As the global pandemic hit, Snapchat added 11 million “daily active users” in Q1 for a total of 229 million, up 5% sequentially and 20% increase from Q1 2019, said Snap CEO Evan Spiegel on a Tuesday investor call. "We experienced high revenue growth rates in the first two months of the quarter, which offset our lower growth in March." It’s difficult to predict the “near-term impact of this unprecedented complex and global pandemic on our business,” said Spiegel. “Long-term indicators” are positive, he said: Financial recovery “may be very fast for some businesses and much slower for others.” The stock soared 36.7% higher Wednesday, closing at $17.01.
The FCC should join attorneys general from 27 states and territories urging the telecom industry to make further commitments to protect consumers during the public health crisis, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) said Wednesday. Add another 90 days to the 60-day Keep Americans Connected pledge, said California, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Wisconsin and other AGs of both parties in a letter to Chairman Ajit Pai. Telecom companies should give customers fair payment plans for bills accumulated during the emergency, reconnect disconnected customers for at least 90 days with no fees, expand data caps and waive wireless overage charges for at least 90 days, and educate customers about COVID-19 services and scams, the AGs said. The FCC didn’t comment.
COVID-19 forced cancellation of the Sept. 4-9 IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin as a physical event, organizers Messe Berlin tweeted. "IFA Berlin is set to go ahead in 2020, but with an innovative new concept, following the decision by the Berlin government to ban all events with more than 5,000 participants" until Oct. 24, they said. Organizers "anticipated this development and for several weeks now have been discussing a range of alternative concepts," they tweeted. "Planning is well advanced for a concept that will allow IFA to deliver on its core functions for our industry," they said, albeit in the form of a virtual event. CES is proceeding as planned for Jan. 6-9 in Las Vegas, said CTA Tuesday (see 2004210057), hours before IFA cancellation.
Emergency 911 calls are down in Washington, D.C., despite the pandemic, said D.C. Office of Unified Communications Director Karima Holmes on FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel’s podcast released Wednesday. Calls from people who are sick may go up, but other kinds of calls are decreasing with people staying home, she said. Nationwide, calls to 911 surged in COVID-19 hot spots but are low elsewhere (see 2004130032). The district hasn’t had a drop in staffing, Holmes said. She and Rosenworcel supported the 911 Supporting Accurate Views of Emergency Services Act. HR-1629/S-1015 would change the federal government's classification of public safety call takers and dispatchers to "protective service occupations” (see 2002120051).
The FTC postponed its workshop on the safeguards rule until July 13 and moved it online. It was originally scheduled for May 13 (see 2004200062). Also in a 5-0 vote, commissioners delayed by about two months the comment deadline to Aug. 12.
Citing the global pandemic, Dish Network said Tuesday that its May 1 annual shareholder meeting will be done virtually.
The American Antitrust Institute's June 17 annual conference, which was to be in Washington, instead will be done via four-part podcast due to the pandemic, it said Monday. AIA said the podcast episodes will be available later this spring.
The Consumer Bankers Association told the FCC the need for action is growing on its March petition seeking clarification that banks, credit unions and financial service providers can use automatic telephone dialing systems, prerecorded messages and artificial voice for COVID-19 calls (see 2004060009). The filing was posted Monday in docket 02-278.
The FCC waived excluding entities delinquent in FCC debt from participation in the COVID-19 telehealth fund "to facilitate prompt review and processing of the maximum number of applications," said a public notice Tuesday. The agency announced $3.71 million in funding for five hospitals and other healthcare providers, in California, Florida, Michigan, New York and Ohio.
The FCC seeks comment by May 4, replies May 11 on a petition for emergency waiver and declaratory ruling by Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and eight other consumer advocacy groups, said a Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau public notice Monday on docket 03-123. Groups want temporary waiver of telecommunications relay services user registration and per-call validation rules during COVID-19.