearing on PEG access television is being held this Tuesday, Jan 29th, 1:00 pm (EST): "Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) Services in the Digital TV Age."
Stop the Auction! Congress and the FCC Must Investigate D Block Allegations
What? The largest auction of the public airwaves, estimated at over 12 billion dollars, is somehow corrupt? Yet, why aren't we surprised?
from: WetMachine
Stop the Auction! Congress and the FCC Must Investigate D Block Allegations Before Proceeding.
by Harold Feld
Yesterday, I broke a story on Wetmachine (subsequently confirmed by this Dow Jones story and consistent with this angry op ed by economist and former Frontline adviser Gregory Rosston that Morgan O'Brien, operator of Cyren Call, had killed Frontline's financing and thus kept them out of the auction.
VT: Rural Towns Bundling a Blueprint for Broadband
Note: Despite many common misconceptions, Vermont actually is a state in the USA. Given the Vermont's headway and success in municipal broadband projects, other states would do well to take a closer look.
from: Burlington Free Press
Rural Towns Bundling a Blueprint for Broadband
HI: Akaku Court Motion Seeks End to Bidding Process
from: Maui News
Akaku Court Motion Seeks End to Bidding Process
From Maui News, January 23, 2008
By Ilma Loomis
The bidding process has already been delayed more than a year, and now Akaku: Maui Community Television will seek a judge’s order to free it from competing for its contract altogether.
House Schedules Hearing 'Pegged' to Comcast Move
from: Broadcasting and Cable
House Schedules Hearing 'Pegged' to Comcast Move
'Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) Services in the Digital TV Age' Set for Jan. 29
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/24/2008 11:21:00 PM
The House Energy & Commerce Committee's Telecommunications & Internet Subcommittee set the witness list for a Jan. 29 hearing on on “Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) Services in the Digital TV Age.”
Comcast's Cohen To Testify On PEG Policy
Note: Though the subcommittee hearing is likely to focus on PEG issues (particularly because of Comcast's dim behavior in Michigan), it could also be worth repeating a quote of Cohen's from 2006:
"In reality, the cable-broadband business is intensely rivalrous with DSL, and we expect the rivalry to intensify as we face increasing competition from wireless and satellite broadband, fiber to the home, and even broadband over power lines. Will the tens of millions of customers still on dial-up make the switch to us if we block access to content, prevent use of an application, or preclude the attachment of devices? We think not."
MI: Comcast got what it bargained for
from: Ann Arbor News
Comcast got what it bargained for
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Comcast, having benefited richly over decades from its cable television monopoly in Michigan communities, should feel compelled to give something of value back.
Not much has been asked, although one small concession historically from Comcast to this community and others has been a public access channel for locally produced programming, which are generally broadcast on channels on the low end of the spectrum.
WI: Reverse for AT$T's U-verse video?
from: The Madison Times
Reverse for AT&T's U-verse video?
Jeff Richgels — 1/24/2008 3:45 pm
Could AT&T be out of the video business before it even brings its U-verse service to Madison?
That's possible, according to TVPredictions.com president Phillip "Swanni" Swann, who predicts AT&T will be out of the video business within 12 to 18 months, CedMagazine.com reported.
