Tag: FCC

📅 February 26, 2014

FCC Speed Test: FCC Releases iOS App to Measure Mobile Broadband Performance

The FCC Speed Test app is an expansion of the Measuring Broadband America program from fixed to mobile broadband.

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At the GSMA Mobile World Congress, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler announced the launch of the FCC Speed Test app for iOS devices in the iTunes App Store. The FCC Speed Test app is an expansion of the Measuring Broadband America program from fixed to mobile broadband.

The Measuring Broadband America program, which has released three reports on fixed broadband networks, is a private-public partnership designed to bring greater clarity and competition to the broadband service marketplace. Testing data will provide valuable information to consumers, industry,
and the Commission on the deployment of networks across the United States.

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📅 April 4, 2009

FCC to Investigate AT&T and Apple Over Skype Blockage

Federal Communications Commission will investigate AT&T and Apple for Skype Blockage in Europe and US

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The Skype vs. Telcos situation is rapidly coming to a head, both in Europe and now in the US. The Wall St. Journal reports:

The open-Internet advocacy group Free Press asked the Federal Communications Commission Friday to investigate whether Apple Inc. and AT&T Inc. are violating federal rules by blocking the use of a new low-cost Skype voice service on Apple iPhones that use AT&T’s 3G network…

Wireless providers, such as Clearwire Corp., have successfully argued they should be able to prevent customers from using some bandwidth-hogging Internet services, like file-sharing, because their wireless networks have capacity issues.

But does Apple really care?Perhaps they won’t be able to get the kind of subsidy money from AT&T that they currently enjoy? If no one wants to pay $50 month for voice when they can get the same service from Skype for about a tenth of the price, AT&T is going to lose some revenue. But that is the lone downside. There are many upsides.