Industry parties urged the FCC to scrap international traffic and revenue reporting duties, with many also calling for eliminating international circuit capacity reporting duties. "These anachronistic reporting requirements are largely holdover requirements for enforcing settlement rates and regulatory fee requirements and policies that the Commission has eliminated," said a filing of an international carrier/infrastructure group (North American Submarine Cable Association, DoCoMo Pacific, Globe Telecom, GTI and Level 3). "They impose often significant resource burdens on international carriers and infrastructure owners with little or no corresponding benefits, as the reports duplicate existing data collections, are stale upon release, and reflect often inaccurate and inconsistent data." Twelve comments were posted Wednesday and Thursday in docket 17-55 on commission proposals to eliminate the annual international traffic and revenue reports and streamline annual international circuit capacity reports (see 1703230042). A March 23 NPRM, citing the agency's biennial review of telecom regulations, said retaining the circuit capacity reports "might be warranted because the benefits appear to exceed the costs of collecting the data." There was no opposition filed to the proposed easing of reporting duties, and seven commenters backed eliminating all the reports under review: AT&T, Inmarsat, Sprint, USTelecom, Verizon, the Voice on the Net (VON) Coalition and the carrier/infrastructure group. Inmarsat said if the circuit capacity duties are kept, the FCC should clarify they don't apply to "satellite operators like Inmarsat that do not provide dedicated transport capacity between two fixed points." The VON Coalition said any streamlining should ensure "non-common carrier licensees need file Circuit Capacity Reports only with respect to those submarine cables for which they hold a license." CTIA, Iridium, T-Mobile, TNZI USA and the SD family of companies (Satcom Direct, Satcom Direct Communications and Comsat) backed eliminating the international traffic and revenue reports. The SD companies also supported streamlining the circuit capacity reports.

The Internet Association said broadband investment isn't down due to net neutrality regulation under Title II of the Communications Act. "ISP investment is up over time, and shows no decline as a result of Title II reclassification in 2015," said an IA summary. Claims of broadband providers and allies that investment dropped "don't mesh with reality," Chief Economist Chris Hooton told reporters Wednesday. The FCC is scheduled to vote Thursday on an NPRM proposing to reverse Title II reclassification and revisit net neutrality rules.

NCTA and USTelecom asked the FCC to clarify broadband speed disclosure rules to ensure harmonization and industry flexibility amid state mandates. They said the commission established a national regime for measuring and disclosing broadband internet access service (BIAS) speeds, and "is poised to launch a proceeding that may further update that regime," but states are trying "to mandate different disclosures based on unreliable performance metrics." The commission should act "to avoid a patchwork of inconsistent requirements and to protect its authority to maintain a uniform national framework for this interstate service," said an NCTA/USTelecom petition posted Tuesday. It said the agency gave flexibility to comply with transparency rules, with a "safe harbor" for providers disclosing their average downstream and upstream speeds during peak demand. "The Commission should prevent this framework from being undermined by issuing a declaratory ruling confirming that a broadband provider’s description of speeds based on this average peak-hour metric complies with the Commission’s transparency requirements and, unless and until BIAS is no longer classified as a telecommunications service, that such a characterization of actual broadband performance is just and reasonable," the petition said. The FCC should reaffirm that BIAS providers retain flexibility to comply with transparency rules "through alternative disclosures beyond" the safe harbor, the groups wrote. "Such a ruling -- along with a confirmation that broadband providers can meet these obligations through website disclosures, and a clarification that it is consistent with federal law for broadband providers also to advertise maximum speeds -- would reinforce the primacy of federal law on these matters. ... Protecting the Commission’s authority to establish national, uniform rules is particularly important ... as the Commission is about to launch a proceeding to put in place a national 'light-touch framework' to govern BIAS providers and preserve a free and open Internet."

