The FCC must resolve some accessibility issues where advocates for the disabled and the TV and consumer electronics industries couldn’t reach consensus, participants in the recently completed work of an advisory committee said. The Video Programming Accessibility Advisory Committee wrapped up its work April 9, as mandated under a 2010 disabilities access law to finish the last three of four reports. A report on device and user interface accessibility, and one on getting emergency information had areas where VPAAC members couldn’t reach consensus. So the commission sought comment (http://xrl.us/bmhahx) Wednesday on those issues (CD April 26 p12), which participants in the panel said will inform the rulemakings the agency will undertake on proceedings that must, by law, be competed next year.

High-cost loop support got a major overhaul Wednesday, in an order designed to fix “problematic incentives and inequitable distribution of support” (http://xrl.us/bm49qi). The FCC Wireline Bureau order fleshed out the details of 2011’s commission-level USF/intercarrier compensation order, which set out a framework for reform. About 100 study areas with “very high costs relative to similarly situated peers” will see a total reduction in support of $65 million, the bureau said, and the reduction will be phased in between July 1 and 2014. “By delaying the full impact of the reductions until 2014, we provide companies who would be adversely affected adequate time to make adjustments and, if necessary, demonstrate that a waiver is warranted either to correct inaccurate boundary information and/or to ensure that consumers in the area continue to receive voice service,” the order said. The bureau expects about 500 study areas to receive $55 million to fund new broadband investment.

LTE is becoming significantly more important as prepaid carriers like MetroPCS saw growth slow in Q1 due to competition and economic uncertainty, executives said. MetroPCS’s Q1 profit of $21 million was a 63 percent year-over-year decline, while another prepaid carrier, Leap, reported a widened Q1 loss of $98.4 million. Meanwhile, MetroPCS said it is interested in spectrum that could potentially be divested as part of the regulatory approval of the Verizon/cable deal.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the FCC is “finally acting in good faith,” and he’s “hoping” that he will be able to release his hold on the confirmation process for FCC nominees Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel the week after the Senate returns from its April 30-May 4 recess. His comments came in an interview Thursday. Grassley’s comments indicate that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid., D-Nev., could notify the Senate in the second week of May by “hotline” that he intends to schedule a vote on the FCC nominees. The nominees would then likely go through as long as no other senator issues a hold.

Time Warner Cable plans to introduce its usage-based billing broadband product in more markets this year, CEO Glenn Britt told investors during the company’s Q1 earnings teleconference Thursday. TWC began selling the service in South Texas earlier this year at a lower price for consumers who use less data, and “our plan is to roll that out further across our footprint as the year goes on,” he said.

Reps. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., and Doris Matsui, D-Calif., introduced a bill Thursday to require the FCC to pair for commercial auction the 1755-1780 MHz band with the 2155-2180 MHz band. Stearns said the Efficient Use of Government Spectrum Act would bring more spectrum to the commercial market and raise $12 billion for the U.S. Treasury while offering the Defense Department protections for reallocation. Wireless groups hailed the bill, which they called an important step towards alleviating the spectrum crunch and bolstering the economy. The 1755 MHz band has long been a top target of carriers.

CenturyLink will get up to $90 million in Connect America Fund money, Frontier $72 million, Windstream $60 million, AT&T $48 million and Verizon $20 million, if they agree within 90 days to deploy broadband to unserved areas, the FCC announced late Wednesday (http://xrl.us/bm455q). Carriers accepting the incremental support must certify that their current capital improvement plan did not already include plans to complete broadband deployment to those locations within the next three years. Based on rules adopted in the USF/intercarrier compensation order, the number of new broadband deployments must be equal to the amount of support each carrier accepts, divided by $775, and they'll have three years to do it. FairPoint, Alaska Communications Systems, Consolidated, Hawaiian Telcom and Vitelco were offered about $10 million among them.

The FCC should follow the direction of Congress and not keep Verizon Wireless and AT&T from bidding in the upcoming incentive auction of broadcast spectrum, ex-Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., former chairman of the Communications Subcommittee, said in an interview. “The FCC should not be in the position of picking winners or losers,” he said. “The marketplace can establish who the winners and losers are.”

Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake predicted a “healthy” broadcast industry after the voluntary incentive auction the FCC plans to hold of TV frequencies and repacking of their channels. “We expect a healthy broadcast industry to emerge from the auction and the subsequent repack -- I expect healthier than it is today,” he said Wednesday in a speech that summarized his and FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski’s remarks on spectrum to the NAB Show last week (CD April 18 p4). “The incentive auction is not for everyone,” Lake told a Media Institute luncheon, since many stations will want to keep serving viewers and see an exciting future for the industry.

Incumbent LECs roundly condemned several legacy telecom regulations in reply comments posted Wednesday in docket 12-61 in support of USTelecom’s petition for forbearance, breaking out the thesaurus to describe the rules they say unfairly shackle ILECs while allowing other carriers to thrive. State commissions opposed the petition, arguing the elimination of several reporting requirements would harm consumers and make it harder for commissions to do their jobs.