Senator John Ensign (R-NV) proposed a bill that would eliminate the requirement that video service providers obtain a cable franchise agreement in order to provide video service. The legislation seeks to promote inter-modal competition between telcos and cable operators by making it easier for telcos to launch video services. The proposed Broadband Consumer Choice Act of 2005 would also set federal consumer protection standards, and would assure consumer access to Internet-based phone service. "We must not allow government regulations to be an anchor on the advance of technology if we want America to lead the world in the information age," said Ensign at a Capitol Hill press conference. The full text of the proposed legislation is online (72 pages).
The importance of data in today's business landscape fundamentally reshapes how CIOs invest in their IT infrastructure. A recent International Data Corporation ( IDC ) market study highlights this trend, revealing insights into spending patterns. The study indicates that structured database and data management workloads are the largest spending category within enterprise IT infrastructure. This is unsurprising, considering the foundational role these workloads play in managing digital business data. However, IDC's worldwide market study also sheds light on a noteworthy shift – spending in some categories witnessed a slight decline in 2023 compared to 2022. Data Workload Market Development This dip could be attributed to several factors. Organizations might optimize their existing data management processes, potentially leveraging more efficient storage solutions or cloud-based data management services. Additionally, the rise of alternative data sources, such as unstructured and