Industry Supports Streamlined Team Telecom Review; Executive Branch Not Fully on Board
Associations and companies of every stripe support FCC efforts to streamline rules for so-called Team Telecom reviews of transactions involving foreign ownership, according to comments posted Friday in docket 16-155. “Protection of U.S. national security, law enforcement, and public safety interests need not entail the uncertainty, costs, and inequitable treatment embodied by the current Team Telecom review process,” said Level 3. Commenters want the FCC to hold executive branch review to certain timelines and reduce the scope of deals that trigger Team Telecom review, they said.
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Executive branch agencies are open to a streamlined process, but won't go as far as some of the reforms proposed by the FCC, said the Department of Commerce and its NTIA on behalf of the executive branch. “If the Commission were to proceed with issuance of a license prior to a response from the Executive Branch, there would likely be situations in which the United States would identify national security risks that could not easily be mitigated if the license were issued.” The FCC NPRM to speed review of deals with foreign ownership stemmed in part from a NTIA proposal (see 1606240043).
Numerous industry commenters want a firm timeline for Team Telecom review, with a limited number of extensions. The review period should be limited to 90 days, said the Satellite Industry Association. CTIA, Incompas and T-Mobile, among others, though commenters differed on the number and length of extensions of that period that should be allowed. “A 90-day review period for applications once referred to the Executive Branch strikes a reasonable balance between ensuring adequate time for review and avoiding needless and potentially costly delay in processing applications,” said USTelecom.
The executive branch agencies don't agree with a “rigid” timeline, their joint comments said. “Applications with substantial foreign ownership raise a complex of critical policy and security concerns that typically require extensive and searching investigation,” the agencies said. “It is therefore imperative that the Executive Branch has all the time needed to ensure that all national security considerations are fully vetted.”
EchoStar, Hughes Networks and SIA said the FCC shouldn't expand the scope of Team Telecom review to include non-common carrier earth stations. EchoStar “urges the Commission to refrain from seeking foreign ownership review for non-common carrier earth stations,” said a joint filing from EchoStar and Hughes.
Many commenters said the FCC should narrow the scope of deals that get referred to Team Telecom. The FCC should exempt from referral applications where “the foreign ownership already has undergone Team Telecom review and there has been no material change in the ownership,” said joint comments from BT Americas, Deutsche Telekom, Orange Business Services U.S. and Telefonica Internacional. The FCC “should limit its referrals to instances in which an entity that has not been vetted previously would obtain an interest that requires foreign ownership review,” said Sprint. Deals where “there is no cognizable foreign nexus” shouldn't be referred, Verizon said.
The FCC could further streamline its foreign ownership processes by “expeditiously completing its rulemaking proceeding to update rules and processes governing broadcast foreign ownership,” said CBS, 21st Century Fox, Univision and NAB jointly. “We therefore urge the Commission promptly to issue an order adopting the proposals set out in the Broadcast Foreign Ownership NPRM.”