I'm a bit late in posting from the last Basque -- the theme was "baby Basque", in honor of the (soon-to-arrive) little one. Meanwhile, my colleague & oft-time co-conspirator, James Losey, joked that we should roast a baby lamb for our dish. Of course, this quickly got out of hand -- not only with the lamb itself, but also with the notion that this was a perfectly good excuse to build our own rotisserie.

As I was lamenting the fact that finding a good motorized spit was proving to be more difficult than first anticipated, my neighbor, James Grant, opined that I should just use my Kitchenaid. Needless to say, between the James's, the blueprint for the DIY Kitchenaid-Powered, Bike Gear Enhanced, Lamb Rotisserie was borne. This turned out to be a multi-beer problem -- one requiring a week's worth of napkin sketches, Lowes runs, and R&D, but the finished product worked amazingly well. The bike gears kept the strain on the Kitchenaid remarkably low (didn't even cause the Kitchenaid to heat up). And the finished product worked like a charm:

Video of the rotisserie in action is also available here.

Hoo-ray, it's time for the International Summit for Community Wireless Networks! The call for proposals is now officially open -- this is our first time hosting the Summit outside the U.S., so we're expecting a whole bunch of new folks from overseas. Here's more:

CALL FOR PROPOSALS -- Accepted April 1 - June 1, 2010

International Summit for Community Wireless Networks
August 12-15, 2010
Vienna, Austria

Propose panels online at www.wirelesssummit.org

Since the first National Summit for Community Wireless Networks in 2004, tens of thousands of community and municipal broadband initiatives have been deployed around the globe. The 2010 International Summit for Community Wireless Networks offers panelists to help shape the future direction of this thriving global movement. Over the course of three days, panels and workshops provide a significant opportunity for thinkers, developers, and stakeholders to swap notes and produce substantial recommendations supporting the continuing development of community wireless networks. By gathering leaders from across this field to exchange of strategies, stories, and best practices, the Summit is a key place to help shape the future of this global networking movement.

Interested presenters should propose innovative panels and workshops focusing on the three themes for the Summit: technology, policy, and implementation. The International Summit for Community Wireless Networks distinguishes itself from typical technical and academic conferences by engaging all participants in an ongoing dialog that encourages a strategic approach to community wireless network development and telecommunications policy reform. Panelists do more than present their work and opinions -- they facilitate a process that records lessons learned and help produce a comprehensive "to-do list" of action items for the coming months and years.

We invite your panel proposals and participation in this year's International Summit for Community Wireless Networks to discuss and exchange ideas on how to make universal broadband access a reality. Demonstrations of software innovation, success stories of network deployment, presentations of ongoing research and discussion of municipal and governmental collaboration, on both the national and transnational levels, are welcome. Panelists are encouraged to convene panels that look at specific issues from multiple angles and perspectives. Panel ideas will be accepted on a rolling basis and must be received no later than June 1, 2010. Please send panel proposals of 250 words or less to: summit at chambana.net. Travel stipends are available for speakers with financial need.

Past panels can be reviewed at http://wirelesssummit.org.

I'm hosting an exciting event today over at the New America Foundation -- if you can't make it in person, you can watch the stream live online:

The Open Technology Initiative of the New America Foundation will host Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski on February 24, 2010 at 11am. Chairman Genachowski will preview working recommendations in the National Broadband Plan for advancing U.S. mobile broadband leadership.

Recognizing the importance of broadband for ensuring America’s economic development and leadership, Congress and the President tasked the FCC with developing a National Broadband Plan to connect all Americans to affordable, world-class, high-speed Internet. The FCC’s National Broadband Plan, which the agency will deliver to Congress on March 17, 2010, will create jobs and spur economic growth; unleash new waves of innovation and investment; and improve education, health care, energy efficiency, public safety, and the vibrancy of our democracy.

Chairman Genachowski will preview working recommendations for spectrum reforms incorporated into the National Broadband Plan. A distinguished panel of industry representatives and the public interest advocates will respond to these proposals.

This event will be webcast live, and questions will be taken via Twitter. Send your question or comment to @newamerica with the hashtag of #NAFevents.

