The FCC approved 5-0 an order on cellphone hearing aid compatibility rules that largely adopts a June consensus plan from the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions. In a key change from a version circulated weeks ago, the order does not exclude Wi-Fi-enabled phones from the list of phones deemed compatible with hearing aids (CD Feb 8 p1).
AT&T’s U-Verse TV service is meeting the company’s expectations and proving popular with subscribers where it’s available, John Stankey, group president of the company’s telecom business, told a Merrill Lynch conference Wednesday. While Stankey didn’t comment on the 700 MHz auction, he said the company’s acquisition of spectrum from Aloha Partners puts AT&T in a strong position as it rolls out advanced wireless services. “We're having good success in the market,” Stankey said of U-Verse. He estimated that the video market in AT&T’s territory is worth $35 billion annually.
Low-cost carrier MetroPCS is making substantial progress in building out the markets for the licenses it obtained in 2006’s advanced wireless services auction, CEO Roger Linquist said Wednesday as the company released Q4 results. MetroPCS sees strong potential to offer wireless service that will replace wireline service in four major new markets: New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Las Vegas.
Sprint Nextel accused AT&T of “flouting” the 2006 order approving the AT&T-BellSouth merger after the Bell sought a declaratory ruling in an interconnection dispute (CD Feb 8 p9). Sprint has tried to extend to other states an interconnection agreement with AT&T in Kentucky, under a merger condition allowing such agreements to be “ported.”
The FCC is denying requests for hearing aid compatibility waivers filed on behalf of about 20 small- and medium-sized carriers, in an item circulating on the eighth floor of the commission. The carriers face tens of thousands of dollars in fines after failing to meet a requirement that they offer to their customers two compliant handsets by Sept. 16, 2006. A carrier that offers both CDMA and GSM service had to offer two handsets for each.
Qwest seeks a wireless partner for a relationship that goes beyond the company’s deal with Sprint Nextel, Qwest CEO Ed Mueller said Monday at the company’s analyst meeting. Qwest, unlike AT&T and Verizon, has no wireless subsidiary. Mueller is working hard to address this shortcoming, which he sees as key to cutting customer churn, he said. Qwest will have an answer “fast,” since “this isn’t something we'll need a lot of study on,” he said.
Little 700 MHz auction bidding remains active except for the E-block, spectrum that would be ideally suited for video broadcast to cellphones. Sources said Qualcomm is probably the most active bidder, but at least one carrier seems to be challenging Qualcomm in some markets. Tom Peters of Wireless Strategy said the E block has been the spectrum to watch for several weeks, since the high bids on several of the largest blocks were made in Round 37.
Verizon Wireless struck back at opponents of the company’s proposed acquisition of Rural Cellular Corp. (CD Feb 13 p5). The carrier told the FCC that the $2.67 billion deal would mean “superior service quality, a wider variety of handsets, seamless national coverage, improved customer care” and “a broad menu of service plans” for subscribers converted to Verizon’s network.
CTIA and Sprint Nextel told the FCC it must reject a petition by South Seas Broadcasting, filing as an affected consumer, asking that rate integration be expanded to cover wireless carriers for calls between the U.S. mainland and American Samoa. CTIA said the FCC and courts have established a clear precedent that wireless carriers should not be subject to such wireline rules.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency warned the FCC that though FEMA has authority over emergency alerts from the president, it lacks power over warnings by state and local authorities. In a letter this week, FEMA asked the FCC to hold off choosing a federal agency to oversee alerts to cellphones. FEMA also warned that Congress may need to pass legislation allowing a federal agency to take charge.