AT&T caved on Voice over Cell. 12 Attacks To Come?

AT&T loathes Skype. Skype costs them international calling money and changes consumer expectations in ways mobile carriers cannot respond. So AT&T forbid Apple to permit Skype voice calls over the wireless network. It worked for two years. Now that barrier is down, how else can they slow or stop Skype? To bring a humble Skype to the negotiation table? Three anticompetitive strategies:

The Parity Strategy: Get government to treat Skype like a fat incumbent landline phone company.

• e911. Emergency dialing is expensive, unreliable with softphones like Skype, and different in every country. Skype says it is not a phone company, so the US FCC should not require Skype to offer emergency dialing. The incumbents would love to saddle Skype with this requirement.
• Assistance to the Hearing Impaired. Require Skype to offer interpreters for the deaf.
• Skype and US, State and Local Phone Taxes. Lobby for Skype to collect federal, state and local value added taxes and fees. Blur the distinction between Skype and phone companies. Complicate Skype's prices and products.
• Metro/State/Provincial Regulation. Encourage non-Federal governments and agencies to entangle Skype in hearings, compliance procedures.
• Administrivia. Phone companies file detailed reports with state and federal regulators. In triplicate. Ask local agencies to swamp Skype with requests for information.

Attack Skype's Brand.

• Pollute Skype's Security Brand. Skype has a reputation for being very secure, relatively spam free, and a safe way to communicate. Invest in academic challenges to Skype security. Publicize every stalker, lawsuit and robocaller. Host "ethical hacker" contests and spread the results.
• The Weapon of Evildoers. "Criminals and terrorists use Skype." Host conferences for police and intelligence agencies on threats posed by Skype. Urge them to compel Skype to give up encryption. Force Skype to rebut law and order politicians.
• Reframe Net Neutrality. Net neutrality improves Skype user access to networks. Supporters of net neutrality use language like freedom and choice. Instead, blame Skype for slow pipes, limited coverage and congested bandwidth.
• Not Invented Here. "Buy American," don't give your hard earned money to that foreign phone empire. A little astroturf goes a long way.

Divide and Conquer.

• Sponsor Class Action Suits. Pit dissatisfied customers against Skype. Force Skype to invest in lawyers, not engineers.
• Start the Skype-Killer Adventure Fund. Confuse Skype's customers with a market full of Skype clones. Pay peanuts to attract entrepreneurial talent to your war on Skype.
• Raid Skype Talent. Half of Skype's employees are paid Eastern European wages. Aggressively recruit them, stalling Skype's projects.
• Repeat Worldwide. Share with telcos in every market a template for attacking Skype. Make Skype struggle in every country.

tags: skype, competition, att, at&t

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

illustration: LuMaxArt

Text of AT&T letter to FCC re VoIP over iPhone

Here you go: AT&T saying it had not previously consented to VoIP over its airwaves.

AT&T to FCC re: iPhone VoIP

 

October 6, 2009

Ruth Milkman, Chief Wireless Telecommunications Bureau
Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, SW Washington DC 20554

Re: AT&T Response to Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Letter, DA 09-1737 (July 31, 2009); RM-11361; RM-11497

Dear Ms. Milkman:

On behalf of AT&T, I am writing to provide you with an update to AT&T’s August 21, 2009 response to the Bureau’s questions about the Apple iPhone. In our response, we explained that AT&T currently offers a variety of devices that enable VoIP applications to make use of our wireless network (including our 2G and 3G capabilities) and the devices’ Wi-Fi connectivity. We further explained that the iPhone currently supports VoIP applications that make use of the device’s Wi-Fi connectivity, but VoIP capabilities were not available on the iPhone for use on our wireless network. We also stated that we were taking a fresh look at the issue and would promptly notify the Commission of any such change in our policies. AT&T has completed its review of the matter and today we informed Apple that, effective immediately, AT&T consents to Apple enabling third-party VoIP applications for the iPhone that use our wireless network, including our 2G and 3G capabilities.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Robert W. Quinn, Jr.

cc: Chairman Julius Genachowski
Commissioner Michael J. Copps
Commissioner Robert M. McDowell
Commissioner Mignon Clyburn
Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker

tags: att, iphone, apple, competition, iskype, skype, fcc

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Josh Silverman v. Verizon at Brookings

Guest post by Mark Poole, member of the Skype 5.X Discussion

Skype CEO Josh Silverman joined FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, Free Press's Ben Scott and Verizon government affairs VP David Young for two hours at the Brookings Institute today. These are Mark Poole's notes from that panel.

This webcast spotlighted the issue of access. When the discussion turned to open access via the cell network, someone used the description dumb pipe. It's not the copper line, fiber optic line or the wireless signal flowing between cell towers that is dumb. The leadership of companies that provide these pipes is dumb.

"The exact expectations you have of your PC, you're going to have of your mobile phone." — Josh Silverman

The guy from Verizon really gave a glimpse into the thinking of wireless providers. He wanted on one hand to say they applaud openness to the Internet but then offer excuses why a program like Skype might not work over his network.

Rather than plan for a robust system that will handle demand today and five years from today and at the same time charge a fair price for use of their pipe, they want to try to compete with companies that offer web stores to sell applications. He described Verizon Widgets and the FiOS cable offering. He spoke of value add services Verizon can provide developers who sell through the Verizon store. Verizon's greed may be their undoing.

Silverman did a good job of diplomatically pushing Verizon to move to more open access. The potential problem with open access and Verizon along with other cell providers will be if they continue strong arm tactics when it comes to plans they offer. Charging ten to twenty bucks for monthly unlimited texting and forcing customers into high monthly minute plans, so they can get promotions like Friends and Family from Verizon, run contrary to where we should be today. It's all about access without regard what we do with that access. This is another example of dumb company leaders not dumb pipes.

