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Cisco Government Affairs
E-Update
Volume 2, Issue 28
19 July 2002
Brought to you by Cisco
Government Affairs Online: http://www.cisco.com/gov
This Week@Cisco in Government Affairs
Cisco's E-Update keeps you
up to date on the major policy news of the week. Focusing on broadband,
education and e-government areas, but covering high-tech and telecom in
general, the E-Update is a great source of information for state, federal and
international policymakers. To subscribe, send a message with “subscribe” in
the subject line to “Subscribe-eUpdate@cisco.com
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This Week@WASHINGTON, DC
FCC, FACED WITH TELECOM
CRISIS, COULD LET A BELL BUY WORLDCOM -
Declaring the telecommunications industry in a state of "utter
crisis," the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission suggested
his agency could allow a Baby Bell to take over WorldCom Inc., a combination
once seen as unthinkable. A merger of a
large regional phone carrier and the nation's second-largest long-distance
company would reverse the FCC's position on such deals. It could also revive
the spirit of AT&T's monopoly before the 1984 court-ordered breakup that
created the regional Baby Bells, by allowing one company to control huge swaths
of both markets. But in his first
public comments on the unfolding WorldCom scandal, FCC Chairman Michael Powell
said the industry's battered, debt-ridden condition now leaves regulators
little choice but to consider such options, especially if the alternatives
would disrupt phone and data service to WorldCom's 20 million customers. http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1026696580457716480,00.html
(Paid subscription required)
SENATE PANEL OKAYS ADELSTEIN
FOR FCC - Ending months of political bickering over judicial nominations, a
Senate panel approved a longtime aide to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle for
a seat on the Federal Communications Commission. The nomination of Jonathan S. Adelstein, who has worked for the
Democratic leader since 1995, will go to the full Senate for a vote. Approval
is expected, with several Republican senators saying they would vote for the
South Dakota native. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020716/ap_on_go_co/fcc_adelstein_1
NEW REPORT CONCLUDES FEDERAL
PROGRAMS CRITICAL TO BRINGING A NATION ONLINE - The Leadership Conference on
Civil Rights Education Fund and the Benton Foundation, with support from the
Ford Foundation, released a new report that concludes that continued Federal
leadership is essential to bringing a nation online, given the significant
technology gaps that remain along economic, racial and geographic lines. "Bringing a Nation Online: The
Importance of Federal Leadership" examines data released earlier this year
by the Department of Commerce in its report "A Nation Online: How
Americans Are Expanding Their Use of the Internet" which showed
substantial gains in access to computers and the Internet for all Americans.
The report released today underscores that despite these gains, a significant
divide remains based on income, race and ethnicity, geography and disability.
As a result, many Americans have yet to witness the significant social, civic,
educational and economic benefits of the information age. http://www.civilrights.org/publications/bringinganationonline
BROADBAND, TELECOMMUTING SEEN AS
ECONOMIC BOONS - In an effort to improve sluggish broadband adoption
nationally, high-tech firms want companies to let employees telework or
telecommute as a way to improve productivity, reduce costs and encourage baby
boomer employees nearing retirement to remain in the workforce. The initiative also has the backing of the U.S.
Department of Commerce, which views broadband usage as an integral part of U.S.
economic development. "Broadband
deployment and usage will define the global winners and losers in the 21st
century," said Bruce Mehlman, an assistant secretary at the Commerce
Department. And telecommuting "is really the killer app right now that's
out there for home broadband use."
http://www.computerworld.com/careertopics/careers/labor/story/0,10801,72805,00.html
ITAA WHITEPAPER ON BROADBAND
– “Building a Positive, Competitive Broadband Agenda: Positively Broadband.” http://www.positivelybroadband.org/whitepaper.pdf
(Adobe file)
FCC’S TELECOM RULES ARE
PRAISED, DAMNED - Finger-pointing in the meltdown of the telecommunications
industry was the theme yesterday as companies and special interests scrambled
to file comments in a proceeding that could result in an overhaul of rules
governing the industry. At issue are
Federal Communications Commission regulations that were meant to spark local
phone competition by allowing upstarts to provide service by leasing, at deep
discounts, equipment ''unbundled'' from the Baby Bell networks. Equipment
includes last-mile ''loops'' to the home or central office switches. That
competition strategy was alternately praised and damned by groups as varied as
the upstart competitive local exchange carriers, or CLECS, the Bells, equipment
manufacturers, consumer groups, and high-tech companies. http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/199/business/FCC_s_telecom_rules_are_praised_damned+.shtml
FTC SEEKS GREATER AUTHORITY
OVER TELECOM SECTOR - At a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing this week all
five Federal Trade Commissioners pressed Congress for authority to regulate the
nation's largest telecommunications providers in an effort to shield consumers
against aggressive telemarketers and questionable billing practices. Draft
legislation that would grant much of the FTC's request focuses on funding for
new consumer protection measures, and does not seek to involve the commission
in telecommunications merger and competition proceedings, which are currently
decided by the FCC in consultation with the U.S. Justice Department. But
Mozelle Thompson, one of two Democratic commissioners on the FTC, said he hopes
the commission can use the added authority to weigh in on competition
proceedings within the telecom sector. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14569-2002Jul16.html
This
Week@EMEA
EUROPE, U.S. FACE SIMILAR
BROADBAND CHALLENGES, PANELISTS SAY - Policymakers in Europe face the same
conundrum regarding high-speed Internet access as those in the United States,
panelists said Wednesday at a Congressional Internet Caucus forum. Both sides
must confront how their governments can help spur broadband deployment while
not interfering with market forces.
