ISP Record Retention

Once again the Federal government is making noise, attempting to persuade ISPs to retain their records. [CNET] ISP server logs maintain a virtual breadcrumb trail of every song you download, blog message you post, and political website you visit. This may be a good thing if you are The Man and you are trying to hunt down Mr. Bad-guy. This may be a bad thing is your country is confronted with a political regime that thinks the constitution is toilet paper and that Malthus and Hobbes were rigtht. The bad news is that ISPs do not tend to maintain this type of data. No, wait, that's the good news.

In our newly revised article Data Retention and Record Keeping, we review the state of US law and recent suggestions by the US Attorney General that ISPs "voluntarily" (as in, do it or we will hold up any future mergers for your company) retain such data.

Shuffling

Cybertelecom is attempting to make better use of blogs and rss feeds. To this end, this blog and feed is now the "Cybertelecom Blog," which will have articles about recent federal Internet policy and legal developments (such as the recent ADA lawsuit against Targer regarding the accessiblity of its website). Cybertelecom News has migrated to http://cybertelecomnews.blogspot.com/

This is all a part of our never ending quest to make Cybertelecom 123% better!

TAC Meeting Postponed

DA 06-2100
RELEASED: October 23, 2006

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVISORY COUNCIL (“TAC”) POSTPONES
MEETING SCHEDULED FOR WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2006

The FCC's Technological Advisory Council meeting
scheduled for Wednesday, October 25, 2006 has been
postponed.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julius Knapp at
202-418-2468,
TTY 202-418-2989, or email Julius.Knapp@fcc.gov.

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Cybertelecom :: Federal Internet Law & Policy www.cybertelecom.org

Read Garrison Keillor, Congress' shameful retreat from American values, Chicago Tribune Oct 4 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0610040035oct04,1,2100411.column?ctrack=1&cset=true

RFC :: FCC :: FCC Seeks Further Comment on AT&T Bell South Merger

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-2035A1.pdf

More info see
http://www.cybertelecom.org/industry/att_bs.htm

DA 06-2035
October 13, 2006
APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO TRANSFER OF CONTROL FILED
BY
AT&T INC. and BELLSOUTH CORPORATION COMMISSION SEEKS
COMMENT ON PROPOSALS SUBMITTED BY AT&T INC. AND
BELLSOUTH CORPORATION

WC Docket No. 06-74

Comments due: October 24, 2006

AT&T Inc. (“AT&T”) and BellSouth Corporation
(“BellSouth”) (collectively, “the Applicants”)
have filed a series of applications pursuant to
sections 214 and 310(d) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended1 and section 2 of the Cable Landing
License Act.2 In these applications, the Applicants
seek Commission approval of the transfer of control to
AT&T of licenses and authorizations held directly
and indirectly by BellSouth.

On October 13, 2006, AT&T submitted a supplemental
filing, attached hereto, setting forth
proposals made by the Applicants at the request of
members of the Commission.3 The Commission
hereby seeks public comment this filing and the
proposals contained therein.

Interested parties must file comments no later than
October 24, 2006. Persons and entities that
file comments become parties to the proceeding. They
may participate fully in the proceeding, including
seeking access to any confidential information that
may be filed under a protective order, seeking
reconsideration of decisions, and filing appeals of a
final decision to the courts. All filings concerning
matters referenced in this Public Notice should refer
to DA 06-2035 and WC Docket No. 06-74.
. . . . .

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Cybertelecom :: Federal Internet Law & Policy www.cybertelecom.org

Read Garrison Keillor, Congress' shameful retreat from American values, Chicago Tribune Oct 4 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0610040035oct04,1,2100411.column?ctrack=1&cset=true

OECD Broadband Figures

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OECD Broadband Statistics to June 2006

This page is directly accessible at
www.oecd.org/sti/ict/broadband

Over the past year, the number of broadband
subscribers in the OECD increased 33% from 136 million
in June 2005 to 181 million in June 2006. This growth
increased broadband penetration rates in the OECD from
11.7 in June 2005 to 15.5 subscriptions per 100
inhabitants one year later. The main highlights for
the first half of 2006 are:

*
Northern European countries have continued their
advance with high broadband penetration rates. In June
2006, six countries (Denmark, the Netherlands,
Iceland, Korea, Switzerland and Finland) led the OECD
in broadband penetration, each with at least 25
subscribers per 100 inhabitants.
*
Denmark now leads the OECD with a broadband
penetration rate of 29.3 subscribers per 100
inhabitants.
* The strongest per-capita subscriber growth comes
from Denmark, Australia, Norway, the Netherlands,
Finland, Luxembourg, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Each country added more than 6 subscribers per 100
inhabitants during the past year.
* Fibre to the home is becoming increasingly
important for broadband access, particularly in
countries with high broadband penetration. In Denmark,
Danish power companies are rolling out fibre to
consumers as they work to bury overhead power lines.
Municipal broadband projects are also expanding in
many northern European countries and throughout the
OECD. Telecommunciation operators in several OECD
countries have also begun or announced large
fibre-to-the-premises rollouts.
*
Japan leads the OECD in fibre-to-the-premises
(FTTP) with 6.3 million fibre subscribers in June
2006. Fibre subscribers alone in Japan outnumber total
broadband subscribers in 22 of the 30 OECD countries.
*
The total number of ADSL subscriptions in Korea
and Japan have continued to decline as more users
upgrade to fibre-based connections.
*
DSL continues to be the leading platform in 28
OECD countries. Cable modem subscribers outnumber DSL
in Canada and the United States.
*
The United States has the largest total number
of broadband subscribers in the OECD at 57 million. US
broadband subscribers now represent 36% of all
broadband connections in the OECD, up from 31% in
December 2005.
*
Canada continues to lead the G7 group of
industrialized countries in broadband penetration.
*
The breakdown of broadband technologies in June
2006 is as follows:
o DSL: 63%
o Cable modem: 29%
o Other technologies (e.g. satellite, fibre
and fixed wireless) : 8%