FCC staff denied a General Communication Inc. reconsideration petition seeking a targeted reversal of a commission decision to forbear nationally from applying long-distance "equal access and dialing parity" duties to incumbent telcos. GCI sought a carve-out for "rural" Alaska (see 1601280031). Alaska Communications and USTelecom filed oppositions (see 1602090059). "GCI's Petition is procedurally barred because of its failure to present an adequate justification for relying on new arguments and facts," said a Wireline Bureau order in docket 14-192 in Thursday's Daily Digest. Noting GCI hadn't participated in the original forbearance proceeding, the bureau wrote: "The crux of GCI’s argument is that the Order failed to adequately consider the particular long-distance telecommunications needs of rural Alaskans. But neither GCI nor any other party previously presented arguments concerning the specific needs of rural Alaskans to the Commission." GCI declined to comment Thursday.

Technology and broadband providers are building "monopolies" of power, communication and data, and government is rolling back consumer choices of how data is collected and sold, actions that represent "very serious threats and risks for consumers," said Marta Tellado, CEO of Consumer Reports, at the Consumer Federation of America conference Thursday. "The digital giants are completely redefining the consumer experience. They're rewiring the ways in which people receive, share and step into the marketplace."

President Donald Trump signed a cybersecurity executive order Thursday that also aims to jump-start White House efforts to modernize federal IT. The EO mirrored aspects of previous drafts, including those from the original version that direct the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Homeland Security to assess all federal agencies' cybersecurity risks and required agencies to manage their risk using the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Cybersecurity Framework. The White House ditched its original plan for Trump to sign in January (see 1701310066).

White House said Tuesday evening that President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey; we couldn't reach anyone at the bureau to comment by our deadline ... Attorney and ex-state Sen. Keith Jordan named to Tennessee Public Utility Commission to fill balance of an unexpired term, until June 30, 2018 ... Leaving NAB for 21st Century Fox: Jamie Gillespie becomes vice president in the Global Public Affairs and Policy group, effective June 5 ... Ready Wireless hires Joe Peterson, ex-Telit, as president, Ready IoT ... General Electric appointments include Mo Cowan, ex-ML Strategies and Mintz Levin, named vice president-litigation and legal policy, and Kevin Ichhpurani, ex-Ernst & Young, as executive vice president-global ecosystem and channels, GE Digital ... Polycom hires Tarun Loomba, ex-SanDisk, as executive vice president-solutions management.

A chief House Republican on telecom matters joined with a Trump administration official Monday, keeping up her ties with administration officials that began last year. House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., held her annual Women of Distinction luncheon in Nashville, where former Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway was a guest. Conway is counselor to President Donald Trump. Blackburn maintained especially close ties to the Trump team and was a member of its transition effort. The event’s invitation said it was paid for by Blackburn for Congress and lists ticket prices ranging from $150 to $2,500, depending on the seating. The Tennessee Democratic Party posted video of protests happening outside. Blackburn’s latest Federal Election Commission records show close to $3 million on hand in her campaign coffers, with many donations this year from telecom and media political action committees since she became subcommittee chairman. Comcast, Charter Communications, CTIA, NCTA and the American Cable Association’s PACs donated $5,000 in March, and AT&T’s did the same in February. Several other entities’ PACs, including those of Centurylink, CTA, ITTA, NAB, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon and USTelecom, donated lesser amounts this year.

