Tag Archives: Internet

The Facebook F-Up as a Wake-Up Call

As I write this, Facebook is facing what is likely the most intense crisis of confidence in its roughly 14 years of existence.  While obviously important for the company, this development also raises broad and increasingly urgent questions about the … Continue reading

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Serving Users (to Advertisers to Benefit Shareholders)

In its early years, a key driver of Facebook’s approach to growth was to “move fast and break things” in pursuit of “domination.” This growth strategy has been reflected in Facebook’s approach to protecting users’ personal data–which may have violated a 2011 FTC consent decree. One … Continue reading

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Data as Power: Approaches to Righting the Balance

Not surprisingly, revelations about the unauthorized release of personal data on 87 million Facebook users to a firm using the data to design and target manipulative political messages has triggered an upsurge in concern about the adequacy of data privacy at … Continue reading

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Platform Cooperativism: Acknowledging the Rights of “Produsers”

The discussion below builds on a prior post focused on the work of Marjorie Kelly, whose two books provide a framework for analyzing characteristics and impacts of alternative allocations of enterprise ownership rights. That framework describes key differences between “generative” and “extractive” ownership models, … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 1: Introduction

This is the first in a series of blog posts outlining an approach to expanding high-speed Internet connectivity that I refer to as FAST PIIPs (Fiber and Spectrum Together for Public Interest IP Services).  The FAST PIIPS model reflects the … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 2: TV White Space as a Tool to Expand Rural Access

This post, which considers the potential of TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum as a tool for expanding rural access, uses two recent and related events as jumping off points for the discussion. 1. Microsoft’s July 12 announcement of its Airband initiative, … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 3: EBS Spectrum as a Tool to Bridge the Rural Homework Gap

In an earlier post I discussed the potential of TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum to help expand the availability of affordable high-speed Internet access in rural areas.  In this post I want to bring another underutilized spectrum band into the … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 4: Fiber and Spectrum Together (FAST) for Rural Access

In my last two posts I discussed how unlicensed TVWS spectrum and education-focused EBS spectrum are underutilized and potentially valuable connectivity resources in many underconnected rural communities. In this post and the next, I hope to flesh out my vision of a … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 5: The Role of Community Benefit-Focused Organizations

In the past I’ve written about the added value that public benefit-focused institutions (e.g., cooperatives, community anchor institutions (CAIs), municipal utilities, and social enterprises) can contribute to the connectivity equation, especially in relatively rural areas with high per-premise construction costs … Continue reading

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The FAST PIIPS Connectivity Model, Part 6: Research to Support Success

In announcing Microsoft’s Airband project, company president Brad Smith cited “a need for improved data collection regarding rural broadband coverage,” adding that: “The FCC can help by accelerating its work to collect and report publicly on the state of broadband coverage … Continue reading

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