The Maine Public Utilities Commission suspended the procedural schedule in the agency’s probe into FairPoint service quality reports while settlement talks continue, PUC Hearing Examiner Jody McColman said in a Friday notice in docket 2014-00376. The PUC held a settlement hearing behind closed doors Thursday. The PUC in October proposed $500,000 in civil penalties for service quality violations from Q3 2014 to Q2 2016, but the company protested the amount and blamed failures on reasons out of its control (see 1702230052). The agency also is mulling FairPoint's acquisition by Consolidated Communications (see 1703160040). FairPoint didn’t comment.
Aspiring Lifeline broadband providers and others urged the FCC to reinstate nine companies whose LBP designations were revoked by a Wireline Bureau order that Chairman Ajit Pai defends. State regulators opposed reinstatement and urged the commission to repeal its LBP process, which they say illegally bypasses state authority to designate carriers eligible for the USF Lifeline subsidies. LBP aspirants urged the FCC to at least make providers eligible for the program's low-income support in states where the federal commission has jurisdiction. Parties filed comments posted Thursday and Friday in docket 11-42 on requests to reconsider the Feb. 3 revocation order (see 1702030070 and 1703020059).
Aspiring Lifeline broadband providers and others urged the FCC to reinstate nine companies whose LBP designations were revoked by a Wireline Bureau order that Chairman Ajit Pai defends. State regulators opposed reinstatement and urged the commission to repeal its LBP process, which they say illegally bypasses state authority to designate carriers eligible for the USF Lifeline subsidies. LBP aspirants urged the FCC to at least make providers eligible for the program's low-income support in states where the federal commission has jurisdiction. Parties filed comments posted Thursday and Friday in docket 11-42 on requests to reconsider the Feb. 3 revocation order (see 1702030070 and 1703020059).
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals paused Wednesday its review of musicians Flo & Eddie's California lawsuit against Pandora over unpaid performance royalties for pre-1972 recordings, saying it wants the California Supreme Court to decide whether state law recognizes that performance right. Pandora appealed a February 2015 ruling in Flo & Eddie's lawsuit by the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that said a 1982 California law recognizes a pre-1972 performance right (see 1509100067). Flo & Eddie, who own The Turtles' “Happy Together” and the rest of the band's music catalog, sought compensation from both Pandora and Sirius XM on the pre-1972 performance right issue. The 9th Circuit's punting of the pre-1972 performance right question to a state court follows similar reviews by the Florida Supreme Court and the New York Court of Appeals of their states' laws at the respective requests of the 11th and 2nd circuits in those courts' reviews of Flo & Eddie's lawsuits against Sirius (see 1612200066, 1702140067 and 1702160076). “We agree with our sister circuits that certification is the best way to proceed on these issues, especially in California,” the 9th Circuit said in its order. “As an incubator of both musical talent and technological innovation, California has a significant interest in the appropriate resolution of the certified questions. Resolution of these questions will likely affect the state and industries within the state in a variety of ways, and is therefore best left to the California Supreme Court.”
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals paused Wednesday its review of musicians Flo & Eddie's California lawsuit against Pandora over unpaid performance royalties for pre-1972 recordings, saying it wants the California Supreme Court to decide whether state law recognizes that performance right. Pandora appealed a February 2015 ruling in Flo & Eddie's lawsuit by the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles that said a 1982 California law recognizes a pre-1972 performance right (see 1509100067). Flo & Eddie, who own The Turtles' “Happy Together” and the rest of the band's music catalog, sought compensation from both Pandora and Sirius XM on the pre-1972 performance right issue. The 9th Circuit's punting of the pre-1972 performance right question to a state court follows similar reviews by the Florida Supreme Court and the New York Court of Appeals of their states' laws at the respective requests of the 11th and 2nd circuits in those courts' reviews of Flo & Eddie's lawsuits against Sirius (see 1612200066, 1702140067 and 1702160076). “We agree with our sister circuits that certification is the best way to proceed on these issues, especially in California,” the 9th Circuit said in its order. “As an incubator of both musical talent and technological innovation, California has a significant interest in the appropriate resolution of the certified questions. Resolution of these questions will likely affect the state and industries within the state in a variety of ways, and is therefore best left to the California Supreme Court.”
