On August 2, 2018 the FCC unanimously adopted a Notice of Inquiry (“NOI”) seeking comment on creating the “Connected Care Pilot Program,” a Universal Service Fund (“USF”) pilot program. The program aims to improve health outcomes and reduce healthcare costs by promoting broadband-enabled telehealth service adoption among low-income families, particularly in rural, unserved, or underserved parts of America, as well … Continue Reading
While the UK Court of Appeal has opened the door for broadband ISP blocking to combat trademark or copyright-infringing activities (see our earlier report ), the picture in the United States, China and Hong Kong is more complex.
“‘It is, it is a glorious thing, to be a Pirate King,’ said W.S. Gilbert: but he was speaking of ship … Continue Reading
On November 2, 2016 the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) released its long-awaited – and much debated – Report and Order adopting privacy rules for Internet Service Providers (ISPs). In the Order, the FCC applied the Communications Act’s privacy requirements to broadband Internet access service (BIAS), which it called “the most significant communications technology of today.”
Several of the FCC requirements … Continue Reading
Several recent high-profile mergers in the communications industry have faced scrutiny from multiple U.S. federal agencies. These transactions, both successful and unsuccessful, have drawn attention to the process by which the U.S. government approves or blocks mergers and acquisitions in the communications and broadband Internet industries. Parallel investigations by both the Federal Communications Commission and U.S. Department of Justice highlight … Continue Reading
On August 10, 2016, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Order that had sought to preempt Tennessee’s and North Carolina’s laws restricting local municipalities’ ability to provide broadband service. The Court found that the FCC had exceeded its statutory authority by preempting state laws without clear authorization from Congress.… Continue Reading
EDITOR’S NOTE: We are excited to present this entry in our TMT2020 series, which reflects the key technology, media, and telecoms legal issues that are expected to impact today’s organizations and tomorrow’s marketplace. It also provides an opportunity to highlight contributions by TMT associates across our global offices and practice areas.
Today’s smartphones rely on mobile broadband connectivity that is … Continue Reading
Ofcom’s announcement of plans to make Openreach a “legally separate” company within BT have been met with muted cheers from some in the telecoms world, while others caution that the proposals do not go far enough to ensure the UK gets the investment it needs.
In February of this year, the regulator set out a ten-year vision for ensuring the … Continue Reading
Regulators in the European Union and United States are racing to rewrite telecom rules for a host of new technologies ranging from over-the-top voice to ultra high-speed wireless broadband. But does the regulatory mantra of “new rules for new times” represent the foundation of the new digital economy or its undoing?
Are regulations mandating an open internet the key to … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has scheduled oral argument for March 17, 2016, in an important case regarding the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) ability to preempt state laws that place restrictions on local municipalities’ ability to provide their own broadband networks. Today, 20 states limit the ability of local governmental agencies, such as utilities or branches of city government, … Continue Reading
Comcast’s failed acquisition of Time Warner Cable (“TWC”) presents a lesson in the types of antitrust harms that merger enforcers in the United States are willing to pursue.
Using traditional “horizontal” merger analysis, the combination would have resulted in almost no reduction of head-to-head competition, as there were very few geographic areas in which the two companies were head-to-head rivals. … Continue Reading
EDITOR’S NOTE: We are excited to present this entry in our new TMT2020 series, which reflects the key technology, media, and telecoms legal issues that are expected to impact today’s organizations and tomorrow’s marketplace. It also provides an opportunity to highlight contributions by TMT associates across our global offices and practice areas.
On September 17, 2015 the Silicon Flatirons Center… Continue Reading
Coming hot on the heels of an op-ed in Wired Magazine and a more detailed U.S. FCC-released “Fact Sheet,” FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has proposed Open Internet “net neutrality” rules to the other FCC Commissioners and scheduled a vote on the rules for the FCC’s Open Meeting on February 26, 2015. As discussed below, these rules would … Continue Reading
The main telecommunications regulatory body in the United States has adopted new rules governing the administration of the country’s multi-billion dollar education technology fund. Schools and libraries in the U.S. will want to review the final rules closely to see how changes to this program will affect their future technology procurement plans and budgets, while telecommunications service providers doing business … Continue Reading
Yesterday, a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously upheld the key prongs of the FCC’s dramatic shift in its interpretation of the Federal Pole Attachment Act. The Commission’s new interpretations for the first time gave ILECs access to the FCC to resolve their disputes with electric utility pole owners. The FCC … Continue Reading
Written by Trey Hanbury and Phillip Berenbroick
In a move that has the potential to unleash new broadband deployment across the United States, the Federal Communications Commission recently loosened technical constraints on the long-dormant 2.3 GHz band. The rules that the FCC adopted October 17, 2012 essentially ratify a joint proposal that the two largest licensees in the band, the … Continue Reading
Almost three years after the expiry of the deadline set by the European Union, Poland is finally taking action to bring its laws into line with the EU’s Audio-visual Media Services Directive. To this end, last month the Polish government accepted the bill on amending the Act on Radio Broadcasting and Television which introduces into the Polish legal system … Continue Reading
