Montgomery Community Media

Both the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have recently issued warnings about extended vehicle “warranty” robocalls. The individuals making the calls do not represent the car manufacturer and commonly try to sell a “service agreement” that would cost thousands of dollars and may lack any guarantee of coverage. The Advisory […]

Montgomery County Council introduced a Zoning Text Amendment for Telecommunications Towers throughout the county on Tuesday. The proposed amendment would do many things including allowing certain telecommunications towers as limited or conditional use in certain residential zones. Officials with the Federal Communications Commission [FCC] believe that greater capacity is needed to meet future demands of […]

The leader of a national public media organization decried a Federal Communications Commission decision Friday that could hit community television and websites in their pocketbooks. “It’s bad for local communities. It will cause financial distress for some local governments. And I think it will cause pressure for some local communities to either limit or curtail […]

The Federal Communications Commission is considering a change in the way PEG channels — public, education and government channels — will be funded. Cable companies would no longer be required to use franchise fees to support the PEG channels they carry. Organizations like Montgomery Community Media and the television channels that serve the county at […]

The Montgomery County Council will again take up small cell antennas, the antennas that are needed for the next wave of cell phone technology. The antennas have been controversial among residents who don’t want to see the antennas in their neighborhoods. In his address to reporters on Monday, Montgomery County Council President Hans Riemer said […]

Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman joined more than 50 other mayors from across the country in signing a letter addressed to the Federal Communications Commission’s Chairman Ajit Pai, opposing the FCC’s recent Restoring Internet Freedom Draft Order proposal. The FCC’s proposal would eliminate current Net Neutrality protections adopted in 2015 titled the “Open Internet Order.” In […]

UPDATED The FCC has revised the deadline for public comments about small cell infrastructure until March 8, following a request by several national organizations. You can find more information about the timeline, here. ORIGINAL POST Montgomery County Council President Roger Berliner has written a letter to County Executive Ike Leggett about telecommunications facilities. The letter […]

UPDATED Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler has named Montgomery County Council Vice President Hans Riemer to serve as one of two county officials nationally on the FCC Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (IAC). The IAC provides guidance, expertise and recommendations to the Commission on a range of telecommunication issues for which local, state and Tribal […]

This could be the biggest threat to public access in history. The cable television industry is facing huge competition, not just from the likes of DirecTV but from rapidly-deploying new technologies that threaten to suck customers away in droves. Subscribers are ‘cutting the cord’, dumping their cable TV packages and looking for other news & […]