[kictanet] Does the ICT constituency matter?

Fri May 18 13:40:06 EAT 2007

Eric and Walu,

I post this long message to question how much "engagement" would make this
constituency as important to our lawmakers as it is for their American
counterparts. The excertps are on legislative, regulatory and industry
developments in the US in the the last 10 days (courtesy of ISOC New York
mailing list).

What quality of discussion transpires between our legislators when they
discuss ICTs with their counterparts over yonder?

Kindly excuse the length but I wanted to prove with some data. Walu, bite in
small pieces:-)

Thxs

Alex
--------------------

May 17

HEARING TODAY ON BROADBAND MAPPING BILL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The House Telecom & Internet Subcommittee will hold a hearing on a draft
bill that would establish in law that "high-speed" Internet access means
"transmission at speeds allowing the user to download not less than 2
megabits per second and upload not less than 1 megabit per second."
Moreover, the legislation would require the National Telecommunications &
Information Administration and the Federal Communications Commission to
collect more, and more precise, data on the rollout of broadband service in
the US. The FCC would collect the data, and NTIA would be charged with
coming up with a map showing exactly where, and what kind of, broadband
service was available.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6442596.html?rssid=193
* For more on the hearing see
http://energycommerce.house.gov/cmte_mtgs/110-ti-hrg.051707.Witness.list.pdf

May 16, 2007
NY Sues Dell, Charges Bait And Switch
By Roy Mark

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo accused Dell today of engaging in
"bait and switch" financing tactics and ignoring service and warranty
contracts. In a lawsuit filed in Albany, N.Y., Cuomo also charged the Texas
computer maker with deceptive business practices involving rebates, billing
and collection.

Dell denied the accusations.

Cuomo is seeking restitution to consumers, civil penalties and guarantees
from Dell that it will not engage in any further "deceptive, illegal, and
fraudulent practices." The state did not release details on financial
damages it might seek.

"At Dell, customer service means no service at all. Dell's consumers were
intentionally misled, and they had to pay for that privilege," Cuomo said in
a statement. "I hope this lawsuit sends a message to companies large and
small that delivering a product is simply not enough -- the promises they
make must be delivered as well."

The lawsuit accuses Dell of attracting customers with advertising touting no
interest or no early payment
financing promotions. According to Cuomo, the "vast majority" of customers
were denied the deals. Instead, Dell and DFS offered customers financing
deals that often exceeded 20 percent.

The lawsuit also claims DFS incorrectly billed consumers on canceled orders,
returned merchandise or accounts they did not authorize Dell to open. Cuomo
said those same customers were then harassed with illegal billing and
collection calls.

In addition, Cuomo alleges Dell repeatedly failed to provide timely on-site
repair as promised in service contracts and discouraged customers from
seeking technical support. The lawsuit claims Dell's New York customers
calling the company's toll free support number were subjected to long wait
times, frequent transfers and disconnections.

In cases where on site service was provided, the lawsuit claims, Dell used
defective "refurbished" parts or computers to repair or replace consumers'
equipment.

Dell (Quote)quickly responded with a statement denying the accusations.

http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3678091

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY SPEEDWAY
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: ]
Speedy Internet connections once were considered perks for the privileged.
Robust Net access was enjoyed by 30% of U.S. households as late as 2005,
mostly in white homes. Meanwhile, so-called broadband adoption by blacks was
a mere 14%, according to data from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
The resulting "digital divide" between white and black was considered a
lasting socioeconomic problem--like the protracted disparity between black
and white unemployment. But in the past two years, African Americans have
been devouring broadband technology--and the digital divide has shrunk
significantly, at least for this group. The share of black households with a
cable modem, DSL, or satellite Internet connection climbed to 40% this year,
Pew says. That's almost twice as fast as the growth of broadband penetration
for the general population, which grew to 47%. The income gap has narrowed,
too, but not as much: Households making less than $30,000 a year doubled
their broadband participation, to 30%. That still pales next to 76% for
households that have incomes of at least $75,000. Some of the closing of the
racial divide can be traced to falling prices and rising availability of new
technology. But that masks a deeper shift in the relationship of blacks to
the Web. The Net today offers an abundance of entertainment riches--digital
music, pictures, movies, video chat, games--that can be tailored to
individual taste, not to mention services such as job networks and training.
Gaining access to that killer content without broadband speeds would be like
sucking hot fudge through a straw.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_21/b4035061.htm?campaign_id=rss_tech

It's Silicon Valley vs. Telcos in Battle for Wireless Spectrum
Frank Rose Email 05.16.07 | 2:00 AM

Apple's iPhone may be the most eagerly awaited gadget of the year, but when
it finally goes on sale some time next month, only 30 percent of US mobile
phone customers -- those who subscribe to AT&T's wireless service -- will be
able to use it. Verizon subscribers might have had a shot, but executives at
that carrier nixed the idea of letting an Apple device onto their network
years ago. It's as if Mac owners had to connect to the internet through AT&T
because their machines wouldn't work on Verizon, Comcast or Time Warner
Cable.

