Telecom relay services (TRS) equipment providers sparred over ZVRS/Purple Communications attempts to give Convo video relay service (VRS) customers incentives to port to the ZVRS/Purple home VRS product, posted Tuesday in FCC docket 03-123. ZVRS included an email from a Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau official directing the company to file, memorializing emails where Convo asks for clarification of whether giveaways of TRS equipment is permissible. ZVRS warned Convo its practice of "misinforming the community through several mediums that ZVRS and Purple's Complete Home Package offering is a violation of FCC rules and policies" was tortuous interference with its customer relationships. Convo accused ZVRS/Purple of spending millions of dollars "solely to buy market share by incenting other VRS providers' customers to port them through free expensive consumer electronics that ultimately will be paid by the Telecommunications Relay Service Fund." Convo said the giveaways "are not compliant with FCC rules regarding impermissible financial incentives" and could undermine TRS Fund long-term health.
USTelecom and NTCA met with FCC officials on Lifeline minimum service standards set to be implemented Dec. 1, per filings (and here) in docket 11-42 posted Tuesday. The standards would bump up speed and capacity requirements for fixed broadband, which could result in "a forced upgrade," NTCA said, and create "the perverse effect" of pricing some customers out of broadband. Require all Lifeline providers make their minimum advertised speed available to all Lifeline subscribers in that area and give existing Lifeline broadband customers the option of upgrading to the minimum or applying current tiers to Lifeline discounts, NTCA said. It asked the FCC to answer an industry petition to postpone implementing the update (see 1907300076). USTelecom emphasized knowing soon if implementation changes to prevent customer confusion and undoing carriers' preparation. Representatives from USTelecom and members CenturyLink, Consolidated, Verizon, and Windstream met with aides to Commissioners Brendan Carr, Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks. They repeated concerns on a Lifeline representative accountability database (see 1907050036). NTCA officials met with an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai.
The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau wants comment by Dec. 5, replies Jan. 6, on how best to facilitate and improve dialogue and coordination between tribes and eligible telecom carriers to ensure successful broadband deployment and adoption on tribal lands, said a public notice on docket 10-90 and in Tuesday's Daily Digest.
MCI, Sprint and Verizon asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas (Case No. 3:14-MD-2587-D) over intra metropolitan trading area switched access charges litigation, in Pacer and emailed to participants Monday. The companies argue intraMTA traffic isn't subject to access charges imposed by LECs (see 1902200043): That's because interexchange carriers don't "use access services when they carry intraMTA traffic."
Stakeholders asked the FCC to move quickly to resolve what services E-rate category 2 funding can support. Representatives from Hewlett Packard had meetings last week with aides to the four regular commissioners, urging "the Commission to move quickly to ensure that network security appears on the eligible services list starting with funding year 2020," said a filing posted Monday on docket 13-184. It cited 712 reported cyber incidents involving public schools since January 2016. The E-rate Management Professionals Association wants a timely decision "to allow applicants adequate time to forecast, plan, and procure" category 2 services, it filed, posted Monday. EMPA members met with staff from the Wireline Bureau last month. The FCC released its proposed list for eligible category 2 services in August (see 1908020016).
The FCC Wireline Bureau rejected "in its entirety" an Oct. 3 proposal from Standard Tandem, saying its pricing provisions violate the USF/intercarrier compensation order and related benchmarking rules. Its dispute resolution provisions would impose "unjust and unreasonable terms on Standard Tandem's customers," said an order on docket 19-02 in Friday's Daily Digest.
Securus Technologies asked the FCC to help protect inmate calls from inadvertent blocking by efforts to fight robocalls, in a filing posted Friday in docket 17-97. Many inmate calls from a corrections facility use a single, outbound-only number, the company said, and this could pose particular problems on high-volume call days such as Mother's Day. Company representatives met Tuesday and Wednesday with the Wireline and Consumer and Governmental Affairs bureaus and aides to all FCC members.
FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks wants an FCC effort to protect election security, he told a Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition conference Thursday. "Elections have been targeted within all 50 states," he said during audience Q&A, and hackers entered into online voter registration systems. He told us later he plans a speech on the topic "quite soon," with details then. His prepared remarks are here.
Dozens of real estate developers, managers and property owners signed a letter from the National Multifamily Housing Council urging the FCC "to refrain from any further regulation and interference in broadband deployment, access and provider partnerships employed in the multi-tenant environment," posted Tuesday in docket 17-142. AvalonBay Communities, Equity Residential and Trammell Crow Residential were among signers. There's an NPRM on MTEs (see 1909030022).
The FCC Wireline Bureau is taking comments through Oct. 25, replies Nov. 1, on transferring control of assets from Fusion Connect to Telecom Holdings, it said in docket 19-262 and Tuesday's Daily Digest. Fusion went through bankruptcy proceedings (see 1908140014).