Unlike the recent United/Continental merger, which blazed through its regulatory hurdles like something that goes really fast through something else, the marriage of NBC Universal and Comcast isn’t moving as speedily. Yesterday, the FCC hit both bride and groom with a handful of questions it wants answered before giving its blessing to the union. [More]
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Senate Passes Bill Banning Loud Commercials
By 10.1.10
Everyone hates loud commercials, which is why Senate Republicans and Democracts were able to agree on something and Wednesday unanimously passed a bill banning them. The bill would require commercials to be broadcast at the same sound level as the programs they’re interrupting. [More]
Tell The FCC To Nix The NBC Comcast Deal
By 9.28.10
If you don’t want Comcast to own NBC, you can use this handy dandy online petition Consumers Union put together for you to tell the FCC. As the agency continue to mull over the deal, perhaps your opinion may help sway theirs. But why might Kabletown owning the peacock be bad for consumers? [More]
Strings Attached: Charities Comcast Donated To Send FCC Pro-Merger Letters
By 9.3.10
There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Comcast has donated over $1.8 billion to local charities and now that its merger with NBC is on the table, it’s time to call in the chits. Charities that received contributions from Comcast are pouring out their epistolary support for the merger, and they appear to be less than spontaneous. [More]
"Up To" Broadband Speeds Are BS, FCC Study Shows
By 8.18.10
Just like you’ve suspected/known all along, the “up to” broadband speeds providers offer – “up to 10 mbs!” – are nigh unattainable. A new FCC report finds that broadband users are, on average, only getting half of the advertised “up to” speeds. [More]
Parents Television Council F*cking Pissed About Repeal Of FCC Indecency Ban
By 7.14.10
Not surprisingly, in the wake of yesterday’s decision by a New York court to scrap the ridiculous FCC rule against on-air profanity, the not-at-all-overprotective folks at the Parents Television Council are raising their hands in the air and asking, “What about the children?” [More]
F*ck Yeah! Court Strikes Down FCC Rule Against Unscripted Expletives
By 7.13.10
The next time Bono drops the F-bomb while accepting an award or Janet Jackson’s nipple makes a cameo appearance at the Super Bowl, broadcasters won’t have to worry about facing mammoth fines from the FCC. A federal appeals court has said “f@ck this sh&t” to the controversial ban. [More]
Christian Groups Want To Know How Much Comcast Makes From Porn
By 6.28.10
As the government continues to pretend that it cares what anyone thinks about Comcast’s merger with NBC Universal, a coalition of Christian media watchdog groups are asking the cable giant to publicly divulge how much money it makes from porn channels and pay-per-view. [More]
FCC Seeking Volunteers For Test Of Residential Broadband Speeds
By 6.2.10
Among the chief complaints we get from readers about their broadband providers is that the lightning-fast speeds advertised by the ISP are far from the reality of what they’re getting through their modem. So in an effort to parse truth from lip service, the FCC is about to begin a nationwide test of residential broadband speeds — and they want your help. [More]
What iPhone Owners Complain About When They Complain To The FCC & FTC
By 5.31.10 — Updated: 10.24.12
Lastmonth, InformationWeek filed a Freedom of Information request with the FCC and the FTC for complaints made about the iPhone in the past year. Although the breakdown of complaints is interesting, what I found most striking was that in a nation of over 11 million iPhone owners, less than 600 complaints were filed in the past 14 months*, and some of those were for other Apple products. If you have a legitimate grievance with a company, you might have a much better chance of being heard by the FCC or FTC than you think. [More]
AT&T Raising iPhone Early Termination Fee To $325
By 5.21.10
Having cold feet with your iPhone will cost you $325 starting June 1. AT&T is increasing the fee for breaking early two-year smartphone contracts from $199. The carrier is also decreasing the early termination fee for “dumb” phones by $25 to $150. [ [More]
Wireless Industry Lobbyists Explain Why The FCC Should Back Off
By 5.17.10
The president and a vice-president for CTIA, a lobbying organization for the wireless industry, spoke recently with CNET about why they think the FCC should leave their members alone. The vice-president, Chris Guttman-McCabe, is a lawyer and as such his answers are useless. President Steve Largent, however, actually has a couple of candid moments during the interview. [More]
FCC May Require Text Warnings Before You Get "Bill Shock"
By 5.12.10
The FCC is considering requiring cell carriers in the U.S. to do something their European counterparts already have to do: send customers text warnings when they’re about to incur massive charges because they’ve used up all their included minutes or are about to hit a roaming zone. [More]
FCC To Control What You Can/Can't Record From TV
By 5.12.10
At the MPAA’s behest, the FCC granted Selectable Output Control, which means you won’t be able to record certain “high value” stuff off your TV, ZeroPaid reports: [More]
FCC May Step In To Restore Net Neutrality
By 5.6.10
Fighting back against a court ruling that found the FCC has no authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks, the commission has proposed regulating broadband under rules designed for phone networks, the Wall Street Journal reports. [More]
Tell FCC What You Think About Proposed Comcast/NBC Mergepocalypse By May 3
By 3.19.10
Do you have strong feelings for or against Comcast’s proposed acquisition of 51% of NBC/Universal? The FCC has asked for comments from “interested parties,” so if you have anything compelling to say on the matter, here’s where to go. [More]
Charter Communications Rep Says Cable Companies Taking Over All Streaming Video On May 1st
By 3.16.10
The Charter Communications CSR who spoke with Dustin has some pretty astounding news about what’s on the horizon for all of us. It looks like starting May 1st, cable companies will have total, FCC-sanctioned control over streaming video and will take down all competing services. [More]
FCC Leaks Summary Of National Broadband Plan
By 3.15.10
The FCC has released a scan (PDF) of the five-page executive summary of the National Broadband Plan that it will present to Congress in two days. Although the summary is packed with recommendations, here’s a couple that a lot of broadband customers might be interested in: the FCC wants to develop “disclosure requirements for broadband service providers” so that consumers can make the best choice for service, and it wants to map broadband services across the country to better identify “specific geographies or market segments” where there’s not enough competition. [More]
