Greater adoption of AI could result in sizable benefits for communications networks, and various policy approaches could facilitate that effort, Analysys Mason's Andrew Daly said Tuesday. The consultancy this week issued a Cisco-commissioned paper that laid out a variety of AI policy opportunities. It urged ongoing tracking of AI developments in communications, assistance in coming up with AI frameworks and standards, investment in AI-related R&D, and incentives such as tax breaks.

FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson defended President Donald Trump's firing of the commission’s two Democrats during a speech at the Free State Foundation conference Tuesday. Ferguson also espoused a theory on executive power that the president may remove commissioners and install supporters on what Trump has termed “so-called” independent commissions. When Americans choose a president, “we are electing the person who is going to be able to supervise the entire government, not parts of the government,” Ferguson said.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, praised Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during a Free State Foundation event Tuesday for moving toward what he hopes will be a major overhaul of NTIA’s $42.5 billion BEAD program. Other panel members told us they plan to grill agency administrator nominee Arielle Roth on the issue during her Thursday confirmation hearing. Lobbyists we spoke with expect Roth will face heat from Senate Commerce Democrats on BEAD because she's the committee Republicans’ telecom policy director, but they don’t believe this means the nominee will face an otherwise contentious reception. Thursday's hearing is set for 2:15 p.m. in 253 Russell.

A broad swath of commenters from all over the political spectrum condemned the FCC’s news distortion proceeding as unconstitutional in comments filed by Monday’s deadline, while the complainant, the Center for American Rights, insisted the proceeding against CBS is justified. The FCC should use the Skydance/Paramount deal to “address the deeper disease” of “relentless bias” by CBS, CAR said.

PBS CEO Paula Kerger and NPR CEO Katherine Maher argue in written testimony posted Tuesday -- ahead of a Wednesday hearing of the House Oversight Delivering on Government Efficiency Subcommittee -- that their news content remains unbiased, and they urge lawmakers against cutting the public broadcasters’ federal subsidies. The hearing, set to begin at 10 a.m. in HVC-210, is happening against a backdrop of growing GOP criticism of public broadcasters (see 2503200058). Some congressional leaders are interested in requiring the outlets to provide assurance that they will transmit neutral content before Capitol Hill gives them more money (see 2503210040).

On the eve of a key U.S. Supreme Court case concerning the USF's future, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said questions remain about the program's survival. How USF is paid for has to change, Carr told a Free State Foundation conference Tuesday. He also said he supports President Donald Trump's dismissal of Democratic commissioners at the FTC.

Deceptive negative-option contracts -- where consumers pay monthly for a subscription unless they opt out -- are ballooning, despite regulators' efforts, backers of the FTC's "click-to-cancel" rule told the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday. NCTA and others are challenging the rule (see 2411220029). Last week, amicus briefs were filed for both sides in docket 24-3137.

Questions from judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit appeared particularly pointed Monday, aimed at T-Mobile lawyer Helgi Walker of Gibson Dunn, as the court heard the carrier’s challenge of an $80 million FCC fine for allegedly not safeguarding data on customers' real-time location (see 2502190029). T-Mobile was also fined $12.2 million for violations by Sprint, which it later acquired.

A few tweaks are expected to the two wireless items to come before FCC commissioners Thursday at their open meeting, said industry officials active in the proceedings. The items are a notice of inquiry about a wide range of possible alternatives to GPS for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) and a draft Further NPRM on 911 wireless location accuracy. The GPS NOI saw numerous ex parte filings seeking tweaks, with only CTIA seeking changes to the location accuracy notice.

Grain Management will buy all of T-Mobile's 800 MHz spectrum in exchange for cash and Grain's 600 MHz spectrum portfolio, the companies announced Thursday night. Grain confirmed it plans to make the spectrum available “to U.S. utilities to support mission-critical communications, improve grid resilience, and enhance emergency response capabilities.”