Cisco Government
Affairs E-Update
Volume 1, Issue 30
07 September 2001
Brought to you by
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CISCO@WASHINGTON, DC
PRESIDENT
BUSH ADDRESSES HIGH-SPEED ACCESS (From White House Transcript)- Q Mr. President, what role should
the federal government play in helping deploy high speed Interent
access?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, a lot of that is going to be taking
place through the market. And technology is such that areas
that might not get access quickly as a result of no economies of purchase,
or economies of scale, will be able to have Internet access.
I think, for example,
of Crawford, Texas. It's a place where you're not going
to generally get a lot of fiber-optics, although I think there may
be some there as a result of Laura's and my presence. Hopefully
that high-speed access will come as a result of -- over the air, as
opposed to through fiber-optics. And once we get over the
air high-speed access, then a lot of rural America that heretofore
hasn't had access will get it. The technologies are evolving.
One of my concerns,
of course, is the economic slowdown will perhaps slow down some of
the progress made, as far as high speed access. And we've
done something about it. I'm going to remind Congress that
they need not overspend, and should not overspend. It's
going to affect economic growth; that all of us in Washington need
to be thinking about how to grow the economy.
And I've laid out
an economic growth plan, starting with tax relief. I hear there are
some up here that are now second-guessing tax relief, and surely they're
not advocating a tax increase -- because if they are, they will find
mighty resistance in the White House. Plus, that's bad
economics. So for those who criticize the tax relief plan,
the next step is, what do you have in mind? And if it's
a tax increase, that would be bad for America. Good to see everybody. Thank
you. http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/08/20010831-3.html
OFFICIAL: BUSH HIGH-TECH POLICY COMING SOON - After months of silence, the Bush administration will weigh
in "shortly" on a range of high-tech issues ranging from
junk e-mail to online privacy, a senior administration official said
Wednesday. http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/industry/09/05/spam.reut/index.html
"TECHNOLOGY, INFORMATION PRODUCTION, AND MARKET EFFICIENCY” - Federal
Reserve Board Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson speech at a conference
sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, in Jackson Hole,
Wyoming. http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2001/200108312/default.htm
COMMERCE SECRETARY
EVANS PROPOSES DELAYING 3G SPECTRUM AUCTIONS - http://osecnt13.osec.doc.gov/public.nsf/docs/20010906-3G-auction-date
WALL STREET JOURNAL
INTERVIEW WITH FCC CHAIRMAN MICHAEL POWELL – He talks about walking
the tightrope of telecom regulation. http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB1000046544529628070.htm
(Paid Subscription Required)
HOUSE TO FOCUS ON NET ACCESS AND COMPETITION - Shortly after Congress reconvenes, the House
will take up a complex bill that raises two simple, essential questions
about the nation's digital future. In the effort to deliver high-speed
Internet service to consumers, what is the ideal number of competitors?
And should the government make that decision?
In recent years, the battle for high-speed, or broadband,
access has been dominated by two technologies. One is digital subscriber
lines, or D.S.L., which use telephone wires. The other is cable modems,
which use cable television lines. Despite the development of satellite
and land-based wireless systems, the broadband media world will continue
to be ruled by phone wires and cable lines for many years.
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/03/technology/03NECO.html?pagewanted=print
CONGRESS
TO LOOK AT TELECOM BILLS - Two legislative proposals related to the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 became hot topics in Washington, D.C.,
this summer and promise to spark heated discussion when Congress returns
from its seasonal recess this month.
The proposals, which come down on opposing sides of the battle
between regional Bell operating companies and competitive local exchange
carriers (CLEC), look to modify aspects of the 1996 act's competitive
guidelines. http://www.idg.net/ic_684594_1794_9-10000.html
FCC TRANSFERS WIRELESS
LICENSES BACK TO NEXTWAVE - The
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today returned $16 billion
worth of wireless spectrum licenses to NextWave Telecom Inc., in compliance
with a federal appeals court ruling that the agency illegally canceled
the airwave rights. The reinstatement of NextWave's licenses comes
a day after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia
Circuit issued the mandate implementing its decision that the FCC
had no right to revoke the wireless licenses after the company had
filed for bankruptcy protection. NextWave in 1996 emerged as the top bidder in a wireless spectrum
auction conducted by the FCC, in which the company agreed to pay $4.7
billion for licenses to offer wireless services in more than 90 markets
across the nation. But when
NextWave defaulted on its payment plan, the FCC revoked the licenses.
