Save Access

from: CNet

FCC approves new method for tracking broadband's reach
Submitted by jonathan on Thu, 2008-03-20 04:56.

by Anne Broache, CNet

As expected, federal regulators on Wednesday voted to overhaul the way they measure how widely broadband is available across the United States.

For years, the Federal Communications Commission has been drawing up reports on the state of U.S. Internet access availability based on methodology that considers 200 kilobits per second (Kbps) service to be "high speed"--and such access to be widely available even in ZIP codes that may, in reality, house only one connection.

from: MultiChannel News

COVER STORY: When Capacity Is Never Enough
The Cautionary Tale Of Video Downloads
By Tom Steinert-Threlkeld -- Multichannel News, 3/22/2008 5:34:00 AM

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A bit is a bit is a bit. An electronic packet of data is a packet is a packet. Unless you look inside to see what it contains.

from: Ars Technica

FCC insider: This place is hell; silent protest planned

By Matthew Lasar | Published: March 16, 2008 - 05:19PM CT

A Federal Communications Commission employee called me on Friday and said that this Tuesday, the third anniversary of Kevin Martin's tenure as Chair of the FCC, at least some staff will arrive at work dressed in black. A "silent but expressive protest" is what they're calling the move. What for? I asked. "Because this place is hell," came the reply.

from: Ars Technica

Congress dons rubber glove, prepares probe of FCC chairman

By Matthew Lasar | Published: March 13, 2008 - 05:11AM CT
Federal Communications Commission Chair Kevin Martin has two weeks to deliver a truckload of written records to Congress related to over a dozen hot-button FCC issues and policies. They're being demanded by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair John Dingell (D-MI), who sent Martin the request letter today, cosigned by Rep. Joe Barton of Texas, the ranking Republican on the Committee.

from: All Voices

Eliot Spitzer and the FCC
by Matthew Lasar San Francisco
Mar 11, 6:36 PM

The news media is having a great day with the revelation that New York Governor Eliot Spitzer paid for sex with prostitutes. Behind the scenes, corporate criminals are breaking out the champagne. As Attorney General of the Empire State, Eliot Spitzer championed the consumer and feasted on white collar crooks. Not only that, Spitzer's zeal often forced those around him in government to do their jobs better, whether they wanted to or not.

from: Broadband Reports

Martin Side Stepped Forced FCC Exit
As the cable industry faces potential lose-lose FCC situation
05:20PM Tuesday Mar 11 2008 by Karl

FCC boss Kevin Martin has recently been accused of making the cable industry his personal whipping boy. Some of that is legitimate criticism, given he frequently hammers the cable industry for things the phone companies are also doing (note his attack on cable astroturfing while ignoring similar tactics by the phone industry). But some decisions are (his a la carte, indecency pushes in particular) Martin's attempt to appeal to "family values" groups with one eye on a post-FCC North Carolina political career.

from: MultiChannel News

Martin: Expect Comcast Broadband Ruling Before July
Resolution Of Peer-To-Peer Complaints To Set “Important Precedent”
By Ted Hearn -- Multichannel News, 3/7/2008 1:19:00 PM

Washington – Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin, speaking at Stanford Law School on Friday, said he’s hoping the agency rules by June 30 on a complaint filed against Comcast over its broadband management practices.

from: MultiChannel News

Martin Disrupts Tate-Adelstein Deal: Sources
FCC Chairman Scuttled Pact Over Putting His Resignation In Writing
Ted Hearn -- Multichannel News, 3/5/2008 5:05:00 PM

WASHINGTON -- Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin scuttled a deal between the White House and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) designed to award new terms to incumbent FCC commissioners, Republican Deborah Taylor Tate and Democrat Jonathan Adelstein, according to individuals familiar with the details.

from: Broadcasting and Cable

Small Cable Ops Ask FCC for Blanket Exemption on Dual Carriage
American Cable Association Files with Federal Communications Commission
By Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/3/2008 11:37:00 AM

After months of public lobbying for less onerous digital-must-carry requirements, the American Cable Association filed with the Federal Communications Commission asking the agency to formally exempt the smallest and most bandwidth-starved cable systems from carrying both analog and digital versions of broadcasters’ signals.

from: Drew Clark

In Comcast vs. Verizon, Comcast is Down Two Counts
February 27th, 2008 · No Comments

By Drew Clark

Dominance in the broadband market is a battle of both technology and politics. Right now Comcast, America’s leading cable company, is losing on both counts.