As expected, President Trump has elevated Ajit Pai from his FCC Commissioner to Chairman, clearly establishing that the new administration seeks to undo the telecommunications regulations of the previous White House. [More]
meet the new boss
Net Neutrality Basher Ajit Pai Reportedly Close To Being Named FCC Chairman
By 1.20.17
As we mentioned more than a month ago, conservative FCC firebrand Ajit Pai was among the most likely candidates to be appointed as Commission’s chairman following the exit of now-former Chair Tom Wheeler. Now comes a report claiming that Pai will soon be handed the reins of an agency whose recent policies he openly opposed. [More]
New Vizio Owner LeEco Is In The Ecosystem Business, Not The Gadget Business
By 7.28.16
Earlier this week, TV-maker Vizio announced that it had been acquired by the Chinese company LeEco. “Who?” you might have said. Even people in China would have said the same thing until a few years ago, but now the company is a conglomerate that sells streaming video and smartphones, and electric cars. [More]
Blaming TWC’s Poor Service, City May Deny Transfer Of Cable To Comcast
By 10.9.14
Two years ago, the people of Lexington, KY, became Time Warner Cable customers when the company acquired Insight Communications. Now TWC is being bought by Comcast, meaning Lexington residents would be switched again. But it gets more complicated, as Lexington is one of the markets that Comcast would then hand over to Charter. Four different cable companies in fewer than five years has members of the Lexington city council saying “no more.” [More]
AT&T, DirecTV To Take Over Comcast SportsNet Houston; Will Fans Finally Be Able To See Games?
By 8.7.14
Things are looking up for Houston Astros fans. The team isn’t currently in last place, and the ‘stros are outperforming the even more woeful Texas Rangers. Now comes news that some Houston-area sports fans may even get to watch their favorite teams on TV after a bankruptcy court determined to hand over ownership of Comcast SportsNet Houston to AT&T and DirecTV. [More]
CFPB Adds Oversight Of Largest Student Loan Servicing Companies
By 12.3.13
While many banks offer student loans, much of the servicing of that $1 trillion in loans is actually done by non-bank, third-party companies, some of which have been criticized for being difficult to deal with and having byzantine repayment rules. Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which already oversees student loan servicing by large banks, issued a new rule giving the agency the authority to supervise certain non-bank servicers in an effort to further ensure borrowers are being treated fairly and to rein in abusive loan servicing practices. [More]
FCC Chair Asks Wireless Industry To Make Cellphone Unlocking Easier For Consumers
By 11.14.13
A year ago, the Librarian of Congress — who has the authority to interpret the fine points of the much-derided Digital Millennium Copyright Act, inexplicably reversed his previous rulings regarding the rights of consumers to unlock wireless devices by making it illegal for people to unlock new phones and tablets without permission from their wireless provider. That change went into effect in January, and since then, everyone from consumers to lawmakers to the White House have declared it a huge mistake that needs to be rethought. Today, new FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler urged the wireless industry to put voluntary standards in place that would at least make it easier for consumers to know when they can unlock their devices. [More]
Best Buy Names New CEO, Even As Founder Angles To Buy Company Back
By 8.20.12
The CEO-go-round at Best Buy continues to spin, as the electronics company announced this morning that it had chosen a successor to CEO Brian “These dishes are” Dunn, who left the company under a cloud of scandal — all while company founder Richard “Don’t call me Sergeant” Schulze moves forward with his bid to arrange a buy-back of the business. [More]
Got An HSBC Credit Card? It Will Soon Be A Capital One Card
By 8.10.11
Two months after upsetting ING Direct customers by agreeing to buy the online bank for $9 billion, the Capital One vikings/barbarians have announced a deal to purchase HSBC’s credit card division for $2.6 billion. [More]
Dish Network Wins Blockbuster For $320 Million At Auction, Swears It Was Just Raising Its Hand To Wave To A Friend
By 4.6.11
Blockbuster Video — or rather the assets of Blockbuster — now have a new owner after Dish Network won what’s left of the beleaguered video rental company for around $320 million at auction. [More]