Welcome
Steve Coll
President, New America Foundation

Keynote
Julius Genachowski
Chairman, Federal Communications Commission

Moderator
Sascha Meinrath
Director, Open Technology Initiative
New America Foundation

Panelists
Ben Scott
Policy Director, Free Press

Chris Guttman-McCabe
Vice President, Regulatory Affairs
CTIA-The Wireless Association

Julie Kearney
Vice President for Regulatory Affairs
Consumer Electronics Association

Matt Wood
Associate Director, Media Access Project

SAVE THE DATE!

August 12-15, 2010:
International Summit for Community Wireless Networks

Vienna, Austria
www.wirelesssummit.org

The New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative, Tech Gate Vienna, the CUWiN Foundation, and the Acorn Active Media Foundation are pleased announce that the annual International Summit for Community Wireless Networks will take place in Vienna, Austria from August 12-15, 2010.

Internet access is increasingly important to all facets of civil society. Since the first National Summit for Community Wireless Networks in 2004, tens of thousands of community and municipal broadband initiatives have been deployed around the globe, but many communities are being left out of this communications revolution. "The global coalition of developers, communities, industry, and advocates working together over the past decade has created one of the most disruptive and far-reaching technological innovations of our generation, yet few know about it and fewer still have taken advantage of this opportunity," says Sascha Meinrath, director of the Open Technology Initiative and the Summit's founder. "The International Summit for Community Wireless Networks is the nexus around which this movement swaps notes, strategizes, and organizes its agenda for development and implementation of ubiquitous, affordable broadband networks."

2010 marks the first year that this group of technologists, entrepreneurs, government officials, academics and engaged citizens will convene outside the United States, a critical step to broaden and deepen international involvement in what truly is a global movement. Participants will learn from each other’s examples, exchange strategies and anecdotes, and build partnerships that strengthen alliances among projects.

Vienna possesses a rich and diverse mix of established technology companies and start ups, new media organizations, researchers and cultural producers as well as a remarkable number of institutions of higher learning. Not only is Vienna well positioned among the top international leaders in the information economy, the city is also home to FunkFeuer, one of the most advanced community wireless networks in the world. FunkFeuer is highly respected internationally for its technical and social innovations, its many collaborations with university researchers and artists, and the scale and scope of its network. The Summit will provide an opportunity to expand upon FunkFeuer's successes and spread best-methods for developing sustainable metro-scale wireless mesh networks.

The International Summit for Community Wireless Networks focuses on how wireless networks can better serve their target populations, the policies needed to support broader deployment of community wireless systems, and the latest technological and software innovations in the field.

More information on the International Summit for Community Wireless Networks, including a call for proposals, registration, and other logistical information, will be available in the coming weeks at www.wirelesssummit.org.

We look forward to seeing you in August!

About the Acorn Active Media Foundation: The Acorn Active Media Foundation engages in software, website and technical development in support of the global justice movement. Acorn's commitment to its work stems from a foundational philosophy that its projects should align with the Foundation's goals to support social and economic justice. More information is available at: www.acornactivemedia.com.

About the CUWiN Foundation (CUWiN): CUWiN is a world-renowned coalition of wireless developers and community volunteers committed to providing low-cost, do-it-yourself, community controlled alternatives to contemporary broadband models. Its mission is to develop decentralized, community-owned networks that foster democratic cultures and local content. Through advocacy and through its commitment to open source technology, CUWiN supports organic networks that grow to meet the needs of their community. More information is available at www.cuwin.net.

About the Open Technology Initiative: Part of the New America Foundation, a non-partisan, non-profit, public policy institute in Washington, D.C., the Open Technology Initiative (OTI) formulates policy and regulatory reforms to support open architectures and open source innovations and facilitates the development and implementation of open technologies and communications networks. As an independent non-profit initiative, OTI provides in-depth, objective research, analysis, and findings for policy decision-makers and the general public. More information is available at: http://oti.newamerica.net.

About Tech Gate Vienna: Tech Gate Vienna is Vienna's first Science and Technology Park. For several years Tech Gate Vienna has provided a common location for research facilities, technology orientated companies and supportive advisory services. Vienna's focus on high-tech development is right here. Concentration on specific topics has ensured its effectiveness, and created an important requirement for developing synergies. More information is available at: http://www.techgate.at.

