Expect the FTC to quickly initiate a comprehensive privacy rulemaking after nominee Alvaro Bedoya is confirmed (see 2204150063), former officials and advocates said in interviews.
Industry and consumer advocacy organizations urged the FCC to leverage local governments and nonprofit organizations in its outreach efforts to boost enrollment in the affordable connectivity program (see 2203170048). The FCC received reply comments Friday in docket 21-450 on how the agency should design its outreach grant program and pilot program to boost enrollment for households receiving federal public housing assistance.
As NTIA and the states work through the details of the more than $48 billion in connectivity money that will be awarded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the wireless industry is making a concerted push to make sure wireless remains part of the equation. Some state officials remain skeptical of how big of a role wireless will play, and remain focused on fiber. Industry officials are watching closely for NTIA rules due out in May.
Supply chain disruption will likely speed the transition to new Wi-Fi technologies, panelists said on Parks Associates’ Thursday virtual Connections event. Legacy chips are based on older wafer technology that’s “impossible to use” during the current wafer crisis,” said Oz Yildirim, Airties general manager, so the transition to Wi-Fi 6, 6e and 7 “will just go faster.” At RF semiconductor company Qorvo, Wi-Fi 6 and 6e technology are well over 80% of shipments, said Marketing Director Tony Testa.
Ericsson will record “extraordinary costs” of about 900 million Swedish krona ($94.3 million) from its decision to suspend its “effective business in Russia indefinitely,” said CEO Borje Ekholm on a Q1 earnings call Thursday.
The 2022 NAB Show is projected to have about 55% of the attendance of the last in-person show in 2019, but broadcasters told us it feels like a step toward the industry getting back to where it was pre-COVID-19. The show runs April 23-27 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Wireless carriers balked at a California Public Utilities Commission staff plan to restrict subscribers from combining state low-income support with federal affordable connectivity program (ACP) benefits for mobile plans. The CPUC received comments Thursday in docket R.20-02-008 on interaction among California LifeLine, federal Lifeline and ACP. The plan “is inconsistent with and preempted by applicable federal law, violates California law governing the state’s LifeLine program, and ignores relevant facts regarding subscribers’ wireless data needs,” said the National Lifeline Association.
The FCC Wireline Bureau granted limited waivers of the affordable connectivity program's non-usage rules and a requirement that participating providers apply the monthly benefit to all plans, said an order Friday in docket 21-450. The bureau denied several requests to extend the “all plans requirement” to all participating providers. Providers were required to comply with these rules by Friday (see 2202110055).
Democratic FCC nominee Gigi Sohn’s difficult confirmation process and the partisan divisions during the Senate’s 2020 approval of Republican Commissioner Nathan Simington (see 2012080068) don’t necessarily guarantee future commission nominees will face similarly contentious fights, lawmakers and communications policy stakeholders said in interviews. Some observers cited the Senate’s December 68-31 confirmation vote for FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel (see 2112070029) and its 2019 unanimous consent to approve Commissioners Brendan Carr and Geoffrey Starks to their current terms as signs that bipartisan consensus on some nominees remains possible.
Elon Musk offered to buy Twitter Thursday and take it private, saying he wants to transform the platform and defend free speech. The Tesla CEO and Twitter shareholder announced his bid through an SEC filing, in which he offered to buy 100% of Twitter at $54.20 per share, estimating the value of the company at $43.4 billion.