Tag: FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Theaters, restaurants and even some schools have taken matters into their own hands when it comes to disruptive cell phone usage. But the signal jammers that they're using to block people from making and receiving phone calls and text messages are illegal. The FCC is preparing to crack down on the sale and use of such devices and encouraging people to report neighbors or businesses that are using ...

On Oct. 15th, Fox Television and Cablevision failed to renew a contractual agreement about the broadcasting rights to Fox affiliates WNYW, WWOR and WTXF. Once the deadline to renew passed, Cablevision subscribers lost access to those local Fox channels, so now the Federal Communications Commission apparently feels obligated to intervene. Instead of mediating or doling out some form of ...

Most of the recent headlines regarding the FCC focus on the battle over Net neutrality. Lost among the haranguing over tiered service and packet prioritization, the debate about so-called white space has fallen by the wayside. But, with the fight to preserve an unrestricted Web temporarily on hold, the regulating body is finally moving to approve the unlicensed use of the spaces that exist between ...

Highlights from this morning's other big tech headlines.... Based on Goldman Sachs' assessment of "underwhelming" initial sales, the new BlackBerry Torch probably won't help RIM reverse the recent, astronomical ascent of Android. [From: Business Insider] A licensing dispute with Universal Music Group UK has forced the removal of Grooveshark from Apple's App Store, although previously ...

Highlights from this morning's other big tech headlines.... The Voyager 1 spacecraft has already traveled an astounding 14 billion miles since its 1977 launch, and the interstellar wanderer is now headed to the Kuiper Belt at the "'edge' of our solar system," more than 13 billion miles from home. [From: Popular Science] eBay has faced exorbitant lawsuits in the past, but XPRT Venture is ...

If the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has its way, cell phone users won't be shocked anymore when they open their bills. According to MSNBC, the FCC claims that one in six cell phone users, or about 30 million people across the U.S., have experienced "bill shock" due to a drastic increase in charges from one month to the next. Yes, thanks to the FCC, there's a name for this phenomenon ...

In a somewhat unsurprising move, the FCC has approved the merger of Sirius and XM after protracted -- and incredibly boring -- multi-year negotiations. The Federal Communication Commission decided tonight to allow a deal that will bring the two satellite radio providers together, creating a combined subscriber base of roughly 18 million users. The deal isn't without catches, however, with the ...