Caron Carlson

This week, Congress will begin grilling the Federal Communications Commission on plans to reduce pro-competition rules written following the enactment of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Although local telephone carriers have made progress over the past seven years in gaining access to the long distance and Internet markets, few rival carriers have made significant inroads […]

Setting aside their differences over how to combat online content piracy, the IT and music recording industries united Tuesday to address the problem cooperatively rather than go to Congress for a solution. While the two industries retain some differences in approach, they agreed to ward off efforts by lawmakers to mandate technical protections. The music […]

Did you ever wish you could have a spectrum license of your own so you could bypass ISPs and link directly to the Internets fiber backbone? The idea is more than just a daydream; the government is considering whether to open up new frequencies that are conducive to high-speed broadband links and allow enterprises and […]

Its the kind of cheap telephone calling envisioned a decade ago when competition in local telephony was no more than a concept and convergence was only a buzzword. Employees at Yans NY, a small Brooklyn, N.Y., retailer that sells Chinese motif handbags and accessories, make as many local and long-distance calls in the United States […]

The telecommunications policy debate between Regional Bell Operating Companies and their rivals is perennial in Washington, but next month, several key aspects of the debate will come to a head. The Federal Communications Commission, say industry sources, is considering cutting the incumbent telephone carriers some slack on providing network access to rivals—a move those rivals […]

Just about every company that uses conference calling has experienced the same frustration: As soon as the last participant is linked into the call, another participant who was previously connected somehow gets dropped. To get around the vicious cycle, the law firm of Crabbe, Brown & James LLP, in Columbus, Ohio, is using an updated […]

Walter Isaacson, chairman and CEO of CNN News Group, a division of AOL Time Warner Inc., resigned Monday, one day after AOL luminary Steve Case tendered his own resignation. The departure of Case from the chairmanship of AOL Time Warner is widely seen as a positive symbolic gesture for the telecom/media behemoth, and one that […]

As the Bush Administration prepares to release the National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace, the IT industry continues to resist efforts to include technology mandates or regulations. Not all members of the nations critical infrastructure sectors are equally resistant to the federal government dictating standards, however. This afternoon, the Presidents advisor on cyberspace, Richard Clarke, heard […]

A new effort to standardize security and programs for the governments online initiatives is promising streamlined services, but critics say communication gaps could still threaten the process. The E-Government Act of 2002, signed into law last week by President Bush, was crafted to improve information services management and promote collaboration on IT projects among myriad […]

President Bush signed into law the “E-Government Act of 2002” Monday, establishing a framework for information security standards and programs, and codifying the federal governments commitment to delivering its services online. The act was crafted to improve information services management and promote collaboration of IT projects among the myriad federal agencies. It creates an Office […]