During several days of meeting with European officials, FCC Commissioner
Kathleen Abernathy said she discovered they share the same goals as U.S.
regulators of determining "the appropriate role of regulators" in
ensuring that advanced communications services are offered to consumers. The
best route will vary by the types of laws countries have in place, she
said. Europe currently is struggling
with "what broadband really means and how policy might or might not affect
it," said Monica Ridrueo, who represents Spain in the European Union
Parliament. "The situation is difficult on both sides of the
Atlantic" when choosing the proper policy, she said. The European Union
has moved toward deregulation of its telecommunications industry but has
stipulated that it will impose regulations if one firm gains a dominant
position in a marketplace. Lawmakers must better define those relevant markets
and the term "dominant," she said.
First, panelists said, government must decide what "broadband"
means -- address its speed and the type of services it should support. The FCC
has defined broadband for U.S. markets, but many in the technology industry say
that the definition is inadequate because it is defined at a speed that is too
slow. True broadband is at least 100 megabits per second, something none of the
currently widely offered technologies provide, they said. (National Journal’s
Tech Daily - http://nationaljournal.com/pubs/techdaily/pmedition/tp020717.htm
- Paid subscription required)
BROADBAND
BOOST FOR BT - Ben Verwaayen, chief executive of BT Group, yesterday said the
telecoms operator was receiving 12,000 orders a week for broadband connections
and that it already had 280,000 users connected. Speaking at the group's annual
meeting in Edinburgh, Mr Verwaayen said that 1,115 of its exchanges, more than
a fifth of its total, had been broadband enabled and that these exchanges
covered 73 per cent of internet users. http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1026916481326&p=1012571727248
BT
ORDERED TO CUT INTERNET PRICES BY 8.5% - Around
4m users of flat rate 'narrowband' internet access could benefit from lower
monthly bills following a ruling on internet charges by the telecoms
watchdog. Oftel this week ordered BT
Group to cut the unmetered internet fees it charges to rival operators who in
turn sell their services to internet service providers. The move, which will
reduce BT's wholesale leased line charges by 8.5 per cent, is being closely watched
by ISPs as they evaluate whether or not they will be able to pass on savings to
consumers. In the UK narrowband flat
rate internet access typically costs around £15 a month with Freeserve and AOL
charging £13.99 and £15.99 monthly respectively.
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1026916490272&p=1012571727248
SOMMER, AMID PRESSURE, QUITS
DEUTSCHE TELEKOM CEO SPOT - Ron Sommer stepped down this week as chief
executive of Europe's largest telecommunications company, Deutsche Telekom AG,
giving in to heavy pressure from German leaders who wanted the unpopular chief
executive out before national elections.
Deutsche Telekom has suffered from some of the same ailments that have
battered other European telecommunications companies: a slumping global
economy, new mobile-phone licenses that cost billions and increasing competition
in home markets. http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1026835150979042680,00.html
(Paid subscription required)
WHY COUNTRIES MAKE SITES
UNSEEN - With the full cooperation of the Saudi Arabian Internet Services Unit,
which is responsible for routing and filtering all international Internet
traffic in the country, Harvard law professor Jonathan Zittrain and researcher
Benjamin Edelman tried to access nearly 60,000 Web pages through Saudi servers.
