Now basing their determinations on real data and not just lobbyist Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, the FCC earlier this month released a study highlighting U.S. broadband coverage gaps. While highlighting that ISPs have done some amazing work at getting broadband deployed to many areas, there’s still roughly 14-24 million Americans without broadband, and their hopes over ever getting broadband is “bleak.”

Of course the very idea that U.S. broadband wasn’t a shining beacon of absolute perfection “upset” ISP policy, PR folk and lobbyists, who very quickly attacked the FCC for simply acknowledging what every major study concludes without fail: the U.S. is a mediocre player in terms of broadband deployment, speed and price. Today FCC boss Julius Genachowski defended the FCC’s findings in a Seattle speech (warning: pdf link):

The different reactions to this report were telling. Some saw that high-speed broadband was available to a very large percentage of Americans, and said everything is fine. Nothing more to do. Mission accomplished. I disagree. When up to 24 million Americans don’t have access to a communications technology that is essential to participation in our 21st century economy and democracy, I say that is unacceptable.

Again however, the primary reason the U.S. remains mediocre in broadband price, speed and availability is a lack of competition. And again, the FCC isn’t going to tackle competition because it would upset some of this nation’s biggest campaign contributors. Trying to “reform” the infinitely-broken USF and doling out grants isn’t necessarily a bad thing but none of the FCC’s current proposals really get to the real problem: the fact that most people live in a monopoly or duopoly broadband market, and as a result pay too much money for frequently sub-par connectivity.

Link to the original article…

Fairpoint Communications utterly imploded after regulators rubber stamped their acquisition of Verizon’s unwanted New England (Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire) DSL and landline networks, though the company insists they should be able to exit bankruptcy by the end of the summer. With everyone watching closely to see if the company can overcome its own dysfunction and provide things like reliable 911 service, Fairpoint has decided that now’s a good time to ask for government favors. After missing their broadband expansion commitments completely, Fairpoint recently stated they wanted to weaken previous broadband expansion promises.

Fairpoint is also now asking regulators to weaken their oversight of the company once they emerge from bankruptcy.

Link to the original article…

Slashdot directs your attention to the fact that wireless carriers are just starting to realize they can monetize all matter of data collected from mobile users – specifically data that highlights their movement habits. According to MIT Technology Review, researchers and marketers are finding plenty of new uses for call detail records, or CDRs which allow them to study a mountain of user behavior data. That data can be used by researchers or city planners to study travel behavior – but it’s likely going to be a gold mine on the marketing behavioral front:

…cell phone networks are thinking about monetizing their data, says Jean Bolot, a researcher at network operator Sprint. This means a “two-sided” business model where they not only serve end users but also make money through relationships with other businesses. “This is new in the telco space but not in other areas–look at Google, for example,” he says. Since almost everyone has a cell phone, the scale of the data is immense compared to other sources. Mobility patterns might, for example, be used to adjust property or billboard advertising prices. “Just about every operator on the planet is probably thinking about this right now,” says Bolot.

Of course all of this raises a number of privacy concerns, and while much of this data is aggregate – it’s not particularly difficult for those who buy this data to identify individual user identities (most of us do stay in one place most nights). Keep in mind many ISPs sell user clickstream data (but deny it) with little or no acknowledgment of this fact to the end user, no oversight and no ability to opt out. It seems likely that privacy, consumer education and consumer controls will be an afterthought here as well.

Link to the original article…

Use Skype? Love to use the video calling features? Hate how some of the higher priced Microsoft and Logitech cameras claim to be better; but really don’t measure up until you’ve spent over $100 or so? FREETALK has introduced their FREETALK® Everyman HD Webcam (TALK-7140) that has the following specs:

• Skype-certified High Definition camera
• High-performance optical lens
• 24-bit true color depth
• Auto Exposure and Auto White Balance
• Auto Focus capability
• Supports HD video encoding at resolutions up to 1280×720 at up to 22 frames per second
• Universal clip for supporting wide variety of displays

And all for the lovely price of $49 USD. Do want.

[ Link: Skype, Skype Shop, In Store Solutions ]

Back in February, BroadbandReports noted how Baltimore was one of a number of cities upset that they were overlooked by the Verizon FiOS installation fairies. As they’ve discussed at length, the company is stopping deployment in any market where a franchise agreement hasn’t already been signed. There’s a number of reasons for this, including the fact that Verizon wants to market the service to deployed areas and ramp up adoption, the company is eager to see if they can grab stimulus bucks, and Verizon CEO (and FiOS’s biggest champion) Ivan Seidenberg is on the way out – and his replacements aren’t as bullish on this whole “future” thing.

