Sascha Meinrath's blog

h2SAVE THE DATE!/h2 pstrongAugust 12-15, 2010:br / International Summit for Community Wireless Networks/strong/p pVienna, Austriabr / a href=http://www.wirelesssummit.org target=blankwww.wirelesssummit.org/a/p pThe 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./p pInternet 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./p p2010 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./p pVienna 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. /p pThe 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./p pMore 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 a href=http://www.wirelesssummit.org target=blankwww.wirelesssummit.org/a./p pWe look forward to seeing you in August!/p hr pAbout 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: a href=http://www.acornactivemedia.com target=blank www.acornactivemedia.com/a./p pAbout 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 a href=http://www.cuwin.net target=blankwww.cuwin.net/a./p pAbout 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: a href=http://oti.newamerica.net target=blankhttp://oti.newamerica.net/a./p pAbout 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: a href=http://www.techgate.at target=blankhttp://www.techgate.at/a./p

pAn interesting proposal from Senators Warner amp; 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):/p ul FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Julia Wanzco (Snowe)br / December 8, 2009 202.224.1304br / Kevin Hall (Warner)br / 202.224.2425/p pSnowe, Warner Announce Bill tobr / Boost Technical Resources for FCC/p pWASHINGTON, 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. /p p“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.”/p p“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.” /p pUnder 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. /ul

pHere'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./p ul h2New America Foundation Announces Its First Knight Media Policy Fellow/h2 pstrongNovember 12, 2009/strong/p p The New America Foundation today announced that strongTom Glaisyer/strong will be its first strongKnight Media Policy Fellow/strong, focusing on national media policy changes and related developments under a new grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. /p p 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. /p p quot;We're thrilled to have Tom leading the charge for our Media Policy Initiative,quot; New America CEO strongSteve Coll /strongsaid. quot;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.quot; /p/p p The strongKnight Media Policy Fellowships/strong 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, quot;a href=http://www.knightfoundation.org/news/press_room/knight_press_releases/detail.dot?id=351773 target=_blankInforming Communities: Sustaining Democracy in the Digital Age/a.quot; /p p 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. /p pquot;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,quot; said strongEric Newton/strong, vice president for journalism programs, Knight Foundation./p pThe 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 a href=http://newamerica.net/contact/ target=_blankhttp://newamerica.net/contact//a. /p h3strongAbout the New America Foundation/strong/h3 p The New America Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisanbr / 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 a href=http://www.newamerica.net target=_blankwww.newamerica.net/a /p h3strongAbout the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation/strong/h3 p The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation advancesbr / 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 a href=http://www.knightfoundation.org/ target=_blankwww.knightfoundation.org/a. span class='read-more'a href=http://www.saschameinrath.com/2009/nov/12/otis_newest_staffer_new_america_foundation_announces_its_first_knight_media_policy_fello html=1 target=_blankstrongh3Continue reading raquo;/h3/strong/a/span/p /ul

pa href=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/posttech/2009/10/one_data_point_stand_out.html target=blankCecilia Kang over at the Washington Post recently covered the Open Technology Initiative's proposal for a broadband nutrition label/a. 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 a href=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schumer%27s_box target=blankShumer Box/a of key information about the credit card offer. /p pThis 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. /p pHere's more from the Washington Post:/p ul h2A nutrition box for Internet service?/h2 pOf all the data being collected for a federal probe into truth-in-billing rules for communications services, one statistic stands out:/p blockquotepConsumers are paying for broadband Internet service that lags advertised speeds by as much as 50 percent./p/blockquote pa href=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/posttech/2009/09/consumer_often_get_slower_inte.htmlThat stat was revealed/a by the strongFederal Communications Commission /stronglast 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. /p pAnd now those groups are offering one solution to help users from getting bamboozled. The groups, along with the strongNew America Foundation/strong, 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. /p pA id=aptureLink_eM71AYInLh style=PADDING-RIGHT: 6px; PADDING-LEFT: 6px; FLOAT: left; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; cssFloat: left href=http://apture.s3.amazonaws.com/000001249e6f56c882e6da15007f000000000001.BB_Truth_In_Labeling.pngIMG title=BB_Truth_In_Labeling style=BORDER-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: 0px; BORDER-LEFT: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: 0px height=694 src=http://apture.s3.amazonaws.com/000001249e6f56c882e6da15007f000000000001.BB_Truth_In_Labeling.png width=400 aptureProxy=32/Abr clear=all /p pimg src=http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/globalnav/images/spacer.gif alt=spacer width=1 height=3 vspace=3br/p pTruthful 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./p pCommunications 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, ATamp;T, Dish TV, Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile, consumer advocacy groups said. /p pConsumers 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./p pCurrently, 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./p pThe 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. span class='read-more'a href=http://www.saschameinrath.com/2009/oct/30/washington_post_story_otis_broadband_nutrition_label_proposal html=1 target=_blankstrongh3Continue reading raquo;/h3/strong/a/span/p pemImage credit: New America Foundation/em /ul

