As the use of mobile commerce becomes more widespread, ISPs, payment service companies, government agencies and other entities are increasing efforts to address challenges around privacy and security. Companies like MasterCard and Sprint Nextel have practices in place to protect consumer data and resolve customer disputes concerning mobile transactions. The FTC Division of Financial Practices is attempting to rev up its expertise in the mobile space to protect consumers.

The Mobile Marketing Association may clarify a recommendation to applications developers to get consent from users before partner businesses pull information about them from social-media sites, an industry attorney said Wednesday. The subject has come up in responses to proposed privacy guidelines that the association put out in October in response to activity in Congress and at the FTC, Ieuan Jolly of the Loeb & Loeb law firm said on a Law Seminars International teleconference. Many of the firm’s “interactive media clients” belong to the association, he told us.

The fight between the Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association (SBCA) and the city of Philadelphia at the FCC over a city ordinance restricting satellite antenna placement is bringing out some larger issues on the federal government’s role in municipality governance, said communications lawyers we spoke to. The SBCA, the longtime watchdog for violations of Over-the-Air Reception Devices (OTARD) rules, filed a complaint with the FCC last year that the city had violated those rules. The comment cycle on the proceeding finished recently and has included filings from several major cities and associations, plus DirecTV and Dish Network.

LAS VEGAS -- ViaSat will launch its Excede high-speed broadband service Monday, reigniting competition with Hughes Communications and DSL and cable providers. Excede, which will deliver 12/3 Mbps download/upload speeds, will be sold on two-year contracts with 7.5 ($49.99), 15 GB ($79.99) and 25 GB ($129.99) monthly data packages, company officials said. Extra 4 GB packages will likely eventually be available for customers that want to buy extra capacity, and those who are nearing their monthly limit will get email and cellphone alert notifications, said ViaSat’s WildBlue Chief Operating Office Stephanie Copeland. The contracts will include a satellite modem built around a Cavium’s Octeon multi-core 500-700 MHz processors as well as receiving dish and feed horn, company officials said. Installation will be $149.

OPASTCO and NTCA are considering a merger, the rural associations told their members. “Our dialogue began in the spirit of cooperation and collaboration to strengthen the rural telecommunications industry and give our memberships the best opportunities, tools and resources for the future,” OPASTCO and NTCA said in a joint email. “We have found consensus in several areas and will continue to work through issues and concerns."

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, doesn’t think he should have to ask congressional Commerce Committee chairmen to act as intermediaries in his ongoing standoff (CD Jan 6 p1) with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski over access to documents related to the LightSquared proceeding, a Grassley spokeswoman said. Grassley, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is blocking a vote on the pending nominations of Jessica Rosenworcel and Ajit Pai to seats on the FCC because Genachowski has refused to provide the documents. Genachowski has argued that the FCC historically has honored document requests only from the chairman of committees with jurisdiction over the commission, and he has cited supporting guidance in the Congressional Research Service’s non-binding Congressional Oversight Manual.

Implementation of the Local Community Radio Act (LCRA) could lead to more community radio stations and community involvement in minority communities, some LPFM advocates said Monday at a New America Foundation event in Washington. There are some hurdles that applicants and the FCC must take on to make the process successful, they said.

Supreme Court justices limited discussion of First Amendment issues on the government’s appeal of a lower court ruling against the FCC finding indecent a single curseword or incident of nudity on broadcast TV. Oral argument Tuesday mainly focused on how the agency’s so-called fleeting indecency policy squared with the high court’s landmark Pacifica decision, which allowed the commission to censure indecent content on terrestrial radio and TV. The 1969 Red Lion case involving spectrum scarcity didn’t come up, conforming with expectations (CD June 28 p1).

Seventeen parties opposed making FCC filings contain full copies of any materials cited in their pleadings or ex parte submissions. Many comments on a commission public notice said the rule would be unnecessary and burdensome, and all filings in docket 10-44 opposed the requirements the agency asked about. The FCC said the new rules, which it didn’t propose but only asked about, could increase transparency and efficiency in proceedings, as well as make materials more readily available for anyone (CD Dec 2 p7).

LAS VEGAS -- Questions are likely to continue to arise about usage-based pricing and whether some high-use subscribers should pay more than those that use much less, industry officials said during a panel Monday at CES. One key, speakers said, is that consumers have usage measurement tools available so they can see that the overwhelming majority utilize little enough bandwidth that they don’t face caps or extra charges, panelists said.