CaptionCall representatives met Friday with FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly and his aide about pending revisions to set a permanent rate methodology for IP captioned telephone service, per a filing posted Wednesday in docket 13-24. Sorenson Communications CEO Scott Wood, Sorenson and CaptionCall general counsel and a consultant to CaptionCall said a reverse auction has benefits.
A judge in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted LECs unopposed request to lift the stay in the Fusion Connect bankruptcy (case no. 18-10768) proceeding (see 1908130029), in an order (in Pacer). Appellee briefs from the LECs on the IntraMTC switched access matter are due within 30 days of the court's letter Wednesday, it said (in Pacer).
Networks Communications International sought FCC forbearance from a requirement to provide USF contributions for its interstate and international inmate calling services, in a petition posted Wednesday in docket 17-232. The company said a significant number of customers of ICS providers are otherwise eligible for USF assistance, leading to "the absurd result of USF-eligible recipients actually contributing to the very programs from which they receive services."
LECs asked a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to lift a stay on a Fusion Connect bankruptcy proceeding that the company entered in June, to allow appeals from certain debtor subsidiaries to proceed, filed Monday (case no. 18-10768, in Pacer). The appellees proposed the response brief be due Aug. 26.
The FCC Wireline Bureau designated Sunset Digital an eligible telecom carrier in high-cost areas in Tennessee and Virginia, limited to participation in the Connect America Fund Phase II auction if the company makes a winning bid and is found authorized for USF support. The bureau also waived a requirement Sunset submit proof of its ETC designation by Feb. 25, 2019, to participate because waiver "will serve the interests of low-income consumers," said in an order Tuesday on docket 09-197.
CenturyLink will pay $550,000, cease billing for most third parties and revamp the way it addresses customer complaints over unauthorized phone charges as part of an FCC Enforcement Bureau consent decree released Tuesday. The agency said the settlement ensures customers "are not required to first contact the third-party company to be eligible to receive a refund" or required to pay a disputed fee before the matter is resolved. "Our policy is to discontinue, block and refund unauthorized third-party charges at a customer's request," CenturyLink emailed. After the FCC received complaints about unauthorized charges, the company agreed to discontinue billing for most third-party providers, "phased in after appropriate notice" to those providers, it said. Billing arrangements with its large strategic partners aren't affected.
CenturyLink is investing several hundred million dollars to build and support edge compute services, it said Monday. The company will target the services to enterprise customers, wireless carriers, hyperscalers and system integrators.
The FCC Wireline Bureau, Rural Broadband Action Task Force and Office of Economics and Analytics gave LTD Broadband waiver after the provider missed a Feb. 25 deadline for filing an audited financial statement in the Connect America Fund Phase II auction, the agency said on docket 10-90 and in Monday's Daily Digest. LTD told the agency that as a small business, it was unable to retain accountants within the required time. The FCC hasn't announced whether the long-form CAF II applicant qualifies for support.
USTelecom wants the FCC to adopt the group's broadband serviceable location fabric mapping proposal "simultaneously as it moves forward with the establishment of the new shapefile broadband availability reporting capability." CEO Jonathan Spalter and Senior Vice President-Policy and Advocacy Patrick Halley met last week with Commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Jessica Rosenworcel to share preliminary findings from the Broadband Mapping Consortium Pilot Program. "Preliminary analysis indicates that structure counts per census block in the pilot states versus 2011 census housing structure data is both over inclusive and under inclusive," the group filed, posted Monday in docket 19-195. USTelecom and NCTA have different proposals for improving broadband mapping data (see 1907260039).
The FCC Office of Economics and Analytics requests service providers submit Form 477 data current as of June 30 by Sept. 3, said a notice posted Friday in docket 11-10.