FCC Draft Raises Cost Concerns Among IP CTS Providers, Advocates
IP captioned telephone service providers and advocates raised cost concerns about an FCC IP CTS draft order, Further NPRM and order on Thursday's commissioners' meeting agenda. CaptionCall urged refreshing the record and evaluating costs before integrating IP CTS into a…
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telecom relay service user registration database, as an order contemplates. Moving such integration to the FNPRM will allow a "holistic approach to modernizing," filed CaptionCall on meeting an aide to Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel and other agency staffers, posted Friday in docket 13-24. It said if the FCC "decides to adopt the URD for IP CTS now, at a minimum, it should extend the time for implementation and adopt other modifications." Hamilton Relay doesn't object to using the database, but shared the concerns and agreed with a previous CaptionCall recommendation to allow cost recovery. "The cost of implementing this requirement will be significant, and should be treated as an exogenous cost in order to avoid an unfunded mandate," it said. MezmoCorp (InnoCaption) argued similarly. Advocates for the deaf and hard of hearing back IP CTS providers continuing service to new users while registration verification and appeals are pending as long as they absorb the interim service cost if registration isn't verified. "Once user verification is complete, providers should be compensated," said Hearing Loss Association of America and Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing on lobbying a Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau staffer. Alternatively, they supported moving the issue to the FNPRM.