It could be well into 2023 before the government faces Google in U.S. District Court in Washington. At a Friday telephonic hearing, Judge Amit Mehta set a Sept. 12, 2023, trial start date for DOJ and states’ antitrust lawsuit against Google. Mehta said he's “anxious” to get Thursday’s separate antitrust complaint against Google by 38 attorneys general (see 2012170063) on the same discovery schedule for efficiency. Google attorney John Schmidtlein agreed the new case should be assigned to Mehta and consolidated with the first case for discovery, but Google isn’t ready to take a position on whether trials should be combined. On states’ new case, Mehta asked Google to say by Jan. 8 if it will answer the complaint or file a motion to dismiss; the judge set a status hearing for Jan. 21 at 11 a.m. The parties proposed (in Pacer) a scheduling and case management order Dec. 11 and agreed (in Pacer) to a protective order last Monday. Google said (in Pacer) Thursday it doesn’t oppose California joining as a plaintiff in the DOJ case, which Michigan and Wisconsin on Thursday also asked to join. Texas and nine other states separately sued Google Wednesday at U.S. District Court in Sherman, Texas (see 2012160059).
Google got slapped Thursday with another antitrust lawsuit, this time from 35 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico (see 2012170037). As with states’ lawsuit against Facebook last week (see 2012100003), attorneys general from both parties in most states joined the complaint against Google, alleging the search firm violated Sherman Antitrust Act Section 2. Google said the AGs would harm search results at businesses’ cost.
Two thirds of states have a next-generation 911 plan, the Department of Transportation said in an annual report Monday. Based on 2019 data reported by 46 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., statewide NG-911 plan adoption increased to 33 from 31 in 2018, DOT found. The report found 2,152 public safety answering points across 46 jurisdictions using an ESInet, up from 1,813 across 44 in 2018. Text-to-911 adoption “appears to be a top priority” for many states, with 581,151 texts received in 38 states in 2019, up from 188,646 in 33 states in 2018, the report said.
Hearst-owned stations are to go dark on Comcast Dec. 22 as the cable operator plans to drop Hearst "overflow" stations where it's carrying more than one local station affiliated with the same network, said notices sent to subscribers in the 38 affected markets across 17 states. Hearst and Comcast didn't comment.
AT&T reported mostly positive Q3 results Thursday, adding wireless subscribers as revenue beat Wall Street estimates. Among negatives, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take a toll and the entertainment unit is struggling. AT&T shares closed 5.9% higher Thursday at $28.29. The stock had declined 30% this year, despite a 7% dividend.
COVID-19 is widening the skills gap and raising employee expectations of their employers, an IBM study found. IBM's 2018 research found an estimated 120 million workers in the world's 12 largest economies would need to be “retrained or reskilled” because of artificial intelligence and automation innovations the next three years. “That challenge has only been exacerbated in the midst of the" pandemic. As many executives try to speed their enterprises’ digital transformation, the new report finds “inadequate skills is one of their biggest hurdles.” There’s a “disconnect” in how effectively leaders and employees think companies are “addressing these gaps,” the tech company said. Three-quarters of executives say their employers help them learn the needed skills, compared with 38% of employees who agreed. Eight in 10 executives gave their companies high marks for supporting employees' physical and emotional health; 46% of employees agreed.
Consumers now deem high-end audio products “essential in today's home,” Voxx CEO Pat Lavelle told a quarterly call. Its Klipsch is poised for “the best year in its history,” he said. The premium audio industry has seen COVID-19 boost sales, said Lavelle. Consumers “rediscovered quality audio, and not just for listening to a stereo system but for movies,” evidenced by growth in home theater and high-end sound bars, he said. Home gyms have become an “integral part” of the home workplace, further feeding audio sales, he said. “We've seen the market grow, and we have seen the audience grow.” Pandemic lifestyles breathed new air into premium audio, which grew by double digits as an industry last quarter, the corporate chief said. “We believe this is sustainable.” The stock soared 31% higher Wednesday to close at $11.32, just 38 cents short of its 52-week high.
