| 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, VoIP, Security, Wireless and Education, but covering high-tech and telecom in general, the E-Update is a great source of information for policymakers. Click EUpdate to become a subscriber.
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| This Week@WASHINGTON, DC |
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FCC HEAD DOWNPLAYS REGULATION— Cable companies worried about a regulatory clampdown on their industry met the new Federal Communications Commission chairman and got good news. "I prefer markets and competition to regulation whenever possible," FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin told the annual cable industry convention http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28496-2005Apr5.html CHANGES DELAY GSA’S NETWORX RFP— Pressure from Congress and vendors persuaded the General Services Administration to consider more changes to its multibillion-dollar Networx data and telecommunications procurement. GSA officials said late last month that they are modifying requirements for billing, reporting and verification of operational support systems http://www.gcn.com/24_7/mobile-wireless/35434-1.html ACCENTURE: E-GOV YET TO LIVE UP TO ITS POTENTIAL— E-government initiatives have been an effective tool for transforming government service, but they have failed to bring about the complete re-invention that many people expected during the early years, the head of Accenture’s government group said this week http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/e_gov/35478-1.html LATEST PROJECTION HAS IT BUDGET ON UPWARD TREND— Federal IT spending will remain on the fast track through the end of the decade, according to a new forecast from Input. Government spending for IT is expected to rise at an annual rate of 5.3 percent, from $70.7 billion this year to $91.4 billion in fiscal 2010, said Payton Smith, director of public-sector market analysis for the Reston, Va., company http://www.gcn.com/24_7/e_gov/35415-1.html NEW STRATEGY CALLS ON DEFENSE TO STREAMLINE IT— If the Defense Department wants to succeed in the years to come at fighting wars and protecting the nation against foreign threats, it must revamp its business processes and technology, a new Pentagon plan concludes http://www.gcn.com/24_7/tech-infrastructure/35435-1.html |
| This Week@EMEA |
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HIGH-SPEED NETWORK CONNECTIONS: COMMISSION RECOMMENDS LEASED LINE PRICE CEILINGS - Prices for wholesale leased lines, which are a key source of broadband services for businesses should reflect the real cost of supplying them, says the European Commission. BELARUS POST TO INSTALL PUBLIC INTERNET ACCESS TERMINALS IN VILLAGE POST OFFICES— The Belarusian postal service, Belpochta, has announced it is planning to put into operation 40 public internet access points in local Belpochta offices by the end of 2005 http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=7220 BELARUS GOVERNMENT TO LIBERALIZE COMMUNICATION SERVICES IN 2007— The Belarusian government has announced it is to launch the process of communication DANISH IT FIRM TO INVEST $8M IN THE PHILIPPINES— A Danish communications company will sink in $8 million in the Philippines to improve its market share in software solutions that allow voice calls over the Internet, days after the government ruled the technology is a value-added service that can be offered by non-telcos http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=155077 FRENCH COMPETITION AUTHORITIES WANT MOBILE MARKET OPENED UP— The Autorité de Régulation des Télécommunications (ART), France's telecoms regulator, has been ordered by the country's competition authorities to facilitate greater competition in the French mobile market. The Conseil de la Concurrence has told ART that there has been collusion between the country's three operators, SFR, Orange and Bouygues, resulting in inflated pricing http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=7216 WORLD CUP TICKETS TO BE EMBEDDED WITH RFID— The 2006 FIFA World Cup football tournament in Germany will see all 2.9m tickets on sale be embedded with radio frequency identification (RFID) smart tags, the tournament's organizing committee has announced. The tags will not contain personal data, only a number that identifies each ticket holder, although ticket purchasers must submit various personal details on the ticket registration forms SPAIN- COMMISSION APPROVES RURAL BROADBAND ROLL-OUT SUBSIDIES— The European Commission has approved the Spanish government's provision of a package of direct grants and interest-free loans subsidizing the roll-out of high-speed internet services to rural and other underserved areas of the country http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=7214 SHADOW OF INTERNET COPYRIGHT LAW STIRS UP SWEDES— Draft law that would forbid the sharing of copyrighted material on the