Commissioners voted to approve Assistant Counsel-General Ethics Jane Hinckley Halprin as the FCC administrative law judge, replacing Judge Richard Sippel, who retired Dec. 1. Thursday's announcement followed mounting speculation on Sippel's fate as a major deal saw no ALJ action. The speed of the appointment suggests the agency is expecting Halprin to act soon on the stalled Sinclair/Tribune proceeding, broadcast attorneys told us. “I'm sure she has a bunch of things to act on,” said one, Jack Goodman. Commissioner Mike O'Rielly this week said Sippel didn't appear to have taken any action on Sinclair/Tribune (see 1812040034).
As more nations and commercial operators enter space, hazy international space norms and rules will start to crystalize, said State Department international space lawyer Gabriel Swiney at an International Institute of Space Law symposium Wednesday. The Outer Space Treaty's Article IX "due regard" provision -- requiring a party to consider the impact of its actions and refrain from behavior that doesn’t give due regard to interests of others -- could become the enforcement teeth for those norms, he said.
An FCC declaratory order to clarify wireless messaging as a Title I information service, rather than a more regulated telecom service, appears headed to a 3-1 vote Wednesday, with a dissent expected by Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, industry officials said. Twilio sought Communications Act Title II classification for texting in 2015, after the FCC classified broadband as a Title II service (see 1510130040).
The administration will soon publish public comments on the update to the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan expected in early spring, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Assistant Director-Artificial Intelligence Lynne Parker said Tuesday. The administration is pleased overall with the strategic plan inherited from the previous administration, Parker told an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation event. The overwhelming majority of comments are positive, she said: “We don’t need to overhaul the original plan.” The federal government can’t ignore significant AI investment from industry and R&D gaps, she said.
Talks with the telecom industry could resolve a McAllen, Texas, lawsuit challenging the state’s small-cells law, local officials told us this week. Texas is defending the 2017 law pre-empting local governments in the right of way (ROW) from a state court challenge by McAllen and a federal court challenge by Austin (see 1710040044). A Michigan bill awaiting gubernatorial clearance could be the next state small-cells law to be challenged in court by localities, said Kitch local government attorney Mike Watza.
FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly wants to act on liability under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, possibly in a reassigned phone number draft order targeted for the Dec. 12 commissioners' meeting. He backed a draft order to classify SMS and other wireless messaging as Communications Act Title I information services, generally supported a draft order to increase rural telco USF funding and suggested he might soon push for changes to the agency’s administrative law judge process. He spoke to reporters after a Phoenix Center event Tuesday at which he discussed his municipal broadband speech concerns, kidvid efforts and broader process proposals. Also there, supporters of the FCC Title I reversal of Title II net neutrality regulation voiced confidence it will be upheld in court.
Defining "deferred transmission" is the key stumbling block in talks on a World Intellectual Property Organization treaty updating broadcaster protections against signal piracy, said Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights Chair Daren Tang during the Nov. 26-30 meeting. SCCR delegations need a "very, very firm discussion at the next round" of negotiations on deferred transmissions, said Tang, CEO of the Singapore Intellectual Property Office. He floated a revised consolidated document that for the first time gathers all proposals in one text. Stakeholders have some optimism but said more work remains.
Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel clashed over the FCC denying media outlets Freedom of Information Act requests for data about who was commenting in last year's net neutrality proceeding. "What is the Federal Communications Commission hiding?" Rosenworcel asked in a statement Monday accompanying the order. Pai called Rosenworcel's critique "partisan gamesmanship."
Nexstar agreed to buy Tribune for $6.4 billion, they said Monday. The fate of Tribune has been a focus of speculation since its sale to Sinclair collapsed. To stay under the 39 percent national TV-station ownership cap, the deal will include divestitures “approaching $1 billion, plus or minus,” said Nexstar CEO Perry Sook on a conference call. Nexstar is “very focused on complying with the current rules” and isn’t seeking to wait on a revised national cap or change to the UHF discount to get the deal done and approved speedily, he said.
Artificial intelligence will have major ramifications economy-wide, potentially revolutionizing the communications industry, Chairman Ajit Pai said. At an FCC event, he urged “regulatory humility” when dealing with emerging technology, as micromanagement would be “foolish or counterproductive.”