The internet industry raised alarms with a California social media bill as state Senate appropriators teed up the bipartisan measure for possible vote next Thursday, at a livestreamed hearing Monday. The Appropriations Committee could also soon vote whether to advance to the floor three other website regulation measures focused on children, plus a bill to implement the national 988 suicide prevention hotline and a proposal to require standards for emergency alerts.
The internet industry raised alarms with a California social media bill as state Senate appropriators teed up the bipartisan measure for possible vote next Thursday, at a livestreamed hearing Monday. The Appropriations Committee could also soon vote whether to advance to the floor three other website regulation measures focused on children, plus a bill to implement the national 988 suicide prevention hotline and a proposal to require standards for emergency alerts.
President Joe Biden last week extended for one year beyond Aug. 1 a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against people who undermine Lebanon’s government or contribute to the “deliberate breakdown in the rule of law” in Lebanon, the White House said. Certain “ongoing activities,” including Iran’s “continuing arms transfers” to Hezbollah, “serve to undermine Lebanese sovereignty” and contribute to political and economic instability in the region, the White House said.
U.S. export controls on artificial intelligence may not be the right strategy to hinder Chinese progress in certain AI subfields, including machine learning, Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology said in a report this week. While the controls may seem “attractive in the abstract,” the report said most decoupling regimes are “imperfect and frequently act as a hindrance, rather than an absolute bar, to a rival’s technological progress.”
Public safety groups and carriers continue to clash on what actions, if any, the FCC should take to ensure use of location-based routing (LBR) to 911 call centers. The disagreement surfaced in replies to a June public notice, approved by commissioners 4-0 (see 2206080040). T-Mobile warned that no consensus is emerging as a result of the record refresh.
House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., and other House Commerce Committee members urged the chamber Tuesday to pass the Spectrum Innovation Act legislative package (HR-7624) by a lopsided bipartisan margin ahead of floor votes as soon as that evening on several telecom and tech measures. The House planned floor votes on HR-7624 and two other telecom and tech bills on the docket: the Reporting Attacks from Nations Selected for Oversight and Monitoring Web Attacks and Ransomware from Enemies Act (HR-4551) and Safe Connections Act (HR-7132). The chamber was also expected to consider the Institute for Telecommunication Sciences Codification Act (HR-4990). The Rules Committee, meanwhile, began considering Tuesday afternoon a set of proposed amendments to the Advancing Telehealth Beyond COVID-19 Act (HR-4040) amid Republicans’ concerns that the measure didn’t first get House Commerce clearance.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is focused on border gateway protocol (BGP) security and resilience and welcomes the FCC’s recent focus on gateway issues (see 2204110057), said CISA Executive Director Brandon Wales during an NTCA webinar Monday. The webinar was sponsored by the Competitive Carriers Association, the Rural Wireless Association, the Wireless ISP Association and other groups, and targeted small carriers.
The NFL launched a subscription streaming service Monday geared largely to mobile devices. The $4.99 NFL+ service ($39 per year) includes access to live out-of-market preseason games, live local and prime-time regular season and postseason games (phone and tablet only), audio feeds for live local and national games, NFL Network shows on-demand and NFL Films archives.
President Joe Biden last week extended for one year beyond July 26 a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against Mali, the White House said. Mali continues to pose an "unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy" of the U.S., the White House said.
Amazon electric vehicle deliveries began rolling out in cities including Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Kansas City, Nashville, Phoenix, San Diego, Seattle and St. Louis, the company said Thursday. Amazon expects to have the custom delivery EVs from Rivian on the road in more than 100 cities by year-end, with long-term plans for 100,000 EVs nationwide by 2030. The EVs are part of Amazon’s sustainability effort; it says it will save “millions of metric tons of carbon” annually by 2030. Amazon has been testing deliveries with Rivian preproduction vehicles since 2021, delivering more than 430,000 packages and accumulating over 90,000 miles, it said. Rivian has completed certifications with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, California Air Resources Board and Environmental Protection Agency, Amazon said. The EV's safety features include sensor detection, highway and traffic assist technology, automatic emergency breaking and collision warnings, it said. Embedded technology integrates the delivery workflow with the vehicle for “seamless access” to routing, navigation and driver support. The vehicles have automatic door locking/unlocking as the driver approaches or leaves the vehicle; a powered bulkhead door opens when drivers reach their delivery location, Amazon said. Batteries were designed to last the vehicle's lifetime. Amazon has added “thousands” of charging stations at its delivery stations across the country and will continue to invest in building an infrastructure to support a more sustainable delivery fleet, the company said. It partnered with the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies, and several other fleet operators, to launch the Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance, bringing together companies to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, it said.