Earlier this year, the commission sold the disputed licenses at another
auction for roughly $16 billion. In June, however, the appeals court
ruled that the FCC illegally canceled NextWave's licenses. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/169657.html
TECHNOLOGY TO TRANSFORM WARFARE AT DOD - The Defense
Department’s newly named chief information officer said Friday that
using technology to transform warfare is one of his top priorities. John Stenbit, the new assistant secretary of
Defense for command, control, communications and intelligence, who
also serves as the Defense Department CIO, said a new vision of future
warfare will provide the impetus for the transformation of the Pentagon’s
information systems. http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0801/082801j1.htm
TELECOMMUTING
HEARING - The House Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on
Technology and Procurement Policy held a hearing titled "Public
Service for the 21st Century: Innovative Solutions to the Federal
Government's Technology Workforce Crisis." Witnesses related
a variety of government related obstacles to telework in both the
public and private sectors. Testimony and prepared statements from hearing: http://www.house.gov/reform/tapps/hearings.htm
CISCO@INTERNATIONAL
BRITISH
SCHOOLS FLOCKING TO THE INTERNET - British schools are flocking to
the Internet and gearing up to let their pupils surf the web in droves,
according to a government report published on Tuesday.
The report said 96 percent of British primary schools were
now connected to the net -- up from just 17 percent in 1998.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010904/wr/britain_education_dc_1.html
YANKEE GROUP:
WIRELESS NET GROWS EVER WIDER IN ASIA - There will be 411.2 million
mobile data subscribers in the Asia-Pacific region at the end of 2006,
says the Yankee Group.
http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905357137&rel=true
FRENCH BUSINESS
WORRIES ABOUT LACK OF HIGH SPEED INTERNET ACCESS IN RURAL FRANCE - Eighty per cent of French territory, in which
25 per cent of the French population live, is being denied the opportunity
of high speed Internet....
http://tm0.com/sbct.cgi?s=166389374&i=387270&d=1741589
INDIA CONVERGENCE
BILL HINTS AT CROSS-SERVICE RESTRICTIONS - The Communications Convergence
Bill 2001, slated to be introduced in Parliament, has hinted at cross-service
restrictions for licensed services like broadcasting, cable distribution,
Internet services and telephony, while leaving the responsibility
for framing the details regarding this to the proposed super-regulator
Communications Commission of India (CCI). http://www.business-standard.com/today/economy4.asp?Menu=3
ECOMMERCE
GROWING IN SOUTH AFRICA - Forty-seven percent of South African Internet
users have made an online purchase, according to a new study from
the University of Pretoria.
http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905357139&rel=true
BROADBAND
USE ON THE INCREASE IN JAPAN - AsiaBizTech reports that the number
of broadband users in Japan is predicted to grow by 81 percent every
year until 2005.
http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905357124&rel=true
BROADBAND
BASE IN ASIA TO TRIPLE BY 2005 - The number of broadband subscribers
in the Asia-Pacific region (excluding Japan) will rise to 37.8 million
by 2005, up from 11.4 million this year, and 6.1 million last year. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905357145&rel=true
GOVERNMENTS
SHOULD PUSH ONLINE TAX FILING - European governments could save 70
percent of the cost of processing corporate tax returns if they moved
to online tax filing, says
Forrester
Research. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905357142&rel=true
CISCO@US STATES
CENSUS
SHOWS HIGH INTERNET PRESENCE - America is seeing a dramatic increase
in the number of homes wired to the Internet, Census figures show,
as the demand grows for quicker communication -- from shopping to
e-mail to instant messaging. About 42 percent of all U.S. households
could log on to the Web in 2000, up from 18 percent three years earlier,
according to the Census Bureau report released Thursday. People shop,
check stock quotes and do research online. But it is the desire for
fast communication that have made Internet access a ``must-have''
item for many people, said Susannah Fox, research director for the
Pew Internet and American Life Project.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Census-Computers.html
MICROSOFT’S
GATES CALLS FOR A CUT IN HIGH-SPEED NET COSTS - He Says Prices Limit Broadband's 'Miracle' Capabilities - High-speed
Internet access for computer users is too expensive and threatens
to limit the adoption of some powerful new services that would be
available in the next few years, Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates
said today. In an interview, Gates urged government policymakers
to meet with representatives of the cable and telephone industries
to determine what it would take to provide broadband services for
$30 a month, instead of the monthly fee of about $50 that consumers
pay for access via cable lines or enhanced telephone wiring. Although
most of the nation's heavily populated areas have high-speed access
available, such access is used by less than 15 percent of the country.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49024-2001Sep5.html
STUDY: INTERNET PREFERRED TO LIBRARY – U.S. Middle
school-age kids with Internet access are far more likely to turn to
the Web than the library for help with their homework, according to
a study released today. In
a survey of 754 kids aged 12-15 who use the Internet, the Pew Internet
and American Life Project found that 71 percent said they rely on
Web-based sources the most for help with their homework or completing
a school project. Only 24 percent said they use the library as their
primary source of schoolwork information. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/169662.html
MONTANA GETS ITS
FIRST CIO - A North Dakota executive for Basin Electric Power Cooperative
has been hired as Montana's first chief information officer, reports
the Billings Gazette. Brian Wolf of Bismarck, N.D., was chosen
from a field of about 40 applicants. Wolf begins work Oct. 1.
