Industry stakeholders universally praised the FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council (CSRIC) report on communications sector cybersecurity risk management for recommending voluntary processes and assurances, with Motorola Solutions saying in comments posted Monday that those recommendations “strike an appropriate balance” between assuring cybersecurity protection and reflecting the interests of all stakeholders. The CSRIC report, adopted in March, was meant to adapt the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework for communications sector use (see 1503180056). Industry groups CTIA and TIA similarly praised the CSRIC report for providing important guidance to the sector (see 1505290042). A separate Department of Commerce Internet Policy Task Force (IPTF) proceeding (see 1504090049 and 1503160059) on possible cybersecurity topics the IPTF should address through multistakeholder work drew multiple filings urging the IPTF to factor the NIST framework into its process.
The Obama administration’s Broadband Opportunity Council later this year could help improve wide-ranging government efforts to expand high-speed Internet access to Americans, but it should follow up annually to ensure the initiatives are sustained, panelists said at an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation event Friday. Although the federal government can be a catalyst, localities will have to do much heavy lifting to remove barriers to investment, with the private sector providing most of the capital, they said. The BOC is an inter-agency group assigned by President Barack Obama to make recommendations by Aug. 20 to spur broadband deployment and adoption. Comments to the group are due by June 10.
FCC E-rate changes are working, but this isn't the time for the agency to stop moving forward, Commissioner Mignon Clyburn told the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition in a speech Friday. The group understands “E-rate modernization was about far more than just adopting speed targets and revamping a budget,” Clyburn said in written remarks. “I am optimistic, because the FCC remains focused on its objective of ensuring access to world-class digital learning tools -- an objective shared by SHLB and the education community.” Clyburn asked attendees to provide plenty of feedback about how the revisions are working in practice. Also “tell us what we are doing right, because positive feedback is welcome as well,” she said. Clyburn also repeated calls for similar overhaul of the USF Lifeline program. The FCC isn't meeting a congressional mandate to ensure that all Americans, including those with low incomes and in rural and high-cost areas, have access to advanced telecom and information services at affordable prices, Clyburn said. “Lifeline, the only universal service program focused on bridging the affordability gap, remains stuck in an era where leg warmers, stretch stirrup pants, and scrunchies were the fashion craze, and talking on our home telephone or sending a letter through the mail were the main means of communicating.” Lifeline should help people build a better life, she said. The program's goal should be “for it to work so effectively that current subscribers will no longer need Lifeline, or any other federal benefits program,” she said. Industry and FCC officials have predicted Lifeline changes could headline the agency’s June 18 open meeting (see 1505010051). Chairman Tom Wheeler is to circulate draft orders for that meeting Thursday. Wireline Bureau Chief Julie Veach said in a blog post Friday that the FCC has drawn some important lessons from its Low Income Broadband Pilot Program, including lessons for possible Lifeline changes. Among the lessons is that consumers “respond well to having a choice of plans” and all households don’t have the same needs for “data speeds, usage amounts, service type and devices,” Veach wrote. Price matters, even if it is not the only barrier to adoption, and carriers “aren’t necessarily the best” at addressing these barriers, especially “lack of digital literacy and relevance to one's life,” Veach said. There is no “silver bullet,” she said. “While the pilots were focused on different approaches for adoption, let's be clear that Lifeline is focused on ensuring services are affordable, not to solve the broadband adoption challenge,” she said. “As the Commission moves forward to consider how to restructure the Lifeline program for the digital age, the pilot report will help provide useful data for the Commission and public to consider.” The FCC also released the report on the pilot program Friday.
FCC E-rate changes are working, but this isn't the time for the agency to stop moving forward, Commissioner Mignon Clyburn told the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition in a speech Friday. The group understands “E-rate modernization was about far more than just adopting speed targets and revamping a budget,” Clyburn said in written remarks. “I am optimistic, because the FCC remains focused on its objective of ensuring access to world-class digital learning tools -- an objective shared by SHLB and the education community.” Clyburn asked attendees to provide plenty of feedback about how the revisions are working in practice. Also “tell us what we are doing right, because positive feedback is welcome as well,” she said. Clyburn also repeated calls for similar overhaul of the USF Lifeline program. The FCC isn't meeting a congressional mandate to ensure that all Americans, including those with low incomes and in rural and high-cost areas, have access to advanced telecom and information services at affordable prices, Clyburn said. “Lifeline, the only universal service program focused on bridging the affordability gap, remains stuck in an era where leg warmers, stretch stirrup pants, and scrunchies were the fashion craze, and talking on our home telephone or sending a letter through the mail were the main means of communicating.” Lifeline should help people build a better life, she said. The program's goal should be “for it to work so effectively that current subscribers will no longer need Lifeline, or any other federal benefits program,” she said. Industry and FCC officials have predicted Lifeline changes could headline the agency’s June 18 open meeting (see 1505010051). Chairman Tom Wheeler is to circulate draft orders for that meeting Thursday. Wireline Bureau Chief Julie Veach said in a blog post Friday that the FCC has drawn some important lessons from its Low Income Broadband Pilot Program, including lessons for possible Lifeline changes. Among the lessons is that consumers “respond well to having a choice of plans” and all households don’t have the same needs for “data speeds, usage amounts, service type and devices,” Veach wrote. Price matters, even if it is not the only barrier to adoption, and carriers “aren’t necessarily the best” at addressing these barriers, especially “lack of digital literacy and relevance to one's life,” Veach said. There is no “silver bullet,” she said. “While the pilots were focused on different approaches for adoption, let's be clear that Lifeline is focused on ensuring services are affordable, not to solve the broadband adoption challenge,” she said. “As the Commission moves forward to consider how to restructure the Lifeline program for the digital age, the pilot report will help provide useful data for the Commission and public to consider.” The FCC also released the report on the pilot program Friday.
