Qualcomm will appeal a wireless modem intellectual property ruling in favor of the FTC and against the company. U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose issued (in Pacer) a permanent injunction Tuesday night. The stock closed down 11 percent Wednesday at $69.31. Earlier this year, Koh held a 10-day bench trial in FTC v. Qualcomm.
Notable CROSS rulings
Governments around the world should promote public-private investment in research and development to spur innovative and safe application of artificial intelligence technology, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said Wednesday. OECD’s 36 members, including the U.S., and six other countries signed a set of AI principles at its annual Ministerial Council Meeting in Paris.
The FCC is poised to send a message on China at the commissioners’ May 9 meeting, rejecting China Mobile’s application to provide telecommunications services in the U.S. A draft order circulated by Chairman Ajit Pai says granting China Mobile a Section 214 authorization wouldn’t be in the public interest due to national security and law enforcement risks that can’t be addressed through a mitigation agreement, a senior FCC official said Wednesday. Unlike some meetings under Pai, there isn't a broader meeting-wide theme. The FCC also will consider a previously promised FM translator interference item, revised video relay service (VRS) rules, a proposal for the 1675-1680 MHz band sought by Ligado and satellite and a toll-free number auction items.
Colorado could follow multiple other states this year in empowering electric cooperatives to provide broadband in rural areas. But electric co-ops didn't support SB-107, as amended, at the Colorado Senate Business, Labor and Technology Committee's Monday hearing on the bill by Sen. Kerry Donovan (D). Colorado cable companies applauded the amended bill, while CenturyLink hasn't made up its mind but raised a concern about equal treatment for pole attachments. Local government representatives told us the policy could advance rural broadband though they're not taking a formal position on SB-107.
Administration debates over spectrum use for satellite vs. 5G "have been intense," Commerce Department Office of Space Commerce Director Kevin O'Connell said in Senate Commerce Committee testimony Wednesday. He said a worry on the space side is protecting taxpayer investments in federal capabilities like GPS and weather prediction via NOAA satellites, and Commerce wants to ensure the space community has an advocate while a 5G strategy is formulated.
T-Mobile and Sprint might have to wait until June or longer for California’s decision on their $26 billion deal, observers of the state review told us last week. Claiming due process violation by the combining carriers, the CPUC's Public Advocates Office Thursday urged the CPUC to grant more time to respond to carrier testimony that the advocates say was introduced too late in the process. New York earlier this month cleared the deal (see 1902070009).
The FCC's claim to jurisdiction over orbital debris "rests on a thin reed [since] debris generation is not radio communication," space lawyer Laura Montgomery blogged Thursday. She said the launch industry might also want to make clear in the orbital debris NPRM approved at November's meeting (see 1811150028) that the FAA has exclusive jurisdiction over, and the FCC can't put requirements on, launch and re-entry. She said just asking whether requirements could overlap into the domain of other regulatory agencies opens the door to the FCC visiting the issue of regulating debris from launch vehicles. She said it's not clear what congressional authority it has to require licensees indemnify the federal government under damage claims under the Outer Space Treaty and the Space Liability Convention. She also said it's equally unclear how the FCC can discuss requiring disclosure of debris mitigation plans for deployment mechanisms if those devices don't carry a transmitter requiring an FCC license. In a docket 18-313 posting Wednesday, debris mitigation advocacy group Satellite Design for Recovery said orbital debris discussions and rules changes are needed regardless of whether the FCC is the proper agency to drive those. It said design requirements should accommodate future active removal, such as grappling features, and the 25-year lifespan should be replaced with a risk-based rule based on the satellite's orbital altitude, collision cross-section and operating lifetime.
Regulators and policymakers should find ways to maximize international data flow through legislation and trade deals that recognize the public’s right to data privacy, Apple, IBM and BSA|The Software Alliance representatives said Thursday. It’s not about reducing data privacy enforcement, said Apple Global Trade and International Affairs chief Lisa Pearlman, moderating a Washington International Trade Association panel. Finding balance between restricting and enabling data transfers is “one of the biggest challenges,” she said. IBM Market Access and Trade Director Steve Stewart said the more stringent data localization requirements, the less businesses can operate and compete. He noted two-thirds of IBM’s revenue comes from outside the U.S. It’s critical to get cross border data flow rules correct, said BSA Policy Director Joseph Whitlock. He claimed 98 percent of all international data ever gathered was created in the past two or three years. China is the most significant threat to international data flows, C&M International CEO Robert Holleyman said. In China, domestic companies have a clear advantage over international competitors because of data localization standards, he said. Artificial intelligence will have broad, economywide impacts on trade, said Brookings Institution Global Economy and Development Senior Fellow Joshua Meltzer. Large data sets are necessary to improve AI accuracy, he said.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is wrong to propose lowering the de minimis threshold on shipments from Canada and Mexico, said the Internet Association. A lower threshold would mean more goods crossing borders could be subject to duties. "A consistent, high de minimis threshold benefits the entire American e-commerce system, including thousands of small businesses that use the internet to export and import," said IA Director-Trade Policy Jordan Haas Wednesday. USTR’s proposed provision in legislation implementing the new North American Free Trade Agreement “would force small businesses to navigate a complicated, confusing net of customs rules,” said Haas. Businesses complained that even the concessions won in the new NAFTA are complicated and confusing, because Mexico and Canada have different de minimis levels for sales taxes and for customs duties.
A proposed Oklahoma law would set rules for electric cooperatives that provide telecom or internet services. Sen. James Leewright (R) prefiled SB-1002 for introduction when the Oklahoma session opens Feb. 4. It aims to keep telecom and electric units separate including by barring cross-subsidization between electricity and telecom services. Co-ops would have to charge reasonable, nondiscriminatory and commercially reasonable terms for pole attachments by telecom companies. They wouldn’t be allowed to provide video or cable TV service without a local franchise agreement. The bill would take effect Nov. 1. Also last week, the Mississippi House passed a bill supporting broadband by electric co-ops (see 1901160045), while Georgia House Republicans introduced HB-23.