CyberTelecom Blog

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

The Story of EDSAC

EDSAC, the first general purpose computer, went into service this week in 1949 at the University of Cambridge.

Monday, April 22, 2013

RFC :: Direct Access to Phone Number Resources by VoIP Providers ::

FCC Press Release: FCC PROPOSES TO UNLEASH CONSUMER BENEFITS OF ONLINE VOICE SERVICES BY PROVIDING DIRECT ACCESS TO NUMBERS

Seeking Comment On Costs and Benefits, Including Ensuring Protection of Consumers, Public Safety, Network Reliability and Numbering System

Washington, D.C. – Working to speed innovation and competition in communications services, the Federal Communications Commission today proposed to streamline access to telephone numbers for innovative online providers of phone service.

The proposals continue the ongoing agency-wide effort to modernize its rules for today’s broadband marketplace, while promoting competition, protecting consumers and ensuring public safety.

Today, providers of interconnected Voice overInternet Protocol services – a popular type of VoIP service which can place calls to and receive calls from the traditional phone network as well as over the Internet – must obtain numbers through traditional telephone companies acting as a middleman. This can raise costs and slow introduction of innovative services, such as high-definition voice.

To determine whether a more streamlined approach is appropriate in the Internet era, the FCC is seeking comment on whether interconnected VoIP providers should have direct access to numbers. In addition, the FCC is seeking comment on easing access for other services that require numbers, such as IP access to emergency services, home security systems, text messaging services, programmable appliances and telematics like hands-free cellular modems in automobiles.

To test a number of technical issues related to the proposals, FCC also launched a limited, six-month trial of direct access to numbers. Vonage and other VoIP providers with pending direct-access waiver petitions at the Commission will be allowed to test direct access for 5% or fewer of the numbers they currently access through intermediaries – phased in over 6 months – and a very limited amount of new numbers. Participants will be required to report monthly on the progress of the trial, and can be required to return the numbers if problems arise. In addition, the FCC granted a limited waiver to TeleCommunication Systems, Inc., which provides access to E911 services for interconnected VoIP providers.

Looking further ahead, the FCC opened a Notice of Inquiry asking about the long-term relationship of numbers to geographic boundaries. The tie between area codes and geographic regions has been weakened by number portability, especially as mobile subscribers move away from the area where they obtained the service but continue using the number. The Inquiry seeks general comment on these trends and whether changes in Commission policies are appropriate

Comment Date: (30 days after date of publication in the Federal Register)

Reply Comment Date: (60 after date of publication in the Federal Register)

Docket No.: 13-97

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

RFC :: FTC Seeks Input on Privacy and Security Implications of the Internet of Things

Notice: Commission Staff to Conduct Workshop on Nov. 21

The staff of the Federal Trade Commission is interested in the consumer privacy and security issues posed by the growing connectivity of consumer devices, such as cars, appliances, and medical devices, and invites comments on these issues in advance of a public workshop to be held on November 21, 2013 in Washington, D.C.

The ability of everyday devices to communicate with each other and with people is becoming more prevalent and often is referred to as “The Internet of Things.” Consumers already are able to use their mobile phones to open their car doors, turn off their home lights, adjust their thermostats, and have their vital signs, such as blood pressure, EKG, and blood sugar levels, remotely monitored by their physicians. In the not too distant future, consumers approaching a grocery store might receive messages from their refrigerator reminding them that they are running out of milk.
Connected devices can communicate with consumers, transmit data back to companies, and compile data for third parties such as researchers, health care providers, or even other consumers, who can measure how their product usage compares with that of their neighbors. The devices can provide important benefits to consumers: they can handle tasks on a consumer’s behalf, improve efficiency, and enable consumers to control elements of their home or work environment from a distance. At the same time, the data collection and sharing that smart devices and greater connectivity enable pose privacy and security risks.
FTC staff seeks input on the privacy and security implications of these developments. For example:

What are the significant developments in services and products that make use of this connectivity (including prevalence and predictions)?
What are the various technologies that enable this connectivity (e.g., RFID, barcodes, wired and wireless connections)?
What types of companies make up the smart ecosystem?
What are the current and future uses of smart technology?
How can consumers benefit from the technology?
What are the unique privacy and security concerns associated with smart technology and its data? For example, how can companies implement security patching for smart devices? What steps can be taken to prevent smart devices from becoming targets of or vectors for malware or adware?
How should privacy risks be weighed against potential societal benefits, such as the ability to generate better data to improve health-care decisionmaking or to promote energy efficiency? Can and should de-identified data from smart devices be used for these purposes, and if so, under what circumstances?

FTC staff will accept submissions through June 1, 2013, electronically through iot@ftc.gov or in written form. Paper submissions should be mailed or delivered to: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Room H-113 (Annex B), Washington, DC 20580. The FTC requests that any paper submissions be sent by courier or overnight service, if possible, because postal mail in the Washington area and at the Commission is subject to delay due to heightened security precautions.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC's online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

4.10 :: Hello, It's Been a While :: BITAG :: DNSSEC :: Price of Free :: Online Honesty Box :: Austin Google Fiber :: Beyond Dubai :: CISPA :: Aereo :: CFAA :: DOS ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

My top men tell me the Internet is going to be big! Daguerreotype big! I've decided to buy this Internet, one domain at a time. -Charles Montgomery Burns

Dear Netflix, We Can't Hear You! Signed, 50 Million Americans, NPR :: Keyword: [ADA] Recent scientific research links hearing impairment with dementia. Commentator Barbara J. King says widespread availability of closed-captioned films could help.

