Public Knowledge

Mr. Smith Getting Company as ATT, T-Mobile, Sprint, Apple and Google All Head to Washington

Ina Fried in Mobile on May 6, 2011 at 5:00 am PT

The heads of AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile are all scheduled to appear at a hearing Wednesday to discuss AT&T’s plan to buy T-Mobile USA. Meanwhile, representatives of Google and Apple are slated to testify before the same Senate subcommittee a day earlier to discuss privacy issues as they relate to location-based data on mobile devices.

Rubber Stamp Unlikely for AT&T-Mobile

John Paczkowski in News on March 24, 2011 at 7:17 am PT

The Federal Communications Commission hasn’t yet begun to evaluate AT&T’s proposed acquisition of T-Mobile USA, but according to officials, regulatory approval of the $39 billion deal is anything but a sure thing.

Analysts Hail AT&T Deal as a Win…For AT&T

John Paczkowski in News on March 21, 2011 at 8:27 am PT

Consumer groups are aghast at the idea of AT&T buying T-Mobile. Legislators are wary. But analysts who cover the carrier are overjoyed. The announcement of the acquisition was met with a fusillade of largely positive research notes this morning.

The AT&Terminator: Rise of Ma Bell

John Paczkowski in News on March 21, 2011 at 1:05 am PT

To hear tell from AT&T, the company’s proposed $39 billion purchase of T-Mobile USA is a boon for Americans and their country. Sure, it removes an innovative, low-cost carrier from the wireless market and leaves the U.S. with essentially three big wireless-telecoms. Sure, it raises the prospect of higher rates and fewer choices for consumers. But it will speed and broaden AT&T’s deployment of next-generation 4G wireless service. And it’s a victory for America.

U.S. Approves Comcast’s Acquisition of NBC U, but With Conditions

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on January 18, 2011 at 12:18 pm PT

Among the hoops through which Comcast will have to jump: Making video once exclusive to Hulu available to competitors and extending more broadband into rural areas.

Breaking: FCC's Copps Voting "Yes" on Net Neutrality Plan

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on December 20, 2010 at 1:45 pm PT

Michael Copps, a Democratic member of the Federal Communications Commission, says he plans to vote in favor of Chairman Julius Genachowski’s proposed rules on network neutrality. This makes the passage of the rules in a vote scheduled for tomorrow a virtual certainty, as Copps was seen as the only possible swing vote on the five-member commission.

Voices

Cupcake-Gate at the FCC

Amy Schatz, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on December 16, 2010 at 12:00 am PT

Federal Communications Commission officials busy working on net neutrality, the pending Comcast-NBC deal and other issues got a sweet treat Wednesday afternoon, when AT&T Inc. representatives did their annual holiday cupcake drop-off throughout the building.

No One Is Happy With the FCC Chairman's Speech, Except Broadband Investors

Arik Hesseldahl in Enterprise on December 1, 2010 at 12:52 pm PT

Everyone has something to say about today’s speech by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski on the subject of net neutrality. Having been blocked in the courts from imposing sanctions on Comcast for throttling users of BitTorrent, the commission has been spinning its wheels trying to find a way to nudge the broadband industry in a direction toward treating all Internet content fairly.