Chinese-owned apps TikTok and WeChat will be banned from U.S. app stores starting Sunday, the Commerce Department announced Friday, citing national security concerns (see 2008240047). “The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has demonstrated the means and motives to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and the economy of the U.S.”
The FCC has power to regulate social media, and the First Amendment supports the Trump administration’s petition for rulemaking, NTIA replied Friday (see 2009020064). The commission can require disclosure of information services under the Communications Act, and courts have ruled “search engines, browsers and internet social media precursors such as chat rooms are information services,” wrote acting Director Adam Candeub. He asked to grant its petition for Communications Decency Act Section 230 rulemaking.
T-Mobile is likely to be the dominant bidder in a 2.5 GHz auction expected next year, as it fills out substantial holdings in the band. T-Mobile got the spectrum when it bought Sprint and said in August it’s adding the band to its network at 600-700 sites weekly (see 2008070026). T-Mobile asked last week to move forward on an auction next year. AT&T questioned whether T-Mobile’s holdings exceed the spectrum screen.
Commissioner Mike O’Rielly's impending exit from the FCC hasn’t made industry lobby him less, according to interviews with attorneys from a wide swath of industries and our examination of filings. O’Rielly used his written House Commerce testimony Wednesday (see 2009160043) to indicate he expects to exit the commission, after President Donald Trump nominated a replacement (see 2009160064).
Cable and broadcast lawyers anticipate a 5-0, noncontroversial approval to the FCC 30-day channel lineup notification rule on September's agenda (see 2009090048). Less clear is the significance of the commission's reversing its policy on who controls program carriage and retransmission consent negotiations in the last 30 days, so it's no longer automatically the cable companies.
The debate over whether the FCC should allow nonfederal correctional facilities to jam contraband phones was reignited. CTIA said other solutions are enough. Seven Republican senators said jamming should be an option. Comments were filed Thursday in docket 13-111, in response to a July record refresh. Ajit Pai has expressed concerns about the danger of contraband devices since before he became commission chairman (see 1604060058). Two years ago, Pai convened a Contraband Phone Task Force (see 1904260029). Public safety experts said it’s unclear Pai will do more in his remaining time as chairman given a crowded agenda.
FCC RF safety rules preempt a local law in Berkeley, California, U.S. District Court in San Francisco decided Thursday. Judge Edward Chen granted CTIA’s motion for judgment, saying the FCC was persuasive that the local law could overwarn the public. “Given the specificity of the warning required by the Berkeley ordinance, the implied risk to safety if the warning is not followed (a risk the FCC has concluded does not exist), and the acknowledged” RF safety debate, “the FCC could properly conclude that the Berkeley ordinance -- as worded -- overwarns and stands as an obstacle to the accomplishment of balancing federal objectives by the FCC,” he said.
House Communications Subcommittee members in both parties delivered Thursday on expectations for a highly partisan FCC oversight hearing (see 2009160076) in which many lawmakers gave what they viewed as their final verdict on the commission’s performance under Chairman Ajit Pai. Democrats castigated what they saw as the FCC's missed opportunities on telecom policy, including not doing more to improve connectivity amid COVID-19. Republicans defended Pai as doing as much as he could under statutory authority. The House Commerce Committee’s own policy track record during this Congress came into question amid renewed pressure for a compromise on aid legislation.
Spotify sees its integration of podcasts and audio as a differentiator as the company looks to stave off competition from Apple’s bundled service package, announced Tuesday (see 2009150060), and Amazon’s entry into podcasts Wednesday.
The need for U.S. leadership on “pragmatic tech-savvy policy” toward China “has never been greater,” Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., told a National Democratic Institute webinar Wednesday. “We need help from the private sector to support our technological leadership and national defense, and hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable” for bad trade behavior and human rights abuses, he said.