Widespread reports of out-of-stock items are pushing consumers to shop earlier for the holidays this year in what’s being forecast as a strong season for retail, various surveys showed this week.

AT&T reported growth Thursday, adding 928,000 postpaid phone customers in Q3, more than double the 429,000 added by Verizon (see 2110200052). That was the highest number of adds in 10 years, the company said, with 4.4 million wireless postpaid subscribers added over the past year. AT&T also reached an “inflection point” in its wireline business, with broadband revenue growth surpassing legacy decline, executives said on a call with analysts.

With no comprehensive recent national privacy law, stakeholders must continue discussions about ways to rebuild consumers' trust in technology -- perhaps via standards or other agreed-upon measures, an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation and XR Association conference was told Thursday. Speakers on one panel agreed the U.S. is behind on legislative efforts (see 2110200060). They said Europe is ahead, such as with the EU general data protection regulation. Boosting people's confidence that their information will be appropriately used when it's collected by devices, apps and by content providers is possible but not guaranteed, ITIF and XRA were told.

With Netflix Q3 net paid subscriber additions finishing about 25% better than projections (see 2110190070), the company thinks it’s getting toward the “tail end of the COVID choppiness of the pull-forward of sub growth” that began with 2020's Q2 lockdowns, said Chief Financial Officer Spencer Neumann on a Tuesday video earnings interview.

Getting “stability” and clear political leadership at the FCC tops Google’s regulatory wish list, said Michael Purdy, senior counsel-commercial, product and policy, during an FCBA wireless webinar Tuesday. “Hopefully, that will resolve by year-end.” The U.S. needs “some consistency in 5G policy,” he said. All the speakers said U.S. leadership on 5G must remain a top goal. The Biden administration hasn't named a permanent chair at the FCC or nominated Democrats to fill two commissioner slots.

Despite higher prices and a surge in out-of-stock items due to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. online holiday season sales will jump 10% year on year to a record $207 billion, Adobe forecast Wednesday. Globally, e-commerce sales will rise 11% to over $4 trillion Nov. 1-Dec. 31, also a new milestone, it said.

5G will take years to deploy, but industry should start thinking now about what 6G will look like, experts said Tuesday at the Brooklyn 6G Virtual Summit. Speakers said 6G is likely to be commercial by 2030, matching the consensus on the summit's first day (see 2110180065).

Commissioner Brendan Carr urged the FCC Tuesday to “immediately start the process” of adding China-based DJI, which has more than half the U.S. drone market, to the agency’s covered list. “The need for quick FCC action on this is very clear,” he told a virtual program sponsored by China Tech Threat. “What we’re seeing … is the potential for Huawei on wings.”

Video piracy is worsening, with viewers often not aware they're watching pirated content, and some parts of the streaming ecosystem aren't focusing on the problem, experts said Tuesday at a video piracy symposium. Piracy was already a concern when the COVID-19 pandemic set in, resulting in more video consumption and increased piracy, said Steven Hawley, Piracy Monitor managing director.

The FTC study of ISP data collection practices could lead to enforcement or rulemaking proceedings, former agency officials said in interviews before Thursday’s meeting (see 2110140070). Chair Lina Khan and the majority of the commission clearly believe “they have something significant to say” about ISP data privacy practices, said former Consumer Protection Bureau Director Jessica Rich, now at Kelley Drye. “This is an area she said she’s very interested in focusing on.”