The thing about the Emergency Alert System is that it’s only supposed to be used to alert people when there’s an actual emergency. So anyone viewing the trailer for 2013’s Olympus Has Fallen might’ve been alarmed to hear those telltale tones along with “This is not a test” — at least until Gerard Butler’s face hits the screen. [More]
federal communications commission
The DOT Wants To Know: Should Cell Phone Calls Be Allowed On Planes?
By 2.21.14
Back in December when the Federal Communications Commission announced it would start investigating whether or not it’s a good idea to lift the ban on cell phone calls on planes — from a technological point of view — the Department of Transportation was all, “Hold on, we’re going to look into this too.” The DOT is now turning to the public to hear your thoughts. [More]
FCC Wants First-Responders To Know Exactly Where 911 Calls Are Coming From
By 2.21.14
No one wants to be in a position where calling 911 is necessary, but if the situation does occur we’d all like to think first-responders could easily find us. But that’s just not the case now that more consumers are using cell phones to make emergency calls. Especially when those calls are being made indoors, out of the view of GPS satellites. [More]
FCC Checking With Hotels To See If Reaching Help With 9-1-1 Is As Easy As It Should Be
By 1.16.14
If you were to pick up the phone in a hotel room and dial 9-1-1, what would you get? You probably wouldn’t be in the state of mind to dial 9 first, but that shouldn’t stop you from getting in contact with emergency services as fast as possible, which is why one member of the Federal Communications Commission is looking into how it works at different hotel chains across the country. [More]
Goodness Gracious — Please Tell Us The FCC Isn’t Going To Allow Cellphone Calls On Planes
By 11.22.13
It hasn’t even been a month since the Federal Aviation Administration said it would finally let airline passengers use devices like tablets and phones from gate to gate, but now another federal agency is considering letting loose the hounds of Hades: The Federal Communications Commission is considering allowing travelers to make phone calls in midair. [More]
FCC Yells At 2 Million People To Turn Those Darn Cell Phone Signal Boosters Off, Changes Its Mind
By 2.22.13
What’s an average citizen to do if they can’t get a cell phone call to go through, perhaps because they live far from cell towers or their network is just shoddy? About 2 million people in the United States currently use wireless signal boosters, devices that can help strengthen cell phone signals. The Federal Communications Commission adopted new rules on those yesterday, at first saying everyone would have to turn them off and get permission from carriers, but backpedaling shortly after. [More]
The FCC Thinks It Might Want To Start Collecting Taxes On Broadband Internet Service
By 8.27.12
Here’s something you might have missed — there could soon be a new tax on your broadband Internet service, if the Federal Communications Commission has its way. The proposed tax would go toward ensuring more people have access to the Internet, along the lines of the taxes already consumers pay for landlines and cellular phone service. [More]
FCC Tells Comcast It Had Better Get To Marketing That Standalone Broadband Service
By 6.28.12
The Federal Communications Commission has slapped Comcast with a $800,000 fine for not doing its part to market its standalone broadband Internet service. It was supposed to do just that as part of the conditions of its merger with NBC Universal last year. [More]
FCC Taking Another Look At Mobile Phone Radiation
By 6.15.12
For the first time in 15 years, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission says it’s planning on asking if its standards protect people from mobile-phone radiation, partly because of how often we use smartphones now and since we yak away on them for longer periods of time than we used to. [More]
Court Says Banning Political Ads From Public TV Is Unconstitutional
By 4.12.12
Let’s hope we don’t see Mitt Romney or President Barack Obama angling for votes in between Sesame Street segments — but that could be the reality in the future. An appeals court in California ruled that banning political and public-issue ads from public TV and radio stations is unconstitutional. Oh, First Amendment! Look what you’ve done! [More]
FCC: TV Commercials Will Be A Lot Quieter One Year From Now
By 12.13.11
Today the Federal Communications Commission is expected to pass regulations requiring that all commercials on TV be at a constant level — which means no sudden blaring of Wacky Wild Wally screaming at you about the best RV deals in town. Well, he might still be screaming but he won’t permanently damage your hearing. [More]
FCC Asked To Address Misleading And Confusing Billing
By 10.16.09
In August, we wrote about upcoming investigations and possible actions by the FCC on several different areas of the consumer telecommunications experience. Several consumer groups filed comments on the first issue, truth in billing, this week, and we wanted to share some of their concerns and suggestions.
Everyone Wave Goodbye To Outgoing FCC Chief Kevin Martin
By 1.17.09
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is calling it quits as of inauguration day. The Chairman, who could have served for three more years, is heading to the Aspen Institute, a preserve for endangered spectacles masquerading as a “nonprofit leadership group.” Martin’s tenure was a mixed bag for consumers…
