BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: This piece by The Washington Post has, in turn, prompting some gloating by Republicans over at the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which criticized the "sweeping claims" of Democrats: "That consumers will see a sharp drop in Internet speeds if the Federal Communications Commission proceeds with its plan to unwind net neutrality… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2017 – Rural areas of Tennessee have lost business because they don’t have access to high-speed internet, Tennessee Republican Rep. Marsha Blackburn said Monday at a panel on broadband infrastructure hosted by the Brookings Institution. Trump was aggressively pushing new infrastructure, said Blackburn, the chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce Communications… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, September 23, 2014 - In a filing with the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission noted that some of its regulatory authority would be lost if the FCC decided to regulate broadband as a public utility. The FTC protects the privacy and security of consumer data by imposing obligations on broadband service providers… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 5, 2014 - Another significant telecommunications merger proposition is underway between Sprint and T-Mobile. The Wall Street Journal reported that the acquisition would cost Sprint $32 billion, or about $40 per share in cash and stock. Sprint and T-Mobile are the third and fourth largest wireless operators in the United States, respectively. The… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, May 27, 2014 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee recently released a white paper that seeks public comment on competition in the communications and technology sectors, as well as what role the FCC should have in regulating the sectors. The paper pointed to a rapidly evolving digital landscape in the 21st Century and… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 31, 2013 — The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a session Wednesday to mark up H.R. 2844, the Federal Communications Commission Consolidating Reporting Act. The legislation, sponsored by Reps. Steve Scalise, R-LA; Greg Walden, R-OR; and Anna Eshoo, D-CA, would reduce the number of reports that the commission is required to make. The… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 7, 2011 – What was originally billed as a federal agency confessional before House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on Thursday turned into a search to create American jobs and economic growth. Monday, the subcommittee held its fourth hearing to improve the regulatory review system. With the national unemployment rate at 9.1 percent, burdensome regulations from federal agencies are seen by both sides of the aisle and agency representatives to contribute to the problem. An Executive Order the President issued in January sought to streamline federal agencies by having them do a retrospective review of existing regulations and discard those they determined outdated and unnecessary. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 3, 2011 – The House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade met on Thursday to learn the lessons from recent large-scale customer data breaches at Sony and Epsilon. The hearing examined the risks of the unprecedented data breaches, which Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-CA), Chair of the subcommittee, called a ‘ground zero’ for cyber attacks. Other members of the subcommittee also assessed current investigation efforts by those companies, and gathered input and support to craft new data breach legislation. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, April 5, 2011 - The House of Representatives is anticipated to hold a floor debate and vote this week on a measure that would put the kibosh on net neutrality rules passed by the Federal Communications Commission late last year, but the White House has said that it would likely veto such a measure should it come across the President's desk. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 16, 2011 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted in favor of a resolution Tuesday that would undo the Federal Communications Commission's recent net neutrality rules; the measure will now go before the full House for a vote. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 15, 2011 - Despite fanfare regarding the end of exclusivity for the Apple iPhone with the launch of a CDMA version, the reality is that many carriers are still unable to attain certain devices. While the majority of current subscribers now have access to the once-exclusive iPhone, because AT&T and Verizon have been allowed to create a duopoly in the wireless industry, from a competition standpoint, AT&T and Verizon are the only two carriers with access to the device. Translation: Less than 2 percent of domestic wireless carriers have access to one of the nation’s most coveted devices. Just as the iPhone is not the only smartphone on the market, it is also not the only device that is unavailable to consumers. Due to exclusive handset arrangements, consumers are left to choose between robust coverage where they live or the latest hot device they desire. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 9, 2011 – The Communications and Technology Subcommittee voted Wednesday in a 15-8 party-line vote to disapprove the new Federal Communications Committee net neutrality regulations. Chairman Greg Walden presided over hearing Wednesday morning, which debated the open Internet regulations set by the FCC. This was the committee’s second hearing on the topic after a four-hour marathon session last month in which legislators put the five FCC Commissioners in the hot seat. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 2, 2010 – The House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology postponed last-minute a vote scheduled for Wednesday morning on a resolution that would reverse the Federal Communications Commission’s Open Internet Order. Chairman Fred Upton agreed to postpone the vote in order to complete regular order and a legislative hearing before voting on the… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, February 17, 2011 - Members of the House subcommittee on Communications and Technology took the opportunity during a hearing on Wednesday to grill the five FCC commissioners on the Commission's recent Open Internet Order in a marathon session. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, January 24, 2011 - The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV), released his legislative agenda for the upcoming year on Friday. The senator plans to prioritize three broad areas: economic security and growth, proactive homeland security and consumer protection. “In the new Congress,” said Rockefeller… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, January 20, 2011 - The House Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats released subcommittee assignments this evening, naming Rep. Anna Eshoo (CA-14) as ranking member of the Communications, Technology and Internet subcommittee for the 112th Congress. The subcommittee holds legislative jurisdiction over all matters involving telecommunications, including oversight of the FCC, cable, broadcast, voice telephony and the Internet. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, June 9, 2010 – Last week 40 house members, mostly from rural districts, said that they no longer supported the national broadband plan on the grounds that it didn’t help enough Americans. Some of these individuals went so far as to claim they would seek to stop funding for broadband-related initiative. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, April 15, 2010 -- Federal laws designed to guarantee public access to certain data should be revised to allow members of the Federal Communications Commission to meet more often and work together more efficiently, a group of state telecommunications regulators told members of a House committee in a Wednesday letter. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, May 10, 2009 – The Massachusetts Broadband Institute on Wednesday announced that it would work with the MassGIS, the state’s Office of Geographic and Environmental Information, to begin to develop a block-level map of broadband infrastructure. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, April 5, 2009 - Proper oversight of the $7.2 billion Broadband Technology Opportunities Program can only take place if key terms are defined properly, a panel of agency officials and policy experts told a congressional committee on Thursday. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 12, 2009 -The Obama administration’s priority in broadband deployment injected an undercurrent of excitement into a Thursday hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Technology, Communications, Technology and the Internet. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 11, 2009 – President Obama’s commitment to using federal funds for improving broadband deployment inched closer to reality Tuesday as the federal agencies responsible for implementing stimulus funding urged creativity and speed in submitting applications for grants. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 22 – A Tuesday House subcommittee hearing on competition in the telecommunications industry focused on the ability of consumers to switch, or “port,” their telephone numbers from one carrier to another in a timely fashion. Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, July 17 – With other panelists calling for comprehensive privacy legislation, NebuAd’s CEO told a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Thursday that the internet advertising company would be “satisfied” if an “opt-in” rule became mandatory. Keep Reading