Localized public safety answering points (PSAPs) have “an obvious leading part” in making the FCC’s 911 wireless location accuracy order and the industry-public safety road map work, FCC Public Safety Bureau Deputy Chief David Furth said on Tuesday. PSAPs “are in the best position” to monitor the on-the-ground accuracy of 911 location technologies the carriers are testing as part of the order and road map, he said during a National Emergency Number Association (NENA) conference. The 911 indoor location accuracy order the FCC adopted Jan. 29 was seen to have been influenced by the voluntary commitments included in the road map (see 1501290066).

Public TV has the opportunity to provide trusted communication during emergencies, said Craig Fugate, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, at a session Monday at the Association of Public Television Stations Summit. Public TV needs to work with FEMA to provide emergency coverage, said APTS CEO Patrick Butler at the session. Stations have to “market” their ability to provide coverage during emergencies, even when cable and The Weather Channel goes out, Fugate said.

Debate about the scope of the FCC’s Downloadable Security Technological Advisory Committee's effort to recommend a replacement technology for CableCARD dominated its first meeting Monday. While committee members representing Google, Public Knowledge and others discussed replacement technology that could include a user interface and other outputs, cable company officials such as Cablevision Senior Vice President-Engineering and New Technologies Bob Clyne said the committee's recommendation should focus on downloadable security.

A draft FCC emergency alert system order would implement lessons learned from the first national EAS test, following a June 26 NPRM in docket 04-296, said an agency official. The item was circulated Feb. 2, said the commission's list of circulates. A subsequent national EAS test hasn’t been announced.

Adding three emergency alert system (EAS) event codes to the National Weather Service's dissemination suite will require a factory software update, Monroe Electronics said in an ex parte notice in docket 04-296 Friday. It said it was responding to a request from the Public Safety Bureau. The NWS requested additional EAS event codes and changes to marine areas, said the company. “The sheer scale of deployment of this EAS equipment will require substantial lead time to fully implement any changes to geocodes (FIPS) [Federal Information Processing Standards] or event codes.” If the FCC approves these event codes or changes, Monroe Electronics will need to release a factory update for its four FCC EAS compliance products, and users will need to download the update from Monroe’s site and apply it to each EAS device, said the EAS equipment maker.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau denied R.J.'s Late Night Entertainment's (RJLNE) petition for reconsideration of a forfeiture order of $22,000, the bureau said in an order Monday. The bureau fined RJLNE for failing to maintain operational emergency alert system equipment, for its FM transmitter from its authorized location and make its public inspection file available, in violation of FCC rule sections 11.35, 73.1690 and 73.3527, the bureau said. Payment is due within 30 days of the order's release. RJLNE didn't comment.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau fined Univision $20,000 for misusing emergency alert system tones during its Jan. 28, 2014, episode of the Luis Jimenez Show on WXNY(FM) New York, in an order released Friday. The station played EAS tones several times during a comedy sketch "in the absence of an actual emergency or authorized test of the EAS," in violation of Communications Act Section 325, the bureau said. Univision Local Media and the bureau entered into a consent decree stating that Univision will pay the $20,000 civil penalty within 30 days and implement a three-year compliance training program on EAS laws, the bureau said. Univision declined to comment. On Jan. 20, the FCC fined Viacom $1.12 million and ESPN $280,000 in a forfeiture order for using EAS tones for promoting the movie Olympus Has Fallen (see 1501200068).

The FCC fined Viacom and ESPN $1.4 million total for using emergency alert system (EAS) warning tones for a nonemergency, said a forfeiture order Tuesday that was approved by commissioners. Viacom was fined $1.12 million and ESPN $280,000. In 2013, Viacom and ESPN used EAS warning tones to promote the movie Olympus Has Fallen, violating the Communications Act, the commission said. The commission rejected ESPN's and Viacom's requests to reduce their fines. The fines must be paid in 30 days, the order said. "The enforcement action and fine were unwarranted" and Viacom is "considering our next steps," said a company spokesman. ESPN had no immediate comment.

Verizon used the North American International Auto Show to announce a retrofit connected-vehicle service called Verizon Vehicle that will be available this spring to more than 200 million older cars (1996 and later) regardless of the user’s wireless carrier. The subscription-based service will launch in Q2 and offer drivers GPS-directed roadside assistance; automatic urgent incident alerts to a Verizon member care center in case of an accident; one-button connection to a live agent in case of emergency; an “auto health system” with predictive diagnostics to translate messages such as “check engine”; a mechanic’s hotline for immediate assistance; parking and meter tools to help drivers locate a vehicle and keep tabs on time left on a meter; maintenance alerts; and stolen vehicle location assistance, Verizon said Tuesday. The subscription-based service operates through an OBD (on-board diagnostics) reader that can mount in a vehicle’s under-dash diagnostic port, a Bluetooth-enabled speaker that attaches to the visor and a free smartphone app. Subscribers can choose to use the app or have the service contact them -- by phone, text, push notification or email -- if a problem is detected with the vehicle, Verizon said. The speaker offers one-button push connection to the member care group, the mechanics hotline and roadside assistance -- as well as a second button for SOS emergency situations, Verizon said. Subscriptions are $14.99 monthly with a two-year contract, and equipment is included in the subscription price, it said. Verizon is offering the first month of service for free with pre-orders, it said.

A circulating draft NPRM on broadening the FCC definition of a multichannel video programming distributor to include online video distributors is being held back by the chairman’s office as part of an effort to reach consensus with the Republican commissioners, officials at the agency including on its eighth floor told us. Chairman Tom Wheeler said at Thursday’s FCC meeting that a vote on the item would happen before the week was out (see 1412110069), but the vote was delayed, the officials said. The item already has enough votes from the FCC’s Democrats to pass, said the officials.