Sources close to the situation claimed yesterday evening that Julius Genachowski would be stepping down from his post as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, and today he has taken the podium at an FCC staff meeting to confirm just that.
“I’ll be stepping down as chairman of the FCC in the next couple weeks,” he said, before thanking members of the FCC for helping to build a… → Read More
The FCC has introduced a plan to give commercial space companies like SpaceX access to the spectrum they need to perform missions. The plan will allow companies to apply for spectrum on a temporary basis so they can safely operate their missions, as scheduled.
As it stands now, companies like SpaceX (with its Dragon resupply missions to the ISS and Falcon9 rocket launches), and XCOR Aerospace… → Read More
There’s a new Apple TV on the way. Per these FCC documents, the new model is physically slightly smaller and as noted by TheNextWeb, rocks an A5X SoC. With the faster core, the new model should provide a better user experience with a smoother UI and improved app performance. Plus, with the recent Apple TV update that added a bunch of features, it seems the Apple is about to make another assault on… → Read More
The FCC has today announced a new Task Force to deal with the difficult task of creating policy for a next-generation communications network based on an IP infrastructure, as opposed to the copper-line POTS (plain old telephone service) network which has been in place since the late 19th century.
The Task Force is part of the National Broadband Plan, passed in 2010, which aims to help the… → Read More
In August of last year, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski introduced plans for a next-generation 911 service, which would support text, picture and video messaging in cases of emergencies.
The plan was expected to take 5 to 10 years, but today Genachowski has announced alongside major wireless carriers that the SMS portion of the plan will be accelerated.
The major carriers expect widespread… → Read More
If you think Sandy’s slow, steady passing is a sign of good things to come, think again. It’s going to take days (at the very least) to restore power to many of the 7 million+ people living in darkness, and cell service is expected to get worse before it gets better.
According to the FCC, 25 percent of cell towers in ten states were disrupted or damaged during the Hurricane. Landline outages… → Read More
Editor’s note: Michael Weinberg is a staff attorney at Public Knowledge, an organization that preserves the openness of the Internet and the public’s access to knowledge; promotes creativity through balanced copyright; and upholds and protects the rights of consumers to use innovative technology lawfully. Michael focuses primarily on copyright, issues before the FCC and emerging technologies… → Read More
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski is bullish on wireless innovation happening in the U.S., but says there are reasons to be concerned about the ability to cater to growing demand for mobile applications. Genachowski stopped by TechCrunch Disrupt and shot a video with me backstage about mobile innovation and the growing need to re-allocate spectrum and make it available to wireless providers. → Read More
Earlier today Google released the full report of the FCC’s investigation into the collection of “payload data” from open Wi-Fi networks — aka passwords, email and search history from open networks — that its fleet of Street View cars obtained between 2008 and April 2010. An earlier and heavily redacted version of the report was released on April 15 but today’s version only redacted the names… → Read More
Anti-consumer legislation SOPA and PIPA might be all but dead, but there isn’t time to rest. There is a seemingly never-ending flow of proposed legislation, statutes and bills queued up, ready to bust down doors and storm living rooms. One of the latest involves the forced transition from analog to digital cable — something I wrote about back in 2008. If the FCC caves to massive lobbying from the… → Read More
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, SV Angel’s Ron Conway, Andreessen-Horowitz’ Jeff Jordan, Twilio’s Jeff Lawson, Foursquare mobile VP Holger Leudorf and Lookout founder John Hering all gathered at Founder’s Den HQ this afternoon for the awesomely titled “Desperately Seeking Spectrum” panel, where discussion centered around freeing up broadband spectrum for the US mobile industry to use as it… → Read More
Obscenely high phone bills have a habit of coming from out of the blue, but that could all change in coming months. According to Reuters, the wireless trade association CTIA is expected to announce a new set of guidelines today under which all wireless carriers must notify their customers when they’re nearing overage territory. → Read More
There have been plenty of questions over whether or not the proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T is in the public interest. We’ve heard from competitors, senators, attorneys generals, and even the DOJ, who formally filed a complaint in federal court saying that “AT&T’s elimination of T-Mobile as an independent, low-priced rival would remove a significant competitive force… → Read More
Nobody ever wants to be in a situation that requires emergency services, but when you are, that whole “dial 911” thing really helps. Sort of. In truth, our emergency response system is pretty outdated when we consider all the various forms of communication that have basically become mainstream.
