Topic: Federal Communications Commission
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Can AT&T buy T-Mobile? Five key factors.
The proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile presents the Obama administration with a major anti-trust dilemma. Federal regulators will consider several factors to determine whether to allow the two telecom competitors to merge:
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LightSquared, bankrupt, still aims to launch wireless network
LightSquared has filed for bankruptcy protection, saying that will give it more time to win regulatory approval. Regulators have blocked LightSquared's plans, saying they could interfere with GPS signals.
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FCC chairman: Time to let public TV raise money for charities
We at the FCC have proposed relaxing the ban that keeps public noncommercial TV stations from doing third-party fundraising for charities. The change won't hinder the educational mission of these stations, but help them fulfill it by raising awareness and meeting community needs.
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Vox News
Rupert Murdoch deemed 'not fit' to lead media in Britain. What about US?
A British parliamentary panel found that Rupert Murdoch is 'not fit' to run media giant News Corp. But the question for Congress is: What laws – if any – were broken in the US?
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Horizons
Google gets $25K fine for 'impeding' FCC probe into Street View
The FCC has fined Google $25K for stonewalling government investigators.
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AT&T sued over calls for deaf
AT&T didn't put in procedures to prevent fraud by people using stolen credit cards on the Internet-based system, the Justice Department says. Its suit charges AT&T improperly billed the government as a result.
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Vox News
New anti-Rush Limbaugh ad campaign: Waste of money or coup de grace? (+video)
Liberal watchdog group Media Matters are running anti-Rush Limbaugh ads in eight cities in an attempt to get stations to drop his show. This might be a battle Limbaugh is more comfortable fighting.
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Vox News
Rush Limbaugh: Jane Fonda wants him kicked off air. Should FCC listen?
Feminist activists Jane Fonda and Gloria Steinem are calling for the FCC to take action against Rush Limbaugh. Doing so, however, could create complications.
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Vox News
Does Rush Limbaugh’s apology put his ‘slut’ comment behind him? Not likely
Rush Limbaugh apologized for calling Sandra Fluke a “slut” because of her comments about contraception. But that unusual retreat by the sharp-tongued talk show host has not ended the matter as a political weapon.
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Horizons
Lightsquared: what happened, what's next, and why it matters
Upstart company Lightsquared planned to use ground towers and satellites to build a wholesale 4G network that would expand mobile access to rural parts of the US. But the FCC spiked the proposal over technical concerns. Now what?
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'Diddy' as TV mogul? Why new network could face steep challenges.
'Diddy,' a.k.a. Sean Combs, will head one of four new minority-owned networks on Comcast. But with the TV landscape changing, 'Diddy' will have to do something special to stand out.
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Magic Johnson, Sean Combs set to launch new cable TV channels
Magic Johnson and Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs are both preparing to air a new cable television channel on Comcast. Magic Johnson already has a hand in the entertainment field as a movie theater owner.
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LightSquared unable to use wireless spectrum due to interference with existing GPS devices
Wireless Internet connections from LightSquared can confuse GPS devices. Now, the FCC says it may revoke LightSquared's permit to eliminate the risk of such interference.
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Madonna half time show: What's a network to do when performers behave badly?
Lots of finger-pointing has ensued after a rapper during the Madonna half time show at the Super Bowl made an obscene gesture – before millions of TV viewers. Indecency during prime time is an issue already before the US Supreme Court.
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FCC: Chicago station can drop graphic antiabortion ad during Super Bowl
Antiabortion activist Randall Terry, a write-in candidate for president, demanded that a Chicago station run an ad showing aborted fetuses during the Super Bowl. The FCC ruled against him.
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Antiabortion activist plans graphic ad for Super Bowl. Can station refuse?
The FCC is expected to rule on whether an NBC affiliate in Chicago must run a graphic ad during the Super Bowl by antiabortion activist Randall Terry, who has declared himself a candidate for president.
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Lawyer makes startling argument in Supreme Court hearing on FCC
A lawyer arguing that the FCC has gone overboard in its regulation of broadcast nudity and language directed the justices' attention to the bare buttocks of statues in the Supreme Court. The justices are considering whether FCC rules are inconsistent.
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Are tough FCC indecency laws obsolete? Supreme Court hears free-speech case.
Fox and ABC say tougher FCC regulations of broadcasters regarding expletives and partial nudity are discriminatory in an age when cable and Internet programs are not similarly regulated.
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AT&T calls off bid for T-Mobile. Now what?
AT&T will give T-Mobile parent $3 billion in cash and another $1 billion in spectrum. But the collapse of the deal leaves T-Mobile in a tougher spot than AT&T.
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'Bill shock': Are voluntary warnings against extra wireless fees enough?
The wireless industry is being told by the FCC to curb 'bill shock' notifying consumers when they are about to be charged extra for going over monthly limits for voice, data, texting, and roaming.
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Horizons
Bringing broadband to 18 million more Americans
FCC chairman Julius Genachowski unveils a plan to bring broadband access to 18 million more Americans, mostly in rural areas. But it involves dismantling and rebuilding a 15-year-old national service fund.
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US Supreme Court opens, likely to wade into health care debate
It seems inevitable that the US Supreme Court will agree to hear the legal challenge to President Obama’s health care reform law, the Affordable Care Act. As the court opens Monday, gun laws, immigration, racial preferences, and separation of church and state loom as major issues as well.
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Horizons
Net neutrality rules are coming. Here's why they matter.
A new set of FCC rules would make net neutrality an enforceable reality, rather than just a set of principles. But Verizon and other providers think the FCC has overstepped its bounds.
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Vox News
Rick Santorum wants his Google problem fixed. Can Google shrug him off?
Google says the years-old problem Rick Santorum has had is not theirs to fix. But questions remain: Who is responsible for online reputations? And is Google a company or a public utility?
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Horizons
AT&T and T-Mobile merger in jeopardy as Justice Department takes action
An AT&T and T-Mobile merger would mean 'higher prices' for customers, says the Justice Department, which is suing to block the deal. Is the AT&T and T-Mobile merger now a bust?
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Cellphones: Most service survived Irene
Cellphones went dead after 400 cell towers went offline in parts of North Carolina and Virginia. But other areas hit by hurricane Irene were mostly spared.
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