Personal drone registration will become necessary, U.K. Lords say
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A U.K House of Lords committee has recommended that, in the long term, people operating drones for leisure may need to register…
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A U.K House of Lords committee has recommended that, in the long term, people operating drones for leisure may need to register…
Congress wants U.S. regulators to hurry up and open a chunk of federal 5.9 GHz airwaves for commercial Wi-Fi, which would let more smartphones,…
The music streamer Spotify was all set to plow into the Russian market, having poached a former Google exec, Alexander Kubaneishvili, to…
It took a grueling two and half months, but the Federal Communications Commission auction of new 4G airwaves is finally over. The…
The list of countries that find zero-rating to be a violation of net neutrality just keeps on growing, with Canada the latest…
The Federal Trade Commission is putting mobile carriers on notice that if they advertise an unlimited plan they can’t monkey around with…
Watching the President’s State of the Union and his calling upon Congress to enact legislation to better protect our personal information, I…
The Federal Communications Commission is investigating whether AT&T misled its customers over its throttling policies, which restrict network speeds on unlimited data…
Another year, another report from the Federal Communications Commission on the state of competition in the U.S. mobile industry, and as has…
The new workers will help Amazon test its delivery drones both indoor and outdoor, according to job ads — but the “outdoor” bit will remain tricky under current rules because of safety issues.
Yoshitomo Imura was sentenced to two years in prison for producing “ZigZag” revolvers, which can take six bullets, and showing others how to do the same.
Four Uber drivers were arrested in Amsterdam on Sunday for flouting a ban on unlicensed taxi services. According to local reports, they…
Online video heated up, as traditional television players, tech stalwarts, and new startups all seek access to the $75 billion spent on U.S. TV advertising.
5G research is gaining momentum worldwide, and it will require new spectrum. Enter the FCC. Chairman Tom Wheeler wants to start investigating the future cellular technology from a regulatory standpoint.
Europe’s data protection authorities (DPAs) have agreed on a common set of tools to help them deal with those seeking the right…
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler wants small carrier support for the the upcoming 600 MHz auction, but those carriers are reluctant to give it. They trusted the FCC in the 700 MHz auction and they got screwed.
The carriers have just as much at stake as Tom Wheeler in ensuring the 2015 incentive auction is a success. To that end, Wheeler wants them to publicly commit to bidding in it.
Sprint-T-Mobile may be dead, but there are potentially many more companies that would like to hyphenate their names with T-Mo. France’s Iliad is preparing a new offer, while Dish Network lurks in the wings.
Have you been renting out multiple apartments on Airbnb? If you live in New York, you could be in trouble as the company has finally agreed to hand over names to the Attorney General.
Uber said on Monday that it is no longer banned in Berlin – for now at least. As happened in Hamburg, the…
By the end of the year, carriers will be required to route all of your emergency texts to 911. The problem is most emergency services agencies aren’t yet equipped to receive them.
Every quarter, T-Mobile refuted Sprint’s basic argument for the merger by performing so well. Mobile industry analyst Chetan Sharma believes the two carriers will get together, but not while T-Mobile is growing so quickly.
Sprint and T-Mobile may be forced to bid independently in next year’s spectrum incentive auction only to find themselves part of the same combined carrier shortly thereafter. A bidding joint venture might solve that problem.
By revamping the E-Rate rules, the FCC is making it easier for schools to get funding for Wi-Fi networks, but overall funding levels for internet access in schools remain the same.
Dish Network has signaled to the FCC that it wants to go after even more spectrum. It will participate in two upcoming auctions to get more airwaves, including the controversial incentive auction.
You may think the U.S. fell short on telecom competition, but in Mexico a single company has long dominated the communications landscape: América Móvil(s amx).…
The European Banking Authority, which has already pointed out that consumers using bitcoin do so without regulatory protection, has issued an opinion listing 70 risks of virtual currencies and laying out the legislative measures needed to make regulation possible.
