AT&T nears regulatory approval for Verizon license buy – WSJ

June 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is close to granting AT&T Inc (T.N) approval for its $2.35 billion purchase of rural U.S. wireless licenses from rival Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N), the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

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Verizon Wireless was required to sell off those properties as a condition for getting regulatory approval for its purchase of Alltel in January 2009 — a merger that created the biggest wireless provider in the United States, surpassing AT&T in terms of subscribers. [ID:nN08498235]

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski circulated an order last week, asking four other members of the commission to approve the deal that is likely to be voted upon in the coming weeks, the paper said.

The FCC could not be immediately reached for comment by Reuters outside regular U.S. business hours. (Reporting by Antonita Madonna Devotta in Bangalore; Editing by Valerie Lee)

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EU to decide on Comcast, NBCU deal by July 15

June 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment

June 11 (Reuters) – EU competition regulators set a July 15 deadline either to clear or prevent U.S. cable provider Comcast’s (CMCSA.O) proposed takeover of NBC Universal, the European Commission said on Friday. The Commission, competition watchdog of the 27-country European Union, may also challenge the deal by seeking concessions but doing so could mean extending the deadline by 35 working days.

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The Commission is expected to canvas views from consumers and rivals before deciding whether to clear the transaction.

The U.S. Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission are reviewing Comcast’s plan to buy a controlling stake in General Electric’s (GE.N) NBC Universal in a $30 billion joint venture.

Consumer and public interest groups have expressed concerns about possible higher prices for consumers as a result of the deal. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, editing by Dale Hudson)

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Ex-Obama adviser calls on FCC to reclassify Web access: report

April 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – The U.S. could regain its authority to pursue both network neutrality and widespread access to broadband by formally reclassifying Internet access as “telecommunications services,” a former adviser to President Obama said in a published report on Sunday.

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Susan Crawford, who was a special assistant to the President for science, technology and innovation policy, wrote in the New York Times that, before it can reclassify Internet access, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission has to prove “good reason”.

Crawford, a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, was writing in response to the Federal appeals court ruling last week that the FCC lacks the legal authority to tell Comcast Corp not to block certain uses of its Internet access services.

Comcast, which is the No.1 TV and Internet service provider to U.S. homes, had been found to slow down access to file-sharing services used for sharing TV and movies by users.

The court ruling was seen as a major roadblock to the FCC’s National Broadband Plan, a cornerstone of the Obama administration’s communications policy.

Among other things, the plan proposes to spend billions of dollars to help provide Internet access, rather than phone access for people in rural areas.

Crawford said if Internet access is reclassified as “telecommunications services” rather than as “information services,” it would make it easier to tell providers of high-speed Internet access what to do.

“The FCC has the legal authority to change the label, as long as it can provide a good reason,” she wrote.

Wall Street analysts have commented that such a move would increase the regulatory risk on investing in cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner Cable as well as phone companies like AT&T Inc and Verizon Communications.

The possible reclassification of Internet access services by regulators has been described by Bernstein Research analyst Craig Moffett as the “nuclear option”.

(Reporting by Yinka Adegoke; editing by Gunna Dickson)

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Ex-Obama adviser calls on FCC to reclassify Web access -NYT

April 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment

NEW YORK, April 11 (Reuters) – The U.S. could regain its authority to pursue both network neutrality and widespread access to broadband by formally reclassifying Internet access as “telecommunications services,” a former adviser to President Obama said in a published report on Sunday.

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Susan Crawford, who was a special assistant to the President for science, technology and innovation policy, wrote in the New York Times that, before it can reclassify Internet access, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission has to prove “good reason”.

Crawford, a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, was writing in response to the Federal appeals court ruling last week that the FCC lacks the legal authority to tell Comcast Corp (CMCSA.O) not to block certain uses of its Internet access services.

Comcast, which is the No.1 TV and Internet service provider to U.S. homes, had been found to slow down access to file-sharing services used for sharing TV and movies by users.

The court ruling was seen as a major roadblock to the FCC’s National Broadband Plan, a cornerstone of the Obama administration’s communications policy.

Among other things, the plan proposes to spend billions of dollars to help provide Internet access, rather than phone access for people in rural areas.

Crawford said if Internet access is reclassified as “telecommunications services” rather than as “information services,” it would make it easier to tell providers of high-speed Internet access what to do.

“The FCC has the legal authority to change the label, as long as it can provide a good reason,” she wrote.

Wall Street analysts have commented that such a move would increase the regulatory risk on investing in cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner Cable (TWC.N) as well as phone companies like AT&T Inc (T.N) and Verizon Communications (VZ.N).

The possible reclassification of Internet access services by regulators has been described by Bernstein Research analyst Craig Moffett as the “nuclear option” [ID:nN09117423].