He will advise the governor on the state's information technology
systems and also will advise the Administration Department, which
oversees the state's mainframe computer and computer hardware and
software selections.
The Council of State
Governments (CSG) has named the Georgia Secretary of State's Web site
the best executive-branch site in the nation and will formally present
the Eagle E-Government Award at its annual meeting in Anchorage, Alaska,
next month. The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Network, eMaryland
Marketplace and Virginia's VATaxOnline received honorable mentions
in the category. Minnesota won honors for the best legislative
site, and the North Dakota Supreme Court's Internet home was named
the best judicial site. North Carolina's NC@Your Service was dubbed
the best state portal. www.statesnews.org
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
HIGH TECH COMMUNITY – Broadband Deployment – It is
estimated that 2.5 BILLION hours are wasted with people accessing
the Internet via dial-up. Broadband access, or always-on, high-speed
Internet, allows productivity increases, standard of living increases
and new applications that haven't even been thought of. Broadband
can be delivered via satellite, wireline, wireless, cable, fiber and
technologies are being tested for access through electrical wires.
Broadband is the future of the internet and the future of communications.
What does broadband mean in your life?
Add your thoughts at Cisco’s High Tech Community - http://forums.cisco.com/cgi-bin/Community/HtCom?page=main.
FACTS
AND STATS OF THE WEEK:
ONE-HALF
OF SINGAPORE ONLINE - 50% of Singaporean homes had 'net access and
60% had personal computers by the end of 2000, according to the Infocomm
Development Authority of Singapore (IDA). The survey, which drew its
figures from interviews with 1,500 households, estimates that there
were 1.3 million internet users in Singapore in 2000. The IDA also
reports that 53% of users were male, 61% were under 30 years old,
and 40% had polytechnic or some other tertiary education.
HIGH-SPEED
ACTION IN HONG KONG - NetValue reports that almost 15% of all 'net
connections in Hong Kong were high-speed connections at the end of
June 2001. The number of digital subscriber line, cable, or high-speed
satellite subscribers increased by 56% between the months of January
and June 2001. Along with the growth in broadband connections, the
use of applications such as online games, large file transfers, and
streaming video has also increased.
For more Facts and Stats on the New Economy, visit
our Facts and Stats page. Also,
see our special State of the Internet report on this page.
For daily, topical
Facts and Stats visit our Hot
In Tech page.
OTHER
TECH STORIES OF THE WEEK
NEW CABLE STANDARD
MAY TRIPLE SPEEDS - The latest version, which will be called DOCSIS
2.0, significantly increases cable bandwidth, or network capacity,
particularly for so-called upstream transmissions, according to CableLabs.
The standard, which will be finished by year's end, is designed to
triple the speed at which cable modem users may send data and Internet
traffic. But equipment--certified as being based on the standard--is
unlikely to be ready for more than a year, some analysts say.
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1004-200-7079103.html?tag=pt.msnbc.feed..ne_7079103
KIDS, ACADEMICS SHARE
INTERNET2 - Elementary school kids probably have seen images of the
space shuttle on television but few have experienced the kind of up-close
look that is possible only with a scanning electron microscope. That all could change with the help of Internet2. http://www.wired.com/news/school/0,1383,45864,00.html
AOL TIME WARNER SAID
TO BE PURSUING AT&T BROADBAND - In an effort to become the nation's
largest cable operator, AOL Time Warner proposed late last week to
merge its cable operations with AT&T's, executives close to the
negotiations said yesterday. While AOL has not yet made a formal merger
offer for AT&T's cable business, which is called AT&T Broadband,
the proposal is the first signal that AOL is earnestly pursuing a
deal. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/10/business/media/10AOL.html
(Free Subscription Required)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A2111-2001Sep9.html
NOTIONS
OF NEW ECONOMY HINGE ON PACE OF PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH - Rising prosperity still bathed the nation a year ago
when Alan Greenspan opened the annual symposium of Federal Reserve
policy makers in this mountain resort with a confident boast that
the strong gains in worker productivity that seemed to underlie the
robust expansion of the 1990's would continue.
