John Eggerton

In a report and order adopted March 20, the Federal Communications Commission has sent the signal that allowing the so-called white spaces between TV channels to be used for fixed and mobile wireless devices are ready for prime time.

A Q&A with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai.

T-Mobile CEO John Legere told the House Judiciary Committee that his network does not now include technology from Chinese Telecom Huawei, that a new T-Mobile-Sprint 5G network would not contain such tech, and that he would even help others try to clear their networks of the technology. That was just one of many pledges he was making to help sell lawmakers on his plan to buy Sprint.

The issue of overbuilding got a lot of attention in a Senate Communications Subcommittee hearing on "The Impact[s] of Broadband Investments in Rural America." Overbuilding existing commercial service with government money has long been one of Internet service providers biggest issues with how government broadband subisidies are administered. Subcommittee Chairman John thune (R-SD) said with both the US Dept of Agricutlure and Federal Communications Commission providing broadband funding, he could see how the money could be "inadvertently used" to overbuild. He asked whether Congress should

Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dianne Feintsein (D-CA) made it clear that her state's tough privacy legislation will have to be the floor for any federal privacy legislation. The hearing was on that California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), as well as the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation adopted by the European Union. Sen Feinstein suggested the California bill should be even tougher, make more privacy control decisions opt in, rather than the opt out in which CCPA is based.

The House Communications Subcommittee held a hearing on the Save the Internet Act, which Democrats introduced recently in the House and Senate. But, the partisan bickering showed the net neutraltiy fight will continue regardless of the talk from both sides about the bipartisan agreement that Congress needs to step in to clarify government internet oversight. Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) warned Republicans at the outset that the new bill was what they were dealing with at the hearing, and that they could take up other topics at another time.

“This is for the first time 100-plus premium channels—not the junk nobody wants—purely over the top, a mobile-centric platform, for $35 a month.” And soon, it might be the last time. This was AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson describing the promise of DirecTV Now just 27 months ago, as the company launched what would become one of the video business’ fastest growing subscription over-the-top products.

The Internet of Things (IoT) Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2019, a bipartisan, bicameral bill introduced March 11, would require the government to make sure that any devices it purchases meet minimum security requirements.

Rep Anthony Brindisi (D-NY) has introduced the Transparency for Cable Consumers Act to make operators that have been fined by state public service commissions to have to report back to the Federal Communications Commission.

In a tail of not one but two affairs and emails between the philandering parties has come a victory for data privacy, a federal appeals court has ruled that “previously opened and delivered emails” stored 'in a web-based email client' are protected 'electronic storage' for purposes of the Stored Communications Act.