The Small Entity Regulatory Relief Opportunity Act (HR-3787) got most criticism during a Thursday House Communications Subcommittee hearing, as expected (see 1803210035). Some subcommittee Democrats raised concerns about the draft Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement (Pirate) Act. The National Suicide Hotline Improvement Act (HR-2345) and Rural Reasonable and Comparable Wireless Access Act (HR-2903) got universal praise from lawmakers. Some, including Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., trumpeted inclusion of the Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services (Ray Baum's) Act FCC reauthorization and spectrum legislative package (HR-4986) in the FY 2018 omnibus spending bill. The House passed the measure Thursday 256-167 (see 1803210068 and 1803220048).
The FCC proposed to create at least one database of reassigned numbers to help businesses reduce unwanted robocalls. The vote on a Further NPRM was nearly unanimous. But Commissioner Mike O'Rielly questioned the database's utility after a recent court ruling, and Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel partially dissented, arguing "so much more" can be done. Adopted at Thursday's meeting (see 1803220027 and 1803220037), the FNPRM appears to closely track a draft.
Privacy groups warned against a surge in human rights abuses after inclusion of the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act (Cloud) (S-2383/HR-4943) in the omnibus spending bill (see 1803210068 and 1803220048). Some within industry praised it as a vital step in freeing tech companies stuck between conflicting, outdated international laws. A congressional opponent told us he won't back down, while a supporter said it would have been better to have regular debate on the bill.
The FCC approved on 5-0 votes a Further NPRM on the 4.9 GHz public safety band and an order eliminating the personal-use restriction on provider-specific consumer signal boosters, as expected (see 1803190053). The former item was changed at the request of Commissioner Mike O’Rielly since a draft was circulated to sharpen its focus on reallocating the spectrum for commercial use. An item to pave the way for 5G equipment had a 3-2 vote (see 1803220027) while another item on robocalling drew commissioner concerns (see 1803220028).
The Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services (Ray Baum's) Act FCC reauthorization and spectrum legislative package (HR-4986) and other tech and telecom policy provisions included in the $1.3 trillion FY 2018 omnibus spending bill (HR-1625) moved a step closer to enactment Thursday when the House passed the measure 256-167. House leaders released the bill's full text Wednesday evening after a deal between President Donald Trump and Capitol Hill leaders (see 1803210041 and 1803210068). Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., filed cloture on the spending bill late Thursday, setting up a first vote around 1 a.m. Saturday, shortly after the current continuing resolution to fund the government is set to expire. McConnell and others remained concerned Thursday that Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., might move to force a brief government shutdown, as he did in February (see 1802060054 and Notebook at the end of 1802090050).
Section 7 of the Clayton Act says a deal shouldn't go through if there's reasonable probability it harms consumers, and New AT&T's ability to do that via Time Warner content and its incentive to do so due to its "massive investment" in the traditional MVPD space shows that probability, said DOJ antitrust trial attorney Craig Conrath during opening argument Thursday in DOJ v. AT&T and Time Warner in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. By ignoring over-the-top competitors and digital advertising, DOJ is "fundamentally stuck in the past," companies' outside counsel Dan Petrocelli of O'Melveny replied. A Washington executive says similar.
The FCC approved changes to wireless infrastructure rules, aimed at speeding deployment of small cells to pave the way for 5G, 3-2 Thursday over dissents by Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel, as expected (see 1803070044). Both said the order had problems that need to be fixed and a vote should have been postponed. Tribes and groups representing local and state governments raised repeated objections. Security removed a protester complaining about RF issues after the vote at what was a lightly attended meeting. A robocalling FNPRM also drew some concerns (see 1803220028), while some other items were less controversial (see 1803220037).
The Senate passed anti-sex trafficking legislation in a 97-2 vote Wednesday, paving the way for the signature of President Donald Trump, who signaled support for the measure (see 1803150039 and 1803080039). The House passed its version of the SESTA-FOSTA (the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers-Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking) package in February on a 388-25 vote.
Cable operators should take a page from the likes of Spotify by continuing to improve their user interfaces so UIs are a one-stop shop for a wide array of video content, the ex-CEO of TiVo advised smaller and mid-sized companies. Tom Rogers, now executive chairman of the WinView "second-screen interactive TV" provider, said it's "not too late" for operators to further include content companies in their UIs. Cable operators like Comcast “fought, they resisted, the streaming content companies for being part of their user interface,” he said Wednesday at an American Cable Association conference. Comcast disagreed, other panelists said operators are focusing their efforts on this, and another panel's moderator called cable "the original disrupter."
Comcast Chief Diversity Officer David Cohen has an offer for American Cable Association members, he said in Q&A following FCC Chairman Ajit Pai (see 1803210053): Any cable operator that wants to "steal" elements of the company's low-cost broadband program for the poor can do so. "We’ve offered to whitelist any and all of this intellectual property and work with anyone in the industry," he said of Internet Essentials. The program began 5-1/2 years ago and serves about 1 million families.