Daniel R. Ballon
Business & Economics
Satellite radio held hostage
THE $4 BILLION merger of satellite radio companies Sirius and XM continues to languish in the hands of government regulators, despite hopes that the 10-month antitrust investigation wouldn’t drag into 2008. An otherwise clear-cut approval process has been hijacked by competitors seeking to prevent consumers from receiving better service, more ...
Business & Economics
Who Can Own the Air? FCC Gives, Can Take Away
“Purblind Auction” (Review & Outlook, Feb. 7) incorrectly describes wireless spectrum as “real estate.” The government may be selling these choice airwaves to the highest bidder, but who really owns them? Certainly not the auction winner. Not only do the FCC’s rules dictate how the new “owner” can use his ...
Business & Economics
Building a digital bridge to nowhere
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s California Broadband Task Force concluded last month that high-speed Internet access should be a public investment, much like roads and power lines. The CBTF proposes “state-issued broadband bonds” to bring ultrafast connections to the state’s most desolate locales. Without public subsidies, however, California already ranks first in ...
Business & Economics
California’s Broadband Bridge to Nowhere
The California Broadband Task Force, convened by Governor Schwarzenegger, concluded last month that high-speed Internet access should be a public investment, much like roads and power lines. The CBTF proposes “state-issued broadband bonds” to bring ultra-fast connections to the state’s most desolate reaches. Without public subsidies, however, California already ranks ...
Business & Economics
Going, Going, Gone! Spectrum Auction Starts Today
Who owns the airwaves? At the dawn of the broadcast age, the government assumed total control over radio frequencies in order to ensure that only one broadcaster could use a given frequency at a given place and time. This prevented interference, and was deemed by Congress to serve the public ...
Agriculture
No need for hormone labels
SAN FRANCISCO — After 14 years of widespread use, a safe and proven technology for increasing the availability of low-cost dairy products could disappear if government regulators place fears and rumors above sound science. The technology at issue is recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST), a drug designed to increase milk production ...
Business & Economics
Amazon Leads La Résistance Against Protectionism
The French Booksellers’ Union launched its case against Amazon in 2004, alleging that the company’s ‘free shipping’ policy constitutes an illegal discount on books. According to a 1981 law designed to protect France’s independent publishers and bookstores, no discount on books can exceed five percent off the publisher’s recommended price. ...
Business & Economics
California Lights the Way: Legislature Could Become Global Internet Regulator
Last week Governor Schwarzenegger created a new state agency to help Californians protect their personal information online. With more than one million cases of identity theft reported in California last year, the Office of Information Security and Privacy Protection will serve as a valuable educational resource to help residents stem ...
Business & Economics
Mayor Newsom’s Wi-Fi Flip-Flop
The city’s most recent muni Wi-Fi project collapsed in August when Earthlink concluded that the network was not financially viable. As city officials reeled from this defeat, a small Mountain View-based start-up quietly embarked on a unique experiment. Much like another well-known company in Mountain View, Meraki Networks grew out ...
Satellite radio held hostage
THE $4 BILLION merger of satellite radio companies Sirius and XM continues to languish in the hands of government regulators, despite hopes that the 10-month antitrust investigation wouldn’t drag into 2008. An otherwise clear-cut approval process has been hijacked by competitors seeking to prevent consumers from receiving better service, more ...
Who Can Own the Air? FCC Gives, Can Take Away
“Purblind Auction” (Review & Outlook, Feb. 7) incorrectly describes wireless spectrum as “real estate.” The government may be selling these choice airwaves to the highest bidder, but who really owns them? Certainly not the auction winner. Not only do the FCC’s rules dictate how the new “owner” can use his ...
Building a digital bridge to nowhere
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s California Broadband Task Force concluded last month that high-speed Internet access should be a public investment, much like roads and power lines. The CBTF proposes “state-issued broadband bonds” to bring ultrafast connections to the state’s most desolate locales. Without public subsidies, however, California already ranks first in ...
California’s Broadband Bridge to Nowhere
The California Broadband Task Force, convened by Governor Schwarzenegger, concluded last month that high-speed Internet access should be a public investment, much like roads and power lines. The CBTF proposes “state-issued broadband bonds” to bring ultra-fast connections to the state’s most desolate reaches. Without public subsidies, however, California already ranks ...
Going, Going, Gone! Spectrum Auction Starts Today
Who owns the airwaves? At the dawn of the broadcast age, the government assumed total control over radio frequencies in order to ensure that only one broadcaster could use a given frequency at a given place and time. This prevented interference, and was deemed by Congress to serve the public ...
No need for hormone labels
SAN FRANCISCO — After 14 years of widespread use, a safe and proven technology for increasing the availability of low-cost dairy products could disappear if government regulators place fears and rumors above sound science. The technology at issue is recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST), a drug designed to increase milk production ...
Amazon Leads La Résistance Against Protectionism
The French Booksellers’ Union launched its case against Amazon in 2004, alleging that the company’s ‘free shipping’ policy constitutes an illegal discount on books. According to a 1981 law designed to protect France’s independent publishers and bookstores, no discount on books can exceed five percent off the publisher’s recommended price. ...
California Lights the Way: Legislature Could Become Global Internet Regulator
Last week Governor Schwarzenegger created a new state agency to help Californians protect their personal information online. With more than one million cases of identity theft reported in California last year, the Office of Information Security and Privacy Protection will serve as a valuable educational resource to help residents stem ...
Mayor Newsom’s Wi-Fi Flip-Flop
The city’s most recent muni Wi-Fi project collapsed in August when Earthlink concluded that the network was not financially viable. As city officials reeled from this defeat, a small Mountain View-based start-up quietly embarked on a unique experiment. Much like another well-known company in Mountain View, Meraki Networks grew out ...