Rural telcos reported progress but asked the FCC Wednesday for a couple more weeks to try to develop consensus proposals for reforming universal service funding for rate-of-return (RoR) carriers, said an ex-parte filing by WTA -- Advocates for Rural Broadband. Under prodding from the FCC to develop common proposals, representatives of WTA, the Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance, the National Exchange Carrier Association, NTCA, USTelecom and others updated commission officials on the status of their efforts since April 16. That's when FCC officials asked the telco associations to develop a broad industry plan within a month, but it became clear recently that they hadn't reached a consensus (see 1505150046). In their filing, the groups said they had reached agreement on a number of issues but others remained unresolved for a variety of reasons, "including disagreements between certain representatives and insufficient time to work out the details of certain proposals and options." The groups asked for a two-week extension, until June 3, "to continue to negotiate a comprehensive plan for future RoR high-cost support," the filing said. FCC officials seemed receptive to the industry efforts, one telco official said. "Things are fluid. Hopefully we'll get a little more time to submit a framework," the official said. "We're trying to make sure the plan is all-encompassing," addressing proposals for carriers wanting to move to model-based support and rural group "data connection service" (DCS) proposals for carriers wanting revisions to the current mechanisms to facilitate stand-alone broadband support. The FCC has asked the groups to modify their DNS proposals by including some additional constraints, the telco official said. "So we're trying to make that happen."
The FCC has much left to do to overhaul USF funding and intercarrier compensation (ICC), panelists said at an FCBA seminar Wednesday on reforms since the 2010 National Broadband Plan (NBP). High-cost USF support for generally small, rural rate-of-return carriers and Lifeline USF await major changes, they said. Overhaul of high-cost support for larger price cap carriers and E-rate support for schools and libraries are further along, but questions remain; and numerous ICC disputes continue to bubble, panelists said.
The FCC has much left to do to overhaul USF funding and intercarrier compensation (ICC), panelists said at an FCBA seminar Wednesday on reforms since the 2010 National Broadband Plan (NBP). High-cost USF support for generally small, rural rate-of-return carriers and Lifeline USF await major changes, they said. Overhaul of high-cost support for larger price cap carriers and E-rate support for schools and libraries are further along, but questions remain; and numerous ICC disputes continue to bubble, panelists said.
Net neutrality was just one of many topics before the Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee during a Tuesday hearing, which featured FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and Republican Commissioner Ajit Pai. Senators focused on USF overhaul issues just as lawmakers in the House and Senate pushed for stand-alone broadband support, as expected (see 1504210033). Subcommittee Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., told us after the hearing that his two big concerns with the FCC's FY 2016 budget request, an increase of about $50 million over its current budget, remain “the moving expense” associated with the FCC’s headquarters relocation and the FCC’s use of $25 million from the USF for administrative purposes.
Net neutrality was just one of many topics before the Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee during a Tuesday hearing, which featured FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and Republican Commissioner Ajit Pai. Senators focused on USF overhaul issues just as lawmakers in the House and Senate pushed for stand-alone broadband support, as expected (see 1504210033). Subcommittee Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., told us after the hearing that his two big concerns with the FCC's FY 2016 budget request, an increase of about $50 million over its current budget, remain “the moving expense” associated with the FCC’s headquarters relocation and the FCC’s use of $25 million from the USF for administrative purposes.
Lawmakers in both chambers are preparing a letter to the FCC to address one of NTCA’s USF priorities on stand-alone broadband, reviving a bicameral, bipartisan letter sent to the FCC last Congress. NTCA also received promises from two lawmakers Tuesday that they will take the group’s priorities to heart, with legislation if need be. Prominent topics included overhaul of the USF, call completion problems and net neutrality, a controversial and partisan item in Congress.