Encourages Senate to take swift action to protect wireless consumers

WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives today overwhelmingly approved the Wireless Tax Fairness Act of 2011 – legislation that will protect consumers with a five-year ban on new state and local government-imposed wireless taxes and fees. The following quote should be attributed to Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research:

“I applaud the House for moving forward with HR 1002, the Wireless Tax Fairness Act, to make sure America’s consumers have a five-year reprieve from additional excessive state and local cell phone taxes.  In some states, a quarter of monthly wireless service costs are due to state and local taxes and fees.  These cell phone taxes are an increasingly troubling trend that adversely affect younger and lower-income Americans.

“Public policies need to stop taxing what we should be encouraging.  High taxes on information technologies stunts economic investment and impedes job creation, thereby hurting consumers and small businesses.  The American Consumer Institute looks forward to the Senate taking up this legislation quickly, passing it, and making sure American consumers have a wireless tax reprieve for the upcoming the holiday shopping season.”

About ACI

The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational and research institute founded on the belief that consumers’ interests are not satisfactorily represented by the wide variety of advocacy and consumer organizations that often represent small subsets of consumers and special interests; ignore distant, collateral and unintended consequences of importance to consumers; and too often mirror advocates’ political views rather than an empirical analysis of consumers’ economic welfare.

###

“Today’s speech by Commissioner Genachowski represents an important step forward on reforming the Universal Service Fund and ensuring the next wave of broadband deployment that will help close the gap for rural and underserved communities.  Studies published just this week have shown that these universal service reforms would expand broadband while lowering fees and costs for consumers across America – which would be a win-win for consumers, small businesses, and innovators in the marketplace. My own research has estimated that USF reform would result in the creation of 90,000 new jobs across the country.  I urge the FCC to adopt a plan – similar to the ABC Plan – that will better target consumers, redirect high-cost support from outdated copper-based networks to state-of-the-art broadband networks, end hidden consumer fees and better meet the changing demands of consumers.”

About ACI

The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational and research institute founded on the belief that consumers’ interests are not satisfactorily represented by the wide variety of advocacy and consumer organizations that often represent small subsets of consumers and special interests; ignore distant, collateral and unintended consequences of importance to consumers; and too often mirror advocates’ political views rather than an empirical analysis of consumers’ economic welfare.

###

On Thursday, June 30, The American Consumer Institute held an event discussing “Competition in the Internet Ecosystem.”  ACI President Steve Pociask moderated a discussion of the evolving conception of modular competition in the Internet ecosystem’s broadband value circle.  Discussants included Everett Ehrlich (ESC Company & Former Undersecretary of Commerce for President Clinton), Nicol Turner-Lee (Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies), Hance Haney (Discovery Institute), and Jeff Eisenach (Navigant Economics).

Competition in the Internet Ecosystem: Introduction

Competition in the Internet Ecosystem: Nicole Turner-Lee

Nicol Turner-Lee spoke on the need for mobility as the answer to reaching underserved communities.  She pointed out that rural communities stood to gain from the healthy competition in the wireless Internet ecosystem of today.  She also broached the concern over privacy for new or unfamiliar Internet users.

Competition in the Internet Ecosystem: Hance Haney

Hance Haney discussed how innovation served as a medium and stimulant for competition.  He also suggested that maybe there was a need for a Federal Broadband Commission to help facilitate 100% broadband adoption.  Haney closed by looking at the AT&T – T-Mobile merger, saying that the merger provided a platform for further regulation of the industry and could potentially merit dangerous regulations that would set backhaul prices low.

Competition in the Internet Ecosystem: Jeff Eisenach

Jeff Eisenach closed the panel by explaining the evolution of the Internet marketplace from a vertical competition model to a horizontal model and finally to a circular one centered on the consumer.  Eisenach explained that the Internet ecosystem is made of different parts (applications makers, devices makers, content providers, and service providers) that are perfect compliments to one another, meaning that they do not work without the other, pointing to Jonathan Sallet’s Broadband Value Circle white paper for evidence.  He said that the FCC incorrectly puts broadband service at the center of the ecosystem, when in actuality the platform and consumers are at the center with applications, service, devices and content coming together to create the Internet ecosystem.

Competition in the Internet Ecosystem: Question & Answer:

The presentations were followed by a question and answer session.  Questions focused on the ideology of the value circle, the need for reform in the system of taxation of digital goods, and the importance of adoption.

]]> http://www.theamericanconsumer.org/2011/07/07/american-consumer-institute-competition-in-the-internet-ecosystem/feed/ 0 http://www.theamericanconsumer.org/2011/04/01/ftc-announces-settlement-over-google-buzz-privacy-mishaps/ http://www.theamericanconsumer.org/2011/04/01/ftc-announces-settlement-over-google-buzz-privacy-mishaps/#comments Fri, 01 Apr 2011 13:29:42 +0000 admin http://www.theamericanconsumer.org/?p=2401 The FTC announced today that Google has agreed to a settlement over privacy violations stemming from Google Buzz. The controversy stems from the fact that Google did not notify its “Gmail” users that Google Buzz would use and potentially expose their email account information. Many users complained when they were caught off guard. Jon Leibowitz, Chairman of the FTC had this to say:

“When companies make privacy pledges, they need to honor them. This is a tough settlement that ensures that Google will honor its commitments to consumers and build strong privacy protections into all of its operations.”

Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute issued the following statement:

“The FTC should be commended for reaching this strong settlement with Google in regard to its ‘deceptive privacy practices’ in launching their Google Buzz product. FTC Chairman Leibowitz is exactly right that companies who make privacy pledges ‘need to honor them.’ Companies – particularly dominant ones like Google – have a responsibility to respect the privacy of consumers who use and trust their products. Unfortunately, Google has shown a disturbing pattern of not respecting privacy rights – from Google Buzz to the Spy-fi controversy to collecting social security information from children in Doodle for Google, to name just a few. In every case, Google apologizes and claims that it was a one time mistake, but then continues the behavior. Under this settlement, the FTC will now conduct a biennial review of Google’s practices to ensure they can no longer say one thing and do another. Hopefully, this move by the FTC means that Google will finally get he message that these violations will not be taken lightly and we hope it will be followed by increased scrutiny of Google’s privacy practices.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                       

American Consumer Institute Reacts to FCC Open Meeting on Broadband Reclassification

WASHINGTON – Following the Federal Communications Commission’s open meeting today, Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute, released the following statement:

“Why is the Federal Communications Commission determined to continue down this track of reclassifying broadband?  Members of congress, consumers, technologists and economists agree that this not best path forward.

“By taking action to reclassify broadband services under Title II regulation, the FCC is overturning conclusions of prior commissions and undermining Congressional examination of the issue.

“Today, broadband and wireless market consumers enjoy lower prices, faster speeds, more dependable services and more choices than the market of just one decade ago.  All empirical studies to date conclude that net neutrality regulations will raise prices, reduce jobs, impede investment and reduce innovation.

“It is not clear why the FCC wants to jeopardize consumer welfare by implementing onerous and costly regulations to fix a hypothetical problem.”

The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational and research institute.  For more information visit www.theamericanconsumer.org.

For more information about ACI’s experts, click here.