The US National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) has filed its contribution to the Net Neutrality debate with the FCC. It said that the FCC should not expand and codify its network neutrality rules at all, but if it does, it should apply them only to a “clearly defined broadband Internet access service” and not […]
Here in the UK a band of rival media owners have written to the Business Secretary, the Lib Dem Vince Cable, urging him to intervene to stop News Corp taking full control of BSkyB should it proceed with its bid. The letter says News Corp ownership of Sky alongside its existing ownership of The […]
The media producers organisation in France, SACD, has insisted the sector must be protected and not be ‘held hostage’ to European harmonisation. It spoke out in criticising the CSA’s opposition to the Government’s plan to make content quotas part of the price of attaining a VOD operating licence. The CSA thinks national and European quotas […]
Ofcom believes that competition and investment in super-fast broadband can be delivered in both urban and rural areas. A statement from the media regulator has been designed to provide a further spur to investment by confirming the regulatory framework for these services. It covers two principal interventions: 1. Providing competing services over BT’s fibre lines […]
All of the major US networks have filed a federal lawsuit against FilmOn.com. The suit filed claims that at least since September 27th FilmOn has been streaming the signals of numerous US TV stations “all without the consent of the affected stations or copyright owners”. The suit asks the court to enjoin FilmOn from steaming […]
A Judge has postponed a court order against BT which would have forced it to hand over customer details to lawyers acting for record companies. An adjournment was won on a court order brought by solicitors Gallant Macmillan, acting on behalf of the Ministry of Sound. BT acted after names handed to another law firm […]
The Premier League has embarked on a long-awaited court action to prove pubs using foreign signals to show English Premier League games are breaking the law. Karen Murphy, a Portsmouth landlady purchased a Greek system through an importer and paid an annual subscription. The Premier League, which sells its rights exclusively to Sky in the […]
As anticipated the European Commission has ruled that the TV taxes levied by the French and Spanish governments on telcos to support their respective public national broadcasters and compensate for the removal of advertising, are incompatible with EU law. The EC has ruled taxes levied on telco operators must be directly linked to covering the […]
Online access to public services could be put at risk by a purely market-driven approach to net neutrality, claims the Communications Consumer Panel in its response to consultations from Ofcom and the European Commission. If content providers have to pay ISPs for guaranteed bandwidth “This would improve the quality of service for consumers who want […]
AEPOC, the European Association for the Protection of Encrypted Works and Services, has revealed the first steps in a new action plan designed to build the ground for a broader anti-piracy stance for the Association. The initiative sees the creation of standing committees targeted at specifically helping AEPOC members in the fight against audio-visual piracy, […]