West Virginia is one of the worst connected states in the nation, something that was supposed to be helped by a $126.3-million federal stimulus grant intended to improve state broadband. Instead, as a series of excellent reports in the Charleston Gazette have illustrated this year, state leaders doled out most of that money to Verizon, who convinced the (either corrupt or totally incompetent) state officials to spend it on ridiculously overpriced, overpowered and unused routers, [...]

AT&T told CES attendees this week that the company will soon be offering their AT&T Digital Life home security and automation service in eight unspecified markets starting in March. According to the AT&T press release, the all-digital, all wireless service allows users to manage home lighting and home security from any mobile device, be it a laptop, tablet or smartphone. ISPs have lusted after a larger piece of the home automation and security pie for [...]

Contemplating a brand refresh, the cable industry’s chief lobbying and trade group is contemplating ditching the word cable from its brand. According to a recent trademark filing, the The National Cable & Telecommunications Association has applied for a trademark for the name “NCTA The Internet and Television Association.” The possible shift is a reflection of the fact that most cable operators are now focused on broadband as their primary service. The NCTA’s lobbying operations have [...]

BEIJING — China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has announced a new set of regulations intended to drive fiber to the home (FTTH) construction and provide an equal playing field for China’s broadband operators, according to Marbridge Consulting, a China-focused market research and business consulting firm specializing in the telecommunications and IT sectors. The two new national construction regulations, “FTTH Equipment Regulations for Housing and Residential Development Projects” and “FTTH Construction and Inspection [...]

Obama Signs FISA Warrantless Wiretapping Program Extension Into Law huffingtonpost.com As desktop traffic declines, and mobile adoption explodes, predatory marketers need to monetize mobile traffic or die trying techcrunch.com The ‘Digital Economy’ in 2012: A big noisy hole where money should be theregister.co.uk SF Wireless ISP MonkeyBrains Tries To Crowdfund $325 Million For A Satellite techdirt.com Down Again – Why Does Netflix Always Stop Working Right in Time for the Holidays? yahoo.com Microsoft releases temporary [...]

In addition to the inevitable (and sometimes bi-annual) increase in Comcast TV prices, the carrier is notifying out-of-contract customers that their broadband service will see a hike starting in the new year. According to user discussion in our forums, the price hikes vary depending on your market — or more specifically the competition (or lack thereof) seen there. Customers not under contract say their broadband service is seeing rate hikes ranging anywhere from 3% to [...]

The FCC has announced that the agency has formulated new rules they claim should help speed up the deployment of in-flight broadband. According to the FCC announcement, the agency has streamlined the airline approval process necessary to operate Earth Stations Aboard Aircraft (ESAA), something the FCC says will speed up deployment of satellite-based in-flight broadband by around 50%. “Whether traveling for work or leisure, Americans increasingly expect broadband access everywhere they go,” insisted FCC boss [...]

A new study by the Open Technology Institute (OTI) will surprise none of our regular readers, OTI finding that limited competition can be thanked for the rise in low caps and high overages on fixed line broadband networks. Carriers have argued (lied, frankly) that such penalties are necessary due to network congestion or financial well being, despite the fact that flat-rate pricing has been perfectly profitable and most well-run fixed-line networks experience limited to no [...]

PARIS – Tunisiana, Tunisia’s largest provider of wireless communications services, and Alcatel-Lucent, a provider of networking and communications technology, products and services, have announced a four-year agreement to build a wireline broadband access network that will bring high-speed Internet access and high-quality voice and video services to millions of Tunisian consumers and business customers. To support Tunisiana — part of the Qtel Group — in building its nationwide wireline access network, Alcatel-Lucent is providing a [...]

PARIS – Tunisiana, Tunisia’s largest provider of wireless communications services, and Alcatel-Lucent, a provider of networking and communications technology, products and services, have announced a four-year agreement to build a wireline broadband access network that will bring high-speed Internet access and high-quality voice and video services to millions of Tunisian consumers and business customers. To support Tunisiana — part of the Qtel Group — in building its nationwide wireline access network, Alcatel-Lucent is providing a [...]