Concerns over potential technical and procedural issues related to the deployment of as-yet-unproven quota systems in ACE are leaving customs brokers uncertain on the eve of the July 23 ACE deadline for most remaining entry types, said brokers in interviews. A lack of real world testing and changes to quota business practices means some brokers aren’t entirely sure what’s going to happen after the deadline. The uncertainty is compounded by the simultaneous decommissioning of legacy Automated Commercial System, which leaves filers without a fallback that has been particularly valuable in the truck environment.
The State Department on May 24 received an application from the North Dakota Department of Transportation for a permit to expand the Pembina-Emerson Land Port of Entry, located on the border of North Dakota and Manitoba, Canada, State said (here). State is circulating the application to relevant federal agencies for review and comment, and the public can comment on the application until Oct. 31, State said.
Industry observers are reviewing the text of the FCC spectrum frontier order and Further NPRM, they said. The FCC posted the document quietly, acknowledging in a Monday tweet the order and NPRM were available for public perusal. The text is 278 pages with supporting documents.
The legacy Automated Commercial System should remain available for filers following the July 23 mandatory use date for most remaining entry types in ACE, the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America said in a letter to CBP dated July 14 (here). Though CBP said it will begin decommissioning ACS on July 23 and the system will be unavailable as a backup (see 1605270002), ACS should remain available in cases of delays resulting from down time, slow processing or software issues, because costs to the trade community would be too great without the ACS fallback option, the NCBFAA said.
The FCC Enforcement Bureau and Blue Jay Wireless settled an investigation into whether the company improperly enrolled Hawaii customers into enhanced tribal support options under the USF Lifeline low-income program. Under an order approving a consent decree, Blue Jay will reimburse USF about $2 million and undertake compliance measures, said an agency release Friday. "This settlement makes clear that no Lifeline provider should turn a blind eye to potential fraud on the program," said Enforcement Bureau Chief Travis LeBlanc. The bureau found the company incorrectly requested and received the extra tribal funding (up to $25 extra per subscriber monthly) for consumers not residing in the Hawaiian Home Lands, the release said. Despite being informed in 2014 by Hawaii state regulators that the number of tribal subscribers it was claiming appeared to exceed the number of households in the Hawaiian Home Lands, Blue Jay continued to seek tribal support while it gathered more information, it added. The consent decree said Blue Jay admitted that from May to August 2014, it certified that it obtained tribal certifications from some subscribers who were later determined by Blue Jay to be nonresidents of the Hawaiian Home Lands. Commissioner Ajit Pai said the settlement confirms Lifeline still contains waste, fraud and abuse: "I can confirm that Blue Jay Wireless is one target of my ongoing investigation and that I flagged further suspicious conduct for the Enforcement Bureau’s investigation earlier this year. I will continue to work with my colleagues, the Enforcement Bureau, the Inspector General, and the Universal Service Administrative Company to end the abuse of taxpayer money by unscrupulous wireless resellers." The commission last year sought public comment on whether to require additional evidence of tribal residency beyond self-certification and on how providers should provide proof in order to prevent waste, fraud and abuse, said the FCC release. Blue Jay said the settlement memorializes its process for verifying subscriber self-certifications, which included building its own geo-mapping tool. "USAC concluded that this process was 'conservative to the Fund' because FCC rules require only applicant self-certification," Blue Jay said in a statement. "The settlement also allows Blue Jay to make good on a prior commitment to 'make the Fund whole.'" CEO David Wareikis said that the carrier "made the commitment to make the Fund whole because it did not want to be seen as benefiting in any way from erroneous self-certifications made by subscribers." The agreement "contains no finding or admission of wrongdoing by Blue Jay, and affirms Blue Jay's good standing" as an eligible telecom carrier, he said. "The consent decree shows that Blue Jay took voluntary proactive efforts to protect against possible fraud and would never turn a blind eye to potential fraud in the program.”
Comcast produced the second-to-worst level of customer satisfaction this year across many industries, while Amazon tied for second best, in the 2016 Temkin Web Experience Ratings report. Temkin Group, a customer experience research firm, reports annually on how satisfied consumers are with large organizations across many industries. Comcast TV service scored 29 percent, which is 9 points below the TV service industry average, and Comcast internet scored 30 percent, 8 points below the ISP average, Temkin said. Charter and Cox also landed in the bottom 10, scoring 35 percent apiece. Cablevision, Dish Network and Bright House Networks tied for best among TV providers at 46 percent. AOL took the highest ISP rating at 51 percent, followed by AT&T (45 percent), Cablevision (44 percent) and Verizon (43 percent). On the top end of the ratings, Amazon scored 75 percent, handily outperforming the retail industry average by 19 points. Its Kindle business beat the computer industry average by the same amount, scoring 73 percent overall.
Comcast produced the second-to-worst level of customer satisfaction this year across many industries, while Amazon tied for second best, in the 2016 Temkin Web Experience Ratings report. Temkin Group, a customer experience research firm, reports annually on how satisfied consumers are with large organizations across many industries. Comcast TV service scored 29 percent, which is 9 points below the TV service industry average, and Comcast internet scored 30 percent, 8 points below the ISP average, Temkin said. Charter and Cox also landed in the bottom 10, scoring 35 percent apiece. Cablevision, Dish Network and Bright House Networks tied for best among TV providers at 46 percent. AOL took the highest ISP rating at 51 percent, followed by AT&T (45 percent), Cablevision (44 percent) and Verizon (43 percent). On the top end of the ratings, Amazon scored 75 percent, handily outperforming the retail industry average by 19 points. Its Kindle business beat the computer industry average by the same amount, scoring 73 percent overall.
Comcast produced the second-to-worst level of customer satisfaction this year across many industries, while Amazon tied for second best, in the 2016 Temkin Web Experience Ratings report. Temkin Group, a customer experience research firm, reports annually on how satisfied consumers are with large organizations across many industries. Comcast TV service scored 29 percent, which is 9 points below the TV service industry average, and Comcast internet scored 30 percent, 8 points below the ISP average, Temkin said. Charter and Cox also landed in the bottom 10, scoring 35 percent apiece. Cablevision, Dish Network and Bright House Networks tied for best among TV providers at 46 percent. AOL took the highest ISP rating at 51 percent, followed by AT&T (45 percent), Cablevision (44 percent) and Verizon (43 percent). On the top end of the ratings, Amazon scored 75 percent, handily outperforming the retail industry average by 19 points. Its Kindle business beat the computer industry average by the same amount, scoring 73 percent overall.
Rovi and TiVo landed “early termination” of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period on Rovi’s proposed TiVo buy for $1.1 billion in cash and stock (see 1604290044), the companies said in a joint Monday announcement. The deal still awaits “other customary closing conditions,” including formal approval of both companies' shareholders, they said. The companies still expect the deal to close in Q3, they said.
Rovi and TiVo landed “early termination” of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period on Rovi’s proposed TiVo buy for $1.1 billion in cash and stock (see 1604290044), the companies said in a joint Monday announcement. The deal still awaits “other customary closing conditions,” including formal approval of both companies' shareholders, they said. The companies still expect the deal to close in Q3, they said.