Google maintains a search market monopoly by self-preferencing products to the detriment of smaller competitors who offer superior local search results, Yelp said in an antitrust lawsuit filed against Google on Wednesday. Yelp filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. It claims Google has engaged in “numerous” anticompetitive practices, including stealing search data from Yelp, self-preferencing its own results and using algorithms to steer online traffic away from Yelp. In addition, the lawsuit claims that when Google tried to buy Yelp in 2009, it recognized the quality of Yelp results. When Yelp “rebuffed Google, Google began a years-long mission to stymie Yelp’s ability to reach consumers through Google’s dominant general search platform.” Google, in a statement said, Yelp’s claims are “meritless” and “not new.” Similar claims were “thrown out years ago by the FTC, and recently by the judge in the DOJ’s case,” Google said, referring to Judge Amit Mehta’s recent decision (see 2408050052). “On the other aspects of the decision to which Yelp refers, we are appealing. Google will vigorously defend against Yelp’s meritless claims.” Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman on Wednesday claimed Google “manipulates its results to promote its own local search offerings above those of its rivals, regardless of the comparative poorer quality of its own properties, exempting itself from the qualitative ranking system it uses for other sites.”
Telecom and broadband regulatory lawyer Kristopher Twomey was suspended from practicing in the District of Columbia for two years, the D.C. Court of Appeals ordered Thursday. Accepting the recommendation of its Board of Professional Responsibility, the court said Twomey gave two clients false assurances about the status of their eligible telecommunication carrier applications. In addition, Twomey, the board said, created a false docket number for a California application so he could cover up that he had not filed it in a timely manner. That caused another lawyer working on the application to repeat a false statement to the FCC, it said. The board said Twomey also told a client to repeat false claims to the FCC that the Tennessee authority had declined jurisdiction by returning an application. In fact, Twomey never filed it, according to the board. Twomey, the board noted, should have kept his clients better informed about significant deadlines that might not be met. It said he received an interim suspension on July 17. Deciding were Judges Corinne Beckwith, Roy McLeese and Vanessa Ruiz. Twomey -- seemingly the sole practitioner of his California firm, with no other lawyers listed on its website -- didn't comment.
California state senators passed bills on telecom, privacy and social media Wednesday. The state Senate voted 38-0 for AB-2765, which would require that the California Public Utilities Commission report on inspections that ensure companies comply with resiliency plans. The Assembly then concurred with Senate changes, allowing the bill to go to Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). Also, the Senate voted 38-1 to approve a bill (AB-3216) requiring that schools adopt limits or bans on student use of smartphones. On privacy, the Senate voted 31-7 for AB-3048, which would require web browsers to opt-out from the sale of and sharing data on all websites. Senators voted 39-0 for AB-1824, which would require a business acquiring another company to follow an acquired customer’s privacy directions under the California Consumer Privacy Act. In addition, they voted 40-0 for a bill (AB-1282) that would require a study on mental health risks of social media for children. The Assembly previously passed AB-1282, AB-1824, AB-3216 and AB-3048 but must vote again to concur with Senate changes. Also Tuesday, Newsom received AB-2905, which the legislature passed last week. It would expand the state’s autodialer definition to include calls made with an AI voice. The California legislature wraps up its session Saturday.
Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions.
AT&T suffered a wireless outage Tuesday night that apparently started in the Southeast and spread throughout the U.S., based on social media and other reports. A software issue caused the outage, which was resolved, AT&T said Wednesday. The FCC is investigating, a spokesperson emailed.
California should “probably pass” legislation allowing the attorney general to pursue civil penalties against large AI developers if they cause “severe harm” to residents, X Chief Technology Officer Elon Musk said Tuesday. Tech entrepreneur Andrew Ng spoke against SB-1047 in May, calling it a “ridiculous” regulation (see 2405300064). “This is a tough call and will make some people upset, but, all things considered, I think California should probably pass the SB 1047 AI safety bill,” Musk said. “For over 20 years, I have been an advocate for AI regulation, just as we regulate any product/technology that is a potential risk to the public.” The law would apply to companies training models with more than $100 million in computing power, and in incidents that cause at least $500 million in damage to critical infrastructure or mass casualties.
