Dish Network's device has drawn the ire of broadcasters because of a feature allowing consumers to fast-forward over commercials. 

Backed by China, Russia and Brazil, the United Nations proposal would give the United Nations more control over the Internet.

Apple CEO Tim Cook met quietly with top lawmakers on Capitol Hill last week, according to Fortune magazine.

He met with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the magazine reported. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was on an official trip to Afghanistan when Cook visited Capitol Hill.

Federal employees were notified on Friday that a hacker may have accessed their personal financial information.

According to the FBI, in 2011, a hacker gained access to a computer that held the financial information of 123,201 federal employees who participate in the Thrift Savings retirement program.

The House next week will take up a bill to streamline reports the Federal Communications Commission is required to submit to Congress. Read more...

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski said Friday that Austin Schlick, the agency's general counsel, will step down.

He will be replaced by Sean Lev, who currently serves as the deputy general counsel. The switch will take place in mid-June.

Schlick has served as general counsel since July 2009. Before that, he served as chief of litigation for the state of Maryland and in various legal roles at the FCC. He has also served as an assistant solicitor general and argued seven cases before the Supreme Court. He was a partner in private practice and served as a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. He is a graduate of Princeton University and Yale Law School.

Sources inside the office of Senate Judiciary Antitrust subcommittee chairman Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) said he has no plans for new hearings to examine the proposed $3.6 billion deal between Verizon and a group of the nation's largest cable companies. Read more...

Dish Network on Thursday filed a lawsuit asking a federal judge in California to declare that its "auto hop" technology, which allows consumers to fast-forward over commercials if they choose, does not infringe on copyrights held by the major television networks.

Dish's complaint, which was technically filed shortly before the major networks filed separate lawsuits seeking to keep Dish from selling DVRs with the feature, names the networks as defendants, and asks for a declaratory ruling to allow Dish to sell its Hopper DVRs without fear of being held liable for copyright infringement.

"Auto Hop is a legitimate, legal DVR feature, and DISH is in full compliance with copyright law and its re-broadcast agreements with the Major Television Networks," Dish's lawyers argue in the complaint.

Shull explained that Auto Hop is only enabled the day after programs air, so consumers can't skip the commercials if they are watching the show at its normal time. Most consumers watch shows as they air, he said.

A spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

NBC, CBS and Fox say the "Hopper" service undermines the traditional television advertising model and threatens to harm revenues.