09/29, 6:30pm
FCC broadband plan may need $350 billion
A mid-progress update from an FCC panel said today that the US may need $20 billion to $350 billion invested into broadband to realize current government plans for readily available, national Internet access. The agency warns that its data is incomplete but that the figures may be necessary depending on the guaranteed speeds, with $20 billion covering relatively basic broadband while the top sum would cover high-grade access. The figure is well beyond the $7.2 billion so far assigned to the initiative.
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09/02, 3:05pm
FCC Wants More Spectrum
FCC broadband head Blair Levin today pushed for more access to wireless spectrum as part of his organization's plans to expand broadband Internet access in the US. Pointing to complaints that there isn't enough available, the official suggested that the FCC could use the technology not only to grow coverage in rural areas where landlines are impractical or simply to improve the bandwidth available to everyone. He added that the extra spectrum could even be necessary as more wireless devices come online and saturate existing networks.
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08/27, 2:35pm
FCC Cellphone Inquiry
The FCC on Thursday morning began a formal inquiry into the state of the cellular industry. In line with the US government agency's timetable for events, the investigation is part of a new annual look at whether carrier practices may be hurting subscribers as well as its contribution to the economy and to the spread of long-range wireless Internet access. Officials began the inquiry following a unanimous vote.
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04/01, 2:40am
Samsung Instinct S30 debut
(Updated with pricing information) Sprint and Samsung Mobile on Tuesday evening announced the much-rumored Samsung Instinct s30, a thinner, more streamlined successor to the Samsung Instinct touchscreen phone that debuted last summer. The updated Instinct s30 offers full touchscreen functionality, broadband speeds using Sprint's 3G network, and services such as built-in instant messaging, improved Web-browsing using either the default browser or Opera Mini 4.2, and new games such as “Guitar Hero® – World Tour” and “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” preloaded. The Instinct s30, available in two color options -- Cobalt blue or Copper, also includes quick access to corporate calendar functionality via Microsoft Outlook, while Sprint Mobile Email Work provides access to corporate email, contacts, and calendar from Microsoft Exchange Server 2000/2003/2007 or IBM Lotus Domino accounts at no additional charge.
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03/19, 3:20pm
Cellphone Tax Fairness Act
A cross-party bill has been submitted in the US Congress this week that would at least temporarily ban additional taxes on cellphones or their service. The Cellphone Tax Fairness Act, sponsored by California Democrat representative Zoe Lofgren and Arizona Republican Trent Franks, would prevent any form of "discriminatory" state tax being applied to the technology for five years after the bill is passed. It wouldn't affect existing state taxes or new federal taxes.
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12/19, 2:10pm
Enhanced Messaging Spec
The CTIA finished its week by publishing the final use conditions for a service that should enable more than two-way simple communication by phone. Called Mobile Enhanced Messaging, the format would allow three or more users to maintain an ongoing conversation; like SMS and MMS, this would work through either text alone or with extra media, including audio, photos, videos and other future content. Similar to instant messaging, users could keep buddy lists and would also have the option of a cosmetic display name rather than a strict user ID.
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04/14, 4:05pm
CTIA On White Space
The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association today lent support to a movement for new wireless standards by asking that the US government officially license white space frequencies. The organization, which typically represents carriers, is opposing attempts by the Google-backed White Space Coalition to develop and used devices with the deliberately blank spectrum on grounds that the technology could create problems for existing services. By leaving little to no gap between one frequency band and another, new companies using the service could create interference on existing services or cut out space that could be used for background portions of established, licensed networks, the CTIA claims.
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