Telefonica’s takeover of KPN’s German carrier E-Plus has moved closer to finalization after the European Commission gave its blessing on Wednesday. However,…
FCC chairman Tom Wheeler wants to make it easier for schools and libraries to get federal funds for Wi-Fi networking. Meanwhile, the Senate is putting political pressure on the FCC to clear more Wi-Fi airwaves.
In its FCC filings, AT&T says it will connect 13 million additional homes to a tolerable broadband connection with new wireless local loop technologies. It’s failed at this in the past, but this time it might succeed.
The OECD has published a report on so-called termination rates, pointing out the folly of governments who think keeping them high will boost telecom revenues.
A new report from Accenture finds that our finances move into the virtual world, the younger set is growing more inclined to trust internet and retail brands with their money than traditional banks.
If AT&T gets DirecTV, it could tightly package paid TV programming with broadband, making it difficult an more expensive to rely solely on over-the-top services for your video content.
Verizon and AT&T aren’t getting the auction they wanted, but they’re not the only one’s upset with the FCC’s auction framework. The rules, however, were a big win for smaller carriers and unlicensed spectrum.
As expected, the FCC has released proposed rules for the upcoming broadcast airwave incentive auction that would prevent Verizon and AT&T from running the table in cities where 4G airwaves are in the highest demand.
U.S. mobile industry group CTIA has named former FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker its new CEO and President. She will replace retiring…
The FCC has issued its proposed rules for the 2015 incentive auction, which aims to repurpose a sizable chunk of the UHF TV band for 4G. The FCC will make its first — but not last — vote in May.
In an FCC filing, Comcast confirmed that it’s investigating the possibility of creating a mobile service that would lean heavily on its growing Wi-Fi hotspot network for most of its capacity.
The ranks of mid-tier regional mobile carriers are shrinking. Cincinnati Bell is exiting the mobile business to focus on its wireline operations. The result: more spectrum for Verizon and fewer carrier choices in Cincinnati.
Airbnb’s “sharing economy” business, which lets people rent out their homes for short times, is starting to resemble the traditional economy in a number of ways.
As a Congressional deadline approaches, the FCC laid the groundwork for a new spectrum auction that would infuse new capacity into LTE networks. But there’s a catch: Carriers would have to share with the government.
The FCC voted unanimously to clear restrictions preventing Wi-Fi use in a 100 MHz swath of unlicensed spectrum. The end result is more capacity for wireless networks, especially those using 802.11ac.
Globalstar maybe known for satellite phones today, but if it gets its way it could be supplying private Wi-Fi connections to consumers all over the country using its own boutique broadband spectrum.
A SIM card that could be programmed on the fly to register to any network could revolutionize the internet of things and allow device makers to become carriers. But it’s still illegal in nearly every country.
AT&T had to make a few concessions to get the deal approved, but they were a small price to pay for the big spectrum haul Ma Bell will gain in key markets.
Obama and the FCC are both calling for more unlicensed spectrum to fuel the tech economy. That kind of advocacy from the administration is just what we need in a government opposed to free-to-use airwaves.
SoftBank CEO and Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son argues a merged T-Mobile-Sprint would create more competition, not less. But the price war Son promises is already happening, and it’s being led by T-Mobile without Sprint’s help.
Like an eBay(s ebay) listing for a vintage Def Leppard concert T-Shirt, the Federal Communications Commission’s first spectrum auction in six years…
Rideshare companies are struggling to navigate the nuances of auto insurance policies, which currently leave drivers to rely on personal insurance in between rides.
In what had to be the strangest event at Mobile World Congress, EU digital chief Neelie Kroes expounded on the need for 5G technologies that no one has actually defined yet.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303874504579373242977741138?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702303874504579373242977741138.html Signals from the U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission are making Sprint(s s) and its SoftBank owners reconsider any…
The U.S, government is moving on new rules requiring future vehicles come with Wi-Fi technology necessary for cars to communicate with one another. The goal is to prevent accidents, but networked cars could become much more.