Broadband Legacy, NTCA :: Keyword: [Broadband] Blair Levin, lead creator of the national broadband plan (NBP), has been busy these days with his Gig U effort, working through the Aspen Institute to create high-capacity networks for universities and other initiatives that promote broadband adoption. Ever since Blair was brave and bold enough to attend an NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association meeting and debate the merits of the broadband plan, we have always found a way to find agreement on the need for more robust efforts on the broadband adoption front.

When Doesn’t Speed Matter?, Level3 :: Keyword: [Broadband] 3.3 milliseconds per 1,000 kilometers — that’s what Wikipedia reports to be the speed of light in fiber optic cable. In theory, if you wrapped a single fiber cable around the equator (which is 40,075 km long) a bit of information could circle the Earth in 0.132 seconds. What’s very important to notice in the simple math I performed that there are no variables. But in telecom networks there are many variables in the infrastructure, like repeaters/amps, multiplexers, optical switches, variations in fiber quality and how the last mile of transport is accomplished – just to name a few.

Update: Comment Deadlines Set in U-NII 5 GHz Rulemaking, Commlawblog :: Keyword: [Wifi] In February we reported on an FCC proposal that would not only add new 5 GHz frequencies but also overhaul – maybe even simplify – a particularly confusing stretch of the rules. One possible upshot would be the opening up of 195 MHz of spectrum for Wi-Fi-type operation.

Wallsten, Scott, Two Cheers for the Fcc's Mobility Fund Reverse Auction (April 1, 2013), SSRN :: Keyword: [Wireless] The United States held its first competitive bidding, or “reverse auction,” for universal service funds in September 2012. In general, in a reverse auction providers bid the subsidy they believe they need to provide a specified service in a given area, and the regulator funds the firms that ask for the smallest subsidies.

2013 US Mobile Apps & Cloud Survey, March, Yankee :: Keyword: [Wireless] The Yankee Group 2013 US Mobile Apps and Cloud Survey is an online methodology of nearly 16,000 consumers, 4,000 employees and 2,000 IT decision makers over the year, that examines respondents' experience and interest in Mobile Apps and Cloud.

Google Immunized for Its Search Results--Mmubango v. Google (Catch-up Post), Tech & Marketing Law Blog :: Keyword: [47 U.S.C. § 230] Mmubango v. Google, Inc., 2013 WL 664231 (E.D. Pa. February 22, 2013). The initial complaint. This is...

BITAG: A New and Increasingly Important Multi-Stakeholder Organization, Verizon :: Keyword: [Neutral] The Broadband Internet Technology Advisory Group, or BITAG, is one of the newest multi-stakeholder organizations that deal with issues concerning the Internet. BITAG is a non-profit organization focused on bringing together engineers and technical experts to develop consensus on broadband network management practices and other related technical issues that can affect users' Internet experience, including the impact to and from applications, content and devices. I was involved in establishing BITAG in 2010 with a number of

Veteran Internet Use and Engagement With Health Information Online, Pew :: Keyword: [DATA] New analysis compares veterans of the U.S. military with non-veterans, revealing differences in internet access and interest in certain health topics.

Internet Grows to More Than 252 Million Domain Names in the Fourth Quarter of 2012, Verisign :: Keyword: [DNS] VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), the global leader in domain names, today announced more than six million domain names were added to the Internet in the fourth quarter of 2012, bringing the total number of registered domain names to more than 252 million worldwide across all top-level domains (TLDs) as of Dec. 31, 2012, according to the latest Domain Name Industry Brief.

Internet Governance Bill Sweeps Too Broadly, CDT :: Keyword: [ICANN] Today, the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology is considering a bill on the policy of the United States on Internet governance. CDT joined the Open Technology Institute in a letter to members of the Committee urging them to reject the current text of the bill and reaffirm their support for the current system of Internet governance in a more nuanced way.

The Internet Association’s Statement on Markup of H.R. __, A Bill to Affirm the Policy of the United States Regarding Internet Governance, Internet Association :: Keyword: [ICANN] Millions of people across the globe have rejected the proposed U.N. takeover of the Internet. Last year, the U.S. Congress in a strong bipartisan manner, voted to unanimously oppose the ITU’s intervention in the governance of the Internet.

Networks Announcing IPv6 Over Time: A Short Update, CircleID :: Keyword: [IPv6] We regularly check the status of IPv6 deployment in the RIPE NCC service region, and in other service regions as well. One way to measure IPv6 deployment is to look at the percentage of networks announcing IPv6 prefixes and follow the developments over time.

DNSSEC and Google’s Public DNS Servi散, Potaroo :: Keyword: [DNSSEC] The story of DNSSEC has strong similarities to that of IPv6. Like IPv6, DNSSEC has been around for many years, but its languishing. Like IPv6, DNSSEC is most effective when everyone is using it, and the marginal returns from piecemeal adoption are extremely low. And like IPv6, the relatively low levels of deployment and use of DNSSEC does not reflect the longstanding effort to lift the visibility of the technology and concerted efforts to publicise the clear long term benefits in the use of this technology.

Hoofnagle, Chris Jay and Whittington, Jan M., The Price of 'Free': Accounting for the Cost of the Internet's Most Popular Price (March 19, 2013)., SSRN :: Keyword: [ECOM] Offers of “free” services abound on the internet. These offers cause a conundrum for consumer protection. Courts are apt to discount users’ claims against such services; one recently held that users are not “consumers” for purposes of California consumer protection law. Industry leaders push to monitor users ubiquitously, an imperative driven by the desire to fund “free” content.

