Cable and telco groups asked the FCC for a four-week extension to comment on an NPRM proposing to update their Form 477 broadband and voice service data submission requirements (see 1708030026). Instead of an initial deadline of Sept. 25, comments would be due Oct. 23, replies Nov. 6, proposed a petition by the American Cable Association, NCTA, NTCA, USTelecom and the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association posted Wednesday in docket 11-10. They cited "extenuating circumstances," including the need to provide detailed factual information that has been complicated by "back-to-back major hurricanes," and said many "members are already overburdened with additional proceedings and other regulatory obligations."

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Mignon Clyburn will travel to Florida Monday to inspect the damage from Hurricane Irma, said a news release Wednesday. They will meet with those engaged in recovery operations, and get updates about the ongoing efforts to restore communications. The storm has “had a serious impact” on communications networks in Florida, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, Pai said. The storm caused “massive destruction” and disrupted telecommunications and travel between the islands in the archipelago, said the U.S. Virgin Islands Public Services Commission in an emergency petition filed with the FCC Wednesday. The PSC requested waiver of FCC rules requiring filing of state certification of support for eligible telecom carriers by Oct. 1. Clyburn said Pai offered her the chance to join him on the trip, and she looks forward to the FCC translating the information gathered during the visit “into actionable steps that the Commission and industry can take to ensure that our communications networks remain resilient in the face of these powerful and dangerous storms.” The FCC reported Wednesday that 29 Florida public safety answering point​s are experiencing problems due to Irma, same as Tuesday. In Florida, 18 percent of cellsites are down, an improvement from 25 percent. The hardest hit county there is Monroe, with 82 percent of cellsites down. In the U.S. Virgin Islands, 55 percent of cellsites are out of service, compared with 54 percent. In Georgia, 5.3 percent of cellsites in the disaster area are down, vs. 11 percent, and 10 percent are down in Puerto Rico, an improvement from 15 percent, and Alabama still has less than 1 percent of its cellsites down. At least 8.19 million wireline and cable subscribers don’t have service in the affected parts of Alabama, Florida and Georgia, an increase from 7.18 million. “Since there are widespread power outages in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the FCC has received reports that large percentages of consumers are without either cable services or wireline service,” the FCC said. Thirty-nine radio stations are out of service in the affected areas, down from 51. One more TV station is down than Tuesday, bringing the total to 10. Florida has three TV stations out, Puerto Rico five, and the Virgin Island has two down.