(Reporting by Yinka Adegoke; editing by Gunna Dickson)

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UPDATE 1-iPad, on eve of launch, still awaits the rush

April 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Few lines at stores so far, in contrast to iPhone launch * Pre-ordering of Apple’s new tablet device cuts crowds * iPad sellouts still expected this weekend (Adds details of components and FCC pictures)

Stocks | Media

By Gabriel Madway

WASHINGTON/LOS ANGELES, April 2 (Reuters) – Apple’s (AAPL.O) iPad, the subject of frenzied industry speculation since its unveiling in January, has so far not drawn the hordes that ushered in the iPhone three years ago.

The afternoon before the much hyped tablet computer goes on sale, a smattering of customers lined up at stores in New York, Washington, Boston and San Francisco, in marked contrast to the thousands that accompanied the iPhone’s debut in 2007.

Analysts say early sales have been strong.

But with many able to pre-order the gadget since mid-March, there was little reason to stand in line ahead of Saturday’s 9 a.m. launch. Those who ordered early enough online get their iPads on Saturday, via pickup at a store or home delivery.

Apple has staked much of its reputation on the iPad, pitched as a revolutionary new category of device: a lightweight mobile computer that strives to combine the best attributes of a smartphone and a laptop.

It is Apple’s most important launch since the iPhone. Wall Street is keen to gauge consumer response to the device, the firm’s next growth driver, and the crowds at Apple stores this weekend may provide an early indication of its popular appeal.

On Friday, tech blogs picked up on what appeared to be pictures of the iPad’s innards posted by the Federal Communications Commission on its Web site, giving techno-fans their first glimpse of pre-production components.

With the caveat that different parts may have been selected for the final iPad, Apple repair experts iFixit analyzed the photographs and concluded that the iPad uses Toshiba (6502.T) flash memory and a Broadcom (BRCM.O) communications chip alongside Apple’s own A4 processor.

It was unclear why the FCC posted the photos.

here

ANTICIPATION MOUNTS?

The iPhone set a high bar for product launches, with sales passing the 1 million mark within 74 days. Some of the more enthusiastic had waited in line for up to five days before the June 2007 launch date. Apple sold more than 2 million in the holiday quarter that year.

Analysts say the company has already received several hundred thousands pre-orders, with first-year iPad sales estimated at anywhere from 4 million to 7 million. .[ID:nN29117228]

The pre-orders also succeeded in whittling down the lines a day in advance.

Of course, there are always some hearty enough to wait overnight. At Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York, around 10 people were in line Friday afternoon. They came armed with beach chairs, umbrellas, jackets, McDonald’s fast food, camping mats and other first-day-of-sale survival gear.

The mood was less festive elsewhere. It was all quiet at the Apple store on upscale Boylston Street in Boston at midday. Visiting Londoners Mark and Angela Rebbettes said at the store that they would likely swing back by on Saturday morning and try to get a look at the iPad.

“I think everyone’s interested,” said Mark Rebbettes, a salesman. Ultimately he thought he would buy one, although she didn’t understand the point of the device.

The iPad is a sleek 9.7-inch touchscreen tablet that resembles an oversized iPhone and runs on the same operating system. It starts at $499 for a short-range Wi-Fi model and tops out at more than $800 for a high-speed, go-anywhere 3G-enabled version.

It is designed for consuming all sorts of media, from games and video, to electronic books and magazines. Analysts say content deals are key to the iPad’s success. [ID:nN29117228]

APPS ON

The iPad can use most of the roughly 150,000 apps already available for the iPhone, and more than 1,000 new iPad apps are ready to go on launch day.

Among the iPad apps are an offering from Netflix (NFLX.O) to stream movies and one from Walt Disney’s (DIS.N) ABC network that features TV shows. There is a slew of games from developers such as Electronic Arts (ERTS.O) and startup ngmoco. Many analysts expect the iPad to provide stiff competition for Nintendo’s (7974.OS) DS and Sony’s (6758.T) PSP devices.

In addition, iPad apps from the New York Times (NYT.N) and News Corp’s (NWSA.O) Wall Street Journal will offer some access to content from the two newspapers.

Apple is also launching its own digital book business that will compete with Amazon.com’s (AMZN.O) Kindle.[ID:nN27203955]

No wonder iPad sales expectations keep climbing by the day. On Friday, research group iSuppli said it expects first-year shipments to hit 7 million in 2010. Many analysts expect Apple to sell 1 million or more iPads in the June quarter.

Reviews of the iPad have been largely positive, emphasizing its ample battery life and ease of use.[ID:nN01128173]

Saturday’s iPad launch is only in the United States and only for the Wi-Fi model. It will be available in nine other countries later this month.

