The FCC has proposed levying a $13.3 million fine against Sinclair Broadcast Group for failing to disclose that certain broadcasts resembling independently generated news coverage were actually paid TV segments. The Commission said this is the largest fine it has ever proposed for a violation of its sponsorship identification rules. The FCC was tipped…
AT&T Intends to Increase Capital Spending by $1B Following Tax Reform
Wave Broadband Files Claim Against Comcast Over Sports Programming Dispute
Wave Broadband filed a claim with the Federal Communications Commission against Comcast Tuesday, alleging the cable operator is engaging in unfair business practices by forcing Wave to offer a single bundled premium sports TV channel package at a higher cost to customers. Kirkland, Wash.-based Wave, which serves residential and business customers in California, Oregon, and…
FCC Votes to Review 39% National TV Audience Cap
In a split vote of 3-2 the FCC voted Thursday to open a review into Commission’s national broadcast audience reach cap. Current rules prevent a single TV broadcaster from owning stations that reach more than 39 percent of households nationwide. The FCC is considering whether the cap, which was set by Congress, should be modified,…
FCC Overturns Net Neutrality Rules
In an unsurprising 3-2 vote along party lines, the FCC has overturned net-neutrality rules put in place in 2015. The vote reclassifies ISPs as non-common carriers, freeing them from Title II-based regulations, and transfers most oversight to the Federal Trade Commission. Rules against blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization are no longer in place, and critics…
Antitrust Trial for AT&T and Time Warner Deal Set for March
AT&T and Time Warner will head to court on March 19 to fight against the Justice Department’s attempt to block the companies’ proposed $85 billion merger. The antitrust trial date was set by a judge in Washington at a Thursday pre-trial hearing, Reuters reported. The March date is after AT&T’s requested start date of Feb.…
Research: Global Cost Savings from Smart City Tech Could Hit $5T Annually by 2022
Enterprises, governments and citizens around the globe could benefit from $5 trillion in costs savings per year by 2022 with the adoption of smart city technologies, according to a new report from ABI Research. Technologies such as automation, AI, sensors, data-sharing and analytics will be vital in helping cities save costs, but various interests must…
AT&T, Time Warner Fight Back Against DOJ Suit
AT&T and Time Warner argued in a court filing this week that their proposed merger is “pro-competitive” and “pro-consumer” after the Justice Department sought to block it in an antitrust lawsuit. The DOJ suit, filed last week, claimed that the $85 billion deal could harm American consumers and hinder competition. It also the merger could…
ONAP Unveils First Release, Amsterdam
The Open Network Automation Platform (ONAP) Project has unveiled its first platform release, ONAP Amsterdam, to help service providers with ongoing efforts to virtualize their networks. Amsterdam aims to deliver a unified architecture for end-to-end, closed-loop network automation, according to the group. Providing a new service delivery lifecycle for teleco, cable, and cloud providers, ONAP…
T-Mobile Expands LTE-A and Gigabit LTE Reach
At a media and analyst event Wednesday in San Jose, Calif., alongside Qualcomm, T-Mobile said it has fired up LTE Advanced in more than 920 markets, with Gigabit LTE live in 430 of those markets. The operator said it achieves Gigabit Class LTE by simultaneously accessing the “trifecta” of carrier aggregation, 4X4 MIMO, and 256…