The NTIA released a combined draft document that outlines voluntary best practices for the private and commercial use of drones and plans to schedule a meeting in January to discuss it. John Verdi, NTIA director-privacy initiatives, sent an email Wednesday with the combined draft to participants involved in the multistakeholder process that was launched earlier this year. "The goal is for everyone to review the merged draft 'best practices,' identify recommended revisions or additions (including how best to resolve bracketed text), and tee up those issues for discussion and potential resolution at the next meeting," he wrote in the message. A working group, part of the larger multistakeholder process, has been meeting over the last several weeks to combine the drafts from the Center for Democracy and Technology and Hogan Lovells law firm, providing a comparison of areas of agreement and disagreement. Some participants told us they have made considerable progress on creating a viable document, though some issues still need to be resolved by the larger multistakeholder group (see 1512180026). In his message, Verdi also attached another draft document describing six governing principles to guide the larger best practices document. Both documents are on NTIA website. An agency spokeswoman said NTIA is a "neutral convener" in the process, which is driven by the multistakeholder group participants.

The FCC should base its approach to implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) on consent rather than the emergency exception, Edison Electric Institute (EEI) counsel told a staffer for Chairman Tom Wheeler, according to a Tuesday ex parte filing posted in docket 02-278 on Wednesday. Most consumers want to receive communications from utilities but can choose to opt out only if such calls are permitted by consent. If they are categorized as emergency calls, customers can't opt out, EEI said. "Utilities believe that consumers should have [the] right to opt out from receiving these communications, and believe that their regulators generally have the same view," it said.

Correction: The Wireless Innovation Forum’s Spectrum Sharing Committee objects solely to the measurement procedures required to establish conformance with Part 96 in-band and out-of-band emissions limits in FCC rules for the 3.5 GHz band (see 1512070037).

The Rural Wireless Association takes issue with arguments that the FCC doesn't need to approve a new mobility fund, it told the commission. RWA specifically cited recent speeches by FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly. At a Competitive Carriers Association event, O’Rielly said small carriers should instead focus on preserving a role for mobility in the USF high-cost fund (see 1510080024). The FCC “has recognized that mobile voice and mobile broadband services are increasingly important to consumers and the nation’s economy, and that ubiquitous mobile overage must be a national priority,” RWA said. “The continuing need for dedicated support for mobile voice and broadband services remains as critical as ever, and it will persist as wireless networks evolve to Fifth Generation mobile technologies.” RWA filed a report on a recent meeting with Wireless Bureau officials.

The FCC "acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner" in denying Dish Network's designated entities Northstar and SNR the use of bidding credits to buy spectrum in the AWS-3 auction, the Phoenix Center said in a notice of intention to file an amicus curiae brief in support of the Dish DEs. The notice, filed Wednesday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, said the Phoenix Center will file its 7,000-word brief on Jan. 19, and that it will include an analysis of AWS-3 auction data that will show FCC conduct "raises serious questions of procedural due process." The FCC didn't comment. The Dish DEs in September appealed the FCC's August decision denying them use of the bidding credits (see 1509180048).

CTIA officials offered some details on industry efforts to test wireless location accuracy technology, said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 07-114, on a call with staff from the FCC Public Safety Bureau. The FCC approved an order in January requiring carriers to improve their performance in identifying the location of wireless calls to 911 (see 1501290066). Stage one of the test bed “will involve indoor testing of nationwide wireless carriers’ deployed horizontal location technologies in Atlanta and San Francisco," CTIA said. “The test results will be used to support carrier compliance reporting for the interim benchmarks.” Stage two “will involve location technology vendor testing of near-term emerging horizontal and vertical location technologies that are not currently deployed by the nationwide wireless carriers,” also in Atlanta and San Francisco, CTIA said. “Beyond Stage 2, there will be additional rounds of testing as needed, by location technology vendors or carriers.”

The FCC Wireless Bureau released specifications for auction system data file formats for the clock phase of the TV incentive auction’s forward auction. The formats are what bidders will use to interact with the auction system and had been requested by industry. “The Commission has determined that qualified bidders in the forward auction will have access to detailed information related to the results of bidding,” the bureau said in a public notice Wednesday. “The attached specifications set forth the file formats in which this information will be made available to qualified bidders.” The bureau also posted sample data files “for illustrative purposes only.”

The White Space Database Administrator Group (WSDBA) said a provision buried in FCC rules approved in August could complicate Wi-Fi in the TV white spaces. The order concedes it doesn’t make sense to make white spaces devices recheck a database every 20 minutes, as some propose, the group said. But the order requires that database administrators “push” information to white space devices in the area where licensed wireless microphones will be used “notifying them of changes in channel availability.” The FCC appears to not recognize “it's not possible to really ‘push’ data to specific devices at a specific location at a specific time” and the requirement will mean white spaces devices will have to poll the database “all the time no matter where they are,” the group said. The requirement “would cause significant burden on the database administrators and white space devices, with many potential real-world costs” including draining battery life of the devices and consuming bandwidth, the kinds of problems the FCC wants to solve, the group said. WSDBA said it represents Comsearch, Frequency Finder, Google, LS telcom, Microsoft, Neustar, Spectrum Bridge and Telcordia. The filing was posted Wednesday in docket 12-268.

The FCC Wireless Bureau plans a pre-auction process tutorial for the forward part of the TV incentive auction before Jan. 19, the bureau said in a notice. The tutorial will offer “additional information concerning access to the Commission’s bidding system,” the bureau said. The forward auction will offer the 600 MHz spectrum made available by broadcasters for sale to carriers and other potential bidders. The bureau reminded potential bidders they must have an FCC-provided SecurID token to access the auction system to place bids in the reverse or forward auctions or to participate in any mock auction. The tokens “will be distributed to applicants for the reverse auction prior to the deadline for initial commitments, and to forward auction applicants prior to the announcement of qualified bidders, to enable applicants with complete applications to practice with the Auction System,” the bureau said Monday.

The FCC Wireless Bureau gave AT&T a limited waiver to use power spectral density measurements to comply with effective radiated power limits for 800 MHz cellular operations in parts of Kansas. The bureau earlier approved similar requests for markets in Florida, Missouri and Vermont (see 1510050044). “The waiver relief we grant today is subject to the outcome of the pending rulemaking proceeding in which the Commission is considering changes to the Cellular radiated power limits and related technical rules,” the bureau said in a notice.