National Religious Broadcasters urged departing FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski to finalize a notice of proposed rulemaking allowing noncommercial stations to devote a segment of airtime to fundraising for nonprofit organizations. The commission proposed the new rules, which would do away with the waiver process allowing stations to raise funds for emergency and disaster relief purposes (CD April 27/12 p8). The concept at the heart of this proceeding will serve an essential public interest not only by “facilitating the charitable impulse of listeners and viewers, but also by aiding non-profit groups in meeting critical community needs through partnerships with broadcasting stations,” it said in a letter to Genachowski in docket 12-106 (http://bit.ly/Zrtgf6).
Requirements for video descriptions from emergency on-screen crawls haven’t changed much from what was in an FCC draft that has been circulating for a month (WID March 11 p4), said agency and industry officials. They said in interviews Thursday that the draft Media Bureau order and further NPRM hasn’t been controversial among the agency’s members, and a public-interest official said it may be approved largely intact. He said he hopes the further notice on Internet Protocol programming sent by MVPDs to connected devices in a pay-TV household gets a section added on accessibility of emergency crawls to those with both sight and hearing impairments.
Requirements for video descriptions from emergency on-screen crawls haven’t changed much from what was in an FCC draft that has been circulating for a month (CED March 11 p1), said agency and industry officials. They said in interviews Thursday that the draft Media Bureau order and further NPRM hasn’t been controversial among the agency’s members, and a public-interest official said it may be approved largely intact. He said he hopes the further notice on Internet Protocol programming sent by MVPDs to connected devices in a pay-TV household gets a section added on accessibility of emergency crawls to those with both sight and hearing impairments.
Requirements for video descriptions from emergency on-screen crawls haven’t changed much from what was in an FCC draft that has been circulating for a month (CD March 11 p3), said agency and industry officials. They said in interviews Thursday that the draft Media Bureau order and further NPRM hasn’t been controversial among the agency’s members, and a public-interest official said it may be approved largely intact. He said he hopes the further notice on Internet Protocol programming sent by MVPDs to connected devices in a pay-TV household gets a section added on accessibility of emergency crawls to those with both sight and hearing impairments.
Progeny’s controversial network offering advanced location services in its 900 MHz Multilateration Location and Monitoring Service spectrum could play a big role in improving E911 location accuracy, the National Emergency Number Association said in a filing at the FCC. “NENA takes no position with respect to the technical aspects of Progeny’s test methods or results,” the letter said (http://bit.ly/ZrLv7D). “However, ... M-LMS technologies such as Progeny’s represent a tremendous opportunity to enable immediate and dramatic improvements in wireless location accuracy in precisely those areas of the country that are the most challenging for existing technologies.” The FCC’s decision on whether it will grant Progeny a waiver has big implications for the entire M-LMS industry, NENA said. “Progeny is the first M-LMS provider to begin deployment of a functioning network,” the group said. “Should Progeny be excluded from the market based on the objections of incumbents seeking to override the shared nature of the ... band by essentially squatting on that spectrum, the M-LMS market envisioned by the Commission’s Part 90 rules could be destroyed before it even comes into existence.”
New rules aimed at slashing the civil engineering costs of rolling out high-speed broadband networks emerged from the European Commission Tuesday. Its draft regulation (http://bit.ly/ZqZH0t) introduces four new rules: (1) Every network operator will have the right to offer and an obligation to grant all reasonable requests for access to its physical infrastructure for deployment of elements of fixed and wireless high-speed e-communications networks. (2) Every operator can negotiate agreements for coordinating civil engineering works with companies or organizations authorized to provide electronic communications networks. Operators must make available on request minimum information about ongoing or planned civil works related to its infrastructure. (3) Every e-communications network provider will be able to access electronically, via a single information point, information about the conditions and procedures applicable for grating permits for civil works, and to submit its applications via the same information point. Permits must be granted or denied within six months of request. (4) All newly constructed buildings, and those undergoing major renovation, must be equipped with high-speed-ready, in-building physical infrastructure joined to the network termination points. The proposal could save telecom companies 40-60 billion euros ($51-$77 billion), on the overall cost of rolling out fast broadband the EC said. The draft builds on best practices already in place in the U.K. and several other EU countries, but leaves organizational details to each government’s discretion, it said. Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes said at a press briefing that she’s not blaming nations that haven’t streamlined the infrastructure-building process, she just wants them to do so quickly. Asked why she’s handling the action as a regulation, which, when approved by the European Parliament and Council, is uniformly imposed on all EU members, rather than a directive, which gives governments some flexibility in adapting to national circumstances, Kroes said the fragmented state of the situation across Europe requires quick action. The potential savings -- and the current waste of resources -- are so large that a quick resolution is needed, she said. The idea of cutting the expense of deploying fiber networks is “very welcome,” said European Competitive Telecommunications Association Chair Tom Ruhan. More than 70 percent of all fiber-to-the-home investments in Europe are made by alternative operators who share the highest investment costs proportionally, he said. Decreased costs will speed rollout of open networks to businesses and consumers, he said. Network operators also applauded the move. The regulation will cover the shared used of different types of passive infrastructures of all network and utility sectors as well as e-communications services, making it possible to take full advantage of all existing infrastructure suitable to support high-speed networks, said the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association. It urged EU members and lawmakers to approve the proposal quickly.
