The FCC and not satellite providers or other private entities will run an auction for the C band, Chairman Ajit Pai confirmed in a series of tweets late this morning. The agency could aim to move those satellite frequencies for 5G use.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said he will circulate an order 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 will also propose that the FCC seek comment on a process to remove and replace such equipment from USF-funded networks.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld much of the FCC reclassifying broadband service as a Title I Communications Act information service, with some exceptions including on pre-emption for states' own regulations. The ruling also included a partial dissent from Judge Stephen Williams and concurring opinions from Patricia Millett and Robert Wilkins. Our earlier bulletin incorrectly described the FCC's newest rules as on Title II.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld much of the FCC reclassifying broadband service as a Title I Communications Act information service, with some exceptions including on pre-emption for states' own regulations. The ruling also included a partial dissent from Judge Stephen Williams and concurring opinions from Patricia Millett and Robert Wilkins.
The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated and remanded the FCC’s 2016 quadrennial review order, the deregulatory reconsideration order that followed, and a portion of the broadcast incubator order, said an opinion (in Pacer) in Prometheus v. FCC released Monday. The three-judge panel rejected broadcaster arguments that the FCC’s deregulation hadn’t gone far enough, and arguments from the National Association of Black-Owned Broadcasters and Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council that the FCC incubator program’s comparable markets provisions were unreasonable. “We do, however, agree with the last group of petitioners, who argue that the Commission did not adequately consider the effect its sweeping rule changes will have on ownership of broadcast media by women and racial minorities,” said Judge Thomas Ambro, writing for the majority. The FCC’s “analysis is so insubstantial that we cannot say it provides a reliable foundation for the Commission’s conclusions. Accordingly, we vacate and remand the bulk of its actions in this area over the last three years,” the court said. The court also rejected a request from public interest groups that a special master be appointed to oversee the remand process. Judge Anthony Scirica concurred in part and dissented in part from the majority opinion. Judge Julio Fuentes was the panel's third judge.
CTA has picked “nextgenTV” as the consumer-facing logo that will adorn ATSC 3.0-compatible TVs and other receivers, we learned Thursday. CTA didn’t comment.
Viacom and CBS expect to become ViacomCBS by year's end. Viacom CEO Bob Bakish would head the merged entity, Viacom said Tuesday. CBS acting CEO Joe Ianniello would be CBS CEO/chairman.
The Trump administration will delay to Dec. 15 the 10 percent List 3 Section 301 tariffs on smartphones, laptops, videogame consoles and computer monitors, announced the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative Tuesday morning. Delaying the tariffs on those articles appears certain to spare the consumer tech industry from passalong price increases during the peak holiday selling season. It bears watching whether the delay will prompt a rush on shipments of those items from China, as U.S. importers scramble to beat the higher duties. There was no immediate word on the fate of other products the tech industry targeted for List 4 removal, including TVs, smart speakers, smartwatches and Bluetooth headphones. Other products are being removed from List 4 entirely, “based on health, safety, national security and other factors,” said USTR. The full and final List 4 will appear on the USTR website Tuesday, it said. USTR will install a List 4 exclusion process for products with immediate tariff exposure, it said.
The tranche of tariffs the Trump administration Tuesday morning announced it will delay to Dec. 15 are the 10 percent List 4 tariffs on smartphones, laptops, videogame consoles and computer monitors. Earlier this morning, we incorrectly reported the tranche.
The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, other tribes and supporters won a partial victory in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The court Friday vacated the most important portion of the March 2018 wireless infrastructure order, placing small cells back under FCC, historic and environmental review. The court upheld other parts of the order. Commissioner Brendan Carr, who is overseeing FCC work on wireless infrastructure, said the decision wasn’t a total loss. The court “upheld key provisions of last March’s infrastructure decision,” Carr said: “Most importantly, the court affirmed our decision that parties cannot demand upfront fees before reviewing any cell sites, large or small. These fees, which had grown exponentially in the last few years, created incentives for frivolous reviews unrelated to any potential impact on historic sites. Those financial incentives are gone, and we expect our fee restrictions to continue greatly diminishing unnecessary and costly delays.”