The Federal Communications Commission, under the leadership of freshly-confirmed chairman Tom Wheeler, is hard at work on rules that will govern an upcoming spectrum auction. AT&T and Verizon, the nation's largest wireless carriers, want the FCC to hold an unrestricted auction that could allow them to maintain or even widen their lead in premium low-frequency spectrum. Their smaller competitors, especially T-Mobile, are urging the FCC to adopt rules to guarantee that the largest carriers do not wind up with a disproportionate share of that spectrum.
Wireless competition is good for consumers — even if it costs taxpayers extra
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US regulations hard on small phone firms, Sen Pryor, panel hear
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While scattered populations and difficult terrain make it hard to provide phone and Internet access in rural America, government regulatory burdens are an even bigger problem, the vice president of Arkansas-based Ritter Communications told a Senate hearing.
The Web-Deprived Study at McDonald’s
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Cheap smartphones and tablets have put Web-ready technology into more hands than ever. But the price of Internet connectivity hasn't come down nearly as quickly. And in many rural areas, high-speed Internet through traditional phone lines simply isn't available at any price. The result is a divide between families that have broadband constantly available on their home computers and phones, and those that have to plan their days around visits to free sources of Internet access. That divide is becoming a bigger problem now that a fast Internet connection has evolved into an essential tool for completing many assignments at public schools.
The Broadcast Television Spectrum Incentive Auction: A Staff Summary
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Congress, in passing the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 in early 2012, authorized the FCC to conduct incentive auctions, with the first auction to be of broadcast television spectrum. Congress further directed that certain net proceeds from the broadcast incentive auction are to be deposited in the Public Safety Trust Fund to fund a national first responder network, state and local public safety grants, and public safety research, and the balance is to be used for deficit reduction.