The On Line Honesty Box, Virulent Word of Mouse :: Keyword: [ECOM] Many vendors give away free services, but usually there is a catch. For example, while Google has given away search services for moreRadiohead than a decade, no user has any illusions as to why. Advertising buys space and tries to reach readers. As another example, for many years US cellular carriers came close to giving away handsets to customers (until expensive smartphones reduced the practice). Buyers knew these subsidies came with two-year commitments, and buyers could anticipate giving the carrier high service fees.

As Austin readies for Google Fiber, here’s why you need a gig: even if you don’t think you do, Gigaom :: Keyword: [Google] I was so excited by the prospect that my newly built home in Austin, Texas might get Google Fiber’s gigabit service, that I couldn’t sleep last night.

A quick look at Google Fiber pricing v. the incumbents, Gigaom :: Keyword: [Google] The news that Google Fiber is coming to Austin, Texas has me all aflutter. But I’m the type of broadband-lovin’ fool who wants a gig for the sake of having a gig. What about those practical people out there wondering why they might sign up?

Google FTTH Invades Texas, With Austin the Next Stop for Google Fiber, Telecompetitor :: Keyword: [Google] Google FTTH Invades Texas, With Austin the Next Stop for Google Fiber One of the industry’s worst kept secrets was confirmed today with the announcement that Google Fiber is coming to Austin, Texas. Google confirmed the initiative today at an Austin event, citing mid-2014 as the target to begin offering their gigabit FTTH service. The move adds more intrigue to the ongoing interpretation of what...

Moving Together Beyond Dubai, NTIA :: Keyword: [ITU] I am honored to offer the inaugural contribution to the United States Telecommunications and Training Institute (USTTI) blog. USTTI has been an important institution for cooperation and the mutual sharing of expertise to meet our shared challenges with respect to communications technology. The United States Government remains committed to this example of enhanced cooperation and the friendships and cooperation that result from USTTI programs.

Strong, United Voices for Internet Freedom, Google :: Keyword: [ITU] Remember the ITU? It might seem like a long time ago, but it was only last December at a closed-door meeting of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in Dubai when some governments proposed measures to censor and regulate the web. We joined millions of individuals and thousands of organizations from all over the world in speaking up against this.

CISPA a Step Backward in Cybersecurity Legislation, Freedom House :: Keyword: [CISPA] see link

A majority of the biggest newspapers in the country now have paywalls [infographic], Gigaom :: Keyword: [News] Several hundred newspapers now have paywalls of some kind, but for the most part, it’s the small and mid-size papers that have been the early adopters. Last year, for example, Gannett put all 80 of its community newspapers’ websites behind metered payᘀँ The first day of the seas

Traffic Spotlight: MLB Opening Day, Better Broadband :: Keyword: [Video] The first day of the season, which I refer to as “fauxpening day”, saw only one regular season game played between Houston and Texas. Interestingly, the total bandwidth generated for this one game was almost identical to the 5-8 games streamed on a typical spring training day.

Aereo in the Second Circuit: Wha' Happened?, Commlawblog :: Keyword: [Video] So Aereo recently kept its winning streak alive with a favorable ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit . . . and the next thing you know, the Fox Network is making noises about kissing good-bye to its over-the-air operations and moving to some alternative delivery system, possibly as a subscription service.

NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association Weighs in on FCC Leadership, NTCA :: Keyword: [FCC] Last week, prior to leaving on my jaunt to visit Kelsey in the U.K., I sent a letter on behalf of NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association’s nearly 900 rural telcos to President Barack Obama, asking for his careful consideration of his next FCC chairman selection. Given the huge transitions in the industry, it will take careful guidance and thoughtful leadership to lead the agency going forward. The letter provided a good opportunity to share with the White House the investment and deployment pressures these carriers are under following

Sixth Circuit Rules That States May Fashion ILEC Interconnection Obligations under Section 251(a), Telecom Law Monitor :: Keyword: [ILEC] In an interconnection decision that may have implications beyond its facts, a federal appellate court ruled that State public utility commissions (“State Commissions”) may rely on Section 251(a) in resolving interconnection disputes involving incumbent local exchange carriers (“ILECs”). On March 28, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that ILECS have interconnection obligations under Section 251(a) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the “Act”), which State Commissions can enforce in Section 252

Thaw, David, The Efficacy of Cybersecurity Regulation (March 29, 2013)., SSRN :: Keyword: [Cybersecurity] Cybersecurity regulation presents an interesting quandary where, because private entities possess the best information about threats and defenses, legislatures do – and should – deliberately encode regulatory capture into the rulemaking process. This relatively uncommon approach to administrative law, which I describe as Management-Based Regulatory Delegation, involves the combination of two legislative approaches to engaging private entities' expertise.

Wang, Tin-Ei, Sicker, Douglas and Baker, Kenneth R., Liability and Public Safety Broadband Networks (March 25, 2013), SSRN :: Keyword: [Security] The objective of this paper is to describe and analyze the need for a regulatory framework that will enfranchise commercial wireless operators to share wireless networking infrastructure with Public Safety (PS) transmissions. There exists a liability concern by commercial operators in the case of a PS communications failure. We show that this proposed policy initiative is driven by a

SIIA Calls for Support for Cybersecurity Legislation, SIIA :: Keyword: [Security] SIIA called on congressional leaders today to enact legislation that would help the government detect cybersecurity threats. In a letter sent today, SIIA thanked Reps. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD) for their bipartisan leadership with regard to the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), and urged members of the House Select Intelligence Committee to support this legislation.

Google Takes on Rare Fight Against National Security Letters, Wired :: Keyword: [Big Brother] Google has filed a rare petition to challenge an ultra-secret national security letter issued by the government to obtain private data about one or more of its users.

