The U.S. should “reaffirm its commitment to voluntary global standards that are open and that facilitate the interoperability of communications and information devices and apps,” CTA asked NTIA as the U.S. prepares for ITU’s 2020 World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly. Others said the U.S. should oppose any push to expand ITU work, in comments posted Tuesday. ITU shouldn’t “duplicate, replace, or interfere with existing efforts, particularly with respect to issues outside the ITU’s core mission,” CTA said. “The consumer technology marketplace is innovative and competitive here and worldwide," the group said: “The current voluntary global standards process reflects this competitive environment by promoting innovation and flexibility while providing for interoperability and security.” Oppose a “new IP” proposal before WTSA, the Telecommunications Industry Association said. Proponents Huawei and the Chinese government say the proposal “promises to provide better support for heterogeneous networks that more efficiently combine satellite and terrestrial signals, deliver better performance, increase security, and support futuristic applications,” TIA said. The proposal duplicates work underway by standards bodies, “poses practical and technical challenges,” and “works against the multi-stakeholder approach to the Internet,” TIA said. “There is a concerning trend with respect to the ITU pursuing standards work outside of its mandate, which duplicates work being done in more appropriate fora,” Computer & Communications Industry Association commented: “Duplication can lead to fragmentation of the Internet and hinder further development of new technologies.” Streamline the number of technical ITU study groups, CCIA advised. ACT|The App Association also warned against more regulation. “While larger corporations may be more equipped to absorb the costs associated with unnecessary regulations and trade barriers to market access, small businesses that cannot afford these expenses are effectively excluded from these markets,” ACT said. Most proposals likely at WTSA aren’t “areas of expertise” and shouldn’t be on the agenda, the Information Technology Industry Council said: “ITI would not support the exploration of new study groups and instead supports the continued consolidation of study groups that are no longer relevant or duplicative.” WTSA-20 is "an opportunity for the U.S. government and our allies to ensure that the ITU does not expand its jurisdiction and remains focused on its existing mandate and core competencies,” the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said. NTIA sought comment in May (see 2005080023). WTSA-20 is scheduled for Hyderabad, India, Nov. 17-27.

The Senate Commerce Committee plans a June 16 confirmation hearing on FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly and four others, as expected (see 2006040060). President Donald Trump renominated O’Rielly in March to a term ending June 30, 2024. O’Rielly’s current term ended last June, but he can remain on the commission until this Congress ends at the beginning of 2021. O’Rielly has a good chance of confirmation (see 2004030072). Other nominees set to testify include Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairman nominee Nancy Beck, Joel Szabat for undersecretary of transportation for policy and Commerce Department acting General Counsel Michael Walsh, Senate Commerce said Tuesday evening. The hearing begins at 2:30 p.m. in G50 Dirksen.

“Inequality, unjustifiable violence against Black people, exclusion and systemic racism still exist,” blogged FCC Office of Communications Business Opportunities Director Sanford Williams in a post shared Tuesday by the FCBA. “We don’t just need diversity. We need equity and inclusion.” Listen, practice self-care, learn about American history and talk honestly to children about the protests and discrimination, Williams said. “Speak up when people say things that are blatantly racist and sexist.” Don’t tweet “with tales of looting or rioting,” he added. “The VAST and overwhelming majority of protests were peaceful.” The FCBA said: “There is much more we can do, and this must be the beginning of a new stage of the conversation about diversity, inclusion, and equity in our bar and beyond -- a conversation that does not fade away, but that leads to real, concrete change.”

Alleged robocall businesses Rising Eagle Capital and JSquared Telecom and principals of the companies were subject Tuesday to the largest fine in FCC history -- $225 million -- and litigation brought by seven states alleging Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) violations. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said the fine proposal -- approved unanimously by the commissioners -- "represents a major win" for commission efforts to partner with the telecom industry on robocall issues. USTelecom's Industry Traceback Group traced the calls coming from the firms and passed that information on to the Enforcement Bureau, he said. USTelecom didn't comment. The FCC said the fine is for an estimated 1 billion spoofed robocalls made in the first four-plus months of 2019 by the health insurance telemarketers. It said the calls purported to be from such insurers as Aetna, BlueCross BlueShield, Cigna and UnitedHealth Group but were on behalf of unaffiliated insurer clients of Rising Eagle and JSquared. It said people on the Do Not Call registry were particularly targeted. Chairman Ajit Pai said at least one of the companies that Rising Eagle and JSquared falsely claimed to represent was sued multiple times because its number was spoofed. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said the fine "sounds right [for] fraud on an enormous scale" but criticized the DOJ for its largely fruitless efforts in recent years collecting FCC-levied fines. Echoing her, Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said it's also difficult to get information from the Enforcement Bureau on collections efforts. DOJ and EB didn't comment. The states' litigation (docket 20-cv-02021) brought Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Houston makes allegations similar to those the FCC investigated and says the companies also would make robocalls trying to sell automobile extended service warranties. The suit asks for damages of $1,500 for each willful TCPA violation or $500 for each unknowing violation, plus a permanent enjoinder. It alleges 328 million robocalls made to seven states during the first four-plus months of 2019. Suing are the state attorneys general of Arkansas, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas. John Spiller, allegedly a principal of the companies and named in the states' suits, told us he was unaware of any possible fine, that he and fellow defendant Jakob Mears were unaware of an FCC investigation, and he denied the commission's robocall allegations.

