Economy Briefs: Agency clears way for AT&T to use airwaves

NEW YORK — Federal regulators are letting AT&T use an unused part of the airwaves for mobile broadband, potentially increasing the speed and capacity of its new LTE network.

The Federal Communications Commission voted Wednesday to revise the rules for a spectrum band known as Wireless Communications Services (WCS). The order sets aside part of the band to protect Sirius XM Radio Inc.’s satellite service, which uses an adjacent band, and eases restrictions on the rest of the band.

The revision is in line with an agreement between AT&T Inc. and Sirius and was expected.

SEC

Capital rules proposed for derivatives traders

Federal regulators proposed setting minimum capital levels that banks and other firms that trade derivatives must hold as a cushion against risk.

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted Wednesday to seek public comment on the proposed rules, which also would set collateral requirements and keep customer funds separate from a firm’s. The financial overhaul law passed in 2010 called for new oversight of derivatives, the complex investments blamed for hastening the financial crisis, and required the SEC to write the rules.

GERMANY

Government: No decision on banking union at EU summit

BERLIN — A top German government official on Wednesday dashed hopes of swift progress on strengthening Europe’s financial sector, saying this week’s summit of the bloc’s 27 leaders won’t make any final decisions on setting up a single banking supervisor.

Many “legal, technical and political details” for a continentwide supervisory authority still have to be hammered out, said the official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity in line with government policy.

TECHNOLOGY

Aereo, TV over Internet service, expands to PCs

NEW YORK — A Barry Diller-backed company called Aereo is broadening availability of its service even as broadcasters challenge the legality of the startup’s live television transmissions over the Internet.

Aereo is still limited to residents of New York City, but it’s now available on additional devices including Windows computers and on a wider selection of Web browsers including Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. Before, access was restricted to selected Apple devices such as the iPhone and the iPad, as well as the Roku streaming set-top box.

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