The California Public Utilities Commission proposed $174.4 million in federal broadband grant awards for 15 last-mile projects in Santa Clara and four other counties. Recommended grantees include three tribal entities, the CPUC said Friday. The commission has a vote planned for its Sept. 26 meeting on two draft resolutions (T-17845 and T-17846) including the recommended awards. The CPUC recommended a $91 million round of federal grants earlier this month (see 2408090016). Commissioners last Thursday agreed on another $237 million in grants using money from 2021's American Rescue Plan Act and the state's general fund (see 2408220044). CPUC members may also vote Sept. 26 on a proposed decision approving volume two of the CPUC’s proposed rules for NTIA’s broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program. The CPUC submitted both volumes of its initial plan to NTIA on Dec. 26, 2023, the draft released Friday noted. During the NTIA’s review of California’s volume two, the federal agency requested changes “on seven separate occasions,” it said. “The deadlines for submitting BEAD applications will be announced by the [CPUC] Communications Division Staff, after the NTIA approves the final eligibility map.” California still needs NTIA volume-two approval to access its $1.86 billion BEAD allocation.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to partially uphold an injunction against a California age-appropriate social media design law (see 2408160015) means similar legislation at the federal level is likely unconstitutional, a policy expert at the International Center for Law & Economics said Monday. Innovation policy scholar Ben Sperry argued that duty of care provisions in the Kids Online Safety Act, which the Senate passed last month 91-3 (see 2407300042), likely violate the First Amendment. The 9th Circuit found the Age-Appropriate Design Code Act’s (AB-2273) impact assessment requirement is violative because it requires that platforms make judgments about what online content could harm children. Sperry argued that under KOSA, platforms would be incentivized to censor all but “the most benign speech” to avoid triggering children’s anxiety or to avoid “bullying” claims.
Verizon’s Simple Mobile premiered its LifeLine discount program on Friday targeting California residents. The prepaid carrier is offering a 30 GB monthly wireless plan for as little as $1. The plan previously offered 10 GB/month. With the affordable connectivity program “going away, we wanted to create a best-in-class offer with a best-in-class brand that truly serves our communities,” said David Kim, chief revenue officer at Verizon Value.
California and Google reached a public-private agreement to fund news publishers, which advocates are presenting as an alternative to legislation requiring tech platforms to compensate news outlets for use of their content. “California news publishers will be the beneficiaries of a News Transformation Fund, to be administered by the UC Berkeley School of Journalism, providing financial resources that preserve and expand California-based journalism,” said a news release from Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D). Wicks introduced the California Journalism Preservation Act (AB-886), which the California Senate Appropriations Committee was considering. Under the agreement, "nearly $250 million in public and private funding” will be provided over the next five years by the state and technology platforms, “with the majority of funding” going to California newsrooms, the release said. “The goal is to front-load $100 million in the first year to kick-start the efforts.” The investment could increase if more funding becomes available, the release said. The money will go to “California-based state and local news organizations, particularly those serving California local news deserts, underserved and underrepresented communities, and outlets that prioritize California coverage.” The deal also creates a “National AI Innovation Accelerator,” which will provide organizations and communities “with financial resources and other support to experiment with AI to assist them in their work,” the release said. “This public-private partnership builds on our long history of working with journalism and the local news ecosystem in our home state, while developing a national center of excellence on AI policy,” said Alphabet President of Global Affairs Kent Walker. The News/Media Alliance, which has pushed for federal legislation that allows journalism outlets to jointly negotiate with tech companies over content rights, praised the agreement but said it underscores the need for the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (see 2306150053). Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., introduced that bill last year. “Assemblymember Wicks has shown incredible commitment to news publishers, and through her efforts has extracted concessions from one of the world’s largest tech giants,” said NMA President Danielle Coffey in a release. “Google is a dominant monopoly that reaps significant revenue off scraping and repackaging quality news content, depriving publishers of the opportunity to monetize their content and reinvest in journalists,” Coffey said. “Today’s announcement reinforces the need for federal legislation and potential court remedies to address this broken marketplace.”