For interviews or more information please contact:

Frank Muto at

440-877-1321 or

Cynthia de Lorenzi at

703-797-1888 x211

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ISPs Meet in Baltimore

It's ISPCON time again and the organizers have lined up an impressive bunch of speakers, exhibitors, and even a good baseball game.

ISPCON is, in theory, put together by a large number of people, including the advisory board of which I'm a member, but the fact is that a small group of people at The Golden Group do almost all of the work, and they've built something especially impressive for May 24 through 26 in Baltimore.

To find out the absolute latest about ISPCON, go directly to Inside ISPCON, the blog of Jon Price, who runs The Golden Group. For example, you'll find out that luncheon keynote Earl Comstock, was a potential FCC nominee. Don't miss that or any other ISPCON keynote.

Whatever you do, if you're there, don't ignore the vendor sessions (especially if you're on an exhibit hall pass—you'll have access to these but not to the conference sessions). One key way to survive is to offer value-added services, and most of these sessions cover that. Other key ideas are to become a CLEC or a wireless provider—and those ideas are also covered in vendor sessions.

Whether or not you attend ISPCON, plenty of companies are holding important news to announce it at the show. One company that's allowing us to tell you their news a day early is Cyprus-based IceWarp, which will announce version 8.0 of their Merak Mail Server tomorrow. At the show, the company will be running hourly demos and will feature other companies at its booth who will demonstrate the power of the programmability of the mail server.

Entire industries, such as anti-spam, acceleration, and billing, will show up at ISPCON. Billing Concepts, for example, will be demonstrating its worldwide billing and settlement system covering credit cards, debit cards, prepaid phone cards, and even phone bills that the company announced earlier this month. Akmin (see Website Builder for Any ISP) will also be present.

The exhibitor list is particularly impressive this time. An unusual addition is the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children which wants all ISPs to report "any apparent child pornography" but we'll have to ask them if ISPs are indemnified against any breach of privacy lawsuits.

If you haven't met ISP advocates Cynthia de Lorenzi and Frank Muto, you'll get to meet them at the booth of the Washington Bureau for ISP Advocacy (also see our article, Your Free Washington Bureau For ISP Advocacy). If you're attending, you probably have met the coop builders behind the American Association of Service Providers (AASP). If you don't know them, see our article, A Real ISP Association.

Other vital information sources exhibiting at the show include Wireless Tech Radio and the Web Host Industry Review.

The conference sessions themselves are astonishingly good. We simply cannot describe them all, but the 10:15 to 11:15 AM slot on Tuesday is typical of the dilemma you'll be faced with—deciding which of many great sessions to go to. Tom DeReggi, Dustin Jurman, and Jeff Thompson discuss WiMAX; Cynthia de Lorenzi (you must meet her) talks about ISP advocacy, Jay Ferron presents part 2 of his security track; there's a session on peering in North America; Jason Talley chairs a session on VoIP again and he's very active in VoIP advocacy (ask him questions); and Eden Recor gathers a gaggle of WISP CEOs to trade war stories.

There will be plenty going on at ISPCON, and you'll hear about it for some time after the show is over, here at your ISP news source, ISP-Planet.

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The Freedom To Connect

Bell Labs rebel David Isenberg gathered a cross-disciplinary group to discuss the intersection of politics and the internet.

Woodstock it wasn't, but the Freedom To Connect conference did start with an unusual performance. To set a tone of collegial informality, Isenberg performed a poem that every ISP could relate to, containing such lines as "a trillion dollars is a lot of dough/ and the telcos and their allies won't let go" and "bad laws don't change when we ignore them/ it's our duty to abhor them."

Isenberg earned permanent cred when, in his essay "The Rise of the Stupid Network" he told AT&T that they were building the wrong network, that the network of the future would be flexible, changeable, and programmable, unlike the proprietary, closed, and purposed built POTS network. He called the network of the future the "stupid network." It was 1997 and he worked for Bell Labs, who immediately tried to suppress the report (and failed).

The age of Aquarius
Now we're in the age of the internet. A few years ago the internet seemed inevitable, and progress seemed unstoppable, but the internet has come up against a variety of problems. Some want government to solve them, but Susan Crawford spoke in detail about all the ways government intervention could make things worse, not better.

Freedom of speech lawyer Robert Corn-Revere explained how regulation of speech is changing radically, and said that the internet is the first new medium where speech was not more heavily regulated than the public realm, in contrast to television and radio.

Vint Cerf (who needs no introduction) warned (see Cerf Says Symmetry is Beautiful) that innovation is trashing internet standards even as it enables things he never foresaw.

We are at a moment of change in the history of the internet. Actually, since the internet is new, we are always at a moment of massive change. What distinguishes this particular moment from those in the past is that the changes are largely political, legal, and regulatory. It's not about innovation, but about how government intervention may or may not solve problems ranging from spam to pornography to fraud to the business climate.

