Venture Beat's Matt Marshall got the first look at a new technology plan that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama plans to unveil at Google's headquarters tomorrow. The most intriguing part of the 9-page plan is that Obama would create the nation's first CTO, who would be charged with ensuring that the government and all its agencies have the right "infrastructure, policies and services for the 21st century." (Ed. note: this CTO should start with a good, hard look at the FCC.)
The CTO will also be responsible for ensuring that the government maintain a new level of openness, another key part of Obama's plan. Because "The Bush Administration has been one of the most secretive, closed administrations in history," Obama plans to shed light on the government's operations through the use of technology. Specifically, he hopes to make more government data available online in a universally accepted format, involve citizens in online government policy feedback and require executive branch departments and rulemaking agencies to conduct business in public and via online video feeds, among other initiatives.
Of course Obama is in favor open access in the wireless spectrum and wants to implement net neutrality regulations, although for some reason the campaign asked Larry Lessign to get in touch with Matt to stress that the Obama net neutrality plan is "the most nicely balanced policy among the democrats." Meaning that it seeks to not be too burdensome from a regulatorily perspective, I think.
Posted by Cynthia Brumfield at 12:43 PM | Print | Comments (0)There's no question that Hollywood has been hard hit by unauthorized distribution of copyrighted content just as there is no question that technology is straining the basic framework of intellectual property in general. But, an MPAA-backed bill that would force universities to impose a technology-based deterrent on its students in order to minimize unauthorized sharing of copyrighted material is an over-the-top solution to the sudden shifts causing old media titans to run for safety.
Not only are institutions of higher learning being asked to police students' online activities under the legislation, but schools that don't participate risk losing their Title IV student aid eligibility. As some commenters have noted (see comments to Bits Blog item here) the legislation, in essence, is forcing universities to help Hollywood protect its business model and postpone innovation, something that is not even remotely related to getting an education.
And it seems so absurd to punish low-income students if schools don't get with this program. Congress would be telling schools that if they don't help the Hollywood studios, their poorest students will be punished. How nuts is that?
Most colleges have been willing to educate their students about unauthorized file-sharing and devise alternative distribution mechanisms (if for no other reason than to get Hollywood off their backs, I suspect.) The college-cop provisions have been snuck in as part of a larger bill called "The College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2007," which could go to a vote in the House Committee on Education and Labor as early as today.
Posted by Cynthia Brumfield at 11:30 AM | Print | Comments (0)
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