Silverman presented the notion that open access for all will allow rapid innovation to continued. He pointed out how the cycle time for new technologies, disruptive technologies was getting shorter and shorter. He tried to stroke the ego of the cell providers by telling the Verizon rep that what they were doing by providing access was not really providing a dumb pipe but instead a complex job.

From my perspective the public interest won out completely. One of the other participants said the speech by the FCC chairman (.pdf) today was a paradigm shift. He looked back to two other shifts and differentiated today's by saying that the previous shifts were more about the rights and ultimate profits of a few instead of policies that favored an individual's rights and use of the Internet. Today's speech was clearly aimed at keeping access to the Internet open and with as few speed bumps as possible when it comes to high speed access.

See also:

• Skype CEO Lobbies for Skype on 3G, Om Malik
• FCC Backs Net Neutrality — And Then Some, Ryan Singel
• Genachowski's 'open Internet' guidelines offer few specifics for wireless, Mike Dano
• The new EU Telecoms laws must be finalized so as to protect Internet users' basic right to an open Internet, Jean-Jacques Sahe, Skype EU Government Relations
• FCC Chairman wants network neutrality, wired and wireless, Nate Anderson. "FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski waded directly into the network neutrality fight today, launching a new proceeding designed to turn the FCC's existing "principles" into "rules"—and to add two more. The rules would apply equally to wired and wireless connections."
• Yup, the FCC supports Net Neutrality all right, Nicholas Deleon. (Great metaphors

Julius Genachowski speech at Brookings on Two New Rules

tags: skype, brookings, freepress, verizon, joshsilverman, events

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Will FCC's ATT/Goog/Apple check affect iSkype?

The US FCC is investigating Apple and AT&T over Apple's rejection of several VoIP applications from the iPhone, including Google Voice. At the same time, the Electronic Frontier Foundation petitioned the Library of Congress to legalize doing what you want with your iPhone.

Could this lead to mobile net neutrality rules? Could this lead to mobile Carterfone rights, including the right to tether without carrier permission? If this leads to rulemaking, could Skype be free to communicate over 3G wireless? Will this inquiry conflict with the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Competition or Justice Department's Antitrust Division's competition promoting duties.

tags: skype, google, apple, ebay, goog, voip, eff, fcc, ftc, carterfone, regulation, competition, anticompetitive behavior, netneutrality, mobile net neutrality, neutrality

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

iPhone tethering fees violate Carterfone principles

AT&T prohibits tethering unless they sell you permission. From Plan Terms, Prohibited and Permissible Uses:

"Furthermore, plans(unless specifically designated for tethering usage) cannot be used for any applications that tether the device (through use of, including without limitation, connection kits, other phone/PDA-to computer accessories, BLUETOOTH® or any other wireless technology) to Personal Computers (including without limitation, laptops), or other equipment for any purpose."

"Accordingly, AT&T reserves the right to (i) deny, disconnect, modify and/or terminate Service, without notice, to anyone it believes is using the Service in any manner prohibited"

Fine print in your contract extends AT&T control into all the devices you use.

Mobile Net Neutrality says neither your handset maker nor your wireless carrier should alter your service based on the content or endpoints of your communication. You wouldn't let your ISP dictate what software goes on your PC or which web sites your surf. Why should your mobile operator have that power?

Yet Apple supports AT&T's ban on VoIP in theory, and full Skype in practice.

Mobile Carterfone says mobile customers should be free to connect to mobile voice and data services without a mobile carrier approving or dictating the device. You wouldn't let your ISP dictate what PCs or printers you connect to your DSL or cable modem. Why would you give your mobile operator that power?

Yet Apple supports AT&T's upcoming iPhone tethering fees.

Tethering fees give AT&T the power to approve or disallow your use of your phone as a modem. This is unheard of in most of the world.

AT&T is expected to add a surcharge of 30% to 50% for the privilege of using your existing device and bandwidth you already bought.

Tethering fees feel strange. The charges should stop at the first device, the connecting device. An operator should charge for primary connectivity, not downstream connections.

What other imaginary services could your phone company bill?

• Cell-handoffs. Get the first 5 free and then 10 cents a go. Neil Stratford
• Secondary listening. Special speakerphone detection modes to charge you extra for other people overhearing the call. Neil Stratford
• Voice by the word. Charge for voice the way they charge for SMS. 10 cents for 15 words.
• Volume detection. Shouting must mean the message is very important so charge more for louder conversation. mort

photo credit: cc-by Holly Gramazio.

Thanks to the Voice on the Web chat room.

See also:

• Power, Freedom And Money, a presentation on Skype, Apple, and the Carriers from April 2009
• FCC Chairman slams Skype Mobile Carterfone proposal; not dead yet, Skype Journal, April 2008
• Skype Journal nominates Chris Libertelli for the EFF's 2008 Pioneer Award, Skype Journal, January 2008
• FCC votes today, Skype glad FCC considering 'openness,' a far cry from 'delamination'. Skype Journal, July 2007
• Competing against Skype 102: Lobbying, Skype Journal, June 2007

tags: skype, iphone, att, at&t, tether, tethering, freedom, connection, connectivity, ripoff

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

King of Broadband

FCC acting chairman Michael Copps just named Blair Levin to coordinate the construction of the FCC's broadband plan. Thank you, Chairman Copps! Mazel Tov, Mr. Levin!

Astoundingly great, ubiquitous, pervasive, cheap, uncensored, clean, accessible, fair and market-driven broadband might be possible with a national plan. A former commissioner, Levin understands the deeper tech, social, economic and political forces at play, and the players. Skype's Chris Libertelli told FierceVoIP last year that "Levin would make an excellent FCC chairman." (He didn't get the job.) Blair's a nice guy who knows the lyrics to Winnie the Pooh songs.

