Infrastructure
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in the Senate’s $65 Billion Broadband Infrastructure Bill
Muninetworks’ Sean Gonsalves cracks open and investigates the infrastructure bill.
Infrastructure
Exclusive Drew Clark Column: Will the Broadband Infrastructure Deal Hold?
Many in Washington aren’t holding their breath for the broadband infrastructure deal to collapse.
EFF
Changes to Section 230 Might Lead To Removal of Legitimate Speech, Subtract from Historical Record
March 17, 2021 – Changes to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act may not lead to the solution that America wants or needs, said panelists during a South by Southwest event Tuesday. Section 230 grants immunity to social media platforms for user-generated content. It’s an increasingly visible
EFF
Supporters of Section 230 Agreed About Concerns, But Counterarguments Dominated Panel Discussion
February 13, 2021 – With many current proposals to revise Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, supporters of the landmark internet law on Tuesday discussed how new proposals could heavily interfere with the First Amendment. The general angst about how people are using the internet badly, c
Section 230
Section 230 Author Calls SESTA-FOSTA a Cautionary Tale of the Dangers of Altering Intermediary Liability Shield
December 15, 2020 — At a moment in which many are calling for the repeal or revision of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, from President Donald Trump to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham to President-elect Joe Biden (by some statements), the Electric Frontier Foundation
EFF
Interoperability an Effective Measure Against Big Tech Monopolies, Says Lincoln Network
June 11, 2020 — Interoperability is a practical safeguard against big tech oligopolies, said participants in a Lincoln Network forum Wednesday. Participants argued that besides sweeping government intervention, the best way to break up large, too-powerful social media companies like Facebook is
Broadband's Impact
Pro-Technology Advocates Change More Minds than their Anti-Tech Counterparts During Silicon Flatirons Debate
Pro-tech advocates changed more minds than their anti-tech counterparts at a Silicon Flatirons debate on Sunday. Pro-tech and anti-tech advocates engaged in an Oxford-style debate at the Silicon Flatirons conference, “Technology Optimism and Pessimism” at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Both
Infrastructure
Advocates for Cities Say They Are More in Touch with the Privacy Views of Americans Than the Federal Government
WASHINGTON, January 30, 2020 – Even though broadband is often considered a part of interstate commerce, city leaders need to take gaps in the law into their own hands by legislating on broadband topics, said panelists at a session on cities and states at the State of the Net conference on Tuesday. P
Expert Opinion
Gordon Smith: Can a 5G Fund Connect Rural America at 21st Century Speeds?
Last month, Federal Communications Chairman Ajit Pai announced a new plan to allocate $9 billion toward deploying 5G wireless in America’s rural areas. From these funds, $1 billion would be earmarked for precision agriculture. The 10-figure sum is impressive, but it’s not all new money. Pai would re
EFF
Internet Industry Under the Microscope as House Committee Grills Witnesses on Liability for Online Content
WASHINGTON, October 16, 2019 – The chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday said that technology companies need to “step up” and better address challenges surrounding online content. If not, they will likely have to navigate a world in which Section 230 of the Communication D
Communications Act
Electronic Frontier Foundation Lawsuit Against Mobile Data Collection, and Fort Collins Fiber Network
The Electronic Frontier Foundation announced Tuesday that it is filing a class action lawsuit on behalf of AT&T customers in California to stop the telecom giant and two data location aggregators from allowing third parties to access wireless customers’ real-time locations without authorization. The
FCC
Verizon’s Throttling of Santa Clara County Firefighters Discussed by Panel of Net Neutrality Advocates
May 31, 2019 – Verizon Wireless’ slowdown of the Santa Clara County Fire Department’s data plan had a “significant impact” on the department’s ability to respond to last year’s wildfires, according to testimony by Fire Chief Anthony Bowden that featured prominently in a Thursday discussion at the St
FCC
Time to Focus on California Legislation That Affects Infrastructure Access to Rights-of-Way and Conduit, says EFF
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: California, and many other states, have muscled their way onto the national broadband stage. They’ve done this through legislation that would either require net neutrality protections that the Federal Communications Commission removed in December 2017, or use state purch
Expert Opinion
Austin Allen: Surprise! Everybody Wants Net Neutrality
WASHINGTON, November 13, 2014 – Net neutrality has been the hottest topic in tech policy for months. Politicians on the left say their opponents stand foursquare against the tenets of a free and open internet. Politicians on the right that their adversaries are trying to apply outmoded and outdated
EFF
Broadband Roundup: House Passes USA Freedom Act to Rein in NSA, But Key Civil Liberties Groups Defect
WASHINGTON, May 22, 2014 – The House of Representatives passed the USA Freedom Act on Thursday in a 303 to 121 vote, according to Ars Technica, instituting changes to the National Security Agency’s bulk collection of American phone records. The goal is to end the practice of gathering records of met
EFF
At Technology Show, A Palpable Interest in Legislation to Curb Actions by ‘Patent Trolls’
LAS VEGAS, January 8, 2013 – One of the biggest public policy challenges facing the information technology industry is the ability for patent holders to sue entrepreneurs, according to a panel on “patent trolls” here at the Consumer Electronics Show. A panel of entrepreneurs, non-profit groups and a
