N.Y. PSC approved Global Crossing’s sale of Frontier Telephone of Rochester and 5 other small Frontier-affiliated incumbent telcos to Citizens Communications, with only 2 conditions. Deal is part of $3.65 billion Global sale to Citizens of local exchange and wireless operations in 13 states that was approved by FCC April 16. PSC said Citizens must forgo $4.9 million rate increase that had been approved for Frontier and must maintain “major” operations and administrative center in N.Y. Citizens said it expected to close sale within 60 days.

In attempt to resolve dispute between long distance providers and CLECs, FCC Fri. placed limits on how much CLECs could charge long distance companies for access to customers. In news release, agency agreed with long distance companies that “certain competitive LECs had used the [tariff rate system] to impose excessive rates for access service.” Issue has been boiling for at least one year, with AT&T, for example, refusing to pay some CLEC access charges because they are so much higher than rates charged by ILECs for same service.

Three scholars of Annenberg Public Policy Center urged FCC to monitor technical quality of all high-speed data services and mandate that all high-speed ISPs disclose service quality. In recent ex parte filing on Commission’s open access inquiry, Hugh Donahue, Shawn O'Donnell and Josephine Ferrigno-Stack recommended that agency “articulate a specific policy for gathering and analyzing measures of such high-speed Internet service characteristics as cost, performance, down time, privacy, security and customer service.” They suggested FCC also seek “data on, and audits of, the less technical aspects of service quality (adherence to privacy and security policies, access to third-party arbitration of disputes or the responsiveness of customer service)” to complement its hard data on network performance. “Monitoring the norms suggested above would provide a baseline standard by which the Commission could assess the status of competition in the high-speed Internet marketplace,” they wrote. “The monitoring and disclosure of high-speed service quality enables the Commission to realize its policy of competitive neutrality among telephone, cable and wireless providers with the least intrusive regulatory policy upon the soundest bases in information.” Authors stressed that they were speaking for themselves, not Annenberg. In separate filing, Annenberg Dir. Kathleen Jamieson emphasized that authors’ views did not reflect those of Public Policy Center or its related School of Communications.

FCC spelled out for first time at Commission level, in order on VoiceStream-Deutsche Telekom (DT) merger released Fri., relationship between Communications Act provision that bars foreign govt. ownership and section that allow indirect govt. investment. In granting license transfers in Powertel- VoiceStream-DT merger, order stipulated that indirect ownership by foreign govt. should be addressed only under Sec. 310(b)(4) of Act, not Sec. 310(a), which bars direct govt. ownership. Sec. 310(b) allows for foreign govt. to hold greater than 25% stake in corporate license “unless the Commission finds that the public interest will be served by refusal or revocation of the license,” order said. While text of final order contained no surprises, language has been closely watched for road map that it will provide for similar deals in future.

U.S. Appeals Court, D.C., said Fri. FCC was correct in voiding tariff filed by Global NAPs (GNAPs) that sought compensation from Verizon for Internet-bound traffic. Global NAPs filed tariff in April 1999 after FCC ruled that Internet-bound traffic wasn’t subject to reciprocal compensation. Company then billed Verizon for $1.7 million for 15 days of service. Verizon refused to pay and filed complaint with FCC, saying tariff preempted state authority to determine intercarrier compensation for Internet-bound traffic and because it amounted to access charges for Internet traffic, which isn’t allowed. Issue began in 1998 when Mass. Dept. of Telecom & Energy (DTE) ruled that Verizon was required to pay reciprocal compensation for delivery of Internet-bound traffic to CLECs. However, in Feb. 1999, FCC held that Internet-bound calls to ISPs weren’t local in nature and thus not covered by reciprocal compensation agreements. In May, DTE vacated its requirement that Verizon pay ILECs for handling such calls. In April, while DTE proceeding still was under way, Global NAPs filed tariff of 0.8 cent per min. for delivery of such calls. In decision written by Judge David Sentelle (00-1136), appeals court said FCC was within its rights to invalidate that tariff for several reasons, including fact that it was filed before DTE had completed its determination whether Global NAPs still would be able to collect reciprocal compensation under interconnection agreements. Court concluded: “That GNAPs sought to game the existing rules, and lost, does not mean the FCC was arbitrary and capricious in its application of its own rules.” Judges Stephen Williams and Judith Rogers also were on panel.

Panasonic officials complained to FCC that delays in CableLabs’ OpenCable standards process were stymieing development of competitive digital cable set-top boxes and integrated DTV sets for retail sale. In new ex parte filing with Commission, Panasonic said “final implementation of important services such as electronic program guide (EPG) and impulse pay-per-view (IPPV) requires additional work in the CableLabs process,” delaying production of rival digital cable boxes. Panasonic officials, who gave FCC staffers tour of their DTV development lab in Westampton, N.J., said they were studying alternative means of testing and delivering EPG and IPPV services in their planned set-tops but said cable operators and CableLabs had not cooperated. Panasonic also complained that CableLabs’ PHILA license for digital copyright protection technology had device specifications that were “unnecessary and inappropriately rigid with respect to product features and thus preclude flexibility needed by manufacturers to develop innovative products of interest to consumers and helpful to the DTV transition.” Executives said they were eager to “develop ‘cable-ready’ products” and believed “such products would be well accepted by consumers” and would “provide additional revenue sources to cable operators.”

