Politicians will increasingly use “augmented-reality” smartphone applications and the mobile Web in election campaigns, said Hill and industry officials. Interactive mobile apps are a novel tool to engage potential voters, but compelling content is still critical, they said Monday at the Politics Online Conference. “People buy the shovel, but they want the hole,” said Will Hurley, chief architect of open source strategy at BMC Software.
The FCC is moving fast on the public safety network and quick actions in areas like interoperability and the emergency communications system are expected, Public Safety Bureau officials said during an FCBA lunch Friday. The agency is also seeking to increase its involvement with cybersecurity and critical infrastructure survivability where it doesn’t have much of a track record, they said.
The American Public Communications Council said the FCC should act with care on a seemingly “innocuous” request by Virgin Mobile to be allowed to sign customers up for the federal Lifeline program online or through automated voice response, without talking to a sales representative for the prepaid mobile provider. The District of Columbia’s Public Service Commission expressed similar concerns about risks of Universal Service Fund fraud. Comments on the petition were due at the FCC last week.
All eyes are on Chairman Julius Genachowski on one of the first controversial orders before the FCC since he became chairman: A proposal to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Communications Act in the aftermath of the Comcast v. FCC decision. He faced repeated questions Wednesday, at a Senate Commerce hearing on the National Broadband Plan, about his position on whether the commission needs to reclassify broadband Wednesday. But he offered little beyond what he has said since the decision came down last week. (See related report in this issue).
Even though the FCC delayed until April 26 the deadline for filing reply comments on its net neutrality rules, dozens of commenters weighed in last week. The original comment round was one of the most active ever, with the FCC cataloging more than 100,000 comments (CD Jan 19 p1). The early replies were filed mostly by smaller players on both sides of the question of whether the FCC should codify its current rules and expand the rules to cover wireless. The FCC saw similar divisions among grassroots groups in its first comment round in January.
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski may lack a way to avoid reclassifying broadband while still requiring net neutrality, said numerous commission and industry officials not involved in internal deliberations on Comcast v. FCC. Losing the case at the U.S. Appeals Court for the D.C. Circuit on statutory grounds Tuesday (CD April 8 p1) leaves Genachowski with few choices that appear palatable to him, they said. One likely outcome if the FCC doesn’t appeal is deeming broadband a common carrier and not an information service.
Verizon is watching with interest whether the FCC rethinks an order approving Harbinger Capital Partners Funds’ acquisition of SkyTerra, which effectively prohibits SkyTerra from leasing spectrum to either Verizon Wireless or AT&T without commission approval, Verizon Executive Vice President Tom Tauke said. Tauke addressed the issue on an episode of C-SPAN’s The Communicators, scheduled to be telecast this weekend. AT&T this week petitioned the FCC to “reconsider -- and rescind” the parts of the order that apply to it and Verizon (CD April 1 p1). “We're trying to figure out what this is about,” Tauke said. “This is a merger between a satellite company and a venture capital company. The venture capital company agreed to some conditions at the FCC. These conditions now we find out … apply to us, have impact on us. Just from a process perspective this is kind of troubling because we had no access to any of the discussions that were going on at the FCC. There was no transparency. All these filings were confidential.” Verizon’s initial reaction was “this doesn’t seem like a fair process,” Tauke said. “The other factor that is of concern then is what kind of precedent this sets if this is permitted to happen. While this specific case may not be earth shattering … the precedent could be fairly troubling down the road.” Tauke also repeated calls on Congress to overhaul laws covering how telecom is regulated. “I think that Congress needs to take the lead,” he said. “The Federal Communications Commission really is facing a tough task. … They're trying to encourage investment, they want innovation in this space. All this is good, but they're trying to work with a statute that isn’t structured for this area. … When we look at this world of the Internet we don’t want it to be a wild, wild west. We want it to be governed by a rule of law.” Tauke said Verizon is pleased with many parts of the National Broadband Plan. “There’s so much in the broadband plan that to say [I'm] a full supporter probably would get me in some trouble with somebody,” he said. “Generally, there are a lot of very good things.”
FCC Commissioner Meredith Baker said she remains open-minded about net neutrality, but she questioned whether a compromise can be made to gain her support by removing the application of rules to wireless. Baker, who joined the commission in July, told us she’s pleased with the approach of the National Broadband Plan toward spectrum. Baker also called for a quick review of all deals before the FCC, including Comcast-NBC Universal, limiting conditions to those directly involved, and helping broadcasters in small- and mid-sized markets in the media ownership review.
The FCC sought comment on whether it should revise buildout and construction requirements for the 2.3 GHz Wireless Communications Service band. “The Commission has sought to develop a record that would enable the provision of innovative broadband services in the 2.3 GHz WCS band and provide licensees increased spectrum rights,” it said. “We now seek comment on the performance requirements that would accompany such rule changes.” Feedback is due 15 days after publication in the Federal Register, replies 10 days later.
It’s still unclear when Congress will move legislation regarding the National Broadband Plan, said speakers at an Advisory Committee to the Congressional Internet Caucus’ briefing Monday. Barbara Esbin of the Progress & Freedom Foundation said the plan is “extraordinarily detailed” and it could cost the FCC more than it expected. The question is whether the commission should seek to reformulate the Communications Act before it proceeds, she said. Historically, such procedures take up to nine months, Esbin said, and due to many dockets still pending it’s impossible to set an exact time frame. Rick Cimerman, NCTA senior director of state telecommunications policy, said a record on pending dockets has already been built and a schedule is expected this week. Congress should deal with jurisdictional questions regarding the FCC’s authority to regulate the Internet, Esbin said. Seventy-six recommendations have already been sent to Congress, said Derek Turner of Free Press, but it’s still unclear whether they will be adopted. Michael Calabrese, vice president of the New America Foundation, said the federal chief technology officer “should shepherd the recommendations.”