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SpaceX is lowering roughly 4,800 satellites orbiting at about 550 kilometers to about 480 kilometers in the name of greater space safety, Vice President of Starlink Engineering Michael Nicolls wrote Thursday on social media. The lowering will happen over the course of 2026 and is "being tightly coordinated" with other satellite operators, regulators and U.S. Space Command, he said. Lowering the satellites "results in condensing Starlink orbits, and will increase space safety," because the amount of space debris and planned satellite constellations is notably less below 500 km, meaning a smaller aggregate likelihood of collision.

The New Jersey House and Senate voted Monday to adopt SB-3695, which would restrict students' cellphone use in school. State Sen. Paul Moriarty (D), one of the bill's sponsors, told us Tuesday that outgoing Gov. Phil Murphy (D) plans to have a public signing of it in two weeks. Murphy had set phone-free schools legislation as one of his priorities for his last year in office, Moriarty said.

The White House's recent American space superiority executive order (see 2508140006) sets goals such as a greater launch and reentry cadence, signaling "a shift from aspirational policy to execution -- tying capital formation, operational scale, and national security together," Sheppard Mullin space lawyer Drew Svor wrote Monday on social media. While the order doesn't explicitly name the FCC, "the push to unlock investment and accelerate launch activity inevitably lands on satellite and spectrum licensing, with greater emphasis on speed, coordination, and national-security-aware authorizations," he said. It "represents an important shift in how the United States approaches space policy, investment, and security. For operators and investors, orbital security is now inseparable from licensing velocity, regulatory strategy, and U.S. competitiveness in space."

With Warner Bros. Discovery's board continuing to urge shareholders to opt for Netflix's takeover offer (see 2512170049), Paramount Skydance is sweetening parts of its rival offer. Paramount said Monday it would boost its regulatory termination fee from $5 billion to $5.8 billion, matching Netflix's.

Senate confirms Ethan Klein, ex-Office of Science and Technology Policy during first Trump administration, as U.S. chief technology officer and associate director of OSTP ... WUSF Tampa promotes Leslie Laney to general manager of the radio, online and social media organization, effective Jan. 2, replacing JoAnn Urofsky, retiring … Correction: David Senzel retires from the FCC Office of General Counsel (see 2512180069).

Paramount Skydance's arguments that its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery faces a less fraught regulatory approval process is generally sound, but that doesn't mean a Paramount/WBD deal would be smooth sailing before DOJ and the FTC, competition lawyers and experts told us. In a letter to WBD shareholders last week, Paramount said its bid for WBD would have a shorter and more certain regulatory approval path than Netflix's rival offer (see 2512100001).

The Center for American Rights kicked off an online campaign Monday supporting the elimination of the broadcast TV ownership cap and targeting the Senate Commerce Committee's FCC oversight hearing Wednesday. In an interview, CAR President Daniel Suhr told us he bases the group’s FCC filings on President Donald Trump’s social media posts and public comments. He added that CAR’s focus on media resonates with conservatives and has raised its profile, increasing donations to the organization.

A compromise version before the House of the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act without language allowing DOD to essentially veto commercial use of the 3.1-3.45 and 7.4-8.4 GHz bands (see 2512080055) "is good as a matter of policy & law," the Free State Foundation wrote Tuesday on social media. Giving DOD authority over the spectrum "would violate separation of powers by constraining [the president's] authority over the executive branch." The group called the provision's removal a victory for Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, "who resisted the efforts to place certain frequencies off-limits."

Paramount Skydance announced a hostile takeover bid Monday to buy WBD, offering $30 each for all outstanding shares of the company. The move follows the announcement that Netflix struck an $82.7 billion deal last week to purchase WBD (see 2512050046). One analyst said he sees President Donald Trump's heavy involvement in the fight over WBD as an advantage for Paramount over Netflix.

California’s continuing interest in VoIP regulation is a concern, and the lack of FCC preemption of state VoIP oversight is proving to be a problem, speakers said Wednesday at a vCon conference about AI and telecom issues. Also at the event, Ecommerce Innovation Alliance (EIA) President David Carter said the e-commerce industry, faced with rocketing amounts of “shakedown litigation" about texts sent during quiet hours, is anxiously hoping that the FCC will act soon on the group's 9-month-old petition for a declaratory ruling (see 2503030036). An agency affirmation that prior consumer consent means those texts don’t violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) “should have been a no-brainer,” Carter said.