Are You A Teenager Who Reads News Online? According to the Justice Department, You May Be a Criminal, EFF :: Keyword: [CFAA] During his first term, President Barack Obama declared October 2009 to be “National Information Literacy Awareness Month,” emphasizing that, for students, learning to navigate the online world is as important a skill as reading, writing and arithmetic. It was a move that echoed his predecessor's strong support of global literacy—such as reading newspapers—most notably through First Lady Laura Bush's advocacy.

Until Today, If You Were 17, It Could Have Been Illegal To Read Seventeen.com Under the CFAA, EFF :: Keyword: [Crime] If you are 17 or under, a federal prosecutor could have charged you with computer hacking just for reading Seventeen magazine online—until today.

CDT Joins With Bipartisan Coalition To Oppose Dramatic Expansion of Computer Crime Law, CDT :: Keyword: [CFAA] Today, CDT joined with a diverse coalition of advocates from across the political spectrum to send a letter to Congress opposing a troubling draft bill that would dangerously expand the federal computer crime statute, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). As we wrote last week, the draft bill—which may be considered by the House Judiciary Committee as soon as next week in time to reach the House floor for an anticipated “Cyber Week” in mid-April—would push the law in the exact wrong direction, dramatically heightening penalties while giving the government and civil litigants more latitude to prosecute or sue average Internet users who happen to violate a Web site’s terms of service or an employer’s computer use policy.

Did Stephen Colbert And President Bill Clinton Violate The CFAA? , Techdirt :: Keyword: [CFAA] Last night, former President Bill Clinton joined Stephen Colbert on his TV show, The Colbert Report. As many people have noted, at the very end of the program, Colbert told Clinton that he had taken the liberty of signing him up for a Twitter account, since Clinton does not currently use Twitter (he joked that he was afraid no one would reply to his tweets). The

Walker, Paul, Traditional Military Activities in Cyberspace: Preparing for 'Netwar' (December 4, 2010). Florida Journal of International Law, Vol. 22, No. 3, 2010., SSRN :: Keyword: [Cyberwar] This article examines the domestic law concep of "traditional military activity" as applied in the cyberspace domain, examining the distinctions between "covert action" that must be reported to Congress and military activity that is excluded from such reporting requirements. The array of

Do More to Prevent DNS DDoS Attacks, ICANN :: Keyword: [DOS] In recent weeks, numerous high profile organizations and financial institutions have been targets of massive service disruption attacks. Several of these attacks are characteristically similar to attacks against top level domain name servers in 2006. ICANN’s Security and Stability Advisory Committee published an Advisory, SAC008 [PDF, 963 KB]: Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Attacks, shortly after the 2006 incidents. Recommendations from that Advisory remain relevant today.

Don't Blame Open Recursives For DDoS Attacks and Why You Should Implement BCP38, CircleID :: Keyword: [DOS] There has been plenty of buzz and chatter on the Internet recently concerning a very large DDoS attack against CloudFlare, with coverage on their blog, the New York Times, and the BBC, among many others.

Electronic Communications Privacy Act Reform Gathers Steam on the Hill, TechAmerica :: Keyword: [ECPA] A top priority for TechAmerica for some time, reform of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) has garnered welcome attention on Capitol Hill recently.

Google will fight secretive national security letters in court, Ars Technica :: Keyword: [ECPA] The FBI has sent out tens of thousands of "national security letters" (NSLs) in the years following the 9/11 attacks, under expanded authority given to the bureau by the PATRIOT Act. The letters nearly always come with a "gag order" preventing the recipient from even revealing the existence of the letter.

ECPA Reform: DOJ Moves in Two Directions at Once, CDT :: Keyword: [ECPA] In testimony before the House Judiciary Crime Subcommittee on March 19, the US Justice Department acknowledged that it is time for Congress to update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), the 1986 federal statute setting rules under which government agencies compel service providers to disclose email and other private documents stored online on behalf of their customers.

Utah’s New Internet Employment Privacy Law Continues a Growing Trend, Privacy Law :: Keyword: [Utah] Following a growing trend among states, on March 26, 2013, the Utah legislature passed the Internet Employment Privacy Act, which prohibits employers from requesting that job applicants or employees disclose passwords protecting their personal internet accounts. Proskauer’s Labor & Employment group has discussed the new law

Lamb, Jason M., The Digital Divide: Free Expression, Technology and a Fair Democracy (March 20, 2013)., SSRN :: Keyword: [DD] The digital divide is primarily discussed in terms of its economic impact, and policy solutions aimed at addressing it tend to narrowly focus on this aspect of the divide. But a much more damaging result has lurked unidentified in the background: the impairment of free expression rights. The US Constitution protects freedom of expression by guaranteeing each citizen’s right to free speech, free assembly and a free press. The efficacy of freedom of expression, and our

FCC Reverses Course, Proposes to Eliminate "Bundled Services" Exception to E-rate Cost Allocation Rules, Telecom Law Monitor :: Keyword: [ERATe] In 2010, the FCC revised its rules for the Schools and Libraries Program of the federal Universal Service Fund (commonly known as the "e-rate" program). One of the principal changes to the rules was the adoption of rules prohibiting e-rate recipients from receiving gifts from service providers. The FCC has clarified its gift rules twice, but has had other

Dempsey, Paul Stephen, The Dark Side of Deregulation - Its Impact on Small Communities (March 18, 2013). Administrative Law Review, Vol. 39, No. 4, 1987, SSRN :: Keyword: [PSTN] In recent years, Congress has promulgated major legislation designed to reform the regulatory environment for the passenger transportation industry. These statutes include the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, and the Bus Regulatory Reform Act of 1982. Almost two decades before these legislative measures of relatively recent vintage, Congress enacted the Transportation Act of 1958 which significantly liberalized the ability of railroads to respond to market forces, and discontinue passenger service.

