All spectrum is important, said panelists at a Practising Law Institute session on wireless developments, but there was some disagreement over how valuable low-band spectrum is on its own. Panelists also agreed that a 180-day shot clock on merger review, proposed by FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai, is a good idea, if the agency gets some flexibility to pause the clock.

Dish Network’s involvement in the H-block auction next month will come down to how much it values that slice of spectrum, analysts said. The FCC’s release of the list of applications to participate in the auction showed AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile won’t bid (CD Dec 5 p17). While other companies could potentially challenge a Dish bid, it’s unlikely, analysts said.

Congress faces an ambitious agenda and several communication policy transitions, said officials and congressional committee aides on different panels this week. One big item on the table is a review of the Communications Act in the House next year, with potential legislation to change it coming in 2015. Former top communications officials, however, pointed to a Congress mired in partisan politics, making the climate of today far more contentious than when the 1996 Telecommunications Act passed.

CEA and Telecommunication for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TDI) disagree -- in comments filed by the groups in the FCC’s proceeding on closed captioning for video delivered over Internet Protocol -- whether subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing (SDH) are sufficient under closed captioning requirements. The commission issued a further NPRM requesting comments in the proceeding in July (http://bit.ly/1bWbMzp). TDI and consumer electronics groups also sparred over whether device manufacturers should be required to make products that synchronize closed captions with IP video. “TDI misunderstands the technology in arguing that standard closed captioning formats ‘provide apparatus with the necessary timing data to accurately synchronize captions with video,'” said CEA.

As the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s cybersecurity framework moves toward a final draft, the government should focus on providing incentives for, not regulating, its adoption, and translating its recommendations into business objectives, said speakers on a Center for Strategic and International Studies panel Thursday. All said the framework was a good first step and the right building block for creating cybersecurity best practices.

The House approved the Innovation Act (HR-3309) Thursday on a 325-91 vote, confirming expectations that the bill would pass (CD Dec 5 p7). Majorities from both parties voted for both the final bill and a manager’s amendment from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., that made technical changes to the bill’s language. The 130 Democrats who voted for the final bill did so despite continued opposition led by two leading House Judiciary Democrats. HR-3309’s supporters were able to vote down most -- but not all -- amendments Thursday that would have fundamentally changed the bill, which if enacted would curb what it terms abusive patent litigation. The bill would aid the U.S. patent system, which was “never intended to be a playground for litigation extortion and frivolous claims,” Goodlatte said.

Reinstating visitor badges, putting documents online more quickly and taking steps to prevent problems due to fcc.gov being offline during October’s partial government shutdown from reoccurring, were among requests of an FCC process review and in our followup interviews Thursday. Responses to a Nov. 18 “call for input” (CD Nov 19 p15) (http://fcc.us/1kg8Ela) from Diane Cornell, special counsel to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, were due Dec. 2 for her process review that she told us she still aims to finish in mid-January. Some would-be filers said they sat out the review, while others weren’t available because the commission hasn’t posted the responses online. The three filings we reviewed, from the Telecommunications Industry Association and two from a law clinic at the University of Colorado, both sought changes in the event fcc.gov goes on hiatus during any future government closure.

Panelists at a Practising Law Institute wireline panel cited continued difficulties with application of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund revamp in rural areas. An FCC official said the agency is willing to make changes where it can. Telco officials said the intercarrier compensation (ICC) revamp has been working more smoothly. Panelists debated the necessity of FCC regulation of IP services as carriers and customers switch from legacy technologies to packet-based technologies.

The transition to IP technology shouldn’t change the FCC’s core values of ensuring security and public safety, Chairman Tom Wheeler told the Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council Wednesday. Voluntary agreements between stakeholders are to be encouraged, but it’s also important to collect data to ensure those agreements are being followed through, he said. “We would rather the multistakeholder process deliver results than us have to step in and use our imperfect wisdom,” but the FCC is “dedicated to being the cattle prod” when necessary, he said.

Native advertising was characterized as everything from beneficial to both the consumer and media industry to a violation of ethics that could destroy the media industry “one boatload of shit at a time,” during a daylong FTC workshop on the issue. The former characterization came from panelists representing publishers, content discovery platforms, ad companies and public relations firms. The latter came from Bob Garfield, co-host of On the Media and MediaPost columnist. Legal researchers later presented studies on how users consume and understand various forms of advertising.