NTCA urged prompt FCC action to address concerns about a USF "rate floor" that's having "continuing adverse effects" on consumers of rural telcos. "The rate floor policy yields no benefits with respect to managing universal service fund budgets, but at this point -- after several years of serial rate increases -- is only harmful and disruptive to rural consumers, especially given that the lack of affordable standalone broadband services makes it more difficult for those same rural consumers to cease purchasing voice service even as it becomes increasingly expensive," the rural telco group said in a filing posted Monday in docket 10-90 on a "follow-on" conversation with an aide to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly. NTCA said "an immediate pause to any further rate floor increase would only help rural consumers and afford the Commission reasonable time to consider on a more informed basis any next steps with respect to the policy."
NTCA urged prompt FCC action to address concerns about a USF "rate floor" that's having "continuing adverse effects" on consumers of rural telcos. "The rate floor policy yields no benefits with respect to managing universal service fund budgets, but at this point -- after several years of serial rate increases -- is only harmful and disruptive to rural consumers, especially given that the lack of affordable standalone broadband services makes it more difficult for those same rural consumers to cease purchasing voice service even as it becomes increasingly expensive," the rural telco group said in a filing posted Monday in docket 10-90 on a "follow-on" conversation with an aide to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly. NTCA said "an immediate pause to any further rate floor increase would only help rural consumers and afford the Commission reasonable time to consider on a more informed basis any next steps with respect to the policy."
FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn urged USF reform, in a speech Monday to the WTA in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Last year, the FCC adopted reforms aimed at stabilizing the high-cost program, Clyburn said, according to written remarks. “Like with any significant reform, there are choppy waters ahead that need careful navigation.” Clyburn stressed the importance of partnerships, which “have the capability to help your bottom line, and provide a benefit for your communities.” The FCC needs to tweak some of its rules for rate-of-return carriers, she said. “I hear you when you talk about affordability, and the need to have flexibility to price your services as you see fit in the market,” she said. “I am concerned, about the affordability of rates in both rural and urban areas. It is a shame that deregulation has often meant higher rates in both urban and rural areas. But I believe rural areas should not be penalized, simply because of poor legislative or regulatory judgment. That is why I would support hitting the ‘pause’ button on rate floor increases, while we figure out a path forward that does not unduly impact rural consumers or the universal service fund.” Clyburn noted, as a Democrat, she's now in the minority at the FCC. She said she got used to that when she was a South Carolina regulator. “The difference in my role and status are readily apparent,” she said. “I was in the minority as a commissioner here in South Carolina for many years. ... I always start at the 50-yard line when it comes to formulating policy with anyone who may see the world differently than I do. … I will never entertain compromising my principles.” Among those principles, “removing consumer protections and harming competition are always going to be non-starters for me,” she said. “I will continue to sit at the table, even when we are discussing issues that have practical impacts that may make me uncomfortable.”
The rollback of plans to develop a voluntary third-party mechanism to address infringement disputes with the domain name sector raises questions about those plans' future, stakeholders said in interviews. Public Interest Registry, the domain registry for the .org top-level domain, said Thursday it will pause implementation of its planned Systemic Copyright Infringement Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy (SCDRP) to "reflect” on concerns raised by the Electronic Frontier Foundation and others (see 1702100054, 1702170058 and 1702230065). PIR was implementing SCDRP in concert with the Domain Name Association's proposal for its Copyright Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy (ADRP), which was modeled on ICANN's trademark-centric uniform dispute resolution policy. DNA made the proposal in Healthy Domains Initiative recommendations (see 1702080085).
The rollback of plans to develop a voluntary third-party mechanism to address infringement disputes with the domain name sector raises questions about those plans' future, stakeholders said in interviews. Public Interest Registry, the domain registry for the .org top-level domain, said Thursday it will pause implementation of its planned Systemic Copyright Infringement Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy (SCDRP) to "reflect” on concerns raised by the Electronic Frontier Foundation and others (see 1702100054, 1702170058 and 1702230065). PIR was implementing SCDRP in concert with the Domain Name Association's proposal for its Copyright Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy (ADRP), which was modeled on ICANN's trademark-centric uniform dispute resolution policy. DNA made the proposal in Healthy Domains Initiative recommendations (see 1702080085).