Roy Mark

The ACLU and Electronic Freedom Foundation moved July 1 to force the Department of Justice to turn over records related to the government’s program of using cell phones as tracking devices. The groups claim the public has a right to know the extent of the government’s use of the technique. In documents filed in the […]

Telecommunications provider Televersa Online selected Proxim Wireless equipment June 1 to build a WiMax network covering an area of 12,400 square miles with a population of 2.5 million people. Televersa aims to reach 95 percent of the Bavarian region’s households and businesses, while wired DSL connections are available to only 60 percent. Televersa has already […]

With efforts at patent reform stymied in the U.S. Senate, the nation’s leading technology companies have formed a unique trust to buy valuable intellectual properties as a protective first strike against so-called patent trolls. The leading members of the trust include Cisco, Google, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Sun Microsystems, Ericsson and Verizon Communications, according to a June […]

A year ago, U.S. Trade Rep. Susan Schwab hailed the free trade agreement her office had just negotiated with South Korea as the “most commercially significant free trade agreement the United States has concluded in nearly 20 years.” The tech industry couldn’t have agreed more and came forth with an orgy of support for the […]

Let the digital map wars commence. With Navteq already in global handset leader Nokia’s fold, Google and Navteq competitor Tele Atlas announced June 30 a five-year licensing agreement giving Google access to Tele Atlas maps and dynamic content in more than 200 countries. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal covers all […]

Microsoft continued to expand its mobile portfolio June 26 with its acquisition of MobiComp, an open-source cloud computing company that specializes in storage, backup and restoration of mobile data. Microsoft declined to reveal the financial terms of the deal. Microsoft also didn’t provide details on MobiComp’s role at Microsoft although Reuters reported Redmond plans to […]

The U.S. Senate held a hearing June 25 to investigate the possible constitutional violations of a government program that allows Customs officials to search, seize or copy contents of laptops and smart phones even if the agency has no reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. The government told the committee to kiss off. In a show […]

With a majority of Americans supportive of electronic medical records but still wary of the privacy implications, the non-profit Markle Foundation moved June 25 to create a national framework of standards. The effort drew the immediate praise and endorsement of Google, Microsoft and a host of other organizations, including insurers, WebMD and AARP. The framework […]

When the Federal Communications Commission classified DSL as an information service in 2005, it put telephone broadband providers in the same category as cable modem broadband providers. The decision relieved both telephone and cable companies from legal obligations to lease broadband lines to competitors. More importantly, telephone companies would not face the same antitrust laws […]

Charter Communications, the nation’s fourth-largest broadband provider, hastily withdrew June 24 from a proposed deal with online advertising company NebuAd to track users’ online movements and search queries. NebuAd, a Silicon Valley startup, counted Charter among its top catches for its consumer Web tracking service. NebuAd’s other announced clients include WOW (WideOpenWest), Embarq Holdings Company, […]

In one of the poorest kept secrets at the FCC in recent years, the agency officially sanctioned Verizon June 23 for attempting to keep customers from porting their telephone numbers to another carrier. According to the FCC order, Verizon used proprietary information such as customers’ telephone numbers and porting requests to blitz potentially departing customers […]

European geo-based companies continue to be a hot commodity, with Nokia announcing June 23 it has acquired Plazes, which develops Web platforms for location sharing and publishing. Vodafone acquired ZYB, a mobile social network, in May for $31.5 million. Terms of Nokia’s deal with Plazes were not disclosed, but the acquisition is the second geo-based […]