Washington could be the first state to pass net neutrality legislation restoring protections rescinded by the FCC in its December order. The Washington state Senate this week is likely to pass a net neutrality bill (HB-2282) that was overwhelmingly approved by the House and has support from Gov. Jay Inslee (D), said sponsor state Rep. Drew Hansen (D) in a Monday interview. Other West Coast states may be close behind, with the Oregon House passing its own net neutrality bill Monday and the California Senate passing a bill earlier this month. Industry groups said they would prefer congressional action. Last week’s publishing of the FCC order in the Federal Register precipitated lawsuits by state attorneys general and several others (see 1802230047).
Chairman Ajit Pai said the FCC hopes to hold an auction of the 28 GHz band in November, followed immediately by a 24 GHz auction. But Pai, at the Mobile World Congress, Monday, said doing so relies on Congress passing legislation by May 13 giving the agency the ability to handle upfront payments. On a third band, NTIA Administrator David Redl said Monday his agency will study the 3450-3550 MHz band for wireless broadband. It sits just below the 3.5 GHz Citizens Broadband Radio Service frequencies, a focus of the commission.
A court ruling upholding FTC authority over some AT&T activities is good news for consumers, said parties on both sides of the net neutrality divide. But FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and his supporters also suggested it was a victory for the FCC's recent "internet freedom" order, which reversed a 2015 net neutrality order classifying broadband as a Communications Act Title II telecom service and subjecting ISPs to common-carrier regulation.
Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter should require advertisers to establish public-facing profiles with information about all their ads, a Microsoft researcher said Friday, arguing this could help eliminate toxic, viral political commercials. Speaking at a Georgetown Law Center conference, Microsoft Research’s Tarleton Gillespie suggested the profiles include targeting logic from ads, saying that's one way platforms could return value to consumers: “That’s our data that we handed to them for free.”
A federal-state joint board on separations probably won't agree on recommendations for overhauling the system of allocating incumbent telco costs between the federal and state jurisdictions, said FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly, the board chairman. He proposed a 15-year extension of a current freeze on jurisdictional separations and other targeted steps to help resolve long-term issues. State members of the panel Friday said discussions should continue.
NTIA is making reallocation of the 1.3 GHz band one of its top spectrum focuses under new Administrator David Redl, said industry and former NTIA officials. Language in the Advancing Innovation and Reinvigorating Widespread Access to Viable Electromagnetic Spectrum (Airwaves) Act, (S-1682, HR-4953) introduced in the House and Senate, would require an assessment of reallocation of the 1300-1350 MHz band, paired with the 1780-1830 MHz band, by Dec. 31, 2020. NTIA declined to comment Friday.
Movements to end 911 fee diversion in New Jersey and Rhode Island continue as FCC commissioners amplify rhetoric on the issue and after another commission report showed several states still using 911 fees charged on phone bills for things not directly related to 911. But governors in violating states haven't pledged changes and the state-level efforts -- spearheaded by industry and county officials in New Jersey and a state representative in Rhode Island -- are not new. Continued misuse of the fees is “incredibly disappointing” and “jeopardizes the future of the 911 system,” warned National Emergency Number Association Director-Government Affairs Trey Forgety. Funding is a key challenge to implementing NG-911, GAO said in a report released Friday.
Pandora challenges include more competition, increased royalties and hardware integration, executives and analysts said as shares closed down 7.2 percent to $4.52 Thursday. Q1 sales projections were lower than expected. On Wednesday’s earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Naveen Chopra said Pandora will face many of the same advertising revenue “headwinds” this quarter as in second half 2017, projecting Q1 revenue of $295 million-$305 million. The company cut 5 percent of staff this month (see 1802010055).
The U.S. needs more presidential leadership on developing artificial intelligence, said Rep. John Delaney, D-Md., Thursday. The founder of the AI Caucus told us he expects movement on his legislation to establish a federal advisory committee for development and implementation of AI.
Net neutrality litigation flared Thursday after Federal Register publication of the FCC’s December "Restoring Internet Freedom" order, as expected (see 1802210057). New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (D) announced he and 22 other Democratic AGs filed their petition for review at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The order is “arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion within the meaning of the Administrative Procedure Act,” and violates the Constitution, Communications Act and notice-and-comment rulemaking requirements of 5 U.S. Code § 553, the AGs said.