International Express Trucking (IXT) accused COSCO Shipping Lines of charging unfair per diem charges during times when there was a chassis shortage, port congestion or a lack of return appointments, the motor carrier said in a complaint filed with the Federal Maritime Commission. In the complaint, dated May 7, IXT said COSCO from 2022 to 2023 charged the motor carrier $75,725 in per diem charges and didn't include relevant information, such as ports of discharge or the date the container had been made available, in the charges.
Carriers are using AI and machine learning (ML) in potentially transformative ways, experts said Tuesday during day two of Fierce Network’s Cloud Native 5G Summit. But speakers also reminded attendees AI is in its early stages and has a ways to go before providers fully embrace it.
Companies with certain business activities in Canada have until May 31 to file with the Canadian government and publish a report on their supply chain due diligence procedures as part of that country's anti-forced labor law, ArentFox said in a client alert this week.
New York state Democrats supported a bill Tuesday to provide internet access to people in temporary housing. The Senate Social Services Committee cleared the bill (S-4561) on a partisan vote so that it can receive a vote on the Senate floor. The committee's two Republicans were less enthusiastic about the measure, which would require that shelters provide strong Wi-Fi in common and private areas and conspicuously display passwords if required: Dean Murray voted no and Alexis Weik voted “aye without recommendation.” The Senate last year approved the bill by Sen. Kristen Gonzalez (D), but it failed in the other chamber.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on Tuesday announced the establishment of the Spectrum Steering Team that will lead FCC efforts “to develop and implement forward-looking spectrum policies” and oversee work on the national spectrum strategy (see 2404260050). Susan Mort, deputy chief of the Wireless Bureau, and Ira Keltz, deputy chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology, will co-lead the team. Krista Witanowski, OET legal adviser, will serve as chief of staff. The FCC said the team “brings together policy experts, economists, and engineers from across the Commission.” The Office of Economics and Analytics and Space Bureau are also involved. “Demand for spectrum is growing at a breakneck pace as wireless technology expands and transforms so much in our economy and modern life, so we need to get creative with spectrum policies,” Rosenworcel said.
T-Mobile has several “overarching objections” to the May 7 report in which Ben Levitan, the new RF expert hired by Roswell, Georgia, concluded it would be “overkill” for T-Mobile to build a 108-foot cell tower to remedy a significant wireless coverage gap (see 2405080002), said Levitan’s memorandum Monday (docket 1:10-cv-01464) in U.S. District Court for Northern Georgia. It said T-Mobile is unaware “of the source of the cell phone coverage maps” Levitan used in his report and analysis. “This is odd, because these maps are the simulation maps created by T-Mobile themselves and used in their application to show their gap in 4G cell service in Roswell, and the simulation of the improvement that their proposed cell tower will bring,” said the memorandum. These maps have been “the key” to T-Mobile’s argument for the new cell tower since the dispute began in 2010, it said. Contrary to T-Mobile's argument that the report fails to cite the source of these maps, the proper citations are in the report, but even without a citation, the maps “should have been easily recognizable to T-Mobile,” it said. Levitan’s report found that T-Mobile’s concerns about a lack of cellphone service to a specific 0.9-square-mile area of Roswell, and the inability for residents in that area to have 911 service, are “unfounded,” said the memorandum. Levitan also found that 5G service is "ubiquitous throughout Roswell," it said: “As new generations of the cell phone networks are designed, they fully incorporate the functionality of previous generations, and as such, any 3G, 4G or LTE phone operating in a 5G network will work fine. This backward compatibility means that there is no need to update the 4G coverage in the gap area as it is fully covered by 5G.” T-Mobile’s lawsuit against Roswell for the city's denial of its cell tower application turned 14 years old on Monday.
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New America's Open Technology Institute is raising concerns about the FCC's broadband consumer labels (see 2404100076). In a meeting with Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau staff, OTI asked the FCC to issue best practices for formatting and clarify that ISPs "should not block automated collection and access of CSV files by means other than human directed web browser actions," according to an ex parte filing Tuesday in docket 22-2. The group also found instances of "label implementation that either undermined the purpose of the rule or raised other concerns." OTI said some labels couldn't be accessed without providing a service address. One provider's plan directed a user to a "pop-up with a large block of 'fine print' rather than the label" on its website, OTI said. It also noted some consumers shopping for services in person "may not be aware" they can ask for a broadband consumer label to compare plans.
Broadband providers, broadcasters, satellite companies and the FirstNet Authority urged the FCC not to expand outage reporting requirements. Meanwhile, groups such as Public Knowledge, Next Century Cities and The Utility Reform Network (TURN) said increased reporting rules are a matter of public safety. Comments were filed in docket 21-346 by Monday’s deadline.
The U.S. told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit that the principle of stare decisis requires the appellate court to sustain the legality of the Commerce Department's non-market economy policy (Jilin Forest Industry Jinqiao Flooring Group Co. v. United States, Fed. Cir. # 23-2245).