Reporting

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai swore in Nathan Simington as the commission's newest commissioner. Simington’s term is back-dated to July 1, 2019, when the previous term of former Commissioner Michael O’Rielly was scheduled to end. The swearing in ceremony took place virtually as the FCC continues to work remotely amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

A new report from the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society argues for more federal support of open-access, middle-mile (OAMM) networks, which “can help the nation meet its deployment and competition challenges.” By definition, an OAMM network will allow any Internet service provider (ISP) to connect to it, “on nondiscriminatory terms and conditions,” in order to provide last-mile solutions to homes and businesses.

Adam Candeub, the acting head of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration, has been named deputy associate attorney general. The political appointment does not require congressional confirmation. Candeub helped lead President Donald Trump’s crackdown against social media companies. Candeub has played a central role in carrying out Trump’s executive order targeting social media companies like Twitter and Facebook over allegations they censor conservative viewpoints.

A new lawsuit brought by one of Apple’s oldest foes seeks to force the iPhone maker to allow alternatives to the App Store, the latest in a growing number of cases that aim to curb the tech giant’s power. The lawsuit was filed by the maker of Cydia, a once-popular app store for the iPhone that launched in 2007, before Apple created its own version.

Outgoing-Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O’Rielly participated in his final FCC meeting Dec 10 before Nathan Simington is sworn in to take his seat as one of the agency’s Republican commissioners. Although there were many appreciative send-offs, the departing commissioner also touched on the hot-button tech issue that likely led to President Donald Trump killing his renomination this past summer: Section 230.

Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr suggested that the agency should jam through rules to limit tech's liability shield before President Donald Trump leaves office.

Cuyahoga County (OH) is seeking more partnerships and projects to help close the digital divide, planning for a long-term solution to lack of internet access in the county. The county issued a “request for information,” which is due by Jan. 15.

A Q&A with Johannes Bauer, director of the James H. and Mary B. Quello Center for Media and Information Policy at Michigan State University, about how broadband access is affecting K-12 education. 

Q. Did you find that the lack of high-speed internet has an impact beyond getting homework done?

Consolidated Communications announced a major fiber network expansion that will add 300,000 new gigabit-capable locations. This expansion is funded in part by the Federal Communications Commission's recently concluded Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction. Consolidated won close to $59 million to bring broadband to 27,000 locations across 7 states. That funding will help accelerate the Consolidated fiber strategy, which aims to reach an additional 300,000 locations in 2021 alone.

MCC Iowa, which is a subsidiary of Mediacom Communications, has filed a lawsuit against the City of West Des Moines and its city council. MCC's petition of declaratory judgment alleges the West Des Moines City Council improperly used taxpayer-based financing bonds that were intended for urban blight and poverty projects to build a $50 million city-wide conduit network for exclusive use by Google Fiber. Filed in Iowa District Court for Polk County, the petition outlined seven specific violations of the law and requested that West Des Moines suspend activities related to the conduit network.