They discovered about 2,000 sites to be blocked by the Saudi government, one of
dozens of governments around the world trying to control content their citizens
see online. A new Harvard Law School study examines the pattern of censorship
of governments around the world. "You can get a sense of what worries a
regime by what sites they block," said Carin Karlekar, a senior researcher
at Freedom House, a pro-democracy group. "In Saudi Arabia, the
government's more interested in clamping down on personal freedom than on
political freedom. But in China, they're more concerned about political
subversion than personal morality, so news sites are the ones that are
censored." http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,53933,00.html
This Week@Asia/Pac
CHINA
INTERNET PORTALS SIGN PACT - Internet
portals in China, including Yahoo!'s Chinese-language site, have signed a
voluntary pledge to purge the Web of content that China's communist government
deems subversive, organizers of the drive say. The "Public Pledge on
Self-discipline for China Internet Industry" has attracted more than 300
signatories since its launch March 16, said a spokeswoman for the Internet
Society of China, who identified herself only as Miss Sun. The pledge's main aims appear fairly benign:
promotion of Internet use, prevention of cyber crime, fostering healthy
industry competition, avoiding intellectual property violations. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=528&ncid=528&e=4&u=/ap/20020715/ap_on_hi_te/china_sanitary_internet_3
This Week@US STATES
CEOS URGE GOVERNORS TO
SUPPORT EDUCATION - The leaders of Micron Technology and Cisco Systems
urged the nation´s governors Sunday to make sure education remains a top
priority in their states — or risk falling behind the rest of the world. Micron CEO Steve Appleton and Cisco Systems
CEO John Chambers spoke to the state leaders during the second day of the
National Governors Association meeting in Boise.
http://204.228.236.37/story.asp?ID=15317
GOVERNORS LAY IT ON THE
LINE: ADAPT OR GO BROKE - Cisco exec tells them states must improve education -
The nation´s governors were wowed by Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers on Sunday,
as he buoyantly spoke of an unprecedented era of prosperity built on
technology. But if states want to
benefit, they´ll have to invest in education — something we in Idaho took a
step back on this year because of an ill-timed 2001 tax cut. Responding to a question from Gov. Dirk
Kempthorne — who signed off on cuts in higher education and public schools in
the 2002 legislative session — Chambers said the formula for growth isn´t all
that complicated. “The jobs will go
where the best educated work force is, where the right infrastructure is, with
the right supportive government,” said the man who runs the world´s leading
Internet networking company.
http://204.228.236.37/story.asp?ID=15266
BID TO SIMPLIFY STATE SALES TAX SNAGS ON LEVEL OF ENFORCEMENT - A Herculean
effort to simplify state sales taxes that was to be a precursor to convincing
Congress to allow states to tax Internet transactions suffered a setback as
representatives from businesses and state governments failed to agree on a
final, crucial part of the plan. After
two years of discussions, state officials hoped to emerge from a meeting in
Salt Lake City on Friday with a draft of a modernized sales tax. Once states
adopt this simpler, uniform tax, they planned to press Congress to approve an
Internet tax. But representatives of
major retail corporations are threatening to withhold their support of the
effort after they failed to agree with state Streamlined Sales Tax Project
delegates about how to enforce uniformity among the states. http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1026684628931364520,00.html
(Paid subscription required)
OTHER
TECH STORIES OF THE WEEK
WHEN WILL BROADBAND RULE THE
MARKET? - Earlier this year, Internet service provider (ISP) shutdowns and
other issues slowed broadband adoption, but analysts still call high-speed
Internet via cable and DSL (digital subscriber line) one of the fastest-growing
technologies the world has ever seen.
Experts now say that the issues holding back broadband have more to do
with access and content than with regulation or price. And despite the fact
that hopes for high-speed Internet may have been overblown, broadband has
managed to eclipse other hot technologies, such as DVDs, in only its fourth
year of existence, Yankee Group senior analyst Mike Goodman told NewsFactor.
"It ranks right up there with the fastest-growing products of all
time," Goodman said. "Broadband isn't even close to being derailed." http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18621.html
DORMAN
TO BECOME AT&T CHIEF - The collapse of WorldCom has increased the liklihood
of big mergers in the US telecommunications industry, David Dorman, the
executive in line to become AT&T's next chairman and chief executive, said on
Wednesday. He added, however, that AT&T, which is relatively unhampered by
debt and has so far been untouched by the wave of accounting scandals in the
telecoms world, was in a strong position to stand apart from any mergers. “We don’t think we have any strategic
imperative to combine with anyone,” Mr Dorman said. http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1026916473667&p=1012571727260
TALKS WEIGH BIG PROJECT ON
WIRELESS INTERNET LINK - Several leading computer and telecommunications
companies are discussing the joint creation of a wireless data network that
would make it possible for users of hand-held and portable computers to have
access to the Internet at high speeds nationwide. The Intel Corporation, I.B.M., AT&T Wireless and several
other wireless and Internet service providers including Verizon Communications
and Cingular are exploring the creation of a company to deploy a network based
on the increasingly popular 802.11 wireless data standard, known as WiFi,
according to several people close to the talks. The discussions, which are code-named Project Rainbow and have
been going on for the last eight months, envision a nationwide service that
would provide on-the-go professionals and other Web surfers a unified way to
reach the Internet from a wide range of "hot spots" like airports and
other public places. It is not intended to supply broadband connections to
customers' homes, an executive involved in the discussions said. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/16/technology/16WIRE.html
(free registration required)
HOLLYWOOD,
TELECOMS DIFFER ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION - Representatives from Hollywood and the
telecommunications industry highlighted their differences of opinion on how
intellectual property should be protected during a forum of the Congressional
Internet Caucus and its European counterpart.