Released: 13 October 2006

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Cybertelecom :: Federal Internet Law & Policy www.cybertelecom.org

Read Garrison Keillor, Congress' shameful retreat from American values, Chicago Tribune Oct 4 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0610040035oct04,1,2100411.column?ctrack=1&cset=true

FCC MEETING CHANGE: Bell South Merger and Broadband Industry Practices Items to be Heard at FRIDAY FCC MEETING

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-267857A1.doc

DELETION OF AGENDA ITEMS
FROM OCTOBER 12, 2006, OPEN MEETING

AND

FCC TO HOLD AN ADDITIONAL OPEN MEETING,
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2006, AT 11:00 A.M.

The following items have been deleted from the list of
Agenda items scheduled for consideration at the
Thursday, October 12, 2006, Open Meeting and
previously listed in the Commission’s Notice of
Thursday, October 5, 2006. These items will be
considered at an additional Open Meeting scheduled for
Friday, October 13, 2006, at 11:00 a.m. in the
Commission Meeting Room, TW-C305, at 445 12th Street,
SW, Washington, DC.

4 WIRELINE COMPETITION
TITLE: AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corporation
Application for Transfer of Control (WC Docket No.
06-74)
SUMMARY: The Commission will consider a Memorandum
Opinion and Order regarding the transfer of control
application of AT&T and BellSouth.
5 WIRELINE COMPETITION
TITLE: Broadband Industry Practices
SUMMARY: The Commission will consider a Notice of
Inquiry regarding broadband industry practices.

The prompt and orderly conduct of Commission business
permits less than 7-days notice be given.
-FCC-

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Cybertelecom :: Federal Internet Law & Policy www.cybertelecom.org

Read Garrison Keillor, Congress' shameful retreat from American values, Chicago Tribune Oct 4 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0610040035oct04,1,2100411.column?ctrack=1&cset=true

FTC Report: Should Municipalities Provide Wireless Internet Service?

For Release: October 10, 2006
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2006/10/muniwireless.htm

Should Municipalities Provide Wireless Internet
Service?
FTC Staff Report Provides Guidance to Promote
Competition

Improving consumer access to broadband Internet
service is an important goal for federal, state, and
local governments. The possibility of competitive
risks arising from municipal participation in wireless
Internet service, however, calls for a careful
analysis by policymakers considering if, and to what
extent, a municipality should involve itself in such
service, according to a report prepared by Federal
Trade Commission staff.

The report, “Municipal Provision of Wireless
Internet,” offers guidance for policymakers
considering these questions. According to Maureen K.
Ohlhausen, Director of the FTC s Office of Policy
Planning, “Many leaders in the U.S. acknowledge that
broadband Internet service is crucial to the American
people and our economy. However, municipal provision
of wireless Internet service raises important
competition issues that policymakers should consider
when determining whether and how municipalities should
provide that service.”

Rather than attempt to provide a one-size-fits all
answer for every municipality, the report sets forth a
decision-tree framework with a variety of options,
recognizing that the potential benefits and risks of
municipal involvement in wireless Internet may vary
with a municipality s circumstances, such as the
availability of broadband in the area and possible
improvements in providing government services through
increased broadband access.

Guiding this approach is a concern for competition
principles, and the decision-tree framework seeks to
reduce the possible competitive harms arising from a
municipality operating as both a market participant
and a regulator. By identifying a range of operating
models, the framework outlines a variety of options
that offer reduced competitive risks while still
achieving benefits from increased broadband access.
The report also discusses process considerations, such
as transparency and accountability, that can improve
the decision-making process overall.

The report describes the various wireless Internet
technologies currently in use or under development,
identifies a range of operating models that have been
used to provide or facilitate wireless Internet
service, summarizes the major arguments for and
against municipal participation, and describes various
types of legislative proposals related to municipal
Internet service.

The report is the first publicly released work from
the FTC’s Internet Access Task Force, convened by
Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras in August 2006. Led by
Ohlhausen with participants from throughout the
agency, the Task Force seeks to enhance the FTC’s
expertise in the area of Internet access, which has
become an important public issue. The Task Force
currently is studying the so-called “net neutrality”
issue.

The FTC and its staff have engaged in advocacy related
to competition in the cable industry and the
allocation of radio bandwidth spectrum before state
and federal entities. The FTC also has reviewed
numerous cable industry mergers, and mergers involving
providers of Internet technology and content. To
prepare the report, FTC staff researched technologies,
legislative proposals, and case studies of
municipalities that have deployed, or are in the
process of deploying, wireless Internet systems.

The Commission vote to authorize the staff to file the
report was 5-0, with Commissioner Jon Leibowitz
issuing a separate concurring statement that can be
found as a link to this press release on the FTC’s Web
site.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Office of Public Affairs
202-326-2180

STAFF CONTACT:

Maureen K. Ohlhausen,
Office of Policy Planning
202-326-2632

(FTC File No. V06-0021)

(http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2006/10/muniwireless.htm)

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Cybertelecom :: Federal Internet Law & Policy www.cybertelecom.org

This is the 100th Anniversary of Gandhi's Satyagraha Movement. See 100 Years of Non Violence http://www.nyc-dop.com/gandhi/