The wire-line internet doesn't work that way, and wireless doesn't have to
either. By the end of this year, the FCC is expected to start auctioning a
frequency band that could be used for a wireless network that any device --
be it a cell phone, laptop, desktop, TV or toaster -- would be able to
connect to.

A proposal to build such a network has been presented by Frontline Wireless,
a startup backed by three of Silicon Valley's biggest players: Venture
capitalist John Doerr, Google angel investor Ram Sriram and one-time
Netscape CEO James Barksdale. But Frontline will be bidding against
behemoths like Cingular and Verizon, and whether
it has a chance will be determined within the next few weeks, when the FCC
sets the rules for the auction.

The spectrum that's coming up for grabs is prime stuff: A large, low-
frequency band that's currently being used by UHF television stations, which
have been ordered to vacate it when broadcasting goes digital in February
2009.

UHF may not be as good as VHF, which operates on even lower-frequency
spectrum. But it has the ability to carry information through forests,
buildings, even mountains, regardless of the weather, and that makes it
ideal for broadband wireless, or for mobile-phone service. Ever wonder why
Cingular and Verizon, the biggest and most
successful U.S. carriers, can offer more reliable service than Sprint or
T-Mobile? Because the big boys already own a large band of spectrum near the
UHF band, while the little guys are stuck with spectrum that operates at
double the frequency and is far less powerful as a result.
<http://www.wired.com/techbiz/media/news/2007/05/uhf_spectrum>

NATIONAL BROADBAND POLICY RANT
[SOURCE: INTERNET.COM, AUTHOR: Mark Koskenmaki]
[Commentary] Why do we need to know how many Americans subscribe to
broadband services? Why would the mayor of my town, for instance, want to
know? What public purpose would be served by expending resources to find
out? Koskenmaki argues there is no reason. So why is the FCC and Congress in
a dither about where broadband is available? If people want it, it will
come. Just like grocery stores. If it won't, then the real question of
consequence is: WHY? Is it not economically feasible? Is it physically not
feasible? Is the actual demand enough to sustain the mechanism to provide
the service? What artificial obstructions exist to providing broadband?
There are only two choices: Either private enterprise fills the needs, like
grocery stores door government takes over and "takes care of us" like they
did with the telephone monopoly way back when. There is no "middle ground".
For decades we paid absurdly high costs for phone services, and "innovation"
and "change" did not even exist. Either we become ardent, vocal, and so
persistent in our defense, insisting upon keeping free enterprise alive and
the regulators the hell away...or we give up and admit that we prefer
monopolies.
http://www.isp-planet.com/fixed_wireless/politics/2007/national_broadband_policy_rant.html

HEARING: BROADBAND MAPPING AND DATA COLLECTION
[SOURCE: House of Representatives Commerce Committee]
The House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a
Legislative Hearing on H.R.____, a Discussion Draft Addressing Broadband
Mapping and Data Collection. Thursday May 17 at 2:00 p.m. in room 2322
Rayburn House Office Building
http://energycommerce.house.gov/membios/schedule.shtml

"NATIONAL" BROADBAND PLAN A STALKING HORSE FOR REGULATING INTERNET
[SOURCE: Scott Cleland]
[Commentary] A "national broadband plan" is a codeword for a 1970's-style
government "industrial policy" where the government decides what
technologies consumers get and which companies will succeed of fail. By
arbitrarily choosing speeds and arbitrarily setting timetables for
deployment, the government is setting itself up to take a much more
proactive and interventionist role in heavily regulating and managing
broadband competition into a utility-like system.
http://www.precursorblog.com/node/389

