German corporation Conti, owner of the "Flaminia" vessel, petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit for rehearing on whether the court had personal jurisdiction over Mediterranean Shipping Co. in a suit seeking to confirm a $200 million arbitration award against the shipping giant. Conti said the grounds on which the appellate court rejected personal jurisdiction were twice waived since the company failed to raise them before the trial court and in its opening brief, and are wrong as a "factual matter" (Conti 11. Container Schiffarts-Gmbh & Co. KG M.S., MSC Flaminia v. MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co., 5th Cir. # 22-30808).
The FCC unanimously approved its entire open meeting agenda Thursday, including an order making it easier for consumers to revoke consent for being robocalled, an order revising wireless mic rules (see 2402150037), an NPRM on a licensing framework for in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing missions, and an NPRM seeking comment on using prerecorded script templates aimed at facilitating multilingual emergency alerts. “In the United States, over 26 million people have limited or no ability to speak English,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel at the open meeting. “That means we have to get creative and identify new ways to reach everyone in a disaster.”
House Communications Subcommittee members were universally positive about the Future Uses of Technology Upholding Reliable and Enhancing Networks Act (HR-1513) and four other communications network security bills during a Thursday hearing. House Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and other lawmakers used the hearing to continue the drumbeat for Congress to allocate an additional $3.08 billion to close a funding shortfall for the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program, as expected (see 2402140055). Several Democrats touted the stopgap funding push for the FCC’s affordable connectivity program (see 2402130074) as another priority for securing U.S. networks.
A bench trial is scheduled to begin April 22 at 9 a.m. on Count II of Verizon’s complaint that the Southwick, Massachusetts, denial of its cell tower application constituted an effective prohibition of wireless services under the Telecommunications Act, said a trial procedural order (docket 3:21-cv-10414). A joint pretrial memorandum is due April 2 that will include the probable length of the trial, a concise summary of evidence that will be offered by each party and a statement identifying any evidentiary issues that, if raised during the trial, would likely delay the trial by 15 minutes or longer, said the order, signed Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Mark Mastroianni for Massachusetts in Springfield. A pretrial conference is set for April 5, it said. The final exhibit and witness lists from each party are due April 15, it said. The judge granted summary judgment Feb. 5 in Southwick’s favor on Count I of Verizon’s March 2021 complaint that the town’s denial of Verizon’s cell tower application wasn’t supported by substantial evidence in the written record (see 2402060050).
The top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee said that getting Chinese shipments banned from the de minimis program is how he'd like to close out his congressional career. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., is retiring at the end of 2024. "I think we will see this moving forward, if only for the animus toward China" in Congress, he said.
Public interest and consumer groups urged the FCC take a more aggressive stance on a November Further NPRM about protecting consumers from SIM swapping and port-out fraud (see 2311150042). CTIA said the commission should “pursue a flexible and risk-based approach” toward customer account security and fraud deterrence. Reply comments were due this week in docket 21-341, and they largely mirror initial comments (see 2401180053).
The FTC’s proposed rules for moderating fake online reviews are overly broad and carry liability risks that will result in platforms censoring legitimate reviews on sites like Google, Facebook and Yelp, the Interactive Advertising Bureau said Tuesday.
There may be no individual in the U.S. “more heavily targeted for social media censorship” by the federal government than Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said his U.S. Supreme Court amicus brief Friday in Murthy v. Missouri (docket 23-411). The brief supports the injunction barring White House officials and four federal agencies from coercing social media platforms to moderate their content.
Industry is calling on the FCC to revise a robocall item, set for a commissioner vote Thursday, which codifies some robocall and robotexting rules while asking about applying protections in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act to communications from wireless carriers to their own subscribers (see 2401250068). Industry officials told us they’re not certain the FCC will make the changes they seek, though they expect tweaks.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Feb. 12 dismissed a host of claims from U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman against three of her colleagues for their investigation on Newman's fitness to continue serving on the court. Judge Christopher Cooper also rejected Newman's bid for an injunction against the CAFC Judicial Council's one-year ban on Newman hearing new cases at the court (see 2309200024) (Hon. Pauline Newman v. Hon. Kimbelry Moore, D.D.C. # 23-01334).