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. 20 | June 5, 2013 |
Headlines Next Technology Advisory Council Meeting Set for June 13 The FCC's Technological Advisory Council (TAC) has its next planned meeting on Thursday, June 13, 2013. The meeting will be held in the Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C., from 1pm to 4pm. According to the Public Notice, the public is invited to attend, but it does not appear that the event will be live-streamed on the web. The purpose of the meeting is to review progress on work proposals made at the TAC's inaugural 2013 meeting on March 11 , which included a workshop on spectrum efficiency, a forum on the future of wireless broadband plans, meetings with industry trade groups, companies, and others; a white paper on VoIP interconnection, and work by the Receivers and Spectrum Working Group. The presentation from that meeting can be seen here . Tom Wheeler, Managing Director, Core Capital Partners, serves as Chairman of the Council. Walter Johnston, Chief of the Electromagnetic Compatibility Division, serves as the Designated Federal Officer. Julius Knapp, Chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology is the Alternate Designated Federal Officer.
Law & Regulation FCC Declines to Allow Assignments and Transfers of New Experimental Licenses In February of this year, the FCC established rules to create specialized classes of experimental licenses. Conventional experimental licenses are granted generally to experimenters and manufacturers for the purpose of testing new technologies and equipment. They are typically limited to certain frequencies with certain power limitations for operation at specific locations. Changes in the test procedures or the locations would normally require license modifications or even a new experimental license. The new classes of experimental licenses are more tailored to the unique characteristics of the licensed entity and allow more flexibility to undertake a broad range of experiments under a single authorization. The new classes of licenses are: - "Program Experimental Licenses" that are designed for certain colleges and universities, research laboratories, manufacturers and health care institutions;
- "Compliance Testing Licenses" that are designed for FCC-approved labs that conduct testing of new equipment for compliance with the FCC's rules; and
- "Medical Testing Licenses" that are designed to healthcare facilities that conduct trials of wireless medical technologies.
However, the February order that established these new classes of licenses was silent as to whether these licenses could be assigned to a different entity or would survive a transfer of control of the licensee. Although conventional experimental licenses can be the subject of an assignment or transfer of control application, the FCC has now decided in an order on its own motion, released May 29, 2013, that these new classes of licenses may not be assigned and would not survive a transfer of control of the licensed entity. In other words, where the assets of the licensee are sold or the licensee undergoes a transfer of control, the new entity would have to apply for a new license provided it meets the eligibility requirements. The FCC concluded that these new licenses are granted only to certain entities that meet unique eligibility requirements and that the new entities resulting from assignments and transfers of control should have to demonstrate their eligibility in new experimental license applications. While this decision may benefit the FCC in its application processing, the delays resulting from having to file a new experimental license application following an assignment or transfer of control may work to the disadvantage of some companies. Comment Sought on Video Accessibility Act Implementation In a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued on May 30, 2013, the FCC sought comment on how to interpret certain sections of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) with regard to their application to navigation devices supplied by multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) and other digital apparatuses designed to receive or play back video with sound. Comments are due 25 days after publication in the Federal Register, and reply comments are due another 25 days after that. Specifically, Sections 204 and 205 of the CVAA generally require that user interfaces on digital apparatus and navigation devices used to view video programming be accessible to and usable by individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Both of these sections also require that these devices provide a mechanism that is "reasonably comparable to a button, key, or icon designated for activating" certain accessibility features. The FCC is seeking comment on whether to interpret Section 205 of the CVAA to apply to navigation devices supplied by MVPDs and Section 204 of the CVAA to apply to all other "digital apparatus designed to receive