Charter-Time Warner merger moves ahead, with conditions

The U.S. Department of Justice has given its approval for a pair of Charter Communications Inc. acquisitions, which, according to a Monday press release, would create the second-largest cable company in the country.

Obama backs FCC set-top box proposal

U.S. President Barack Obama is weighing in on his country’s debate over increasing competition to benefit consumers.

On Friday, Obama announced “that his administration is calling on the FCC to open up set-top-cable boxes to competition,” said a White House blog post.

FCC launches broadband labels

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has launched a labeling program for broadband services, similar to nutrition labels found on food products.

“The consumer broadband labels will provide consumers with more information on service speed and reliability and greater clarity regarding the costs of broadband service, including fees and other add-on charges that may appear on their bills,” the commission said in a press release Monday.

FCC to subsidize broadband for low-income customers

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission will provide subsidies of $9.95 towards Internet service for low-income individuals.

The FCC said in a press release Thursday it has modernized its Lifeline program, which previously focused on affordable phone access.

“Today, consumers need Internet access for full and meaningful participation in society.  Yet 43 [per cent] of nation’s poorest households say they can’t afford modern broadband service,” the release said.

FCC commish blames net-neutrality policy for spending dip

Ajit Pai, a commissioner with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), has blamed his own organization's new net-neutrality rules for a decline in capital spending among Internet service providers this year.

CenturyLink funded to expand rural Internet in U.S.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced Thursday it will provide funding of about $506 million US a year to CenturyLink Inc. to deliver broadband Internet service to rural parts of the United States.

The regulator said in a press release that the service, called the Connect America Fund, will allow CenturyLink to provide Internet to more than 2.3 million rural customers, which includes 1.2 million homes and businesses in 33 states. It said customers will receive download speeds of at least 10 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 1 Mbps.

As OTA leaves 600 MHz, stations set for ‘difficult transition’: expert

Industry Canada will repurpose the 600 MHz spectrum band for mobile use and collaborate with the United States on the move, which means at least some over-the-air (OTA) television stations will have to find new frequencies if they want to continue broadcasting.

One question is how many of those stations will actually make the switch, Gregory Taylor, an assistant professor of mass communications at the University of Calgary, said in a phone interview.

FCC expands unlicensed use of spectrum

The FCC announced Thursday it is adopting new rules to accommodate unlicensed use of devices in the 600 MHz spectrum bandwidth and TV broadcast bands, while protecting interruptions or interference it may cause with licensed TV services.

The U.S. regulator said in a press release that unlicensed uses, including the use of garage door openers, cordless phones, products related to the Internet of Things (IoT), and others operating on WiFi or Bluetooth signals, were added to rules regarding these spectrum categories.

T-Mobile pays $17.5M US for 911 outages

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Friday that it has reached a settlement with T-Mobile U.S. Inc. that will see the carrier paying $17.5 million US for a pair of 911 outages last year.

U.S. industry groups fight new net-neutrality regulations

CTIA-The Wireless Association is among a number of U.S. industry groups making court challenges to net-neutrality rules the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) put in place earlier this year.

CRTC to consider whether broadband should be basic service

The CRTC announced Thursday that it will re-examine the definition and role of so-called basic services, paving the way for potential changes to the offerings telecom companies are mandated to make available to every Canadian.

FCC approves open-Internet regulations

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved a set of rules that, among other things, prevents Internet service providers from blocking or throttling traffic, or giving priority to content from an affiliate or any company that's willing to pay to secure "fast lanes" for its content.

FCC chairman proposes common-carrier net neutrality rules

U.S. Federal Communications Commissioner (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler said on Wednesday that he will propose new rules this week to enshrine net neutrality in law and ban paid prioritization and throttling of “lawful content and services” on both wireline and, for the first time, wireless connections.

In a post on the website of Wired, Wheeler said the regulations would redefine ISPs and mobile providers as common carriers using the FCC’s so-called Title II authority.

FCC raises broadband definition to 25 Mbps

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) raised the minimum speeds required to meet its definition of broadband internet on Friday to 25 Mbps from 4 Mbps, according to a posting on its website.