The first months of the Obama administration's broadband efforts focused on quick, temporary, job creating projects. In his new role, Levin focus on "the whole ballgame." The video is from January 2009's State of the Net Conference where he discusses some of the gaps a national broadband plan could discover and fill.

Great broadband makes Skype better, so this appointment is a hopeful portent.

tags: blairlevin, fcc, broadband, internetcaucus, usa

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Tune in to the Revolution. Live.

Anything with Susan Crawford has my attention. Tune in now.

hashtag: #fpdc

Tune In, Agenda, Speakers, Resources, News, FAQ

 

News release:

Michael Copps, Vivian Schiller, Susan Crawford to Keynote Free Press Summit

Event to highlight public interest policies on Internet, journalism and public media

WASHINGTON -- The Free Press Summit: Changing Media in Washington, D.C., tomorrow will feature keynote speeches by Acting Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Copps, Vivian Schiller, president of National Public Radio, and Susan Crawford of President Barack Obama's National Economic Council.

What: Free Press Summit: Changing Media
When: Tomorrow, May 14, 2009, 9:30 a.m. -- 5 p.m.
Where: Newseum, 6th St. and Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, D.C.

*** The Free Press Summit will be streamed live at http://www.freepress.net/summit

The one-day event will highlight the policies to reshape the future of the Internet, journalism and public media. Free Press will also release a new book, Changing Media: Public Interest Policies for the Digital Age. The full agenda is included below.

9:45 a.m. Welcome to the Free Press Summit

• Josh Silver, Free Press
• Alberto Ibargüen, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

10:15 a.m. Changing Media: Public Interest Policies for the Digital Age

• S. Derek Turner, Free Press, discussing Dismantling Digital Deregulation: Toward a National Broadband Strategy
• Craig Aaron, Free Press, discussing Saving the News: Toward a National Journalism Strategy

11:00 a.m. Morning Keynote

• Michael J. Copps, Acting FCC Chairman

11:45 a.m. A View from the White House

• Introduction: Tim Wu, Free Press
• Susan Crawford, President Barack Obama's National Economic Council

12:00 p.m. Roundtable Discussion on Changing Media

• Ray Suarez, The NewsHour (moderator)
• Reed Hundt, Former FCC Chairman
• Michael Powell, Former FCC Chairman
• Jessica Rosenworcel, Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
• Ben Scott, Free Press
• Ram Shriram, Sherpalo Ventures

1:00 p.m. Interactive Discussion: The Future of the Internet

2:15 p.m. Afternoon Keynote

• Introduction: Alexandra Russell, Free Press
• Vivian Schiller, National Public Radio

2:30 p.m. Interactive Discussion: The Crisis in Journalism

3:30 p.m. Interactive Discussion: Public Media’s Moment

4:45 p.m. Closing the Free Press Summit

For more information about the Free Press Summit: Changing Media, visit http://www.freepress.net/summit

###

Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications. Learn more at www.freepress.net

Q. What are the Skype TechPolicy issues?

I'm heading out to a technology public policy conference today. Tuning my ear to listen for new issues. Some already on the Skype plate...

• Mobile Carterfone – freedom to use the device of your choice on a mobile network
• Mobile Net Neutrality – US mobile carriers are blocking Skype voice calls from data services. See iPhone and Windows Mobile store policies written by carriers.
• Net Neutrality – ISPs banned Skype. Should that be OK?
• P2P Freedom – As Skype shows, p2p has legitimate uses yet copyright industry groups draft laws banning the technology.
• Rural Access – Skype users needs cheap, capacious, ubiquitous, expandable broadband to the home and office.
• Telco Antitrust – The big mobile, landline, and cable carriers are very profitable, even in a horrid economy. Evidence of undue market power?
• Privacy – The US government is funding research to intercept Skype calls and uncover your Skype contacts
• E911 – When does Skype become responsible for helping people call emergency services?
• Unwanted Attention – Telemarketing, spam, spim, spit – we hate it all. What is government's role?
• Carbon Footprint – Can Skype-like communication lower our personal and national environmental impact? What can Skype engineers do to lower it further?

See today's Free Press analysis Dismantling Digital Deregulation: Toward a National Broadband Strategy (pdf). DDD suggests the US:

• Review every major FCC decision since the 1996 Act and reverse those that failed to promote broadband competition, openness and access. Congress should aid this process with a series of oversight hearings.
• Develop a data-driven standard to identify local areas where broadband providers are abusing their market power, and use the tools in the 1996 Act to promote competition.
• Expand and codify the FCC's "Internet Policy Statement" into permanent Net Neutrality rules. Congress should pass a Net Neutrality law to place these protections in the Communications Act.
• Reclassify broadband as a "telecommunications service," which will allow the FCC to promote competition by reinstating open access rules where appropriate.
• Transition the Universal Service Fund from supporting telephone service to supporting broadband infrastructure. Congress should aid this transition through oversight and legislation to provide a clear path for FCC action.
• Produce an honest assessment of whether broadband is being deployed to all Americans in a timely fashion, as required by the 1996 Act.
• Conduct a thorough review of policies governing competition and pricing in the "special access" and "middle-mile" or "enterprise" markets -- the broadband lines that connect cell phone towers and local area networks to the Internet.
• Open more of the public airwaves to unlicensed use and promote shared spectrum for both low-power urban and high-power rural uses. Congress should instruct the FCC and the NTIA to identify spectrum that could be utilized.

