Selected portions of the BloostonLaw Telecom Update, and/or the BloostonLaw Private Users Update — newsletters from the Law Offices of Blooston, Mordkofsky, Dickens, Duffy & Prendergast, LLP are reproduced in this section with the firm's permission. 
| BloostonLaw Telecom Update | Vol. 16, No. 44 | December 4, 2013 |
Headlines
Chairman Wheeler Speaks at Ohio State University New FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler gave his first formal public speech at his alma mater Ohio State University on December 2. He indicated that he saw himself and the FCC as the public's advocate in the midst of the fourth great network revolution – the ongoing marriage of computing and connectivity to form new information networks. These networks differ from the previous print, railroad and wireline/wireless networks in that the information they transport is the critical product given that today's growth industries are based upon the exchange and use of digital data. Chairman Wheeler stated that government oversight must evolve as networks change. While indicating his "rabid" belief in the power of the marketplace and declaring that regulating the Internet is a "non-starter," he noted that the evolution of network technology changes neither the responsibility of networks to the greater society nor the FCC's mission to protect the public interest. Chairman Wheeler stated that the FCC will be guided by two lodestars in fulfilling its responsibilities during his term: competition policy and what he called "the Network Compact." Claiming that his experience in the private sector left him "an unabashed supporter of competition," Chairman Wheeler stressed his belief that competitive markets produce better outcomes than regulated or uncompetitive markets. Where workable competition exists, he indicated his intention to protect it and to minimize FCC intervention in such markets. Where workable competition does not exist, he stated that the FCC's job is to promote such competition in a "fact-based, data-driven manner." Among the FCC tools available to promote competition, he listed: (1) spectrum allocations that will not only increase the amount of spectrum available for emerging networks, but also ensure that multiple carriers will have access to such spectrum; (2) voluntary industry codes of conduct that will reduce or eliminate the need for FCC action if they are effective; and (3) merger reviews that will maintain a competitive mobile marketplace rather than movement toward a duopoly. Chairman Wheeler characterized his "Network Compact" as a statement of the basic rights of consumers and basic responsibilities of network operators which is comprised of three key elements: accessibility, interconnection, and public safety and national security. Regarding accessibility, he stated that "there is nothing more fundamental to the FCC's work than ensuring every American has access to our wired and wireless networks." He declared that there was work for the FCC to do in these areas, noting that: (a) at least 20 percent of Americans have not adopted basic broadband service; (b) 15 million Americans live in areas where they cannot get wireline broadband; and (c) 80 percent of recently surveyed school teachers and administrators felt they lacked the network bandwidth to meet their educational needs. It is interesting that Chairman Wheeler focused upon the need for and benefits of the expansion of broadband availability and adoption, and did not mention budgets or budget constraints. It is further interesting that the examples used could support increased or revised High Cost, Lifeline and E-Rate support. Chairman Wheeler also included enforceable rules to preserve the Open Internet and access by persons with disabilities within the accessibility portion of his Network Compact. He was much less informative regarding the interconnection portion of the Network Compact. All that he said was that "assuring the Internet exists as a collection of open, interconnected facilities is a highly appropriate subject." Finally, Chairman Wheeler stated that the public safety and national security portion of the Network Compact means not only assuring that 911 calls go through but also that networks are secure from cyber threats. As a whole, this initial speech offers some hope that the Wheeler FCC will be a relatively open-minded and pragmatic commission. The new Chairman appears to have some reasonable goals and a willingness to work flexibly with the other Commissioners and industry stakeholders to develop ways to accomplish them. He does not appear to believe that he knows it all or that he is on a special mission to transform major portions of the industry. Let us hope that the following months and years bear out these initial impressions. FCC Allows Consumers to Bring Accessibility Complaints Directly to Carriers In November, the FCC released a Public Notice describing new procedures for Advanced Telecommunications Accessibility complaints. Under the new complaint procedures, a consumer may choose to contact the company directly to try and resolve his or her accessibility problem. This includes accessibility complaints related to advanced communications services and equipment (VoIP; electronic messaging such as text messaging, e-mail, and instant messaging; and interoperable video conferencing service); Internet browsers built into mobile phones; and telecommunications services and equipment (such as telephones). BloostonLaw has an Accessibility Record-keeping Manual available for purchase which can assist companies in dealing with consumer complaints. Companies interested in purchasing the Manual should contact the firm. If a consumer prefers contacting the FCC instead of or after contacting the company about a concern, he or she must request assistance from the FCC Disability Rights Office (DRO) to resolve the accessibility problem. According to the Public Notice, upon receiving a request for assistance the DRO will work with the consumer and the company for at least 30 days to resolve the accessibility problem. If the accessibility problem is not resolved in 30 days, the consumer has two choices: (1) request an additional 30 days of assistance from the DRO to continue to try to resolve the accessibility problem (additional requests beyond this time may also be made for 30-day increments); or (2) file a Communications Accessibility Informal Complaint about the accessibility problem with the FCC's Enforcement Bureau. A consumer may not file an informal complaint against the company without first having contacted the DRO. Chairman Wheeler Appointed Defense Commissioner In an Order released on November 27, 2013, the Federal Communications Commission appointed Chairman Tom Wheeler to be Defense Commissioner. The Defense Commissioner directs the homeland security, national security and emergency preparedness, and defense activities of the Commission. The duties and responsibilities of the Defense Commissioner include, among other things: - representing the Commission in inter-agency matters pertaining to public safety, homeland security, national security, emergency preparedness, disaster management, and defense and related matters, including matters pertaining to continuity of the essential functions of the Commission under emergency conditions;
- serving as the principal point of contact for the Commission on all matters pertaining to the Department of Homeland Security;
- developing emergency programs covering service provision by wireless and wireline telecommunications carriers and broadcast, cable, and satellite facilities, as well as radio frequency assignment, investigation, and enforcement; and
- assuming the duties of the Commission under certain emergencies.
