Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

State regulators are weighing open access for both ISPs and BPL providers as they grapple with the regulatory issues for the broadband over power line (BPL) industry. That became evident at a NARUC BPL task force meeting Sun. in Washington, where state regulators sought views from the FCC, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), industry officials and others on how they should balance spurring BPL deployment against handling issues specific to legacy electric infrastructure.

FCC Chmn. Powell said the Commission examines the “totality” of a station’s performance, in evaluating whether the public interest has been served at license renewal time. “Chairman Powell’s response is a warning to broadcasters. It explicitly recognizes that licensees like Sinclair have an obligation to serve the public interest and that if questions are raised about their failure to do so, the FCC is prepared to expeditiously investigate the matter and take action,” said House Commerce Committee ranking Democrat Dingell (Mich.). Powell was responding to a letter from Dingell and House Telecom Subcommittee ranking Democrat Markey (Mass) asking Powell if Sinclair Bcst.’s plan to run an anti-Kerry documentary violated the broadcaster’s public interest obligations (CD Oct 14 p11).

The FCC is likely only days away from a public notice (PN) seeking comments from the industry on issues that have been raised by Nextel as part of the 800 MHz rebanding order. The wireless advisors received the PN Tues. afternoon. A Commission source said release was “imminent.”

BOSTON -- Addressing the VoIP industry in a packed room at the VON conference here, FCC Chmn. Powell stressed that realization of the “Internet consumer freedom” principles he outlined this year and subjecting VoIP to exclusive federal jurisdiction were key to promoting the VoIP revolution. In an emotional speech interrupted several times by applause, Powell compared migration to IP technology with “the great American Revolutions” and said as he was giving his keynote he had “a sense of how our first President, General George Washington, would have felt standing before the Minutemen that would form the Continental Army.”

There’s no evidence to suggest a strong link between TV violence and children’s behavior, media groups said in joint comments in an FCC inquiry on the subject. Virtually all of the comments in the proceeding were from media groups or content owners who opposed new restrictions on TV content.

BOSTON -- State regulators had a mixed reaction to the FCC Wireline Bureau proposal on VoIP jurisdiction expected to be sent to the 8th floor this week (see separate story, this issue), with some questioning whether the proposal would get enough votes from the Commission in light of the upcoming presidential election. Though disagreeing on many issues, most state commissioners at the VON Conference agreed states should play a significant role at least on consumer protection.

Two former FCC officials differed strongly Fri. over how the FCC should be restructured in an age of competition among digital services. At a Capitol Hill forum sponsored by the Progress & Freedom Foundation, PFF Senior Fellow Randolph May -- a former assoc. gen. counsel at the FCC -- reiterated his call for a reduced body that would no longer be an independent agency but instead part of the executive branch (CD Aug 25 p5). But former Comr. Susan Ness said such a move would be “dangerous.” All panelists said the sunshine rules hinder the FCC’s performance, a point that’s also been made by FCC Chmn. Powell (CD Aug 25 p3).

The FCC won’t require incumbent telephone companies to unbundle fiber-to-the-curb (FTTC) loops, in which fiber is extended within 500 ft. of a customer’s premises, the Commission said in a preliminary decision Thurs. Comr. Copps dissented and Comr. Adelstein dissented in part. The action came in response to Oct. 2003 petitions by BellSouth and SureWest Communications asking the FCC to reconsider parts of its Triennial Review Order (TRO) governing the ILEC obligations to unbundle their networks. The FCC said the new rules would encourage deployment of fiber broadband networks in residential neighborhoods and would “free companies to choose between FTTH [fiber-to- the-home] or FTTC networks based on marketplace characteristics, rather than disparate regulatory treatment.” The final order is expected out within a week or 2, FCC Wireline Bureau Chief Jeffrey Carlisle said.

The FCC issued an order Thurs. on broadband over power line (BPL) technical and administrative requirements that contained few surprises. The nascent BPL industry called it “fairly balanced” and a reasonable compromise and promised accelerated BPL rollout in the next 6 months. The American Radio Relay League (ARRL), which had bombarded the FCC with comments about interference to ham radio, said the announcement had both positive items and areas of concern.

LAS VEGAS -- Whether VoIP’s success is due to “regulatory arbitrage” or “superior technology” remains a key question, according to state PUC commissioners speaking Tues. at the USTA convention here. Commissioners said improper regulation could increase regulatory arbitrage. Meanwhile, other speakers predicted state retail rate regulation would largely fade out by decade’s end.