The FCC voted 3-0 Thursday to launch a rulemaking and notice of inquiry on ways to speed the siting of wireless infrastructure. Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Mignon Clyburn voted for the item, saying they were able to work out changes with the office of Chairman Ajit Pai. The consensus on the item came right before the huge fight over the broadband data service order (see 1704200020).
Groups representing tribal governments urged caution as the FCC considers rules designed to speed up wireless siting. The FCC is to take up a rulemaking notice and notice of inquiry Thursday (see 1703300060). Tribal interests got in comments early, warning of their concerns before either was even considered by commissioners. Comments were filed in docket 17-79.
Incentive Auction Task Force Chairman Gary Epstein while planning and running the auction had concerns about funding FirstNet and whether the FCC should skip a clearing target to get the auction to finish faster, he said at Wednesday’s Media Institute luncheon. The talk was Epstein’s first public speech since the end of the incentive auction last week, and at its end he announced that he will leave the FCC at the end of April. Despite its complications, the incentive auction “achieved its major goal” of using a market-based mechanism to determine the price and demand for wireless spectrum, Epstein said. He said he's “neither happy nor disappointed nor anywhere in-between,” about the amount of money raised by the auction.
Critics of an FCC business data service plan mounted a full-court press to postpone a vote scheduled for Thursday on a deregulatory draft order they say would harm competition and consumers unless changed. At the very least, they said the FCC should create a three-year transition to new BDS rules to give competitors more time to deploy new broadband connections to business customers and wireless cellsites. Three congressional Republicans from Arkansas backed a "reasonable transition." Incompas, Sprint and Windstream said AT&T raised business broadband rates in several states as the commission prepares to undermine BDS competition. "Those are unrelated rates not impacted by the FCC’s BDS proposal," said an AT&T spokesman.
Critics of an FCC business data service plan mounted a full-court press to postpone a vote scheduled for Thursday on a deregulatory draft order they say would harm competition and consumers unless changed. At the very least, they said the FCC should create a three-year transition to new BDS rules to give competitors more time to deploy new broadband connections to business customers and wireless cellsites. Three congressional Republicans from Arkansas backed a "reasonable transition." Incompas, Sprint and Windstream said AT&T raised business broadband rates in several states as the commission prepares to undermine BDS competition. "Those are unrelated rates not impacted by the FCC’s BDS proposal," said an AT&T spokesman.
An FCC draft wireline infrastructure rulemaking notice got more support than opposition heading into a scheduled vote Thursday, despite language proposing to roll back technology transition copper-retirement rules and streamline the process for discontinuing telecom services, which include safeguards backed by telco competitors (see 1704060046). In final lobbying before Sunshine Act restrictions took effect April 13, Verizon welcomed the agency's efforts to boost fiber deployment, and Google Fiber and the American Cable Association (ACA) voiced support while suggesting some tweaks to an NPRM section on pole attachments.
An FCC draft wireline infrastructure rulemaking notice got more support than opposition heading into a scheduled vote Thursday, despite language proposing to roll back technology transition copper-retirement rules and streamline the process for discontinuing telecom services, which include safeguards backed by telco competitors (see 1704060046). In final lobbying before Sunshine Act restrictions took effect April 13, Verizon welcomed the agency's efforts to boost fiber deployment, and Google Fiber and the American Cable Association (ACA) voiced support while suggesting some tweaks to an NPRM section on pole attachments.
No world economy raised the three red flags necessary to trigger increased U.S. bilateral engagement and possible sanctions to counter unfair currency manipulation through new procedures outlined by the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (TFTEA), according to a Treasury report to Congress on the foreign exchange policies of major U.S. trading partners (here). However, Treasury has added to the “Monitoring List" China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Germany and Switzerland. President Donald Trump last week said that he wouldn't label China a currency manipulator despite stating during the presidential campaign that it was among his priorities to do so (see 1704130014).
An Electronic Frontier Foundation report raising concerns about students' privacy being compromised by major tech companies without parents' knowledge underlines worries shared by others even as one tech/privacy advocate noted many parents are OK with such tradeoffs. U.S. schoolchildren who use apps, devices and services provided at heavily discounted prices or for free have names, birth dates, browsing history, search terms and behavioral information collected and kept indefinitely, EFF's report said (see 1704130064). Google said it takes privacy concerns seriously, and other companies didn't comment.
Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability's work on recommendations about the organization's jurisdictional issues appears to be progressing. U.S. officials tell us they're more confident the working group won't seek to move ICANN's place of incorporation from Los Angeles. CCWG-Accountability is examining ICANN's jurisdiction as part of its work on a second set of recommended changes to the organization's accountability mechanisms (see 1610030042). U.S. interests raised concerns earlier this year about the CCWG-Accountability Jurisdiction Subgroup's work (see 1701030021).