Offline for a the afternoon, the better to pay attention and mingle.

tags: public policy, skype, carterfone, Mobile Net Neutrality, iPhone, apple, microsoft, netneutrality, p2p, fcc, access, broadband, monopoly, antitrust, privacy, e911, telemarketing, spam, spim, spit, deregulation, competition, openness, spectrum, NTIA

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

16 Skype Mobile @ CTIA fantasies

1. iPhone gets a Skype Lite client.
• [Hat tip to Om Malik's creative? sources.]
2. Apple buys Skype.
• Skype is what iChat could have become with funding and management support. Although we're still waiting on multiparty video.
3. Skype Lite For iPhone OS 3, later this year.
• The best Skype experiences need push and sync services you'll find in 3.
4. Verizon buys Skype.
• Or another US mobile carrier. 0% growth in wireless minutes, 20% growth in data; time to sell services that drive data growth.
5. Three US carriers will sell low end Skypephones this year.
• Maybe if carriers won't spend a few billion to buy Skype, they'll partner to build data plan sales and consumption.
6. Skype asks the new FCC to force mobile Carterfone rules on US carriers.
• A new administration could be very interested in the political appeal of consumer-friendly rules.
7. Google buys Skype.
• Would complement Google Voice, Goog411, Google Talk, Android and all the other realtime conversation projects, filling in gaps and serving non-Google customers. Skype's new evidence-based management culture might fit too.
8. Cisco buys Skype.
• Telepresence at the high end, WebEx in the bigco, Skype everywhere else.
9. Skype Lite now supports video.
• I wish. Completely depends on the handset, on features turned off/on by carriers, on the quality/capacity of 3G.
10. Rupert Murdoch buys Skype.
• Skype already partners with MySpace, a NewsCorp company. Could Skype branded mobile and desktop tools help sell other NewsCorp television, sports, business, and games content?
11. Skype launches DENIM, a new video codec for mobiles.
• Skype depends on On2 for video codecs. How long before Skype decides it's better to own than to rent? Skype's SILK codec proves they've decided that before.
12. Microsoft buys Skype.
• MSN and Windows Live Messenger are both insanely popular IM products, but neither of the ad-supported products convinced people to use voice, video, or PSTN features. After Microsoft buys Yahoo!, they may have enough loose cash to pick up Skype. Skype has a newly upgraded client for Windows Mobile.
13. Skype mobile clients support video calls.
• An oft requested feature.  
14. Nokia buys Skype.
• Just a long ferry ride from Tallinn. It would explain Nokia's Barcelona announcement to ship smartphones with Skype later this year. Skype has mobile products all three Nokia OS's: Symbian, Maemo/Linux, and java.
15. Skype becomes location-aware.
• Sort those contact lists by proximity. Update mood messages automatically by zone ("leaving the office"). Filter directory search results. 
16. Oprah buys Skype.

We'll see what really happens.

tags: skype, ctia, ctia09

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype sucks up to new FCC chair – like everyone else

The new Matt LeBlanc look-alike is filling a post that affects Skype's future in the US. It's a proper courtesy to greet the new nominee.

SKYPE WELCOMES NOMINATION OF JULIUS GENACHOWSKI AS NEW FCC CHAIRMAN

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2009 – Josh Silverman, Skype’s President, issued the following statement regarding the nomination by President Barack Obama of Julius Genachowski as the new Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission:

"Skype is pleased that President Obama has nominated Julius Genachowski to Chair the Federal Communications Commission. As a trusted member of the Obama technology policy team, we look forward to working with Julius as the FCC establishes policy priorities. The success of the Obama campaign clearly demonstrated that the Internet is a platform for empowering citizens and disrupting existing ways of doing business. Likewise, change is coming to the FCC and we are looking forward to working with Chairman Genachowski to put innovation policy to work for all Americans. We welcome Chairman Genachowski to his new responsibilities and to a future defined by more innovation, faster broadband, and lower phone bills."

The US spends hundreds of billions of dollars annually on telecom, all of it regulated by the Federal Communications Commission. FCC policies affect consumer choice, market consolidation, rural Internet access, the rules of mobile competition, availability of spectrum to citizens.

No wonder figurative bowers of flowers are being heaped upon Chairman Nominee Genachowski from all affected.

Technorati tags: skype, fcc, genachowski, regulation, julius, lobbying

Skype asks US LOC to legalize jailbreaking mobile phones

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF for short) petitioned the U.S. Copyright Office to allow people to put whatever software they want on their mobile phones. This would permit working around copy protection. 

Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute lawfully obtained software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications with computer programs on the telephone handset.

Apple doesn't like this, saying the petition is an attack on the iPhone business model.

Apple is opposed to the proposed Class #1 exemption because it will destroy the technological protection of Apple’s key copyrighted computer programs in the iPhone™ device itself and of copyrighted content owned by Apple that plays on the iPhone, resulting in copyright infringement, potential damage to the device and other potential harmful physical effects, adverse effects on the functioning of the device, and breach of contract. The proponents of the exemption have also not satisfied their burden of proof of showing harm to non-infringing uses of the copyrighted works protected by the technological protection measures on the iPhone.

Specifically, it seeks through the proposed exemption to clear the path for those who would hack the iPhone’s operating system so that a proprietary mobile computing platform protected by copyright can be transformed into one on which any third party application can be run, without taking account of the undesirable consequences that would ensue from the transformation. EFF’s submission offers no proof that this proposed transformation would actually increase innovation or investment in creative works...

In other words, if just anyone can download just any software without Apple's approval, then Apple's stranglehold over the iPhone software market would be broken. 

The Mozilla Foundation likes the exemption, saying iPhone users should be free to use Mozilla's browser instead of the one MicrosoftApple includes (consumer choice and control). They also say the exemption promotes open access to the Internet. When users cannot choose their browser software...

