From BusinessReport.com: "The United States Federal Communications Commission approved on Wednesday historic new rules potentially giving aircraft passengers in-flight access to high-speed Internet services. In another move that could potentially revolutionize air travel further, regulators also opened up the possibility of allowing people to use their cellphones in the skies.

"While the cellphone issue has to overcome a debate over safety and flight comfort, one FCC commissioner warned that the new Internet rules might create a monopoly...

"In its bid to give passengers in-flight Internet access, the FCC adopted new auction rules to handle licenses and streamlined other regulations.

"'The world of wireless telecommunications has seen immense technological and marketplace developments in the last decade,' FCC Chairman Michael Powell said... 'With these actions today, we take important steps to bring the air-ground service up-to-date as both a technical and marketplace matter.'

"But commissioner Michael Copps warned that 'the way the FCC has decided to launch this new service risks creating a monopoly for broadband air-to-ground services. The Order creates an auction where one company can lock up the only license that can support a true broadband air-to-ground service,' he said..."

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