OVERNIGHT TECH: FCC advances broadband Internet subsidies

LEDE: The FCC’s party-line vote Thursday to move forward on expansion of its Lifeline program — which would provide broadband subsidies to the poor — drew criticism from the right and praise from the left.

“We share the goal of making sure all Americans can connect to this fundamental tool of economic growth and social connectivity, but we cannot stand by as uncapped spending threatens to undermine the USF [Universal Service Fund] and its benefits,” said House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and Communications and Technology subcommittee chair Greg Walden (R-Ore.).

“Unfortunately, it appears the order adopted by the FCC today – which still has not seen the light of day – fails to protect ratepayers from runaway costs and lacks necessary metrics to gauge performance,” they added.

{mosads}Subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) said that the move “furthers our nation’s progress toward bridging the digital divide.”

Next, the proposal to expand the program will be published in the federal register — at which point the public has 30 days to comment on it. Replies to those comments are due 60 days after that. Then, FCC staffers formulate final drafts of the proposed rules and bring them up for a vote. An FCC spokesman said Chairman Tom Wheeler hopes to wrap the issue up by the end of the year.

FCC REPUBLICANS DING CHAIRMAN ON PRESS ACCESS: At the end of every FCC open meeting, Chairman Tom Wheeler takes a single question from every reporter who wants to ask him one. So when Republican commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O’Rielly held their own presser (a rare occurrence), a reporter took the opportunity to ask if they would follow Wheeler’s question policy.

Pai said he’d take all queries. “”As to the one question practice, I am more than happy to take all of your questions any time. That’s part of the spirit of the job I think,” he said. O’Rielly agreed, saying, “I don’t have a one question policy, I don’t know where that came from.”

BILL CLINTON TALKS RURAL BROADBAND: Former President Bill Clinton talked about the need for broadband Internet expansion in U.S. rural areas Wednesday night during an interview on The Daily Show. 

“There are a lot of people in rural parts of America who could make a perfectly good living if they could operate more online and they can’t do it in the horse and buggy era,” he told host Jon Stewart. “When someone in South Korea can do it faster and cheaper. It’s crazy for us to let this be done faster and cheaper. The Internet started in America for goodness sakes.”

SUMMERS NAMED AS ADVISOR FOR GOV SOFTWARE FIRM: Larry Summers joined on as an advisor to the software company OpenGov, that helps local and state governments analyze financial data. Summers is President Obama’s former director of the National Economic Council and a former Treasury secretary under Bill Clinton. OpenGov, the California-based company, includes a number of advisers from the political world including former Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), former D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and former Treasury Secretary George Shultz. 

ORACLE LEAVES PATENT REFORM GROUP: Oracle left the patent reform advocacy group United For Patent Reform, Politico reported Thursday. A search Thursday found the advocacy group — which represents major tech and retail companies — had scrubbed references to Oracle from its website’s membership list. The move is significant since Oracle lobbyist Dejan Pavlovic had been billed as the group’s co-chairman when it first launched in January. Oracle declined to comment on the move. The advocacy group said it would “continue to push for a strong bill,” and called Oracle an “important partner” in the push for reform. 

PAO ORDERED TO PAY VC FIRM LEGAL FEES: A judge ordered Interim Reddit CEO Ellen Pao to pay her former employer, venture firm Kleiner Perkins, $275,966.63 in legal costs related to her gender discrimination suit against the firm, Buzzfeed News reported. The firm had requested substantially more. A jury ruled earlier this year against Pao’s claims of discrimination — though she has said she plans to appeal.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 

Sprint stopped slowing traffic on its network for heavy users in order to make sure it was complying with the new net-neutrality rules, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said political surveys and push polls are a little different from fraud and health alerts

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Thursday voted to crack down on robocalls and spam text messages.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife donated $5 million to a program that provides scholarships to children who were brought to the country illegally or overstayed their visas.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Thursday voted to formally consider a plan that would expand a subsidy program for low-income Americans to include Internet service.

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