FairPoint Communications will no longer pay into USF for the wholesale broadband telecom service it plans to take private, said an official for another rural-oriented carrier that has similar plans. "This is really about USF," said Trey Judy, Hargray Communications director-regulatory affairs. "I think other companies are going to follow suit. ... It’s just correcting an inequity that’s been there for a while," he told us, citing cable competitors as not paying into the fund for their broadband offerings. "This puts [rural telcos] on a level playing field." Separately, Republican FCC commissioners recently voiced concern the agency could begin to assess industry broadband revenue in general to pay for USF.
Public Knowledge and the Open Technology Institute at New America filed an emergency FCC petition Tuesday seeking a stay of operation of dedicated short-range communications systems in the 5.9 GHz band. The groups are leading proponents of Wi-Fi sharing the band with DSRC, which is designed to prevent vehicle accidents. The FCC recently released a public notice seeking to refresh the record on the 5.9 GHz band (see 1605260059). The agency didn’t comment.
NTIA Administrator Larry Strickling is opposing GOP senators' calls for the agency to delay the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition. He said in letters released Tuesday the agency sees “no tangible benefit” to doing so by extending its current contract with ICANN to administer the IANA functions. Amplifying their doubts about the IANA transition's propriety in the weeks since NTIA endorsed ICANN's transition plans were leaders of the House and Senate Judiciary committees (see 1606270070). Two ICANN officials separately said Tuesday ICANN is pressing forward with preparations for the IANA transition.
Additional groups warned the Copyright Office Friday against using a rulemaking to reduce the fee significantly for online service providers to designate agents to receive notifications of claimed infringement under Digital Millennium Copyright Act Section 512 as a way of undermining the statute’s safe harbor provisions. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, Internet Association (IA) and others cautioned the CO on its NPRM, though the American Association of Publishers (AAP) fully backed the proposal. The CO sought comment last month on the plan, which would lower the fee to $6 per designation in anticipation of a switch from using paper forms to designate those agents to an online filing system. The designation fee framework includes an initial $105 fee and an additional $35 fee for each of up to 10 alternate designated agents (see 1605250055).
A three-judge federal panel Monday largely tossed out a class action lawsuit that accused Google and Viacom of illegally collecting personal data of children younger than 13 who watched videos and browsed the Nickelodeon website. The 3-0 decision by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia -- by Julio Fuentes, Patty Shwartz and Franklin Van Antwerpen -- mostly upheld a January 2015 ruling by District Judge Stanley Chesler of New Jersey. The decision involved claims made under the Video Privacy Protection Act, New Jersey Computer Related Offenses Act and "intrusion upon seclusion."
Additional groups warned the Copyright Office Friday against using a rulemaking to reduce the fee significantly for online service providers to designate agents to receive notifications of claimed infringement under Digital Millennium Copyright Act Section 512 as a way of undermining the statute’s safe harbor provisions. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, Internet Association (IA) and others cautioned the CO on its NPRM, though the American Association of Publishers (AAP) fully backed the proposal. The CO sought comment last month on the plan, which would lower the fee to $6 per designation in anticipation of a switch from using paper forms to designate those agents to an online filing system. The designation fee framework includes an initial $105 fee and an additional $35 fee for each of up to 10 alternate designated agents (see 1605250055).
Presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump may struggle to win over big donors from the telecom and media industry, political observers told us. Trump faces a tough initial fundraising shortfall compared with Democratic presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton, ending May with $1.3 million in cash on hand compared with Clinton’s $42 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Heavyweight telecom and media industry executives haven't embraced Trump's GOP presidential bid, fundraising and endorsement records show.
Presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump may struggle to win over big donors from the telecom and media industry, political observers told us. Trump faces a tough initial fundraising shortfall compared with Democratic presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton, ending May with $1.3 million in cash on hand compared with Clinton’s $42 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings. Heavyweight telecom and media industry executives haven't embraced Trump's GOP presidential bid, fundraising and endorsement records show.
A three-judge federal panel Monday largely tossed out a class action lawsuit that accused Google and Viacom of illegally collecting personal data of children younger than 13 who watched videos and browsed the Nickelodeon website. The 3-0 decision by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia -- by Julio Fuentes, Patty Shwartz and Franklin Van Antwerpen -- mostly upheld a January 2015 ruling by District Judge Stanley Chesler of New Jersey. The decision involved claims made under the Video Privacy Protection Act, New Jersey Computer Related Offenses Act and "intrusion upon seclusion."
The Computer and Communications Industry Association told the Copyright Office Thursday it supports the office’s NPRM that would significantly reduce the fee for online service providers to designate agents to receive notifications of claimed infringement under Digital Millennium Copyright Act Section 512, but raised concerns about the NPRM’s agent renewal requirements. The CO sought comment last month on the plan, which would lower the fee to $6 per designation in anticipation of a switch from using paper forms to designate those agents to an online filing system. The designation fee framework currently includes an initial $105 fee and an additional $35 fee for each of up to 10 alternate designated agents (see 1605250055). Comments were due after our deadline Friday. Lowering the agent designation fee “in most circumstances would be a beneficial idea,” but the NPRM “also suggests an unwise recurring formality for intermediaries relying on the Section 512 safe harbor,” CCIA commented. A footnote in the NPRM says the CO “contemplates requiring electronic re-registration of all currently designed agents once the Office’s proposed digital database is released,” CCIA said. “It also suggests that online services would be required to subsequently renew such designations every three years.” The industry group said it believes such a rule “would be inconsistent with Section 512, would have negative implications for continued investment in the Internet industry, and would be ultimately unnecessary.”