Ownership

The Federal Communications Commission announced a settlement with AT&T’s FiberTower that involves the company returning hundreds of millimeter wave spectrum licenses to the agency. The settlement essentially means AT&T won’t get access to those spectrum licenses, and it paves the way for the agency to reauction those licenses at some point in the future.  Specifically, as part of the agreement, FiberTower is abandoning all of its 24 GHz spectrum licenses (around 121 total) and roughly the same number of 39 GHz spectrum licenses.

The deregulatory changes the Federal Communications Commission recently adopted to its media ownership rules are due to take effect on Feb. 7. Prometheus Radio Project and Media Mobilizing Project, however, have filed an appeal of those rule changes in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and, as expected, have now asked the Court to delay the FCC’s implementation of those changes.

Apparently, The Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating whether Apple violated securities laws concerning its disclosures about a software update that slowed older iPhone models. The government has requested information from the company. The inquiry is in early stages, apparently, and it’s too soon to conclude any enforcement will follow. Investigators are looking into public statements made by Apple on the situation.

[Commentary] Where significant negative externalities are created, companies should be on the hook for the costs, just as an oil company is responsible for covering the costs of cleaning up a spill. The cost of the damage caused by election meddling is difficult to calculate. One possible solution is a two-strike rule: with the first strike, you fix the problem and, if possible, pay a fine; with the second strike, government regulators will change or remove the features that are being abused.

Mark Zuckerberg said that Facebook will now start showing users more local news stories in their feeds — the latest in a string of reforms the company has announced in 2018.  “Local news helps build community — both on and offline,” Zuckerberg wrote in a post. “It's an important part of making sure the time we all spend on Facebook is valuable.”

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit told the Federal Communications Commission to respond to a request that the court stay implementation of the FCC's December media regulation rule rollback. In a petition for an emergency writ of mandamus, Prometheus Radio Project and Media Mobilizing Project had asked the court to block the Feb.

Congress on Jan 25 published responses from Facebook, Twitter, and Google to questions about how Russian actors used their platforms to spread misinformation before and after the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The responses address issues including whether there is any evidence of collusion between the Russian parties and the Trump campaign, and how Google, a unit of Alphabet, is handling its commercial transactions with a Russian broadcaster that federal intelligence agencies say is a propaganda outlet for the Kremlin.

Google is testing a new tool for people to report and publish local news stories, called Bulletin. A website first spotted online Jan 25 describes Bulletin as “an app for contributing hyperlocal stories about your community, for your community, right from your phone.” It’s designed to make it “effortless” to tell “the stories that aren’t being told” via your smartphone. It’s not just for techie early adopters: “If you are comfortable taking photos or sending messages, you can create a Bulletin story!”, the site says.

At his annual World Economic Forum dinner, financier and philanthropist George Soros flagged a brand new threat—the unchecked power of Google and Facebook, which Soros feels now have “monolithic power” that they’re using to manipulate and deceive consumers. The net result could be totalitarian control, Soros said. [Transcript follows]

Sinclair Broadcast Group representatives met with Federal Communications Commission officials to suss out what the agency will consider in reviewing broadcaster ownership of more than one top-rated TV station in a local market.