Internet without payment of royalties is raising tensions in Sweden where legal loopholes make such downloads hard to stop. http://www.tehrantimes.com/Description.asp?Da=4/5/2005&Cat=7&Num=8 DUBAI RANKS HIGHLY IN CONVERGENCE— Dubai has been ranked as the top Arab city for digital convergence in a report by a Rutgers University in the US. Internet penetration rate in Dubai, which stands at 39 per cent, is slightly lower than those found in most advanced economies. http://www.ameinfo.com/news/Detailed/57273.htmlETHIOPIA PLANS TO EXPAND INTERNET ACCESS—Ethiopia, one of the poorest nations on earth, will expand Internet coverage from a handful of users to the entire country in three years, the prime minister said. Premier Meles Zenawi said information technology lay at the heart of transforming the impoverished country where millions are dependent on foreign aid http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/aptech_story.asp?category=1700&slug=Ethiopia SOUTH AFRICA- BAD SERVICE COULD HARM VOIP UPTAKE— Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) technology can offer companies significant cost savings, but overzealous service providers could harm its potential. So says Gateway Communications director Mike van den Bergh. http://allafrica.com/stories/200504070759.html UGANDA- INVESTMENTS IN TELECOM HIT $213M— UGANDA has earned $213m (sh377b) from private investments in telecommunications in the last 10 years, a World Bank report has said. "Kenya got $107m (sh189.3b) and Tanzania $351m (sh621.2b)," Mohsen Khalil, the director of the World Bank's global information and communication technology department, said in the report http://allafrica.com/stories/200504060568.html |
| This Week@Americas International |
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CANADA AGAIN LEADS IN E-GOVERNMENT— For the fifth year running, market researchers at Accenture have placed Canada at the top of its list of customer service maturity. The survey, called Leadership in Customer Service: New Expectations, New Experiences, lists e-government service delivery in 22 countries. This year, Canada is followed by the United States, Denmark, Singapore and Australia http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050406.gtegov0406/BNStory/Technology/ FEDS BUTT HEADS ON TELECOM REGULATION— Canada's converging telecommunications sector should be governed by one set of laws, but ''fundamentally different attitudes'' within two federal departments will likely prevent needed changes for a few years, says the federal regulator's new vice-chairman for telecom http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050404.gtrcrtc04/BNStory/Technology/ CANADA- INTERNET TELEPHONE FIRMS MADE TO PROVIDE 911 SERVICE— Companies that sell Internet telephone service to the public must provide at least basic emergency 911 service, Canada's telecommunications regulator ruled http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/TechNews/TechAtHome/2005/04/05/983311.html RIVALS CONTEST BELL VOIP SERVICE IN QUEBEC— The battle over Canada's nascent Internet telephony market heated up as two of Quebec's largest media companies asked the federal regulator to stop Bell Canada from offering on-line phone services in three Quebec cities http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050408/RVOIP08/TPTechnology/ RURAL, REMOTE HIGH-SPEED INTERNET BACK ON FRONT BURNER— Ottawa to focus on access in upcoming review of telecommunications sector— The federal government is poised to put the issue of high-speed Internet access for remote communities back on the political agenda, as the former policy darling from the technology boom has been identified as a key focus in Ottawa's upcoming review of the telecommunications sector http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050404.gtrinternet04/BNStory/Technology/ BRAZIL-ANATEL LICENSES 2.4GHZ FREQUENCY— Brazilian operators providing large-scale Wi-Fi services will have to obtain licenses to use the 2.4GHz frequency band as of April 15, telecoms regulator Anatel said in a statement. Today the 2.4GHz frequency is shared between mobile operators that use it for broadband transmission and auxiliary television transmission services. This frequency sharing causes interference in television transmissions, which are supposed to be guaranteed primary status by law VANEZUELA-CONSULTANT: ONLY 1.3% OF POPULATION USE E-GOVT. SITES— Only 1.3% of Venezuela's population uses the internet to contact public organizations, while the rest visit offices to find information or solve problems, according to a recent study by local consultancy Tendencias Digitales |
| This Week@Asia-Pacific/Japan |