Internet Protocol (IP) isn’t “pixie dust” – It’s a Real Game Changer, Verizon :: Keyword: [PSTN] In writing about the Internet Protocol transition proceeding now pending at the Federal Communications Commission, Harold Feld has said that IP is being treated as if it is somehow “IP Pixie Dust.” Harold’s point, I think, is that IP does not, in and of itself, mean regulation is not needed.

:: Cybertelecom Website :: Blog :: Delicious :: Twitter :: Google Group cybertelecom-l :: AUP :: Disclaimer :: G+ Community ::

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

3.19 :: #deregulation :: #100Gbps :: #IPv6 :: #DNSSEC :: #Microsoft :: #Cloud :: #NextFCCChair :: #Cyberwar :: #ECPA :: #Cybersecurity ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. - Plato

Adickman, Cary E., Special Access: The Harm of Premature Deregulation in Telecommunications (December 1, 2012). Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal, Vol. 31, No. 1, 2012, SSRN :: Keyword: [Broadband] Special access is a high-capacity, dedicated network connection leased from a telecommunications carrier. The Federal Communications Commission regulates the price of special access under its statutory mandate, but has taken substantial steps to relax these

100Gbps Transport – Costs of Network Complexity Override Early Adoption Price Points, Level3 :: Keyword: [Broadband] Even though current costs of 100Gbps hardware technology have not yet achieved a break-even point vs. 10Gbps technology, service providers are actively investing in these high capacity transport technologies. Why? Simple — the rapid and exponential demand for capacity is forcing service providers to seek more efficient, lower-cost transport infrastructures as they strive to meet demand from bandwidth hungry services such as media and content.

Larouche, Pierre, Five Neglected Issues About Network Neutrality (December 30, 2012), SSRN :: Keyword: [Neutral] From the vast and on-going network neutrality discussion, this contribution picks five neglected issues, which could affect the terms of the debate. After a brief introduction to the state of play in the EU (1.), it deals with market definition as it relates to the relationship between the ISP on the

Fee changes and IPv6 address return, ARIN :: Keyword: [IPv6] See Link

Google Announces DNSSEC Support for Public DNS Service, CircleID :: Keyword: [DNSSEC] "We launched Google Public DNS three years ago to help make the Internet faster and more secure.Today, we are taking a major step towards this security goal: we now fully support DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) validation on our Google Public DNS resolvers. Previously, we accepted and forwarded DNSSEC-formatted messages but did not perform validation. With this new security feature, we can better protect people from DNS-based attacks and make DNS more secure overall by identifying and rejecting invalid responses from DNSSEC-protected domains."

FTC Clarifies Obligations of Product Reviewers, But Does Not Ease Concerns, Citizens Media Law Project :: Keyword: [Ecom] On March 12, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission released a new guidance paper entitled ".com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising." The new FTC guidance updates a prior FTC release from 2000 relating to disclosures in online advertising. The new guidance also provides some answers to questions raised by the agency's 2009 Guides Concerning the Use of

ITIF Assesses Potential Overhaul of U.S. Internet Tax Policy, ITIF :: Keyword: [Tax] The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released a report today analyzing the current state of Internet tax policy and the packages being considered to assist policymakers and the public in making better decisions on how to reform the system. A Policymaker's Guide to Internet Tax provides a comprehensive review of the proposals and their potential impacts on innovation and economic growth in the Internet sector.

CenturyLink Confirms Usage Caps - 150 GB for 1.5 Mbps Lines, 250 GB For Anything Faster, dslreports :: Keyword: [Century Link] CenturyLink has confirmed with Broadband Reports that there are usage caps in place for residential users. A thread in our forums contained more than a few users who were confused about the caps; some users saying they'd been warned and even disconnected -- while other heavy users had never been warned. Some are even being told when they call in that the company does not have any caps on their service.

CenturyLink VP Shares Rationale for 100G Network Upgrade, Telecompetitor :: Keyword: [Centurylink] CenturyLink VP Shares Rationale for 100G Network Upgrade Data center connectivity requirements and burgeoning residential broadband traffic are driving CenturyLink’s 100G packet optical network expansion announced today. “Deploying 10G has become too much work,” said Pieter Poll, CenturyLink senior vice president of national and international network planning, engineering and construction, in an..

Comcast Speed Increases Hit California - 12/2 to 25/5, 25/4 to 50/10, 50/10 to 105/20, dslreports :: Keyword: [Comcast] Comcast today stated that customers in California will now be seeing some of the speed upgrades we've been seeing deployed elsewhere around the country at no extra cost. Specifically, Comcast's Blast tier is going from 25/4 Mbps to 50/10 Mbps, their Extreme tier will be going from 50/10 Mbps to 105/20, and their Performance tier will be going from

Is This The Next Google Reader?, Huffpo :: Keyword: [Google] As Google Reader fans freaked out over the announcement that their beloved RSS reader would die in July, social-news site Digg on Thursday said it would build a replacement. The new RSS feed is part of the site's longterm reinvention, Digg explained in a blog post on Thursday.