But in a sign that some of the passions stirred by the debate over
mandatory technology for digital-rights management (DRM) may be cooling, both
Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and Verizon Communications
officials concurred that balance is a key component in implementing copyright
laws. The Americans spoke after members
of the European Parliament summarized current efforts by member nations of the
European Union to pass laws that implement the EU copyright directive that
became effective in June 2001. The
directive seeks to spur member nations to implement the 1996 World Intellectual
Property Organization Copyright Treaty by December 2002. The United States
implemented the treaty by passing the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act
(DMCA). (National Journal’s Tech Daily
- http://nationaljournal.com/pubs/techdaily/pmedition/tp020717.htm
(Paid Subscription required))
MORE POLITICIANS EMBRACE
E-MAIL AS CAMPAIGN SEASON HEATS UP - With campaign season heating up, more
political candidates are hoping voters will take messages from the inbox to the
ballot box. Gone are the days of
passing signup sheets at state fairs and conventions, says David Wade,
communications director for Sen. John Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat.
"You don't organize what might become a national grass-roots volunteer
operation on legal pads and index cards anymore," he says. Regular mail is expensive, and producing a
television or radio spots can take up to 36 hours. But with e-mail, "all
it takes is writing it and pushing the button, and that can make a difference
in a high-stakes campaign," says Bill Pascoe, campaign manager for New
Jersey Republican Senate candidate Doug Forrester. ""It's the best
thing I know of for an instantaneous or pre-emptive response." http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB1026325900409236040,00.html
(Paid subscription required)
FACTS AND STATS:
BROADBAND PROBLEMS ENRAGE US
SUBSCRIBERS - A new Harris Interactive study has found that just over half of
American broadband subscribers have had problems with service and support from
their provider. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358124&rel=true
ONLINE TELECOM CUSTOMERS
SPEND MORE - A new study from Vividence Research indicates that Internet users
who visit the websites of telecommunications companies; spend 32 percent more
on telecom services than offline customers. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358128&rel=true
EUROPEANS UNIMPRESSED WITH
ELEARNING - Almost two thirds of Europeans rate elearning as either 'fair'
or'poor', according to a new ETV survey.
http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358138&rel=true
VOD FANS FAVOR MONTHLY
SUBSCRIPTION MODEL - New research from Parks Associates indicates that 30
million Americans would sign up for Video-On-Demand (VOD) services if they were
made available. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358134&rel=true
OVER TWO MILLION ROMANIANS
NOW ONLINE - Europemedia reports that around 12 percent of Romanians are now
online. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358125&rel=true
UK INTERNET ACCESS AT MORE THAN
FORTY PERCENT - The number of British homes with Internet access rose to 42
percent in the first quarter of 2002. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358121&rel=true
AUSTRIANS INCREASE BROADBAND
UPTAKE - Austria's broadband market has been rated as the fifth most advanced
in Europe and the 11th worldwide, reports eMarketer. http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358135&rel=true
UK STILL BEHIND IN BROADBAND
RACE - Denmark and Germany have the highest number of home broadband
subscribers in Europe, according to NetValue.
http://www.nua.com/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905358115&rel=true
For 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.
BROADBAND DISCUSSION –
“QUESTION OF THE MONTH” – JOIN
THE COVERSATION – This month’s poll asks the questions about when, and if, you
are going to subscribe to broadband. Is
it the price that is keeping you from getting it? Is it the lack of applications?
Or, do you already have it?
Share your thoughts in this months “Question of the month,” to
paraphrase the song, “Broadband, what is it good for?” What is good? What is bad? Do you have
it? Why don’t you have it? http://forums.cisco.com/eforum/servlet/HtCom?page=main
CISCO GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS@2002
Cisco’s top policy focuses
for 2002 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
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