What will the FCC be tackling next?
Chairman Pai deemed Febru
ary “Innovation Month at the FCC,” with an agenda that revisits themes from the past year: modernizing outdated rules, closing the digital divide, and promoting innovation. For telecom companies, the welcome news is that the FCC appears poised to eliminate the annual audit and associated reporting requirement for payphone service compensation. The FCC realizes that, as fewer and fewer people use payphones, compliance with these rules now costs carriers a large fraction of, if not more than, the total compensation the audits are meant to verify. Cable operators will also see relief, as the FCC is ready to eliminate the requirement that they maintain paper copies of FCC rules. Other items would open up spectrum above 95 GHz (airwaves that haven’t been viewed as well-suited for communications services in the past but are today’s “spectrum horizons”) to allow innovators to test their ideas for new uses and establish rules for the rapid evaluation of new technologies or services. And still another item would resolve various outstanding petitions and move the FCC closer to the start of the Connect America Fund Mobility Fund Phase II reverse auction. An interesting agenda for the 2/22/18 meeting is worth a closer look.
Modernization of Payphone Compensation Rules: If adopted, the Order would eliminate the requirement that completing carriers file an annual report prepared by an independent third party auditor to verify their ongoing compliance with the FCC’s payphone call tracking system requirements. It would also revise the requirement that a completing carrier provide a sworn statement from its chief financial officer (CFO) certifying to the accuracy and completeness of its quarterly payphone compensation to PSPs. Instead, any company official with knowledge of and responsibility for the accuracy of payphone compensation by the carrier could provide the requisite sworn statement. The Order would also eliminate interim and intermediate per-payphone compensation rules that expired 18 and 20 years ago. (For more information see historical Inte
serra Briefing dated 6/27/17.)
Modernization of Media Regulation Initiative: Paper Copies of FCC Rules: In this item, the FCC would eliminate the requirement (codified in various sections of its media rules) that low power TV, TV and FM translator, TV and FM booster stations, cable television relay station (CARS) licensees, and cable operators with more than 1000 subscribers maintain paper copies of FCC rules. However, these entities would still be required to be familiar with the rules governing their services.
Mobility Fund-II Auction Rules: In February 2017, the FCC adopted rules to move forward with the MF-II auction, which will provide up to $4.53 billion in high-cost support over 10 years to extend mobile voice and broadband coverage to unserved areas. This order would resolve various petitions challenging the decision by:
- Clarifying that the collocation requirement for MF-II applies to all newly constructed towers;
- Modifying the letter of credit (LOC) requirements to be consistent with those for recipients of subsidies from Connect America Fund Phase II;
- Denying requests to modify the MF-II budget and disbursement schedule;
- Denying requests to modify performance metrics, bidding credits, and the treatment of equipment exclusivity agreements, and
- Denying requested changes seeking to limit the Universal Service Administrative Corporation’s role in testing recipients’ compliance with MF-II performance metrics, public interest obligations, or other program requirements.
Encouraging the Provision of New Technologies and Services to the Public: Section 7 of the Communications Act establishes a policy of encouraging the provision of new technologies and services to the public. It requires the FCC to determine whether any new technology or service proposed in a petition or application is in the public interest within one year after such petition or application is filed. The FCC has never adopted rules or procedures to implement this section. If adopted, this item would do just that. Specifically, it would:
- Adopt specific filing requirements for requests seeking consideration under section 7, as well as the particular factors to be used to evaluate whether the request;
- Require FCC staff to evaluate the request and determine within 90 days whether the proposed technology or service qualifies for section 7 treatment and commit the FCC to taking swift action to evaluate the technology or service.
Spectrum Horizons: The spectrum above 95 GHz has long been considered the outermost edge of usable spectrum. However, the FCC has seen an uptick in interest in these bands. Currently, there are no rules to permit licensed or unlicensed communications use in these spectrum bands, other than by amateur operators or on an experimental basis. Thus, the goal of the Spectrum Horizons proceeding is to enable innovators and entrepreneurs to develop technology that can make effective use of this spectrum. Since the FCC cannot predict how technology will develop in this space, it proposes multiple options (licensed, unlicensed, and experimental) to encourage the deployment of new services and devices in this space and promote innovation. Specifically, this item:
- Seeks comment on adopting rules for fixed point-to-point use of up to 102.2 gigahertz of spectrum in various bands and allow licensees to obtain a nationwide non-exclusive license.
- Seeks comment on the deployment of point-to-multipoint systems and mobile services in this spectrum.
- Seeks comment on making up to 15.2 gigahertz of spectrum available for unlicensed use in several band segments.
- Seeks comment on creating a new category of experimental licenses for the 95 GHz to 3 THz range.
This meeting will not bring nearly the excitement of the last two meetings, but it does have an intriguing mix of issues in its own right.
