Tom Wheeler wasn’t expected to be a hero of the open internet. But that’s how the outgoing FCC chairman will be remembered when he leaves his office in January. In 2015, Wheeler, a telecom-lobbyist-turned-regulator, pushed through a set of sweeping net neutrality rules that reclassified internet service providers as public utilities. He’s also protected consumer …

It’s getting down to the wire and you still haven’t figured out which laptops to get your kids for Christmas. Have no fear. Ask Maggie is here to help. The good news is that this is a great time to be in the market for a budget laptop. Today more than ever, consumers don’t have to sacrifice as much performance …

Now playing: Watch this: Tech titans turn out for Trump 1:25 For President-elect Donald Trump, it’s kiss-and-make-up time. Trump met with more than a dozen executives from the biggest tech companies in the US — a roundtable fraught with potential for awkwardness given Trump’s repeated attacks on tech and the philosophical disagreements he has with some of the executives. The …

AT&T’s plans to merge with media giant Time Warner in an $85 billion deal isn’t going to skate by Capitol Hill. On Wednesday, Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in a Senate antitrust subcommittee asked the companies tough questions about whether their planned merger would lower prices for consumers or stifle video competitors online. The bipartisan grilling could be …

The signs are pointing in the right direction for telecommunications companies during a Donald Trump presidency. Trump’s transition team is full of critics of the Federal Communications Commission’s net neutrality rules, which imposed old-style telephone regulation on the internet. There are indications a Trump administration may be much friendlier to big mergers and acquisitions than was President Barack Obama’s team. …

The Federal Communications Commission is not cool with AT&T’s offer that lets customers stream the carrier’s DirecTV service without it counting against their data plans. The commission has also launched an investigation into a similar offer from Verizon. In a letter sent to AT&T on Thursday, the agency said it’s reached a preliminary conclusion that the carrier is violating net …

In the age of Snapchat filters and Pokemon Go, the White House has come up with a new way to teach kids of all ages the history of the “People’s House”: an augmented reality app that brings a dollar bill to life. All you’ll need is a buck and a phone. Once you download the app, called 1600, you can …

Republic Wireless is offering customers a deal that’s almost too good to be true. The low-cost Wi-Fi first wireless operator is offering six months of service for free, which includes unlimited talk, text messaging and 1GB of data, to new and existing customers. The catch? The deal is only available for customers buying one of these two phones: Moto Z …

Twitter will offer Star Wars fans an exclusive sneak peek this week of the soon-to-be released movie “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” Twitter said Tuesday it will stream unreleased footage of the movie produced by Disney/Lucasfilm and will host a Q&A to offer some behind-the-scenes dirt with the film’s director Gareth Edwards and cast members moderated by People magazine …

Now playing: Watch this: Amazon’s next Echo said to come with a screen 1:58 Are you considering giving the Amazon Echo speaker as a gift this holiday season? You might want to wait. A new report suggests that Amazon plans to introduce a new high-end voice-activated speaker — with the addition of a touchscreen — early next year. The Seattle-based …