1. Monthly archive
  2. November 2017

November 2017

Commissioner Carr Statement on Proposed Approach for Twilight Towers

The Federal Communications Commission is focused on streamlining the deployment of infrastructure needed to deliver next-generation wireless services. Last week, for instance, the Commission adopted an Order that eliminates the need for historic preservation review when providers replace utility poles for the purpose of adding antennas or other wireless equipment. Today, I can announce the Commission’s next step in our broader effort to promote and accelerate the deployment of wireless infrastructure.

Google collects Android users’ locations even when location services are disabled

Many people realize that smartphones track their locations. But what if you actively turn off location services, haven’t used any apps, and haven’t even inserted a carrier SIM card? Even if you take all of those precautions, phones running Android software gather data about your location and send it back to Google when they’re connected to the internet. Since the beginning of 2017, Android phones have been collecting the addresses of nearby cellular towers—even when location services are disabled—and sending that data back to Google.

FCC’s Rollback of Net-Neutrality Rules Won’t Settle the Divisive Issue

Although the Federal Communications Commission is expected to adopt FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's new net neutrality proposal in December 2017, that won’t end a debate that’s roiled the tech world for years. Aggrieved parties will try to save the regulations in federal court, where judges will decide whether the agency is within its rights to reverse a regulation it adopted little more than two years ago. Legally, the agency can reverse its rules if it has a good reason.

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