FCC Announces Further Staff Appointments Chairman Tom Wheeler has appointed Shannon Gibson to be the Communications Director and Head of the Office of Media Relations; Jonathan Chambers to be the Chief of the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis; Gary Epstein to be the Special Advisor to the Chairman on Incentive Auctions; and John Leibovitz to be the Special Advisor to the Chairman for Spectrum Policy. Ms. Gibson joins the Commission from senior communications positions at the White House, most recently as Special Assistant to the President and Director of Cabinet Communications. She also was the Deputy Director of Public Affairs in the U.S. Department of Commerce, where she worked on broadband expansion, consumer data privacy and other issues with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration ("NTIA"). Mr. Chambers has been at the Commission since May 2012, first as Senior Advisor and then as Acting Chief of the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis. From 1987 to 1994 he served on Capitol Hill as the Republican Staff Director of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Legislative Director for Senator John C. Danforth (R-MO), and as a Professional Staff Member to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. While serving in his new position, Mr. Epstein will continue as Chair of the Incentive Auctions Task Force. He has previously served as Chief of the old Common Carrier Bureau under Chairman Mark Fowler, as the first head of the Digital Television (DTV) Transition under Acting Chairman Michael Copps, and as Chairman of the FCC Industry Advisory Committee for the 1995 World Radio-communication Conference. While serving in his new position, Mr. Leibovitz will continue as Deputy Chief of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. Prior to joining the Commission, he worked on the Presidential Transition Team where he helped to launch the Technology, Innovation and Government Reform working group. Commissioner Mignon Clyburn has named Adonis Hoffman to be her Chief of Staff and Senior Legal Advisor — Media. Mr. Hoffman is a veteran communications lawyer with the FCC, on Capitol Hill and law firm experience. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel has named Clint Odom as her Policy Director. He joins the Commission from the United States Senate where he served as Deputy Legislative Director for Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL). He has also served as Vice President of Verizon's Government Relations in Washington, D.C. and New Jersey Law & Regulation
Rescue Squad Indicted for Putting Law Enforcement Channels on Squad Radios The Bluefield Daily Telegraph and other media sources in Southwest Virginia are reporting that two members of a local rescue squad in Southwest Virginia were indicted on felony charges of using a computer to convert the property or computer program of another and making an unauthorized copy of a program or property of another. The charges arose from an investigation into the unauthorized use of the Tazewell County sheriff's office radio frequencies on radios belonging to their rescue squad – which is an agency licensed by the Virginia Office of Emergency Medical Services. Essentially, the two individuals are being accused of downloading encryption keys which then allowed them to listen in on encrypted police communications. It is because the proprietary encryption keys were also downloaded that Tazewell County was able to proceed with these criminal charges. In addition to the Tazewell County issue, authorities are also investigating whether or not frequencies assigned to Russell County Fire and EMS and the Virginia State Police were improperly programmed into the radios. In addition to criminal action by authorities in Virginia, the FCC could potentially take enforcement action against the rescue squad for this sort of activity, since the FCC's rules require permission from a licensee before their channels can be programmed into another agency's public safety radio system. For this reason, it is critically important that companies ensure that end-users do not have the capability of modifying or otherwise programming their radios, and that these functions be reserved only for authorized maintenance personnel. U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Review State Internet Sales Tax Decision The United States Supreme Court has declined to review a decision of the New York Court of Appeals (the highest court of record in the State of New York) which upheld a 2008 state law requiring sales tax collections on sales over the internet. The request for Supreme Court review was filed by online retailers Amazon and Overstock. Amazon has no offices, distribution centers or workers in New York; but the Court of Appeals deemed that irrelevant, saying that Amazon's relationship with third-party affiliates in the state that receive commissions for sending web traffic to Amazon satisfied the "substantial nexus" test necessary to require Amazon to collect and remit the taxes. Overstock has suspended its relationship with affiliates in the state that would have made it subject to the 2008 law. Industry
FCC Releases Local Competition Data The FCC has released its annual report on local competition as of December 31, 2013. The report covers a number of different types of data, including data on retail local telephone service, service providers, interconnected voice over internet protocol (VoIP), switched access service, and wholesale access relationships. According to the report: - There were 96 million end-user switched access lines in service, 42 million interconnected VoIP subscriptions, and 305 million mobile subscriptions in the United States, or 443 million retail local telephone service connections in total.