Apple’s stock is up around 12 percent this year and has been setting new all-time highs. Analysts say that regardless of how well the launch goes, its stock price is likely to slip next week as investors cash in profits. (Reporting by Gabriel Madway; Additional reporting by Ros Krasny in Boston, Michelle Nichols in New York and Alexandria Sage in San Francisco; Editing by Edwin Chan, Steve Orlofsky and Jan Paschal)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

iPad still awaits the rush

April 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

(Reuters) – Apple’s iPad, the subject of frenzied industry speculation since its unveiling in January, has so far not drawn the hordes that ushered in the iPhone three years ago.

Technology | Media

The afternoon before the much hyped tablet computer goes on sale, a smattering of customers lined up at stores in New York, Washington, Boston and San Francisco, in marked contrast to the thousands that accompanied the iPhone’s debut in 2007.

Analysts say early sales have been strong.

But with many able to pre-order the gadget since mid-March, there was little reason to stand in line ahead of Saturday’s 9 a.m. launch. Those who ordered early enough online get their iPads on Saturday, via pickup at a store or home delivery.

Apple has staked much of its reputation on the iPad, pitched as a revolutionary new category of device: a lightweight mobile computer that strives to combine the best attributes of a smartphone and a laptop.

It is Apple’s most important launch since the iPhone. Wall Street is keen to gauge consumer response to the device, the firm’s next growth driver, and the crowds at Apple stores this weekend may provide an early indication of its popular appeal.

On Friday, tech blogs picked up on what appeared to be pictures of the iPad’s innards posted by the Federal Communications Commission on its Web site, giving techno-fans their first glimpse of pre-production components.

With the caveat that different parts may have been selected for the final iPad, Apple repair experts iFixit analyzed the photographs and concluded that the iPad uses Toshiba flash memory and a Broadcom communications chip alongside Apple’s own A4 processor.

It was unclear why the FCC posted the photos. (here)

ANTICIPATION MOUNTS?

The iPhone set a high bar for product launches, with sales passing the 1 million mark within 74 days. Some of the more enthusiastic had waited in line for up to five days before the June 2007 launch date. Apple sold more than 2 million in the holiday quarter that year.

Analysts say the company has already received several hundred thousand pre-orders, with first-year iPad sales estimated at anywhere from 4 million to 7 million. .

The pre-orders also succeeded in whittling down the lines a day in advance.

Of course, there are always some hearty enough to wait overnight. At Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York, around 10 people were in line Friday afternoon. They came armed with beach chairs, umbrellas, jackets, McDonald’s fast food, camping mats and other first-day-of-sale survival gear.

The mood was less festive elsewhere. It was all quiet at the Apple store on upscale Boylston Street in Boston at midday. Visiting Londoners Mark and Angela Rebbettes said at the store that they would likely swing back by on Saturday morning and try to get a look at the iPad.

“I think everyone’s interested,” said Mark Rebbettes, a salesman. Ultimately he thought he would buy one, although she didn’t understand the point of the device.

The iPad is a sleek 9.7-inch touchscreen tablet that resembles an oversized iPhone and runs on the same operating system. It starts at $499 for a short-range Wi-Fi model and tops out at more than $800 for a high-speed, go-anywhere 3G-enabled version.

It is designed for consuming all sorts of media, from games and video, to electronic books and magazines. Analysts say content deals are key to the iPad’s success.

APPS ON

The iPad can use most of the roughly 150,000 apps already available for the iPhone, and more than 1,000 new iPad apps are ready to go on launch day.

Among the iPad apps are an offering from Netflix to stream movies and one from Walt Disney’s ABC network that features TV shows. There is a slew of games from developers such as Electronic Arts and startup ngmoco. Many analysts expect the iPad to provide stiff competition for Nintendo’s DS and Sony’s PSP devices.

In addition, iPad apps from the New York Times and News Corp’s Wall Street Journal will offer some access to content from the two newspapers.

Apple is also launching its own digital book business that will compete with Amazon.com’s Kindle.

No wonder iPad sales expectations keep climbing by the day. On Friday, research group iSuppli said it expects first-year shipments to hit 7 million in 2010. Many analysts expect Apple to sell 1 million or more iPads in the June quarter.

Reviews of the iPad have been largely positive, emphasizing its ample battery life and ease of use.

Saturday’s iPad launch is only in the United States and only for the Wi-Fi model. It will be available in nine other countries later this month.

Apple’s stock is up around 12 percent this year and has been setting new all-time highs. Analysts say that regardless of how well the launch goes, its stock price is likely to slip next week as investors cash in profits.

