Harris County, Texas, got the first grant of Special Temporary Authority from the FCC Public Safety Bureau, under its new guidelines, to build an early first responder network in the 700 MHz, ahead of the national FirstNet. Harris County, which is one of only two local systems close to a launch, received the STA in an order handed down Friday by bureau Chief David Turetsky.

The FCC’s forthcoming decision on determining liability when telemarketing calls violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act could have a significant impact on relationships between companies and the telemarketing entities they hire, telecom and antitrust attorneys said. Last month the FTC sued Dish Network for violating telemarketing rules after consumers received telemarketing calls by a third party on behalf of Dish (CD Aug 24 p13). A pending decision from the FCC would affect how liability in this case and another FTC case against Dish is to be determined, they said.

Three Wisconsin companies slammed Transcom Enhanced Service’s petition for rehearing and clarification of the state’s judgment of Halo Wireless Thursday in filings with the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Transcom had partnered with Halo Wireless as part of a controversial interconnection agreement with AT&T throughout several states. AT&T and other telcos accused Halo of not paying necessary access charges, a view multiple state utility commissions upheld throughout 2012. Halo Wireless was, in proceedings emanating from the agreement, condemned in multiple state utility commissions (CD Aug 2 p8) and ultimately liquidated in July. But its affiliate, 13-year-old, Texas-based Transcom, remains active and continues to fight for reconsideration throughout different states.

Comments on a request for a waiver from certain FCC set-top box rules by Nagra USA are due Sept. 19, a public notice from the Media Bureau said (http://xrl.us/bnnv6a). Nagra asked for a three-year waiver of rules requiring a set-top box to include a CableCARD slot as well as an HDMI or DVI (Digital Visual Interface) connection so it can make a video gateway device lacking those features (http://xrl.us/bnnv6n), should its planned device be found to be covered by rules. “On the other hand,” Nagra said in its petition for a waiver, “if such a device is not subject to these sections, we ask that the Commission clarify this point.” Replies to the comments are due Nov. 1 in docket 12-242, the public notice said.

Will the fourth time be the charm for the cable industry as it seeks to enter the wireless market in a big way once again? That’s the key question that cable executives, industry analysts and others are looking to answer in the wake of the federal government’s twin approvals of spectrum deals between Verizon Wireless and four leading U.S. cable operators last month.

The FCC handed down a proposed fine of $1.1 million against LDC Telecommunications for alleged slamming violations. Commissioner Ajit Pai dissented in part to the order, saying the proposed forfeiture was too small given the offense. Twenty-seven consumers had complained that LDC had switched them over to its long distance service without authorization, the FCC said.

A case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit could have major implications for the FCC’s authority over the cable industry, cable attorneys said. They said the court’s recent stay of an FCC order that Comcast carry the Tennis Channel more broadly than it already does (CD Aug 27 p10) has sparked some optimism among cable lawyers that the industry’s constitutional arguments against FCC regulation may be gaining some ground at the court. Whichever way the court rules, it will have big implications for the FCC’s ability to regulate cable, these lawyers said. A public interest attorney disagreed with those assessments. The FCC, Comcast and Tennis Channel didn’t immediately respond to our queries.

The FCC Public Safety Bureau sought comment on proposals for implementing a reconfigured 800 MHz band plan along the U.S.-Mexico border. The bureau said its proposed plan could help address 800 MHz congestion in Southern California. Use of the 800 MHz band along the border had been dictated by a bilateral protocol signed in 1994. But in June, the U.S. and Mexico agreed to an amended protocol, which takes into account the FCC’s 2004 800 MHz rebanding order. The signing of the protocol was a key step so the U.S. could wrap up reconfiguration of the 800 MHz band, a process which has been stalled along the border (CD June 7 p7). Comments are due Oct. 1, replies Oct. 15.

The NewsRight online content licensing venture will be a success, despite the skepticism that some in the industry continue to express over such business models, executives said in interviews. Two skeptics said no venture, -- whether this one or other ongoing initiatives to license online video, news articles and other content to websites -- appears to be encountering much success. NewsRight’s head and another board member said venture’s model is going to work -- both for members of the venture, which include media companies seeking to license their content, and for websites.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed suit against the Department of Justice Thursday, asking for answers about “illegal email and telephone call surveillance” conducted by the National Security Agency (NSA). EFF cites a July letter from a government official to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., in which the group says the government acknowledged that NSA surveillance had gone further than is permitted by the FISA Amendments Act (FAA) of 2008. EFF brought the action in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.