A new pilot project in LA will test the feasibility of broadcasting consolidating their transmissions onto fewer channels. If it works it could persuade TV stations to part with their airwaves in the upcoming incentive auction.
The people who oversee Wall Street are turning their attention to Bitcoin in a big way — there’s calls for a license system, but regulators have few details for now.
The U.S. mobile industry claims it’s desperate for new spectrum. But when the FCC today opened its first mobile broadband airwave auction in a half a decade, not a single major carrier participated.
Tom Wheeler, the chairman of the FCC, has a message for Silicon Valley. He’s on your side, in both caring about the issues and his seeming reluctance to make actual regulations.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said at CES that he is watching AT&T’s new controversial Sponsored Data program carefully. Even if he finds fault, though, the FCC may not have the authority to do anything about it.
Verizon has owned these 700 MHz licenses for six years but never found a use for them. One’s man trash is another’s treasure. By buying these licenses T-Mobile can build an LTE network more like Verizon’s.
Given the enormous complexity of the planned incentive auction, the FCC would have been crazy to try to pull it off in 2014. Chairman Tom Wheeler gave himself a year’s more wiggle room to get it right.
After the FDA posted a cease-and-desist, 23andMe has removed healh-related genetic testing from its services.
23andMe is in hot water with the FDA, which has urged the startup to shut down sales of its $99 genome kit.
A political fight is brewing between local politicians and the mobile carriers about whether every phone should include a kill switch. The wrong people are having the argument.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler says his pressure tactics on the mobile industry over phone unlocking was not an isolated incident. He’d rather set policy through industry consent, but he says he’s not afraid to regulate.
Sprint’s no longer interested in bidding on a block of airwaves that would double the capacity of its LTE network. Instead its looking for greener pastures in which to build its future 4G bandwidth.
Unlike the first installment of this series, Globalstar’s sequel may have a happy ending. Globalstar’s low-power Wi-Fi plans don’t have the interference problems of LightSquared’s LTE network. The FCC also let Dish repurpose its spectrum.
If you were looking for a signal showing how cozy new Federal Communications Chairman Tom Wheeler would be with the cable and…
Leap Wireless(s leap) shareholders on Thursday signed off on AT&T’s(s t) planned buyout of the carrier, its 5 million Cricket Communications subscribers…
Wheeler not only has to manage an enormously complex spectrum auction next year, he faces two huge policy debates: the battle over net neutrality and the ramifications of the telecom industry’s transition to IP.
Backed by Passion Capital and TransferWise chief Taavet Hinrikus, Coinfloor is the first serious Bitcoin trading operation to open in London’s fintech hub. U.S. customers aren’t allowed in just yet, though.
The FTC is contemplating how it should regulate the internet of things. A recent legal opinion as well as a look at some of the comments filed ahead of the meeting offer a glimpse into the regulatory future.
A popular site that lets city residents rent out their rooms is for the first time proposing to collect a tax in New York City — the news may represent a move towards light regulation of the sharing economy.
AT&T closed the deal shortly after getting the FCC’s green light and announced its plans to begin shutting down Alltel’s network immediately. The FCC, however, imposed several conditions to make sure Alltel’s customers are protected.
After years of arguing, AT&T has agreed to close down its boutique LTE band and play nice with other operators in the 700 MHz frequencies. This doesn’t end the interoperability problem, but it’s a start.
The San Francisco-based Bitcoin exchange has called a halt to trading, ostensibly on a temporary basis. This is not the first time this has happened — Tradehill previously shut down in 2012 due to regulatory issues.
Billionaire and would-be 4G entrepreneur Philip Falcone has accepted an SEC settlement requiring him sit out the hedge fund industry for five years. In exchange he gets to keep control of LightSquared.
The mobile landscape in the U.S. is balkanizing. The big regional carrier is disappearing, leaving us with four national operators dominating the cities and only the tiniest of carriers filling the gaps in between.
