Cat Zakrzewski

The federal government is slated to pump a record amount of funding into projects to expand Internet access and affordability.

Consumer advocates say the 3G shutdown will leave some of society’s most vulnerable people without critical communications tools. Many devices have moved to 4G networks and newer phones are now moving onto 5G. But a motley assortment still relies on the more rudimentary 3G service and consumer advocates are urging the Federal Communications Commission to slow the change, which is set to start in February 2022. Older and low-income Americans are more likely to be affected by the shift.

Jonathan Kanter told lawmakers he would bring “vigorous” enforcement to the helm of the Justice Department’s antitrust division, as they weigh his nomination to serve as one of the federal government’s top competition cops. In the October 5 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Kanter laid out bits of his plan for lawmakers, focusing on ensuring robust competition for businesses across the country.

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) signed a bill that would prohibit large tech companies from blocking or restricting people or their posts based on their viewpoint, setting the stage for a legal battle with the tech industry.

The Senate infrastructure bill includes a package of digital initiatives that together amount to the largest one-time investment in broadband in US history, totaling $65 billion.

US District Judge Robert Hinkle of the Northern District of Florida blocked a Florida law that would penalize social media companies for blocking a politician’s posts, a blow to conservatives’ efforts to respond to Facebook and other websites’ suspension of former president Donald Trump. The law was due to go into effect July 1, but in issuing a preliminary injunction, the judge suggested that the law would be found unconstitutional. “The plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the merits of their claim that these statutes violate the First Amendment,” Judge Hinkle wrote.

A district court in DC dismissed the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust complaint against Facebook, saying the agency had failed to offer enough facts to prove Facebook has monopoly power in the social media industry. The court said the FTC could file an amended complaint with more details to bolster its case, but the judge voiced outright skepticism that Facebook is a monopoly. “It is almost as if the agency expects the Court to simply nod to the conventional wisdom that Facebook is a monopolist,” District Judge James E.

The Senate confirmed Lina Khan to the Federal Trade Commission, elevating one of the tech industry’s most prominent antitrust critics to the government’s top Silicon Valley watchdog. The vote was 69-28 in a Senate split 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans, signaling the growing bipartisan interest in reining in large tech companies’ power. It came just days after House lawmakers from both parties unveiled bills that could force Silicon Valley companies to change their business practices and in the most severe cases, break up the companies.