pHere's a href=http://spectrum.ieee.org/blog/semiconductors/devices/tech-talk/netbooks-are-only-part-of-the-solution target=blanka fun article from the upcoming issue of IEEE Spectrum/a. Interestingly enough, while here at the a href=http://europe.ecomm.ec target=blankeComm Conference/a 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./p h2Netbooks Are Only Part of The Solution/h2 pstrongPOSTED BY:/strong Tekla Perry // Wed, October 28, 2009/p pimg width=262 vspace=5 hspace=5 height=125 align=left alt= src=http://spectrum.ieee.org/image/1424175 /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 laptopsmdash;though I do. Itrsquo;s not because I particularly want onemdash;though for short trips I can see the appeal. Itrsquo;s not because on a recent multifamily vacation one family showed up with one netbook per child./p pItrsquo;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 shersquo;s thinking of getting a netbook./p pOh, itrsquo;ll be a couple of years before she actually makes the purchase, but the fact that shersquo;s evening considering it is huge. The appeal for her is the cost, for suremdash;if it turns out to be a mistake, it wonrsquo;t be a huge mistake. But what also is drawing her is also the fact that netbooks donrsquo;t look all that high tech. They donrsquo;t take up much room, they donrsquo;t have a lot of extra buttons on the keyboard, and they donrsquo;t do vast numbers of things she wouldnrsquo;t want to do anywaymdash;like edit video or spend hours typing long documents./p pBut she has been thinking that it would be pretty cool to look up a fact she read somewhere but just canrsquo;t remember exactly, or check out a new medication prescribed by her doctor before she orders it. br / And thatrsquo;s enough usefulness to make her part with $250 or so. Once she gets one, Irsquo;ll show her how she can keep up with all her grandnieces and nephews on Facebook, and shersquo;ll be set./p pUnfortunately, much as I would have liked to, I didnrsquo;t run out that moment and get her a new netbook. Because therersquo;s one piece of this puzzle missingmdash;some kind of community wi-fi access. It doesnrsquo;t have to be free, it doesnrsquo;t have to be fast, but it has to be there; easy to get to at a reasonable price./p pForget dial-upmdash;netbooks donrsquo;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 (shersquo;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 canrsquo;t see convincing her to go through that hassle and expense./p pBut community wi-fi would be perfect. Shersquo;d need nothing but the netbook, the monthly fee would be reasonable, and, while likely slower than cable or DSL, itrsquo;d be moving plenty fast for her needs.br / Which got me wonderingmdash;what happened to community wi-fi, anyway? I called Sascha Meinrath, research director of the New America Foundationrsquo;s a href=http://www.spectrumpolicy.orgwireless future program/a. He told me that itrsquo;s been going great in Europe, but in 2004 or 2005 got sidetracked in the U.S. ldquo;The rationale of community wireless, bringing low-cost or free wireless to the masses, got usurped by the corporate model,rdquo; he says, ldquo;how do we charge money for it.rdquo; And the corporations that cities contracted with to build low-cost systems didnrsquo;t have a lot of incentive to make those systems succeed, since theyrsquo;d be competing with their own, higher cost internet access offerings. Earthlink, for example, last year shut down itrsquo;s community wireless systems in Philadelphia and New Orleans./p pThe 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 a href=http://meraki.com/about/Meraki/a, a Google-backed startup thatrsquo;s building low-cost wireless networks for companies, universities, and communities, and other low-cost efforts. Hersquo;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; hersquo;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./p pNow back to my aunt. She still wants that netbookmdash;with Internet access, but without a box in her house. Community wi-fi may be coming, but not soon enough. So Irsquo;m thinking, next time Irsquo;m visiting Irsquo;m going to boot up my laptop and see if Irsquo;m picking up any signals; if I am, Irsquo;ll go knock on a few doors and see if I can borrow a cup of broadband./p span class='read-more'a href=http://www.saschameinrath.com/2009/oct/29/community_wireless_resurgence html=1 target=_blankstrongh3Continue reading raquo;/h3/strong/a/span/p