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We can't say we're exactly surprised, but it's still worth noting that the United States DOJ has contacted MetroPCS to ask for additional information about the company's recently announced merger with T-Mobile. The adequately-named "Second Request" will be essential before an actual consolidation approval can be made, and MetroPCS has stated it plans on being fully cooperative so that it can "obtain the approval of the transaction as soon as possible." Additionally, the Wireless for All carrier says it's pretty confident on the Department of Justice's ability to see the proposed merger is "both pro-competitive and pro-consumer." In the end, it's nothing more than a required hurdle before the two telcos can move on with their original plans. Official word from MetroPCS can be found inside the presser below.
Continue reading Department of Justice asks MetroPCS for more info regarding T-Mobile merger
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, T-Mobile
Via: Android Central
Source: MetroPCS
Last week's release of the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite offered an opportunity to look back on the rapid growth of e-reading, and look forward to what the digitization of publishing will mean to four major market forces: publishers, bookstores, authors and readers. As during any technological disruption, winners and losers trade fates until the upheaval settles and a new cycle of status quo begins.
Amazon is not the only bookstore represented in the scramble for new-era survival, but its major role has multiple dimensions: seller, publisher, enabler, inventor and primary instigator of disruption. Amazon is banking on being a winner, and was recently handed an advantage by the U.S. government in its uneasy relationship with publishers.
While industrial forces work their way through the dislocation of new paradigms, individuals -- both book consumers and book authors -- stand to be the biggest winners, and that is a good thing.
Continue reading Editorial: Bring on the digital overthrow of publishing
Filed under: Handhelds, Tablets, Wireless, Amazon
Editorial: Bring on the digital overthrow of publishing originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Verizon has been fighting hard to get its acquisition of cable companies' wireless frequencies past legal hurdles, and it just surged over the most important of the bunch: both the Department of Justice and the FCC have signed off on the agreement. To get the $3.9 billion deal through the door, Big Red will have to offload some of its spectrum to other companies. The DOJ, meanwhile, is more concerned that Verizon is getting a little too cozy with Bright House, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner Cable in terms of marketing and reselling bundles that include cellular and cable access. Closing the deal also requires setting up a new joint venture in technology research. We're still working to learn the full details of the deal, but the spectrum handover will likely give a swift kick to Verizon's 4G capacity -- and anger a few rivals who wouldn't have wanted any handover to go through.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless
DOJ, FCC clear Verizon buyout of cable companies' spectrum, require giving up some airwaves originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Aug 2012 11:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Believe it or not, but that whole e-book price fixing fiasco is still an ongoing issue for the Justice Department. New York's senior senator, Chuck Schumer wishes it wasn't however, he simply wants the DOJ to drop the case and walk away. In a lengthy (factually questionable) op-ed in the Wall Street Journal the distinguished gentleman from the great state of New York said that a successful suit against Apple (he didn't bother to call out the others involved) would set the e-book industry back several years and allow Amazon to dominate the market unchallenged. He also makes a broader call for the administration to develop more clear guidelines for deciding what non-merger cases to pursue. Unfortunately, we have to point out, that his argument is undercut by some questionable data referenced in the editorial. According to Schumer Amazon once owned 90 percent of the e-book market -- a number that, if true, most certainly predates the release of the Nook. This is followed by an insinuation that Apple all but single-handedly toppled the retail giant with the launch of iBooks, cutting Amazons market share to just 60 percent. While the latter number sounds about right we'd hesitate to lay responsibility for that 30 point drop entirely at Apple's feet. To dig into Schumers op-ed yourself hit up the source link.
Senator Schumer calls on DOJ to drop e-book price-fixing suit originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 20:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The Department of Justice may have taken Netflix chief Reed Hastings' net neutrality complaints about Comcast as a lot more than just sour grapes. It's reportedly conducting an investigation into whether Comcast, AT&T and other TV providers are anti-competitive in their data restrictions. The Wall Street Journal cites primary concerns that Comcast's Xfinity TV cap exemption might unfairly punish competing services, but also claims that officials are worried the caps themselves steer viewers away from internet video, helping the incumbents cling to legacy TV for just a little while longer. On top of its cap anxiety, the DOJ may be looking into policies requiring traditional TV subscriptions just to watch online. None of the involved parties have commented on or confirmed the investigations, so there's no guarantee of any full-fledged lawsuit. Still, while TV operators insist they're being fair and need to keep data use in check, that might not deter legal action when the DOJ has supposedly questioned Hulu, Netflix and other relative newcomers who feel they're being squeezed. When Sony postpones its IPTV goals after fretting over US data caps, it's hard to imagine that there aren't at least a few raised eyebrows in Washington.
DOJ looking into whether Comcast, other TV giants are unfairly (knee)capping Hulu, Netflix originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Jun 2012 00:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The effort to prevent Verizon Wireless from its purchase of AWS licenses from SpectrumCo and Cox just became a bit more intense, as several opponents to the deal have now banded together to form the Alliance for Broadband Competition. The coalition includes T-Mobile and Sprint, along with advocacy groups such as Public Knowledge, the American Antitrust Institute, the Rural Cellular Association and the Rural Telecommunications Group. Today, the newly formed alliance held a press conference in which it called on the FCC and Department of Justice to block the transfer, which it said would lead to an "excessive concentration of spectrum" held by Verizon Wireless. While it's not much of an olive branch, the group similarly suggested that it would support the deal if Verizon were to divest some of its spectrum holdings, establish roaming agreements and agree to a backhaul pricing structure. As you may recall, Verizon Wireless estimates that it'll exhaust its network capacity by 2014. Regardless of how this $3.9 billion proposal shakes out, it's rather clear that something's gotta give.
Alliance for Broadband Competition forms to sway opinion against Verizon's AWS acquisition originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 May 2012 21:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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