The regulator called the old standard, set in 2010, “dated and inadequate” for assessing the broadband needs of the country in its latest report on the deployment of high-speed Internet connections.

U.S. AWS-3 auction raises more than $41B US

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s AWS-3 auction ended Thursday, and the regulator announced Friday that it had accepted $41.3 billion US in net bids from 31 bidders for 1,611 spectrum licences.

The FCC had previously said the auction had seen $44.9 billion US in gross bidding, and in Friday’s release the regulator said the difference was due to auction rules surrounding withdrawn bids and interim payments.

FCC boss leaning toward Obama’s position on net neutrality: reports

U.S. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler could be hinting toward a net-neutrality policy along the lines of what President Barack Obama has suggested, categorizing broadband Internet as a public utility, reports indicated.

"We're going to propose rules that say that no blocking (is allowed), no throttling, no paid prioritization," Wheeler said Wednesday at the International Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, according to Reuters.

FCC raises rural Internet speed requirements

The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) said Thursday that companies would need to provide rural Internet download speeds of at least 10 Mbps in order to qualify for support from its Connect America Fund.

It said in a press release that the upload requirement remains 1 Mbps, as it was in previous specifications issued in 2011, while it has raised the download standard from 4 Mbps as a result of "marketplace and technological changes that have occurred" since then.

FCC begins AWS-3 auction

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s AWS-3 auction began on Thursday.

The auction, which has a minimum price of a little more than $10 billion US and is scheduled for a single day, includes 1,614 licences in the 1695 to 1710 MHz, 1755 to 1780 MHz and 2155 to 2180 MHz bands. The 65 MHz of AWS-3, which can be used for wireless services such as LTE and LTE-Advanced, is available in a 5 MHz unpaired block as well as 5 and 10 MHz paired blocks.

FCC investigates spectrum capabilities for 5G

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced Friday that is going to examine the potential use of spectrum in frequencies once thought unusable for mobile services in anticipation of 5G wireless services.

The FCC said in a news release it is looking to "broaden the commission's understanding of the state of the art in technological development," and determine whether it is possible to use spectrum at 24 GHz (24,000 MHz) or above for "next-generation mobile wireless services."

Marriott fined $600K for WiFi blocking

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Friday that it has fined hotel operator Marriott International Inc. $600,000 US for deliberately blocking people's access to personal WiFi hotspots at a convention area in Nashville, while charging as much as $1,000 per device for access to the hotel's WiFi network.

The FCC said it launched an investigation in response to a complaint received in March 2013 from an individual who claimed Marriott staff were "jamming mobile hotspots so you can't use them in the convention space."

FCC to examine U.S. Internet traffic management

Tom Wheeler, chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, said Friday that his organization is looking into whether Internet service providers are purposely diminishing, for their own benefit, the flow of content from sources such as Netflix Inc.

In a statement posted online, Wheeler referred to recent disputes between Netflix and ISPs such as Comcast Corp. and Verizon Communications Inc.

FCC moves ahead with Internet ‘fast lanes’ proposal

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) moved forward Thursday with plans to explicitly allow Internet service providers give select content providers so-called “fast lanes” to end users.

The FCC passed a preliminary plan, led by Chairman Tom Wheeler, with a 3-2 vote, despite criticisms that it undermines the principle of an open Internet that treats all data equally.

Bloomberg reported that the FCC now enters a “comment-and-review period” that will precede a second and final vote later this year. 

Netflix to pay Comcast for faster streaming: report

Netflix Inc. will pay Comcast Corp. for access to its network in order to be able to provide its streaming video customers with faster speeds and improved reliability, Bloomberg reported Monday, quoting anonymous sources.

Based on information from one source, the news service said Netflix would pay Comcast millions of dollars each year in order “to deliver its content more efficiently,” in the wake of “complaints about quality and speed.”

U.S. net neutrality rules struck down

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on Tuesday struck down Federal Communications Commission rules that require Internet service providers to treat similar traffic equally in its transmission.

The decision also throws out a regulation that prevented ISPs from outright blocking some Internet content, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The court found that the FCC does not have the authority to regulate the way ISPs regulate net traffic because the Internet is not classified as telecommunications like traditional phone service.