WASHINGTON, October 28, 2010 - The Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau hit Verizon Wireless with a record $25 million payment to the government for mystery fees the company charged its customers during the last several years. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 28, 2010 - The Federal Communications Commission’s Office of Managing Director is seeking donations for the agency's new FCC Technology Experience Center, although was quick to note that any donations from device manufacturers are voluntary and "does not imply any expected benefit to the donor." Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 28, 2010 - Many content makers have called upon the Federal Communications Commission to protect their ability to distribute content via the internet, yet these same content makers are reluctant to play by the same rules. Recent decisions by content makers to block some Google TV and an ESPN service show the murkiness of the debates surrounding network neutrality. Keep Reading
Mainland Chinese authorities will begin a new round of crackdowns on digital piracy and against the traffickers of counterfeit goods at the end of October, according to a recent report in the Xinhua News Agency, China's official newswire. The new campaign was announced early last week at a state council meeting presided over by Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. Keep Reading
French authorities have started to send out warning letters to individuals suspected of copyright infringement online, and a whole cottage industry of lawyers and technologists has mushroomed up to both give tips on evading the law enforcers and to aid recipients of the notices, according to a Wednesday report in the Wall Street Journal. Keep Reading
Five of Russia's largest internet companies have called for an update of its copyright laws, according to the wire news service Agence France Press. "We believe that when the procedures are being observed (to prevent copyright violations) internet services cannot be held responsible for content uploaded by users," said the five companies in a recent statement published on their websites. "In Europe, the United States and other countries the legal question about restricting the responsibility of the Internet media in these situations was decided more than 10 years ago." Keep Reading
Google has partnered with three digital music providers to launch a new online music service to increase broadband usage and stave off internet piracy, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report. Keep Reading
China's official newspaper recently criticized Apple's iPAD because users must pay for music and movies, according to a recent report in The Christian Science Monitor. Keep Reading
Viacom has hired former Solicitor General Theodore Olson to appeal an unfavorable outcome in a billion dollar copyright infringement lawsuit that came down this June, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Keep Reading
Copyright holders in the French music industry are reporting a staggering 25,000 "music-related" infringements to the country's top enforcement authority on a daily basis, according to a a music industry trade group director quoted in the trade magazine Billboard. Keep Reading
San Francisco, October 25th, 2010 -- Cablevision Systems on Monday accused Fox Television parent News Corp of violating federal regulations that govern the terms of negotiations underlying business agreements between video distributors and broadcasters. The move sets the stage for a potential intervention by the Federal Communications Commission, or failing that, legislative action in Congress. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 25, 2010 - The U.K. government has decided to tap into the BBC’s income to help pay the estimated $1.35 billion cost of deploying super fast broadband to some rural parts of the country over the next seven years. Keep Reading
The interim chief of the Motion Picture Association of America on Thursday urged lawmakers in Japan to enact new legislation that would mandate the disconnection of illegal file-sharers from their internet connections after being warned about their activities several times. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 22, 2010 - Now that all of the broadband stimulus funding has been distributed, its effectiveness can now be evaluated. That was the message at the Broadband Breakfast Club on Tuesday, October 19. Video of the event was released on Friday. While the long term value of the stimulus is still unknown, panelists were able to gauge the way in which the funds were distributed. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 21, 2010 - The Federal Communications Commission is highlighting the looming issue of "spectrum crunch" as smart phones and other data-hogging devices eat up valuable spectrum. Keep Reading
A Las Vegas realtor who used an excerpt of a local newspaper's article on his promotional web site was exercising his right of fair-use and a local copyright-holding company doesn't have a case for copyright infringement, said a federal district court judge on Tuesday. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 20, 2010 -The number of global internet users doubled in the past five years and will surpass the 2 billion mark in 2010, according to new data from the International Telecommunications Union. Keep Reading
SAN FRANCISCO, October 19th, 2010 -- Senator John Kerry (D-Mass) on Tuesday prodded Federal Communications Chairman Julius Genachowski to take action in the business dispute between Fox Television and Cablevision when he sent over draft legislation that would change the way cable companies and broadcasters arrive at carriage agreements. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 18, 2010 - Convergence between fixed and mobile broadband services will be virtually complete by 2015, unified by standards originally developed for multi-room television in the home, according to analyst group IMS Research in its report :Convergence in the World Home Entertainment Market." The researchers predict that mobile soon will overtake fixed broadband connectivity, with over 3 billion wireless connected devices in the world by 2015. Keep Reading
As the landmark dispute over retransmission consent fees between Fox and Cablevision threatens to drag on through Tuesday, New York area baseball fans who are also Cablevision subscribers are scrambling to make alternative plans to view or hear the game. One ostensibly legal option they have is to view the Tuesday game between the San Francisco Giants and the Philadelphia Phillies on a new internet television service that retransmits broadcasters' signals over the internet. Keep Reading
