Net neutrality litigation flared Thursday after Federal Register publication of the FCC’s December "Restoring Internet Freedom" order, as expected (see 1802210057). New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (D) announced he and 22 other Democratic AGs filed their petition for review at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The order is “arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion within the meaning of the Administrative Procedure Act,” and violates the Constitution, Communications Act and notice-and-comment rulemaking requirements of 5 U.S. Code § 553, the AGs said.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai touted a draft order to give rural telcos more than $500 million in new USF support, "including those participating in the Alternative Connect America Model (A-CAM) plan" (see 1801170048). He responded similarly this month to over 20 lawmakers who urged him to consider additional A-CAM funding, in numerous exchanges posted in docket 18-5. The draft, which includes an NPRM, "seeks public input on both further increasing support to current A-CAM recipients and on giving legacy rate-of-return carriers a new chance to elect model-based support," Pai wrote. The draft would provide about $180 million in high-cost funding to rate-of-return carriers by June 30, and up to $360 million over the next decade to A-CAM recipients (see 1801160040). Pai also cited the rural USF proposal in responding (here) to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and (here) to Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md. They had voiced concern about a Telecom Act Section 706 FCC inquiry; Pai noted the agency kept a 25/3 fixed broadband benchmark and found mobile wasn't a full substitute for fixed service. Pai cited his efforts to "shut the door on waste, fraud, and abuse" in USF programs, in an exchange with Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., ranking Commerce Committee member who expressed concern about high-cost abuses. Pai also cited the backing of some Native American groups for his efforts to target higher per-subscriber tribal Lifeline support to "incentivize providers to deploy networks on rural Tribal lands and direct support to areas where it is needed most," in an exchange with Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Ariz., who objected to a November order "taken without any consultation with the affected tribes." Responding to other USF queries, Pai added handwritten notes to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, saying, "I love your Twitter feed! Even with the stiff competition from Senator [Orrin] Hatch [R-Utah], you're holding your own," and sending Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., his "condolences in advance on the [Kentucky] Wildcats impending loss to the Kansas Jayhawks during March Madness!"

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai touted a draft order to give rural telcos more than $500 million in new USF support, "including those participating in the Alternative Connect America Model (A-CAM) plan" (see 1801170048). He responded similarly this month to over 20 lawmakers who urged him to consider additional A-CAM funding, in numerous exchanges posted in docket 18-5. The draft, which includes an NPRM, "seeks public input on both further increasing support to current A-CAM recipients and on giving legacy rate-of-return carriers a new chance to elect model-based support," Pai wrote. The draft would provide about $180 million in high-cost funding to rate-of-return carriers by June 30, and up to $360 million over the next decade to A-CAM recipients (see 1801160040). Pai also cited the rural USF proposal in responding (here) to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and (here) to Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md. They had voiced concern about a Telecom Act Section 706 FCC inquiry; Pai noted the agency kept a 25/3 fixed broadband benchmark and found mobile wasn't a full substitute for fixed service. Pai cited his efforts to "shut the door on waste, fraud, and abuse" in USF programs, in an exchange with Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., ranking Commerce Committee member who expressed concern about high-cost abuses. Pai also cited the backing of some Native American groups for his efforts to target higher per-subscriber tribal Lifeline support to "incentivize providers to deploy networks on rural Tribal lands and direct support to areas where it is needed most," in an exchange with Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Ariz., who objected to a November order "taken without any consultation with the affected tribes." Responding to other USF queries, Pai added handwritten notes to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, saying, "I love your Twitter feed! Even with the stiff competition from Senator [Orrin] Hatch [R-Utah], you're holding your own," and sending Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., his "condolences in advance on the [Kentucky] Wildcats impending loss to the Kansas Jayhawks during March Madness!"

Sony appears to have overcome Patent and Trademark Office objections to its application to register the trademark "Acoustic Surface" for the proprietary audio technology it’s building directly into its OLED TV screens (see 1706060070). PTO notified Sony Friday that its application is scheduled to be published for opposition March 20, meaning the application can proceed to the next stage toward registration if no outside party raises objections within 30 days. A PTO examiner rejected the application in a July 13 notice, saying Acoustic Surface would cause market confusion with Microsoft’s pending application to register the Surface tablet trademark. Microsoft landed a registration certificate Jan. 30 for the Surface. Sony, in a Jan. 18 reply, amended its application with a disclaimer that it seeks no “exclusive right” to use the word “surface,” so that the word “acoustic” would be the “dominant feature” of the Acoustic Surface trademark. Sony also argued Acoustic Surface is “sufficiently different” from Microsoft’s Surface “in sound, meaning, appearance and commercial impression, and that its goods are sufficiently distinct, so as not to conflict with” the Surface tablet, said the company. Sony thinks “there is room for the coexistence” of Acoustic Surface and Microsoft's Surface, it said.

Sony appears to have overcome Patent and Trademark Office objections to its application to register the trademark "Acoustic Surface" for the proprietary audio technology it’s building directly into its OLED TV screens (see 1706060070). PTO notified Sony Friday that its application is scheduled to be published for opposition March 20, meaning the application can proceed to the next stage toward registration if no outside party raises objections within 30 days. A PTO examiner rejected the application in a July 13 notice, saying Acoustic Surface would cause market confusion with Microsoft’s pending application to register the Surface tablet trademark. Microsoft landed a registration certificate Jan. 30 for the Surface. Sony, in a Jan. 18 reply, amended its application with a disclaimer that it seeks no “exclusive right” to use the word “surface,” so that the word “acoustic” would be the “dominant feature” of the Acoustic Surface trademark. Sony also argued Acoustic Surface is “sufficiently different” from Microsoft’s Surface “in sound, meaning, appearance and commercial impression, and that its goods are sufficiently distinct, so as not to conflict with” the Surface tablet, said the company. Sony thinks “there is room for the coexistence” of Acoustic Surface and Microsoft's Surface, it said.

