The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is asking for input by Oct. 2 as it builds its 2017 notorious markets list. The list identifies “online and physical marketplaces that reportedly engage in and facilitate substantial copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting,” USTR said in Wednesday's Federal Register. The 2016 list identified counterfeit marketplaces including Taobao and The Pirate Bay (see 1612210068).

Inmarsat wasn't talking about Ligado during a 2015 consultation with U.K. spectrum regulator Ofcom, as aviation and aerospace interests incorrectly asserted in June filing (see 1706210030), but instead about concerns about professional wireless mics, Inmarsat said in a docket 11-109 filing posted Wednesday. It said it continues to support prompt FCC action on Ligado's license modification applications. The Inmarsat filing, along with comments by Metro Aviation (see 1707250065) show the aviation industry isn't in lockstep against its proposal, Ligado emailed. "Our proposal is the product of significant collaboration and compromise with many stakeholders, and we are confident the Commission will make a decision based on fact and the public’s interest."

The U.K. Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) asked Ofcom for a new review of Fox's proposed buy of Sky. The DCMS said in an update Tuesday that the July announcement it was leaning toward referring Fox/Sky for further investigation (see 1707200001) prompted comments that raised new evidence or commented on Ofcom's assessment. DCMS said it set an Aug. 25 deadline for Ofcom to report on those new points. Fox didn't comment.

Technology-related trade barriers that prevent U.S. companies from selling products and services abroad should be a government focus, the Information Technology Industry Council responded (release here) to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative request for comments about trade agreement violations and abuses. Comments were sought after an April executive order. Data localization, cloud computing restrictions, regulations on online service providers and customs, copyright issues and surrender of source code, encryption keys and IP were among barriers U.S. companies face overseas, said ITI. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce called the 1996 Information Technology Agreement "an outstanding example of a trade agreement that lowers tariffs, benefits U.S. exporters and American workers, and promotes innovation" in the U.S. It said the ITA expansion agreed to by 53 World Trade Organization members in December 2015 "will multiply [ITA] benefits" when implemented by 2019, but more "vigorous enforcement" of all agreements is needed, "a goal that sometimes receives only lackluster support in practice."

Intel cleared the last regulatory hurdle in its bid to buy Mobileye, the autonomous-vehicle components supplier, when the Korea Fair Trade Commission approved the deal Monday, Intel said in a Tuesday announcement. Buying Mobileye will enable Intel to deliver “world-class end-to-end solutions” in autonomous driving “at a much lower cost, faster time to market and complete single solutions that our customers are asking for,” said Intel CEO Brian Krzanich in March when announcing the $15.3 billion cash acquisition (see 1703130015).

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai wants to see greater engagement with the Caribbean region, wireless aide Rachael Bender said in remarks to the Caribbean Association of Network Telecommunications Organizations later posted by the agency. “Our countries share many common interests and significant cultural and economic ties,” Bender said. “The U.S. is the leading trading partner for the Caribbean, and we have benefitted greatly from the contributions of the Caribbean diaspora community in the United States. … When we expand opportunity and enhance security in one nation, the benefits can flow throughout the region.” Last week, FCC representatives were also at the Global Symposium for Regulators in the Bahamas, Bender said.

The International Trade Commission seeks comment by Aug. 7 on a potential limited exclusion order banning imports of semiconductors made by Broadcom, and set-top boxes and network devices from other companies that include the allegedly infringing semiconductors, it said in Friday's Federal Register. The exclusion order, recently recommended by an ITC administrative law judge, would ban imports of devices by Broadcom, Arista Networks, Arris, Asus, Comcast, HTC, Netgear and Technicolor. Those companies didn't comment. The ALJ also recommended cease and desist orders against the same companies. The ITC began the underlying Tariff Act Section 337 investigation in June 2016 (see 1606240037).

Comsat continued to agree with an FCC plan "to withdraw as accounting authority of last resort," which settles accounts between earth or coast stations and ships engaged in international maritime mobile communications (see 1701030002). Comsat repeated its belief the "default accounting role is essential" for safety and logistical concerns and is best served by the company, said filings (here and here) Wednesday in docket 98-96 on meetings with an aide to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly and another agency staffer. It said it was the only party to volunteer publicly for the role, and it addressed concerns the agency and others raised about the transition.

Intelsat, BCom and Newtec jointly unveiled a solar-powered 2G system aimed at rural areas, with its first target market to be sub-Saharan Africa. In a news release Tuesday, they said IntelsatOne Mobile Reach Solar 2G is aimed at mobile network operators looking to expand voice services, and includes satellite, cellular and power components. Solar 2G follows Intelsat partnering with Gilat on a solar-powered 3G service (see 1706290010).

The Trustworthy Accountability Group provided a listing of more than 8,000 apps that violate IP rights of content owners, said a Wednesday news release. Such information sharing "helps companies quickly identify and remove them from their supply chains, thus cutting off the flow of money to pirates," said TAG CEO Mike Zaneis. TAG, formed by the American Association of Advertising Agencies, the Association of National Advertisers and the Interactive Advertising Bureau, said mobile app piracy, defined as placing legitimate ads on illegitimate mobile apps, is a growing problem and can continue even after an app is removed from an app store. TAG said the list will be updated.