The following are trade-related highlights of the Executive Communications sent to Congress on August 12-26, 2011:
The Dish Network application for a waiver to mobile satellite service rules that would allow the company to offer terrestrial-only service in the S-band (CD Aug 23 p5) “could exacerbate broadcast recalcitrance on incentive auctions and create a conundrum of sorts for the FCC,” said Jeff Silva, analyst at Medley Global Advisors, in a research note. The broadcast lobby would be able to point to the emergence of national wireless wholesalers as “negating the need for TV licensee to return frequencies (even with the promise of government compensation,” he said. The “savvy packaging” of the Dish proposal “likely makes it ripe for FCC approval in the not-too-distant future,” Silva said.
Wireless network congestion following Tuesday’s earthquake on the east coast showed public safety can’t rely on commercial networks in an emergency, said the National Association of Counties and National League of Cities. In a joint statement Thursday, the groups urged Congress to reallocate the 700 MHz D-block to public safety. “As the events of the Aug. 23 earthquake unfolded, it was clear that the commercial wireless networks were unable to handle the sudden surge of calls being made to loved ones and friends,” the counties and cities said. “While it is unreasonable to expect commercial networks to engineer their systems for this surge capacity, it is also unreasonable to suggest public safety can rely on such networks in an emergency.” The FCC is investigating the wireless network disruptions after the earthquake (CD Aug 25 p5).
The 5.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Virginia Tuesday, leading to a overload in wireless networks throughout the region, highlights an issue still to be addressed by the FCC -- the inability of wireless customers to make emergency 911 calls during the period they didn’t have service. Advocates of a national wireless public safety network were quick to cite the incident as further proof they need access to the 700 MHz D-block. But some observers said the inability get through to 911 services raises far more troubling questions. One former FCC official said the equation is simple, if people can’t connect to the network they can’t call 911.
For the second time in three years, the FCC could be on the cusp of making major changes to the Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation regimes. In late 2008, those efforts fell flat when then-Chairman Kevin Martin appeared to have support lined up for a reform order, but pulled an item prior to a vote. All signs this time around are that Chairman Julius Genachowski would like to succeed where the former commission fell short.
National Emergency Number Association CEO Brian Fontes and others from the group discussed the “role and importance of standards in enabling innovative, consumer-focused emergency-calling services.” The discussion came during a meeting Friday with Chairman Julius Genachowski and others at the commission. “Second, we explained our view of how the Commission could facilitate the roll-out of [next generation] 911 by working collaboratively with state utility commissions. In particular, we noted that some regulations based on legacy service models such as monopoly wireline service may impede or outright prohibit the provisioning of NG 911 service by competitive entrants or the disaggregation of various aspects of NG 911 service,” NENA said in a filing at the commission (http://xrl.us/bma3ae). “Finally, we discussed the importance of interoperability considerations [to] the broader emergency communications enterprise.”
The 911 Industry Alliance scheduled a national workshop Oct. 4-5 to discuss 911 overload. As an example, the group cited problems seen in the Phoenix area in early July when a massive dust storm struck. Hundreds called 911 simply to report the storm, according to Liz Graeber, administrator for Maricopa Region’s 911 system. “Too many people fail to distinguish a real emergency from a non-emergency,” she said. “When residents call 911 to report a weather event it may prevent someone with a real emergency from getting through.” The conference is to be at the Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center in Washington.
The Health and Human Services Department invited software developers to design Facebook applications for emergency readiness. The online challenge runs throughout September, which is National Preparedness Month, and continues until Nov. 4, HHS said. The applications will “help people prepare for emergencies and get support from friends and family after an emergency strikes.” The developer with the best application will win $10,000, and will work with the government and Facebook “to get the application into use just weeks after selection,” HHS said. Participants can register at www.challenge.gov/challenges/220.
The FCC should take “swift and decisive” action to “promote universal broadband connectivity and advanced Internet protocol (IP) networks” as it moves forward on Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation reform, Google, Skype, Vonage, the Ad Hoc Telecommunications Users Committee and Sprint Nextel said in a filing to the commission (http://xrl.us/bmasxm). The filing proposes its own principles for reform, starting with an argument that the legacy USF should eventually be eliminated, in favor of a new fund that pays for broadband.
The FCC should take “swift and decisive” action to “promote universal broadband connectivity and advanced Internet protocol (IP) networks” as it moves forward on Universal Service Fund and Intercarrier compensation reform, Google, Skype, Vonage, the Ad Hoc Telecommunications Users Committee and Sprint Nextel said in a filing to the commission (http://xrl.us/bmasxm). The filing proposes its own principles for reform, starting with an argument that the legacy USF should eventually be eliminated, in favor of a new fund that pays for broadband.