An interesting proposal from Senators Warner & Snowe. Reading between the lines, this is to solve the problem that technical expertise is too often sorely lacking across a number of different areas within the FCC (which has prioritized legal expertise over technological):

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Julia Wanzco (Snowe)
December 8, 2009 202.224.1304
Kevin Hall (Warner)
202.224.2425

Snowe, Warner Announce Bill to
Boost Technical Resources for FCC

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) today announced bipartisan legislation to bolster access to technical resources for the Commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The Snowe-Warner initiative will update current law to allow each Commissioner to hire an additional staff member—an electrical engineer or computer scientist—to provide in-depth technical consultation.

“Given the rapid advancement of technologies and innovation within the telecommunications industry, it is essential that Commissioners have in-house technical expertise to make well informed regulatory decisions,” said Senator Snowe, a senior member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which has jurisdiction over the legislation. “This legislation is a common-sense initiative that will guarantee each Commissioner has a technical expert on staff to provide detailed analysis on some of the most cutting-edge issues affecting the communications industry today.”

“Easing restrictions on the number of experts a commissioner can hire will provide the FCC with more tools and information it needs to decisions,” said Senator Warner. “This will give commissioners access to the best information possible, from all relevant disciplines, and in a timely manner – which is critical in making well-informed decisions.”

Under current law, each Commissioner is permitted to appoint only three professional assistants and a secretary. Historically, these professional assistants have been legal advisors covering the wireline, wireless, and cable/media sectors. The Snowe-Warner bill complements this structure by ensuring Commissioners have access to expertise involving the technical aspect of the issues, which is fundamental to developing sound regulatory policy related to the nation’s communications industry.

Here's the latest from the most recent expansion of Team OTI. I'm really looking forward to working with Tom -- he's going to be a fantastic addition to the Open Technology Initiative.

New America Foundation Announces Its First Knight Media Policy Fellow

November 12, 2009

The New America Foundation today announced that Tom Glaisyer will be its first Knight Media Policy Fellow, focusing on national media policy changes and related developments under a new grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Glaisyer, a Ph.D. candidate from Columbia University's School of Journalism, has long been focused on the interplay between media and political processes and institutions. He will take the lead on New America's media policy work, including the task of identifying and recruiting additional Knight Media Policy Fellows and coordinating their work.

"We're thrilled to have Tom leading the charge for our Media Policy Initiative," New America CEO Steve Coll said. "He is deeply involved in these discussions already, and his mix of academic research, technical expertise and hands-on experience with online community-building provides a perfect complement to the practicing journalists already at New America."

The Knight Media Policy Fellowships are designed to attract creative thinkers in old and new media who will track, critique and suggest media policy change. Among other efforts, the fellows will build on the Knight Commission's recently published report, "Informing Communities: Sustaining Democracy in the Digital Age."

Starting from the reports' findings, Knight Media Policy Fellows will focus on policies to reform public media, increase independent reporting on issues of public interest, and better help citizens access and engage with high-quality information. By tracking and critiquing policy initiatives at the federal level, and innovative media efforts in communities across the country, the fellows will report on both the successes and failures, along with their implications for the Knight Commission's recommendations to reform journalism nationwide.

"We look forward to hearing how officials in Washington are, or aren't, following up up on the recommendations of the commission -- and what the Knight Fellows think about that," said Eric Newton, vice president for journalism programs, Knight Foundation.

The additional Knight Media Policy Fellowships will be one-year, non-residential positions. Formal applications will not be accepted until December, but interested individuals can contact New America now at http://newamerica.net/contact/.

About the New America Foundation

The New America Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan
public policy institute that invests in new thinkers and new ideas to address the next generation of challenges facing the United States. For more, visit www.newamerica.net

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation advances
journalism in the digital age and invests in the vitality of communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Since 1950, the foundation has granted more than $400 million to advance quality journalism and freedom of expression. Knight Foundation focuses on projects that promote community engagement and lead to transformational change. For more, visit www.knightfoundation.org.

Cecilia Kang over at the Washington Post recently covered the Open Technology Initiative's proposal for a broadband nutrition label. You may already be familiar with the idea from the myriad credit card applications you probably receive each month which are mandated to contain a Shumer Box of key information about the credit card offer.

This sort of standardization makes comparisons across credit cards remarkably easy and helps ensure that we, as consumers, know what we're getting ourselves into. The same idea is what underlies the nutrition labels found on all prepackaged foods. My team's addition to the debate was to apply this idea to broadband services and propose what information should be contained within this informational disclosure.

