An FCC proposal to limit the distance at which full-power FM stations can complain of interference from an FM translator stirred up the most reaction from radio broadcasters, in comments in docket 18-119. Most commenters and large radio groups including iHeartMedia and Beasley object to limiting interference complaints to within a station's 54 dBu contour, but other broadcasters, including Cumulus Media, support the contour limit. Commenters also were divided over a proposed minimum number for listener complaints but widely receptive to relaxing rules on where on the dial translators can relocate if bumped.
LAS VEGAS -- “FirstNet is your network," FirstNet CEO Mike Poth assured APCO attendees Tuesday. FirstNet will have “features and services that stand up to the demands of the job,” he said. “Priority pre-emption, reliability, security.” FirstNet has a huge presence at the conference, with AT&T/FirstNet the event's lead sponsor, even offering free shoe shines. Poth encouraged attendees to take a lap around the show floor to see all the new devices coming online for public safety.
Many parties opposed USTelecom's petition for incumbent telco relief from mandatory wholesale unbundling discounts, resale and other duties under the 1996 Telecom Act. Telco rivals, state regulators and consumer advocates said the petition for nationwide regulatory forbearance would undermine competition and should be rejected as unsubstantiated and overly broad. Verizon was one of the few to support the petition, as comments were posted in docket 18-141, mostly Tuesday, though USTelecom, ILECs and others can file replies due Sept. 5.
The odds are seemingly long on DOJ's appeal of a U.S. District Court decision allowing AT&T's buy of Time Warner, with antitrust experts telling us the agency's arguments -- laid out in its appellant brief this week -- face a high burden of proof and typical appellate court deference to lower courts on their reads of the facts. Since it's the trial court that sees witnesses and can best establish their validity, DOJ's challenging of what it considers faulty findings "is a really uphill battle," said Daniel Lyons, Boston College associate law professor.
While not as heated as in the U.S., the net neutrality debate hasn't entirely evaporated in Europe. Regulatory guidelines set by the Body of Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) in 2015, now undergoing review, have drawn concerns from telecom and cable operators, while BEREC's decision to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Indian regulator sparked outrage from one telecom consultant. France, meanwhile, said it's unclear what U.S. net neutrality will look like in coming years, but in other parts of the world efforts to protect it "continue to make strides."
The Trump administration’s proposed Trade Act Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods imported to the U.S. under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule’s 8517.62.00 subheading targets equipment “critical for the build-out of high-speed broadband internet” and related IoT technologies, said the Telecommunications Industry Association in comments posted Saturday in docket USTR-2018-0026. The comments were filed July 27, when 10 percent tariffs were still on the table, days before U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer announced he will “consider” hiking the duties to 25 percent (see 1808010018).
The FCC received more mixed views on how to curb intercarrier compensation schemes that stimulate access charges, in replies posted in docket 18-155, mostly Monday, to conflicting initial comments (see 1807230034). Incumbent telcos tended to be more supportive of the agency's main proposal -- to attack financial incentives for arbitrage by giving "access-stimulating" LECs the option of either assuming financial responsibility for traffic or allowing direct connections -- albeit with disputes, particularly over direct connection terms. Some backed a more sweeping move to bill-and-keep arrangements under which carriers generally don't pay each other for exchanging traffic. Smaller providers opposed the proposals and offered alternatives.
LAS VEGAS -- APCO still views the 50 MHz 4.9 GHz band as important and will fight to keep it mostly for public safety agencies but is prepared to allow some use by critical infrastructure agencies, said Jeff Cohen, chief counsel of the organization, at the association's meeting Monday. APCO filed comments on the latest Further NPRM on the topic, approved 5-0 in March (see 1803220037), which broached the possibility that the band would be opened for commercial use.
The White House will work with Congress to develop online privacy legislation guided by a set of principles expected from the Commerce Department in September, officials and industry representatives told us. White House Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters emailed that the Trump administration aims to craft a consumer privacy protection policy that's the “appropriate balance between privacy and prosperity” through the National Economic Council. The administration looks forward to working transparently with stakeholders and Congress “on a legislative solution consistent with our overarching policy,” she said.
New York City told the FCC a voluntary wireless network resiliency cooperative framework isn’t enough to ensure network resilience. CTIA said it's working as expected. Both filed replies on a June Public Safety Bureau public notice in docket 11-60. The wireless industry developed the framework with an eye toward enabling carriers to work together to let customers roam on each other’s networks after a disaster like 2012’s Superstorm Sandy (see 1604270035).