The choice in access means is equally important to an open web. today, all consumers do not have a lawful means of exercising their choices, because some devices are tethered to particular software chosen by the hardware vendor. As a result, it limits the means by which users can access and use the Internet. When this happens, consumers' experience of the internet – an open and public resource – is artificially constrained and unnecessarily defined by the hardware vendor because users are required to use that particular software in order to access and use the Internet.

Paraphrasing, when one company controls your browser, that company controls what you see, how you see it, and how you participate. You may trust that company, but you shouldn't have to.

Skype supports the exemption [full text below]. Skype says the freedom to install software powers the freedom to use your phone with different mobile carriers. They say copyright law shouldn't be used to keep people from switching telephone networks (locking) or from using the software they want (blocking).

And there's Skype's obvious self-interest:

Copyright law should not interfere with a user using his or her phone to run Skype and enjoy the benefits of low- or no-cost long-distance and international calling.

The comment period ended 2 February 2009. Next steps are Copyright Office public hearings in the next few months and published decisions later this year.

See also:

• Copyright.gov: Rulemaking on Anticircumvention 
• Previous rulemaking rounds: 2000, 2003, 2006.
• Notice of Inquiry (pdf) requests comment.

 

Full text of Skype's comment on the petition below:

Before the
COPYRIGHT OFFICE
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Washington, D.C.
In the matter of
Exemption to Prohibition on Circumvention of Copyright Protection Systems for Access Control Technologies

Docket No. RM 2008–8
COMMENTS OF SKYPE COMMUNICATIONS S.A.R.L.

Skype Communications S.A.R.L. (“Skype”) hereby files these comments in support of the proposals to exempt from the prohibition on circumvention of access control technologies computer programs that enable individuals to use software applications of their choice on wireless telephone handsets and that enable individuals to use such handsets on wireless networks of their choice (Classes 5A–5D in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking[1]). As discussed below, allowing consumers to use devices and software applications of their choice on wireless networks maximizes consumer choice and encourages innovation, and should not be restricted by copyright law.

Skype is a global software company whose software application allows its users to communicate with individuals around the world, either for free (when communicating with other Skype users) or at very low rates (when calling PSTN phone numbers). In less than six years since founding, Skype has revolutionized the voice calling market, giving hundreds of millions of users[2] an easy way of staying in touch with friends and loved ones and reducing their long-distance bills (particularly international-calling bills). The Skype software client marries the traditional appeal of voice calling with additional features such as video calls, instant messaging, file transfer, online payment, and so on. Like many software applications that use the Internet, Skype first became popular being used on wired broadband networks; however, its wireless software client is increasingly popular as wireless users seek the benefits offered by Skype including cheaper calls, online presence detection, etc.

Skype strongly supports open wireless broadband networks; i.e., wireless networks on which users can attach (nonharmful) devices of their choice (“no locking”) and use software applications of their choice on such devices (“no blocking”). In February 2007, Skype filed a Petition for Rulemaking[3] with the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) asking that wireless broadband networks be operated under these openness principles, in keeping with the FCC’s Broadband Policy Statement[4] and its seminal Carterfone[5] decision.[6] A few months later, the FCC adopted no locking and no blocking rules to a vital block of spectrum auctioned off for use by wireless broadband networks.[7]

Over the past several months, the nation’s wireless carriers have increasingly embraced the principles of open wireless networks — though their actions so far do not match their words. Wireless carriers and the handset manufacturers they strike deals with continue to employ various means to keep users from using devices and software applications of their choice — from terms of service to the software and firmware loaded on the handsets sold by the carriers. Where carriers and handset manufacturers allow the use of third-party software applications, such as Apple’s iPhone App Store (used on the AT&T network) or Google’s Android (used on the T-Mobile network), the carriers and handset manufacturers reserve the right not to permit the use of software applications that it deems harmful to its business. For example, while it is possible to install adaptations of VoIP applications on some smartphones,[8] carriers’ Terms of Service typically block more robust “end-to-end” VoIP products that use a wireless broadband connection rather than a narrowband connection that uses the carriers’ regular wireless voice minutes. The adapted versions of applications like Skype do not provide wireless consumers with the full range of innovative features that would be available if VoIP application developers were able to harness the full benefits of the wireless data plans that the consumers pay for.

Skype opposes any attempts to restrict the ability of individuals to use devices and software applications of their choice on wireless networks,[9] and, therefore, supports the proposals to exempt from the anti-circumvention provisions:

1. Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute lawfully obtained software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications with computer programs on the telephone handset,[10] and

2. Computer programs in the form of firmware or software that enable mobile communication handsets to connect to a wireless communication network, when circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of lawfully connecting to a wireless communication network.[11]

These two classes of exemptions will ensure that copyright laws do not interfere with the no blocking and no locking open wireless network principles. Enabling wireless handset users to use their unlocked phone on a network of their choice and to use legally-obtained software applications of their choice on their handsets will ensure that they enjoy the benefits of choice and competition with respect to mobile software applications and handsets — not simply choice among wireless networks. Copyright law should not interfere with a user using his or her phone to run Skype and enjoy the benefits of low- or no-cost long-distance and international calling.

More broadly, users should be able to use their choice of devices and software applications on wireless networks rather than being limited to those devices and applications that are “approved” by the wireless carrier. Allowing end users to choose the devices and applications they use gives them access to a much wider array of devices and applications than would restricting their choices to those offered by wireless carriers acting as gatekeepers — particularly in instances where carriers restrict access to applications, such as Skype, that may threaten part of their business model. An end-to-end network, in which consumer choice is empowered, ensures that innovation occurs at the edges of the network where hundreds if not thousands of application developers and software manufacturers, rather than a handful of wireless carriers, can compete to meet consumer demand.

