The Telecommunications Industry Association urged the FCC to launch a...
The Telecommunications Industry Association urged the FCC to launch a rulemaking on allowing electronic labeling on cellphones and other devices licensed by the agency. “We particularly believe that because the Commission is currently planning to undertake future rulemakings aiming to…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
improve the equipment authorization process, as noted when the Commission adopted its recent rulemaking which allowed five-digit grantee codes, that the time to consider a broad rule change to allow for the option of electronic labeling is now,” TIA said in a petition filed at the commission. “We note at the outset that this e-labeling must be optional, as there will be cases where keeping the existing physical label will be necessary, such as for non-display products and radios.” FCC regulations require most wireless devices to be permanently affixed with a label that provides identifying information including a device-specific FCC number and other regulatory symbols. TIA said the rules, first standardized in 1973, “have become an aging relic of the pre-digital world.” “The purpose of the FCC’s label requirement is to enable the FCC and consumers to readily determine whether a device has been properly certified and to obtain additional information about a device from the FCC’s equipment authorization database,” TIA said. “Because of the challenges faced by manufacturers and increased benefits to end users that would be experienced, TIA believes that this goal can be accomplished more efficiently and effectively by allowing an electronic labeling option for wireless devices.” “Technology has once again outpaced regulatory requirements designed for rotary dialed phones,” said Danielle Coffey, TIA vice president of government affairs. “The FCC has shown great flexibility in recognizing the phenomenon of rapid technological change. Electronic labeling is the natural evolution of device labeling. TIA is asking the FCC to move forward with making electronic labeling for all wireless devices a default option. Not only does it more effectively meet end-user expectations while continuing the FCC’s comprehensive device labeling framework, it also will streamline manufacturing processes, lower costs, reduce prices, and encourage innovation.” With electronic labeling, instead of a physical label on the device itself, a user can access product information from a device’s software interface.