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AUSSIE REGULATOR LAUNCHES 3-YEAR INTERCONNECTION PROBE— The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched a three-year program to monitor interconnection between broadband providers and to begin regulating these interconnections if it finds anti-competitive practices http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154793 CHINA PLANS TO INVEST $169M IN NEW IP NETWORK— China plans to invest 1.4 billion yuan ($169 million) in setting up an IPv6 backbone network to connect major cities before the end of 2005.The plan is part of the government’s efforts to start operations of the IP network in 2006. It will be the world's largest IPv6 network for commercial use by that time http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=155253 FUJITSU, ALCATEL TO BUILD 3G NETWORKS IN CHINA— Fujitsu and Alcatel have announced that they will be teaming up to build 3G networks in China. A statement from Fujitsu said that the two companies would be targeting a 15% market share of the Chinese mobile market http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154258 GIANT PANDAS GET BROADBAND— China's biggest nature reserve in the foggy mountains of Sichuan Province is now wired for broadband. Some might argue that the Wolong Giant Panda Nature Reserve, China's largest, is now ready for the world's first panda Internet cafe, but the great digital leap forward is aimed more at panda protection http://www.wwwnetdaily.com/p/a3/f186ad398a1c89.html?id=WNATa4f82b824d38f599f5c1bca882af7f5d INDIA TO CUT RATES ON DOMESTIC LEASED LINES— After announcing a reduction in international leased line tariffs last month, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is planning to reduce rates of domestic leased line circuits.The report on the proposed reduction would be released within a week, TRAI chairman, Pradeep Baijal said http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154790 INDIA, PAKISTAN CONSIDERING OPTICAL-FIBER LINK— India and Pakistan are exploring a proposal to connect to each other through an optical-fiber cable link.The project, at a conceptual stage, may see Indian telecom companies partnering with Pakistan Telecommunication Company to connect Wagah and Mumbai through Amritsar http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=155256 FIRM TO LAUNCH FIRST-EVER WIMAX IN INDIA— Chennai-based ISP Dishnet has reported that it will launch its WiMax services in two months, making it the first mover in the technology. V. G. Suri, Dishnet's vice president for sales and marketing said that the firm plans to bring WiMAX to 38 cities for both corporate and individual users http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154259SOUTH KOREAN REGULATORS CLASH OVER WEB TV— The debate between telecom and broadcasting regulators over the jurisdiction of IP-based television is intensifying, after the Korean broadcasting Commission announced plans earlier to start trial operations for the new multimedia services http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154252 SOUTH KOREA CUTS 3G VIDEO CALL RATES BY 70%-- South Korea's Ministry of Information and Communication has approved a plan to cut SK Telecom's video call rates by 70% to allow the carrier to lure more subscribers.Under the decision, SK Telecom will lower its video call fees to 120 won ($0.11) per 10 seconds from 400 won ($0.39), the company said http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=155076 PHILIPPINE CARRIERS SAY NEW VOIP POLICY THREATENS TELCOS— The National Telecommunications Commission recently came out with a draft policy that would allow even non-telco players to provide voice calls through the Internet for as low as $0.10 per minute. Major carriers PLDT and Globe however said the draft policy threatens their businesses. Major telco players are currently charging an average of $0.40 per minute http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154253 THAILAND-SIEMENS, ERICSSON WIN TOT DEALS— Siemens and Ericsson have won the electronic auction for the 5.8 billion baht ($147.8 million) phone expansion project for TOT, reports Dow Jones. The project involves the expansion of 565,000 phone lines in three locations in Thailand http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=154254 |
| This Week@US States |
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CALIF. PUC TO WITHDRAW APPEAL OF FCC'S VONAGE ORDER— Voice over IP proponents on the California Public Utilities Commission made good on their pledge to withdraw the commission's original motion to appeal the FCC's Vonage Order, meaning that California's influential public utilities board no longer opposes the idea of federal-only regulation of Voice over IP http://www.advancedippipeline.