Unintended Consequences Of Google Reader Shutdown: Losing Key Tool To Get Around Censored Internet In Iran & China, Techdirt :: Keyword: [Google] Last night, after posting the story about Google Reader being shut down, I received an email from someone in China, telling me that it was an even bigger deal for him, because "even with a VPN it can be very difficult to access outside news sites," but that the Great Firewall doesn't block Google Reader -- so that's his one way of reading outside news. And

Killing Google Reader is like killing the bees: we'll all be worse off, Guardian :: Keyword: [Google] It's a mistake to think that just because a small number of people use a product that they don't matter - and Google's attempt to push Reader users to Google+ is a mistake too

'Keep Google Reader Running' Petition Hits 100K; Fans Audition Replacements, NPR :: Keyword: [Google] Google's announcement this week that it will kill its Reader product on July 1 prompted moans of despair from those who rely on the free RSS service to monitor headlines. To illustrate the level of dependency they've come to feel, some are comparing the move to Google abandoning search.

Our Commitment to Compliance, Microsoft :: Keyword: [Microsoft] Today, the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. government is reviewing allegations that Microsoft business partners in three countries may have engaged in illegal activity, and if they did, whether Microsoft played any role in these alleged incidents.

North Korea Suffers Outage, Renesys :: Keyword: [N Korea] Earlier this morning, North Korea accused the United States of conducting a cyber attack that disrupted their Internet connectivity. While the details remain unknown, we can confirm that, in the last two days, North Korea's sole Internet provider has had ongoing problems staying connected to the global Internet. We'll summarize some of our evidence in this blog entry.

Supreme Court OKs $222K Verdict for Sharing 24 Songs, Wired :: Keyword: [P2P] The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a jury's conclusion that infamous file-sharer Jammie Thomas-Rasset pay the recording industry $222,000 for downloading and sharing two dozen copyrighted songs on the now-defunct file-sharing service Kazaa.

Google Drive goes down for many users, CNET :: Keyword: [Cloud] Google's status page showed a service disruption for the online storage site that left many people unable to access their online files.

Google Drive suffers outage Monday morning, CW :: Keyword: [Cloud] It's been a tough Monday morning for some Google Drive users who have been dealing with a service outage.

Senate Commerce Committee to FCC, "The Game is Changing. Are We Keeping Up?", PK :: Keyword: [FCC] On Tuesday, the Senate Commerce Committee held its first FCC oversight hearing of the year. All 5 Commissioners attended and Senators discussed their laundry list of priorities and pet projects. While Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) pressed hard on funding for FirstNet, there were several other topics important to the public interest addressed in the hearing.

White House narrowing field for FCC chairman, WAPO :: Keyword: [FCC] When last we checked in on the FCC chairmanship, it seemed that the White House was in no rush to replace Julius Genchowski, the current head of the agency.

Bambauer, Derek E., Ghost in the Network (March 12, 2013). University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Vol. 162, 2014;, SSRN :: Keyword: [Security] Cyberattacks are inevitable and widespread. Existing scholarship on cyberespionage and cyberwar is undermined by its futile obsession with preventing attacks. This Article draws on research in normal accident theory and complex system design to argue that successful attacks

Feds: No Warrant Needed to Track Your Car With a GPS Device, Wired :: Keyword: [Big Brother] The President Barack Obama administration is claiming that authorities do not need court warrants to affix GPS devices to vehicles to monitor their every move.

Rules of cyberwar: don't target nuclear plants or hospitals, says Nato manual, Guardian :: Keyword: [Cyberwar] Handbook drawn up for Nato's Co-operative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence is first attempt to codify how international law applies to state-sponsored online attacks

The Internet Association Statement on Bipartisan Leahy-Lee ECPA Reform Bill ECPA law must be updated for the digital age, Internet Association :: Keyword: [ECPA] The Internet Association, the unified voice of the Internet economy, representing the interests of leading global Internet companies including Airbnb, Amazon.com, AOL, eBay, Expedia, Facebook, Google, IAC, LinkedIn, Monster Worldwide, Rackspace, salesforce.com, TripAdvisor, Yahoo!, and Zynga, issued the following statement regarding Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) introducing a bill today that would reform the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). The Internet Association supports updating the ECPA privacy law.

Testifying before the U.S. House of Representatives on privacy legislation, Google :: Keyword: [ECPA] This morning Richard Salgado, Legal Director of Law Enforcement and Information Security, will testify before a House Judiciary Subcommittee about the need to bring a key privacy law into line with how people use the web today.

Senate “Dream Team” Introduces ECPA Reform Bill, CDT :: Keyword: [ECPA] Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) today introduced a bill that would reform the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). This Senate “Dream Team” will give ECPA reform a strong boost: Leahy, the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and original author of the 1986 ECPA, is joining forces with Mike Lee, a Tea Party favorite, and a strong voice for Constitutional rights when the Committee marked up a nearly identical bill last year.

Federal Judge Finds National Security Letters Unconstitutional, Bans Them, Wired :: Keyword: [NSL] Ultra-secret national security letters that come with a gag order on the recipient are an unconstitutional impingement on free speech, a federal judge ruled Friday

New NIST Cybersecurity Framework: Your Input Needed, Internet2 :: Keyword: [NIST] See link

U.S. NIST's vulnerability database hacked, CW :: Keyword: [NIST] A U.S. government computer vulnerability database and several other websites at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have been down for nearly a week after workers there found malware on two Web servers.

Massive bot network is draining $6 million a month from online ad industry, says report, Gigaom :: Keyword: [BOTS] A London analytics firm says it has identified a bot network that is tricking marketers into showing billions of ads every month to phantom visitors. The botnet reportedly relies on more than 120,000 infected Windows computers located in the U.S., and appears to represent a sophisticated scheme to defraud the advertising industry.