Level 3 filed an FCC complaint against AT&T alleging it's trying "to delay and impede" the FCC's ongoing intercarrier compensation shift to bill-and-keep arrangements in which carriers don't charge each other terminating fees. "In Section 51.907(g)(2) of its rules, the Commission has unambiguously required that AT&T and other 'Price Cap Carriers' transition to bill-and-keep for tandem-switched transport access services for calls that traverse a tandem switch that is owned by the 'terminating carrier' or its 'affiliates,'" said a 469-page public version of the complaint posted Wednesday in docket 17-227. "AT&T has rewritten the regulation to apply only if a call traverses a tandem switch owned by a Price Cap Carrier and the Price Cap Carrier is also the 'terminating carrier.' As for the term 'affiliates' in the rule, AT&T contends that it too only 'comes into play' when the Price Cap Carrier that owns the end office has an affiliate that owns the tandem." Level 3 said AT&T used the "self-serving reformulation" to file "tariff revisions that (a) only comply with the rule’s rate cap for a shrinking percentage of calls that terminate with an AT&T Price Cap Carrier, and (b) charge rates as much as two-and-a-half times the maximum rate permitted under the Commission’s rules for the growing percentage of calls that terminate with an AT&T VoIP or wireless carrier, thereby perpetuating the very ICC inefficiencies that the regulation is intended to end." An AT&T spokesman referred us to a Wireline Bureau July public notice that denied petitions, including Level 3's, to reject or suspend and investigate AT&T tariffs, along with the telco's opposition. "None of the parties filing petitions against the tariff transmittals at issue have presented compelling arguments that the transmittals are so patently unlawful as to require rejection," said the PN. "None of the parties have presented issues regarding the tariff transmittals that raise significant questions of lawfulness which require their investigation." An Enforcement Bureau notice Wednesday set a pleading schedule, with an AT&T answer due Oct. 9, a Level 3 reply due Oct. 24, and an AT&T further reply due Nov. 8. The bureau this week granted a conditional waiver of some procedural rules for the anticipated proceeding (see 1709120060). Also Wednesday, a Wireline Bureau PN Wednesday denied a Windstream petition to reject or suspend and investigate AT&T business data service tariffs, noting Windstream was free to pursue a complaint.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said he's not against regulation but wants it to "solve market failure," foster competition, spur innovation and investment, and account for costs and benefits. "The goal is to make sure our rules are tailored to the market as it exists in 2017," he said, responding to questions at a Lincoln Network event Tuesday evening in San Francisco (available here). Pai said the FCC needs to "modernize" its rules to give broadband providers "timely, cheap" access to poles, ducts and conduits: "That's something we're aiming to do." Companies competing in the same space "should be regulated similarly," he said, declining to specify how broadband providers and internet edge providers should be treated and noting the FCC must "stay within the four corners of the law." Pai said "the future of wireless is particularly promising" and hailed mobile and fixed wireless solutions, software defined networks, and unlicensed spectrum use: "We stand on the brink of something big." He said his "personal passion" is to close the digital divide by bringing more broadband to rural, tribal, low-income and other "disadvantaged" communities, including people with disabilities. He said he's still "haunted" by a visit to a Sioux reservation in South Dakota where unemployment is high and one woman was found dead clutching her cellphone after dialing for 911 help 38 times, unsuccessfully, because wireless coverage was lacking: "We need to push technology as far out into the countryside as we can." He said he was "humbled" by his recent visit to Harvey-ravaged Texas, but said only 5 percent of cellsites went down, compared with 25 percent during 2012's Superstorm Sandy. He cited "amazing" rescue and recovery efforts of public-safety personnel, industry and others, including "incredible" FCC field personnel: "Everyone seemed to be coming together." Pai said he's eager to collaborate with his commissioner colleagues and said the number of bipartisan votes is "up dramatically" to "something like 86 or 90 percent." Pai said President Donald Trump is "very gregarious, very up to date on some of our work." He called the administration very receptive to his push for including broadband digital proposals in any infrastructure initiative: "At least in my area, it's been a productive relationship." Asked if he would seek elected office, Pai joked that he will never run for governor of California, but if he did, he would win with "Saddam Hussein-level margins."

DOJ asked a court to throw out Judicial Watch's complaint alleging the FCC failed to respond to the group's Freedom of Information Act requests on possible Obama administration influence on the 2015 net neutrality and Communications Act Title II broadband order. Judicial Watch failed "to state a claim upon which relief may be granted," and a "claim is moot" because the commission responded to the FOIA requests and certain records are protected by FOIA exemptions, said a DOJ/FCC filing (in Pacer) Monday to U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in Judicial Watch v. FCC, No. 17-cv-00933 (APM). The filing cited other defenses, including that the commission "denies each and every allegation" in the complaint except as expressly admitted. The FCC admitted that as of May 17, when the complaint was filed, it hadn't produced the requested documents or provided related explanations, but the agency responded May 31 to Judicial Watch's second document request with 28 pages of records, redacting information to protect personal privacy under FOIA Exemption 6. The commission responded on Aug. 9 and Sept. 6 to Judicial Watch's first request with 2,376 pages of records but withheld certain documents "subject to FOIA exemption 4 (concerning privileged and confidential commercial information) and/or Exemption 5 (concerning inter-agency and intra-agency records that fall within the scope of the deliberative process privilege)." Judicial Watch didn't comment Tuesday.

Charter Communications and Samsung are partnering on 5G and 4G LTE wireless network field and lab trials around the U.S., with the work having started over the summer and set to run through the rest of the year. Samsung said Tuesday the 5G trials are evaluating fixed-use cases that employ its pre-commercial 28 GHz network and equipment, and the 4G trials are being done at 3.5 GHz, using its 4G LTE small-cell technology in outdoor environments. Charter blogged it "will emphasize an 'Inside-Out' strategy" focused first on indoor wireless offerings, then outdoor. It said after it next year launches its mobile wireless service "as a Wifi first" mobile virtual network operator (see 1611030041), it will look to boost the quality, speed and capacity of its wireless service using 3.5 GHz band and millimeter wave spectrum. Charter hopes the FCC, as it looks at opening the 3.5 GHz shared band, will set licensing rules "that would ensure and encourage investment and deployment by new entrants, including Charter." Sprint and Ericsson, meanwhile, said they did the first U.S. 2.5 GHz Massive MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) field tests using Sprint spectrum and Ericsson’s 64T64R (64 transmit, 64 receive) radios, in Seattle and in Plano, Texas. “The two companies are preparing for commercial deployment next year, with Massive MIMO radios capable of increasing Sprint’s network capacity up to ten times,” Sprint said. “This technology is a tremendous competitive advantage for Sprint, enabling us to maximize our deep 2.5 GHz spectrum holdings,” said John Saw, chief technology officer. “Massive MIMO will be key to meeting our customers’ growing demand for unlimited data, as well as offering Gigabit LTE and 5G services.”

