News

WASHINGTON — Cablevision subscribers in the New York region missed out on game one of the World Series last night — the result of a spat between the company and Fox that marks its 12th day on Thursday.

WASHINGTON – Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee are calling for Congress to cut funding for National Public Radio after Juan Williams was fired by the public radio network for comments he made about Muslims on Fox News.

WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, Free Press sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission urging it to weigh the impact of the proposed Comcast-NBC merger on future retransmission disputes. The group argues that conflicts like the one between Cablevision and Fox – in which Fox has blacked out its channels to Cablevision subscribers – will only worsen if the merger is approved.

WASHINGTON – In the wake of the ongoing dispute between Cablevision and Fox over retransmission fees, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) released a draft of a legislative fix aimed at preventing future battles and ensuring that consumers aren’t caught in the crossfire.

WASHINGTON – Reports indicate that Fox Broadcasting Company, a subsidiary of News Corporation, is blocking Cablevision high-speed Internet customers from accessing Fox.com and Hulu content. Fox’s actions raise important questions about the future of the online video market and the public interest obligations of broadcasters.

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on “bill shock” — the unexpectedly high cell phone bills that occur when subscribers unknowingly exceed their monthly allowance for calls, text or data.

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, Free Press filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission as part of the agency’s long-running open Internet proceeding.

WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, Free Press delivered letters to key members of the House and Senate, urging them to investigate deceptive billing practices and “phantom fees” in the wireless industry following the discovery that Verizon has been overcharging customers for data services they did not use.

WASHINGTON – The Federal Communications Commission announced Monday that it was seeking additional information from both Comcast and NBC Universal on the impact of the companies’ proposed merger. The FCC set a deadline of Oct. 18 for Comcast and NBC to answer its questions.

Free Press Policy Counsel Corie Wright made the following statement:

WASHINGTON — Verizon Wireless has admitted to charging 15 million customers for data they did not use, and the company will repay around $50 million to those who were erroneously billed.