The FCC got pushback against CTIA and Wireless Infrastructure Association proposals seeking more changes to wireless infrastructure rules designed to accelerate siting of towers and other gear. Big and small cities and their lobbying groups weighed in, along with industry allies of what CTIA and WIA seek. Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee state and local government members at September's BDAC meeting asked for an ad hoc committee on collocation issues (see 1909190024). But Chairman Ajit Pai took no action. Filings were posted mostly Wednesday in docket 19-250.
Country of origin cases
The Commerce Department may propose export controls on emerging technologies within weeks and an advance NPRM on foundational technologies before year's end, after delays (see 1909040029). That could help ease concerns from industry that warns against overly broad, unilateral controls, Matthew Borman, deputy assistant secretary-export administration, told a Sensors and Instrumentation Technical Advisory Committee meeting Tuesday. "Some companies are starting to think about moving R&D offshore because they don't know what's going to come out,” said Borman. “These will be very specific. They will not be general categories.” There will be a 60-day comment period for both, twice that as proposed originally for the ANPRM, the official said.
House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., saw positive signs for moving forward on legislation to mandate an FCC-led public auction of spectrum on the 3.7-4.2 GHz C band after all subcommittee Democrats and several Republicans showed a clear preference for such a plan during a Tuesday hearing. The panel also was a forum for castigating the C-Band Alliance's proposal for a private auction of the bandwidth, as expected (see 1910280040). All sides continued to meet with the FCC. Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to propose a private auction plan for a vote at commissioners' Dec. 12 meeting (see 1910100052).
The FCC released a draft proposal Tuesday to ban equipment from Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE from networks funded by the USF. Industry officials largely welcomed the order. Huawei signaled it will fight. Commissioners are scheduled to vote Nov. 19, after Chairman Ajit Pai circulated the item Monday (see 1910280054). The FCC also posted proposed new 911 location accuracy rules.
Out-of-service California cellsites increased to 3.3 percent Monday, from 2.4 percent Sunday, amid public safety power shutoffs, the FCC Public Safety Bureau reported. Marin County was the worst, with 57.1 percent out of service, with 134 of 160 of the outages due to lack of power, said the disaster information reporting system communications status report. Sunday's report showed Marin County with just under 50 percent out. Cable and wireline companies reported nearly 455,000 subscribers out of service, up about 61,000 from Sunday and about 443,500 from Friday (see 1910250061). Six FM and two AM radio stations were off-air Monday, with two of the FM stations sending programming to others. No 911 outages were reported. The bureau expanded DIRS information collection to 32 counties Saturday from 14 in the original notice (see 1910240075).
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai circulated an order Monday for the Nov. 19 commissioners’ meeting that would bar providers from using USF support to buy from suppliers deemed a threat to national security. Pai mentioned Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE (see 1910280021). FCC officials said the order singles out those two. Pai proposes to seek comment on rules requiring eligible telecom carriers remove from their networks existing equipment from the suppliers and on how to provide financial assistance to carriers to help them transition to a trusted supplier.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' decision that "but-for" causation doesn't apply to Section 1981 of federal anti-discrimination law (see 1811190023) goes completely against repeated Supreme Court rulings, Comcast said in a docket 18-1171 reply brief last week. It said plaintiffs Entertainment Studios Networks and National Association of African American Owned Media "are playing a shell game" with irrelevant case law. And when but-for causation to the original complaint that Comcast didn't carry ESN content, there's nothing suggesting Comcast was motivated by race. ESN counsel didn't comment Friday.
Comcast's Peacock streaming service launching in April won't try to replicate Netflix and other subscription VOD services, but instead will focus on advertising support and a mix of nonexclusive content, originals and acquired exclusives like The Office, NBCUniversal CEO Stephen Burke said Thursday on a Q3 call. He said Universal will continue to sell its motion pictures to premium networks like HBO. Q3 revenue was $26.8 billion, flat year over year on pro forma basis, with Comcast having added Sky in Q4 2018. Comcast ended the quarter with 26 million residential broadband subscribers, up 1.2 million; 20.4 million residential video customers, down 560,000; and 9.95 million residential voice customers, down 220,000. Mobile subscribers numbered 1.8 million, up 800,000. Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said monthly data usage of its broadband subscribers has more than doubled over the past three years. He said NBC topped prime time ratings for adults ages 18 to 49 for the sixth consecutive 52-week season. He said its NBCUniversal and Sky are starting work on joint production of content and are creating a global news channel. Asked about Comcast interest in the citizens band radio service auction or C-band or millimeter-wave spectrum for its mobile business, Roberts said it "will always be opportunistic" when looking at means of offloading wireless traffic from its Verizon mobile virtual network operator to its own network. Asked when cord-cutting trends might level off, analysts were told the operator's focus is on video profitability and that might mean customers receiving lower-end or promotional video packages could be moved to broadband-only packages instead.
Commissioners are expected to approve, with no dissents and few questions, an order and Further NPRM Friday on the 800 MHz rebanding, FCC and industry officials said. The order is loosely tied to T-Mobile’s proposed buy of Sprint (see 1910020030) but didn’t generate controversy. No parties reported meetings at the FCC on the item in docket 02-55.
Colorado joined Mississippi in dropping out of state attorneys general lawsuit against T-Mobile/Sprint after signing state-specific agreements. New York and Minnesota AGs said they’re moving ahead with litigation that now counts 16 AGs as plaintiffs at U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In addition to the state case, the deal faces a Tunney Act challenge in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and opponents are expected to challenge the FCC’s approval order in federal court (see 1910170028). Opponents said the New York challenge is the most likely to derail the transaction.