An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: The coronavirus threat and official policies of “social distancing” are leading millions to stay home, doing meetings via video chat and probably watching Netflix and YouTube the rest of the time. That means a big uptick in bytes going through the tubes, both simultaneously and cumulatively. ISPs, leery of repeating Verizon’s memorable gaffe…
Tag: Broadband
Telecom Italia Fined $131 Million for Broadband Market Abuse
Italy’s competition watchdog said on Friday it had fined former phone monopoly Telecom Italia (TIM) 116 million euros ($131 million) for abusing its dominant position in the broadband market in an attempt to obstruct the entrance of rivals. From a report: The Italian antitrust authority said in a statement that Telecom Italia had conducted a “premeditated anti-competition strategy” aimed at hindering…
SpaceX Successfully Launches a New Batch of Its Starlink Satellites
SpaceX on Monday successfully sent another batch of Starlink satellites into orbit but didn’t quite stick the landing of its Falcon 9 rocket. From a report: Elon Musk’s space company did achieve its primary objective of sending 60 more flying nodes for its nascent global broadband service into space, bringing the total number of Starlink satellites in low-Earth orbit to nearly…
Is Canada’s BTLR a Framework For Regulating Internet Content?
Stunt Pope (Slashdot reader #3,287) writes: This article takes a look at Canada’s Broadband Telecom Legislation Review (BTLR) which was commissioned by the federal government in 2018 to map out how Canada’s communications and internet laws should be revised. It posed a set of sweeping recommendations (97 in all) that include imposing new taxes on streaming services, regulating content, and requiring…
7 Years Later, Emergency Alert Systems Still Unpatched, Vulnerable
chicksdaddy writes: The Security Ledger is reporting that more than 50 Emergency Alert System (EAS) devices made by Monroe Electronics (now Digital Alert Systems) are un-patched and accessible from the public Internet, seven years after security researchers alerted the public about security flaws in the devices. More than 50 EAS deployments across the United States still use a shared SSH key,…
FCC Shuts New York Out of $20 Billion Broadband Fund, and Senators Are Angry
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: The Federal Communications Commission has unfairly shut New York state out of a planned $20.4 billion broadband-funding program, US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) wrote in a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai last week. ISPs in 48 states are eligible for funding in the FCC…
NYC Internet Plan Aims To Provide All New Yorkers With Broadband Access
An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNET: New York City unveiled an ambitious plan Tuesday to bring universal internet access to its 8.5 million residents by partnering with private internet service providers, a move Mayor Bill de Blasio says will help close the digital divide. The Internet Master Plan would create partnerships between the city and ISPs to facilitate permitting…
SpaceX launches third batch of Starlink satellites
SpaceX on Monday launched its third batch of 60 mini-satellites into orbit, part of its plans to build a giant constellation of thousands of spacecraft that will form a global broadband internet system. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-01-spacex-batch-starlink-satellites.html…
Dell’s Upcoming XPS 13 Linux Laptop Includes a Fingerprint Reader
An anonymous reader quotes Forbes:
If you’ve been following the steady march of progress from Dell’s Linux-first Project Sputnik team, you’re no doubt aware that the “Developer Edition” variant of the XPS 13 is one of the finest Linux-ready ultrabooks you can buy. Just ahead of CES 2020, Dell is pushing out a few more improvements including a feature that’s been hotly…
New Law Finally Bans Bullshit Cable TV Fees
After a longstanding campaign by Consumer Reports, The Television Viewer Protection Act of 2019 passed the House and the Senate last week buried inside a giant appropriations bill that now awaits President Trump’s signature. Techdirt reports: The bill bans ISPs from charging you extra to rent hardware you already own (something ISPs like Frontier have been doing without penalty for a…