PREPARED REMARKS OF FCC CHAIRMAN JULIUS GENACHOWSKI, TECHNOLOGY TRANSITIONS POLICY TASK FORCE WORKSHOP, FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, WASHINGTON, D.C. OCHJG, FCC :: Keyword: [PSTN] See linked

OPENING REMARKS OF COMMISSIONER AJIT PAI AT FIRST TECHNOLOGY TRANSITIONS POLICY TASK FORCE WORKSHOP. OCAP, FCC :: Keyword: [PSTN] see linked

IP Transition: Network Evolution Will Bring Enormous Benefits, Verizon :: Keyword: [PSTN] Today the FCC will hold its first workshop in its proceeding on technology transitions. My colleague Tom Maguire will appear on one of the panels looking at the transitions underway in the industry. Tom is a 30-year veteran of Verizon and Senior Vice President of National Operations. He is passionate about the exciting changes happening in our industry and the way Verizon has chosen to embrace them, while at the same time looking out for the needs of our customers.

Telegram for the FCC: Time to Retire the Telephone Network, Forbes :: Keyword: [PSTN] Today, the FCC convenes the first meeting of its “Technology Transitions Policy Task Force,” a new intra-agency group announced in December by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.

:: Cybertelecom Website :: Blog :: Delicious :: Twitter :: Google Group cybertelecom-l :: AUP :: Disclaimer :: G+ Community ::

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

3.12 :: The Best Experience :: Fear Interference :: Promise Vast Opportunities :: Not Invicible :: Dangerous Government Surveillance :: Sloppy Coding :: Sue Everybody ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. – Mark Twain

Netflix ISP Speed Index, Netflix :: Keyword: [Broadband] More than 33 million global members view over 1 billion hours of TV shows and movies streaming from Netflix per month. We use the data associated with the streaming experience to compare ISPs and give you monthly insight into which ISPs deliver the best Netflix experience.

Broadband’s Leverage in the U.S. Economy, USTelecom :: Keyword: [Broadband] no description

WISPA Requests The FCC To Prevent High-Power Network Operator From Using Unlicensed Spectrum, WISPA :: Keyword: [Wifi] Fear that interference may jeopardize network operators, unlicensed devices, consumers and businesses

Regulators back T-Mobile USA’s Metro deal, FT :: Keyword: [Wireless] Justice department said its antitrust division had decided the combination was ‘unlikely to harm consumers or substantially lessen competition’

Digital Literacy: New Literacy?, Forbes :: Keyword: [Literacy] Access to information, and changing norms around opportunity are altering the landscape of education. Concurrently, the old paradigm of earning a degree to sufficiently signal qualification –in perpetuity– is changing.

BITAG Announces Next Technical Topic on Congestion Management, BITAG :: Keyword: [Neutral] Today, the Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group (BITAG) announced its next technical review, focused on the topic of real-time Internet network traffic management practices used by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for purposes of congestion management. The review and subsequent report will address those traffic management practices based on subscriber behavior and/or type of application being used.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF DATE OF MEETING OF THE OPEN INTERNET ADVISORY COMMITTEE., FCC :: Keyword: [Neutral] The next meeting of the Committee will take place on May 7, 2013, starting at 9:30 A.M. (CST) in Room 107 at the Searle Center on Law, Regulation, and Economic Growth, Northwestern University School of Law, Wieboldt Hall, 340 E. Superior Street, Chicago, IL 60611.

A Connection for All Ages: Enabling the Benefits of High-Speed Internet Access for Older Adults, AARP :: Keyword: [Data] Recent surveys show that many older adults do not have a high-speed Internet connection at home. This is a problem in today’s digital world because high-speed connectivity enables a new generation of applications and services that promise vast opportunities and benefits.

TAIKWOK YUNG v. Trump, Dist. Court, ED New York 2013, Fed Court :: Keyword: [ACPA] Defendant ACPA Counterclaim granted where "Plaintiff is a self-described "domainer,"" registered trumpabudhabi.com, trumpbeijing.com, trumpindia.com and trumpmumbai.com

Who Runs the Internet? ICANN Attempts to Clarify the Answer With This Map, CircleID :: Keyword: [ICANN] ICANN has released a "living" graphic aimed to provide a high-level view of how the internet is run attuned for those less familiar with the inner workings of the internet infrastructure ecosystem. Quoting from the document:

New Domain Names Herald Latest Land Grab, Forbes :: Keyword: [ICANN] Over the weekend, I read with some interest about how the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is entertaining applications by individual corporations to control new top-level domain names.

FTC Staff Revises Online Advertising Disclosure Guidelines, FTC :: Keyword: [Advertising] "Dot Com Disclosures" Guidance Updated to Address Current Online and Mobile Advertising Environment

Libraries in the digital age, Pew :: Keyword: [Education] Research analyst Kathryn Zickuhr will discuss libraries in the digital age at the edUi 2013 plenary.

AT&T is Not Invincible, PK :: Keyword: [AT&T] The ill-considered bill in Georgia that would have prevented local communities from investing in their own broadband networks was defeated last night, and this is great news.

Google Transparency Report Highlights Just How Much We Don't Know About National Security Letters, EFF :: Keyword: [Google] In an unprecedented win for transparency, yesterday Google began publishing generalized information about the number of National Security Letters that the company received in the past year as well as the total number of user accounts affected by those requests. Of all the dangerous government surveillance powers that were expanded by the USA

Google Will Pay $7 Million To Settle Street View Data Capturing Case, NPR :: Keyword: [Google] Google also agreed to delete the private data its vehicles collected while photographing streets. Google has faced similar issues in Europe, where the U.K. decided it had broken the law.

Europe Hits Microsoft With $731 Million Fine Over Browser Options, NPR :: Keyword: [Microsoft] Microsoft blames the fine on sloppy coding in a service pack update that blocked a feature to offer users the choice of a competitor's Internet browser.

