Observers questioned the cybersecurity and privacy recommendations in the National Broadband Plan, in a panel discussion at George Washington University Law School late Thursday. The plan calls for a larger cybersecurity role for the FCC, but that might be a reach for the commission, said Jim Harper, the Cato Institute’s director of information policy studies. Just because the FCC handles communications, that doesn’t mean it knows cybersecurity well, he said.

Free conference call companies are rallying customers to urge lawmakers and the FCC to not stifle their ability to continue using free conference call services. “We let people know to contact their representatives in Congress that they use the service and don’t want it to go away,” FreeConference.com Chief Financial Officer Mike Placido said in an interview. The commission continues to get comments on a 2007 rulemaking notice concerning just and reasonable rates for terminating access charges by competitive local exchange carriers mainly located in rural areas. Bells have accused rural LECs of “traffic pumping,” and urged lawmakers and the FCC to look into ending the practice. The House Commerce Committee has collected information from CLECS and interexchange carriers to begin its inquiry (CD Feb 18 p 1).

The goal the FCC set to wrap up its media-ownership review this year will be tough to meet, said commission, industry and public-interest figures we surveyed. The FCC hasn’t issued notices of inquiry or rulemaking and must deal with a legal challenge to the previous review. Issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) soon with proposed rules, rather than starting with a notice of inquiry (NOI), would speed up the work, the officials agreed. They said time is tight for the commission to wrap it up this year, a goal apparently shared by Chairman Julius Genachowski, Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake and others. Congress mandated the reviews every four years, including 2010.

Motorola, Qualcomm and AT&T separately asked the FCC to reject the 700 MHz Block a Good Faith Purchaser Alliance’s calls for a notice of proposed rulemaking requiring all 700 MHz capable devices to operate on every paired 700 MHz band. The alliance also sought an immediate freeze on FCC authorization of mobile equipment that cannot operate on every band. U.S. Cellular and small carriers groups weighed in in support of the alliance.

The FCC should be careful as it takes up the Broadband Task Force’s recommendation that TV providers include a broadband gateway device to not ignore some of the unique features of direct broadcast satellite service providers’ technology, said DBS companies. The commission will begin to take up the issue April 21 (CD March 31 p10).

The FCC will vote at the April 21 meeting on an order that would pull back the in-market roaming exclusion, approved in 2007 as part of the commission’s automatic roaming rules. The same item calls for the FCC to put out a further rulemaking notice seeking additional comment on data roaming. The actions have been expected since December (CD Dec 9 p1).

FCC Commissioner Meredith Baker said she remains open-minded about net neutrality, but she questioned whether a compromise can be made to gain her support by removing the application of rules to wireless. Baker, who joined the commission in July, told us she’s pleased with the approach of the National Broadband Plan toward spectrum. Baker also called for a quick review of all deals before the FCC, including Comcast-NBC Universal, limiting conditions to those directly involved, and helping broadcasters in small- and mid-sized markets in the media ownership review.

The weak economy and a recent surge in prepaid wireless plans indicate that the trend toward them will continue throughout the year, said speakers on a New Millennium Research Council teleconference Wednesday.

The complexity and scope of a referral of some jurisdictional separations issues to the Federal-State Joint Board justify a continued freeze on separations, the FCC said in a rulemaking notice. The commission is seeking comment about extending the freeze a year, through June 2011. Comments are due 14 days after the notice is published in the Federal Register, replies seven days later. This is the third time that the commission has extended the freeze. This is “another area where the FCC has failed to act in a timely fashion,” said the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates.

A draft order upholding an earlier FCC decision is a step along a path for new low-power FM stations because the translators dealt with in the current item are limited for each applicant, commission officials said. The order is likely to be approved without much eighth-floor controversy and outside a commission meeting, an official said. It upholds an earlier order limiting to 10 the number of applications from any entity that will be granted in Auction No. 83, several commission and industry officials said.