* * *

For the foregoing reasons, Skype supports the proposals to exempt from the prohibition on circumvention of access control technologies computer programs that enable individuals to use software applications of their choice on wireless telephone handsets and that enable individuals to use such handsets on wireless networks of their choice, i.e. Classes 5A–5D. Skype supports no blocking and no locking policies, and opposes any limitations on these wireless consumer empowerment principles that may arise from the DMCA.

Respectfully submitted,

SKYPE COMMUNICATIONS, S.A.R.L.

Henry Goldberg
Devendra T. Kumar
GOLDBERG, GODLES, WIENER & WRIGHT
1229 19th St., N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 429-4900 – Telephone
(202) 429-4912 – Facsimile
Of Counsel to Skype Communications, S.A.R.L.

Christopher Libertelli, Senior Director, Government and Regulatory Affairs – North America
SKYPE COMMUNICATIONS S.A.R.L.
6e etage, 22/24 boulevard Royal,
Luxembourg, L-2449 Luxembourg

Dated: February 2, 2009

Footnotes:

1. Exemption to Prohibition on Circumvention of Copyright Protection Systems for Access Control Technologies, Docket No. RM 2008-8, 73 Fed. Reg. 79,425, 79,427 (2008).
2. Skype has over 400 million registered users worldwide.
3. Skype Communications S.A.R.L. Petition to Confirm a Consumer’s Right to Use Internet Communications Software and Attach Devices to Wireless Networks, RM-11361 (filed Feb. 20, 2007) (“Skype Petition”).
4. Appropriate Framework for Broadband Access to the Internet over Wireline Facilities, CC Docket No. 02-33, Appropriate Regulatory Treatment for Broadband Access to the Internet Over Cable Facilities, CS Docket No. 02-52, Policy Statement, FCC 05-151 (rel. Sep. 23, 2005).
5. Use of the Carterfone Device in Message Toll Telephone Service, 13 FCC 2d 420 (1968).
6. The Skype Petition remains pending at the FCC.
7. See Service Rules for the 698-746, 747-762 and 777-792 MHz Bands, Second Report and Order, WT Docket No. 06-150, FCC 07-132, at 88, ¶ 189–230 (rel. Aug. 10, 2007) (“700 MHz Order”).
8. See Bob Tedeschi, Phone Smart: Free Internet-Calling Services Join the Cellphone App Market, N.Y. Times, Jan. 29, 2009, at B5, available at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/29/technology/personaltech/29smart.html.
9. The only exceptions to open wireless networks should be for devices that harm the network and for restrictions on the use of software applications that result from reasonable network management practices.
10. 73 Fed. Reg. at 79,427, Class 5A.
11. 73 Fed. Reg. at 79,427, Class 5C. Note that Classes 5B and 5D are almost identical to Class 5C and are treated as such in these comments.

tags: skype, life, regulation, jailbreak, iphone, mobile, rights, fcc, copyright, copyright.gov, drm, freedom

Tweet with Phil Wolff on @evanwolf, talk on FriendFeed, or Skype me to join the Skype Journal private chat room.
Follow @skypejournal on twitter

What could Skype do with 1Gbps Broadband to the home?

Multiparty video chat.

In super-duper-ultra-hi-def resolution.

In Surround Sound 5.1 audio.

While watching HD television together.

In Seoul in 2012.

That's what I call a national broadband policy.

Korea plans to boost their 100Mbps to the home to 1000Mbps while the US is barely averaging 1 to 5.

Technorati tags: skype, broadband, bandwidth, kr, korea, design, policy, fcc, stimulus, jobs, wishlist

P.S. And smell-o-vision.

P.P.S. Maybe without the chimps and popcorn.

Google's Three Opportunities for FCC2009

Emerging Communications' Lee Dryburgh interviewed Richard Whitt, Google's Washington telecom and media counsel.

Whitt sees three opportunities for Google and the emerging communications community.

• The stimulus package. It may incent next generation broadband.
• Unlocking more of the government wireless spectrum. So it can be put to use.
• Defining a national broadband policy.

If you like Lee's Richard Whitt interview, Whitt will speak at eComm09 in San Francisco.

NOTE: While the early bird discount ends today, you can still get 20% off with your 'skypejournal' discount code. See you there.

tags: google, ecomm09, events, regulations, us, fcc

Talk with Phil Wolff on Twitter or FriendFeed or on Skype.
Follow Skype Journal on twitter

Thursday Reading

Stories

Coral Springs CBS4 interviews hometown marching band over Skype. Station saved flying a South Florida reporter to the D.C. inauguration.

US National Guardsman Skypes his family from Afghanistan deployment. Satellite uplink for connectivity.

Americans in Switzerland phonebanked for Obama over Skype. Three thousand SkypeOut calls reminding people to vote.

Competition

US FCC investigating Comcast's network neutrality. New network management may treat Skype and Vonage calls worse than their own telephony service.

Lotusphere 2009 Foreshadows the Death of Telephony. Zeus Kerravala, The Yankee Group: "While some of you may read "the death of telephony" and disagree, I do believe that telephony, as we know it, needs to die in its current form to accelerate UC and CEBP adoption"

Cisco television commercial makes the case for Skype video. WebEx lyrics to Gloria Gaynor's "I will survive"

Geekery

rhomobile application framework: open source Rhodes, and the $10k Rhodes app development contest.

