Industry officials urged Congress to reconsider many elements of USF support policy, despite lauding the broad principles that have guided it. House Communications Subcommittee Republicans issued a white paper last month (http://1.usa.gov/1pmX66c) asking several questions about USF, seeking responses by Friday. It was the fifth white paper the subcommittee issued as part of efforts to overhaul the Communications Act, an initiative announced in December. Initial responses, which the committee has not posted online but were shared with us, were on what parties considered necessary changes to the USF contribution mechanism.
Correction: The name of the Department of Defense facility that partnered with Cascade County, Montana, on a land-use study map was Malmstrom Air Force Base (CD Sept 18 p19).
County governments are continuing to encourage the deployment of wireless facilities and are committed to developing best practices, said NATOA Executive Director Stephen Traylor and representatives for local governments Friday during a meeting with Renee Gregory, wireless aide to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. Joe Briggs, a commissioner in Cascade County, Montana, said the county created a land use study map with the Department of Defense’s Malmstom Air Force Base outlining areas for the construction of wireless facilities and other development, the National Association of Counties (NAC) said in an ex parte posted Wednesday. Such maps “could be the type of information included in a best practices manual,” NAC said in docket 13-238. NAC also discussed the possibility of hosting or contributing to an FCC workshop after the FCC develops rules on wireless facilities siting (http://bit.ly/1wEwDFj).
The Bureau of Industry and Security processed its sanctions measures put into force on Sept. 12, and the package will hit the Federal Register on Sept. 17. The BIS measures landed 10 Russian entries on the Entity List (see 14091503).
DirecTV is confident it will land the renewal of the NFL Sunday Ticket package of NFL games by year-end, said a Wells Fargo analyst who said she heard CEO Mike White use words to that effect at an investor conference. Lower-than-expected programming costs at DirecTV are mainly due to its not carrying some sports networks like that of the Los Angeles Dodgers, wrote Wells Fargo’s Marci Ryvicker in an email to investors. But DirecTV programming costs will grow by a double-digit percentage in 2015, Ryvicker said. Renewing the NFL Sunday Ticket deal is “important” for completing AT&T’s plan to buy DirecTV, she said. Under their merger agreement, AT&T is free to walk away from the deal if DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket package isn’t renewed “substantially on the terms discussed between the parties,” AT&T has said in SEC filings (CED May 20 p1).
The InfoComm 2014 AV show in mid-June gave “safe haven” to exhibitors that are “direct infringers” of HDMI trademarks by letting them market, promote and sell unlicensed HDMI products on the show floor, shielded from investigators, HDMI Licensing alleged in a complaint filed against InfoComm International, the show’s organizers.
The InfoComm 2014 AV show in mid-June gave “safe haven” to exhibitors that are “direct infringers” of HDMI trademarks by letting them market, promote and sell unlicensed HDMI products on the show floor, HDMI Licensing alleged in a complaint filed against InfoComm International, the show’s organizers.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative touted more substantial progress in Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations on Sept. 10 following the conclusion of a 10-day chief negotiator summit in Hanoi. USTR said officials reached compromise on “many” outstanding issues and narrowed disagreement in other areas, including state-owned enterprises, intellectual property, investment, rules of origin, and labor. USTR Michael Froman will continue to work with “his TPP counterparts in the coming weeks,” and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh will meet with Froman next week in Washington, D.C., said USTR in a press release (here).
Several U.S. wireless carriers jumped on Samsung’s worldwide Galaxy Note 4 announcements Wednesday in hopes of winning new subscribers in the hotly competitive market. Sprint said it will be the only wireless carrier to offer the U.S. version of the Galaxy Note 4 and the Note Edge capable of running on its high-speed Sprint Spark network (http://on.mktw.net/1rMO8SP). Sprint also told customers it will offer the Gear VR virtual reality headset, also launched Wednesday, that’s designed to use the Galaxy Note 4 as the screen.
Several U.S. wireless carriers jumped on Samsung’s worldwide Galaxy Note 4 announcements Wednesday in hopes of winning new subscribers in the hotly competitive market. Sprint said it will be the only wireless carrier to offer the U.S. version of the Galaxy Note 4 and the Note Edge capable of running on its high-speed Sprint Spark network (http://on.mktw.net/1rMO8SP). Sprint also told customers it will offer the Gear VR virtual reality headset, also launched Wednesday, that’s designed to use the Galaxy Note 4 as the screen. US Cellular issued an email statement that it could confirm it will carry the Galaxy Note 4 in October and that it will follow up with details later. Verizon Wireless’s landing page led with the Galaxy Note 4 and Edge on Wednesday under the banner “The Next Big Thing is Coming Soon.” Verizon extended an invitation for customers to sign up for email updates on availability with the lure to “Be the first to get product, pre-order and launch details.” AT&T, meanwhile, didn’t show either of the new Samsung Notes, featuring instead on its launch page a free 8 GB iPhone 4s, with contract, along with a smattering of refurbished phones from other carriers. T-Mobile also pushed refurbished phones on its landing page. When we typed Note 4 into the search field, a chat box appeared asking if we needed help.