2010 July InfoTech & Telecom News (full-text pdf)

Published July 1, 2010

The July issue of InfoTech & Telecom News opens with a discussion of the Federal Communications Commission’s plan to regulate the Internet under its Title II, telephone-focused rules — an effort policy analysts and industry observers say will hamper investment and innovation in broadband.

Also in this issue:

  • The New Hampshire Supreme Court has ruled that an online news site is protected by the state’s reporters’ shield law. The decision has renewed debate over who should be considered a “journalist” under such laws, a question that is spreading from state to state.
  • Scottsdale, Arizona has come under fire for requiring right-of-way permitting and installation fees from wireless companies, a revenue-grabbing scheme that already has been challenged and defeated in other municipalities.
  • North Carolina and Colorado are attempting to balance their state budgets by implementing sales taxes on Internet sales, requiring retailers to divulge detailed personal information about their customers.
  • Three research groups are calling for increased government strictures on alcohol advertising on Internet social networking sites.
  • Two Congressmen are proposing to have the federal government limit targeted advertising on the Internet only to those who opt in, but policy experts say the bill is an unnecessary government intrusion.