Groups like Cynthia de Lorenzi's Washington Bureau for ISP Advocacy as well as news outlets like your own ISP-Planet exist to keep you informed of the changes that could be in the works. Conferences like ISPCON play a similar role.

The changes highlighted in the Freedom To Connect conference concern: the freedom of speech, the role of government, regulation, copyright laws, and internet availability.

We will continue to address these core issues as we write up what we learned from the Freedom To Connect conference.

For ISPs, the most immediate question is whether the government will create a better business climate or a more difficult business climate.

We will examine:

• MCI's proposal for common sense regulation of the Internet based on the theory that ownership of one layer shouldn't control another, endorsed in off the cuff remarks by the FCC's Robert Cannon
• The changing face of the internet, as described by Lee Rainie of the Pew Internet & American Life Project
• Law professor Susan Crawford's warnings about the myriad ways the U.S. government could get it wrong if ask to jump in and solve problems
• Remarks on competition from CEO of PatriotNet Cynthia de Lorenzi and Jack Baron, CEO of VoIP outfit PAETEC.
• A whole new way of doing business in the telecosm, presented by Matt Wenger of Packetfront whose slogan for their latest service management product is "we enable the freedom of choice others only talk about"
• Short presentations from Episcopalian seminarian AKM Adam, UK access activist Brian Condon, backbone and peering expert Farooq Hussain, third world connectivity professor Rahul Tongia, and more
• The summary as told by David Weinberger

So stay tuned and watch this space.

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Naming Of FCC Chairman Draws Praise, Dismay, Relief
by Randy Barrett and David Hatch

      The Wednesday appointment of Kevin Martin as chairman of the FCC drew various industry reactions -- from praise to dismay to relief.
      Leading telecommunications carriers lauded Martin as capable and well-versed and said they look forward to working with him. "Commissioner Martin has an excellent grasp of the issues, knows how to move the FCC's decision-making processes and can hit the ground running," Tom Tauke of Verizon Communications said in a statement.
      While most statements praised Martin, one observer feared that his appointment could lead to a new era of content censorship.
      "It is, sadly, a victory for the forces of so-called 'decency,'" said Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy. "Religious and conservative groups campaigned for the elevation of Mr. Martin. They have succeeded in establishing a new litmus test for the FCC chair -- someone who will be at the forefront of monitoring programming."
      Other industry executives expressed relief. They feel that Martin will be more accessible and perhaps less dogmatic than his predecessor, Michael Powell.
      "I think Chairman Martin will restore some procedural integrity to the FCC," said one executive who preferred to speak on background. "He doesn't think he knows all the answers like Powell did. I think we will see a return to rational, fact-based decision-making."
      Cynthia de Lorenzi, co-founder of a group of independent service providers dubbed the Washington Bureau for Internet Advocacy, said she thinks Martin will be more approachable than Powell. "I'm expecting to see a more personal touch," she said.
      Congressional Republican leaders were enthusiastic about the pick. "I look forward to working with Kevin in his new role as FCC chairman," Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, said in a statement. Stevens has discussed ways of extending the FCC's rules on broadcast indecency to cable and satellite providers.
      Democratic sources on Capitol Hill said that while they may disagree with Martin on many issues, they think he is someone they can work with. Several pointed to Martin's willingness to side with the two Democratic regulators at the FCC on some votes.
      Sources also noted personality differences between Martin and Powell. The outgoing chairman is viewed by many as stubborn about pursuing his agenda and naive about politics within Congress. Martin, by contrast, is seen as more receptive to weighing opposing views.
      Even when Martin has disagreed with other commissioners, the differences have been cordial, a source said. "Previously the FCC had conducted its business on a consensus basis, and there's a sense that there could be a return to that," a Senate Democratic source said.
      Despite the upbeat assessments, Democratic aides predicted battles ahead with Martin over indecency, media ownership and competitive access to communications networks.
      Another source noted that Martin is assuming the chairmanship at a time of tremendous change in telecommunications. "The whole industry is kind of restructuring at our feet. It takes a steady hand as a regulator."

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Small Internet Firms Look To Consumers In Telecom Fight

By Randy Barrett mailto:rbarrett@nationaljournal.com

Small Internet service providers (ISPs) are gearing up for the fight over an expected rewrite of the 1996 Telecommunications Act without a war chest or even a lobbyist. Instead, they pin their hopes on a grassroots battle royale.

"This is as pure a grassroots movement as you will see," said Cynthia de Lorenzi, co-founder of the Washington Bureau for ISP Advocacy (WBIA), which has 150 members.
The WBIA came into existence last fall to paper the FCC with hundreds of comments from ISPs and their customers against an effort by dominant telecom carriers to loosen federal regulations on sharing telecom networks. Small ISP owners are feisty, headstrong and fiercely independent, but they insist they can overcome their differences and work cooperatively as Congress decides the future of their industry.

