Under the Paperweight, October 4-10, 2009


FCC chairman takes the hot seat at wireless gathering, a CNET report, was one of several links on last week’s wireless industry conference under the Sunroom Desk paperweight last week. The report focused mostly on keynote speaker FCC Chair Julius Genachowski’s recognition of additional spectrum needs and the problems open internet rules pose for wireless.

Receiving far less attention was the question of installing more towers and cell sites where communities object to them, although Gizmodo mentioned it in You Always Wanted a Cell Tower in Your Backyard, Right?

The FCC Chairman’s remarks to the wireless industry gathering strongly affirmed open internet rules, or “net neutrality”, as the commission’s guiding principles for broadband expansion.

Broadcasting and Cable reported

He said that Internet openness would be key to mobile broadband. He reiterated that he believes mobile is the future of broadband. “More and more I hear people say that broadband is the future of mobile, and I agree. I also believe the reverse is true — mobile is essential to the future of broadband.”

He said his network neutrality proposal is meant to clear up confusion over “whether we do or don’t have Internet openness protections.”

The goal, he said, “will be to develop sensible rules of the road. Rules clear enough to provide predictability and certainty, and flexible enough to anticipate and welcome ongoing technological evolution.”

And Wireless Week focused on getting two out of three CTIA wishes:

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski endorsed two CTIA initiatives in his opening keynote at CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment today, but didn’t add any detail into the impact his hopes for an open Internet will have on the wireless industry.

Genachowski’s address was interrupted once by mild audience applause – when he promised the FCC will “move forward with a shot-clock proposal designed to speed the process” of getting tower siting approval.

Also under the paperweight, A link to last week’s CTIA conference video highlights, including speeches from industry CEOs.