The PCS H-block auction only accounts for a small amount of spectrum, but given the ridiculously high value carriers have put on mobile airwaves recently, it’s bound to attract attention.
Scary incidents at companies like Lyft and Airbnb raise the question of whether regulation is the answer — or community response can work instead.
AT&T handles rejection well. Its marriage with T-Mobile failed, but it’s back on the acquisition hunt, this time targeting Cricket Communications’ parent Leap Wireless. This one stands a better chance than AT&T-Mo.
With the three tie-up between Sprint, Clearwire and SoftBank now final, Dish Network is left empty handed. But Dish’s chairman Charlie Ergen is hatching other plans, some of which he’s already set in motion.
If Clearwire shareholders give the thumbs up on Monday, Sprint and SoftBank are home free. They could have this merger wrapped up in a matter of a weeks.
The UK’s data protection authority has ordered Google to change its privacy policy, while action is also being taken in Germany and Spain. The company faces an increasingly co-ordinated regulatory adversary.
Sprint-SoftBank is home free. With a 98 percent shareholder vote in its favor, Sprint now faces only the FCC’s public interest review. That should be a piece of cake.
Mesh networking and dirigibles have been around for decades. What truly makes Project Loon a difficult — if not impossible — undertaking is getting the world’s governments to agree to it.
The full backing of the U.S. executive branch is now behind the idea of spectrum sharing, which would split time between federal and commercial users on the wireless airwaves.
If Sprint’s shareholder vote doesn’t go its way on Wednesday, SoftBank has another option for entering the U.S. mobile market. According to Reuters, SoftBank is considering T-Mobile US as a plan B.
Major Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox has taken some of the anonymity out of its treatment of the crypto-currency. Some Bitcoin fans may be suspicious of this move, but they shouldn’t be.
Sprint-SoftBank clears a big regulatory hurdle, but according to the WSJ, there are numerous national security strings attached, including a ban on Huawei gear from Sprint’s network.
The FCC has identified 500 MHz of airwaves that could be used to deliver broadband connections to aircraft. The plan could make in-flight Wi-Fi accessible, cheap, and — most importantly — fast to all airline passengers.
Sprint is juggling its two competing buyout offers. It’s appointed a special committee to evaluate Dish’s proposal on one hand, but it’s not delaying its wedding date with SoftBank on the other.
Many technology enthusiasts have a worldview that sees the government as bungling or evil. This is both unfair and not helpful in deciding hard policy choices.
After nearly four years as FCC chairman, Julius Genachowski is stepping down in “coming weeks”. President Obama will now get to appoint two new commission members in his second term.
The Democratic chairman is stepping down, according to the Wall Street Journal, just as a Republican commissioner is departing, preserving an administration-friendly majority on the commission.
A week after clearing the Justice Department, the T-Mobile-MetroPCS merger gains the FCC stamp of approval without a peep of protest. Now the only thing standing in the deal’s way are Metro’s stockholders.
Google will map street grids, satellite views and even traffic conditions. Now it’s mapping the availability of white spaces, the unused portion of the TV broadcast airwaves that one day could be used for broadband services.
Nevada became the first state in the country this week to legalize online gambling — but don’t expect this to change the fortunes of companies like Zynga anytime soon.
The new radio silicon uses the new Weightless specification to tap into the unused airwaves in between TV broadcasts. Such technology could be used to create a cheap data network for the M2M communications.
According to a regulatory filing, Sprint entertained four possible M&A deals in the last two years apart from Softbank. Dish and MetroPCS are obvious candidates, and the other two could have been T-Mobile and the cablecos.
Three of the nationwide operators haven’t signed off on the government’s proposal to split time on the federal airwaves between public and commercial users, but they’re willing to consider it.
The 39 licenses will cost AT&T $1.9 billion, but it will finally be able to deploy full-capacity networks in key markets like Chicago and Los Angeles. Verizon’s wheeling is dealing in 700 MHz is now over.
