Despite evoking scant interest in their commercial counterparts, public broadcasters are pressing ahead with their proposal for TV stations to embrace a hard date for analog switch-off. The Assn. of Public TV Stations (APTS) will submit a draft plan to its board at public TV’s annual Capitol Hill Day in Washington Feb. 24-25 for stations to adopt a hard date for moving into digital-only operations, APTS Pres. John Lawson said.

The FCC would benefit from a Presidential budget that cuts spending in many other domestic areas. The budget, released Mon. by the White House, proposed a nearly $20 million increase for the FCC and a slate of new programs for NTIA. The $2.3 trillion budget forecasts a $521 billion deficit, and several domestic agencies saw spending cuts.

With the FCC preparing to conduct a comprehensive study of how the federal govt. should regulate VoIP, NCTA for the first time laid out what the cable industry saw as the regulatory regime it would like. In a white paper sent to FCC commissioners and Capitol Hill Mon., NCTA said federal and state policy-makers should be careful not to overregulate this new technology and service and, in fact, should impose minimal regulation. Such an approach to VoIP could have potential implications for the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) which are funded under traditional common carrier regulations.

A coalition of 13 consumer groups called on Congress to impose social obligations on VoIP, saying universal service, accessibility, public safety and consumer protections should “continue to be the hallmark of our nation’s telecommunications policy.” In a letter to House Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Upton (R-Mich.) and ranking member Markey (D-Mass.), the coalition outlined principles it said policymakers should adopt in any VoIP framework, including: (1) Universal service. The coalition said providers of VoIP service, which is “functionally equivalent to plain old telephone service,” must contribute to the Universal Service Fund to “ensure affordable access to telecom services for all Americans. The public switched network remains the backbone of this country’s communications and VoIP providers must contribute to the maintenance of the network through intercarrier compensation.” (2) Access for people with disabilities. Telecom Act Sec. 255, which requires that telecom services be accessible should apply “equally” to VoIP carriers, the coalition said. It said VoIP providers must contribute to the telecom relay service fund to ensure accessible telecom service for people with hearing and speech disabilities. (3) Public safety requirements. The coalition said communications networks, regardless of technology, must provide E911 service. (4) Consumer protections. The coalition said all providers of voice telephony must provide basic consumer protections, including privacy, advance notification of termination of services and other obligations. The letter was signed by the Alliance for Public Technology, Alliance for Technology Access, American Assn. of Law Libraries, American Assn. of People with Disabilities, CWA, Community Action Partnership, Dept. of Professional Employees, Independent Living Network, MAAC Project, National Consumers League, National Hispanic Council on Aging, Telecom for the Deaf and Telecom Research & Action Center. The House Commerce Committee is expected to consider VoIP issues at its “Current State of Competition in the Communications Marketplace” meeting scheduled for Wed.

Verizon’s proposed plan for determining access charges on VoIP has at least one fan on Capitol Hill: Rep. Boucher (D-Va.), a member of the House Commerce and Judiciary committees. In a National Consumer League forum on broadband Thurs., Boucher said he was “impressed” by the ideas Verizon Senior Vp Thomas Tauke presented last week on VoIP regulation (CD Jan 22 p1). Boucher stressed that reform of access charges and the Universal Service Fund (USF) was critical. Highlighting comments by Senate Appropriations Chmn. Stevens (R-Alaska), who is likely to take the reins of the Commerce Committee in 2005, Boucher said Congress was likely to begin efforts next year on comprehensive reform of USF and other telecom regulations.

Representatives of Cal. providers of VoIP services told a Cal. Senate committee that they accepted limited state regulatory oversight, while state regulators and lawmakers said they didn’t see a need for heavy-handed regulation of the nascent VoIP industry. The Cal. Senate Energy Utilities & Communications Committee held hearings on whether state legislation was needed to address public interest implications of VoIP. State Sen. Debra Bowen (D-Redondo Beach) said VoIP providers’ participation in 911 systems and universal service programs was the crucial public interest issues. Cal. PUC Comr. Carl Wood said VoIP regulation should follow the cellphone model with a minimum of regulation, focused on consumer protection. Comr. Susan Kennedy said universal service contributions should be assessed per phone number, regardless of the technology. Representatives of VoIP providers 8x8 Communications and SBC Advanced Solutions said they might support participation in universal service subsidy systems if the funds were used to spread broadband access to new communities, and they would work with public officials to tie VoIP customers to 911 systems. They also said if VoIP were free to compete on price and service, reasonable regulations for protection of customers might be acceptable. Last year, the VoIP industry in Cal. was adamant any state VoIP regulation would be inappropriate.

Public safety officials and rural carriers told a Capitol Hill round table Wed. they had serious concerns about funding, technology deployment and LEC readiness for Enhanced 911 deployment, especially in more sparsely populated rural areas. Several called for a greater federal role in standards, tax incentives and program funding.

Congress will look to rewrite at least portions of current telecom law as early as 2005, Senate Appropriations Chmn. Stevens (R-Alaska) told a USTA Leadership Conference Mon. in Washington. Stevens, who said he “hoped” to take the reins of the Senate Commerce Committee beginning in 2005, laid out a road map for telecom policy that would feature a significant effort to revise parts of the Telecom Act of 1996.

With Comr. Martin dissenting, the FCC voted 4-1 to grant eligible telecom carrier (ETC) status to Virginia Cellular for commercial mobile radio service operations in rural areas of that state. The FCC, in an order released Fri., filled in the details of a public interest standard it said would apply to all ETC designations for rural areas pending before the agency. Martin said he objected to parts of the order, including its decision to not require ETCs to: (1) Provide equal access, which rural ILECs already must offer. (2) Offer the same type and quality of service throughout a geographic area as a condition of receiving universal service funding.

Citing a growing threat to public service broadcasting (PSB) across Europe, a Council of Europe (CoE) panel called on govts. to commit to strong, independent PSB and bring it into the Internet age. A report last week by the CoE’s Committee on Culture, Science & Education said PSB’s future was under attack by political and economic forces, growing competition from commercial media, media concentration, financial problems and the challenge of adapting to globalization and new technologies. The report is to be debated at the Parliamentary Assembly beginning Mon.