Multiple holds may prevent the Senate from advancing long-stalled Federal Communications Commission nominations before Congress adjourns, which could come as soon as Dec 21 if lawmakers resolve government funding negotiations. Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) still maintain holds on the nomination of FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr for a full term.
In what regulators are calling the largest refund in US history by an Internet provider to consumers, Charter Communications will pay more than $62.5 million -- and free subscriptions to HBO or Showtime -- to New York customers who allegedly didn’t receive the Internet speeds they were promised, according to New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood.
AT&T says its 5G network went live in parts of 12 cities Dec 18, making it the first wireless carrier to launch a mobile network based on the 5G standard. A small number of customers will be able to use the network starting on Dec 21, when AT&T will begin distributing its first 5G device: a mobile hot spot that can connect to the network’s much faster airwaves. But it’ll be a slow launch; you won’t be able to go out to a store and buy AT&T’s 5G hot spot for several more months.
AT&T plans to launch its own streaming service in 2019, drawing on content from DC Comics and Harry Potter that was acquired as part of the recent Time Warner deal. But telecommunication companies have a unique advantage: they control the content and the networks that content travels over, presenting a wonderful opportunity to hamstring competitors and unfairly advantage their own services. Heavy-handed tactics like throttling and usage caps would have been blocked by the 2015 network neutrality rules.
President Donald Trump went after tech giants Twitter, Facebook and Google, claiming they are “biased” against Republicans and have removed several conservative accounts from their platforms. “Facebook, Twitter and Google are so biased toward the Dems it is ridiculous! Twitter, in fact, has made it much more difficult for people to join @realDonaldTrump. They have removed many names & greatly slowed the level and speed of increase. They have acknowledged-done NOTHING!” he said in a tweet.
© 1994-2024 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.