AT&T is buying up the remaining piece of Alltel still in operation for $780 million. Though the deal gives AT&T 585,000 new subscribers, judging by the price Ma Bell seems more interested in its airwaves.
By taking in a huge WCS spectrum haul from NextWave, Comcast and others, AT&T has nearly all the components in place to create a nationwide 4G band for its own exclusive use. Now AT&T just has to build it.
We now know more details of the FCC’s spectrum sharing plan. It will set aside 100 MHz of spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band and establish priority tiers for federal and local government use. Carriers have to be content with the frequencies left over.
Dish finally has permission to become a full-fledged cellular network operator, though it remains to be seen whether it will actually become one. The FCC also set the wheels rolling for an auction next year of new 4G licenses that Sprint has been eyeing.
Twitter has been lauded for its capacity to crowdsource and uncover the “Truth.” Mathias Crawford, a Fellow at Stanford University, says Twitter’s self-correcting skills are vastly overstated and flawed. The company’s influential power could stand to be regulated, he argues.
Uber may have found a way to work with the city of D.C., which approved legislation that will regulate and authorize startups like Uber to operate in the city. The cooperation between the often contentious startup and the government could provide a model for others.
Verizon Wireless challenged the FCC’s requirements that it make its data networks available to any competitor through roaming agreements, but in a appeals court decision on Tuesday, the commission prevailed. The unanimous vote means Verizon’s 3G and 4G networks remain open.
The United Nations may not be trying to take over the internet, but its telecom arm is discussing proposals that could seriously threaten the openness of the network, according to people like Vint Cerf — and could also change the way we pay for it.
Russia’s new internet blacklist agency is busy naming “illegal” sites ISPs must block. But the government says search engines should not be blocked for pointing to those sites with excerpts of illegal content.
Weblogs and social channels not affiliated with newspapers can breathe a sigh of relief. Tweets and blogs don’t have enough heft to be considered ‘news’ media like print, says the judge leading recommendations to heighten UK ‘press’ standards.
People don’t expect trustworthy online journalism like they do in print, says the judge making recommendations about British media. His view may seem antiquated to some, but it may see digital publishers dodge new regulation.
The nine-month-long inquiry in to British press standards says newspapers’ ethical standards have caused ‘havoc’, so a new self-regulator is required to hold them to better account.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski wants to grant Dish’s wish for an LTE network, but he’s attached a few caveats. He proposes that Dish rein its network, and the satellite provider is none too pleased.
Verizon has begun selling off its extra 700 MHz licenses per its agreement with the FCC to give up spare 4G spectrum in exchange for the cableco airwaves. So far there’s been no blockbuster sale, though and AT&T has yet to make a move.
AT&T isn’t against Softbank taking over Sprint. Ma Bell just wants to get something out of the deal, according to Public Knowledge’s Harold Feld. Also Sprint’s buying a majority stake in Clearwire doesn’t give it the direct control of the 4G operator that we thought.
The FCC wants to kick off an incentive auction in 2014 that would buy back TV airwaves from the broadcasters and sell them to mobile operators at a premium. The plan isn’t without critics, but in general it was lauded by both consumer groups and carriers.
AT&T wants to rejigger a useless hunk of airwaves for LTE use, but to do so it needs special dispensation from the FCC. Today chairman Julius Genachowski signed off its plan and officially set the ball rolling toward opening the WCS band for 4G.
Wi-Fi, 4G, smart grids and the Internet Of Things are leading to a radiowave logjam, the European Commission fears. It wants license holders to hand over spectrum usable by a new generation of waveband-sharing technologies.
A new agency that charges “TV-like” internet services to have their content standards regulated has proved controversial in the industry. But ATVOD has been given wholehearted backing to continue its work.
Distributors are passing the buck and regulators are openly contradicting each other. UK VOD services may take heart as another regulator decision is overturned. But the rulings and counter-rulings leave liability for internet video in flux.
