The movie business passed “an enormous stress test,” said Imax CEO Rich Gelfond on a Thursday call, saying “the movies are back” as studios recommitted to theatrical releases after cinema closures. The blockbuster-titles slate is “kicking into high gear,” said Gelfond, referencing an “unprecedented pipeline of marquee tentpole” titles to close out 2021 and through 2022. Despite “massive disruption” of theater shutdowns and availability of releases via streaming, “consumer demand for moviegoing remains strong,” said Gelfond. “One hundred years of human behavior doesn’t change that easily.” Q3 revenue at Imax was $56.6 million vs. $37.3 million in the COVID-19 pandemic-colored 2020 quarter. Net loss narrowed to $8.4 million from $47.2 million. Imax surpassed its record for the best October at the global box office (see 2110250048), on track to exceed $115 million, among the top 10 months in its history, the executive said.
The FCC received nearly $1.3 billion in funding requests during the second application filing window for the Emergency Connectivity Fund, it said Monday. Applicants sought funding for nearly 2.4 million devices and more than 564,000 broadband services. “Clearly there still is a tremendous demand for help in our communities to meet the broadband needs of students and library patrons engaged in online learning,” said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. The commission also committed an additional $269 million in funding for applicants from the initial filing window, bringing the total to more than $2.6 billion committed (see 2110120068). “This historic program is now providing nine million students with the devices and internet connections they need to succeed," said Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., in a statement: "We must provide additional E-rate home connectivity dollars and keep this program going for our most vulnerable children. So I am once again calling on my colleagues to replenish the Emergency Connectivity Fund by passing my SUCCESS Act as part of our budget reconciliation package" (see 2107220049).
The Wireline Bureau approved more than $40 million in COVID-19 telehealth program support for 71 healthcare providers, said a public notice Thursday. “The FCC has approved more than $123 million in applications for Round 2 of its COVID-19 Telehealth Program -- nearly half of the amount allotted in the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act," said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.
The FCC Office of Inspector General created social media accounts to increase visibility and gather information on possible waste, fraud and abuse of the money appropriated for the agency’s COVID-10 relief programs, said a release Tuesday. “OIG is a small office with fewer than 50 full-time employees that nonetheless is responsible for the oversight of FCC operations and billions of dollars in funds.” The accounts are being created “with the expectation that individuals or entities with helpful information will come forward to assist us,” it said. The accounts are on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit will resume oral argument in person starting Dec. 1, it said Friday. All arguments before then still will be via videoconference, it said. It said the live audio feed of oral arguments provided on the court's YouTube channel will continue.
The cybercrime “attack surface” is larger than ever, with millions of employees still working from home, “in some cases using personal devices to access cloud apps and corporate resources,” a Citrix survey found. The company commissioned Sapio Research to canvass 1,250 security decision-makers in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and the Netherlands, finding 74% say procedures and controls are becoming “more complex” as their organizations transition more permanently to remote and hybrid work. About an equal proportion said they're fighting to keep up with the increased volume of security threats that the remote-work models create, said Citrix Thursday. Nearly eight in 10 respondents said this pandemic created an opportunity to “completely rethink” long-term strategies to secure their networks without harming employees' experience, it said. But remote-work challenges abound, including poor connectivity (cited by 43% of respondents as a key hurdle), navigating technical problems virtually (34%) and workers’ inability to get tech support quickly or easily (32%).
Verizon's U.S. non-union employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Dec. 8. For contractors, vendors, visitors and new hires, it's Jan. 1; for retail teams, Feb. 1. “The only employees excluded from these requirements are those designated as ‘home-based’ within the Verizon Consumer Group,” the carrier said Thursday. “This does not apply to our union-represented employees as we are in discussion with the unions.”
The FCC committed more than $1.1 billion in Emergency Connectivity Fund support for 2,471 schools, 205 libraries and 26 consortiums, it said Tuesday. Nearly $2.4 billion has been committed to date (see 2109240073). The second application filing window closes Wednesday.
NARUC changed its Nov. 7-10 annual meeting to a partially virtual event. The Louisville event was originally in person only (see 2108120069). “We decided to have a hybrid meeting based on information we have received from members and others in the regulatory community” indicating “concerns about traveling,” a NARUC spokesperson emailed Monday. “To ensure that more members and stakeholders have an opportunity to participate in the meeting, we felt it would be best to move to a hybrid format.” FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr will join a Nov. 10 panel about USF contribution, the spokesperson said. Carr will participate virtually, his aide said. All general sessions and some others, including the USF panel, are to be streamed, the NARUC spokesperson said.
Telework is “essential” for federal operations in emergencies, but it creates cyber risks, GAO said Thursday. All 12 agencies examined have the technology to support telework, but not all had “fully addressed relevant guidance for securing their remote access systems,” the auditor said. The study included offices at DOJ, and the departments of Homeland Security and Transportation. If agencies don’t “sufficiently document relevant security controls, assess the controls, and fully document remedial actions for weaknesses identified in security controls, they are at increased risk that vulnerabilities in their systems that provide remote access could be exploited,” the report said. Agencies agreed with recommendations to “document and assess relevant controls, and to fully document remedial actions for systems supporting remote access.”