Adam Thierer's Blog, page 175

Armistice Day on Net Wars? Not Yet

As Steve Titch discusses below, Google and Verizon, two of the leading antagonists in the long-running drama over FCC net neutrality regulation, may be about to call a truce.   According to numerous media reports, the two firms have or soon will agree to a compromise framework for regulation, which would provide for a limited degree of regulation by the FCC.

The exact provisions of the compromise are unclear.   Reportedly, however, the plan would ban Internet access providers such as Verizon f...

CNBC Debate on Net Neutrality Regulation & Pricing Freedom

Today I appeared on CNBC's "Power Lunch" to debate Net neutrality issues and the specific role of pricing in this debate. [video down below:] Specifically, the producers wanted to know whether websites should be allowed to pay a higher fee to allow consumers faster access to their sites or should it be equal for every website.  The show was partially a response to the rumors that the may be some sort of deal pending between Verizon and Google about prioritized services. On the program, I was u...

Net Neutrality, Verizon and Google: A Separate Peace?

The buzz in telecom policy circles this morning is the word that Verizon and Google are close to an agreement that will allow the search giant to purchase from Verizon a faster tier for delivery of its bandwidth heavy services, notably YouTube, its video-sharing site.

If the two companies reach an agreement, it could be a death blow to the entire "non-discriminatory" idea behind network neutrality: that no service provider should be give favored treatment to any service or application. FCC...

Virtually Taking the Fifth: Are Neutrality Regs Unconstitutional?

Could net neutrality rules be unconstitutional?  Maybe so, says Daniel Lyons of Boston College Law School.  In a piece released last week by the Free State Foundation (based on a more extensive research paper for Boston College last March) he argues that rules of the sort being considered by the FCC may constitute a taking of property under the Fifth Amendment. 

The idea that a regulation could be considered a "taking" is certainly nothing new.   For decades, courts have recognized the...

Redbook on Facebook (and sharing information online)

It's not often that you see advice on Internet privacy sandwiched between articles on "4 Times it Pays to Splurge" and  how to "Be a Full-time Mom with a Part-time Passion." But online privacy is such a hot topic that even Redbook, the women's magazine, has a story in its August issue.  The article is an informed, well-balanced look at providing practical tips (well it should be, I was interviewed for it!) on being secure and private when on various Internet sites:

If you're a...

Note to Saudi Arabia and UAE: Stop picking on the Canadian guy. You've got bigger problems

In reaction to recent government pressures for RIM to reveal customer encryption keys, Steve DelBianco writes over at the NetChoice blog:  enough with the bullies from UAE and Saudi Arabia kicking sand on the skinny Canadian guy.

It's not likely that the UAE and Saudi governments will pick a fight with every company in a global industry.  Nor is it likely they would ban all electronic messaging, knowing their monarchs would be forced to back down after a few days of embarrassing...

Gilbert Wondracek on the economics of online porn

This week on the podcast, Gilbert Wondracek, research fellow at the International Secure Systems Lab and postdoctoral fellow at the Vienna University of Technology, discusses his research on the online porn industry.  He addresses various economic roles of online porn providers and the industry's connections to malware and cybercrime.  Wondracek also explains how he investigated the industry, how he set up adult websites to assess user vulnerabilities and examine traffic, what he learned...

Copyright Office Weighs in on Awkward Questions of Software Law

I dashed off a piece for CNET today on the Copyright Office's cell phone "jailbreaking" rulemaking earlier this week.  Though there has already been extensive coverage (including solid pieces in The Washington Post, a New York Times editorial, CNET, and Techdirt), there were a few interesting aspects to the decision I thought were worth highlighting.

Most notably, I was interested that no one had discussed the possibility and process by which Apple or other service providers could appeal the r...

"Jailbreaking" Won't Land You In Jail

The Digital Millenium Copyright Act makes it a crime to circumvent digital rights management technologies but allows the Librarian of Congress to exempt certain classes of works from this prohibition.

The Copyright Office just released a new rulemaking on this issue in which it allows people to "unlock" their cell phones so they can be used on other networks and "jailbreak" closed mobile phone operating systems like the iOS operating system on Apple's iPhones so that they will run unapproved t...

Concerns Aplenty for the 2 Federal Privacy Bills

Two privacy bills are already up for consideration. And at yesterday's Senate Commerce hearing on Consumer Online Privacy, we heard Senator Kerry announce that he will be working on new legislation to regulate online privacy.  While we wait to see what Kerry will offer, NetChoice has concerns over the bills we do know about:  Rep. Rush's "Best Practices Act" and the Boucher/Stearns Discussion Draft. Our side-by-side comparison identifies four concerns:

Both proposals would regulate small...