In a win for companies facing Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawsuits, a unanimous Supreme Court Thursday sided with Facebook, favoring a narrow definition of what constitutes an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS) in Facebook v. Duguid. SCOTUS reversed and remanded an earlier decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which said any device that stores and automatically dials telephone numbers can be considered an ATDS under TCPA.
SpaceX faces increased heat from rival non-geostationary orbit satellite operators for supposedly changing types of antennas used on its Starlink satellites without notifying the FCC. Such a change could open the door to fines or the agency ordering the satellites shut down, experts said in interviews.
A unanimous Supreme Court Thursday upheld on process grounds the previous FCC’s relaxation of several broadcast ownership rules (see 2101190070). This makes it unlikely that future challenges to quadrennial reviews will end up before the same panel of 3rd U.S Circuit Court of Appeals judges that has consistently ruled against QR orders for nearly two decades, experts noted in interviews. “The FCC’s decision to repeal or modify the three ownership rules was not arbitrary and capricious for purposes” of the Administrative Procedure Act, said the majority opinion by Justice Brett Kavanaugh. “We reverse the judgment of the" 3rd Circuit.
Legislators advancing a data broker privacy bill should amend it to exempt entities covered by federal laws and data in the public domain, industry groups told Nevada’s Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday. AT&T, which supported a Nevada privacy bill in 2019, testified that it remains neutral on the latest bill until amendments are presented and supports continued collaboration on “meaningful, common-sense privacy reform.”
The upcoming 3.45 GHz auction and yet-to-be-scheduled 2.5 GHz sale are likely to get broad interest from smaller carriers, industry officials said during a Competitive Carriers Association virtual conference Wednesday. They warned that holding three midband auctions in a short time poses financial issues.
Space launches would get dedicated spectrum, foreign-sponsored broadcast content would need identification, and 911 outage reporting rules would be harmonized under items on April 22's FCC meeting agenda, acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel blogged Wednesday. Also on tap are a Further NPRM requiring carriers to implement texting to the 988 nationwide suicide prevention hotline going live in 2022 (see 2103310054), declaring the 800 MHz rebanding done after 17 years, and an unspecified enforcement matter.
Mental health and disability interests so far back an FCC move toward making carriers enable texting to the 988 nationwide suicide hotline. This Further NPRM will be on the April 22 commissioners' meeting agenda (see 2103310030). So will drafts on dedicated space launch spectrum and sponsorship ID requirements for broadcast time leased by foreign governments (see 2103310050).
President Joe Biden’s administration proposed $100 billion in broadband spending Wednesday as part of the $2 trillion American Jobs Plan infrastructure proposal. That level of spending and Biden’s calls for legislation to improve broadband pricing transparency and affordability mirror Democratic lawmakers' Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act (HR-1783/S-745) and Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act (HR-1848), as expected (see 2103160001). Reaction to the plan divided along party lines.
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr asked whether state laws on online content moderation could open the door to weakening Communications Decency Act Section 230 immunity. Moderating a New Civil Liberties Alliance discussion Tuesday, Carr noted laws in Florida and potentially in Texas provide speech protections that might override 230.
Congress should fund an infrastructure package because too many areas won’t get broadband without federal help, House Communications Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., told a Competitive Carriers Association virtual conference Tuesday. “The business case just doesn’t exist for too many communities,” he said: “Infrastructure is a high priority for me and for this new administration.”