In an effort to speed completion of the 800 MHz rebanding, the FCC Public Safety Bureau ruled that a wide number of licensees that never filed timely completion reports are now deemed to have completed the process with no further avenue to challenge cost reimbursement or seek larger payments. The order covers licenses held by companies, states and cities. North Carolina and Colorado hold the largest number of licenses covered by the order. “The rebanding process has taken substantially longer than originally contemplated,” the bureau said Monday in docket 02-55. “Rebanding has substantially alleviated the interference risk to public safety, and the process is now nearing completion.”
Country of origin cases
President Donald Trump violated the First Amendment in 2017 when he blocked users from his Twitter account, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed Monday (see 1806050068). The court denied the administration’s request for an en banc rehearing before the full panel in Knight v. Trump. Instead, the 2nd Circuit reaffirmed a prior, unanimous decision.
NAB won’t try resurrecting its COVID-19-canceled Las Vegas show in 2020 but will stage a virtual event called “NAB Show Express,” said CEO Gordon Smith Friday. Nine days earlier, NAB Show organizers said they were "weighing the best potential path forward," including possibly rescheduling the April 18-22 event later in the year (see 2003110036).
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr isn't backing down from comments on Twitter earlier in the week criticizing China for spreading false reports that the U.S. is responsible for COVID-19, he told a Broadband Breakfast teleconference Thursday. Carr said more FCC actions on the pandemic are on the way. “We’re going to be in for a tough time,” he warned. So far, networks seem to be holding up, he said.
Maryland’s proposed digital tax passed the legislature 88-47 as the Maryland House concurred with the Senate-amended HB-732, originally just a tobacco tax bill. Advertisers and others say a lawsuit over the measure is possible, if enacted (see 2003170057). The bill would impose taxes on annual gross revenue from digital ad services, ranging from 2.5% to 10%, for companies exceeding $100 million annual revenue. On the floor Wednesday, Del. Daniel Cox (R) asked if the proposed digital tax violates federal law. That would be up to the courts, but Maryland’s attorney general was consulted, replied bill sponsor Del. Eric Luedtke (D). Cox asked how it would be taxed in Maryland alone. The state comptroller will determine that, said Luedtke. Lawmakers want the tax to help fund state education, but the plan “is more likely to result in legal bills than increased funding for education,” the Free State Foundation blogged Friday. The bill goes to Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican who has said he’s generally against raising taxes.
Advertisers raised the specter of litigation Tuesday as a Maryland digital tax bill neared final passage. Maryland state senators amended a smoking tax bill (HB-732) Monday to include the text of SB-2 that would impose taxes on annual gross revenue from digital ad services, ranging from 2.5% to 10%, for companies exceeding $100 million annual revenue. A New York state senator proposed a similar bill there on Friday.
Few conferences, agencies and work routines in various business and public sectors were spared disruption Friday, the second full day since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global pandemic. Nearly 2,000 U.S. cases of COVID-19 were confirmed through Friday afternoon, including 41 deaths.
Coronavirus disruptions are expected to cause a $20 billion revenue hit for the global smart home category, reported Omdia Friday. The market is pegged at $101.1 billion for 2020 compared with a previous projection of $120.6 billion, said the research firm. Smart home device shipments are estimated at 603.5 million units vs. 693.5 million previously forecast. The smart home market “tends to be more resilient” during economic challenges vs. less diversified categories, said analyst Blake Kozak, but it, too, will undergo a correction this year. Asia will have the biggest slowdown, equating to $7.8 billion and 66.2 million fewer shipments than originally forecast, it said. Production should ramp up as the Asia region recovers from the pandemic, but depleted inventories could add strain to potentially lower demand. In the U.S., Omdia cut the smart home revenue outlook 10.6%, though device growth is forecast to remain stronger than in other countries. But it cautioned U.S. growth projections could be reduced further if stock markets don’t rebound or if the virus spreads, affecting U.S. supply chains. In areas of the U.S. with high rates of contagion, the number of professional smart home installations could be reduced, it said, and the capability to either ship and deliver products or to install devices could be "drastically diminished."
Washington state lawmakers couldn’t agree on a privacy bill for the second straight year, appearing to run out of time on the session's last day, amid a growing public health crisis. A related facial recognition bill was still alive Thursday afternoon. Maryland legislators punted privacy and net neutrality proposals until next year, legislators told us Thursday. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) sought comments Wednesday on a second set of revisions to proposed regulations to implement the California Consumer Privacy Act.
A day after NAB canceled its April show at the Las Vegas Convention Center (see 2003110036), the coronavirus continued turning life upside down Thursday for many in various business and public sectors. In excess of 1,500 U.S. cases of COVID-19 were confirmed through Thursday afternoon, including 39 deaths. The spread was on pace to surpass 2,000 confirmed U.S. cases by the start of the weekend.