- Interconnected VoIP subscriptions increased at a compound annual growth rate of 17%, mobile telephony subscriptions increased at a compound annual growth rate of about 4%, and retail switched access lines declined at about 9% a year.
- Of the 138 million wireline retail local telephone service connections (including both switched access lines and interconnected VoIP subscriptions), 79 million (or 57%) were residential connections and 59 million (or 43%) were business connections.
- The 138 million wireline retail local telephone service connections were: 35% ILEC residential service, 25% ILEC business service, 23% non-ILEC residential service, and 18% non-ILEC business service.
- The 79 million wireline residential connections were: 52.6% ILEC switched access lines, 35.7% non-ILEC interconnected VoIP subscriptions, 3.9% non-ILEC switched access lines, and 7.8% ILEC interconnected VoIP subscriptions.
- The 59 million wireline business connections were: 57.0% ILEC switched access lines, 30.1% non-ILEC switched access lines, 11.7% non-ILEC interconnected VoIP subscriptions, and 1.2% ILEC interconnected VoIP subscriptions.
A copy of the full report, which is based on data collected on the FCC's Form 477, can be found here . Deadlines
FEBRUARY 1: FCC FORM 502, NUMBER UTILIZATION AND FORECAST REPORT. Any wireless or wireline carrier ( including paging companies ) that have received number blocks—including 100, 1,000, or 10,000 number blocks—from the North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA), a Pooling Administrator, or from another carrier, must file Form 502 by February 1. Carriers porting numbers for the purpose of transferring an established customer's service to another service provider must also report, but the carrier receiving numbers through porting does not. Resold services should also be treated like ported numbers, meaning the carrier transferring the resold service to another carrier is required to report those numbers but the carrier receiving such numbers should not report them. Reporting carriers are required to include their FCC Registration Number (FRN). Reporting carriers file utilization and forecast reports semiannually on or before February 1 for the preceding six-month reporting period ending December 31, and on or before August 1 for the preceding six-month reporting period ending June 30. Calendar At-a-Glance
Dec. 5 – Comments on Revised 3.5 GHz Licensing Model are due.
Dec. 8 – Electronic filing deadline for Form 497 for carriers seeking support for the preceding month and wishing to receive reimbursement by month's end.
Dec. 9 – Petitions for Reconsideration of Special Access Data Collection.
Dec. 13 – Comments on Lifeline Biennial Audit Plan are due.
Dec. 13 – Comments are due on intrastate inmate calling rates and practices.
Dec. 18 – Upfront payment deadline for Auction 96.
Dec. 20 – Form 323 (Biennial Ownership Report) is due.
Dec. 20 – Reply comments on Revised 3.5 GHz Licensing Model are due.
Dec. 23 – PRA Comments on Electronic Tariff Filing Requirements are due.
Dec. 30 – Reply comments on Lifeline Biennial Audit Plan are due.
Dec. 30 – Reply comments are due on intrastate inmate calling rates and practices.
Jan. 3 – Papers on System for Sharing 3.5 GHz Band are due.
Jan. 8 – Electronic filing deadline for Form 497 for carriers seeking support for the preceding month and wishing to receive reimbursement by month's end.
Jan. 15 – Annual Hearing Aid Compatibility Report is due.
Jan. 17 – Mock auction for Auction 96.
Jan. 22 – Auction 96 begins.
Feb. 1 – FCC Form 499-Q is due.
Feb. 1 – FCC Form 502 (Number Utilization and Forecast Report) is due.
Feb. 14 – Inmate calling rules become effective.
Mar. 1 – Copyright Statement of Account Form for cable companies is due.
Mar. 1 – Annual CPNI Certification is due.
Mar. 1 – FCC Form 477 (Local Competition & Broadband Reporting) is due. | 
David George and Bill Noyes