or play back video programming transmitted in digital format simultaneously with sound." Alternatively, the FCC is seeking comment on whether to interpret Section 205 to apply to navigation devices, as that term is defined in Section 76.1200 of the Commission's rules ("Devices such as converter boxes, interactive communications equipment, and other equipment used by consumers to access multichannel video programming and other services offered over multichannel video programming systems."), and Section 204 to apply to all other digital apparatus. FEMA to Initiate PSA Campaign about Wireless Emergency Alerts To educate the public about the new Wireless Emergency Alert (or "WEA") system, the Federal Emergency Management Agency plans to initiate a public education campaign for WEA that will include information about how WEA works and how WEA-capable mobile devices behave when they receive a WEA alert. WEA is a system that allows authorized Federal, tribal, state, local and territorial government agencies to send geographically targeted emergency alerts to commercial wireless subscribers who have WEA-capable mobile devices and whose commercial wireless service provider has elected to offer the service. The service was developed in 2008 pursuant to the Warning, Alert and Response Network (WARN) Act as a joint public-private partnership between the FCC, FEMA and the wireless industry. Prior to a recent name change, WEA was previously known as the Commercial Mobile Alert System (or CMAS). Since the WEA system was first deployed in April 2012, authorized government agencies, mainly the National Weather Service, have sent over 3,000 WEA alerts to consumers. Local jurisdictions also have made use of the system. Boston, for example, issued WEA alerts instructing subscribers to evacuate and/or shelter in place during the Boston Marathon bombings in April. The WEA also was used to send flash flood warnings, shelter-in-place and other alert messages to subscribers in Virginia, Maryland, New York, and other states affected by Superstorm Sandy. WEA also represents a promising platform for distributing America's Missing: Broadcasting Emergency Response (AMBER) Alerts. An AMBER alert sent to Minnesota cell phones via the WEA in February 2013, for example, led to the successful recovery of an abducted child. However, despite these obvious successes, FEMA has received feedback from public safety officials, wireless carriers and the public that individuals have been startled or annoyed when hearing the WEA attention signal for the first time, and that some have inquired about opting-out of additional WEA alerts. FEMA, in response, has initiated a public education campaign for WEA that will include PSAs that will contain information on how WEA works and how WEA-capable mobile devices behave when they receive a WEA alert. As part of these PSAs, to familiarize the public with the sounds that they may hear from their mobile devices that signify a WEA alert, the PSAs will play the WEA tones. The WEA Attention Signal is a loud attention-grabbing two-tone audio signal that uses the same frequencies as the distinctive and familiar attention signal used by the Emergency Alert System (EAS). Many of our law firm's clients chose not to participate in CMAS/WEA when the FCC required service providers to file their initial election notifications in 2008 because the costs and technical requirements of participating in the service were unknown at the time. Once the system was operational in early 2012, additional information about costs and technical requirements of participating in the service had become more widely available and a number of our clients that had initially opted out of providing emergency alerts decided to change their election and to opt in. As a side benefit, carriers that choose to participate in WEA also avoid the potential public relations backlash from having to notify new and existing customers of their choice not to participate in the service. With the upcoming FEMA PSA campaign expected to increase public awareness of the WEA program, and possibly leading to increased demand for WEA-capable products and services, our law firm's clients that have heretofore elected not to participate in optional emergency alerting may wish to reevaluate their previous decision. In this regard, our law firm is available to assist you in identifying qualified contractors who can assist you in implementing WEA capability, and we help you in filing an appropriate "opt in" election notification with the FCC. Additionally, clients planning to launch new mobile wireless services and who have not previously notified the FCC of their intention to participate or not to participate in WEA should contact us prior to initiating service so we can assist you in preparing and filing an appropriate WEA notification letter and, if you choose to opt out of the service, appropriate point-of-sale and subscriber agreement notification language as required under the Commission's Rules.