Linking Skype 2.8 Beta to Twitter - here's how to do it... Dan York explains. Thanks, Dan!

tags: skype, fcc, vonage, us, lotusphere, lotusphere09, lotusphere2009, ls09, cisco

Talk with Phil Wolff on Twitter or FriendFeed or on Skype.
Follow Skype Journal on twitter

Phil Wolff's 26 incriminating 2009 Skype Predictions

Last year's Jim Courtney's 2008 predictions and mine. 
In 2009:

1. MacWorld sucks without Steve Jobs.
2. Steve Jobs steps down as Apple CEO.
3. Skype brings back Skypecasts with a new feature: with one click, introduce spammers, con artists, and sexy webcam girls to each other.
4. Skype for Neocortex. Mood based on serotonin levels. Very high quality audio and video by tapping directly into the optic nerve and auditory system. Some side effects.
5. Skype for Lovers. Extension of Skype 4.1. Just one buddy to dial. No interruptions. Ultrasimple UI: click the heart.
6. Skype's new platforms have more active developers than BT Ribbit. More than Google Android. Fewer than Apple iPhone.
7. Litigation. 1530 sleep deprived patients sue Skype for keeping them up late.
8. Google Central will be exciting.
9. Google Video Talk adds multiparty video.
10. The Emerging Communications Conference (eComm) will sell out.
11. Yahoo! fires thousands of people. Decimates the messenger team. Hires a new executive team. Reorganizes. Again.
12. Skype introduces multiparty video. The kids love it. WebEx hates it.
13. Skype for Asterisk gets video call support. Dating sites love it.
14. Skype for WoW builds on Skype for Asterisk. The raiders love it. 
15. Skypephone comes to the Americas via partnership with with US mobile carriers. Wal-Mart will carry it. Nothing for Canada.
16. 3 INQ1 sales will cut into 3 Skypephone sales in the UK.
17. U.S. Mobile Carterfone rules (to free mobile phones from carrier contracts) will be considered by the FCC.
18. VoIP falls from telecom jargon. Even VoIP bloggers stop using the term. The public starts using Skype as a generic name for internet talk.
19. eBay's auction businesses will do well in tough times, better in the second half of the year.
20. Skype will make $630 million in FY2009.
21. Peak Skype usage will top 18 million simultaneous users.
22. Skype will serve 23 billion minutes in 2009Q4.
23. Skype scores product placements in:
    
    
    • Hannah Montana: The Movie, spurring the rise of Skype pajama parties.
    • The Sinatra Club, using the new Skypeoke feature.
    • Star Trek, as ancient technology.
    • Startups will rally to Running Out Of Angels (March 2009).
    • 24 as Cisco cuts ad spending.
    • In My Pocket (2009) is not about mobiles.
24. Skype issues new krypto since its old cryptographic source code escaped from TOM-Skype control
25. Skype Video for Mobile. Skype buys a streaming video service for smart mobile camera phones.
26. China approves SkypeIn and SkypeOut.

tags: skype, predictions, 2009, inq1, skypephone, wal-mart, canada, asterisk, video, ebay, voip, carterfone, WoW, 24, china, tom-skype

Talk with Phil Wolff on Twitter or FriendFeed or on Skype.
Follow Skype Journal on twitter

Mobiles (and Skype) force AT&T to layoff 12,000

AT&T blames the 4% layoff on landline loss. Four percent is no big deal for a 300,000 person company; it's just moving people from its landline business to its other operations. This follows 20% of US consumers who left landlines to mobiles.

At least one state government is trying to stop AT&T's layoffs. Connecticut's attorney general is suing to block "AT&T from laying off about 400 employees in the state, charging that the job cuts will further weaken the company’s already dismal service performance."

AT&T will also conserve cash by putting off upgrades to its infrastructure and systems. This could be bad timing as massive copper theft threatens US telephony, internet, and electricity systems.

Om Malik sees this hunkering down as a trend. This is already starving carrier suppliers, as those who used to sell their products at the now-defunct VON trade show know well. 

Personally, I think this is a political gambit. AT&T is getting set to play D.C. hardball when it comes to Obama administration FCC and FTC regulation, Department of Justice antitrust issues, and congressional bailouts.

tags: skype, attention, at&t, att, layoffs, economy, apocalypt08, business

Follow Phil Wolff on Twitter or FriendFeed or on Skype.
Follow Skype Journal on twitter

FCC puts off rural funding and freemium decision

The Federal Communication Commission scheduled it for election day, but they will not vote to reform intercarrier compensation and rural telephone subsidies as part of the Universal Service Fund (USF). While it may be brought up again, it probably won't be until the new presidential administration appoints new commissioners. Supporters had hoped for a delay to hold hearings in December. 

Some services, such as free conference calling, use loopholes in intercarrier tariffs to pay the bills. So some smaller states became a haven for services free-to-consumers but with costs born by the phone companies of out-of-state callers. These only becomes a problem for bigger carriers when their long distance services are sold at a flat rate while underlying costs vary. Some of the proposed rate reforms would have closed these loopholes. In anticipation of this ruling, companies like Skype partner VAPPS left their freemium model for a subscription model.

The country's largest carriers supported leveling the tariffs, which would have cut off payments to small phone companies supporting about one third of the United States. Opposition to these reforms came from telecom unions, state regulators, rural phone companies and rural ISPs.

Barack Obama expressed support for the USF, for funding rural telecom access, and for expanding the reach of broadband to rural America. The Chairman's decision clearly had nothing to do with today's election. 

tags: skype, policy, election, 2008, regulation, rural, suburban, access, fcc, obama, mccain, presidency, president, us, united states, voters, icc, usf, tariff, demographics, demography, broadband

Follow Phil Wolff on Twitter or FriendFeed or on Skype.
Follow Skype Journal on twitter

November 2008 Events

I'm attending bold events.
Tips @ SkypeJournal.com with suggestions, photos, reportage. Spend your travel dollars while you have them.

2 November. Dreamforce 2008. Salesforce automation becomes an application platform for live talk. Moscone Center, San Francisco.