The FCC heard differing advice on rules for the 70/80/90 GHz bands in replies, which were due Friday and posted through Tuesday. Most were consistent with initial comments last month in docket 20-133 (see 2008060036) in response to a June NPRM (see 2008050058). “There is broad consensus for moving quickly to allow lower gain antennas in the 70/80 GHz band,” Nokia said. Adopt “the NPRM’s lead proposal in the 70/80 GHz band to increase the maximum beamwidth 3 dB points from 1.2 degrees to 2.2 degrees and to reduce minimum antenna gain from 43 dBi to 38 dBi,” it said: “This simple rule change will allow needed flexibility to deploy smaller, lighter backhaul antennas to facilitate 5G deployments in urban settings.” Optimize the 70 and 80 GHz bands for wireless backhaul and 5G, T-Mobile said. “The current link registration system has proven to be effective,” the carrier said: “Contrary to the suggestion by the Dynamic Spectrum Alliance, there is no reason to substitute a dynamic spectrum access system.” As the record demonstrates, “the Commission should enhance the rules for the 70/80/90 GHz bands to promote additional wireless backhaul in furtherance of the Commission’s goals of expanding access to broadband and fostering the efficient use of millimeter-wave spectrum,” CTIA said. If the rules are right, the bands will offer the “critical high-speed backhaul needed to address our nation’s burgeoning demand for data in years to come,” the group said. “The record provides strong support for the adoption of updated antenna technical standards that encourage a broader range of fixed wireless uses,” the Wireless ISP Association said. The Dynamic Spectrum Alliance saw broad support for spectrum sharing. “Expeditiously authorize antennas in motion and stratospheric Internet platforms in the 70/80 GHz bands, adopt a comprehensive, technology-neutral link registration framework that accommodates all services in the bands, set a pathway toward dynamic spectrum sharing, and reject requests to delay or to restrict operation of these critical backhaul networks,” DSA said. “Expanding flexible use of the 70/80 GHz bands can benefit consumers by helping to satiate an increased demand for next-generation broadband and fixed wireless services,” Starry said. The company wants an improved link registration system “to ensure the band is put to use and not burdened by abandoned registrations.” The Satellite Industry Association disagreed, noting parts of the spectrum are allocated to fixed satellite service. “Fully consider the impact of any rule changes on FSS,” SIA said. “Address all relevant issues, including the potential impact on satellite services.” The National Radio Astronomy Observatory sought protections for radio astronomy, particularly at 81-86 GHz.
The head of the Washington, D.C.’s 911 call center welcomes a possible audit by the Office of the D.C. Auditor next year, amid a growing furor over reported dispatching problems. “I know what we do in this agency,” D.C. Office of Unified Communications Director Karima Holmes said Thursday on WAMU(FM) Washington’s The Kojo Nnamdi Show. “It is not a systematic problem in D.C. 911. These things happen, but fortunately we have safety nets in place to make sure they don’t.” Holmes disputed 911 dispatch expert Dave Statter’s reports alleging frequent mistakes that others have also glommed onto in criticizing OUC and saying its errors could cost first responders priceless time answering emergency medical and other calls for help. “Sharing snippets of radio traffic and other incomplete piecemeal records just do not accurately convey the full picture here,” said Holmes. “Dave Statter is not my oversight.” The mayor, deputy mayor and city council oversee OUC and “have this information,” she said. “All of that gets investigated, and we do a full investigation” that includes the 911 call and what information the caller gave, she said. “Anytime an error is made, we address it.” A caller to the radio program identified as Christina said her daughter’s teenage friend watched her mother die from a heart attack as D.C. 911 sent responders to the wrong address. Holmes replied it’s a tragic situation, though she didn’t know the specific incident. “Things are hard,” she said. “People are in the middle of emergencies, and sometimes that address is wrong, and sometimes it is the call-taker” who “takes the call wrong.” Statter told the radio program he wants more transparency and accountability from OUC. Holmes told the D.C. Council only four times last year when dispatchers were sent to incorrect addresses and 21 times in five years, but Statter “can show 38 bad addresses since December,” he said. OUC recently responded to our Freedom of Information Act request for records on previous 911 dispatching issues (here), and Thursday we sent another FOIA request for records on three late-August incidents. OUC responded more than 24 hours later to our request for comment on our Wednesday report about those three incidents: “We caution against the use of publicly available partial records of emergency operations as they generally do not include the full emergency response and may inaccurately present critical variables such as the nature or fluidity of the emergency, the engagement between the caller and call-taker, and/or the extent or duration of the dispatch,” a spokesperson emailed.
The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security added 38 Huawei affiliates to the entity list and refined a May amendment to its foreign direct product rule, further restricting the Chinese company's access to U.S. technology. BIS said the direct product rule also applies to transactions where U.S. software or technology is “the basis” for a foreign-made item produced or purchased by Huawei, or when such an entity is “a party to such a transaction.” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Huawei "has continuously tried to evade" the previous changes to the foreign direct product rule. The telecom gearmaker didn't comment.