Multichannel News
Public Health Emergency Privacy Act, containing contact tracing privacy measures, introduced in House and Senate (Multichannel News)
Submitted by Robbie McBeath on Thu, 05/14/2020 - 15:40National Advertising Division of Better Business Bureau Asks Verizon to Drop 5G Claim
The National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau says that Verizon's claims in TV ads that it is "building the most powerful 5G experience for America" is not supported by the evidence and recommended that it discontinue or modify that claim. AT&T had complained about the ads, which promote 5G service in sports venues, to the NAD, which is the investigative unit of the ad industry's self-regulatory unit.
House Armed Services Committee Members Take Aim at FCC's Ligado Decision
In the wake of a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the subject of allowing Ligado to operate a 5G service adjacent to GPS spectrum (a hearing that saw the Federal Communications Commission hammered by legislators, military brass, and even iconic pilot Sully Sullenberger), almost two dozen bipartisan members of the House Armed Services Committee have written to the FCC to express their "deep concern." Lead signatories on the letter include Strategic Forces Subcommittee Chairman Jim Cooper (D-TN) and Ranking Member Michael Turner (R-OH) They said that while Ligado has argued that D
YouTube Controls 16% of Pandemic Traffic Globally (Multichannel News)
Submitted by Robbie McBeath on Thu, 05/07/2020 - 17:14FCC, Ligado Draw Major Fire in Armed Services Committee
The Federal Communications Commission's decision to allow a new terrestrial broadband service alongside spectrum for critical GPS uses drew fire from both sides of the aisle, as well as top military brass, in a hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee. The military brass in attendance had not changed their marching orders or their target, and the committee's chairman and ranking member were clearly in bipartisan agreement with the Department of Defence. Ligado took some issue with the fact that there were no witnesses scheduled from Ligado or from the FCC at the hearing.
Altice USA Seeks Tech Workers For Voluntary Layoffs (Multichannel News)
Submitted by Robbie McBeath on Wed, 05/06/2020 - 17:21Pandemic Colors View of Broadband Deployment
The Federal Communications Commission is signaling that broadband deployment is still a work in progress, but it’s progressing at a pace that does not require regulatory intervention to speed it up. It is a conclusion being challenged by critics of the pace of broadband deployment, who argue that old definitions of reasonable deployment should not hold in the new normal of a pandemic. As with everything else in the country and the world, deployment is now seen through the lens of a pandemic, which magnifies the longstanding issues with the quality, or lack thereof, of FCC data collection on
Media Execs: FCC Should Consider Pandemic Impact on C-Band Payment (Multichannel News)
Submitted by Jon Sallet on Fri, 05/01/2020 - 12:30Groups Petition Congress for Broadband Billions During Pandemic
Backed by Sens Ed Markey (D-MA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a dozen internet access activist groups have generated over 110,000 signatures on a petition to Congress to include funds in the next COVID-19 aid bill to make sure every American has internet and phone service during the pandemic. The groups backing the petition are Access Now, Common Sense Media, Consumer Reports, Demand Progress, Fight for the Future, Free Press Action, Libraries Without Borders, MediaJustice, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, New America’s Open Technology Institu