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☆ A new bill will try to finally fix television commercials that are way, way louder than the programming
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Madison Hall | Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The CALM Act was originally passed in 2010, but at the time, the FCC didn't have jurisdiction over streaming services. The newly introduced act would make sure the FCC enforces the law and cover both TV and streaming services. The original CALM Act passed through the Senate unanimously and the House in a voice vote before it was signed by then-President Barack Obama. After the original law was passed, large stations and providers were supposed to abide by a monitoring program for two years. That is to say, the sum total of FCC enforcement on disproportionately loud commercials in the decade since the CALM Act has amounted to two letters — and no enforcement."

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☆ FCC proposes rules to reassess foreign-owned US telecom services authority
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 29 (Reuters) - The head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Wednesday proposed new rules to periodically reassess existing authorizations for foreign-owned companies to provide telecommunications services in the United States. The U.S. telecommunications regulator has raised mounting concerns about Chinese telecom companies in recent years which had won permission to operate in the United States decades ago. In 2019, the FCC voted to deny state-owned Chinese telecom firm China Mobile Ltd (0941.HK) the right to provide U.S. services and later withdrew U.S. authorizations for several other Chinese telecom carriers including China Telecom Corp (0728.HK). Rosenworcel said: "It is so important to have the agency regularly review foreign companies’ authorizations to providetelecommunications services in the United States." In December, a federal appeals court rejected China Telecom's challenge to the FCC order withdrawing the company's authority to provide services in the United States.

☆ Exclusive: Biden nominee to head FAA withdraws after Republican criticism
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, March 25 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's nominee to head the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is withdrawing his nomination after Republican criticism that he was not qualified to serve as the top aviation regulator. Last year, Biden nominated Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington to serve as FAA administrator. A White House official had earlier told Reuters "politics must not hold up confirming an administrator to lead the FAA, and we will move expeditiously to nominate a new candidate for FAA administrator." Some industry officials think the White House could name acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen as a new nominee. Nolen, who was named head of the FAA's aviation safety office, has been the acting FAA administrator since April 2022 and has received backing from many Republicans in Congress.

☆ U.S. and China wage war beneath the waves – over internet cables
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +28 min

Three of China’s state-owned carriers – China Telecommunications Corporation (China Telecom), China Mobile Limited and China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd (China Unicom) – had committed funding as members of the consortium, which also included U.S.-based Microsoft Corp and French telecom firm Orange SA, according to six people involved in the deal. China Telecom, China Mobile, China Unicom and Orange did not respond to requests for comment. China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom were resolutely behind HMN Tech, which had come in with a bid of around $500 million. China Telecom and China Mobile threatened to walk off the project, taking tens of millions of dollars of investment with them. Among them is China Telecom, which had previously won authorization to provide services in the United States.

☆ FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr on TikTok CEO's testimony: Hearing's going very poorly for TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFCC Commissioner Brendan Carr on TikTok CEO's testimony: Hearing's going very poorly for TikTokFCC Commissioner Brendan Carr joins ‘Squawk on the Street’ to weigh in on TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew's testimony before Congress on Thursday.

☆ A Big Donor, Nancy Pelosi and the FCC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

We recently told you that Federal Communications Commission Chair Jessica Rosenworcel ’s move to scuttle Standard General’s acquisition of TV station operator Tegna Inc. is dubious as a matter of law. Now evidence suggests she may have been doing the bidding of a major Democratic donor. Byron Allen ’s Allen Media Group made a play for Tegna in autumn 2021. Bloomberg News reported at the time that he was seeking to raise money from investment funds to buy Tegna and roll his existing stations into the new company. Around the same time, Mr. Allen made several contributions to then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic campaign committees.

☆ It's wild that Western governments have decided that TikTok might spy for China. The app hasn't helped itself.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Hasan Chowdhury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

TikTok denies it feeds user data to China, but the drip-drip of revelations hasn't helped. The suspicion is that TikTok's owner ByteDance is in cahoots with the Chinese Communist Party and shares data about Western users with China. TikTok has maintained the app doesn't spy on individuals, and has pointed to the steps it's taking to hive off user information. FCC commissioner Brendan Carr responded to Bertram asking if "any member of the CCP accessed non-public US or EU user data from inside China." US social-media services normalized the aggressive harvesting of user data, and routinely hand over information to international governments.

☆ Cellphone Companies Must Block Obvious Scam Texts, FCC Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Will Feuer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Spam texts have risen and companies will have to block messages regulators say are likely to be illegal. U.S. regulators say scam texts have gotten out of control, and it is time for cellphone companies to do more to stop them. Under new rules adopted Thursday by the Federal Communications Commission, mobile-service providers have to block robotext messages the agency says are highly likely to be illegal. That includes texts from numbers that shouldn’t be sending messages, such as unused and invalid numbers, as well as those that government agencies identify as not for texting.