By buying NextWave, AT&T removes the biggest obstacle to its plan to convert the Wireless Communications Services band from a worthless patch of airwaves to highly valuable 4G spectrum. The deal will cost AT&T $600 million but would pay dividends in new LTE capacity.
In an aggressive proposal, the President’s Council of Advisors on Policy and Technology not only wants the administration to double the amount of federal spectrum being targeted for new mobile and wireless networks, but it also wants to make a good portion of those airwaves shared.
A protest against Russian proposals to block websites deemed illegal has brought out the web’s big beast, after the bill was passed by the lower house of the country’s parliament.
In terms of mobile data, our smartphones are far more reliant on Wi-Fi. So why are carriers so single-mindedly focused on acquiring new licensed spectrum and building expensive 3G and 4G networks, when they could implement more Wi-Fi and tap into other sources of unlicensed spectrum?
All’s fair in love and war. Only yesterday T-Mobile was lobbying hard to halt Verizon’s acquisition of the cable operators’ 4G spectrum. Today it’s unopposed to the deal. What changed? T-Mobile and Verizon now plan to swap the same spectrum they’ve been fighting over.
If it can’t beat Sky Movies for UK movie subscription rights within a year, Netflix says it may have to consider ‘other routes’, including calling for a new competition case.
A wireless band that the mobile industry has practically written off may get a new life as 4G spectrum if a new…
If Google thought its StreetView data collection controversy was over, it can think again. The UK’s data watchdog is re-opening its investigation, maddened that it apparently wasn’t told the full story earlier.
Virtual goods sales have become a significant portion of social networks’ revenues and are a growing revenue contributor for mobile apps as well. Virtual goods have become a very competitive space, and game developers are seeking out new ways to lure potential gamers. Mobile is an increasing component of this strategy, as mobile game play is on the rise.
Trying to give the still nascent mHealth sector a motivational kick in the pants, the Federal Communications Commission has begun working directly with startups and universities to help bring new wireless telemedicine and healthcare technologies to market faster.
Whether they’re outraged, scrabbling in terror, or simply hoping it goes away, it’s the privacy rule that European startups can’t ignore. But what exactly is the European cookie directive? As the rules come into force in the U.K., we take a look at the details.
UK regulators have changed their mind – new over-the-top internet movie services means BSkyB no longer has a restrictive position in pay-TV movie subscriptions.
Dish Network has taken possession of it’s 4G spectrum and it’s ready to deliver its competitive mobile broadband network – in 2016. In a filing with the FCC, Dish basically asked the FCC for the granddaddy of all extensions for turning in its LTE homework assignments.
Mounting evidence suggests Europe’s mobile operators are becoming increasingly censorious, thanks to haphazard adult content filters that are applied to millions of users. The result? De facto, unregulated censorship that screens out thousands of legitimate websites, including GigaOM.
The FCC is curious why Verizon bought a bunch of 4G spectrum back in 2008 but now plans to sell it. The FCC is asking Verizon some poignant questions, and though the word “warehousing” is never mentioned it’s certainly the direction the FCC is heading.
Performing a few mental calculations during his keynote at CTIA Wireless on Tuesday, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski quickly concluded that the same amount of mobile spectrum existed today as existed before the government slapped down AT&T-Mo. So where did this capacity crisis suddenly come from?
On April 19, Verizon Wireless(s vz)(s vod) surprised many people by announcing that it would sell its 700MHz A-and B-block holdings if…
AT&T is heating up its retaliatory campaign against the Federal Communications Commission for denying its $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson claimed once again that the merger’s death directly resulted in AT&T’s raising mobile data prices 30 percent. We don’t buy it.
After advertising’s regulator investigated complaints, Apple has agreed to remove the “4G” label in a country that can’t yet support a “4G” iPad. But complaints keep coming.
