Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) announced technical forum to address wireless Enhanced 911 (E911). Emergency Services Interconnection Forum will determine best practices necessary to deploy E911 services with emphasis on interconnections among carrier, public safety and other networks, ATIS said. Members include wireless carriers, location technology vendors, public safety, handset and wireless equipment manufacturers, local exchange carriers. Group said it would require support of state and local govt. and FCC. First meeting will be May 7-8 at ATIS hq in Washington -- www.atis.org.
Criticisms by FCC Comrs. Martin and Copps Wed. haven’t affected EchoStar’s plans to follow suggestions made by agency’s Media Bureau after it ruled last week that company’s “2-dish” plan for meeting local-into-local broadcast carriage requirement violated FCC rules and Communications Act. Martin and Copps said (CD April 11 p12) decision gave company “easy loophole” to continue 2-dish policy and made it “needlessly burdensome” for consumers to get all of their available local broadcast channels. EchoStar spokeswoman said Thurs. that company would comply with FCC in requested time period and already had begun to implement some of Commission’s suggestions. EchoStar wouldn’t comment on whether it expected any further ruling from Commission. If proposed EchoStar acquisition of DirecTV is approved, all customers are expected to receive local channels through single dish.
FCC extended period for comments on universal service contribution methodology to April 22 (instead of April 12) for initial comments, May 13 (instead of April 29) for replies. Verizon had asked for even longer extension -- to May 3 and June 3 -- to give more time to consider complex issue and also to align comment period with related proceeding on wireline broadband access. FCC said its more limited extension still gave parties more time without “unduly delaying the proceeding.”
Rep. Terry (R-Neb.) said he had encouraged House Commerce Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) to push for Rural Issues Div. at FCC, but proposal “has not been warmly embraced.” He therefore may introduce legislation to form such unit at Commission, he said Thurs. at National Telecom Co-op Assn. policy conference in Washington. He said survival of some rural communities depended on being connected to rest of world, hence need for Congress to develop policies to ensure basic phone service and promote broadband deployment. Terry emphasized that although Tauzin hadn’t offered support to create rural division, leadership and the committee as whole were “dedicated to getting broadband into every county” in U.S.
FCC granted SBC’s request for pricing flexibility for special access and dedicated transport services in various geographic areas. Opponents had argued that Bells were raising prices in areas where they had been granted flexibility and agency’s “colocation triggers” weren’t good assessment of whether market was competitive enough to merit pricing flexibility. FCC in rather strong terms rejected argument that price increases after flexibility was granted indicated rules weren’t working. “This is no more than a collateral attack on the adequacy of the pricing flexibility rules adopted by the Commission… which were upheld on appeal,” agency said. “As previously stated in our Pricing Flexibility Order, some price increases may be warranted because our rules may have required incumbent LECs to price access services below cost in certain areas.” Commission also criticized competitors’ argument that triggers didn’t work: “Again this is a collateral attack on the rules adopted by the Commission.”
FCC issued long-awaited order Thurs. on Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) remand, keeping intact so-called punch list requirements that wireline and wireless carriers had urged Commission to drop. Lengthy order adopted definition for call-identifying information that was broader than that sought by wireless industry and others. But Commission said order, which responded to Aug. 2000 partial remand by U.S. Appeals Court, D.C., adopted approach for call-identifying information that could be more easily “converted into network capabilities” than definition backed by Justice Dept. and FBI. D.C. Circuit ruling had vacated 4 punch-list provisions covering custom-calling features and dialed digits, saying FCC hadn’t adequately explained why those capabilities were included in earlier CALEA order. On cost considerations related to those electronic surveillance capabilities, D.C. Circuit said it couldn’t make connection between facts on which Commission based its decision and choices it made. In latest order, FCC outlined its reasoning and stood by its required implementation of CALEA surveillance capabilities as cost- effective. FCC Comr. Copps expressed concern that CALEA- related costs for those mandates would be high for residential customers and wireless carriers, particularly rural providers.
FCC should take advantage of universal service remand proceeding to “comprehensively reexamine universal service reform” and determine what parts of system “dampen competitive opportunity,” Competitive Universal Service Coalition (CUSC) said in comments filed late Thurs. FCC had asked for comments on issues raised by 10th U.S. Appeals Court, Denver, in its remand last year of agency’s 9th universal service order. Commission order set mechanism for determining how much federal universal service support would go to larger ILECs but 10th Circuit in Qwest v. FCC said agency hadn’t adequately: (1) Defined Telecom Act’s requirement that support in rural areas be comparable to urban areas. (2) Explained its reasoning for setting funding benchmark at 135% of national average. (3) Provided inducements for states to implement comparable universal service policies. CUSC said last requirement was particularly important -- that FCC provide inducements for states to develop plans that conformed with Commission’s procompetitive policies. That could be done by tying availability of federal support to state efforts to adopt competitive policies, CUSC said. Under Coalition’s plan, federal support would be available only if states employed “competitively neutral rules” for designating eligibility for state and federal subsidies and assured that all intrastate subsidy mechanisms were “explicit, portable and competitively and technologically neutral.” Tenth Circuit’s decision “leaves no question that it is up to the FCC to provide direction for state efforts with respect to both federal and state universal service programs,” CUSC said. Representing incumbent telco interests in rural areas, National Telecom Co-operative Assn. (NTCA) said such inducements “should not create mandates on states that would interfere with a state’s jurisdiction over intrastate rates and services.” NTCA said it was concerned that decisions in proceeding not “affect the calculations of universal service support for rural telephone companies or hinder the rights of rate-of-return carriers to recover costs properly allocated to the interstate jurisdiction.” NTCA also urged FCC to consider disparities in rural service when it defined term “reasonably comparable” as required by court. “Today, this country does not have a fair and equitable way to reconcile differences in rates for basic local calling services,” Assn. said. Some rural companies have low basic rates but calling areas so small that they have to make long distance calls to key parts of their communities such as hospitals and schools, NTCA said. Tex. PUC said it supported idea of inducements to encourage states to implement universal service mechanisms but “states with viable universal service support mechanisms, such as Texas, should be exempt from such requirements.” Tex. PUC urged FCC not to implement “unwarranted, mandatory mechanisms” because “mandatory state inducements could impose inappropriate hardships that could disrupt the currently successful operation” of Tex. universal service fund.
As expected (CD April 11 p12), FCC said it planned to rule on Northpoint-DBS issue and establishment of policy for nongeostationary satellite orbit, fixed satellite service in Ku- Band at its April 18 agenda meeting. Also on agenda are: (1) Issues involving IP-based telecom relay service. (2) Universal service support for rural health care. (3) Report on recent ITU Telecom Development Conference.
There were fewer NAB and FCC staffers in Las Vegas this week as Assn. cut back its spending. NAB pays expenses, including air fare and hotel rooms, for FCC contingent and “handful” of staffers who regularly attend NAB were left in Washington -- including Barbara Kreisman, chief of Video Div., who had been on many convention panels over years. We heard several FCC staffers complaining about Kreisman not receiving invitation. Asked why, NAB official said “no money.”
FCC dismissed petition to deny transfer of license of WKCF (Ch. 18, WB) Clermont, Fla., to Emmis TV from Press Communications, saying complaints of Susan Jaramillo and Joseph Rey were fully considered by Mass Media Bureau. Petitioners were owners of WRBW (Ch. 65, UPN) Orlando.