Baltimore this week decided to hold a public hearing exploring why they weren’t part of Verizon’s $23 Billion FiOS plans. The city denies that they were in any way the cause of Verizon’s decision, either by being difficult franchise negotiation partners or by imposing heavy conditions on Verizon. Many in the city continue to think Baltimore was ignored because of its lower income and minority neighborhoods – but Verizon again denied such “redlining” allegations at the hearing, according to attendee and Baltimore Sun blogger Gus Sentementes. Still, Verizon’s not disclosing the secret formula used to determine FiOS worthiness:

We still have not heard Verizon’s rationale for avoiding Baltimore and heck, while we’re at it: Boston and Buffalo and Syracuse and Albany, too. Specifically, by what standards did Verizon choose who would get FiOS and who would not? Did they throw darts at a map of the United States? It’s not enough to say “we can’t be everywhere” — I think people generally understand that. But why is Baltimore the hole in the donut, to use Kraft’s analogy? Choices were made probably following a set of criteria. Verizon must have made a business decision (one hopes) on a set of facts, and the city wants more clarification on how they reached that decision.

Obviously Verizon didn’t find installation there to be a profitable equation, but Baltimore still would like to see the math – and Verizon likely felt telling Baltimoreans Verizon felt their city isn’t very nice wasn’t in the cards. To try and calm the locals, Verizon sent a letter to the Baltimore Sun insisting that they remain “committed to Baltimore.” Just not when it comes to actually upgrading the network there:

Although FiOS video may not be available, it’s important to remember that Verizon is able to offer Baltimore consumers High Speed Internet (HSI) service (using DSL technology) at speeds up to 7 megabits per second in much of the city, and DIRECTV with a network that is second to none, our infrastructure keeps residents and businesses communicating. And we’ll continue to make that infrastructure better, faster and more robust.

As for Baltimore figuring out Verizon’s secret formula, the city is probably going to be waiting for a while. Cities like Boston, Alexandria, Binghamton, Albany and many others are asking the same questions but getting no answer. Of course Verizon looked at a huge variety of economic, logistical, competition (or more specifically a lack thereof) and other factors, but Verizon’s never going to let the public see the real data behind their decisions. Perhaps Baltimore (or local businesses) can begin building a Baltimore fiber network, and see if that gets Verizon’s attention?

Link to the original article…

Last week Comcast unveiled their plans to rebrand their Internet, VoIP and TV services all under the “Xfinity” monicker. While Comcast was hoping to create a modern brand that could do battle with AT&T U-Verse and Verizon FiOS, the decision to misspell infinity with “extreme” and painfully cliche 90′s brand stylings wasn’t a particularly inspired or creative choice. The name change was giggled at by users and taunted by blogs. Now Time has taken the mocking one step further, placing it at number one on a list of the “top ten worst corporate name changes” (even worse than Syfy!) even though technically Comcast isn’t changing their name. “Xfinity is infinite potential,” Comcast executive David Watson cornily tells Time.

“Comcast hopes the new moniker will help customers forget the high prices and poor customer service for which it has been criticized in the past,” responds the magazine. Of course “U-Verse” really isn’t any better, but that hasn’t stopped AT&T from selling VDSL, IPTV and VoIP.

Link to the original article…

Earlier this year we noted how companies like Verizon are very clearly turning away from rural America, creating a new niche for smaller “rural super telcos” to thrive. The merger of CenturyTel and Embarq creates one such company, but Windstream Communications is also picking up speed in this sector as well. Windstream recently acquired NuVox Communications, and was also rumored to be sniffing around the assets of bankrupt Fairpoint Communications. Windstream continues the trend today by announcing they’re acquiring Iowa Telecom (and its 256,000 access lines, 95,000 broadband and 26,000 digital TV customers) for about $1.1 billion. Interestingly, the company has had money for acquisitions, but not for employees: the erosion of landline revenues recently resulted in a 3% workforce reduction.

Link to the original article…

[ Related: Windstream Acquires NuVox ] [ Related: Windstream Upgrades DSL Speed ]

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