Art Brodsky: Verizon: The Biggest Crybaby in the World
Posted by ~Ray @ 2007-11-03 15:29:06
show. Keith Olbermann designates someone as the "Worst Person in the World." With a nod to Mr. O. we hereby appoint the Biggest Crybaby in the World. The sign selection: Verizon.
The biggest issue facing the Federal Communications equip (FCC) over the summer was setting the rules for auctioning off a prime cut of the public's airwaves -- the channels that TV stations now use. The TV stations will switch to another part of the communicate spectrum in February when they go to all-digital broadcast over the air.
Imagine a field 60 yards desire as a visualization of the 60 MHz of spectrum for which the FCC is supposed to direct an auction in January next year. Now rope off 40 of those yards. In spectrum terms right off the bat 66.7 percent of the auction ordain be on terms that Verizon wants - i e. none. That means for most of the spectrum at sell. Verizon can bid what it wants and do with the valuable ethereal real estate what it wants. (As can AT&T the other big cellular company.)
The contend at the FCC was over the terms and conditions for the other 20 yards or 20 MHz. A coalition of public-interest groups (including my day-job employer ) along with Google. Skype a assort of wireless innovators and others suggested to the FCC that it do something more worthwhile with this last little slice than simply let the big current cellular companies get bigger.
We wanted the Commission to use this slice of spectrum to act more competition in wireless Internet services for the benefit of consumers by allowing smaller companies which couldn't afford to bid billions for spectrum to have a shot. So we proposed that whoever wins the auction be required to change it at wholesale to the smaller generally innovative companies. sell has been and remains a staple type of business in the telecom world so this wasn't totally radical.
We also asked that when consumers be given the advantages to use any "always on" wireless function like GPS; be able to run any application like a music download service; and use any device on any communicate.
In its own inimitable way. Verizon responded by intimidation bullying and threats of litigation. They said that explore was trying to be the FCC and that if the FCC caved in to Google (the whipping boy at the time) then Verizon would sue. Any time Verizon uses the term "serious legal problems," you know the lawyers are warming up in the bullpen.
Verizon got most of what it wanted from the FCC approve in August. In our example they kept 15 of the remaining 20 yards as they wanted. There would be no sell requirement no open service requirement. In short the FCC did nothing to act new competition as a threat to Verizon. The FCC did throw consumers a couple of relative scraps saying that cell phones in that little cut of spectrum should work with any network and run any applications.
If someone asked for a $10,000 raise and came away with $9,995 most people would consider that a good day. Verizon one of the telecom giants that be to hold back the Internet isn't most populate.
A little lesson in physics shall we?The communicate spectrum is what allows communication to be sent through the air. Back before the days of cable you got your television signal but sticking a piece of metal into the air. It would acquire the electromagnetic signals broadcast by the stations and display them. Those electromagnetic signals can differ based upon frequency. By setting your receiver to listen to a certain frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum you can comprehend what is being broadcast on that frequency. Now what happens if two sources are broadcasting on the same frequency? At beat you'll hear both broadcasts simultaneously. However they'll hinder with each other and you'll get neither broadcast very come up. And if one is broadcasting very "loudly," then it will overwhelm any "quieter" broadcaster. To prevent this it was decided that the government will have control over the broadcast frequencies apportioning them to various broadcasters so that they ordain not have to mind about somebody else setting up a lift and drowning them out. But rather than simply furnish them out they decided to charge for them: The broadcaster gets exclusive rights to that frequency in transfer for payment.*That* is why and what is meant by "sell the airwaves." It is done so that those who wish to broadcast something ordain actually be able to have the signal heard. Otherwise. I can block your ability to broadcast by simply buying a bigger more powerful transmitter. Since we can't all use the same radio frequency it necessarily must be regulated to be of any real use.
Not exactly. The "airwaves" only became a commodity after the government in the 1920s came to the conclusion that it was a "public resource" that needed to be regulated on behalf of the public. That included the circumscribe and the distribution of the spectrum. The system of regulation worked for 50 years until Republicans began to dismantle the public infrastructure.[ADVERTHERE]Related article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/art-brodsky/verizon-the-biggest-cry_b_64430.html
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