SENATOR ROCKEFELLER INTRODUCES BROADBAND RESOLUTION
[SOURCE: TMCNet, AUTHOR: Greg Galitzine]
Senator John D. Rockefeller IV has introduced a resolution calling for the
creation of a National Broadband Policy with the goal of becoming a "100
Megabit Nation" by 2015. Sen Rockefeller believes that, "A national
broadband policy is critical to the future of our country," and, "would
provide a tremendous social and economic benefit," to all Americans. He
cited popular video and social networking sites such as YouTube and MySpace
and how they have become such integral parts of society. He stressed that
those popular sites are just scratching the surface when it comes to the
transformational power of broadband. Sen Rockefeller proposed a roadmap
towards establishing a set of goals. "The first step in going somewhere is
to know where you are going, and the same is true in public policy." By the
end of 2007, we should establish a national goal and pass a series of policy
actions designed to achieve our national goal. There will likely be multiple
parts to the plan, and we will likely need to modify those parts over time.
But if we do not have a plan, we cannot expect to accomplish our goal." Sen
Rockefeller suggests policy actions such as tax incentives to spur the
private sector to act more aggressively in pursuit of this goal. He believes
that Government should offer low-interest loans, and he calls for reform of
the Universal Service Fund to encourage broadband deployment.
http://internetcommunications.tmcnet.com/topics/broadband-mobile/articles/6779-senator-rockefeller-introduces-broadband-resolution.htm

EXTEND INTERNET'S FULL REACH TO BLACK COMMUNITIES
[SOURCE: Asbury Park Press, AUTHOR: Greg Moore, National NAACP Voter Fund]
[Commentary] We should recognize that, for many black Americans, a seat at
the table in the information age is still largely illusory. It's the
time-worn story of the digital divide. While investment from cable and phone
companies has extended high-speed broadband Internet lines to 95 percent of
all homes in America, only 14 percent of black Americans subscribe to
broadband at home. Many experts suggest that price is the cause of this
troubling digital divide, which has far-reaching consequences for our
political community. In an era when the two Democratic front runners for the
presidency  one of whom is black  announced their campaigns via Web video,
it is a tragic irony that thousands of black voters across America couldn't
see them. During the 2004 elections, President Bush courageously called for
universal broadband by the year 2007, but no plan ever materialized. Now,
presidential candidates once again promise to expand affordable access to
broadband. But talk is cheap. Candidates who expect the black vote should be
prepared to offer real policy solutions to solve real problems. Moore argues
1) for funding community technology centers, 2) against Network Neutrality,
and 3) in support of continuing E-rate funding.
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070511/OPINION/705110384/1030
* NAACP Inconsistent on Broadband
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/83745

FREE-INTERNET PLAN GETS SF CONTROLLER'S OFFICE OK
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Ryan Kim]
The San Francisco controller's office issued a favorable review Friday on a
proposal by EarthLink and Google to provide the city with free wireless
Internet access. The report estimates residents could save $9 million to $18
million in Internet bills annually by having the option of choosing the
EarthLink service, which will offer free access as well as a paid service
that is cheaper than other broadband options like DSL and cable. The report
said the service will help the city bridge the digital divide, providing
many residents with Internet service for the first time. It also noted it
would be a boon to EarthLink, giving it a foothold in the San Francisco
broadband market.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/05/12/BUG6FPPLB21.DTL&type=tech

USDA ANNOUNCES NEW PROPOSED RULES FOR BROADBAND IN RURAL COMMUNITIES
[SOURCE: US Department of Agriculture]
On Friday, Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Thomas C. Dorr
announced the publication of new proposed rules designed to facilitate the
further deployment of broadband services to rural communities nationwide.
Key elements include: 1) Promoting deployment to rural areas with little or
no service; 2) Ensuring that residents in funded areas get broadband access
more quickly; 3) Limiting funding in urban areas and areas where a
significant share of the market is served by incumbent providers; 4)
Clarifying and streamlining equity and marketing survey requirements; 5)
Increasing the transparency of the application process, including legal
notice requirements, to make more informed lending/borrowing decisions; 6)
Promoting a better understanding of all application requirements, including
market survey, competitive analysis, business plan, and system design
requirements; and 7) ensuring that projects funding are keeping pace with
increasing demand for bandwidth.
http://www.dailywireless.org/2007/05/14/rural-broadband-gets-a-plan/

