The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Technology Engagement Center (CTEC) urged Congress Tuesday to appropriate additional broadband funding in future COVID-19 legislation, including money to address the homework gap separate from the existing E-rate program. Lawmakers have been offering a range of broadband funding proposals, including a push by House Democrats to allocate $100 billion as part of the Moving Forward Act infrastructure legislative package (see 2006220054). Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and House Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., released a legislative framework last week (see 2006190062). CTEC wants Congress to ensure COVID-19 broadband funding is technology neutral and doesn’t duplicate money going to projects via other programs. The group also wants Congress to “establish funding without existing [Communications Act] Section 254 limitations, such as existing [eligible telecom carrier] requirements.” The legislation should allow funding to be used “for leasing tower space in addition to capital expenditures” and “should be distributed to those who can stand up” a broadband network “quickly,” CTEC said. COVID-19-specific homework gap funding shouldn’t come out of USF coffers, but the FCC can “borrow" from "E-rate rules” to administer it, the group said: It “should last for only the duration of the national emergency and be targeted to low-income households without a home broadband connection or in jeopardy of losing their broadband connection,” along with related equipment.

Wireless networks held up well during the pandemic, CTIA reported Tuesday. It's “the ultimate stress test for wireless networks,” CTIA said. Voice traffic increased 20-40% on wireless networks and data nearly 20% after the pandemic started, the group said. Traffic patterns changed "overnight" and hot spot use surged, CTIA said. “U.S. wireless networks did what they were designed to do: handle these dramatic shifts and increases in use with relative ease.”

The FCC Wireline Bureau extended through Sept. 1 a waiver for competitive LEC Inteliquent of certain access stimulation rules, in an order effective Tuesday. During COVID-19, staff said conference calling services from Zoom and Cisco WebEx spiked and "materially increased Inteliquent’s ratio of terminating-to-originating traffic," designating it an access stimulating CLEC that without the waiver would have made it subject to financial responsibilities (see 1909260055). The original waiver was in March (see 2003270016).

Two public safety associations canceled in-person conferences Tuesday. APCO canceled its Aug. 2-5 conference (see 2006230039) less than one week after saying it was moving forward with the Florida event, and after some public health experts raised concerns (see 2006190035). Since Thursday's statement, “several developments occurred,” including Orange County’s mayor requiring face masks, Florida reporting a record-high 4,049 new COVID-19 cases Saturday and the state health department recommending Saturday people don’t attend events with more than 50 people, wrote APCO CEO Derek Poarch in an email to members and on the event’s webpage. Full refunds will be issued, and the group is planning for APCO 2021, Aug. 15-18, in San Antonio. The National Emergency Number Association, which earlier postponed its June 13-18 conference to Sept. 24-29 in California, said the event will now be held virtually the week of Sept. 21. “Given the still-uncertain trajectory of the pandemic, and considering that conference participants would be coming from all over the country and around the world, NENA concluded that canceling the in-person meeting was the only safe and responsible action,” it said. NENA was in touch at least weekly with Long Beach "ever since the first date-change announcement was made," and Tuesday's announcement "reflects weeks of discussions and planning," a spokesperson added. APCO didn’t comment beyond the announcement. Florida’s health department didn’t comment.

The FCC, Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and Federal Emergency Management Agency should “develop a coordinated approach” for communications companies for disaster response, CTIA recommended. It answered questions posed by the Public Safety Bureau on hurricane preparedness, in a filing posted Tuesday in docket 11-60. Companies need DHS access letters for the safe movement of response personnel, covering “transportation, security, access to fuel, curfews, ability to deploy resiliency services … and waiver of self-quarantine restrictions,” CTIA said. Response personnel “should be allowed to freely travel and participate in state, local or virtual emergency operations centers before, during, and immediately following a disaster” and should have “priority access to rapid COVID-19 testing,” the group said.

Chief information officers are “working very quickly on digitizing archaic paper-based processes,” Adobe Executive Vice President Bryan Lamkin told a Morgan Stanley investor conference virtually Monday. The digitization of paper documents and physical signatures, a low CIO priority four months ago, “really ratcheted up very quickly” amid the “disruption” of COVID-19, said Lamkin, general manager-digital media operations. Even for families not sending kids to school or on field trips, there’s “still a lot of permission that needs to go on in the virtual environment for distance learning,” said Lamkin. “Those are all moving aggressively to digital workflows.” Adobe wants to expand its “document cloud” strategy “pretty dramatically,” said Lamkin. PDF is “king on the desktop,” he said. “How do we take that beyond the desktop plan and embed frictionless services within mobile” for delivery “within the context of the web environment”?

Fandango is rolling out COVID-19-related resources to support the reopening of movie theaters across the country, including an app that gives social distance seating maps, safety policies for more than 100 theater chains and a search filter to locate reopened theaters.

Whether limiting people in conference rooms or press events should be a “must have,” “nice to have” or “don’t need to have” feature of CES 2021 is one of many questions CTA asks about the Jan. 6-9 physical show in Las Vegas amid COVID-19. “We are reaching out to you to understand your plans for attending CES in January 2021 and what precautions you feel are most important,” said the association. The questionnaire, emailed to respondents Tuesday, asks about the likelihood of attending the in-person show and individuals’ level of concern about the coronavirus as a factor in the decision whether to travel to Las Vegas. It asks about using open-air bus shuttles or extending and staggering show hours to reduce crowd size. CTA said last week it’s in “full swing” for a physical show in January with a digital online component, and it expects the event to be “smaller” than usual (see 2006150023). Whether to require proof of a negative COVID-19 test result as a condition for entering show grounds is one of the more aggressive safety protocols CTA wants opinion on. Also Tuesday, APCO canceled its show (see 2006230039).

With traditional commutes and long road trips not likely to return “for some time” post-pandemic, consumers are likely to ditch shared “mobility services” like Uber and Lyft in favor of a personally owned or leased vehicle, reported Strategy Analytics Monday. “Consumers could end up holding on to their current cars, or buying a used car.” Those with more mobility needs tend to use ride-hailing services the most, SA said. “So if their needs are lessened because of remote work or less travel, this does not bode well for mobility services.”

Create a more secure USF funding source and modernize Lifeline and the FCC Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, AT&T Senior Executive Vice President-External and Legislative Affairs Ed Gillespie asked of Congress Monday. He claimed "growing bipartisan support for significant broadband infrastructure funding that will at last create universal 21st century connectivity the same way highway funding created universal 20th century transportation networks." COVID-19 "revealed just how many low-income households currently have inadequate connections," he blogged: "Lifeline should be revamped and modernized so eligible households can secure benefits from certified communications providers as easily" as they use Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits at certified food stores. Gillespie suggested USF financial support "should be included directly as a line item in the FCC’s annual budget so Congress can adjust that budget as economic circumstances in the country dictate."