Here's more from the Washington Post:

A nutrition box for Internet service?

Of all the data being collected for a federal probe into truth-in-billing rules for communications services, one statistic stands out:

Consumers are paying for broadband Internet service that lags advertised speeds by as much as 50 percent.

That stat was revealed by the Federal Communications Commission last month during a report on its plan to connect the entire nation to high-speed Internet. The news sent Twitterverse aflutter with outrage. Post Tech got tons of feedback on an entry about it. Consumer advocates said the revelation could open the door to class-action lawsuits against carriers for deceptive advertising.

And now those groups are offering one solution to help users from getting bamboozled. The groups, along with the New America Foundation, have proposed a Nutrition Fact box for broadband. Instead of calories, carbs and fiber, the broadband box would break down data on guaranteed delivered speeds, price, and length of contract. Such details are often blurred and buried in the fine print of multiple-page service agreements.







Truthful delivery of advertised speeds clearly hit and nerve with users who spend an average of $150 each month for their cell phone, cable or satellite television, home phone and Internet connections. And it was added frustration to notoriously shoddy service problems.

Communications service providers often rank low among industries in customer satisfaction surveys. Some online consumer activists have used the viral messaging on the Web to push companies like Comcast and Verizon to refocus their ways. Service at Comcast was so bad for Advertising Age blogger Bob Garfield that he started a Web site Comcastmustdie.com. That site has died and the push online hasn't led to meaningful change on billing practices of communications firms like Comcast, AT&T, Dish TV, Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile, consumer advocacy groups said.

"Consumers experience substantial confusion and frustration when choosing a service provider and plan, when using unexpectedly limited or low quality services, and when receiving higher-than expected bills," the groups wrote in final comments sent yesterday for the FCC review. "Substantial changes to the commission’s existing rules are necessary to remedy these problems."

Currently, carriers are generally left to voluntarily abide by some of the truth-in-billing standards, according to the groups that include Free Press, Consumers Union and Media Access Project.

The FCC's review looks at information available to consumers at all stages of the purchasing process of a communications service -- choosing a provider, choosing a service plan, managing use of the service plan, and deciding whether and when to switch an existing provider or plan.

Image credit: New America Foundation

Here's a fun article from the upcoming issue of IEEE Spectrum. Interestingly enough, while here at the eComm Conference here in Amsterdam, I'm working with my friend, Aaron Kaplan, on some of the newest open source community wireless mesh software and will be bringing home a mesh-in-a-box to deploy in my own back yard.

Netbooks Are Only Part of The Solution

POSTED BY: Tekla Perry // Wed, October 28, 2009

Netbooks are going to be huge, much bigger than they already are. Trust me on this. I say this not because I see more and more people working on them in cafes instead of on standard laptops—though I do. It’s not because I particularly want one—though for short trips I can see the appeal. It’s not because on a recent multifamily vacation one family showed up with one netbook per child.

It’s because my 70-something aunt, the one with the 30-year-old radio that you can only turn off by pulling the plug, and the TV that gets its signal from a 50-plus-year-old two-wire cable, just told me she’s thinking of getting a netbook.

Oh, it’ll be a couple of years before she actually makes the purchase, but the fact that she’s evening considering it is huge. The appeal for her is the cost, for sure—if it turns out to be a mistake, it won’t be a huge mistake. But what also is drawing her is also the fact that netbooks don’t look all that high tech. They don’t take up much room, they don’t have a lot of extra buttons on the keyboard, and they don’t do vast numbers of things she wouldn’t want to do anyway—like edit video or spend hours typing long documents.

But she has been thinking that it would be pretty cool to look up a fact she read somewhere but just can’t remember exactly, or check out a new medication prescribed by her doctor before she orders it.
And that’s enough usefulness to make her part with $250 or so. Once she gets one, I’ll show her how she can keep up with all her grandnieces and nephews on Facebook, and she’ll be set.

Unfortunately, much as I would have liked to, I didn’t run out that moment and get her a new netbook. Because there’s one piece of this puzzle missing—some kind of community wi-fi access. It doesn’t have to be free, it doesn’t have to be fast, but it has to be there; easy to get to at a reasonable price.

