The Senate Commerce Committee plans to mark up privacy legislation when it returns from recess the week of July 23, Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told reporters Thursday.
Skylo Technologies sees a substantial market for satellite-connected IoT devices, Tarun Gupta, Skylo co-founder and chief product officer, said Thursday. Adding satellite coverage to terrestrial service “will really remove the borders of connectivity” and mean no one should worry “do I have coverage here or not?” Gupta said during a Mobile World Live webinar on non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). Other speakers said use cases for NTN are already emerging.
Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions.
Open network architecture is a flourishing trend beyond 5G and open radio access networks, speakers said Wednesday during a Broadband Breakfast webinar. The wholesale model has worked for the middle mile and in wireless, Incompas President Angie Kronenberg said: “It’s exciting to see the discussion now happening about last-mile connectivity and fiber.”
The FTC should rely more heavily on statutory text when writing rules, given the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent reversal of Chevron, FTC Commissioner Melissa Holyoak told us Wednesday (see 2407090044 and 2406280043). Chevron could significantly affect the FTC, given its aggressive rulemaking approach under Chair Lina Khan, legal experts told us in interviews.
The House Appropriations Committee voted 31-25 Wednesday to advance its Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee FY 2025 funding bill without advance FY 2027 money for CPB after Democrats didn’t attempt to restore the allocation. The House Rules Committee, meanwhile, will consider filed amendments to Appropriations’ FY25 Financial Services Subcommittee bill (HR-8773) that aim to undo a ban on the FCC implementing an equity action plan and increase the FTC’s annual funding. The measure proposes boosting the FCC’s annual allocation to $416 million but includes riders barring the commission from implementing GOP-opposed net neutrality and digital discrimination orders (see 2406050067).
The 3rd Generation Partnership Project should launch standards for fixed wireless access, a T-Mobile executive said Wednesday during a Mobile World Live webinar on 5G-advanced, which is the next step in 5G evolution. Egil Gronstad, T-Mobile senior director-technology development and strategy, said he’s disappointed with 3GPP and industry. “We haven’t really done anything in the 3GPP specs to specifically address” fixed wireless.
Frontier Communications could pay nearly $2.5 million for missing two Connecticut service-quality standards, the state’s Public Utilities Regulatory Authority said Wednesday. PURA issued the notice of violation after Connecticut commissioners voted 3-0 at a livestreamed meeting on a final decision (docket 24-01-15) directing the company to provide additional reporting about failures to meet metrics.
Multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and independent video programming interests remain miles apart over the FCC's proposed restrictions on carriage agreement terms. In reply comments (docket 24-115) posted Tuesday, MVPDs reiterated their assertions (see 2406100005) that most-favored-nation (MFN) and alternative distribution method (ADM) contract terms ultimately benefit programmers and viewers, while programmers said such terms are smothering their ability to compete.
Broadcast groups demanded that the FCC acknowledge their industry’s increasing competition with tech companies and loosen regulations. Meanwhile, the Free State Foundation and Public Knowledge seek more spectrum, according to reply comments filed by Monday’s deadline in docket 24-119. The comments will inform the 2024 State of Competition in the Communications Marketplace report to Congress (see 2406070001)