President Donald Trump signed the Kari's Law Act (HR-582) Friday amid commemorations of the 50th anniversary of the first U.S. 911 call, the White House said. The bill, which the House gave final approval to earlier this month (see 1802080050 and 1802090050), mandates direct 911 dialing in U.S. hotels and other multiline telephone systems. “Today, 9-1-1 services are available to roughly 97 percent of the geographic United States,” Trump said in a statement. “Advances in technology have made this system more widespread, precise, and efficient -- enabling dispatchers to provide rapid response and timely assistance when the difference between life and death can be only a matter of seconds.” House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., and House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., lauded HR-582's enactment. “In the heat of a crisis, Kari’s Law ensures that dialing 9-1-1 means your call will go through, no matter what kind of phone you’re using,” Walden and Blackburn said in a statement. “With this bill now the law of the land, the tragedy that took Kari Hunt's life in 2013 has become a source for positive change, making emergency communications faster and more reliable for every American.” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai also praised the bill: “An access code should not stand between people who call 911 in need of help and emergency responders who can provide assistance.” Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus co-Chairwoman Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., touted the Next Generation 9-1-1 Act (HR-4672/S-2061), which aims to bolster state and local governments’ transition to the technology (see 1702280062 and 1712180066). She tweeted that 911 has become “the first point of contact for Americans in an emergency situation, but we’re still relying on technology that’s fifty years old ... In life-threatening situations seconds matter, and this enhanced information will be a game changer for first responders and the public safety community.”

Nanosys landed a trademark registration Tuesday for the commercial name Hyperion to describe the low-cadmium quantum dots technology the company unveiled at the 2016 Display Week conference (see 1605240002), a Patent and Trademark Office certificate showed. Nanosys claims Hyperion helps a quantum-dot TV achieve 90 percent or more of the colorimetry in the BT.2020 spec, matching the color performance of the industry’s best cadmium-based quantum-dot materials without requiring regulatory safety exemptions. Hyperion had its first commercial use in December, said the PTO certificate. Nanosys applied for the trademark in May 2016, said PTO records.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai highlighted a "call to action" to improve tribal communications, noting the agency last week revamped a Native Nations Communications Task Force and sought member nominations by March 31. "This latest renewal recognizes the importance of tribal input on commission matters that impact Americans living on tribal lands," Pai told the National Congress of American Indians Thursday. He said the task force will consist of 20 tribal members and 11 senior FCC staffers. He said improving rural broadband, including in tribal areas, is one of his top priorities. "Americans living on tribal lands who lack access to high-speed broadband has been cut in half since I arrived at the commission in 2012," from 68 percent to 35 percent, he said. "The bad news is that that percentage is still over four times higher than for the overall U.S. population," only 8 percent of which lacks "internet access." He noted he called for a "tribal broadband factor" in high-cost USF support to boost tribal funding, as part of a draft NPRM and order, which would give over $500 million more to rural carriers (see 1801160040 and 1802150018). Separately, the Oglala Sioux Tribe said the FCC's Lifeline eligibility re-certification process "does not comport with tribal culture" and subscriber abilities, and tribal programs should be used as proxies, in a docket 11-42 filing Wednesday on a meeting representatives had with a Pai aide.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai highlighted a "call to action" to improve tribal communications, noting the agency last week revamped a Native Nations Communications Task Force and sought member nominations by March 31. "This latest renewal recognizes the importance of tribal input on commission matters that impact Americans living on tribal lands," Pai told the National Congress of American Indians Thursday. He said the task force will consist of 20 tribal members and 11 senior FCC staffers. He said improving rural broadband, including in tribal areas, is one of his top priorities. "Americans living on tribal lands who lack access to high-speed broadband has been cut in half since I arrived at the commission in 2012," from 68 percent to 35 percent, he said. "The bad news is that that percentage is still over four times higher than for the overall U.S. population," only 8 percent of which lacks "internet access." He noted he called for a "tribal broadband factor" in high-cost USF support to boost tribal funding, as part of a draft NPRM and order, which would give over $500 million more to rural carriers (see 1801160040 and 1802150018). Separately, the Oglala Sioux Tribe said the FCC's Lifeline eligibility re-certification process "does not comport with tribal culture" and subscriber abilities, and tribal programs should be used as proxies, in a docket 11-42 filing Wednesday on a meeting representatives had with a Pai aide.

The Land Mobile Communications Council requested a meeting with Rosemary Harold, chief of the FCC Enforcement Bureau, on rogue Part 15 devices. The bureau is likely well aware of the problem, the group said in a Tuesday letter. “Devices produced in Asia by multiple manufacturers are often sold through the internet … as well as from retail outlets,” said LMCC. “The accompanying materials note, at most, that the devices have received FCC type-acceptance for use under Part 15 of the rules for amateur operations. In fact, the devices are marketed for use by any entity, for any purpose, complete with programming instructions for operation on any channel from 136-174 MHz and 400-520 MHz without regard or critical information relating to Federal and non-Federal spectrum allocations, user eligibility or licensing requirements.” The FCC didn't comment.