Verizon and its cable partners aren’t taking T-Mobile’s bashing of their proposed spectrum deal lying down. In fact, they’re accusing the carrier of hypocrisy, throwing in T-Mobile’s face its own recent attempt to merge with AT&T, which would have created the megacarrier to beat all megacarriers.
Wednesday’s Senate hearing on Verizon’s spectrum deal with the cable operators certainly isn’t going to be a love fest. Verizon and Comcast will square off not only against its toughest critics – The Free Press and the RCA – but the unions as well.
If the FCC won’t let LightSquared launch LTE in its satellite spectrum, then the carrier wants the commission to find its network an alternate home on the airwaves. LightSquared still claims its 4G network will leave GPS unharmed, but it’s willing to consider a spectrum swap.
Verizon has claimed that it will start running out of mobile broadband capacity as soon as 2013 unless it gets its hands on the cable operators’ unused spectrum. But the FCC has some questions about the math Verizon used to reach that conclusion.
The AT&T-Mo saga wasted countless dollars and resources, dominating the attention of regulators and the wireless industry for a year, but AT&T’s failure more than made up for those losses. We now have more fearsome regulation and a greater awareness of the mobile market’s precarious competitive state.
After finding Groupon’s U.K. operation in breach of advertising rules nearly 50 times this year, officials are now referring complaints to regulators conducting a wider investigation into the company’s business practices.
Verizon dodged a bullet on Tuesday when the FCC denounced AT&T-Mo. No conditional approval means no new regulations to haunt Verizon’s own consolidation plans in the future. Now Verizon needs its archival AT&T to throw in the towel before it can do any more damage.
Those who questioned whether European regulators were right to open an antitrust investigation into Google’s activities last year should take a look at the data again, as the company’s dominance across the continent reaches new heights — and new depths, too.
Another month, another summit in Paris to discuss the future of the Internet — and another debate that ends up in the same old arguments about copyright infringement and law enforcement. Are we doomed to keep repeating our mistakes, or can we ever move on?
The California Public Utilities Commission is the first U.S. regulatory entity to issue a sweeping set of guidelines for managing and protecting consumers’ data around energy use. The goal is to allow startups and corporate giants alike to access that data to make homes more energy-efficient and eventually build “smart home” networks. But while the recently released guidelines are critical for the smart grid industry to track, they pose at least as many questions as answers, and will doubtless be open to multiple interpretations in the coming months. Companies mentioned in this report include Google, Microsoft, Control4, Tendril and HP. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial.
The U.S. Senate has posted a notice for an upcoming Judiciary Committee meeting on mobile privacy, to be held May 10 at 10:00 AM EST in Washington, D.C. Apple VP of Software Technology Bud Tribble will provide testimony at the session.
Netflix could soon be forced to spend more money on Canadian content and run programming “that reflects Canadian attitudes, opinions, ideas, values and artistic creativity,” if Canada’s TV incumbents have their way. An industry consortium asked regulators this month to treat Netflix like plain old TV.
The culture clash between American and European privacy cultures has been bubbling away for some time, but now European lawmakers have given the clearest signal yet to America’s Internet companies that they will be forced to abide by new, stricter privacy regulations.
An incoming piece of European legislation that regulates the use of cookies has some entrepreneurs up in arms — but their extreme reactions say more about the state of the continent’s startup industry than the true impact of the law.
The U.S. health care system remains one of the most fragmented and inefficient ones on the planet. In fact, many view the use of the term “system” as problematic when it comes to the organizations of health services and health care delivery in the U.S.; a more apt phrase might be “non-system” — that is, a system without effective organization.
Regulated industries like health care and financial services frequently deal with large quantities of highly sensitive data many deem unsuitable for cloud storage. But for those prepared to invest in understanding and meeting the requirements of such heavily regulated environments, there are many opportunities to offer premium services.
Apple (s aapl) implemented its own games rating system when it introduced iPhone OS 3.0, one that’s designed to let consumers know…