Congressional Internet Caucus Meets on Copyright and Piracy, CSPAM :: Keyword: [Copyright] The Congressional Internet Caucus Advisory Committee held a meeting on Internet piracy and copyrights, to discuss the alerts that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) will soon be sending to users whose accounts have been used to download copyrighted material.

Why It's Suddenly Illegal to "Unlock" Your New Cell Phone, Commlawblog :: Keyword: [DMCA] White House, FCC gang up on Librarian of Congress, seek reversal of recent rule.

Fifteen Years of DMCA Abuse, EFF :: Keyword: [DMCA] Fifteen years after Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and just as legislators and the public are debating the law's dangerous impact on consumers who want to unlock their cell phones, the evidence of much broader negative effects continues to mount. In its latest update to the comprehensive white paper,

Unauthorised TV live streaming breaches copyright, rules European court, Guardian :: Keyword: [Video] TVCatchup defiant despite judgment stating that sites showing live television in the UK must get rights clearance from broadcasters

Who will replace Julius Genachowski as FCC chair?, WAPO :: Keyword: [FCC] List: Tom Wheeler, Karen Kornbluh, Larry Strickling

Strahilevitz, Lior, Toward a Positive Theory of Privacy Law (March 7, 2013). Harvard Law Review, Vol. 113, No. 1, 2013, SSRN :: Keyword: [Privacy] Privacy law creates winners and losers. The distributive implications of privacy rules are often very significant, but they are also subtle. Policy and academic debates over privacy rules tend to de-emphasize their distributive dimensions, and one result is an impoverished descriptive account of why privacy laws look the way they do.

Are Teens Really Over Facebook?, Sysomos :: Keyword: [Social Networks] Social media was once the ultimate digital playground for teens all over the world, but have the times changed?

Spy Chief Says Little Danger of Cyber ‘Pearl Harbor’ in Next Two Years, Wired :: Keyword: [Security] Contrary to much of the fear-mongering that has been spreading through the nation's capital on cybersecurity matters lately, the director of national intelligence bucked that trend on Tuesday when he told a senate committee that there was little chance of ...

Attorney general defends handling of Aaron Swartz case, CW :: Keyword: [CFAA] U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder defended the role of the prosecution in the case of the late Internet activist and innovator Aaron Swartz, stating that "there was never an intention for him to go to jail for longer than a three, four, potentially five-month range."

Aaron Swartz Remembered As Technology Activist At SXSW, Forbes :: Keyword: [Crime] Tech luminaries and legal experts remembered Aaron Swartz as a technology and political activist at the South By Southwest conference Friday and called for changes in the legal system that prosecuted him.

Virginia ISP Sues Everybody After Being Forced to Compete - Lost Exclusivity Deal Due to Awful Service, Sues Entire County, dslreports :: Keyword: [VA] Back in 2007 you might recall that there were a lot of complaints about OpenBand, a provider of broadband to housing developments in Loudoun County, Virginia. With help from a local developer, OpenBand apparently convinced a lot of communities to sign exclusive franchise agreements that ran for between 25 to 75 years. While users in these

Pew: Latinos Continue to Bridge Digital Divide, USTelecom :: Keyword: [Digital Divide] Latinos continue to bridge the digital divide with whites, according to a new study by th

FCC ANNOUNCES E-RATE INFLATION-BASED CAP FOR FUNDING YEAR 2013, FCC :: Keyword: [Erate] the E-rate program funding cap for funding year 2013 is $2,380,314,485

Availability of Numbers And the IP Transition, AT&T :: Keyword: [Numbers] FCC Commissioner Pai confirmed last week during his terrific speech at the Hudson Institute that Chairman Genachowski has circulated a draft order which would initiate a geographically limited trial gradually permitting VoIP providers to get direct access to telephone numbers without having to go through a local exchange carrier. This is a great development on a number of fronts.

FCC PROVIDES ADDITIONAL DETAILS REGARDING THE FIRST TECHNOLOGY TRANSITIONS POLICY TASK FORCE WORKSHOP, FCC :: Keyword: [PSTN]

An Address by FCC Commissioner Ajit V. Pai: Two Paths to the Internet Protocol Transition, Hudson Institute, Youtube :: Keyword: [PSTN] America's telecommunications infrastructure relies on many technologies, from analog voice communications over circuit switches to packets of information carried by internet protocol. One day, all communications will likely be carried by internet protocol. The issues are: when the transition will occur, and what the legal framework for telecommunications will be during that transition.

<

:: Cybertelecom Website :: Blog :: Delicious :: Twitter :: Google Group cybertelecom-l :: AUP :: Disclaimer :: G+ Community ::

Pages

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

The Story of EDSAC

Monday, April 22, 2013

RFC :: Direct Access to Phone Number Resources by VoIP Providers ::

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

RFC :: FTC Seeks Input on Privacy and Security Implications of the Internet of Things

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

4.10 :: Hello, It's Been a While :: BITAG :: DNSSEC :: Price of Free :: Online Honesty Box :: Austin Google Fiber :: Beyond Dubai :: CISPA :: Aereo :: CFAA :: DOS ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

3.19 :: #deregulation :: #100Gbps :: #IPv6 :: #DNSSEC :: #Microsoft :: #Cloud :: #NextFCCChair :: #Cyberwar :: #ECPA :: #Cybersecurity ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

3.12 :: The Best Experience :: Fear Interference :: Promise Vast Opportunities :: Not Invicible :: Dangerous Government Surveillance :: Sloppy Coding :: Sue Everybody ::

CyberTelecom News Weekly Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project

CyberTelecom News Weekly
Federal Internet Law and Policy :: An Educational Project