That contention appears to haunt him today. The nation's boom
has collapsed despite the faith of Mr. Greenspan, the Fed chairman,
that the ever-greater efficiencies of the information age would keep
on raising profits, incomes and employment at a healthy pace. Instead,
the nation is barely skirting a recession, stock prices have fallen,
the budget surplus is shrinking and the new economy is losing its
charm. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/03/business/03ECON.html
DISNEY, NEWS CORP.
TO OFFER VIDEO ON DEMAND ONLINE - Hollywood's rush to harness the
Internet as a distribution pipeline for movies continued as Walt Disney
Co. and News Corp. said they have formed a joint venture to deliver
films on demand to consumers via the Web and digital cable-television
systems. The move comes just
three weeks after a consortium of five major studios announced plans
to create a so-called video-on-demand service that would allow consumers
to download films from the Web to be viewed at their convenience.
That effort included all of the big Hollywood studios except for Disney
and News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox, which have simultaneously been
working to create a service of their own via Disney's Movies.com site
(www.movies.com). http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB999722838134238679.htm
(Paid Subscription Required)
WIRED SENIOR CITIZENS
AMONG THE MOST ENTHUSIASTIC INTERNET USERS - Senior citizens are among
the most enthusiastic users of the Internet - once their children
and grandchildren encourage them to go online for the first time,
according to a study released Sunday.
The Pew Internet & American Life Project said 69 percent
of wired seniors use the Internet on a typical day, compared with
56 percent for all users. Popular uses include using e-mail, getting
news and weather reports, checking out hobbies and researching health
information. http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/76199p-1068764c.html
SECURITY AND INTERNET ISSUES FOR US BUSINESSES - Security
is still a major online issue for US companies: 31% say it's their
biggest 'net concern and 21% say that bandwidth issues are key. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/ebusiness/20010830_n2h2.html?ref=wn
CISCO AND VERIZON TEAM UP FOR TELEWORKING - Cisco
Systems Inc., the No. 1 maker of computer-networking equipment and
Verizon Communications Inc., the largest U.S. local telephone company,
said they are teaming up to provide equipment and services to Fortune
1000 companies so their employees can have the same connectivity at
home as they do at the office. http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010910/tc/tech_cisco_verizon_dc_1.html
TEENAGERS
LEAD WAY WITH ONLINE SPENDING - Teenagers are spending millions of
dollars online across Europe and the US and the market is forecast
to grow rapidly, according to Datamonitor, the business information
company. http://tm0.com/sbct.cgi?s=166389374&i=388510&d=1754515
WORKING HARD:
TECHNOLOGY FUSES WORK AND LEISURE TIME - More than half (54%) of US
adults believe new technologies make their leisure time more enjoyable,
and 59% say the internet, cellphones and other devices boost productivity
on the job. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/edemographics/20010906_ipsos.html?ref=wn
HIGH-SPEED
INTERNET: A HOUSEHOLD NECESSITY - According to Parks Associates, US residential
broadband subscribers will total 10.7 million in 2001 and jump to
30.6 million by 2004. Parks reviews the different ways high-speed
subscribers will connect in 2001 and finds that 4.2 million will make
digital subscriber line (DSL) connections, 6.2 million will use cable
modems and just 350,000 will connect with some form of broadband wireless
innovation. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/broadband/20010905_parks.html
DISTANCE LEARNING
YET TO HIT HOME - In the height of the distance learning boom, software
CEO Michael Saylor had an ambitious plan: to use $100 million of his
own money to create a free online university with lectures from the
world's "geniuses and leaders."
While it might have seemed like a good idea at the time, Saylor's
vision for a free virtual education never materialized.
http://www.wired.com/news/school/0,1383,45855,00.html
CISCO
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS@2001
Cisco’s
top policy focuses for 2001 are the areas of Education, Broadband
Deployment and eGovernment. To
read or listen to our thoughts on these issues, please visit our Government Affairs home page or our visit
our multimedia section . http://www.cisco.com/gov/multimedia/index.html
E-UPDATE ARCHIVE
To view past issues
of Cisco’s Government Affairs E-Update, visit our E-Update Archive page . http://www.cisco.com/gov/archive/eupdates/index.html
DISCLAIMER
Positions in articles
and papers from outside sources are in no way endorsed by Cisco Systems'
Office of Government Affairs. We offer articles on topics of
interest to our audience to further the debate on the issues that
are important to high-tech. To view our positions on the policy matters
that we care about, please visit our Government
Affairs homepage. – http://www.cisco.com/gov
CISCO.COM/GOV AND E-UPDATE FEEDBACK
As
we continue to build out Cisco’s Government Affairs web site, as well
as our new service, this E-Update, we welcome comments, criticisms,
praise and suggestions. Please send any feedback to John Earnhardt
at jearnhar@cisco.com.
To contact any member of the Government Affairs team, please visit our
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