Weekly Netflix streaming usage in the COVID-19 epicenter of metropolitan New York jumped 37% after March 21's stay-at-home order, reported NPD Monday. That was 10 points higher than the rest of the U.S.
Minnesota state senators amended a COVID-19 broadband bill to clarify (see 2004220035) $10 million tagged for unserved areas in FY 2021 may be spent only after the commissioner of management and budget is sure the federal government will reimburse it as part of coronavirus relief. The Senate Finance Committee sent the amended SF-4494 to the Senate floor Thursday.
State privacy and tax laws targeting online advertisements are especially ill-timed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Free State Foundation's Andrew Long wrote Thursday. He cited the California Consumer Privacy Act, Maine’s ISP privacy law and proposed Maryland and New York digital tax laws (see 2003170057).
Charter Communications defended its petition to exclude from the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund phase I auction any New York census blocks where it's obligated by a 2016 Time Warner acquisition agreement to expand broadband. In replies posted through Wednesday in docket 19-126 (see 2004220022), some towns agreed with the company. Charter said commenters who raised concerns that it might not connect every household in the census blocks at issue "are attacking the Commission’s decision to fund wholly unserved census blocks" in RDOF's first phase and partially unserved census blocks in the second. The Wireless ISP Association wants to reject the petition. WISPA didn't favor suggestions to "apply RDOF non-compliance measures to Charter, which is not an RDOF recipient."
COVID-19 is showing that too many people lack broadband for telehealth in North Carolina, state officials said Tuesday on a web-based meeting of the Governor’s Task Force on Connecting North Carolina. Noelle Talley, deputy chief of staff to Gov. Roy Cooper (D), hopes “we can use the urgency and also the energy of this time to push to get more people connected.” Simply having internet available doesn’t mean quality is adequate, the state officials said. “It’s slow and it’s spotty, and for many people, it’s expensive,” said North Carolina Commerce Department Chief Deputy Secretary Liz Crabill, noting 800,000 filed for unemployment there. Crabill hopes for “renewed interest across the state” to upgrade broadband. The coronavirus gave an “unprecedented” opportunity to move telehealth forward, said Office of Rural Health Director Maggie Sauer. The state’s work on telehealth has “definitely been expedited” by COVID-19, agreed Rural Health Information Technology Program Manager Lakeisha Moore. Center for Rural Health Innovation Medical Director Steve North also sees opportunity with telehealth reaching a saturation point, but said it’s too bad it took a public health crisis to get most physicians to fit telehealth into their practice. Provide quality of care, not just access, he urged.
California’s proposed $5 million for school broadband devices should cover more than laptops and Wi-Fi hot spots, AT&T said in Monday comments at the California Public Utilities Commission in docket R.12-10-012. Include smartphones, tablets, air cards, mobile hot spots and other wireless devices, said the carrier, backing the CPUC’s draft resolution supporting use of the state's Advanced Services Fund adoption account funds in response to the coronavirus (see 2004200041). The department clarified its proposal. Commissioners plan to vote May 7.
Annotated state legal code isn’t copyright protected, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday in Georgia v. Public.Resource.org (18-1150). The state sued after Public.Resource.Org founder Carl Malamud posted official state code online and shared copies. The government edicts doctrine dictates officials can’t be the authors of “the works they create in the course of their official duties,” meaning they aren't copyright protected, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer dissented. The ruling will likely be “a shock” to the 22 states, two territories and Washington, D.C., that “rely on arrangements similar to Georgia’s to produce annotated codes,” Thomas wrote for dissenters. He claimed the decision extends the government edicts doctrine to a “new context,” when Congress should be deciding whether the Copyright Act “needs an upgrade.” Public Knowledge Policy Counsel Meredith Rose called the decision a “resounding victory for public access to the law,” saying copyright law shouldn’t block citizens’ fundamental rights. Center for Democracy & Technology interim co-CEO Lisa Hayes made similar remarks: “People must have the right to anonymously access the law, without needing to pay hundreds of dollars.” The Georgia Office of Legislative Counsel didn’t comment.
The FCC has received hundreds of applications for telehealth COVID-19 projects, estimated Commissioner Brendan Carr. He noted his estimate is based on his sense of the volume of applications, and he didn’t have exact figures. Agency staff is working on the issue and “knocking those out quickly,“ he said in response to our question following commissioners' Thursday meeting. He noted that about 18 such applications have been approved, and such requests have come from areas hard hit by the pandemic. Carr cited New York, Michigan and New Orleans. He's the commission's point person on telehealth. The agency indeed "received hundreds of applications" as of Thursday, a spokesperson emailed us. He said the Wireline Bureau has awarded $9.5 million to 17 healthcare providers (see 2004230028).
The FCC should join attorneys general from 27 states and territories urging the telecom industry to make further commitments to protect consumers during the public health crisis, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) said Wednesday. Add another 90 days to the 60-day Keep Americans Connected pledge, said California, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin and other AGs of both parties in a letter to Chairman Ajit Pai. Telecom companies should give customers fair payment plans for bills accumulated during the emergency, reconnect disconnected customers for at least 90 days with no fees, expand data caps and waive wireless overage charges for at least 90 days, and educate customers about COVID-19 services and scams, the AGs said. The FCC didn’t comment.
Georgia electric cooperatives seeking to provide broadband should develop a cost allocation manual, the Public Service Commission ordered Tuesday. This is under SB-2 enacted last year (see 1904260045).