Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter

NEWS ABOUT: bandwidth

bandwidth stories: 14 news summaries
ANALYSIS

AT&T Asks Employees
to Slam Net Neutrality

And don't say you work here, memo advises

Oct 20, 09 3:33 PM CDT
(Newser) - With the FCC holding a meeting Thursday to decide whether to give the green light to “net neutrality”—the principle of universal access to bandwidth—AT&T is stepping up its PR war. In a memo from senior exec James Cicconi, employees are asked to post anti-neutrality comments... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FCC • net neutrality • AT&T • bandwidth

On Net Neutrality, Feds Go With Google, Against ISPs

Proposed new rules wouldn't allow bandwidth-hogging services to be blocked

Sep 18, 09 7:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - Consumers stand to benefit under a proposal, coming Monday, from the Federal Communications Commission that would mandate so-called net neutrality, forcing Internet service providers to treat all Web content equally and not restrict access to sites and services that take up more bandwidth. The Obama administration is siding with the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Google • net neutrality • Skype • Internet service providers • AT&T • bandwidth • wireless carriers

(Newser) - The US military is considering restrictions on access to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, citing privacy and security concerns, the Military Times reports. “Sometimes people, because of the nature of these sites, can have a tendency to get lax in what they put on there,”... More »

MORE ABOUT:
national security • social networking • Internet • Pentagon • Facebook • US military • bandwidth • Twitter

AT&T to Cap Bandwidth
of Some Users

Firm tests usage limits in Reno

Nov 5, 08 3:44 PM CST
(Newser) - AT&T is capping users’ Internet bandwidth in Reno as an experiment, suggesting that the practice of limiting usage may soon become widespread, Wired reports. Depending on the service plan, new broadband customers will be held to 20 to 150 gigabytes of usage monthly. Current customers will soon face limits... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Internet • Time Warner • Comcast • Reno • AT&T • bandwidth

Comcast to Put Brakes on Bandwidth Hogs

ISP decides to slow down users rather than P2P programs after FCC scolding

Aug 21, 08 9:41 AM CDT
(Newser) - Comcast plans to reduce Internet connection speeds for heavy users, Bloomberg reports. The company's "FairShare" system will slow users down for 10 to 20 minutes during peak periods. Comcast was recently scolded by the FCC for improperly blocking file-sharing programs like BitTorrent in an effort to manage Web traffic.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Comcast • FCC • P2P • Internet service providers • bandwidth usage • web traffic • Internet access • bandwidth

Opinion

FCC Member: Leave the Internet Alone

Engineers, not politicians, should solve tech problems

Jul 28, 08 3:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - The latest crisis for the internet is the gridlock caused by bandwidth-clogging P2P software. But don’t worry, says FCC commissioner Robert McDowell. This has happened before. As far back as 1987, engineers have been solving the net’s bandwidth problems. It’s been a triumph of anti-regulation, and there’... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Internet • FCC • net neutrality • regulation • P2P • bandwidth

 Web's Growth Shows 
 No Sign of Pause 

Mobile volume will double every year through 2012, Cisco study says

Jun 16, 08 2:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - Internet traffic continues to grow at an astonishing pace, GigaOm reports. A study by Cisco Systems has found that world network traffic will increase 46% from 2007 to 2012. By 2012, the annual bandwidth demand is estimated to become 522 exabytes—a billion gigabytes. More »

MORE ABOUT:
Internet • growth • Cisco • bandwidth usage • Internet infrastructure • bandwidth

Free Broadband Could Be Part of Feds' Auction Plan

FCC head considers plan that could have 95% of US covered in 10 years

May 29, 08 3:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Federal Communication Commission wants you to have free Internet, the Wall Street Journal reports, and it's considering a plan to auction airwaves with the requirement that the winner offer Wi-fi free to most of the US. The free access would come with its own strings for users, though, in... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FCC • free • WiFi • spectrum auction • Internet access • bandwidth

For Some US Towns, Internet Access is DIY

As providers focus on big markets, locals take net into own hands

May 19, 08 3:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - Around the world, firms and governments are ramping up the speed and availability of internet access. But in the US, telecoms are focusing mainly on big-city markets. To avoid professional brain drain, some smaller cities and towns are investing in more powerful infrastructure, the Wall Street Journal reports. But the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Comcast • broadband Internet • competition • small towns • Internet access • fiber optic cables • utilities • bandwidth

FCC Tries Again With Unsold Spectrum

Officials will take public comment before issuing revised plan

May 15, 08 4:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Federal Communications Commission will try again to sell broadband spectrum space intended to include a national network for emergency workers, Ars Technica reports.The D Block failed to garner the required minimum bid from commercial interests during a recent auction after negotiations became bogged down. Said one commissioner: "... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FCC • spectrum auction • emergency responders • bandwidth

 Infinite Bandwidth Is Coming 

Tech prophet sees many predictions in 2000 made real, forecasts Ethernet bump

Apr 24, 08 4:29 PM CDT
(Newser) - In 2000, technology watcher George Gilder argued in a book called Telecosm that infinite bandwidth and instant communication were on the way, thanks to booming construction of fiber-optic cable. Eight years later, post-bust (both dot-com and telecom), the “telecosm” is not far from what Gilder predicted, writes Mark Williams... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Internet • telecommunications • bandwidth • Ethernet • telecosm • George Gilder

 Hi-Def Fans Allege Low Blow 

Cable's compression of HD signals water down the product, connoisseurs say

Apr 21, 08 3:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - TV enthusiasts are miffed that high-definition channels aren't looking as good as they should on expensive home-theater systems, the AP reports. Without much spare bandwidth, compressing the signal is cheaper for the cable companies than increasing capacity. "They have to figure out a way to deliver more HD content... More »

MORE ABOUT:
television • Comcast • satellite TV • high definition • bandwidth • signal compression

FCC Airwaves Auction
Sets Record

But a band that required open access drew a low price

Mar 19, 08 8:26 AM CDT
(Newser) - The FCC earned a record $19.6 billion auctioning soon-to-be-available airwaves to wireless network providers, the Wall Street Journal reports after months of bidding closed yesterday. While the auction exceeded the $15 billion the agency expected, it could have earned still more if it hadn’t placed restrictions on certain... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Google • FCC • spectrum auction • bandwidth • telecoms • open access

Web Demands Could Cause Gridlock by 2011

High-grade apps could slow Internet to crawl, watchers say

Mar 13, 08 1:54 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Internet's growing data richness could lead to major web traffic jams within a few years. Some research predicts that user demands—with the high-bandwidth needs of video clips, social networks, and online games—could top network capacity in short order. YouTube alone used more bandwidth in 2007 than the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
social networking • Internet • video conferencing • web traffic • bandwidth • dark fiber

14 Stories


from our news partners