The FCC created a new Broadband Deployment Advisory Group body, the Streamlining Federal Siting Working Group. Chairman Ajit Pai announced the new working group after the FCC meeting Thursday, and the agency later released a notice with members (see the personals section of this issue of the publication). Jonathan Adelstein, president of the Wireless Infrastructure Association, will be chair, and Valerie Fast Horse, information technology director at the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, vice chair. They “will tackle how we will address barriers to deployment on property that is controlled by the federal government,” Pai told reporters. “I think their work will fit in nicely with the work the other working groups are doing. I don't think it's going to hold back the overall mission to help us identify barriers to broadband deployment.” Pai also defended the BDAC's overall makeup, saying the membership is broad. Several federal agencies are represented on the working group, including the Agriculture Department, Interior Department and Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Bureau of Land Management. "Nearly a third of America’s landmass and thousands of buildings are owned or controlled by the Federal government," Adelstein said in a news release. "We need processes that ensure Federal resources are efficiently tapped to bridge the digital divide."
Vizio landed a U.S. patent Tuesday that describes a device and method for “correcting lip sync problems on display devices,” Patent and Trademark Office records show. “Maintaining synchronization” between audio and video on a modern TV “is dependent on a number of variables,” said the patent (9,723,180), which lists Chief Technology Officer Matthew McRae as the inventor, based on a January 2014 application. “The sensor creates timestamps for each of the video and audio, and then calculates a difference between those timestamps.” Those differences are then sent to the external device, “which then compensates for the difference.” Company representatives didn’t comment Tuesday.
Vizio landed a U.S. patent Tuesday that describes a device and method for “correcting lip sync problems on display devices,” Patent and Trademark Office records show. “Maintaining synchronization” between audio and video on a modern TV “is dependent on a number of variables,” said the patent (9,723,180), which lists Chief Technology Officer Matthew McRae as the inventor, based on a January 2014 application. “The sensor creates timestamps for each of the video and audio, and then calculates a difference between those timestamps.” Those differences are then sent to the external device, “which then compensates for the difference.” Company representatives didn’t comment Tuesday.
Vizio landed a U.S. patent Tuesday that describes a device and method for “correcting lip sync problems on display devices,” Patent and Trademark Office records show. “Maintaining synchronization” between audio and video on a modern TV “is dependent on a number of variables,” said the patent (9,723,180), which lists Vizio Chief Technology Officer Matthew McRae as the inventor, based on a January 2014 application. For example, “the sync can depend on the amount of computing performed for motion estimation and motion compensation (MEMC),” the patent said. Audio and video data in a content stream are tied together through timing codes that are in embedded in the stream’s audio frames and “associated” video frames, it said. But MEMC processing “typically causes the audio frame to be played before the video frame is displayed,” it said. McRae’s solution is a system that synchronizes audio and video by using a sensor that sees and hears the display of video and audio from an external device, it said. “The sensor creates timestamps for each of the video and audio, and then calculates a difference between those timestamps.” Those differences are then sent to the external device,“ which then compensates for the difference,” it said. Vizio representatives didn’t comment Tuesday on the company’s plans to commercialize McRae’s invention.
APCO expressed concerns about a waiver sought by Arizona Public Service Co. (APSC), which filed 54 applications for 800 MHz channels at 53 locations for a new statewide trunked radio system and said the waiver may be acceptable with the right conditions. The FCC has in place a licensing freeze while the 800 MHz transition is being completed, a slow process along the border with Mexico. “Due to the complexities involved with the rebanding process, and the need to ensure that public safety licensees are afforded full opportunity to maintain consistent operations to carry out their missions, APCO is wary of providing the extraordinary relief that APSC seeks,” the group said. But APCO also noted that APSC agreed that if frequency changes are needed, it will work with the FCC, the 800 MHz transition administrator and other parties. “If the Bureau were to afford the relief sought, APCO recommends that APSC be held accountable and ensure that it will immediately act, at its own cost, to resolve any issues it causes that impact the needs of public safety licensees to access channels during the rebanding process,” the group said. The waiver requests show why it supports six-month advance filing window for public safety and business/industrial/land transportation (B/ILT) licensees, the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council said. “Applicants like APSC have an operational need for land mobile channels as opposed to a speculative need." The Enterprise Wireless Alliance also filed in support of the waiver. “While APSC has described three scenarios for deployment of its new system, the only reasonable, practical approach is the one for which waiver relief is sought,” EWA said. “The purpose of the licensing freeze is to create a stable spectrum environment and ensure that adequate replacement channels are available to permit the reconfiguration of all systems in an area.” Comments were due Monday in docket 17-168.
Lawmakers recently introduced the following trade-related bills:
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, on July 28 introduced legislation that would require the Department of Homeland Security to upgrade license plate readers at all ports of entry and to expand inspection lanes at high-volume ports of entry on the southern border. The Border Security for America Act would require CBP to upgrade the readers within one year of enactment, and for the CBP commissioner “not later than 90 days after” enactment to conduct a one-month pilot at the top three southern land ports of entry. The pilots would be tasked with testing the readers at one or two cargo lanes to determine effectiveness in reducing cross-border wait times for commercial traffic and tractor-trailers. The bill would authorize $125 million to be appropriated in fiscal year 2018 for the pilots, and would require DHS within 180 days of enactment to report to Congress on the pilots’ results and any recommendations for implementing the use of new license plate reader technology on the southern border.
T-Mobile raised questions about FCC wireless radio service overhaul proposals. Draft Section 1.949(d)(2) of the rules could be interpreted to require commercial service geographic licensees “may never fall below a final performance requirement in order to take advantage of the safe harbor renewal certification,” the carrier said. T-Mobile said it has a record of exceeding performance requirements after it starts to offer service. “Nevertheless, like all carriers, T-Mobile’s coverage, when considered on a license-by-license basis, may be interrupted in limited areas from time-to-time because of, for example, natural disasters,” the filing said. “Coverage levels for a particular license may temporarily drop below the level necessary to establish compliance with a final performance requirement even though coverage remains strong in the remainder of the market.” T-Mobile also objected to proposed rules that could prohibit licensees from providing the required certification and require submission of “an explanation of the circumstances preventing such a certification and why renewal of the subject license is in the public interest.” The Wireless Bureau launched the record refresh in May (see 1705020064). The filing in docket 10-112 reflects the carrier's discussions with Wireless Bureau staff. The Land Mobile Communications Council, meanwhile, sent a letter urging the FCC to include public safety in its category of licensees subject to the proposed rules on license renewal and discontinuance of operations.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published its updated 2017 regulatory agenda for CBP (here). The agenda doesn't include any new rulemakings involving trade. Previously listed rulemakings, including on the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (here) and Importer Security Filings (here), continue to be on the agenda.
A draft FCC item on advanced telecom capability deployment is a notice of inquiry, a spokesman told us Friday. Chairman Ajit Pai in January withdrew a draft report on broadband-like ATC deployment under Telecom Act Section 706 (see 1701300058), which previous Chairman Tom Wheeler had circulated to conclude an inquiry begun in 2016. "It sounds like this is a reset, and they're basically going to skip a report," said an informed source.