Technology

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is moving forward with its plan to put an American on an asteroid by 2025, and study the rock for clues that could save the Earth from a potential doomsday scenario.

Schumer is concerned about a proposed deal allowing Japan's SoftBank to buy Sprint. Read more...

The Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously on Friday to lift 126 requirements on phone companies that it said had become outdated.

The regulatory rollback came on Chairman Julius Genachowski's last day in office.

The FCC scrapped a requirement that phone companies keep paper records in addition to digital copies and a rule for prepaid calling card companies that required 15,000 hours of compliance work annually, the commission said. One rule required certain companies to label and track every piece of central office equipment, no matter how small.

MetroPCS dropped its lawsuit challenging the Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality regulations on Friday, leaving Verizon to continue the legal battle against the rules on its own.

T-Mobile, which was not challenging the rules, acquired MetroPCS earlier this month. 

The FCC's rules require wireline broadband providers to treat all Internet traffic equally. Cellphone carriers are prohibited from blocking any apps or services. 

Companies and citizens can "freely use" the data "starting immediately," the White House said.

A financial regulator said on Tuesday that he is considering whether to impose rules on the digital currency Bitcoin.

"I'm not 100 percent saying we should regulate it, but if anybody is going to, it seems like something we should consider," Bart Chilton, one of the five commissioners on the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), said in an interview on CNBC. "It's being potentially used for guns and money and nobody is looking after it."

The Obama administration is changing a program to help bring broadband Internet service to rural areas.

President Obama on Wednesday said he will nominate Tom Wheeler, a former lobbyist and investor, to serve as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.

Obama said that for more than 30 years, Wheeler has been at the forefront of changes in the technology industry, making him a great fit for "one of the toughest jobs in Washington."

"Tom knows this stuff inside and out," Obama said.

A false report on AP's hacked Twitter of an attack on the White House caused the Dow to nosedive.

The U.S. Transportation Department is pressing the auto industry to adopt a new set of nonbinding guidelines designed to keep drivers from using social media, the Internet or videophone technology while operating a vehicle.

Recommendations to limit built-in entertainment and communication features is the latest effort to cut down on distracted driving, a signature issue for Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.