The FCC got general support for doing more to address receivers in early responses to a notice of inquiry on receiver performance and potentially standards adopted by commissioners 4-0 in April (see 2204210049). Comments were due Monday in docket 22-137.

Amazon and Walmart promoted their use of AI and augmented reality for retail and online shopping in blog posts last week, joining Ikea by offering a mixed-reality shopping experience that uses an AI app to help shoppers place furniture virtually in their home spaces (see 2206220007).

FedEx anticipates consumers “will keep spending” in the rest of calendar 2022, but that their purchases “will continue tilting toward services from goods,” said Chief Customer Officer Brie Carere on an earnings call Thursday for fiscal 2022's Q4 ended May 31. Despite the “increasingly challenging global backdrop,” FedEx finished the year with its highest-ever annual revenue of $93.5 billion, up 11% year over year, said CEO Raj Subramaniam on the call, his first since being named chief executive in March.

Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., should come to the table and negotiate privacy legislation instead of building opposition (see 2206220053), House Consumer Protection Subcommittee Chair Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., told us Thursday.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., won’t bring up bipartisan privacy legislation the House Commerce Committee introduced for markup this week, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told reporters Wednesday.

Dish Network’s launch of a stand-alone 5G open radio access network is proof that ORAN can be deployed on a “massive” scale, said Stefano Cantarelli, Mavenir chief marketing officer, during the TelecomTV ORAN summit Thursday. Dish is working with Mavenir on that deployment. Other speakers said use of ORAN is growing, but ORAN companies haven't turned a profit and need more direction from carriers.

In the FCC’s further NPRM on ATSC 3.0, released Wednesday in docket 16-142 (see 2206220067), the commission seeks comment on the extent to which patent licensing may be “inhibiting the development of 3.0 TV sets or other 3.0 equipment by non-patent holders.” Comments are due 30 days, replies 60 days, after the NPRM is published in the Federal Register.

Panelists on a Wednesday Aluma Insights webinar tackled the challenges subscription VOD providers are facing with implementing tighter account sharing strategies after years of looking the other way to grow subscriber bases.

The COVID-19 pandemic drove home the importance of being able to connect to the internet, said Doreen Bogdan-Martin, head of the ITU Telecom Development Bureau, and candidate for secretary-general of the organization, during a virtual Telecommunications Industry Association conference Wednesday. The bureau recently concluded its international conference, held every four years, this year in Kigali, Rwanda. Other speakers stressed the importance of making connections more secure and the challenges industry continues to face.

The fate of the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports, plus any new tariff exclusions process that may be imposed, “are under consideration for a decision as we speak right now,” U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai told a hearing Wednesday before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce. The Biden administration asked Congress for $76.54 million in USTR funding for fiscal 2023, an 8% increase from the $71 million appropriated in FY 2022.