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is continuing to battle an emerging phenomenon known in some legal circles as “copyright trolls,” companies that have been set up to abuse copyright law to pressure individuals suspected of copyright infringement into monetary settlements. The digital rights group on Friday filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging a federal district court in… Keep Reading
When Washington thinks about the "broadband stimulus," what should it remember? The federal government spent nearly $7 billion on new, broadband-related activities, that in many respects were completely unlike traditional federal telecommunications spending on telephone service. Tomorrow's Broadband Breakfast Club, from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Tuesday, October 19, at Clyde's of Gallery Place in Washington, will be one of the first post-stimulus forums to convene the major players and consider these "big-picture" questions. Registration for the event is available at http://broadbandbreakfast.eventbrite.com, and (for those outside of Washington) a free video of the event will be made available here later in the week. Keep Reading
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has approved a patent application from Apple that would "prevent users from sending or receiving 'objectionable' content," reports the New York Daily News. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 15, 2010 - The recent Federal Communications Commission recent open meeting looked to progress the chairman’s goal of improving consumer welfare. The issues spanned the range of the FCC’s authority from cable to broadband and mobile telephony and even touched on technology around the Yangtze River. Keep Reading
Cablevision customers may be cut off from watching baseball in upcoming days if a business dispute between the cable company and a local broadcaster isn't resolved by midnight Friday. Keep Reading
SAN FRANCISCO, October 14, 2010 -- As expected, the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday ordered cable companies to make their programming more accessible to device manufacturers so that consumers have more reasons to buy innovative gadgets that can more seamlessly access cable television programming and content on the web. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 14, 2010 - The internet and intellectual property news service BroadbandBreakfast.com announces the second event in its Fall 2010 – 2011 Broadband Breakfast Club series, “Evaluating the Broadband Stimulus.” Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 14, 2010 - BroadbandBreakfast.com on Wednesday released the video, for free, of the October Intellectual Property Breakfast Club event on the issue of "Finding Solutions to the Problem of Copyright Infringement." Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 14, 2010 - It's not a surprise that "bill shock" is a problem. The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday released a white paper on complaints it has received on the issue, which addresses a sudden, unexpected increase in the monthly mobile phone bill, even when a customer had not changed service plans. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 13, 2010 - The United States plans to take actions to promote broadband similar to other nations, but achieving the goals will be challenging, says a new government report. Keep Reading
The Business Technology Opportunity Program awards have now been made. Most states have received awards for a combination of Comprehensive Community Infrastructure, Public Computing Center and Sustainable Broadband Initiative grants. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 12, 2010 - The Intellectual Property Breakfast Club on Tuesday, focusing on "Finding Solutions to the Problems of Copyright Infringement," may well focus on S. 3804, the “Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act” (COICA), introduced late last month by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 11, 2010 - The issue of network neutrality is one that has become an increasing problem around the globe. In the United States, the problem became more of an issue with the rise of cable and DSL service. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 8, 2010 - FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski Friday morning spoke at a privacy and security event where he unveiled new web pages from his agency offering privacy and security tips. Keep Reading
LONDON, October 7, 2010 - The U.K. regulator Ofcom has shied away from enforcing network neutrality, but has urged service providers to be more transparent about their traffic shaping policies. There is also pressure for mobile service providers to stop discriminating against specific applications in order to enforce use of their own. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 7, 2010 – The International Telecommunications Union this week opened its three-week conference in Mexico with a call by its secretary general for delegates to be “bold and visionary” in reaching agreements providing a sound platform for the development of information and communications technologies. Keep Reading
SAN FRANCISCO, October 5, 2010 -- Global trade negotiators on Tuesday released what they're calling the final draft of a anti-counterfeiting trade agreement that also addresses enforcement measures against intellectual property violations in the digital environment. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 6, 2010 - The final day of the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference looked at broadband adoption and universality. The problems addressed are key in helping the government determine how broadband is being adopted and where intervention is necessary. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, October 5, 2010 - Consumers are willing to pay a large amount to upgrade their internet access speeds from slow to fast, but are more reluctant to upgrade from fast to super-fast, according to a research paper discussed at the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference last week. Keep Reading
American and European trade representatives said Monday that they've successfully concluded talks concerning a global anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, and they're ready to release the draft sometime this week, but a report in the Wall Street Journal says that the negotiators still can't agree on the terms concerning enforcement of intellectual property rights in the digital environment. Keep Reading