FCC's Pai Optimistic Private Sector Will 'Resolve' FM Chip Activations in Smartphones

FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai hailed carriers AT&T, Boost Mobile, Sprint, T-Mobile and Virgin Mobile for their “move in a positive direction” to activate the FM chips in their smartphones, in remarks at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention Friday in Kansas City, Missouri. “I applaud all of these carriers for stepping up to the plate” on FM chip activations, he said. But Pai opposes government mandates on FM chip activations, he said. “I don’t believe that it is the place of the government to intervene here, especially given the robust competition we see among wireless carriers,” he said. “In February, I said that if there was consumer demand for activating FM chips -- and I believed that there was -- I was optimistic that we would continue to see progress on this issue as a result of commercial negotiations and competitive pressure in the private marketplace.” Recent developments (see 1508140064) “have only strengthened my optimism and belief that the private sector can and will resolve this issue,” he said.