Net Neutrality Woes

It's been quite the few weeks for the Federal Communications Commission.  First, the agency passed the first ever rules for Internet regulation. Shortly after net-neutrality rules passed, it became another target for the Republican party which vowed to halt the regulations and not "allow it to stand."  Then, it approved the Comcast-NBCU merger deal with certain conditions.

And now, Verizon and Metro PCS are teaming up and filing suit against the FCC in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.  Verizon wants this court to get rid of these rules!  More specifically, Verizon claims that the FCC's net neutrality rules is outside the scope of its authority given to it by Congress and may lead to uncertainty within the communications industry and for innovators.  With all this opposition to the rules, it's hard to say whether they will remain intact. 

Net-Neutrality Goes to Africa

With the FCC's ruling towards the end of last year on net neutrality and the kick off of this year with the Consumer Electronic Show showcasing various technology companies entering into the Internet TV era, the net neutrality discussion is definitely a hot topic - at least domestically. But now, this issue is crossing borders as net neutrality issues arise in South Africa.  Unlike the U.S. where citizens are fighting to keep the Internet open and free, it seems as though South African Internet providers have always differentiated content delivery.  If South African Internet goers want better service, they have to pay for it!

Visit Net neutrality: SA’s ADSL ISPs weigh in for more information.

2011 Watch: Technology Cases

We tackled the top technology regulations to look out for this year ... today, it's all about the top technology cases. Here are the cases to watch for this year dealing with issues ranging from evidentiary standards to net-neutrality:

• Microsoft Corp. v. I4i LP 
• In this case involving an invention for editing custom XML (a computer language), the main issue here will focus on just how much evidence is enough to terminate a patent using prior art. Should the invalidity defense provided for in the Patent Act, 35 U.S.C. § 282, be proved by clear and convincing evidence?
• Viacom International Inc. v. YouTube Inc. 

• The battle about storing pirated content between media giant, Viacom, and YouTube continues in the Second Circuit as Viacom appeals a district court summary judgment for YouTube. The judgment was awarded based on the safe harbor provision of the DMCA.  
• Therasense Inc. v. Becton Dickinson & Co. & Global-Tech Appliances Inc. v. SEB SA 
• Two patents cases dealing with standard issues. While, Therasense will focus on the inequitable conduct defense, Global-Tech Appliances will focus on the induced infringement standard.
• ISPs v. FCC ?
• Perhaps the FCC's upcoming final net-neutrality rules will spur a line of cases challenging them? 
  
  
  

National Institute of Standards and Technology Wants to Hear from You!

With the newly signed America COMPETES Act allowing for an expansion in research and programs to promote science and technology, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) is requesting public comments on Federal agencies' effectiveness in the development and implementation of standards. If you want to share your thoughts, you have some time (but not too much time) as comments are due February 7th.

"Harry Potter" Copyright Suit Against Scholastic, Corp. Dismissed

The estate of author, Adrian Jacobs, filed a copyright suit against Scholastic, Corp., publisher of the widely popular "Harry Potter" series.  The trustee of the estate alleged in the suit that the series' author, J.K. Rowling, copied Jacobs' work entitled "The Adventures of Willy the Wizard--No. 1 Livid Land" when she wrote the fourth book, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”  However, Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin dismissed the case based on the various differences between the books.



Don Jeffrey's BusinessWeek article provides more detail. 

CES 2011 Coming to You Live

Wish you were in Vegas for the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show? For those of you (including myself) longing to see what's going on at CES so far this year, click here for live video!!  This year's keynote speaker is Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer ... Enjoy!

FCC Calling All Researchers & Developers for Open Internet Apps Challenge

The FCC has made an official request for all researchers and developers to participate in its Open Internet Apps challenge.  The purpose of this challenge is for the community, particularly researchers and developers to "help build the strongest safeguards possible to preserve these principles and innovate online." For more information, please see the FCC's Official Blog.

2011 Watch: Intellectual Property & Technology

Over the next few days, I'll identify key intellectual property and technology cases and legislation/regulations to watch out for this year.  Today's topic of discussion ...  technology regulations. With the rise of privacy violations by major Internet companies and the U.S. government's review of its privacy framework, here are the top technology regulations to keep an eye on in 2011:

• Data Privacy
• In December 2010, the Federal Trade Commission released a proposal for a new privacy framework that included the implementation of a "do not track" mechanism. Though there was no technical implementation strategy for this mechanism, perhaps companies like Microsoft will develop a proper solution.  Expect the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) to follow up with a green paper on privacy some time early this year.
• Cybersecurity 

•  It's safe to say that we all heard about the Wikileaks debacle.  This major breach has put security breach notices and the protection of personal information in the spotlight.  Prior to the leak, the FCC had already developed a cybersecurity roadmap and sought out public comments on its proposal.  Perhaps cybersecurity legislation could be in the works this year. 
• Regulations Overseas
• As the U.S. reviews its own privacy framework, the European Union is looking to reform its data privacy framework this Spring or Summer.  
• High Tech Exports
• President Obama's National Export Initiative called for a doubling of U.S. exports by 2015.  As the government works towards this goal,  it should be no surprise that we may see a change in export controls on high technology products.

AT&T Reveals 4G Strategy at Conference in Conjunction with 2011 Consumer Electronics Show

Earlier today, AT&T released its 4G network strategy plan during a conference held in conjunction with the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show.  As the company continues to strenghthen its 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) network, it plans on deploying LTE services to targeted markets by mid-year.  For more information on AT&T's strategy, please see Ed Baig's USA Today article.

ACTA Comments Due Feb. 15th

Have comments for the final text of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement? Make sure to visit www.regulations.gov by 5pm on February 15th to submit your comments. According to Office of the United States Trade Representatives, submissions should contain the term "ACTA Public Comments" in the "Type comment & Upload file" field.

Internet Policy Book Titles to Look Out for in 2011

 Adam Thierer's recent post for The Technology Liberation Front reveals his top picks of Internet policy book titles that will be released this year. Here are the titles that have made the list so far:

1. Evgeny Morozov – The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom (January)
2. Sherry Turkle – Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other (January)
3. John Brockman (ed.) Is the Internet Changing the Way You Think? The Net’s Impact on Our Minds and Future (January)
4. Berin Szoka (ed.) – The Next Digital Decade: Essays on the Future of the Internet (January)
5. Siva Vaidhyanathan – The Googlization of Everything, and Why We Should Worry (March)
6. Daniel Solove - Nothing to Hide: The False Tradeoff between Privacy and Security 
7. Jeff Jarvis – Public Parts 
8. Rebecca MacKinnon – Consent of the Networked (late 2011 / early 2012)