CTIA, CEA and other industry groups -- which asked the FAA to drop requirements that all personal electronic devices (PEDs) be powered off during takeoff and landing on commercial flights -- got key support from the National Air Transportation Association (NATA), an advocacy group for the aviation industry. But a second major association, Airlines for America (A4A), expressed some doubts about whether a rule change is warranted. Both made filings this week in FAA docket 2012-0752 that address the desire of many travelers to use their iPads, computers and Kindles below 10,000 feet.
There will be a new House Judiciary Committee chairman next session, and Beltway insiders say that could be Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. The 10-term congressman has a steady hand on technical telecom issues, is respected by his colleagues on both sides of the aisle and brings a cautious and inclusive approach to legislation, lawmakers and lobbyists told us. When asked about the possibility of leading the committee, Goodlatte said it would be an “honor to serve as Chairman.” His “primary focus” now “is on the current election and maintaining the Republican majority in the House,” he said in a written statement.
The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials told the FCC that public safety hasn’t given up the 4.9 GHz band. APCO asked that the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council or a committee designated by the commission be tapped to devise a national plan for the band. In June, the FCC approved a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comment on ways it could push more widespread use of the band, set aside for public safety a decade ago (CD June 14 p 2). One possibility would be allowing use of the 4.9 band by utilities and other critical infrastructure providers and possibly other companies as well, the agency suggested.
Sirius XM will move toward a two-way service as it seeks to meld IP with satellite to meet a coming wave of Internet-connected vehicles, Sirius executives said Thursday on a conference call.
Creators of mobile applications with insufficiently prominent privacy policies received notices of noncompliance from California Attorney General Kamala Harris’s office earlier this week. Harris previously worked with app platforms including Apple’s App Store and Google Play to develop privacy principles (CD Feb 23 p12) that comply with the California Online Privacy Protection Act, which requires that websites and online services that collect personally identifiable information from California residents prominently display their privacy policies. Harris’s office said (http://xrl.us/bnxgft) the notice is being sent to “up to 100 non-compliant apps at this time, starting with those who have the most popular apps available on mobile platforms."
FCC staff set precedent for what types of federal candidates TV stations must air ads for in the runup to elections, broadcast lawyers said. Less than six full days before election day, the Media Bureau ordered Gannett’s WUSA Washington to air ads for an unaffiliated presidential candidate on the ballot two states away and not inside what the CBS affiliate said more closely resembled its coverage area. The order said that instead of the mathematical model incorporating terrain in assessing coverage area, another model that the agency has preferred since the DTV transition should be used. An engineer said that commission-preferred model, the noise limited service contour (NLSC), is less precise.
The FCC can save competitive telecom providers hundreds of millions of dollars annually by restricting price-cap LECs’ use of lock-up contracts for special access services, Level 3 told the commission Wednesday. Level 3 was responding to a June request from Wireline Bureau officials on whether it would be an “adequate remedy” if the commission were to reduce the amount of business the price-cap LECs could lock up to 50 percent. In its filing Wednesday (http://xrl.us/bnxfmw), Level 3 supported that proposal, and said the commission needn’t wait to act until after a data collection on the state of the market, which could take years to complete. The commission has authority to block the lock-up contracts altogether, but it needn’t go that far, Level 3 said: “Speedy action by the Commission to limit the price-cap LECs ability to lock-up more than one-half of the market would have an immediate effect.” With its savings, Level 3 could then “freely purchase up to half of its demand from competitive suppliers as opposed to being beholden to the incumbents."
A big question in the wake of the release of FCC data on the aftermath Hurricane Sandy is whether a public broadband safety network (PSBN) can largely ride on commercial networks, some said. The commission said 25 percent of cell sites in 158 counties across 10 states and Washington, D.C., were out of service following the storm (CD Oct 31 p1). The number was down slightly as of Wednesday. (See separate story). The new FirstNet board is starting its work developing an architecture for the national wireless public safety network. Officials noted that no network can survive every threat.
A new set of proposed revisions to the International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs) outlines the U.S.’s vision for addressing issues that originally prompted other nations and trade groups to propose what the U.S. viewed as objectionable revisions. The proposals, which were to be submitted Wednesday to the ITU in advance of the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), update the original set of proposals the U.S. submitted in early August (CD Aug 6 p2). Delegates will convene at WCIT in Dubai starting Dec. 3 to consider the proposed revisions. Proposed revisions to the ITRs must be submitted to the ITU by Friday.
The condition of the U.S. telecom networks affected by Hurricane Sandy has improved slightly since Tuesday, FCC officials said in a Wednesday press briefing. As of 10 a.m. Wednesday the percentage of cell towers out of commission in 158 counties across 10 states and Washington, D.C., was down a few percentage points from the 25 percent high reported Tuesday (CD Oct 31 p1), officials said. Among wireline and cable subscribers in the affected area, slightly fewer than 20 percent were without service as of Wednesday morning in the affected areas, down from 25 percent Tuesday.