The FCC hyped results of its Connect America Fund Phase II subsidy auction for broadband-oriented fixed services in areas traditionally served by large telcos, blogged CCG Consulting President Doug Dawson Tuesday, who has RLEC and CLEC clients. The overall results were "positive," he said, but the claim 713,176 rural homes will get their first high-speed service (see 1808280035) is inflated by 190,595 through ViaSat's existing satellite broadband. He suggested $122 million in support for the company is a "huge government giveaway." Dawson is "scratching his head" at a claim that 53 percent of covered homes and businesses will be offered at least 100 Mbps. He assumes fiber will provide gigabit speed to 19 percent as claimed, but questioned wireless ISPs' ability to offer up to 100 Mbps ubiquitously: "The FCC exaggerated the results of the auction by claiming that any recipient capable of delivering 100 Mbps to a few customers will be delivering it to all customers." An FCC spokesman emailed: “CAF auction winners, including WISPs, are required to deliver the speeds that they have committed to deliver, and there are enforcement mechanisms in place to hold providers to this obligation, such as requiring the support to be returned." Regarding satellite providers, it's "important to note that CAF auction winners are also required to meet latency, price, and usage requirements to receive CAF funds," he said. "These requirements are in place to implement the statutory directive that rural consumers have access to reasonably comparable services at reasonably comparable rates.” Wireless ISP Association President Claude Aiken said in a statement: "I can’t address the specifics of any particular member’s proposal, but generally speaking, WISPA members go where nobody else will, and they bring new choices and competition everywhere. They know what rural America needs, and how to get it done. Fixed wireless is capable of providing up to gigabit broadband service and above, so I have no doubt that bidders who bid on the 100 Mbps service tier plan will live up to that promise." ViaSat didn't comment.
Ian Cohen
Ian Cohen, Deputy Managing Editor, is a reporter with Export Compliance Daily and its sister publications International Trade Today and Trade Law Daily, where he covers export controls, sanctions and international trade issues. He previously worked as a local government reporter in South Florida. Ian graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2017 and lives in Washington, D.C. He joined the staff of Warren Communications News in 2019.
The FCC set a uniform pleading cycle on petitions to reconsider an August order and ruling aimed at promoting broadband infrastructure by streamlining pole-attachment processes and pre-empting state and local moratoriums (see 1808020034). Oppositions and replies will be due 15 and 25 days, respectively, after Federal Register publication of a notice on timely filed petitions, said a Wireline Bureau public notice in docket 17-84 and Tuesday's Daily Digest. The Smart Communities and Special Districts Coalition (here) and County Road Association of Michigan (here) sought reconsideration of the pre-emption declaratory ruling while New York City (here) sought reconsideration of that ruling and a portion of the associated pole-attachment order. Normally, recon petitions for rulemaking orders and declaratory rulings have different pleading schedules, but the bureau harmonized them on the combined item to avoid confusion.
The FCC sought comment on proposals for a process to resolve location discrepancies in the recent Connect America Fund Phase II auction of subsidies for fixed broadband and voice services. The Wireline Bureau solicited input on "approaches to identify and resolve apparent discrepancies between the number of model-determined funded locations that Phase II auction support recipients are expected to serve (funded locations) and the actual number of locations that support recipients can serve (actual locations)," said a public notice Monday in docket 10-90. Under a 2008 Phase II order, the bureau is to implement a process to evaluate requests by support recipients "who might seek adjustments in defined deployment obligations in exchange for corresponding reductions in support in circumstances where there are not enough actual locations for the provider to serve," the PN said. Comments are due 30 days after Federal Register PN publication, replies 15 days later.
Comments are due Oct. 5, replies Oct. 22 on the National Exchange Carrier Association's proposed modified USF formula for 2019 "average schedule" rate-of-return telco high-cost loop support said an FCC Wireline Bureau public notice in docket 15-337 in Thursday's Daily Digest.
Oppositions are due Sept. 19, replies Sept. 26 on an AT&T request the FCC reconsider a July 31 order requiring Aureon Network Services to further revise its tariffed rate for interstate switched transport (see 1807310061), said a Wireline Bureau public notice in Wednesday's Daily Digest. A "CLEC benchmark rate" for Aureon's centralized equal access service should be "based on the mileage that CenturyLink [the 'competing ILEC'] would charge for the competitive service," not on Aureon's mileage, said AT&T's petition Aug. 30 in docket 18-60. Another AT&T petition the next day in proceeding No. 17-56 asked the FCC to reconsider an Aug. 1 order that largely denied a previous Aureon recon petition but granted it in one respect, on damages AT&T is due (see 1808020030). AT&T said the FCC should decide the "full amount" of damages, "rather than simply assuming that the 2012 tariff rate is the operative rate for the entire mid-2013 to 2018 period."
FCC streamlining of Enforcement Bureau formal complaint processes takes effect Oct. 4, said a commission rule in Tuesday's Federal Register. It includes modified informal complaint procedures that sparked partisan debate when an order was adopted 3-1 on July 12 (see 1807120033). A Rural Utilities Service rule "to conform with newly implemented uniform posting requirements for federal grants, so that interested applicants need only search one federal posting site on grant opportunities" is set for Wednesday FR publication.
ZVRS, parent of CSDVRS and Purple Communications, can be compensated for video relay service calls handled at a ZVRS call center that moved in June under limited waivers, the FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau ordered in docket 10-51, said Friday's Daily Digest. CGB said ZVRS notified the FCC about the move but didn't give the telecom relay service fund administrator 30 days' advance notice and the administrator withheld compensation for all calls processed by that call center. The amount of withheld funds was redacted. The bureau said the requested retroactive waiver of the call center notice rule (see 1807300022) was warranted because ZVRS partially complied and took prompt steps to fix the problem: "Denial of so large a payment ... would be disproportionate to the gravity of the violation."
Oppositions are due Sept. 7, replies Sept. 17, on Sprint's IP captioned telephone service petitions to reconsider interim rate cuts for provider compensation and reconsider or clarify a decision to authorize automatic speech recognition technology (see 1807300022 and 1807100066), the FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau said last week.
TDS Telecom likes the FCC approach on net neutrality, said a filing posted Thursday in docket 17-108. “Over the years, the Commission has adopted a framework that levels the playing field for regulating broadband services, fostering an environment conducive to capital investment for all players." It cited the "recent application of ‘light touch’ regulation to the open internet."
Consolidated Communications and ITTA offered the FCC advice on initial business data services rate levels for electing Alternative Connect America Cost Model carriers exiting the National Exchange Carrier Association pools. The two reported in docket 17-144 on a meeting with officials from the Wireline Bureau Pricing Policy Division. “Were the Commission to adopt a six-month approach, it would be best to halve the full-year data, because a full year of data better captures a carrier’s cost and revenue patterns,” the filing said. “Using whichever data approach the Commission adopts, the data would be applied to adjust at least all NECA rates for services for which there is current demand.”