GPS, aviation interests and others continued to raise concerns to FCC in comments last week about operations of ultra- wideband (UWB) devices in GPS bands. But several companies suggested potential power limits and other restrictions that Commission could put in place to allow UWB operations to move forward. Aeronautical Radio Inc. (ARINC) and Air Transport Assn. of America (ATA) urged FCC to preclude unlicensed UWB operations. FCC sought comments on 5 test reports on potential of UWB devices to interfere with GPS and other licensed operations. Tests were conducted by NTIA, Dept. of Transportation through Stanford U., U. of Tex.-Austin Applied Research Labs and Johns Hopkins U. on behalf of Time Domain and Qualcomm. ATA and ARINC said studies pointed to “inability of unlicensed UWB devices as proposed to share spectrum, especially in restricted bands, with existing licensed services on a noninterference basis.” FCC “might consider” licensed deployment of UWB devices if future testing demonstrates sharing would work for certain devices, but ATA and ARINC still recommended UWB be barred from operating in restricted bands and generally below 5.5 GHz. In other comments: (1) Sprint PCS, citing Qualcomm report, recommended FCC prohibit UWB devices in PCS band. Sprint contended UWB devices would cause harmful interference to PCS CDMA networks even at stricter average power levels listed in notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). (2) Motorola suggested setting EIRP (effective isotropic radiated power) limit for UWB devices that would be 35 dB below current Part 15 limit for certain signals. (3) Lockheed Martin suggested need for “some form of regulatory mechanism for UWB devices” beyond current Part 15 limitations, saying that could be laid out in further NPRM. Among UWB proponents, Time Domain said different conclusions reached in studies largely resulted from “certain assumptions as to what should be deemed to constitute harmful interference.” Both NTIA and Stanford tests “assumed unrealistic operational scenarios and employed mathematical modeling to reach erroneous conclusions dependent on the flawed underlying assumptions.” Johns Hopkins study drew upon test results at U. of Tex. that covered both outdoor radiated testing in conjunction with indoor testing and extensive simulations. Time Domain said that meant that Johns Hopkins could provide FCC with several operational GPS measures of performance. Time Domain said all reports showed that with white noise-like signals, interactions with GPS signals were predictable “given the extensive body of knowledge” in that area. UWB implementation that Time Domain has developed is like white noise, company said. “When realistic propagation models and deployment scenarios are considered, the reports support the conclusion that UWB signals that appear much like white noise can be authorized at the Part 15 general limits without posing a risk of harmful interference to GPS,” Time Domain said. Sirius Satellite Radio took opposite view of test results, recommending FCC undertake “staged investigation” that focused on specific classes of UWB applications. Commission should define specific categories of UWB devices, including technical and operational characteristics, and quickly identify areas where more testing was needed, including effects of multiple UWB devices. Sirius said agency should develop specific proposed rules for each UWB device category, including its application, allowable average and peak power levels, allowable ranges of pulse characteristics in time domain, allowable spectrum masks.

FCC Chmn. Powell will be nominated for additional 5-year term, White House announced Fri. New term would begin July 2, 2002 and extend his tenure through June 30, 2007. Powell said he was “gratified by the confidence President Bush has indicated in my tenure.” He said extension “will provide a positive and helpful continuity to the important work that I, and the new Commissioners who will be taking office later this year, will be engaged in.” Senate must confirm new term.

NewSouth Communications urged FCC to deny joint petition by BellSouth, SBC and Verizon that seeks elimination of unbundling requirements for high-capacity loops and dedicated transport. NewSouth, which offers variety of competitive services, said Bell companies’ petition violated 3-year “quiet period” that FCC imposed on making changes in unbundling list. After Commission adopted list of unbundled network elements (UNEs) last year it said it wouldn’t reexamine list for 3 years to assure certainty, NewSouth said. “The three-year period was designed to give carriers time to implement [new interconnection] contracts and begin to realize their business plans,” NewSouth said in motion to dismiss filed April 24. “Not even a year has elapsed since some of the UNEs that the BOCs want to remove from the list first became available,” NewSouth said.

PanAmSat wants FCC to require early demonstration of compliance with operational and additional operational limits of companies before allowing spectrum sharing by NGSO FSS, GSO and terrestrial companies. Voicing strong opposition to portions of plan, PanAmSat filing argued against reconsideration petition from Skybridge as satellite companies weighed in with opinions on FCC decision on proposed spectrum sharing in 2 separate bands.