January 2025

In late 2023, the Department of Commerce’s Commerce Data Governance Board launched the AI and Open Government Data Working Group. The working group, consisting of AI and data experts throughout the Department of Commerce (Commerce), was tasked with evaluating how the Department could enhance the creation, curation, and distribution of its open data assets to best meet the needs of users who leverage generative AI applications to interact with Commerce’s open data. This guidance provides actionable guidelines and best practices for publishing open data optimized for generative AI systems.

AT&T has made it official that it plans to shut down copper networks everywhere except California by the end of 2029. This is not exactly news since the company has been quietly shutting down copper all over the country. California is a special situation because the California Public Service Commission has never deregulated AT&T as a local telephone company and the state is going to make AT&T prove to it that customers will not be stranded when the copper comes down. AT&T says it will offer an alternate technology to customers—either fiber or wireless.

On Jan 16, the Federal Communications Commission denied four filings that asked the FCC to use the agency's licensing authority to penalize broadcast television stations because of content or coverage aired on the stations. In a statement released alongside the denials, outgoing FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel explained the decision, writing, "The facts and legal circumstances in each of these cases are different. But what they share is that they seek to weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment.