Comcast Roundup: appeals court backs FCC, Comcast launches 2,000 WiFi spots in Philly and More

Every Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m. EST, find all the stories you need to know about your friendly telecommunications giant in the Comcast Roundup. Get an e-mail subscription for our Comcast news updates.

DEFINITE READS

• Appeals Court Upholds Access Rules for Cable TV [New York Times] — “United States appeals court on Friday upheld a Federal Communications Commission rule that forbids cable companies that also own programming channels from refusing to allow competitors to also offer those channels.” This is expected to have a major impact on Comcast’s pending acquisition of NBC.
• As Technically Philly reported yesterday, Comcast has launched a free WiFi network for existing customers in Philadelphia and some parts of New Jersey.  The Jersey Journal reports on the spread of these hot spots outside New York City in New Jersey.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• Comcast unbound: Wi-Fi service available in Philly, parts of N.J., Del. [CED Magazine] — Includes some 2,000 spots in Philadelphia
• Microsoft, Comcast, Yahoo: no zombie cookies here, Congress! [ars technica] — A breakdown of the use of Flash cookies by major sites, including what Comcast does.
• Comcast Says Interactive Ads Available in 10M Homes [Broadcasting and Cable]
• Comcast Sponsors City Year’s Opening Day [Comcast blog]

When there is just too much Comcast news to follow, the Comcast Roundup will be there every Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m. EST