The Federal Communications Commission informed Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) and NBCU that on July 6 it had officially re-started the shot clock on its review of their proposed joint venture. That confirms a report in Multichannel News July 7. The FCC’s informal 180-day shot clock had been stopped for the second…

The Federal Communications Commission has named Douglas Sicker as chief technologist. Chairman Julius Genachowski said in announcing the appointment that he will “help the FCC pursue policies that spur investment, create jobs, promote innovation, and advance our nation’s global technology leadership.” Sicker will be based in the Office of Strategic…

Telegraphed for weeks, the FCC’s vote on an inquiry into Title II classification of broadband (and other options) came as no surprise. As a result, reaction came thick and quick to the decision. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a fan of network neutrality regulations and FCC chairman Julius Genachowski’s so-called “third way”…

Senator Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), chair of the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee, is calling for a raft of strong conditions on any Comcast/NBCU deal, including that it divest its stake in online video site Hulu within a year and apply program access rules to online video. That came in a letter…

Facing a tough crowd at the Nokia (NYSE: NOK) Theater in LA this morning, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski tried to convince cablers his week-old “third way” proposal shouldn’t freak them out. responding to questions from NCTA’s Kyle McSlarrow, Genachoski said this is just the “pre-beginning” of finding the best way…

A Federal Communications Commission rule change has granted two big wishes to the Hollywood film studios on Friday. Rejecting pleas from cinema operators, the FCC’s Media Bureau issued a waiver allowing movie studios to deliver first run theatrical releases via video-on-demand systems, The Wrap reported. On top of that, the…

Caught between a previous regime’s decision on how to define broadband and a recent federal court decision that the Federal Communications Commission didn’t have the authority to regulate so-called net neutrality, Julius Genachowski is trying for a “third way.” The plan, outlined today in an 8-page document embedded below, tries…

Post-MSG Cablevision (NYSE: CVC) turned in another strong quarter, defining why analyst Craig Moffet calls it a “cash machine. Profit for Q1 more than tripled to $74.1 million, with a 5 percent increase in revenue to led by increases in nearly every major cable category. Advertising results were mixed across…

		EPS*	Rev. vs Q109	Net Inc. vs Q109
CVC	Release	N/A	5.2%	250%

* vs. Analysts' Estimates: Beat Met Missed

By John Eggerton: FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski will unveil on May 6 the commission’s legal approach to clarifying its authority to regulate the Internet. A senior FCC official describes it as somewhere between a “weak Title I and overly burdensome Title II” approach. “The Chairman will seek to restore the…

Critics of the NBC Universal-Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA) merger who wanted the Federal Communications Commission to extend the response deadline past May 3 will get more time. The FCC said late Friday afternoon that it is suspending the comment and petition schedule to give Comcast and NBCU parent General Electric (NYSE:…

Usually I watch Congressional hearings on webcasts, an amazing gift for those of us who reported before live streaming. Today through a fluke of my schedule and the postponement of the original hearing from March til today, I’m in the Russell Building for a key moment in the FCC’s National…

A dozen broadcasters escalated their mobile TV efforts yesterday after forming a joint venture that included financial and content commitments. The more aggressive measures appeared to be in response to the FCC’s National Broadband initiative, which called for reclaiming unused spectrum from broadcasters for more wireless broadband networks. Without the…

Over the past few years satellite distributor DirecTV (NYSE: DTV) serially has been under the control of two of the most powerful men in media. Now neither of them has it—and it’s the direct result of the transfer of controlling power from Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp (NYSE: NWS). to John…

A federal court has determined that the FCC does not have the authority to enforce so-called net neutrality rules, which requires broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic, reports the New York Times. The decision was made today by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District…

Clearwire (NSDQ: CLWR) frequently brags about how much spectrum it has at its disposal, and how easy it will be to deliver a ton of video and other high-bandwidth services over mobile networks. It’s a luxurious postion to be in and something that has only become top of mind for…

The FCC is working on a plan that would sell a chunk of spectrum in the first half of 2011 that failed to be sold in 2008 because of the strict conditions of use. The spectrum, which was earmarked for public-safety use, may now have different terms and conditions, if…

As promised, the FCC has released its proposal for a National Broadband Plan that it will deliver to Congress tomorrow. In the six-page executive summary, it lays out ambitious goals that includes rewriting laws and policies that would enable more Americans to be connected to the internet—wired or wirelessly—at affordable…

Looking for real-time data of its own, the FCC (yes, the regulatory body in Washington, D.C.) has released a mobile app for iPhone and Android. Don’t worry, the feds aren’t interested in listening to your phone conversations, rather they say the purpose of the app is to provide “Americans with…

In an appearance this morning at a Seattle breakfast event, former FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, now a partner at Patton Boggs, was careful not to offer any jabs at the current administration. Instead, he focused on the current administration’s plans for rolling out a new national broadband plan, scheduled to…