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The Telecom Digest for Mon, 03 Feb 2020
Volume 39 : Issue 29 : "text" format

Table of contents
I have returned, and a big "Thank You" to FredTelecom Digest Moderator
OTT VoIP Calling Apps are Telecom Services under EU Law David
Huawei and 5GHAncock4
FCC gives Google and Sony permission to dole out 3.5GHz spectrumMonty Solomon
Leaked Documents Expose the Secretive Market for Your Web Browsing DataMonty Solomon
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-ID: <20200202221432.GA2775@telecom.csail.mit.edu> Date: Sun, 2 Feb 2020 22:14:32 +0000 From: Telecom Digest Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.telecom-digest.org> Subject: I have returned, and a big "Thank You" to Fred Hello again: I am back from my unwanted vacation. The "issues" have been handled. My thanks to Fred Goldstein for his help during my hiatus: the system didn't work as well as we had hoped, but I'm grateful to Fred for being willing to step up and volunteer. Thanks also go to those who sent solicitations: I appreciate your kind words. And now, for my next trick, I'll *PLAN* my vacation (which is, come to think of it, coming up) and hope that I get better at handing the Digest over to pinch-hitters while I'm away. Bill -- Bill Horne Moderator "98% of Unix users give the other 2% a bad name" ------------------------------ Message-ID: <5E325BA0.1060504@panix.com> Date: 29 Jan 2020 20:29:20 -0800 From: "David" <wb8foz@panix.com> Subject: OTT VoIP Calling Apps are Telecom Services under EU Law (Opinion) Updated: January 24, 2020 - 2:46 PM Telephone calling apps, such as Skype, Viber and Google Hangouts, are subject to European telecom regulation, the European Court of Justice has ruled. Such services may now be required to comply with EU obligations that apply to traditional telephone services, such as registration, privacy, consumer protection and law enforcement access to user communications. By Robert Stankey In other countries (notably the US), voice-over-IP (VoIP) services that allow calls to be made to telephone numbers but are not used to receive them are not subject to telecom regulations or are very lightly regulated. In a long-running dispute, the Belgian telecom regulator BIPT has sought Skype to register as a provider of a regulated telecom service - an "electronic communications service" under the EU's telecom regula- tory framework - with respect to its SkypeOut feature for making telephone calls. https://www.dwt.com/insights/2019/06/ott-voip-calling-apps-are-telecom-services-under ------------------------------ Message-ID: <31a8017f-edd1-4f6a-b51e-fad901574a68@googlegroups.com> Date: 27 Jan 2020 12:58:33 -0800 From: HAncock4 <withheld@invalid.telecom-digest.org> Subject: Huawei and 5G The Philadelphia Inquirer had an opinion essay on who will build the 5G (Fifth Generation) cellular networks. They say Huawei is the global leader despite Washington fears. The writer interviewed a company rep. By Trudy Rubin Despite the truce in the U.S.-China trade wars, the tech wars between Washington and Beijing are intensifying. Most immediate is the struggle over who will build the new, superfast 5G (fifth-generation) cellular networks that will revolutionize the way we live -- by empowering the use of artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies. full essay at https://www.inquirer.com/opinion/huawei-5g-ban-china-trump-xi-jinping-20200124.html ------------------------------ Message-ID: <A48FC39A-AB72-4B1B-A1F6-E36A7E8CFDE7@roscom.com> Date: 27 Jan 2020 17:29:58 -0500 From: "Monty Solomon" <monty@roscom.com> Subject: FCC gives Google and Sony permission to dole out 3.5GHz spectrum This should lead to faster data speeds and 5G network development. By Christine Fisher The FCC just gave Google, Sony and two other companies the greenlight to open the 3.5GHz band to commercial use. Considered by many as a building block for 5G networks, the 3.5GHz band could speed up 4G communication and enhance 5G networks, helping the latest iPhone and Android devices reach faster data speeds in the US. The FCC named Google, Sony, CommScope and Federated Wireless, Inc. Spectrum Access System (SAS) Administrators. They're now authorized to make a slice of the 3.5GHz band available for commercial purposes, meaning the private sector should finally have access to the mid-range spectrum for 5G networks. https://www.engadget.com/2020/01/27/fcc-mid-range-spectrum-google-sony/ ------------------------------ Message-ID: <2D1272F3-4163-4F0F-B1FE-39574ABD747E@roscom.com> Date: 27 Jan 2020 17:31:39 -0500 From: "Monty Solomon" <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Leaked Documents Expose the Secretive Market for Your Web Browsing Data Leaked Documents Expose the Secretive Market for Your Web Browsing Data An Avast antivirus subsidiary sells 'Every search. Every click. Every buy. On every site.' Its clients have included Home Depot, Google, Microsoft, Pepsi, and McKinsey. By Joseph Cox Update: On Thursday and after this investigation, Avast announced it will stop the Jumpshot data collection and wind down Jumpshot's operations with immediate effect. You can find the original story below. An antivirus program used by hundreds of millions of people around the world is selling highly sensitive web browsing data to many of the world's biggest companies, a joint investigation by Motherboard and PCMag has found. Our report relies on leaked user data, contracts, and other company documents that show the sale of this data is both highly sensitive and is in many cases supposed to remain confidential between the company selling the data and the clients purchasing it. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/qjdkq7/avast-antivirus-sells-user-browsing-data-investigation ***** Moderator's Note ***** And-I-thought-is-was-all-free department: Nature abhors a vacuum. That includes a vacuum of power. That data will still be collected, if not by one company, then by another, and later or sooner, it will be used to manipulate you to vote the "right" way, or to deny you a promotion, or to raise your insurance rates, or [insert thing you're most afraid of here]. Check out the TOR project. You'll be glad you did. After that, find out what happened to W.A.S.T.E. Bill Horne Moderator ------------------------------ ********************************************* End of telecom Digest Mon, 03 Feb 2020
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