Alaska officials are making arrangements for the state USF’s expected demise June 30. “There is still a lot of preparation and research to be completed,” said Alaska Universal Service Administrative Co. (AUSAC) Agent Keegan Bernier at a Regulatory Commission of Alaska meeting livestreamed Wednesday. The RCA seeks written comments by May 5 on proposed regulatory revisions related to AUSF, said Chair Keith Kurber.
The receiver policy statement circulated by FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel (see 2303300070) likely won’t be too controversial and is at least a small step forward on one of the thorniest spectrum issues, experts told us. It builds on a 2015 paper by the FCC’s Technological Advisory Council, picking up some of the same themes starting with “interference realities.” The FCC document lays out nine principles, as TAC did, and in almost the same order. Commissioners approved 4-0 a broad receiver performance notice of inquiry last year (see 2204210049).
House Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, want the FCC to explain the Media Bureau’s February hearing designation order on the $8.6 billion proposed Standard General/Tegna deal, seen as a de facto denial of the transaction (see 2302240068). Standard, Tegna and NAB are challenging the HDO in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (see 2303310055). Cruz and Rodgers want the FCC to provide information by April 19 on the commission’s handling of the deal, including why the Media Bureau issued the HDO on its own instead of seeking a vote from Rosenworcel and the other three commissioners.
If the U.S. Supreme Court opens online platforms to liability for algorithms through a narrow interpretation of Section 230, it could mean a less consumer-friendly internet and entrench dominant platforms further, tech experts said Tuesday.
IP captioned telephone service providers urged the FCC to proceed with caution in setting new rates for the service, which is funded through the Telecom Relay Services Fund, in reply comments posted Tuesday in docket 03-123. Industry agreed additional data is needed and new rates should account for the full cost of providing the service.
Businesses said privacy protections are too limited in a comprehensive Florida bill approved by a Senate panel Tuesday. The Senate Commerce Committee voted 9-0 for SB-262, a third attempt in three years by Sen. Jennifer Bradley (R) to pass a privacy bill. "We'll continue to work on it,” the state senator said at the webcast hearing.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit dismissed the Standard/Tegna broadcasters' appeal of the FCC’s hearing designation order (HDO), but expedited their petition for mandamus relief. It also ordered the FCC to respond to the petition by April 11, said an order Monday.
Satellite and earth station operators largely -- but not unanimously -- agree on some steps the FCC can take to streamline its satellite application and approval process, according to reply comments this week in docket 22-411. There also were some notes of caution by some about use of shot clocks. The licensing streamlining NPRM was adopted 4-0 in December and in initial comments numerous operators pushed to eliminate the commission's rule that it won't consider applications for operating in a frequency band not allocated internationally by the ITU (see 2303060052).
Major wireless carriers have agreed to extend protections for flight operations from some C-band deployments until Jan. 1, 2028. AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and UScellular filed the latest voluntary commitments Friday, posted by the FCC Monday in docket 18-122. The development comes as the U.S. wireless industry Monday celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first cellphone call, placed by Martin Cooper, then a researcher at Motorola.
Regulators dealing with the growing crush of supplemental coverage from space applications might support trying to help foster SCS business initiatives, but that can't come at the expense of protecting incumbents from interference, Iridium CEO Matt Desch said. In an interview, he discussed with us the genesis of Iridium's SCS partnership with Qualcomm (see 2301050061), on what handset makers and mobile network operators (MNO) are looking for in satellite partners, and what SCS partnerships may be in Iridium's future. Following are Desch's lightly edited responses.