New rules aimed at slashing the civil engineering costs of rolling out high-speed broadband networks emerged from the European Commission Tuesday. Its draft regulation (http://bit.ly/ZqZH0t) introduces four new rules: (1) Every network operator will have the right to offer and an obligation to grant all reasonable requests for access to its physical infrastructure for deployment of elements of fixed and wireless high-speed e-communications networks. (2) Every operator can negotiate agreements for coordinating civil engineering works with companies or organizations authorized to provide electronic communications networks. Operators must make available on request minimum information about ongoing or planned civil works related to its infrastructure. (3) Every e-communications network provider will be able to access electronically, via a single information point, information about the conditions and procedures applicable for grating permits for civil works, and to submit its applications via the same information point. Permits must be granted or denied within six months of request. (4) All newly constructed buildings, and those undergoing major renovation, must be equipped with high-speed-ready, in-building physical infrastructure joined to the network termination points. The proposal could save telecom companies 40-60 billion euros ($51-$77 billion), on the overall cost of rolling out fast broadband the EC said. The draft builds on best practices already in place in the U.K. and several other EU countries, but leaves organizational details to each government’s discretion, it said. Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes said at a press briefing that she’s not blaming nations that haven’t streamlined the infrastructure-building process, she just wants them to do so quickly. Asked why she’s handling the action as a regulation, which, when approved by the European Parliament and Council, is uniformly imposed on all EU members, rather than a directive, which gives governments some flexibility in adapting to national circumstances, Kroes said the fragmented state of the situation across Europe requires quick action. The potential savings -- and the current waste of resources -- are so large that a quick resolution is needed, she said. The idea of cutting the expense of deploying fiber networks is “very welcome,” said European Competitive Telecommunications Association Chair Tom Ruhan. More than 70 percent of all fiber-to-the-home investments in Europe are made by alternative operators who share the highest investment costs proportionally, he said. Decreased costs will speed rollout of open networks to businesses and consumers, he said. Network operators also applauded the move. The regulation will cover the shared used of different types of passive infrastructures of all network and utility sectors as well as e-communications services, making it possible to take full advantage of all existing infrastructure suitable to support high-speed networks, said the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association. It urged EU members and lawmakers to approve the proposal quickly.
The House Judiciary Committee is circulating a discussion draft of a bill aimed at modernizing the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), a committee spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday. The aide said the draft was being circulated by staffers “to all stakeholders in an effort to bring everyone to the table to make any necessary changes or improvements to the proposal.” The draft, which would increase criminal financial penalties and jail time for those found guilty of certain computer crimes, was harshly criticized by Demand Progress, an Internet advocacy group founded by the late activist Aaron Swartz, who committed suicide during his prosecution for CFAA violations.
Industry commenters largely acknowledged that Telecommunication Systems (TCS) identified a real problem in its petition last August -- companies providing E-911 and next-generation 911 call routing and location information and carriers face predatory lawsuits by patent assertion entities (PAEs). But commenters disagreed whether the FCC can grant the relief sought by TCS. Qualcomm said not denying the petition would have “devastating public policy consequences.”
The House Judiciary Committee is circulating a discussion draft of a bill aimed at modernizing the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), a committee spokeswoman confirmed Tuesday. The aide said the draft was being circulated by staffers “to all stakeholders in an effort to bring everyone to the table to make any necessary changes or improvements to the proposal.” The draft, which would increase criminal financial penalties and jail time for those found guilty of certain computer crimes, was harshly criticized by Demand Progress, an Internet advocacy group founded by the late activist Aaron Swartz, who committed suicide during his prosecution for CFAA violations.