Today:  Facebook Announces new European GDPR Compliant Controls,  FCC To Eliminate Cable Lineup Requirements, California – PUC Issues Reminder of 805 Area Code Change  

Facebook Announces new European GDPR Compliant Controls

Facebook announced in a blog post that it would roll out new privacy protections to everyone, regardless of where they live.  With the new controls users will be able to review how Facebook uses their data.  Facebook is seeking to go beyond the obligations of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and add the privacy protections for all users.  Some of the choices users will be able to make are about: ads based on data from partners; information about the user’s profile; and allowing face recognition technology.  Additionally, there will be an updated terms of service and data policy with more detail about how the services work.  People in the European Union (EU) will see the changes first, ahead of the May 25, 2018 effective date of the GDPR.  People in the rest of the world will see the changes “on a slightly later schedule.”

FCC To Eliminate Cable Lineup Requirements

The FCC voted at its April Open Meeting to issue a Notice proposing to eliminate a rule that requires cable operators to maintain at their local office a current listing of the cable television channels that each cable system delivers to its subscribers.  The FCC tentatively concluded that this requirement, set forth in Section 76.1705 of the FCC’s rules, is no longer necessary or useful now that channel lineup information is readily available through other means, including through the websites of cable operators, on-screen electronic program guides, and paper guides.  The FCC is also seeking comment on whether it should eliminate the requirement that certain cable operators make their channel lineup available via their online public inspection file or instead require these operators to put channel lineup information on their own website. It also asks what the channel lineup requirements should be for small cable operators.

 California PUC Issues Reminder of 805 Area Code Change

In May 2017, the PUC ordered the overlay to ensure that consumers and businesses in the 805-area code continue to have access to telephone numbers from the wireline, wireless, and Voice over Internet Protocol providers of their choice.  Inteserra Briefing Service subscribers see Briefings dated 6/14/17 and 6/20/17.

The PUC issued a reminder of the change, including that, beginning June 2, 2018, residents and businesses with the 805-area code must dial 1 + area code + telephone number for all calls.  After that date, if callers do not use the new dialing procedure, the call will not be completed, and a recording will instruct the caller to hang up and dial again using the new dialing procedure.  The new dialing procedure will not change existing 805 phone numbers or the cost of the call.  Calls that are in a consumer’s local calling area remain local calls.  Finally, dialing 911 will not be affected by the change. 

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The Regulatory Mix, Inteserra’s daily blog of telecom related regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of an Inteserra Briefing.