3. ARGS: Cross-Platform Entertainment 2.0. People in alternative reality games have strong reasons to talk live in groups. NESTA, London.

3. Defrag. Some of the hardest questions are tackled at this thought leadership event. Among others, Daniela Barbosa of DataPortability.org is speaking. Colorado Convention Center.

3. The Business of APIs - The Web's Industrial Revolution. Platforming as a strategy and survival trait. Brought to you by The Mashery. City Club of San Francisco.

3. Mobile 2.0. Grand Hyatt San Francisco.

3. Widget Summit. Putting some of your verbs into someone else's places. Hotel Nikko San Francisco.

3. ad:tech New York. The people who pay for lots of free. New York Hilton.

3. Future of Web Design. Roseland Ballroom, NYC.

3. VRM Hub London Conference 2008: Unlocking the see-saw. Vendor Relationship Management, putting people back in control of their identities and their relationships with companies. Sun Microsystems London.

4. US Election Day. If your election lasts for more than four hours, call your doctor.

4. Think Global, Drink Local: Think London/Sterling Communications Election Night Party. San Francisco.

4. Mobile Tech For Social Change. A barcamp. San Francisco.

5. Digital Garage New Context Conference. Joi Ito's clan convenes. Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.

5. Web 2.0 Summit. Still hankering for a press pass. Palace Hotel San Francisco.

5. WinHEC 2008. Windows hardware engineering. Los Angeles Convention Center.

5. Design Futures: Deconstructing Networks - Jonah Brucker-Cohen, of Trinity College Dublin, experiments in how we design and think about the social effect places and alert networks. U.C. Berkeley, California. 

6. Edge of the Web 2008. Perth has a growing Web 2.0+ community. Crawley, Western Australia. 

6. Tweets and Dreenks: November Social Drinkup. Mars Bar, San Francisco.

6. Mobile Forum Meeting: Opportunities in Broadband Wireless. San Jose, California.

6. Community Manager Meetup. San Francisco.

7. Unofficial iPhone TechTalk after-drinks. The Apple event at University of Middlesex is full. London.

8. Silicon Valley Code Camp. Hands-on with peer coaching. Los Altos Hills, California.

8. Freebase Hack Day. Build something with massive quantities of creative commons'd data. San Francisco.

10. Mobile Monday London.

10. Internet Identity Workshop. iiw2008b is a must-go event. This is where the digital ID architecture of the next 10 years is conceived, debated, and bought into. Computer History Museum, Mountain View, CA.

10. VoiceCon. Enterprise and unified communications. San Francisco.

11. e-Democracy '08. The first post-US election event to explore politics, public participation and digital technology. RIBA, Central London.

11. US Veteran's Day, Canada and UK Remembrance Day. National holiday.

12. Emerging Communications Dinner. Thought leaders who can't wait for eComm2009 March 03-05 will talk over supper. Ping me if you want an invite. (tips at skypejournal.com) San Francisco Airport Marriott.

12. Under the Radar: Mobility. 32 mobile startups less than one year old. Microsoft, Mountain View, California.

12. The Second London Futures Symposium. London.

13. NewTeeVee Live – Television Reinvented. Mission Bay Conference Center.

13. OpenSocial's 1st Birthday Celebration. Day long workshops. And cake. MySpace Offices, San Francisco.

13. IceWeb08. Kathy Sierra keynoting. Reykjavik. 

15. Convergence 08. Focus on long-term technologies, especially Nano-Bio-Info-Cogno. Co-sponsored by Foresight.org. Computer History Museum, Mountain View, California.

15. >play – Berkeley Digital Media. This year's theme is Disruption: Changes in the Digital Media Landscape. Organized by MBA students at Haas, U.C. Berkeley, California.

16. Adobe MAX 2008. Designers and developers imagine the next generation of browser-based talk. Moscone Center, San Francisco.

16. Fall IETF Meeting. Minneapolis, Minnesota, US.

17. Future of Mobile. Jemima Kiss, James Brody, and folks from Google, Symbian, and Mozilla make this a must attend event. Kensington Town Hall, London.

17. Mashup Camp. Steve Repetti of DataPortability.org is speaking at this mostly un-conference. Mountain View, California.

18. Mobile Content Forum. The event for all those companies who made millions on ringtones and wallpaper. Register from your iPhone, baby. Hilton London Kensington.

19. Open Mobile Summit 08. Discount: Register by Oct 10 with priority code TRL and save $400. agenda. trailer:

Fantastic hallway with Skype's Jonathan Christensen, AT&T, Dean Bubley, Om Malik, Rebtel, BT Design's JP Rangaswami, Truphone's James Body, Orange, O2, The US FCC's Julius Knapp, David Isenberg, Amazon, T-Mobile, AOL, Nokia, Google, Symbian, Intel, TAT, LG, RIM, OpenMoko, Funambol, Qualcomm. San Francisco.

18. Robo Development 2008. Robotics small, large, smart, and social. Santa Clara, California.

19. SOA World and Cloud Computing. The 14th Service Oriented Architecture conference. Now the standard for platforming architectures. I want to hear the session on building real-time SOA systems. The program's big buzzwords: cloud and virtual. The Fairmont Hotel, San Jose, California.

21. London Geek Nights: Game Programming. ThoughtWorks UK Office, High Holborn, London.

22. YouTube Live. Concert. Fort Mason, San Francisco.

22. Berkeley beats Stanford. Football. Go Bears.

26. The Media Festival. The session I want: "Case study: Lessons from the adult entertainment industry; learn the secrets of success in mobile entertainment." Always two to five years' ahead in technology and business practices due to intense competition. Manchester.

27. US Thanksgiving. A nation shuts down for a long weekend of American football, turkey, beer. And gratitude.

30. St. Andrew's Day. Scotland's national day.