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Filed under: Enterprise, iPhone

Your congressman wants an iPhone

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Oct 22nd, 2008

TheHill.com is reporting that members of the U.S. House of Representatives could be getting iPhones when they return to Washington, D.C. after the elections.

The Chief Administrative Office (CAO) oversees all communications systems for the House and has been testing a small number of iPhones to see how they meet the needs of congressmen and their staffs.

House members and their staffs currently use RIM BlackBerry devices, with nearly 8,200 installed. The CAO delivers all emails to the BlackBerrys using a BlackBerry Enterprise Server. A new server would be required for the iPhones, so the CAO wants to test the devices and email delivery prior to making a decision to approve use of iPhones.

The CAO is testing iPhones simply because a number of people had requested them as an option. If the CAO does approve the iPhone and lawmakers decide to switch, they'll pay for the devices out of their Member's Representational Allowance (i.e., taxpayers will be paying for them).

Adoption of the iPhone by the U.S. Congress could be another blow to RIM, which is now behind Apple in terms of sales and revenues. Apple CEO Steve Jobs gleefully reported that "Apple beat RIM" during yesterday's Q4 Earnings Call.

Thanks to Kyle for the tip!

Update: Jordan Golson points out TheHill.com got this story all wrong.

Tags: blackberry, congress, iphone

Filed under: Software, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

Congress in your pocket

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Sep 29th, 2008

Congress PlusHaving a Congressman or Congresswoman in your pocket used to mean that they owed you a big political favor that you could call in at any time. Now with Congress+ for iPhone / iPod touch from Congress In Your Pocket, the phrase has an entirely different meaning.

Congress+ is designed for voters or political pros who need to have Congressional contact information at their fingertips. Not only does it have contact info, but also includes a biography, staff information, data on what committees the representative sits on, and political information including tracking polls and opponent information.

This version of the software includes yearly updates in 2009 and 2010, and sells for $9.99 in the App Store (click opens iTunes).

Tags: app store, app-store, AppStore, congress, iphone, ipod touch, IpodTouch, software

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion

Pandora may pull the plug on itself

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Aug 18th, 2008

PandoraThe Washington Post is reporting that Pandora, the Internet radio station available on Mac, iPhone, and iPod touch, may be shutting down service soon.

The reason is that Sound Exchange, the money-grubbing blackmailers royalties collection arm affiliated with the Recording Industry Association of America, has imposed restrictive administrative fees ($500 per year per channel) and ridiculous royalty fees (2.91 cents per hour per listener) on Internet radio stations. While many companies that provide Internet radio services have been lobbying Congress for relief, there doesn't seem to be much of hope that happening in the near future.

What this means for all Internet radio stations is that either Congress steps in and attempts to resolve the royalty issues (not likely, considering their record on resolving any issue...), or the stations will need to start charging a subscription fee for their services. Of course, Pandora could start advertising on their site and on the iPhone app to generate some revenues, but as TechCrunch.com's Michael Arrington says, "Perhaps Pandora must be our sacrificial lamb" to focus attention on the entire issue of the recording industry, digital rights, and internet radio stations.

What's your opinion on the intenet radio royalty issue? Leave us a comment.

Tags: congress, internet radio, InternetRadio, pandora, riaa, washington post, WashingtonPost

Filed under: Odds and ends, Internet

US house Reps approve net nutrality bill, reveal semblance of sanity

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on May 26th, 2006

We aren't out of the woods yet, but a U.S. House of Representatives panel has approved the net neutrality bill, a controversial proposal that would prohibit broadband providers from restricting access and impairing the speed of their competitors' content. Many feel this bill is crucial for market competitiveness and preserving the democratic nature of the internet.

But instead of inciting a debate here at TUAW about a bill that is already setting media outlets everywhere ablaze, I'll just point you to a few resources to learn more about the issues, such as the Network neutrality Wikipedia entry, a Wired article and Macworld's report of the recent bill approval.

Tags: approval, approve, bill, broadband, congress, house, net, network, neutral, neutrality, representatives, senate

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