Today: FCC O'Reilly appointed to Federal-State Joint Boards, FTC Settlement over data collected on Smart TVs, Inmate Calling Service (ICS)
FCC Commissioner Clyburn on Inmate Calling Service (ICS)
FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn has issued a statement regarding Inmate Calling Services Oral Argument in the D.C. Circuit. Commissioner Clyburn stated that, “Today we took yet another step towards #PhoneJustice on behalf of the millions burdened by the egregious costs of communicating with a loved one who is currently incarcerated. I am grateful to the individuals who argued on behalf of justice for the inmates, their families and their legal representatives, and am confident that the court grasped the nuance of the legal arguments.”
“Regardless of how the Court rules, I will continue to press forward to ensure that inmates and their families receive just, reasonable, and fair phone rates. Justice demands it, and so do I.”
FCC O’Rielly Appointed to Federal-State Joint Boards
As per an Order released by the Federal Communications Commission on 2/7/17, Commissioner Michael O’Rielly has been appointed to serve on the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service (Universal Service Joint Board and the Federal-State Joint Board on Jurisdictional Separations (Separations Joint Board). In addition, Commissioner O’Reilly will serve as the federal chair of the Universal Service Joint Board, the Separations Joint Board, and the Advanced Services Joint Conference.
FTC Settlement Over Data Collected On Smart TVs
The Federal Trade Commission announced that it and the Office of the New Jersey Attorney General reached a 2.2 million settlement with VIZIO to resolve charges that VIZIO installed software on its TVs to collect viewing data on 11 million consumer TVs without consumers’ knowledge or consent. The $2.2 million payment by VIZIO includes a payment of $1.5 million to the FTC and $1 million to the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, with $300,000 of that amount suspended. The stipulated court order requires VIZIO to prominently discloser and obtain affirmative express consent for its data collection and sharing practices and prohibits misrepresentations about the privacy, security, or confidentiality of consumer information it collects. It also requires the company to delete data collected before March 1, 2016, and to implement a comprehensive data privacy program and biennial assessments of that program.
The Regulatory Mix, TMI’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 a TMI Briefing.
