With the USF contribution factor at an all-time high (see 2103020032), reform must be addressed “head-on,” said FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr during a Free State Foundation event Tuesday. The contribution factor has been “spiraling,” he said.
Gabriella Novello, Assistant Editor, is a journalist for Communications Daily covering telecommunications and the Federal Communications Commission. She joined the Warren Communications News staff in 2020, after covering election integrity and the 2020 presidential election at WhoWhatWhy. She received her bachelor's degree in journalism with a minor in health promotion at American University. You can follow Novello on Instagram and Twitter: @NOVELLOGAB.
With the USF contribution factor at an all-time high (see 2103020032), reform must be addressed “head-on,” said FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr during a Free State Foundation event Tuesday. The contribution factor has been “spiraling,” he said.
National policies on content moderation are “failing,” FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr told a Free State Foundation event Tuesday. There are some targeted reforms to Communications Decency Act Section 230 that would be “an improvement over the status quo,” he said, because illegal content is staying up while political speech is being taken down. Carr said there should be more scrutiny of Section 230(c)(2), which sets a "higher bar" for platforms to take down content. The FCC and FTC have a role in holding platforms accountable to their terms of service, he said.
The FCC's recent infusion of money from Congress will likely help millions of students and low-income households stay connected during the pandemic, experts said in recent interviews. They said the commission must overcome longstanding institutional barriers to find a solution to shore up USF financially over the long haul (see 2102010059).
The FCC Precision Agriculture Connectivity Task Force unanimously approved an interim report Friday from the Accelerating Broadband Deployment on Unserved Agricultural Lands Working Group. The ag task force heard an update from the commission’s new Broadband Data Task Force (see 2103110050).
Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is "anxious" to develop new broadband data maps, said Jean Kiddoo, who will head the commission's new broadband data task force (see 2102170052), during an FCBA event Thursday. The agency has identified a vendor to assist in the data collection and database for serviceable location fabric, and "it will be an FCC system," Kiddoo said. The fabric will combine all locations where fixed broadband is available and where it can be installed. "That is beneficial for everybody," said Lynn Follansbee, USTelecom vice president-policy and advocacy, because it will be a "living, breathing database" that providers and consumers can access. "This can be transformative in ways that you can't imagine," said AT&T Assistant Vice President-Federal Regulatory Mary Henze. Questions on how to file data can be sent to broadbanddatainquiries@fcc.gov. The Office of Economics and Analytics will issue a public notice announcing the initial filing deadline at least six months in advance, said Chelsea Fallon, broadband data task force chief implementation officer. Providers must have a corporate officer and qualified engineer certify accuracy. If one person is designated as both roles, one certification is needed, Fallon said. Fixed wired and satellite providers must submit polygons or lists of locations where they have service and where they could provide service within 10 business days of a request, with no charges or delays resulting from extending their network. Wireless providers must submit coverage maps for 3G, 4G LTE and 5G-NR data and voice coverage. The task force will accept third-party submissions. Those challenging a provider's availability data must include a certified submission of key information about locations and a basis for the challenge. Providers have 60 days to respond, either by agreeing within 30 days to remove a location or by resolving with the challenger. Providers responding to challenges must show availability by a preponderance of evidence. Nonconsumer challenges must show lack of availability by clear and convincing evidence. The goal is to resolve any challenges within 60 days, said Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force Deputy Chief Kirk Burgee.
Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is "anxious" to develop new broadband data maps, said Jean Kiddoo, who will head the commission's new broadband data task force (see 2102170052), during an FCBA event Thursday. The agency has identified a vendor to assist in the data collection and database for serviceable location fabric, and "it will be an FCC system," Kiddoo said. The fabric will combine all locations where fixed broadband is available and where it can be installed. "That is beneficial for everybody," said Lynn Follansbee, USTelecom vice president-policy and advocacy, because it will be a "living, breathing database" that providers and consumers can access. "This can be transformative in ways that you can't imagine," said AT&T Assistant Vice President-Federal Regulatory Mary Henze. Questions on how to file data can be sent to broadbanddatainquiries@fcc.gov. The Office of Economics and Analytics will issue a public notice announcing the initial filing deadline at least six months in advance, said Chelsea Fallon, broadband data task force chief implementation officer. Providers must have a corporate officer and qualified engineer certify accuracy. If one person is designated as both roles, one certification is needed, Fallon said. Fixed wired and satellite providers must submit polygons or lists of locations where they have service and where they could provide service within 10 business days of a request, with no charges or delays resulting from extending their network. Wireless providers must submit coverage maps for 3G, 4G LTE and 5G-NR data and voice coverage. The task force will accept third-party submissions. Those challenging a provider's availability data must include a certified submission of key information about locations and a basis for the challenge. Providers have 60 days to respond, either by agreeing within 30 days to remove a location or by resolving with the challenger. Providers responding to challenges must show availability by a preponderance of evidence. Nonconsumer challenges must show lack of availability by clear and convincing evidence. The goal is to resolve any challenges within 60 days, said Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force Deputy Chief Kirk Burgee.
Homes that enroll in the FCC’s $3.2 billion emergency broadband benefit program could be forced to discontinue their services if the commission fails to take additional action (see 2102260058), advocates said in interviews. Some suggested now is the time to consider how to update Lifeline before money runs out.
The FCC has "more good stuff to come with the E-rate program," said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel during The Hill's event Wednesday. The $7 billion approved by Congress in the latest COVID-19 relief bill expected to soon become law (see 2103100065) will "help update" the program, she said. State and local officials can help that effort by identifying how many students lack access as the commission works to improve broadband data maps, she added.
IP captioned telephone service providers disagreed on whether the FCC should grant T-Mobile's petition for reconsideration on behalf of Sprint on parts of a November FCC order cutting IP CTS rates, per comments posted Wednesday in docket 13-24 (see 2011190026). Grant the petition because the rate cuts "adversely affected providers’ ability to provide functionally equivalent service to individuals with hearing disabilities," said Hamilton Relay: "The commission cannot ignore the fact that the decision to slash compensation rates and authorize [automatic speech recognition] has incentivized providers to either cut costs or offer lower-quality services." ClearCaptions disagreed: ASR is "more accurate, more consistent, and faster than what is generally available in the IP CTS industry today." If the commission isn't going to continue granting conditional approval for IP CTS providers to use ASR, "should reconsider the rate cuts that were based in part on providers’ ability to use ASR to achieve cost efficiencies" (see 2012110020), the company asked. Deny the petition because "Sprint continues to press the commission to adopt a tiered rate methodology that would increase compensation to Sprint," said CaptionCall: The petition "offers no new evidence."
The FCC has "more good stuff to come with the E-rate program," said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel during The Hill's event Wednesday. The $7 billion approved by Congress in the latest COVID-19 relief bill expected to soon become law (see 2103100065) will "help update" the program, she said. State and local officials can help that effort by identifying how many students lack access as the commission works to improve broadband data maps, she added.