"In the end, we all have to eat," said Paul Rice, interim executive director of the

Federation of Internet Solution Providers of the Americas (FISPA), which represents ISPs. Dominant telecom firms like Verizon Communications and cable companies have significant resources to fight for their interests on Capitol Hill. In the 2004 election cycle, telephone industry political action committees (PACs) gave $6.4 million to Republican and Democratic candidates. Cable industry PACs donated $2 million. The companies also employ fleets of lobbyists to press their cases before key players.

Small ISPs, however, are just trying to stay alive, industry officials said. "It's never been worse," said Kate Lynch, president of the National Internet Alliance (NIA). "People are going out of business at a fast rate." NIA was founded last summer and counts among its members the leading regional ISP associations. It has no lobbying staff and no budget. "The lack of funds is a huge problem," Lynch said.

But ISPs can play off consumer ire, said Mark Uncapher, counsel for the

Information Technology Association of America, which supports the existence of a robust, independent ISP industry. When consumers realize that Congress could decide what programming they see, based on the Internet provider they can access, the dynamic will change dramatically, he said. "That's when the folks back home trump inside-the-Beltway lobbying."

Regional ISP associations are beginning to talk to one another about pooling resources and focusing their lobbying. FISPA is in discussions with unnamed groups, Rice said. And de Lorenzi said she is working to build a coalition. "We need not only money, we need people to take the time to share their expertise," she said.

EarthLink, one of the largest independent ISPs, also is working to build a lobbying coalition. "You will see the independent ISP industry speak with a much clearer and coherent voice," predicted David Baker, EarthLink's vice president for law and public policy.

Other established trade associations also are joining ranks with the ISPs as their interests coincide on the telecom rewrite. Among them is CompTel/ASCENT, which primarily represents local competitors to the Bells.  "They're a tenacious lot," CompTel/ASCENT lobbyist Mary Albert said of the ISPs. "They're pretty effective at getting their customers riled up."

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Consumers and Businesses Byte Back Against the Bell Monopoly with the Gigabyte March on Washington

Fairfax VA [December 10, 2004] ~ On December 10, 2004, the Washington Bureau for ISP Advocacy (WBIA), officially launched a virtual Gigabyte March on Washington, D.C., to protest recent actions by the former Bell monopoly companies that will stifle growth of broadband service and related e-commerce activities. Virtual marchers are asked to send a message communicating their concerns to the FCC and other key Congressional and regulatory officials.

Gigabyte Marchers are protesting a petition filed on October 27, 2004, by BellSouth Telecommunications, Inc. (BellSouth) requesting forbearance from Title II common carriage requirements that apply to incumbent LEC broadband transmission.  In its request, BellSouth is also seeking forbearance from the Computer Inquiry rules that require incumbent LECs to tariff and offer the transport component of their broadband services on a stand-alone basis, and to take service under those same terms and conditions.

The WBIA is a volunteer coalition working in partnership with the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), The American Alliance of Service Providers, TeleTruth,

Brand X Networks, the National Internet Alliance (NIA), the Telework Coalition, the

Capitol Telecommunications Professionals (CTP), Rural Broadband Coalition (RBC),New Mexico Internet Professionals (NMIP), the Power Line Communications Association (PLCA), the California Internet Service Providers Association (CISPA), Tri-State Broadband,

Federation of Internet Service Providers of America, the

North Texas Technology Council (NTTC) and others.

“The Bell monopoly will be alive and well if this request is granted,” said Frank Muto, President of FSM Marketing and co-founder of WBIA. “By threatening to stifle the growth of broadband services, the companies of the former Bell monopoly are undermining the economic growth that these services promise to our country,” he said.

The WBIA and other like-minded organizations believe that BellSouth and the other remnant companies of the former Bell monopoly will prohibit freedom of choice, threaten small business and job growth, and inhibit innovation and entrepreneurialism that contributes to our nation’s economy as well as the Homeland Security sector.

“If this request is granted we will see independent ISP’s across America forced to close their doors, layoff thousands of employees and lose the millions of dollars invested in their business, and we simply cannot allow that to happen,” said Cynthia H. de Lorenzi, CEO of PatriotNet, Inc. and co-founder of WBIA. 

“The only hope we have of saving our nation’s Internet infrastructure lies in defeating this effort to restrict the viability of the nation’s remaining independent Internet service providers,” de Lorenzi said.

The Independent Internet Service Providers (ISP's) provide Internet access and related services to over 30-million business and residential subscribers.

About the WBIA:

The Washington Bureau for ISP Advocacy (WBIA) is a volunteer grassroots coalition of ISP's, CLEC's, technology innovators, suppliers, aggregators and consumers who recognize the need for consumer choice and the value of retaining the “first tier” of independent ISP connectivity to the Internet. For more information contact Frank J. Muto, FSM Marketing Group, Inc., Phone: 440-877-1321, Email: info@ispnetworks.org. This release may be printed in part or in whole with proper attribution to WBIA. To arrange an interview, please call Frank Muto, 440-877-1321 or Cynthia H. de Lorenzi 703-797-1888 x211.

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