EuroWire July 2017

Transatlantic Cable

a major factor in the passage of the net neutrality rules. Battle lines between Messrs Pai and Oliver have been drawn in the current fracas. No doubt in anticipation of another tsunami of support for the rules during the public comment phase of the review process, Mr Pai said, “As in any FCC rule-making what matters most is the quality of the comments, not the quantity.” † But the civic-minded Mr Oliver is known for quality – in his grasp of the issues as much as for his presentation. On 17 th May, Mr Puzzanghera reported that, in the three weeks since the FCC began accepting public comments, more than 1.6 million of them had been submitted. Many of these were inspired by another net neutrality segment on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” aired 7 th May. Now, as in 2014 when the issue rst came to the boil, a majority of the respondents are believed to favour retaining the tough rules. According to the results of a survey of 374 manufacturers worldwide undertaken by the MPI Group late last year and published this spring, the industrial Internet of Things (IoT) has gathered steam. As reported by Ian Scales of TelecomTV , the 2017 survey is a follow-up to one conducted by MPI (Sunnyvale, California) a year earlier. Those results disclosed that a full two-thirds of the executives polled were without an IoT strategy. That proportion has ipped, noted Mr Scales, with two-thirds of the respondents now saying they have an IoT strategy and many reporting that they already have seen concrete results. (“Industrial Internet Suddenly Fires Up: Executives Claim Productivity and Pro t Gains,” 16 th May). The 2017 study looked at the production of smart devices and the implementation of embedded intelligence within plants, processes and products of manufacturers around the world. While many smaller manufacturers are still unsure how to get started, MPI Group CEO John R Brandt told TelecomTV , “There’s been a dramatic jump in awareness.” Among the mixed results the good news predominates: † Implementation is up, with 50 per cent of production processes now using the IoT, and 68 per cent of the manufacturers reporting plans to embed smart devices or intelligence into their products; † Seventy-two per cent of the interviewees reported increased productivity from application of the IoT to plants and processes; 69 per cent, increased pro tability; † Sixty- ve per cent of the respondents reported increased pro tability from sales of IoT-enabled products (eg embedded intelligence). Industrial Internet of Things awareness has accelerated in the last year, but identifying opportunities is a stumbling block

Telecom

In Washington the charged issue of net neutrality is back, with opponents of the strict Obama-era rules now in the driver seat US regulators on 18 th May took the rst formal step toward repealing tough net neutrality rules enacted two years previously during the presidency of Barack Obama – rules which introduced strict oversight of Internet service providers to ensure the free ow of online content. The prospect of the dismantling, enthusiastically welcomed by major broadband providers, is strongly opposed by consumer advocates and lawmakers of Mr Obama’s Democratic party. The net neutrality rules prohibit Internet service providers from blocking websites, slowing connection speeds, and charging extra for faster delivery of certain content. To facilitate enforcement, the FCC in 2015 classi ed broadband as a utility-like service under telecommunications law. Writing from Washington DC in the Los Angeles Times , Jim Puzzanghera observed that the intended reversal by the newly Republican-controlled Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is part of a broader e ort under President Donald Trump to undo regulations promoted by Mr Obama. FCC chairman Ajit Pai said the goal of his agency is to return to the looser regulatory framework of the early days of the Internet. (“’Light-touch’ Regulations: FCC Takes Step to Repeal Tough Net Neutrality Rules,” 18 th May). Supporters of strict government oversight assert that it is essential to preserving ready access to high-speed Internet. Senator Kamala Harris, a California Democrat, told Mr Puzzanghera, “Those net neutrality rules guarantee that gatekeepers to the Internet cannot tilt the competitive playing eld.” A nal vote in the FCC is not likely before winter, but the makeup of the three-person agency – two Republicans and one Democrat – favours repeal of the net neutrality rules. Meanwhile, public controversy has been heating up. In the view of the Trump appointee Mr Pai, now the nation’s top telecommunications regulator, the current rules give regulators too much control over the Internet and have led to reduced investment in broadband networks. As the Los Angeles Times pointed out, the evidence on this is open to dispute. John Oliver redux One of the loudest and most in uential disputants is the cerebral British-American cable TV host John Oliver, whose appeal to his viewers to besiege the FCC with their protests was

Image: www.bigstockphoto.com Photographer Zsolt Ercsel

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July 2017