But luckily, FCC Charmain Julius Genachowski recently announced that a five step plan is in… → Read More
So let’s say you walk into a Best Buy looking for a new tablet. You walk up to the guy in the blue polo and tell him what you’re looking for. After taking you to the tablet section, he whips out a handkerchief and blindfolds you. “They’re all really good!” he promises. “The one on the left is $499, the one in the middle is $549, and the one on the right is an even $600. Which can I wrap up… → Read More
These photos from the FCC show us a few of the new Roku devices coming out in 2011 including the 3000X, 3050X, and 3100X. These guys will have 1080p HDMI, USB support, a microSD slot, and surround sound support. The HD model features an RF remote control. → Read More
Verizon Wireless got hit with an FCC complaint this morning by an organization called Free Press, over the restrictions placed on Verizon’s 4G LTE smartphones. The group claims that Verizon’s rules don’t necessarily jive with the regulatory policies of the Federal Communications Commission when it comes to tethering to Verizon’s speedy 4G LTE network. → Read More
The HTC EVO 3D is possibly one of the most anticipated phones of the summer, and both Sprint and HTC have done an excellent job of teasing out its launch date. Thanks to a RadioShack flyer discovered a few days ago, we were pretty certain the 3D-capable smartphone would hit shelves on June 24. Today, however, we’ve been given a little extra confirmation that the smartphone is on its way, since the… → Read More
Talk about sinking to a new low. It seems that Comcast and perhaps other ISPs are blocking access to the notorious torrent site, ThePirateBay.org. The word comes from TorrentFreak who also reached out to the TPB team who indicated that they can’t confirm if an ISP is blocking the site but “there’s a significant drop in visitors from the U.S.” All I know is I, a Comcast subscriber, cannot access… → Read More
Last December the FCC approved its “Preserving the Open Internet” regulation to ban blocking of websites or web services by broadband providers, while being equally vague about what the new restrictions held for mobile carriers like Verizon and AT&T.
As we said in December, Republicans had vowed to give the loophole-filled rules hell when the Congress turned more Republican in January.
Today… → Read More
Oh, here comes controversy. The FCC has preliminarily approved the use of mobile phone signal boosters, but let’s say it’s only put one foot in the water. A 55-page notice of proposed rulemaking [PDF] has been put online that details what the FCC has in mind. The idea is to give consumers a limited ability to boost their mobile signal in times of need. Wireless providers, like AT&T, are none… → Read More
Looks like the FCC just tipped another product before its official announcement. The Dell Panerai seems to be from the same cloth as the Inspiron Duo convertible netbook although just a few schematics are in the FCC docs. An a/b/g/n Intel Centrino 6230 chipset is listed as the WiFi card of choice, which then confirms that this notebook will have a bit more power than the Insprion Duo as the… → Read More
It’s illegal to own or operate a GPS jammer in the United States for many valid reasons. More importantly, it threatens many systems us humans find relevant. If GPS goes down, how will people get around cities without getting lost? (Google Maps works so well for public transit.) It’s not surprising that the biggest threat to GPS is actually its owners: the US government. → Read More
Not much here to note but this FCC filing shows that the Blackberry Playbook has pushed through another hurdle towards reality. The filing shows the capacaties – 16, 32, and 64GB – but the rest is classified per RIM’s request to the FCC. I’m actually quite intrigued by this pad but I’d probably never buy one. We shall, as they say, see. → Read More
Back to the drawing board. The House of Representatives struck a mighty blow against Net Neutrality yesterday, with the communications and technology subcommittee voting against the recently adopted Net Neutrality rules. The rules will actually remain in place until Congress or the president do something about them, ie, send them back to the FCC for further re-tooling or worse. → Read More
The FCC are currently investigating Verizon’s “mass call event” problems related to recent snow storms in DC and Maryland. The carrier failed to patch through multiple 911 calls during recent weather events, resulting in trapped motorists in dangerous conditions. → Read More
The Republican Party has a bone to pick with the Federal Communications Commission, and you’ll never guess why. Oh, wait, yes you will. Predictably, several Republican congressmen have come out against the evils of Net Neutrality, despite the fact that it passed several months ago, and despite the fact that it could charitably only be called Net Neutrality Lite. What gives? → Read More
Who saw this coming? (Oh, right: everyone.) Verizon has taken umbrage with certain aspects of Net Neutrality, and has taken the rather predictable tract of challenging the FCC’s authority in order to get out of complying with the rules. It’s nothing more than a simple case of if you can’t win an argument based on its own merit attack the credibility of your adversary. Verizon isn’t too… → Read More
Not only does LittleBigPlanet 2 come out today, but the FCC pproved the merger between Comcast and NBC Universal. Will the two companies use their combined powers for good and not evil? A healthy skepticism may be in order. → Read More
I know you’ve heard this before, but it’s finally getting close, the Notion Ink Adam is on its way to the market. After finally getting flight clearance from the FCC, the only thing left to do it takeoff. Just when exactly? → Read More
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