Ownership

Bluebird Networks, operator of a fiber network spanning several Midwestern states, said it has signed an agreement to purchase Illinois Network Alliance (INA), which operates a network in that state. INA is owned by several smaller Illinois telecom service providers. Bluebird already managed INA but according to an announcement of the purchase plans, “this new ownership role will enable Bluebird to strategically expand its capabilities and offerings between INA and other Bluebird infrastructures.” The company said it will expand further into new and underserved areas.

In November 2019, the Internet Society (ISOC) sold the .ORG registry (Public Interest Registry) to private-equity company Ethos Capital for $1.135 billion.

A conclusion to the winding saga that is the T-Mobile/Sprint merger is inching closer, with an antitrust trial against several state attorneys general suing to block the deal slated to start Dec 9. Apparently, T-Mobile is eyeing a price cut for what started as a $26.5 billion deal, since Sprint’s finical situation has worsened as uncertainty about a tie-up between the nation’s third and fourth largest wireless carriers lingered. Sprint has also been recently impacted by disclosures that it incorrectly claimed subsidies for inactive Lifeline subscribers.

Mark Zuckerberg has rigged the rules of Facebook political advertising, making him complicit in lies and voter manipulation. The result is the most powerful propaganda amplifier in history, boosting campaigns that traffic in falsehoods. Zuckerberg’s company screens some paid political advertising for lies. But since early October, it makes an exception: When candidates pay for the ads, it will run any ad — even those with blatant lies.

The Communications Workers of America is suing to block the Federal Communications Commission’s approval of T-Mobile's takeover of Sprint in a Washington (DC) federal appeals court. The FCC exceeded its statutory authority in approving the deal, the union alleged in its Dec 5 lawsuit in the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The lawsuit is a new legal hurdle for the merger, which is already being challenged by a group of states. The FCC’s approval order violates the U.S. Constitution, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the Communications Act of 1934, CWA alleged.

Chairman Ajit Pai and the rest of the Federal Communications Commission took hits from both sides of the aisle in a House Communications Subcommittee oversight hearing Dec 5. Democratic Reps were particularly pointed in their criticisms of the FCC over broadband mapping, internet deregulation, merger approvals, and the funding cap on the Universal Service Fund, among other issues.

Though women and minorities constitute an increasingly large portion of our country’s populace, ownership of broadcast media remains dominated by white males. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has long ignored its congressional mandate to ensure a diversity of media viewpoints and continues to disregard orders from federal courts to increase women and minority participation in media ownership. The time has long passed for Congress to act.

Long known as the squabbling siblings of media, CBS Corp and Viacom Inc are poised to finally reunite after 13 years apart. The much-anticipated corporate union, which will be called ViacomCBS Inc. and be valued at about $25 billion, is set to conclude Dec 4 after the markets close. The Viacom name gets top billing even though CBS is more valuable.

Why is President Donald Trump putting so much energy into defending Silicon Valley — not his most natural constituency — through US trade policy? President Trump is treading a politically delicate path as he tries to help Big Tech improve its access to foreign markets at a time when the sector is increasingly becoming a punching bag in Washington.

To increase the quality of local journalism in Ohio, the Federal Communications Commission is requiring three newspapers to stop printing daily.  Back in 1975, a thousand media ecosystems ago, the FCC passed a well-intentioned rule that said a city’s newspaper couldn’t be owned by the same company that owns one of its TV or radio stations.