cables

Federal regulators said today they needed more time to review Verizon's deal to acquire spectrum from the cable providers and cross-sell cable and wireless services.

The Federal Communications Commission extended the typical 180-day review period by 21 days to give it sufficient time to examine the reams of documents that were submitted late by Verizon and the cable companies. Opponents have lauded the FCC's move, claiming the agency has "stopped the clock" on the deal, signalling deeper concerns about the transaction. But the move only marks an extension, and not an actual pause, in the process. … Read more

Could you last a year without the Internet? It's not the first time we've heard of someone going off the grid, but a guy from The Verge has decided to spend the next year offline, so we'll challenge each other to do the same.

In other online news, Facebook has launched a new organ donor tool for Timeline that lets users add a life story to their profiles with a link to sign up for donation services in their area. Mark Zuckerberg went on ABC news and credited Steve Jobs as inspiration to use social networking to … Read more

It's looking like the jig may be up for Hulu as we know it. Rumor has it that the TV and video streaming service might be planning to switch from its free model to a plan that requires viewers to prove they pay for cable or satellite TV, according to the New York Post.

The purported new model is called "authentication" and would work by making users log into Hulu with cable or satellite TV account numbers in order to watch any show on the service -- essentially putting up a de facto pay wall around its … Read more

If you wanted to use Thunderbolt devices with your Mac, previously it was necessary to purchase one of Apple's Thunderbolt cables, which at nearly $50 each may seem outrageously expensive. Until now Apple's cables have been the only option, but accessory company Elgato has recently begun selling a Thunderbolt cable of its own. However, while third-party options often have the advantage of a lower price, Elgato's cable is currently no cheaper than Apple's.

The Thunderbolt technology introduced in Apple's latest Mac models provides exceptionally fast I/O, in its current form allowing up to 10Gbps … Read more

We'll come to the explanation in a minute, but let's bathe in the pathos first.

So there were viewers of CHCH TV in Hamilton, Ontario, munching on their morning croissants and offering one eye to their morning newscast.

Suddenly a collective "eh?" must have been heard all the way in Montreal. For, that morning newscast was interrupted with a show in which naked bodies of the same sex writhed and, well, other things.

This was not a mere glimpse. It was not a blip. The Hollywood Reporter tells me it was three minutes of, well, please … Read more

Verizon Wireless is planning to auction off some of its wireless spectrum in the hopes of winning favor with regulators to buy a chunk of spectrum from cable operators.

Verizon has been facing opposition from several smaller wireless carriers for a deal it proposed last year to buy unused spectrum from a group of cable operators called Spectrum Co. that includes Comcast and Time Warner Cable.

Verizon said in a statement today that if it's given approval to buy the cable operators' spectrum it will sell some of its own spectrum in the A and B block of the … Read more

Cutting the cord in hopes of saving money on television programming is often contemplated. But last year, relatively few cable or satellite subscribers in the U.S. actually did it, a new study shows.

The Convergence Consulting Group yesterday released its research on TV cord cutting to see how many people left their cable or satellite plans behind to access all their content over the Web. The firm found that 1.05 million people in the U.S. cut their TV subscriptions last year. Since 2008, 2.65 million people have decided against cable or satellite and gone to alternative … Read more

Verizon's new argument to regulators on its cable deal: give us the OK and we'll start offering better mobile video.

CEO Lowell McAdam is eager to win regulatory approval for Verizon's cross-selling and spectrum deal with several cable providers. One such benefit would be pay-TV subscribers getting access to more mobile video, the Wall Street Journal reported. Lowell said the integrated service would be available to cable subscribers or customers of its own Fios TV service.

Verizon and the cable companies are in the midst of defending a $3.9 billion deal that would send a valuable … Read more

No hilarious jokes or personal anecdotes today. This is time-sensitive, so I'll cut right to the chase.

Today only, and while supplies last, Amazon has the refurbished Kindle Fire tablet for $139 shipped.

I'm reluctant to even post that deal, because I suspect it'll sell out before the morning is over -- heck, before I finish typing this paragraph. That's an insanely good deal on one of the best 7-inch tablets to date.

Update: Well, kudos to Amazon for having enough inventory to last most of the day...but as I expected, the refurbished Fires are … Read more