Browse by Date • Publication

Ms. Buyer is a regular columnist for the THE BULLETIN of the Bar Association of Erie County and is a contributor to No Jitter. Previously, she has written numerous commentaries on telecommunications law for other legal and telecommunications publications including, among others, The Daily Record, Communications Convergence and Computer Telephony. Her articles cover a broad range of topics highlighting current telecommunications issues including federal and state telecommunications policy, litigation, wireless technologies, spectrum policy, FCC initiatives, and industry consolidation. Martha Buyer has also contributed to the ABA Journal Report.

Friday
Jul262019

GDPR: A Boring but Important Update

On July 9, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) -- the highest court in Europe -- heard arguments challenging the validity of two key elements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that went into effect in May 2018: standard contractual clauses (SCC) and the Privacy Shield framework.

Click to read more ...

Wednesday
Jul172019

Intermediate Network Woes: A Tale of Mobile Disconnect

Called on to help figure out why mobile calls weren’t reaching my client’s customers, I ultimately turned to the FCC.
 A savvy client of mine who sells hosted VoIP services recently called me with a serious problem. Calls made to my client’s customers from some mobile devices supported by two wireless providers suddenly -- and devastatingly -- weren’t completing. Calls completed, and then suddenly stopped working. The callers got either fast busy signals or ring-never-answers. To be polite, everyone was, um, annoyed.

Click to read more ...

Monday
Jun032019

Why the Huawei Situation Should Matter to You

Will regulatory intervention in the name of national interest and security derail your technology implementation plans?
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump, claiming that threats to information and communications technology from foreign entities constitute a national emergency, signed the Executive Order on “Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain” into law. The order, The New York Times suggests, may be the first step in the creation of a “digital Iron Curtain” as the president looks to secure what may be more favorable trade terms from a powerful and aggressive competitor – Chinese communications vendor Huawei -- to American businesses. It’s also possible that the order’s real purpose is to force China to rethink its long history of disregarding international intellectual property standards and laws and to secure better market behavior and a reframing of existing and future U.S.-China partnerships.

Click to read more ...

Thursday
Apr042019

Secure Your Data, But Don’t Overlook the Wireless Net

Follow this checklist so spectrum issues don’t impact your enterprise’s resilience.
One of my professional mentors and heroes is a well-read, rock n’ roll-loving policy expert (the word “wonk” seemed disrespectful and that’s the last thing I’d ever want to be) who pointed me toward a very interesting report on wireless resiliency published last fall in the U.K.. Let’s just say that when Obi-Wan Kenobi of spectrum policy points me in a given direction, I head there immediately. And I’m sharing here because, having now read the “Cyber-Spectrum Resilience Framework” report myself, I, too agree, that it raises some important issues for consideration by virtually every enterprise that relies on wireless service to support its business. 

Click to read more ...

Tuesday
Mar052019

AI in the Enterprise: Matter of Ethics?

Putting artificial intelligence to work for your business requires more than just a technical understanding.
It seems that all of a sudden, artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a hot topic (read: revenue generator) for media outlets. During a football or hockey game, or even the evening’s news, companies with AI-based products to sell are trying to convince you with successful-looking people, chic office space, cool cars, and nice sunsets that AI is the greatest thing ever.  This may be true, but like almost everything else in life, nothing is black and white.

Click to read more ...