Comments are due June 16 on the FCC Wireless Bureau's public notice seeking input on C-band preliminary lump sum categories and payment amounts available to fixed satellite service earth stations (see 2006040023), said Monday's Federal Register.

Twitter defended its decision to block the Free State Foundation from promoting a net neutrality tweet. “Don't Regulate the Internet as a Public Utility! Public utility regulation would be harmful and counterproductive, suppressing investment and innovation,” the tweet said. Promotion of the tweet was rejected because it was identified as political, a spokesperson wrote us Monday: “Twitter globally prohibits the promotion of political content defined as content that references a candidate, political party, elected or appointed government official, election, referendum, ballot measure, legislation, regulation, directive, or judicial outcome.” Free State Foundation said Twitter “claims to be for Net Neutrality -- but not when a view is expressed contrary to their views on Net Neutrality! Can you believe it was rejected?”

CTIA and USTelecom petitioned the FCC for regulatory relief on pro forma filings. The paperwork is routine and includes a company assigning a license authorization from one wholly owned subsidiary to another, said the Friday petition. “There remains a patchwork of similar but not identical requirements, procedures, and deadlines that vary by license type and reviewing Commission bureau,” the groups said: “A single non-substantial internal transaction can require a Commission licensee to file dozens or even hundreds of notifications for the same event. These filings can be numerous and complex, administratively burdensome, and do not further the public interest. They can strain resources for license holders who often have very few licenses, such as those used for two-way radio and other limited, internal communications.”

The FCC Wireless Bureau is seeking comment on the preliminary lump sum categories and payment amounts for fixed satellite service (FSS) incumbent earth station operators in the C-band transition, said a public notice Thursday. Comments will be due seven days after Federal Register publication. Telesat in a docket 18-122 posting Thursday said delaying the C-band transition plan deadline could have "collateral consequences" such as hindering the work to be done by the relocation coordinator. It said what the FCC has said about reimbursable costs "still [needs] to be fleshed out" but is enough for putting together a transition plan by the June 12 deadline. NCTA said the FCC needs to make sure MVPDs and content companies have a voice in encoding and modulation decisions and transition implementation. It said the cost catalog should be amended to reflect such decisions aren't satellite operators' alone.

The U.S. C-band auction appears on track for a December start, but other auctions globally are being delayed by COVID-19, satellite spectrum officials said in a webinar Thursday. There will be mobile interest in parts of the C band for international mobile telecom (IMT) at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference, but the big spectrum struggle could be between the mobile industry and broadcasters, said ITU Space Services Department Chief Alexandre Vallet. Mohaned Juwad, Intelsat senior manager-spectrum policy, said French and Czech Republic C-band auctions are delayed and auctions in Austria, Portugal and elsewhere could become behind schedule. He said those changes, atop disruptions to the mobile handset supply chain and particularly from China, could mean 5G progress gets slowed. Whether delays affect bid prices, “Who knows?” said Ethan Lavan, Eutelsat orbital resources director. Inmarsat Spectrum Regulation Director Paul Deedman said added time for C-band auctions could give the satellite industry a temporary respite from moving earth stations. UHF spectrum for IMT will be a huge focus of 2023 WRC, said Vallet. While quite important for broadcasters, the band is ideal for improving mobile network coverage, he said. Vallet said parts of the C band for IMT use also will be a focus of WRC-2023. Juwad said regulators have somewhat recognized a lot of spectrum is available for IMT and there's a need to get justification before allocation. ITU is early in organizing for WRC-2023 so the pandemic timing shouldn’t significantly disrupt the planning cycle, said Vallet. The next 24 months “will be challenging, no doubt,” for the satellite-provided in-flight connectivity market for satellite, Juwad said. Contracts are delayed, not canceled, he said, saying demand for uplink traffic will increase once the market rebounds.

The Senate Commerce Committee and Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee are close to setting two FCC-related June hearings, the panels’ chairmen told us Thursday. Senate Commerce is “looking at” holding a hearing mid-month on FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly’s nomination to another term, though it’s “not scheduled yet,” said Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss. “It’s definitely on our agenda.” Lobbyists told us the most likely hearing date appears to be June 16, though it’s not a certainty. President Donald Trump renominated O’Rielly in March to a term ending June 30, 2024 (see 2003180070). O’Rielly’s current term ended in June 2019, but he can remain on the commission until this Congress ends at the beginning of 2021. Communications sector officials and lobbyists believe O’Rielly has a good chance of confirmation (see 2004030072). Wicker told us he’s still eyeing a Senate Commerce hearing on the FCC's Ligado L-band plan approval, which drew the ire of the House and Senate Armed Services committees and some other lawmakers (see 2005210043). Lobbyists said Senate Commerce hasn’t indicated a timeline for the hearing. Senate Appropriations Financial Services Chairman John Kennedy, R-La., indicated a planned follow-up hearing on his concerns about the FCC’s plans for auctioning the 3.7-4.2 GHz C band is likely “in the next couple weeks,” as expected (see 2005270034). “I’ve asked” Senate Appropriations Financial Services Majority Staff Director Andrew Newton “to get it scheduled,” Kennedy told us. The panel is “at a minimum” going to include testimony from FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, though “there will be others.”