(Reporting by Gabriel Madway; Additional reporting by Ros Krasny in Boston, Michelle Nichols in New York and Alexandria Sage in San Francisco; Editing by Edwin Chan, Steve Orlofsky and Jan Paschal)

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Ride Over? Six Flags Declares Bankruptcy

June 14, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Amusement park operator Six Flags declared bankruptcy yesterday but says that it will keep its parks open, at least for now. According to the Washington Post, the company is carrying $2.4 billion in debt. Despite the fact that Six Flags reported 25 million visitors and posted record revenues in 2008, the debt is simply unsustainable, the Associated Press reports.

Yesterday, Obama proposed an additional $313 billion in cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and other programs in order to pay for health care reforms that could cost about $1 trillion over the next 10 years, Reuters reports. “I know some question whether we can afford to act this year,” the president said, “But the unmistakable truth is that it would be irresponsible to not act.”

Two of the nation’s most influential bank regulators are at it again, reports the New York Times. John Dugan, comptroller of the currency, is reportedly feuding with Sheila Bair, head of the FDIC. Dugan has lambasted a proposal to impose harsh insurance fees on banks, which he views as unfair to the largest banks (which he regulates). Bair responded in defense of small banks, charging that the big banks should take the blame for the financial collapse.

Financial leaders from the G8 have offered their most optimistic evaluation of the global crisis yet, the Washington Post reports. They called for an “exit strategy” from stimulus policies that have been instituted to bolster the economy. But not everything is fixed yet, says U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. He called on international banking regulators to devise better ways to “quickly resolve failures of cross-border financial firms.”

Television’s digital switchover has gone relatively well so far, the Wall Street Journal reports. Though a record 317,000 calls poured into a national call center set up by the Federal Communications Commission Friday from consumers who had trouble to setting up converter boxes, most issues have been quickly resolved.

The Los Angeles Lakers may win the NBA Championship, but some city officials are saying that they might not be able to host a victory parade. The parade could cost more than $1 million, and the city is already squeezed financially, thanks to a deep budget deficit, which might require job cuts, Reuters reports. “We can’t afford to cover the costs,” City Councilwoman Jan Perry told the Los Angeles Times. She asked, “How could we make a decision about people’s jobs and then sponsor the parade?”

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Janet Jackson ‘wardrobe malfunction’ fine may be reinstated after Supreme Court’s order

May 5, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, May 5 (ANI): The US Supreme Court has ordered a re-examination of an appellate court’s decision to quash a fine over Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction” during 2004′s Super Bowl.

It was in July last year that the appellate court ruled that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) acted “arbitrarily” in fining CBS TV 550,000 dollars in September 2004, for airing the glimpse of Jackson’s breast during the broadcast.

As many as 90 million viewers are said to have seen the incident during the half time show.

The malfunction happened while Jackson was performing alongside Justin Timberlake, who reached for her bra.

Broadcaster CBS received around 542,000 complaints regarding the malfunction.

However, the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia has now been directed to consider reinstating the fine imposed by the FCC.

The order comes after a high court ruling last week that upheld the FCC’s policy that subjects broadcasters to fines against even single uses of swear words on live television, reports the BBC.

That ruling will be reviewed in view of the Supreme Court’s order in the case. (ANI)

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‘Wiretapping’ threatening Internet, says web inventor Tim Berners-Lee

March 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, March 12 (ANI): Inventor of the web Tim Berners-Lee, alongwith other online security specialists at the Houses of Parliament in London, have warned that the ever-increasing power of computers is threatening the future of the Internet.

The experts are mainly concerned about deep packet inspection (DPI), a technique that makes it possible to peer inside packets of data transmitted across the Internet.

Richard Clayton, a security expert at the University of Cambridge and treasurer of the Foundation for Information Policy Research, points out that DPI is already being used for commercial gain.

According to him, firms try to sell DPI-acquired data those who can use it, such as for online advertisements.

The Chinese government also uses DPI to enforce its web censorship programme, sometimes called the Great Firewall of China.

Berners-Lee concedes that targeted adverts offer online users an improved service and that he does not have any issues with them, but he is uncomfortable with using DPI to provide them, reports New Scientist magazine.

He says that DPI is like wiretapping, and can enable firms to learn a huge amount about people’s “lives, hates and fears”.

Robert Topolski, a software engineer at the US Federal Communications Commission, says that DPI threatens the trust that exists between web users and internet service providers.

He says that this technology makes it possible for a “man in the middle” not directly accountable to a website’s operators or its users to intercept and use data sent over the internet, from details of purchases made online to messages shared on social sites.

According to him, this is very different from the widespread practice of monitoring online activity such as search terms, with the user’s consent, to offer similar targeted adverts.

Clayton and other members of the discussion group said that DPI should be tested against existing data-protection and privacy laws, before it becomes more widely used.

They said that this would either establish precedents that protect web users, or make it clear that new legislation is needed. (ANI)

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