Comcast to Acquire Time Warner, Giving it Most of Cable Broadband Market

Philadelphia-based Comcast is set to acquire New York-based Time Warner Cable.  If the deal is approved by the FCC and the Department of Justice, this will give  Comcast nearly three quarters of the U.S. cable broadband market with about 30 million subscribers.   This amounts to about 33% of the entire subscription TV broadband market, which … Continue reading Comcast to Acquire Time Warner, Giving it Most of Cable Broadband Market

D.C. District Court on Why NSA Bulk Data Collection Violates Privacy

U.S. federal district court Judge Richard Leon (Washington D.C.) on December 16 held in a 68-page opinion that the NSA’s bulk collection of mobile phone call “metadata” was an unconstitutional violation of privacy. The effect of the decision is stayed pending appeal, but the court’s reasoning is instructive.  Essentially, the judge found that:  (1) our … Continue reading D.C. District Court on Why NSA Bulk Data Collection Violates Privacy

Michael Carrier testifies to U.S. Senate committee

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/PatentS Michael Carrier testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights at a hearing entitled “Pay-for-Delay Deals: Limiting Competition and Costing Consumers” that was televised on C-SPAN. He provided support for congressional legislation to address the problem of settlements by which brand-name drug companies pay generics to delay … Continue reading Michael Carrier testifies to U.S. Senate committee

Increasing Innovation Through Copyright Common Sense and Better Government Policy

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2288618 Innovation is crucial to the U.S. economy. But many of our laws and policies are not promoting innovation. This Essay addresses this problem. The first set of proposals focuses on copyright law. The recommendations avoid vague copyright law and suggest the elimination of statutory damages and personal liability in cases of secondary infringement. The … Continue reading Increasing Innovation Through Copyright Common Sense and Better Government Policy