Forget dial-up—netbooks don’t even come with built-in modems, and these days the bells and whistle of most web sites mean dial up is just too slow to be viable. Cable modem or DSL would mean new wiring in her home (she’s got one corded wall phone right now, no other jacks), and a box that would have to be installed somewhere, set up, and occasionally rebooted. I can’t see convincing her to go through that hassle and expense.

But community wi-fi would be perfect. She’d need nothing but the netbook, the monthly fee would be reasonable, and, while likely slower than cable or DSL, it’d be moving plenty fast for her needs.
Which got me wondering—what happened to community wi-fi, anyway? I called Sascha Meinrath, research director of the New America Foundation’s wireless future program. He told me that it’s been going great in Europe, but in 2004 or 2005 got sidetracked in the U.S. “The rationale of community wireless, bringing low-cost or free wireless to the masses, got usurped by the corporate model,” he says, “how do we charge money for it.” And the corporations that cities contracted with to build low-cost systems didn’t have a lot of incentive to make those systems succeed, since they’d be competing with their own, higher cost internet access offerings. Earthlink, for example, last year shut down it’s community wireless systems in Philadelphia and New Orleans.

The good news, Meinrath told me, is that community wireless in the U.S. may be starting a new surge. He sees encouraging signs in the efforts of Meraki, a Google-backed startup that’s building low-cost wireless networks for companies, universities, and communities, and other low-cost efforts. He’s starting to see municipal and community groups who looked at community wireless in the past but got put off by the apparently high costs getting ready to take another look at it. And, he says, the $7.2 billion in stimulus funds targeted at increasing broadband access can only help; he’s hoping communities will spend that money on low-cost open source systems instead of expensive proprietary systems to make it go as far as possible.

Now back to my aunt. She still wants that netbook—with Internet access, but without a box in her house. Community wi-fi may be coming, but not soon enough. So I’m thinking, next time I’m visiting I’m going to boot up my laptop and see if I’m picking up any signals; if I am, I’ll go knock on a few doors and see if I can borrow a cup of broadband.

This morning I awoke to a www.BroadbandforAmerica.com sponsorship of National Public Radio. Broadband for America is an industry-funded front group -- its general goal is to create confusion about what consumer and public interest groups support when it comes to telecommunications reform. Later this morning I got an e-mail from a good friend:

> Ugh, this is the top story in my iGoogle NPR feed.
>
> http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113297709&f=1057&sc=igg2

This pro-incumbent, anti-consumer, anti-network neutrality rant is written by none other than Scott Cleland who gets his funding directly from AT&T, Comcast, Sprint, Verizon, Qwest, and others.

The question I have for NPR is how is it that they get a bunch of funding from an industry fronted astroturf group and then (on the same day) decide to run an anti network neutrality rant on the same day? I thought payola was illegal.

A new concept from the friendly folks at the New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative:

For Immediate Release
September 24, 2009

The New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative (OTI) is calling for Truth-in-Labeling by our nation's broadband operators. OTI has developed a set of disclosure standards to provide the broadband market-place with a much-needed tool to allow consumers to better understand their broadband subscriptions and compare plans among different operators.

"As the Federal Communications Commission creates a national broadband policy to drive affordable broadband deployment, a key facet of this plan will be empowering customers with the information they need to make informed choices among Internet service providers," stated Sascha Meinrath, Director of New America Foundation's Open Technology Initiative. "'Truth in Broadband Advertising' is the key element that ensures that the general public can compare and choose their best broadband options."

OTI has created a sample Broadband Truth-in-Labeling disclosure, in an effort to establish a standardized label for operators to provide consumers with essential information about their broadband subscriptions, including Internet speed, service guarantees, prices, service limits, and other related elements. The label aims at educating consumers about the contents of broadband services to create transparency in the market and increase competition, innovation and consumer welfare.

For full text of the proposal: http://www.newamerica.net/publications/policy/broadband_truth_labeling.
Please contact Kate Brown with further inquiries at 202-596-3365 or brown@newamerica.net.

About the New America Foundation
The New America Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy institute that invests in new thinkers and new ideas to address the next generation of challenges facing the United States.

About the Open Technology Initiative
The Open Technology Initiative formulates policy and regulatory reforms to support open architectures and open source innovations and facilitates the development and implementation of open technologies and communications networks.