On 5/18/07, Eric Osiakwan <eric at afrispa.org> wrote:
>
> Walu, the flaw in your question is establishing the validity of ICT
> Constituency based on the "no show" of the politicians. Politicians are
> known for "no shows"as a face saving mechanism so i would rather that we
> deal with the "no show" tool which is what others are suggestion than
> revisit this settled debate on legitimacy and validity.
>
> Please, lets stick to the principle of people honouring their word when
> the give it. If they cannot for whatever reason, there are acceptable norms
> of disengaging.
>
> Eric here
>
>
>
> On 18 May 2007, at 11:28, John Walubengo wrote:
>
> Dear Listers,
>
> Now that I missed the great debate that almost was, I have
> had time to think 'brutal' by daring to ask the
> question-Does the ICT constituency matter?
>
> From a political point of view - narrow as it maybe - the
>
> ICT constituency may not matter.  2 million urban,
> middle-class  internet (ICT?)users, stuck  between the two
> cities of Nairobi & Mombasa may not be worthy of national
> political consideration...
>
> So if I was a presidential candidate in .KE, you will
> forgive me if I concentrated on issues that the common man
> can identify with...land, tribalism, corruption,
> insecurity....unless ofcourse u  get a way to give the
> above an ICT twist...
>
> walu.
> --- Brian Longwe <brian at isisweb.nl> wrote:
>
> I would like to strongly echo the sentiments of Lucy as
> well as to
> add my own fury to the fire.
>
> I was extremely upset that not only did *NONE* of the
> presidential
> aspirants show up - but some of them even went as far as
> responding
> to phone calls by saying "I am on the way, will be there
> in 20
> minutes"...... then never turning up..... can you imagine
> that?
> Treating the Kenyan ICT community like a spurned
> girlfriend or
> boyfriend?
>
> Anyway I think that the message that has been sent by the
> absence of
> every single one of the aspiring presidents was very LOUD
> and CLEAR -
>
> " We don't care about ICT - it doesn't factor in our
> vision - it is
> unimportant to us"
>
> As very precisely put by someone I overheard at the
> meeting - "these
> aspiring presidents probably don't even know how to spell
> ICT"
>
> We must make a loud and strong statement about his and
> ensure that
> the wider Kenyan community realises the true colours of
> their
> "wannabe" presidents.
>
> Brian
>
> On May 17, 2007, at 12:26 PM, John Walubengo wrote:
>
> LK,
>
> u sound a bit disappointed.  Unfortunately i didnt
>
> attend
>
> the function and would like to know who really turned
>
> up
>
> from the presidential aspirants and what they said...
>
> Michuki, any hope for the text transcript?  Or Becky
>
> could
>
> give us a brief the old way in form of
>
> minutes/updates/etc?
>
> Then from there the absentees like me could contribute
>
> more
>
> intelligently on the way forward...
>
> walu.
>
> --- Lucy Kimani <lkimani at comnews.co.ke> wrote:
>
> All,
>
> I am just venting on the dismal performance of our
> aspiring presidential
> candidates, I have noticed a trend where those in
> leadershipship positions
> let alone those aspiring for the same confirm their
> attendance to a
> certain function and then not show up or best case
> scenario show up 2-3
> hours late.  I keep asking myself why do we as Kenyans
> accept this
> behavior, and I am at a loss!
>
> Actually, my pesa nane is that we as the citizens need
>
> to
>
> start demanding
> accountability in that when one says they will attend
>
> a
>
> function then they
> should keep to their word, after all why are electing
> people whose word
> doesnt count for much?  Additionally, most of us also
> have busy work lives
> and the fact that we were willing to stop what we were
> doing to sit down
> to hear what these aspiring candidates have to say
>
> about
>
> ICT is a
> testament to how important we feel ICT to be to the
> country.
>
> I am one for making strong statements, and a one page
>
> ad
>
> expressing our
> displeasure and questioning why the candidates are
>
> scared
>
> of facing a
> serious group of citizens wanting to know where each
>
> of
>
> them stands in ICT
> would be in order!  I am sure if it was one of those
> meetings where fans
> are shouting at the top of their voices, and no one is
> asking any serious
> questions they probably would show up, we need to
>
> start
>
> demanding more
> from our politicians!
>
> Just my thoughts!
>
> LK
>
>
> -----------------------------------------
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> WebMail.
>    " "
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>
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> Eric M.K Osiakwan
> Executive Secretary
> AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org)
> Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031
> Fax: + 233.21.258811
> Cell: + 233.244.386792
> Handle: eosiakwan
> Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North
> Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North
> Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/
> Slang: "Tomorrow Now"
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