Apple unveiled what it called the future of the smartphone Tuesday. It brought to the devices a neural engine, 4K and high dynamic range video, facial recognition biometrics, wireless charging and animated emojis. Preorders begin Friday for the 64 GB and 256 GB iPhone 8 (starting at $699) and 8 Plus (starting at $799), with Sept. 22 availability at $999 for the iPhone X (shipping on Nov. 3). The Qi wireless charging standard, which has a wide lead, got a bump from launch of the iPhone 8 and X smartphones. Apple announced Qi-based wireless charging products from Belkin and Mophie. Phil Schiller, senior vice president-worldwide marketing, referenced the many Qi-certified devices available in public spaces that can charge the new phones. “A lot of great devices” will begin to come to market “particularly because of iPhone 8 and iPhone 10,” said Schiller. He teased Apple’s AirPower charging mat that’s designed to charge multiple Apple products -- a phone, Watch and AirPods in a case. Devices begin charging simultaneously when placed on the mat, and the devices work together. With AirPower, Apple believes it can make the wireless charging experience “better” and “move the entire industry forward,” Schiller said. “We hope people love it, that it encourages others to create more advanced solutions based on technology like this.” Apple will work "to incorporate these benefits into the future of the standards to make wireless charging better for everyone,” he said. AirPower is due next year.

Concern that a few, large tech companies will dominate the market is leading some to want to "rewrite" antitrust enforcement considerations from a consumer protection focus to other various goals, which may disregard people's welfare, said acting FTC Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen in remarks prepared for a Georgetown University antitrust symposium Tuesday. Regulators don't have a "crystal ball" to figure out how and where these new technologies should develop and be used, she said: "Second-guessing" the market without showing harm to consumers substitutes consumer preferences with regulatory ones. Ohlhausen said the idea that top tech companies could widen their market advantages in the future is "uncertain" since many understand they have a "tenuous" hold on their current position. She suggested regulators need more "empirical evidence" on how markets lose "their dynamism, innovation, and creativity" before trying to restructure them. Ohlhausen rebuffed arguments that technological advancements that disrupt current business models are considered "pernicious." She said enforcers should address behaviors that undermine the competitive process and governments should remove barriers to market entry and competition. Ohlhausen discussed "predatory pricing" and network effects, saying the current framework is "sufficiently flexible" to address such issues. "Antitrust enforcement should always turn on the specific facts of each individual case and the likelihood of actual consumer harm," she said: Regulators should bring cases where consumer interest is harmed and refine tools that show likely harm.

Free Press said network investment was up since the FCC's 2015 net neutrality order reclassified broadband as a Communications Act Title II service, contrary to some claims. "The majority of publicly traded broadband providers’ own financial disclosures report investment increases, and the Commission’s Form 477 deployment data shows a remarkable level of new, higher capacity deployments by broadband providers across the board," the group said in a filing posted Monday in docket 17-108 on a meeting with Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel and aides. "Commenters incorrectly claiming some harm to investment from Title II focus on a supposed change in aggregate total capital investment. Their manipulated totals stem from vague and unspecified tabulations for the broadband industry as a whole, and they distort the amount invested by certain providers while ignoring freely available public statements explaining individual firms’ decisions."

Verizon said "one-touch, make ready" (OTMR) could speed fiber and small-cell buildouts. "Rapid fiber and small cell deployment can face obstacles, with often significant delays in getting access to poles for new fiber and small cell attachments," said a filing Monday in FCC docket 17-79 on meetings with Commissioner Brendan Carr and aides, and with aides to Chairman Ajit Pai. Verizon said in some areas, electric utilities can take nine months to complete the pole-attachment process, with fiber attachments sometimes taking a year or longer. "The sequential nature of make-ready work means that one party’s delay in completing its make-ready work often delays other parties’ ability to begin their make-ready work," the telco said: "Make-ready is often not completed until well beyond" rule deadlines. Verizon repeated "strong support" for OTMR, "a proposal that would allow attachers, as well as pole owners, the option to use pole-owner-approved contractors to coordinate and do all work to add a new attachment."