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160502779 NEW YORK LAWMAKERS TARGET MODEM HIJACKING—New York lawmakers are targeting Internet thieves who hijack modems to make international calls at customers' expense. State senators on Monday introduced a measure that appears to be the first bill to strictly target modem hijacking, said Pam Greenberg of the National Conference of State Legislatures http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26828-2005Apr5.html?nav=headlines PHILADELPHIA REVEALS WI-FI PLAN—The city of Philadelphia unveiled a controversial plan to transform its streets and neighborhoods into a gigantic wireless Internet hotspot. If approved, the project will offer low-cost wireless broadband access throughout the city's 135-square-mile area http://news.com.com/Philadelphia+reveals+Wi-Fi+plan/2100-7351_3-5659252.html?tag=nefd.top FLORIDA FILES MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR SPAM SUITS—The Florida Attorney General's office has filed its first claims under the state's antispam law, charging two men with masterminding a scheme that marketed fraudulent online businesses via e-mail http://news.com.com/Florida+files+multimillion-dollar+spam+suits/2100-1030_3-5653662.html?tag=nefd.top VIRGINIA- JUDGE SENTENCES SPAMMER TO NINE YEARS— A Virginia judge sentenced a spammer to nine years in prison in the nation's first felony prosecution for sending junk e-mail, though the sentence was postponed while the case is appealed http://www.technewsworld.com/story/42113.html VA- WHEN TRASH TALKS: EMBRACING WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY— The city of Alexandria, Va., is launching Wireless Alexandria with free public WiFi access in Old Town. But it will also serve a remarkable new user base: trash cans http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/mobile-wireless/35466-1.html SMALL ISP BREAKS GROUND WITH WIRELESS BROADBAND NETWORK—Although located only some 50 miles south of Boston and its high-tech "Golden Horseshoe," Fall River has never been associated with the phrase "state of the art" -- until last week.That's because, in a daring move, a small Internet service provider called MegaNet Communications has put the Granite City in the vanguard of technological development by launching a wireless broadband network for residential and business customers in its environs http://www.technewsworld.com/story/41918.html |
| Other Tech News Of The Week |
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VOIP GROWING AT INTERNET SPEED— Analyst firm IDC said that VoIP has been slow to get rolling but is "finally beginning to show its potential in the consumer market." Going forward, the value proposition of VoIP will become less about price, the major selling point today, and more about service capabilities http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/42018.html NETWORKING THIS WEEK: VOIP HITS THE BIG TIME— Up until this week, VoIP has gotten a lot of buzz among the tech cognoscenti, but not a whole lot of traction among consumers. Enterprises recognize its benefits, and have been gradually switching over to VoIP and converged networks. And the much-talked-about "early adopters" have signed up for VoiP services such as Vonage http://www.networkingpipeline.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160502692 NETWORK AND TELECOM HARDWARE MARKET GREW 13% IN 2004: STUDY— The global networking and telecom equipment market in 2004 grew 13 percent over 2003, as enterprises and service providers increased their spending to deploy more efficient and flexible IP-based equipment, says a report by the Synergy Research Group http://www.networkingpipeline.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160502911 BROADBAND HELPS ONLINE ADVERTISING TO OVERTAKE RADIO— Strong growth in broadband subscriptions helped online advertising expenditure to grow by 60% last year to £653.3m in Britain, beating a total of £637.4m for commercial radio, according to research for the Interactive Advertising Bureau http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,3604,1452213,00.html SCHMIDT: MORE COPS NEEDED FOR HIGH-TECH BEAT—Howard Schmidt, the former cybersecurity adviser to the White House, has warned that there aren't enough trained police officers in the world to tackle cybercrime effectively. http://news.com.com/Schmidt+More+cops+needed+for+high-tech+beat/2100-7349_3-5657381.html?tag=nefd.top IN-FLIGHT BROADBAND: PRICE, NOT SPEED— In-flight Internet access is finally here, but the big question is whether it will go the way of in-flight phone calls - straight into the ground - by pricing itself out of the market http://www.telecomasia.net/telecomasia/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=155249 US TOPS LIST OF SPAM PRODUCING COUNTRIES – REPORT— United States topped a list of the world’s top spam producing countries once again, exporting an average of 35.70 per cent of all spam from January 2005 through March 2005, according to the results of research from anti-virus company Sophos http://www.dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=7173 VERIZON ROLLS SERVICE PLAN FOR NATIONWIDE VOIP CALLING— Verizon has a new service plan for its nationwide Internet-based VoIP calling system, VoiceWing, the company said. http://www.techweb.com/wire/networking/160502509 |
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