The Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)’s formation of a panel on the future of global Internet cooperation in mid-November came in the midst of an increasingly important debate over the future of multistakeholder Internet governance, said stakeholders in interviews last week. “The future of Internet freedom really is at a crossroads,” said former FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell, a member of the new panel. Although ICANN was a catalyst for the group’s formation, the group is independent of ICANN (CD Nov 19 p17).
A U.S. proposal that could curtail what so-called social welfare groups spend on ads about political candidates on the Internet, radio and TV and put on their websites is raising concerns among some industry lawyers and advocates for disclosure by such 501(c)(4) tax-exempt groups. The advocates want such ads considered “political intervention” and subject to limits for a longer period before elections than being proposed Friday by the Treasury Department and IRS. And an advocate and a lawyer for tax-exempt groups doesn’t think online communication should fall under that limit as the agencies proposed in an NPRM. Broadcast lawyers said they worry the rules if put into place could limit spending by groups other than candidates in the runup to elections, which has been a growth area for TV stations. That’s all according to interviews with those experts Wednesday.
More than two-thirds of respondents to a Do Not Track working group survey voted not to define the term “tracking.” While there was minimal support for two options, a robust majority expressed objections to both (http://bit.ly/1hXS2TF). There was also little support for a definition of “party” in a separate poll (http://bit.ly/1hXVlKg). Just over half of respondents to that poll opted not to define “party,” and nearly three-quarters objected to the definition receiving the most support. Both surveys closed Wednesday night.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said Friday unlicensed spectrum has a big role to play and the commission will make sure it gets its due as the agency finalizes rules for the TV spectrum incentive auction. Wheeler, in his fifth day as chairman, made a surprise appearance at the beginning of an FCC workshop on unlicensed issues tied to the auction.
Tom Wheeler was sworn in Monday as chairman of the FCC and Michael O'Rielly to the open Republican slot on the commission. Wheeler, who had all summer to think about first steps as chairman, almost immediately appointed his top staff at the agency, starting with Ruth Milkman as chief of staff (http://fcc.us/HFgesN). Industry observers said the choice of Milkman, who was Wireless Bureau chief, signals continuity on one of the top issues Wheeler faces, the incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum. Several of those appointed worked for Wheeler in the past and most came from jobs where past entanglements are unlikely to pose ethics issues.
Oct. 28 FCC monthly meeting, 11:30 a.m., rescheduled from Oct. 22, Commission Meeting Room -- http://fcc.us/1gqLlbQ
Broadcast lawyer John Hane warned Tuesday that the incentive auction could fail if the FCC doesn’t get things right. “There are many, many, many paths to failure and only a fairly narrow set of paths to success,” said Hane of Pillsbury Winthrop during a panel at an Institute for Policy Innovation conference.
The partial federal government shutdown, in its fourth day Friday, is raising varying levels of anxiety among members of the communications bar. The shutdown’s effects rippled through the Washington area last week, giving most federal workers an unexpected, possibly unpaid, vacation, and raising some fundamental questions for those whose business is dealing with the government. Further adding to problems lawyers face, the FCC unexpectedly took almost all filings and other documents offline for the duration of the shutdown, a much more draconian response than many federal agencies (CD Oct 3 p2).
Gibson Dunn hires Helgi Walker, ex-Wiley Rein, as partner, with focus on appellate, regulatory and complex litigation issues … Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sánchez will lead a delegation of 13 U.S. company representatives on a cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection trade mission Sept. 29-Oct. 2 to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait … Allbritton Communications President and Politico CEO Fred Ryan to leave company later this year … NetNumber names Brad Boston to the board of the wireline and wireless signal routing and database service provider, as president and CEO … Dialogic network capacity firm hires Robert Dennerlein, ex-Raritan, as executive vice president-finance, and chief financial officer … Broadcast graphics automation system provider Bannister Lake Software hires Pete Challinger, ex-Pixel Power, as vice president-U.S. business development … Neohapsis mobile and cloud security service firm hires Patricia Wright, ex-Rapid7, as vice president-consulting services.
FCC Chairman nominee Tom Wheeler is expected to arrive at the agency sometime later this year with an ambitious agenda, but the time he will have in office is limited and several issues loom which could take up much of his first year. Industry and FCC officials told us that then-Chairman Julius Genachowski did Wheeler no favors by staying into May rather than leaving after the end of Barack Obama’s first term as president. Several industry officials who have spoken with Wheeler said he has a big agenda, but is all too aware that he will have limited time as chairman.