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Telecom

Articles and publications tagged Telecom across the Atmosphere.

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Techdirt
TechdirtNov 4, 2026
Musk’s Starlink Eyes Buying Boost Mobile In Doomed Bid To Dominate Smartphones
One cornerstone of Elon Musk’s fraud-packed SpaceX IPO prospectus includes the claim that they’ll extremely quickly (as in a year or two) boost Starlink subscriber totals from 13 million to something closer to 300 million. Given the network’s congestion problems and physics constraints, that’s simply not realistic. Also: more users means even greater capacity problems...
cellulardisruption
Techdirt
TechdirtOct 15, 2026
Starlink’s Entry Into Wireless Is Being Wildly Overhyped
One of the ways Musk fraudulently goosed SpaceX stock value during the IPO was by pretending that the company would very quickly (in just a year or two) grow from just 12 million global Starlink subscribers (just 4 million in the States) to something more akin to 300-500 million. The way Starlink claims they'll do...
competitionelon musk
Techdirt
TechdirtAug 19, 2026
Libraries Beg Brendan Carr To Back Off Plan To Make U.S. Broadband Shittier, More Expensive
Back in June, Trump FCC boss Brendan Carr announced he'd be reviewing the FCC E-Rate program with an eye on “reforms.” Generally, when Brendan Carr promises "reforms," usually what he means is either "I'm going to destroy this program," or "I'm going to illegally make changes to this congressionally-mandated program that ensures telecom giants like...
brendan carrbroadband
Techdirt
TechdirtAug 12, 2026
Trump Rushes To Stock FCC With Personal Lackeys, Refuses To Seat Dem Commissioners
When Trump FCC Boss Brendan Carr isn't trampling free speech or harassing major networks for platforming comedians, he's been illegally taking a hatchet to whatever's left of media consolidation rules and telecom consumer protection oversight.While he's been pretty effective at this, Carr would find it even easier to convene meetings and hold agency votes if...
anna gomezbrendan carr
Techdirt
TechdirtAug 10, 2026
Comcast Sued For Punishing Employees With Pies To The Face
There are so many shitty U.S. companies across tech, energy, and AI that criticism of our massively-unpopular telecom monopolies has fallen out of fashion. It's easy to forget, for example, that Comcast routinely used to make headlines for setting peoples homes on fire, torturing pets, or at times killing people (most of the stories I...
cableface
Techdirt
TechdirtAug 7, 2026
16 Groups Warn FCC’s New ‘Robocall Plan’ Is Really About Dramatically Undermining Privacy
Back in May I noted how the Trump FCC had unveiled a brand new plan to “stop robocalls.” I also noted how the plan doesn’t actually stop robocalls because a well-lobbied U.S. government (1) refuses to hold big companies accountable or collect fines, (2) constantly embraces weak rules that make telemarketers and debt collectors happy...
anonymityauthentication
Techdirt
TechdirtJul 30, 2026
Trump Republicans Are Destroying Decades Of Policy Progress On Affordable Broadband
Quick background: the $8 billion FCC Universal Service Fund (USF) applies a small surcharge on traditional phone lines to fund broadband expansion to unserved rural homes, schools, and libraries (of which the U.S. has a lot thanks to rampant telecom monopolization). While the USF, like all government programs, hasn't been absent of fraud (usually at...
brendan carrbroadband
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetSep 23, 2025
SIMmetry
A recent Secret Service raid uncovers an insane network of SIM cards—along with perhaps the most unusual piece of hardware I’ve ever seen. Here’s the deal with the SIM bank.
sim cardstelecom
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetJan 12, 2024
What Was ISDN?
For decades, the telephone industry supported a new technology designed to make copper lines more useful to the average consumer. It’s great—if you’re a voice actor.
isdnphone history
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetJun 28, 2023
The Squeal of Data
The through line between the telegraph and the computer is more direct than you might realize. Its influence can be seen in common technologies, like the modem.
computerscomputer history
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetApr 9, 2020
The Original Internet Bottleneck
Many early ISPs—particularly AOL—weren’t ready to offer unlimited internet access in the mid-’90s. That is, until a surprising disruptor appeared: AT&T.
aolamerica online
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetAug 1, 2018
Everything You Want
A theory about the inspiration for Verizon's name that Verizon probably doesn't want to admit, because then they'd have to pay Vertical Horizon royalties.
alternative rocktechnology
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetMay 15, 2018
The Chinese Robocall Blues
Like spam messages, robocalls aim for the broadest possible audience in an effort to get someone, anyone, with its scam. And both are annoying as heck, too.
spamscams
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetJan 5, 2017
Streaming Before Netflix
In 1998, a Hong Kong telecom firm spent $1.5 billion trying to make video-on-demand happen. iTV was so ahead of its time that it beat Netflix's DVD service.
movie industrymovies
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetJul 5, 2016
So Many Random Phone Numbers
What’s hiding in the telephone system? These weird phone numbers carry some of the strangest, creepiest automated messages you’ve ever heard. Give ’em a call.
cell phoneslandline phones
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetAug 27, 2015
Deep Dish
For a short period in the early 1980s, giant satellite dishes ruled the land. It was a rare moment when big telecom wasn't in control. That quickly changed.
televisiontelevision industry
Tedium: The Dull Side of the Internet
Tedium: The Dull Side of the InternetAug 4, 2015
Fake Metal Trees
Despite the obvious advantages of cell towers for communication, they're a common source of tension for local communities. Here's why.
federal communications commissiontechnology

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