08.07.2009
Internet Radio Reaches Deal On Royalties
It’s taken two years of intense, behind-the-scenes negotiations, but Internet radio stations have reached an agreement with copyright holders on a formula for music royalties. The standoff began in 2007 when the Copyright Royalty Board issued a formula based on how many people listened to a station – a system Web station owners said was not... |
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03.07.2009
FCC Finally Begins To Tackle Big Agenda
After months of delays, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is finally fully-staffed and moving ahead on an ambitious agenda. First on the list — developing a national broadband plan for America."We must find ways to ensure that all people of the United States have access to broadband," new FCC chair Julius Genachowski said at the commission`s meeting... |
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01.07.2009
FTC Says Calling Card Distributor Shortchanged Consumers
When you purchase a prepaid calling card, how closely do you measure the number of minutes? If the card is a 60-minute card, are you sure there are 60 minutes of time on it? There might not be.A leading distributor of prepaid calling cards has agreed to pay $1.3 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the calling cards failed to deliver the number... |
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30.06.2009
Sprint Text Messaging Tax Suit Dropped
Sprint scored a victory last week when a federal judge dismissed a nationwide class-action complaint alleging that the company charged extraneous fees for text messages and voicemails sent to customers using network cards.The suit was filed by the Utility Consumers` Action Network (UCAN), a non-profit consumer advocacy group. According to the suit, Sprint began... |
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30.06.2009
In The Digital Age, Some Viewers Miss Analog TV
At first there were a sense of frustration, then anger. Now, for many viewers of “free,” over-the-air television, there is a sense of resignation — and sadness.The long-anticipated and once-delayed switch from analog broadcasting to digital took place June 12, and despite U.S. government claims to the contrary, it was hardly seamless. Consumers who once... |
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25.06.2009
Obama Nominates Bush Official to Fill FCC Seat
President Barack Obama has officially nominated Meredith Baker, a former Bush administration official, to fill the last vacant seat on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).Baker will join fellow nominees Mignon Clyburn and chairman-in-waiting Julius Genachowski on the commission, which has been understaffed since the end of the Bush administration. The FCC has... |
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24.06.2009
Wireless Carriers Agree To $1.5 Million Cramming Settlement
Verizon Wireless and Alltel customers in Florida will get millions of dollars in refunds of third-party charges that ended up on their telephone bills. Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum struck a deal that holds the telecoms liable for "cramming" by third party billers.As part of the deal Verizon Wireless, LLC has agreed to adopt a series of "best practices"... |
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24.06.2009
70 Percent Of Spam Comes From China
An increasing number of products used by consumers are made in China. And, it turns out, so is a huge amount of the spam that clutters consumers` in-boxes.Nearly three-quarters of the Web sites advertised in computer spam studied by the University of Alabama at Birmingham Spam Data Mine so far in 2009 are tied to China, according to Gary Warner, UAB’s director of... |
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24.06.2009
Feds Offer DTV Reception Advice
Still having problems receiving certain channels following the June 12 transition to digital TV? The Federal Communications Commission suggests "double rescanning," and double-checking and relocating your antennas. Meanwhile, local broadcasters are working to resolve any problems on their end. Many consumers already know about the need to run the "scan" function on... |
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23.06.2009
TJ Maxx Settles Data Breach Charges
Retail chain TJX, operator of TJ Maxx stores, has settled charges with 41 states, resolving a 2007 security breach that exposed thousands of customers` sensitive financial information.The company was charges with failure to appropriately protect its customers` financial information and to guard against a massive data breach that placed thousands of consumers`... |
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