FCC granted additional 8 months to N.Y. PSC, N.Y. State Consumer Protection Board and City of N.Y. to implement 10- digit dialing in N.Y.C. Petitioners said, due to events of Sept. 11 and resulting damage to infrastructure and businesses of city, it would be difficult to begin process for 10-digit implementation.
Skybridge disputed Northpoint contention that terrestrial company was victim of bias in licensing process that favored satellite services over terrestrial services, company said in letter to FCC Chmn. Powell. Skybridge said Northpoint CEO Sophia Collier grossly mischaracterized many relevant facts and regulatory practices.
Faced with criticism of “creeping commercialism” in public broadcasting following FCC decision to allow PTV stations to solicit ads on their excess nonbroadcast digital capacity, Assn. of PTV Stations (APTS) is reviewing voluntary guidelines for PTV stations’ use of their digital ancillary and supplementary services. APTS intends to revise guidelines to ensure that PTV stations use their “new freedom” responsibly, Pres. John Lawson told us. Guidelines would be strengthened with 2 objectives in mind, he said: (1) To assure that stations use their new funding streams to plow back revenue into developing noncommercial content. (2) To demonstrate to critics that PTV stations will use their freedom to solicit ads on nonbroadcast digital channels responsibly.
Practising Law Institute will hold “Working with the FCC” seminar on enforcement policy and practice Feb. 14-15, Madison Hotel, Washington. Program will give information on defending formal complaints at FCC, appearing at hearings before agency administrative law judges, developing compliance plans. FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief David Solomon will give tutorial on structure and operation of bureau -- 800-260-4754 or www.pli.edu.
National Telecom Co-op Assn. (NTCA) told FCC it opposed proposal submitted by Ad Hoc Telecom Users Committee, AT&T, E-commerce Telecom Users Group and WorldCom to revise way Universal Service Fund (USF) contributions are collected (CD Nov 20 p1). In Dec. 21 letter to FCC Chmn. Powell, NTCA said proposal’s goal seemed to be to relieve long distance companies “of their obligation to make equitable contributions” to USF. That is “in direct violation” of Sec. 254 of Telecom Act that requires all interstate carriers to contribute on equitable basis, NTCA said. “The proposal is couched as a plan to replace the current USF assessment mechanism with a flat-rated per-line charge,” wrote NTCA CEO Michael Brunner. “It is more than that,” he said: “If adopted, the class of carriers providing interexchange services such as those provided by AT&T and WorldCom would have no obligations to contribute to the mechanisms.”
Library of American Bcstg. elected 5 new board members: James Greenwald, Katz Media Group; Marc Guild, Interep; James Morley, retired Cox Radio; former FCC Comr. Susan Ness; Russell Withers, Withers Bcstg. Library, based at U. of Md. in College Park, is off-shoot of Washington chapter of Bcst. Pioneers.
Using Internet to recruit minorities for broadcast stations and cable system is “a promising development,” FCC said in text of its Dec. 12 EEO proceeding, which became public Wed. But Commission said Web couldn’t “be relied upon, by itself, to widely disseminate job vacancy information.” TV companies must continue to use other recruitment methods, FCC said, but it’s willing to revisit issue in future. Commission did decide, however, that there was no proof that it would be unduly burdensome for every broadcaster to place its EEO public file on its Web site, if it had one. Broadcasters had claimed some wouldn’t have ability to post that much information easily, but FCC said they hadn’t proved their case. It said it was willing to reconsider if broadcasters provided adequate proof of burden.
Comments are due Jan. 22 on remand by 5th U.S. Appeals Court, New Orleans, of $650 million figure set for new universal fund under CALLS plan, reply comments Feb. 4. FCC Common Carrier Bureau announced earlier this month (CD Dec 5 p8) that it was seeking comments specifically on potential cost models to identify appropriate amount for fund. It announced comment deadline in Dec. 21 Federal Register. FCC in CALLS order earlier this year had reformed interstate rate structure for price cap carriers by removing implicit universal support and replacing it with explicit support. Court said FCC had provided inadequate justification for $650 million figure.
FCC gave Boeing authority to operate up to 800 mobile Earth stations aboard aircraft in 14.0-14.5 GHz uplink band and 11.7-12.2 GHz downlink band. Order is conditioned on Boeing’s providing service without causing harmful interference to other services. Other conditions include: (1) Boeing, as nonconforming user, must accept any interference from any station authorized to use band. (2) Boeing can’t use system for air traffic control communications. (3) Boeing must comply with any equivalent isotropically radiated power spectral density or other limits adopted by ITU to protect other global services. (4) Boeing can’t start service in 14.0-14.5 band until coordination of Boeing’s aircraft earth stations have been successfully completed through NTIA Frequency Assignment Committee of Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee. (5) Boeing must design and operate system in accordance with its Dec. 13, 2000, technical operational coordination agreement with National Science Foundation. (6) Nonconforming use of 14.0- 14.5 GHz band can’t constrain future deployment of additional Federal Earth Stations authorized for space research service. (7) Company must comply with specific design guidelines. (8) Boeing must maintain point of contact to immediately address remedy for any harmful interference events. Contact information must be provided within 30 days. Boeing also has 30 days to decline FCC order as conditioned. Authorization would permit Boeing to expand one-way Ku-band aeronautical communication service by making available 2-way broadband connectivity to passengers and crew aboard, FCC said.
EchoStar is planning to invest $1 billion to expand Hughes’ Spaceway subsidiary. CEO Charles Ergen admitted decision to invest so much in high-speed Internet project was “extremely risky” pursuit. He said “shareholders may not like me too much” because “I'm passionate about trying to develop that technology.” Ergen promised to develop new generation of satellites to boost Spaceway and said deal would give company “the financial structure and subscriber base” needed to avoid “betting the entire company on the outcome” of project. He also said he planned to grow stake in PanAmSat, satellite operator of which Hughes owns 81%.