Alphabet's Google created a monopoly that allowed it to control parts of the online-advertising industry, a federal judge ruled April 17, a decision that could upend one of the technology giant’s core businesses. The ruling marked the second time in eight months that a U.S.
On April 30, a committee in the California Assembly will hold a hearing on proposed legislation that would dictate rates for interstate broadband information services. Intended to promote affordability, the California bill would unwisely subject broadband service providers to price controls of $15 per month. But state-level rate regulation takes away broadband providers’ ability to set their prices in the free market, directly undermining their returns on investment in their network property.
Higher prices have come for your internet bill—at least it feels that way for many. That’s according to a new CNET survey that found 63 percent of US adults paying for home internet saw their prices increase last year. On average, they paid $195 more last year than they did the year before. Price hikes didn’t necessarily translate to better service, either. More than half of people who saw their bills increase said they still experienced unreliable connectivity. The survey results come at a fraught moment for the broadband industry in the US.
After being officially approved in January, Kingman (AZ)-based Wecom Fiber officially broke ground on its high-speed, fiber broadband network for Flagstaff on April 16. The Flagstaff City Council officially selected Wecom Fiber in September 2024 to bring high-speed broadband Internet to 34 city facilities, including Flagstaff City Hall, the Flagstaff Aquaplex, public libraries, fire stations, and more. The contract was approved in January, with Flagstaff providing $2 million from a city grant to fund the project, with $3 million contributed by Wecom, according to its press release.
Carney (MI)-based UP Fiber said it will acquire AT&T’s wireline assets in the Upper Peninsula. The move means Michigan Broadband Services will provide sales, marketing, billing and technical support to AT&T customers after the close of the transaction. The AT&T wireline assets represent more than 9,000 miles of copper, 1,500 miles of business fiber, and network infrastructure across 40 wire centers that collectively provide voice and internet service to more than 9,000 residential and business customers, according to a recent news release from the company.
It all started in 2002. Jared Mauch, who was already accustomed to working from home for Akamai, a company that provides server cache services for businesses, was facing a significant problem: his internet connection. At the time, he was stuck with a wired connection that barely managed 1.5 Mbps. As a remote worker, this was simply not sustainable. The only solution he was offered was a costly $50,000 extension from Comcast, a price Mauch found unacceptable.
The Maine Connectivity Authority is the state agency responsible for implementing the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program. The MCA team and partners have worked tens of thousands of hours over the past three years to develop and execute thou
Things are about to get uncomfortable in Washington for Google. Top Republicans in Congress are leaning hard on the tech giant to make its content policies friendlier to the GOP, after winning that fight with social media companies Meta and X. Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-TX) and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) are now putting pressure on Google and its parent company Alphabet, which owns both the internet’s dominant search engine and the popular YouTube video platform.
The Federal Communications Commission received an interesting petition in March from the owner of low-power TV stations. HC2, which owns 14 percent of the 1,800 low-power stations in the country, asked the FCC to allow the stations to cease the requirement to provide at least one free traditional broadcast signal. Instead, HC2 wants to repurpose the TV spectrum to use 5G technology to broadcast signals to 5G-enabled devices. TV delivered straight to cell phones would be an interesting product.
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