☆ FCC cracks down on spammy text messages
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington CNN —The Federal Communications Commission is cracking down on spammy text messages with new rules for telecom companies, citing a surge of consumer complaints in recent years tied to unwanted robotexts. The new rules require phone providers to block text messages from suspicious sources including phone numbers that appear to be “invalid, unallocated, or unused.” Carriers will also have to block text messages coming from phone numbers that claim not to ever send text messages, or that the government has identified as numbers not used for texting, the FCC said. But in recent years, an explosion of spam and scam text messages appears to have taken their place, leading to more than 18,000 consumer complaints at the FCC last year. The FCC is mulling additional regulations that could, among other things, apply Do Not Call registry protections to text messages for the first time. The FCC said it is also considering making it harder for marketers to use a single consumer consent to flood that user with calls and text messages from multiple sources and numbers.

☆ Biden administration looks to free up wireless spectrum for advanced technology
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Wednesday launched an effort to identify significant wireless spectrum that can be repurposed for advanced technology needs and soaring U.S. wireless demand. The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is developing a National Spectrum Strategy with a goal to identify at least 1,500 megahertz of spectrum to study for potential new uses. The strategy will address current and future spectrum needs, including fixed and mobile wireless broadband, next-generation satellite communications and other space-based systems; advanced transportation; and industrial and commercial applications. Congress last week let the FCC's authority to auction wireless spectrum lapse for the first time in three decades, prompting some lawmakers to quickly restore the authority that has raised more than $200 billion in proceeds for the U.S. government. "We've got 6G networks coming, new mega-constellations of satellites, connected automobiles, the internet of things - all of that demands new uses of spectrum," Davidson said.

☆ Biden administration looks to free up wireless spectrum for advance technology needs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 15 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Wednesday is launching an effort to identify significant wireless spectrum that can be repurposed for advanced technology needs and soaring U.S. wireless demand. The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is developing a National Spectrum Strategy with a goal to identify at least 1,500 megahertz of spectrum to study for potential new uses. The strategy will address current and future spectrum needs, including fixed and mobile wireless broadband, next-generation satellite communications and other space-based systems; advanced transportation; and industrial and commercial applications. Congress last week let the FCC's authority to auction wireless spectrum lapse for the first time in three decades, prompting some lawmakers to quickly restore the authority that has raised more than $200 billion in proceeds for the U.S. government. "We've got 6G networks coming, new mega-constellations of satellites, connected automobiles, the internet of things - all of that demands new uses of spectrum," Davidson said.

☆ Skullduggery at the FCC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Gigi Sohn withdrew her stalled nomination for the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday after Joe Manchin (D., W.Va.) announced his opposition. Chair Jessica Rosenworcel will now have to advance her progressive agenda without a wingman, but her effort to kill a major media acquisition on the sly shows what she’s up to. Ms. Sohn blamed “unrelenting, dishonest and cruel attacks” for her failure to be confirmed in two Congresses. But she has a long record as an unrelenting partisan and her attacks on conservative media suggested she couldn’t be trusted to be fair-minded in regulating the airwaves.

☆ Sen. Ted Cruz on opposition to FCC nominee Gigi Sohn
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailSen. Ted Cruz on opposition to FCC nominee Gigi SohnSen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the Senator's opposition to Gigi Sohn, Sohn's frustrations with the Democratic party, and more.

☆ Biden pick for FCC withdraws, says agency will 'remain sidelined'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Sohn had been a senior aide to Tom Wheeler when he was the FCC chair under President Barack Obama. The open internet laws seek to bar internet service providers from blocking or slowing traffic or offering paid fast lanes. "The FCC deadlock, now over two years long, will remain so for a long time," Sohn said in a statement. Many Democrats said Republicans were doing the bidding of powerful telecom companies that did not want to face regulation from the FCC. In July 2021, Biden signed an executive order encouraging the FCC to reinstate the open internet net neutrality rules.

☆ Biden U.S. FCC pick in jeopardy after Democrat Manchin opposes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) speaks to reporters following the weekly Democratic caucus luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., November 29, 2022. Senator Joe Manchin said on Tuesday he will vote against confirming Gigi Sohn as a commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), potentially imperiling her nomination by President Joe Biden. The open internet laws seek to bar internet service providers from blocking or slowing traffic or offering paid fast lanes. In July 2021, Biden signed an executive order encouraging the FCC to reinstate the open internet net neutrality rules. Reporting by David Shepardson and Katharine Jackson; writing by Rami Ayyub; Editing by Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Gigi Sohn Withdraws as Nominee for Federal Communications Commission
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Catherine Lucey | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Gigi Sohn informed the White House that she is withdrawing her nomination for FCC commissioner. Gigi Sohn has withdrawn her nomination to serve as a commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission after a stalled confirmation process. Ms. Sohn informed the White House she would be withdrawing. The Washington Post reported about her decision earlier.

Gigi Sohn testifies during a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee confirmation hearing, examining her nomination to be appointed Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, D.C., February 9, 2022. Gigi Sohn, who was chosen by President Joe Biden to serve as telecommunications regulator to the Federal Communications Commission, said on Tuesday that she's withdrawing her nomination. After multiple hearings in the Senate Commerce Committee, it was still unclear if Sohn would have the votes for her nomination to pass the full Senate. During a 16-month battle with cable and media industry lobbyists, Sohn said she's been subject to "unrelenting, dishonest and cruel attacks" that have taken "an enormous toll" on her family. "And with the help of their friends in the Senate, the powerful cable and media companies have done just that."

☆ US is reviewing Huawei export license policy amid rising congressional scrutiny of China
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

US officials have expressed concerns that Huawei’s 5G wireless networking gear could allow the Chinese government to spy on American communications. Huawei has denied that it poses a security risk, and its founder has said the company would resist any Chinese government effort to obtain its data. Confronting Estevez at Tuesday’s hearing, McCaul asked the Commerce Department to square the license approvals with the US government’s wider effort to sideline Huawei and similar companies. Separately, in 2020 the Commerce Department moved to prevent Huawei’s suppliers from selling the company semiconductor chips made by US-built software and equipment, unless those suppliers also obtained a license. Other parts of the US government have also moved against Huawei.

☆ Standard General to press on with Tegna purchase despite FCC action
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Standard General on Monday said it would press on with its plan to buy television station operator Tegna (TGNA.N) for $5.4 billion despite a decision by the Federal Communications Commission Media Bureau to hold hearings on the proposed deal. Hedge fund Standard General said the decision to hold hearings was "tantamount to denying" the deal. "Standard General is calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to formally vote now on the proposed transaction and render a decision on the merits," the company said in a statement. The FCC, which regulates telecommunications, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The FCC said on Friday it would hold a hearing on the planned acquisition of Tegna, which manages 64 stations in 51 U.S. markets.

☆ Trump was once so annoyed that Jimmy Kimmel was making fun of him that he ordered White House staff to call Disney to complain, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Then-President Donald Trump urged White House staff to complain to Disney about Jimmy Kimmel. In 2018, Trump's aides called a top Disney executive on at least two occasions, per Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone was the first to report that Trump directed aides in 2018 to call the late Disney lobbyist Richard Bates on at least two occasions because of his frustrations over gags on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Trump felt that Kimmel had been "very dishonest" and had been saying things that he would have "once sued over," according to a senior unnamed official, per Rolling Stone. "Nobody thought it was going to change anything but DJT was focused on it so we had to do something," another source told Rolling Stone.

☆ U.S. orders hearing for Standard General bid for Tegna
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission, which regulates the U.S. telecoms industry, on Friday said it would hold a hearing on hedge fund Standard General's bid for TV station operator Tegna Inc (TGNA.N), a step that has historically led deals to collapse. Tegna, which manages 64 stations in 51 U.S. markets, agreed in February to be acquired by Standard General in a $5.4 billion all-cash deal that would take the company private. Standard General, which is Tegna's third-largest shareholder, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The announcement comes after Standard General said earlier this week that the U.S. Justice Department had allowed its review period to expire without taking any action. Reporting by Diane Bartz and David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Standard General says only FCC approval left for Tegna deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 22 (Reuters) - Hedge fund Standard General said its proposed acquisition of TV station operator Tegna Inc (TGNA.N) only needs Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval after the U.S. Department of Justice reviewed it without mounting any challenge. Standard General said in a statement on Tuesday that the so-called Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period, which gives antitrust regulators time to review the deal, had expired. Tegna shares ended trading in New York on Wednesday at their highest level since September, as investors assigned a higher probability to the deal closing. The discount to the $24-per-share deal price - which Tegna and Standard General agreed to in February 2022 - reflects lingering uncertainty over whether the FCC will let the deal go through. Standard General added in the statement it now expects the deal with Tegna, which is valued at $8.6 billion, including debt, to close in March or April, subject to approval by the FCC.

☆ These 26 words ‘created the internet.’ Now the Supreme Court may be coming for them
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

This week, the Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on two pivotal cases dealing with online speech and content moderation. A set of rulings against the tech industry could significantly narrow Section 230 and its legal protections for websites and social media companies. If that happens, the Court’s decisions could expose online platforms to an array of new lawsuits over how they present content to users. Such a result would represent the most consequential limitations ever placed on a legal shield that predates today’s biggest social media platforms and has allowed them to nip many content-related lawsuits in the bud. “The massive social media industry has grown up largely shielded from the courts and the normal development of a body of law.

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