21 House members sent a letter to the FCC in support of the pending CenturyLink-Qwest merger, citing the merger’s potential benefit for rural areas.
Verizon has petitioned the FCC to use money from the Universal Service Fund to assist rural carriers who license LTE spectrum from Verizon.
A new report reveals that more than half of cyber attacks against private network “critical infrastructure” (i.e., utilities and communications infrastructure) are politically motivated.
Joshua Keating writing on Foreign Policy’s Passport blog, discusses the disagreement US and European leaders have over the concept of “active cyberdefense,” especially in light of suspicion of US involvement with Stuxnet.
This commentary suggests that broadcasters, instead of sitting on unused spectrum, should re-purpose it to offer wireless broadband services so that the FCC doesn’t try to reallocate it.
A Council on Foreign Relations report emphasizes the need for the US to make clear its interests in shaping the governance of the Internet, with an eye towards controlling cybercrime and cyber attacks.
D.C. officials hoped to allow absentee voters overseas to cast ballots over the web, but after inviting hackers to test the system (and a few fight songs later), the program is on hold.
A New York Times editorial makes a case for greater privacy protections in the wake of technological advances.
The Heartland Institute has been circulating a publication, The Patriot’s Toolbox, to Tea Party members with a set of ten telecom principles. It reads like a Christmas wish list for AT&T and Verizon.
Evgeny Morzov writing in the Wall Street Journal has a fascinating piece on the cunning uses of the Internet by authoritarian governments to sustain their hold on power. One poignant excerpt:
As the public sphere has grown decentralized and media based in the West have lost their dominance in setting the global agenda, it has become easier for governments—as well as for corporations, fringe movements and anyone else with an ax to grind—to promote their agendas. Bribing 100 bloggers is often much easier than bribing the editorial board of one newspaper.
Read more here.
Marvin Ammori 