Industry Sorenson to Pay Over $15.7 Million to Settle TRS Billing Investigation On May 28, 2013, the FCC announced that the Enforcement Bureau has entered into a Consent Decree with Sorenson Communications, Inc. to settle an investigation into whether Sorenson improperly billed the Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) Fund for calls made by unregistered, unverified or ineligible individuals, and for calls that were made on behalf of Sorenson itself. The Consent Decree specifies that Sorenson will reimburse the TRS Fund $4.24 million (which includes accrued interest) and make a voluntary contribution of $11.51 million to the U.S. Treasury. The Consent Decree also requires Sorenson to implement a robust compliance plan, requiring designation of a compliance officer; adoption of detailed, written operating procedures; implementation of comprehensive employee training; immediate reporting of possible violations; record-keeping requirements; and the filing of periodic compliance reports over a 24 month period. This action is the latest in a series of TRS enforcement actions taken by the FCC over the past three years and totaling more than $55 million in TRS Fund reimbursements and voluntary payments to the U.S. Treasury. The settlement follows closely on another one announced on May 7 in which AT&T agreed to pay $18.25 million to settle an investigation into whether it improperly billed the TRS Fund. The FCC reached its largest-ever settlement of a TRS investigation in 2010, resulting in the payment of nearly $20 million by Purple Communications, Inc. to a settle a probe into whether the company over-billed the TRS Fund. Dish Makes $2 Billion Bid for LightSquared Several media outlets are reporting that Charlie Ergen, Chairman of Dish Network, has made an all cash $2 billion bid for the assets of LightSquared, which is currently under bankruptcy protection. The bid, which apparently has not yet been shown to the bankruptcy court, is designed to make Dish the "stalking" horse bidder for LightSquared — so that its bid would become the minimum price for LightSquared's assets. The $2 Billion bid by Ergen is separate from the recent purchases of LightSquared debt by a hedge fund with ties to Ergen. It appears that the acquisition of LightSquared is part of a larger strategy for Dish to expand its spectrum holdings and add wireless broadband services to its already existing Internet and satellite TV offerings. This larger strategy includes the acquisition of Sprint and Clearwire — and if successful, would give Dish spectrum holdings that rival AT&T and Verizon. Analysts have noted that the LightSquared spectrum would not be a near term solution for Dish to compete against Clearwire due to the lengthy time-line for regulatory approvals and since the "L-Band ecosystem" will not develop until well after Dish's AWS-4 spectrum that has been approved for terrestrial mobile broadband use.
Deadlines AUGUST 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 August 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 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 Jun. 5 – Comments are due on LNP Passcode and Provisioning Flow Public Notice.
Jun. 8 – Electronic filing deadline for Form 497 for carriers seeking support for the preceding month and wishing to receive reimbursement by month's end.
Jun. 11 – Reply Comments on Options for Disposition of UHF T-Band (470-512 MHz) are due.
Jun. 11 – Replies to comments/oppositions to Rural Associations Petition for Reconsideration of Sixth Order on Reconsideration are due.
Jun. 11 – Replies to comments/oppositions USTelecom Petition for Reconsideration of 54.313 Reporting Requirements are due.
Jun. 11 – Reply comments on Rural Call Completion are due.
Jun. 14 – Oppositions to Dell Telephone Company's Application for Review are due.
Jun. 14 – Comments on Broadcast TV Incentive Auction NPRM are due.
Jun. 17 – Comments on TracFone Petition for Rulemaking Prohibiting Distribution of Lifeline Handsets are due.
Jun. 19 – Comments are due on 2013-2014 Regulatory Fee Structure NPRM.
Jun. 24 – Replies to oppositions to Dell Telephone Company's Application for Review are due.
Jun. 26 – Reply comments are due on 2013-2014 Regulatory Fee Structure NPRM.
Jun. 28 – Deadline for State Commissions to submit and certify the data included in shapefiles.
Jun. 28 – Reply comments on Broadcast TV Incentive Auction NPRM are due.
Jul. 1 – Annual High Cost ETC Report Due under Rule 54.313.
Jul. 1 – Annual Mobility Fund Phase I Report Due under Rule 54.1009
Jul. 2 – Reply comments on TracFone Petition for Rulemaking Prohibiting Distribution of Lifeline Handsets are due.
Jul. 8 – Electronic filing deadline for Form 497 for carriers seeking support for the preceding month and wishing to receive reimbursement by month's end.
Jul. 8 – Comments are due on VoIP, NG911, and Wireline-to-Wireless Transition Trials.
July 16 – Paperwork Reduction Act Comments on Proposed Collection of Urban Rates Survey Information are due.
Jul. 25 – Comments are due on the FCC Staff Report on Rate of Return Re-Prescription.
Jul. 31 – FCC Form 507 due (Universal Service Quarterly Line Count Update).
Jul. 31 – FCC Form 525 due (Competitive Carrier Line Count Quarterly Report).
Sept. 3 – Comments are due on FCC's guidelines for human exposure to RF electromagnetic fields. |
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