The entire interview (MP3 link) clocks in at 55 minutes, and the Times was nice enough to split it up by topic. But if you don’t have that kind of time, here’s the highlights:

• He calls the DTV transition, “largely a success,” despite a few lingering issues.
• Says that the FCC will do a review of media ownership and consolidation next year.
• Says he’s trying to institute a “culture of excellence” at the FCC.
• Confirms that net neutrality will apply to both wired and wireless networks, but there will be differences due to technical reasons.
• Restates that “we need more spectrum,” for wireless broadband.
• On applying decency rules to mediums other than broadcast television and radio: “The FCC shouldn’t enter the content world lightly, and the FCC should understand that it’s a government agency very much bound by the First Amendment.”
• Calls for greater transparency in cellular billing.
• Called AT&T’s change of heart on VoIP over 3G, a “very welcome development.”

"This bill protects citizens. It provides another means to stop the use of illegal cell phones by allowing prison on a case-by-case basis to use cell jammers. It will help make our neighborhoods safe and give prisons another necessary tool they need," said Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski, who co-sponsored the bill.

Maryland inmate Patrick Albert Byers Jr. used a contraband phone to have a prosecution witness killed in 2007.

You might be surprised at how often prisoners get their hands on cell phones. In 2008, 2,809 were confiscated in California, 1,861 in Mississippi, and 847 in Maryland.

The bill still needs to pass the House of Representatives. If it does, it will require the FCC to designate rules and conduct field tests to block phones in prison while not interfering with outside signals. If a prison’s jammer interferes with outside service, it will be deactivated until the FCC corrects the problem.

"I believe that the biggest threat to the future of mobile in America is the looming spectrum crisis," Genachowski said.

Plans for the MBA include loosening regulations to ensure faster cell tower construction, freeing up more of the radio spectrum for wireless data, fact-based decision making, and applying net neutrality regulations to wireless carriers.

And if Genachowski’s prediction of 400 petabytes of monthly wireless bandwidth usage by 2013 is accurate, there may well be an oncoming crisis. Just one petabyte is equivalent to 1,048,576 gigabytes, or 1,024 terabytes. To put it more simply, 400 petabytes would be the size of at least 44,62,000 DVDs.

One of Genachowski’s ideas to stem the crisis is “shot clock” reform that would dramatically cut the time communities would have to protest new tower construction.

Ideally, this would speed up the deployment of new towers. Combined with additional cellular airspace, the rollout of next-generation 4G wireless broadband networks would be on track to handle the massive influx of data.

But assuming Genachowski can enact his agenda, would it even be enough?

Jones was charged after breaking a utility pole in two with her car. Officers discovered an open cell phone inside her car, and Jones admitted to texting while driving.

She was not injured, but her Ford Windstar suffered about $1,500 worth of damage.

The new law, which went into effect on Sept. 12, suggests a standard fine of $119, but that can go up to $500 at the judge’s discretion.

Maine’s law is only one in a wave of new legislation sweeping the nation, brought on after a Virginia Tech study found that texters are 23 times as likely to have or nearly have an accident. To put that into perspective, a driver at the standard legal blood alcohol limit of .08 is only 11 times more likely to be involved in an accident.

So far, 18 states, as well as the District of Columbia, have passed some form of texting while driving ban. President Obama last week barred federal employees from texting while behind the wheel.

Back in August AT&T admitted, in a letter to the FCC (PDF), to having an agreement with Apple to not create applications that would use their 3G network for VoIP.

It seems odd that AT&T would make this move now, considering the overwhelming strain the iPhone has put on their network. The only reasonable explanation appears to be the increased scrutiny it has received from the Federal Communications Commission in the past few months.

AT&T’s recent FCC problems began when Apple rejected the Google Voice iPhone application. The FCC subsequently launched an inquiry. Apple, Google, and AT&T all responded. Apple denied rejecting the application, saying it was still under review, and added that AT&T had nothing to do with its rejection. AT&T also maintained its innocence. Google placed the blame squarely on Apple’s Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing, saying that he personally rejected the application.

Later came more FCC drama, in the form of new net neutrality proposals that could apply to cellular networks, as well as AT&T’s insistence to the FCC that Google Voice’s call-blocking practices were in violation of the same net neutrality principals Google claims to support.

There’s no doubt that AT&T is feeling pressure from the FCC. This could be an attempt to make a case that net neutrality isn’t necessary, at least on cell networks. And I think it’s a safe guess that there’s plenty going on behind the scenes that the general public isn’t privy to. At least not yet.

Whether Apple will go along with this new arrangement and actually approve a 3G VoIP app is yet to be seen. If they do, it could mean free calls for iPhone owners. Assuming AT&T’s network holds up.

UPDATE: David Pogue of the New York Times confirms that Apple is working to get 3G VoIP apps out as soon as possible.

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