December 2019

SpaceX Is Lobbying Against Amazon’s Internet-Beaming Satellites

When Amazon confirmed it was planning to launch 3,236 broadband internet-beaming satellites into low-Earth orbit, much of the media reported it as if it were a done deal—the latest, inevitable step in the corporation’s quest to conquer commerce, the cloud, and beyond. Amazon officials said the massive satellite constellation, called Project Kuiper, would one day provide low-latency, high-speed broadband to tens of millions of underserved people around the world, no doubt also connecting them to the wide world of Amazon offerings.

Chairman Pai Announces Improved Wireless Emergency Alerts Now Available

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced availability of a suite of enhancements to Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs) that will enable Americans to receive more geographically precise, effective, and informative alerts on their mobile phones during emergencies, which will help save lives. Local officials are now better able to send geotargeted wireless alerts to areas affected by an emergency without reaching unaffected communities, which will increase confidence in alerting and promote public safety—especially during evacuations.

Gov Cuomo Proposes Net Neutrality Law

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo (D-NY) proposed advancing statewide net neutrality protections. As part of this proposal, the Governor will introduce legislation to prevent the blocking, throttling and paid prioritization of online content — practices that undermine a free and open internet.