USTelecom asked the FCC to ensure "greater efficiencies" in the video relay service program for the deaf and hard of hearing, and to shore up "the overall sustainability" of the broader telecom relay service fund. In replies on a Further NPRM (see 1703230055), it lauded commission efforts to encourage VRS efficiencies and innovation to address cost issues, but said the agency recognized structural changes were "slow to arrive." Even with FCC 2013-2017 reductions in VRS provider compensation rates, overall TRS funding continues to increase as a "shrinking group of rate-payers" shoulder the costs, leading to a recent TRS administrator proposal to increase the industry contribution rate by 12 percent (see 1705030034), said the group Thursday in docket No. 10-51. Parties filed initial comments last month (see 1704250057). USTelecom said the FCC should reject Sorenson Communication's proposal that VRS become a "mandatory" service for common carriers. ASL Service Holdings (GlobalVRS) said it wasn't surprising Sorenson opposed rivals' VRS compensation proposal to achieve "provider diversity" and TRS stability. (The proposal would raise most rates while cutting further the traffic tier rate affecting Sorenson.) "The dominant provider seeks to solidify its virtual monopolization of the Program," replied ASL Service. "The dominant provider can trace its 'success' not to innovation, superior service, or efficiency, but rather to years of over compensation." Sorensen has concerns on the FNPRM, it replied and told Office of General Counsel officials including acting General Counsel Brendan Carr. In the meeting, it sought "equal treatment to VRS providers that provide more than 500,000 minutes per month." The path in the FNPRM would set Tier III "rates below costs," it replied, violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. "If the Commission does not adopt one of Sorenson’s proposals for market-determined rates, the only rate in the record that meets ADA requirements is a $4.19 unitary per minute rate. Even if the Commission intends to push all costs of end user devices onto deaf consumers in violation of the ADA, the only justifiable rate in the record for VRS, without necessary equipment, is $3.73 per minute."

ISPs invested about $5.6 billion, or 3.6 percent, less in 2015 and 16 than they likely would have without Title II Communications Act net neutrality rules, spending about $149 billion total, a Free State Foundation research associate blogged Friday. Michael Horney based the estimate on capital expenditure data on 16 of the largest ISPs for 2014-16, and also cited USTelecom data on broadband capital expenditures (see 1612140074). Free Press, which unlike FSF supports the 2015 FCC rules, disagreed with the analysis, while USTelecom said spending appears to be affected, and Oracle meanwhile seeks a return to pre-2015 rules. "This is not a regression analysis, so I cannot say by how much the regulatory uncertainty and costs imposed in the Open Internet Order negatively impacted broadband investment," wrote FSF's Horney. "If the FCC was right about broadband capital investment not being suppressed by the Open Internet Order, we should have expected the market to continue along or above its trend of investment growth." These "empty claims" are belied by publicly traded ISPs showing a 5.3 percent increase in investments in the two-year period, responded Free Press Policy Director Matt Wood. USTelecom estimates were "flawed and vague numbers," and "Horney descends even further," Wood said. USTelecom’s "initial analysis strongly suggests that investment in 2016 continued to trend downward," the group blogged Friday following FSF. ISPs, usually comprising 90-95 percent of annual industry capital expenditures, spent $71 billion in 2016, down from $73 billion in 2015, wrote USTelecom Vice President-Industry Analysis Patrick Brogan. "Claims by some interest groups that broadband provider capex actually may have increased in 2015 and 2016 depend on figures that ignore accounting adjustments for certain non-material items like leased cellphones and acquisitions, such as AT&T’s merger with DirecTV and a Mexican wireless operation." FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has been doing media interviews and making speeches about his plan to propose to change net neutrality rules (see 1705050025). Oracle meanwhile, backing a proposed return to Title I Communications Act net neutrality rules, sees debate having "inexplicably evolved into a highly political hyperbolic battle, substantially removed from technical, economic, and consumer reality," it wrote Pai Friday in docket 17-108 after previously backing this move. "The stifling open internet regulations and broadband classification that the FCC put in place in 2015," the year of the past net neutrality order, "threw out" the "technological consensus" and "certainty," the software maker said. "Reclassifying broadband internet access as an information service will eliminate unnecessary burdens on, and competitive imbalances for, ISPs. ... It will restore the FTC as the impartial cop on the broadband beat with authority to reach all of the participants." The company was part of a meeting with Pai last month, before he unveiled a draft NPRM to undo Title II common-carrier net neutrality rules (see 1704260002 and 1705050025).