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EuroWire – January 2009
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However, some lawmakers and technology regulators have
opposed the idea of an open Internet, or net neutrality, calling it
a ‘solution in search of a problem.’
The Federal Communications Commission does not oppose
net neutrality, and has in fact attempted to provide broadband
service in underserved areas by widening a $7 billion federal
programme for phone lines to include broadband. Yet analysts
acknowledge that reform has been difficult, even with impetus
in both the FCC and Congress.
The open Internet may be an elusive goal, even with a new,
supportive administration in Washington and proponents in
both leading political parties. Having put forth his Technology
and Innovation plan during the run-up to Election Day,
Mr Obama can be expected to tackle the net neutrality issue
head-on. One of Ms Kang’s respondents, a partner in a tech
public relations firm, asserted, “He understands that technology
has a multiplier effect on the economy and that is something
we’ve never needed more [than] right now.”
Indeed, when the president-elect inaugurated his version of
❈
❈
the fireside chat, his transition team had already announced
a review of the FCC and appointed co-leaders with
impressive credentials. Susan Crawford, a communications
law and Internet law professor at the University of Michigan,
was until recently on the board of directors of the private
sector Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
Numbers (ICANN). And Ken Werbach, an assistant professor
of legal studies and business ethics at the University of
Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, organises the annual Super-
nova technology conference and has served as counsel for
new technology policy at the FCC.
So, in the matter of the open Internet, Mr Obama apparently
means business – and the time is right. According to the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the
United States occupies an inglorious 15
th
place in international
ranking for broadband access.
In a first, Samsung edges out Motorola as the
top-selling handset manufacturer in the US
Motorola (Schaumburg, Illinois) no longer commands the top
spot in US market share for mobile phones, according to a report
released 7
th
November by Boston-based research firm Strategy
Analytics. South Korea’s Samsung, with a market share of
22.4% in the third quarter, has wrested the lead away from the
former leader of the pack. Motorola came in for a 21.1% market
share in the same period.
Writing in the
Chicago Tribune
, staff reporter Wailin Wong noted
the acknowledgment by Motorola that it needs to produce
more smartphones. These more sophisticated devices, like the
BlackBerry, from Research In Motion (RIM), and Apple’s iPhone,
now make up 30% of shipments in the US (“Samsung Topples
Motorola From US Cell-Phone Leadership,” 7
th
November).
“One of the key challenges for Motorola is they don’t have a
product in that segment,” Bonny Joy, an analyst at Strategy
Analytics, told the
Tribune
. “They’re not part of the growth
segment in North America and they’re paying the price.”