The FCC Media Bureau extended commenting deadlines for the agency’s NPRM on AI political ad disclosures, but the extension is not as long as NAB and the Motion Picture Association requested (see 2408120034). Comments are now due Sept. 19 and replies Oct. 1; the trade groups wanted them pushed to Oct. 4 for comments and Nov. 4 for replies. “We find that an extension of the comment and reply comment deadlines by 15 days and 22 days, respectively, (rather than the 30 days and 45 days requested by the Joint Filers) is sufficient to allow for the preparation of meaningful comments and reply comments,” a Media Bureau order said Thursday. Although some were concerned that the FCC was aiming an eventual rulemaking on AI political ads to be effective for the 2024 presidential election, the extension appears to make that impossible. Election Day is Nov. 5.
Incompas urged the FCC to provide more certainty to prospective pole attachers and adopt "specific timeframes" for make-ready for larger pole orders. Providers also should be allowed to engage in self-help "when warranted," the group said in a meeting with Wireline Bureau staff per an ex parte filing Wednesday in docket 17-84. Providers "continue to experience barriers when seeking to attach to utility poles," Incompas said, noting that timelines for orders exceeding 3,000 poles would be a "significant improvement over the current standard." The group noted that allowing providers to qualify their own contractors for self-help work would remove the "bottleneck at the estimate phase."
Phasing in regulatory fees tied to creation of the FCC's Space Bureau will mitigate some of the "rate shock" that could affect satellite operators, particularly smaller organizations, Iridium representatives told the office of Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, according to a filing posted Tuesday in docket 24-85. Iridium also lobbied that the agency adopt an alternative methodology that would base fees for satellite constellations on "units" of individual geostationary satellites and groupings of non-geostationaries, with both operating and authorized satellite systems paying regulatory fees. Iridium said that its units approach recognizes the extent to which larger systems impose greater costs on the bureau. Iridium has advocated similarly with several of the regular commissioners' offices.
The FCC Wireline Bureau Tuesday posted updated responses to questions on the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program as well as a new user guide. “We encourage Reimbursement Program recipients to regularly consult the Reimbursement Program webpage for updates,” the bureau said. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has urged Congress to close the more than $3 billion shortfall in the rip and replace program, which pays for replacing Huawei and ZTE communications gear and services from mostly wireless networks (see 2405020071).
SpaceX subsidiary Swarm Technologies wants FCC Space Bureau approval for SpaceX to integrate VHF-band mobile satellite service Swarm antennas as payloads on SpaceX's first-generation non-geostationary orbit satellite system. In an application posted Monday, Swarm said SpaceX's second-gen Starlink satellites have used similar payloads for more than 16 months with no interference complaints. It said the payloads would let SpaceX better track and maintain contact with first-gen satellites during space weather events and orbit raising.
An Israeli company is seeking U.S. market access for its BeetleSat non-geostationary orbit constellation. In an FCC Space Bureau petition posted Monday, NSLComm said BeetleSat will deliver point-to-point secure communications, mobility, cellular backhaul and other services. It said the expandable antennas on the 9 kg nanonsatellites will let it offer Gbps bandwidth communications 100 times more efficient than other systems in operation. NSLComm said it launched its second demonstration satellite, NSLSAT-2, in January 2023. The company plans to deploy two more demonstration satellites by the end of 2025, and commence full-scale commercial BeetleSat services in 2027, with a goal of deploying a 344-satellite constellation in two phases.
Globalstar received a partial approval for its plan to replenish its first-generation HIBLEO-4 non-geostationary orbit satellite system (see 2308070005). The FCC Space Bureau ordered Friday an extension of Globalstar's license to permit continued operations of the satellites and authorized deployment of up to 17 replacement satellites. It said deployment of the remaining nine in its application was pending agency approval of an updated orbital debris motivation plan. The satellite refresh "is expected to result in improved performance and coverage for Globalstar’s mobile satellite services, including Direct to Device satellite connections, around the world," Globalstar CEO Paul Jacobs said Monday. "Achieving this milestone is imperative to Globalstar to enable us to complete our mission of providing critical mobile satellite connectivity and lifesaving technology worldwide."
The FCC Media Bureau rejected eight Texas low-power FM applications that were filed on behalf of separate outreach organizations but appeared connected to a single church, said a letter in Monday's Daily Digest. The LPFM window rules require applicants to certify that they don’t have other attributable broadcast interests, including LPFM applications. “The many commonalities among the Applications -- in particular, the common use of broadcast facilities and headquarters, contact information, and mission statements -- suggest a significant degree of organizational interconnectedness,” Audio Division Chief Albert Shuldiner wrote in the letter dismissing the applications. The applications were on behalf of individual outreach organizations for the Christian Life Church in Lubbock, Texas. LPFM entity REC Networks filed informal objections noting connections between the groups. The outreach groups argued their applications were allowed under LPFM rules that prevent local chapters of large organizations from being considered attributable to the larger group if the local chapters are “separately incorporated” with “a distinct local presence and mission.” The outreach groups aren’t separately incorporated and their use of shared addresses and facilities shows they don’t have a distinct local presence, the Media Bureau said. They also failed to show they had available broadcast sites, the letter said.
The Utilities Technology Council asked the FCC not to adopt timelines for larger pole orders in its pending proceeding on pole replacement and attachment applications. Doing so "will not promote broadband deployment as a practical matter and will likely delay deployment," UTC said in an ex parte filing Monday in docket 17-84. It recommended to Wireline Bureau staff (see 2408120038) that the FCC give utilities the "flexibility" to process larger orders "in a manner that makes efficient use of the limited resources that are available." Utilities can't "solve the shortage of qualified workers alone," the group said, and "different utilities may require different contractor qualifications." The group backed requiring attachers to give pole owners at least 60 days advance notice of any major deployments to ensure "more efficient processing of larger orders."
The FCC Wireline Bureau Friday published its annual list of the hundreds of counties with conditional forbearance from the obligation to offer Lifeline-supported voice service. The forbearance applies only to the Lifeline voice obligation of eligible telecommunications carriers receiving high-cost and Lifeline support and not to Lifeline-only ETCs, the notice said. A 2016 Lifeline order established conditional forbearance from Lifeline voice obligations where specific competitive conditions are met (see 1807230027). For a county to be eligible, at least 51% of Lifeline subscribers must have broadband internet access.