The FCC detailed its test to "streamline" voice service discontinuance reviews and other specifics in a tech transition order it released Friday that was approved by commissioners Thursday (see 1607140066). Parties seeking to replace legacy voice services with new IP-based or wireless services can get fast-track treatment if they meet an optional three-pronged test on replacement service adequacy, said the order, which noted a previous proposal for using eight criteria drew concerns. "This straightforward, streamlined approach will promote clarity, certainty, and efficiency. The test encapsulates the important criteria identified in the Emerging Wireline Further Notice, but categorizes them conceptually," the order said. An applicant seeking tech transition discontinuance "may demonstrate that a service is an adequate replacement for a legacy voice service by certifying or showing that one or more replacement service(s) offers all of the following: (i) substantially similar levels of network infrastructure and service quality as the applicant service; (ii) compliance with existing federal and/or industry standards required to ensure that critical applications such as 911, network security, and applications for individuals with disabilities remain available; and (iii) interoperability and compatibility with an enumerated list of applications and functionalities determined to be key to consumers and competitors. One replacement service must satisfy all the criteria to retain eligibility for automatic grant." Fast-track applicants can also show "that, despite not being able to meet the criteria, the totality of the circumstances demonstrates that an adequate replacement nonetheless exists," said the order, which fleshed out specifics of the test over 50 pages of text and rules. Parties still can obtain discontinuance approval under a previous five-factor test. The order also detailed the FCC decision to grant USTelecom's petition for nondominant treatment of ILEC interstate switched access services connecting local callers to long-distance networks. ILECs can now file new tariffs for such services on one day's notice, but to receive deemed-lawful treatment, must give seven days' notice for proposing only a rate decrease and 15 days' notice for all other filings, said the order. The commission expects most associated ILEC filings will continue to be filed on seven or 15-days’ notice. ILECs will be subject to fewer cost-support filing requirements, but are still subject to such duties not tied to nondominant status for interstate switched access service, the order said. They are also still subject to a 2011 order driving intercarrier-compensation rates to zero.

The FCC list of entities qualified to bid in the forward portion of the incentive auction contains all the companies expected to provide major bidding muscle but omits two expected new entrants, Sinclair and Social Capital Rama Spectrum Holdings, according to a Friday public notice (see 1607110052). With AT&T, Comcast, Dish Network, T-Mobile and Verizon in the list of 62 qualified bidders, the companies that didn't qualify aren't expected to have much of an effect on the auction, a broadcast attorney told us. Social Capital, a boutique investment firm owned by Chamath Palihapitiya, signaled an interest in buying spectrum, as did Sinclair, but because of the amount of money involved, their lack of participation isn't expected to be a major factor in the auction's success, an attorney who follows the auction told us. Bidders who aren't on the qualified list can't participate in the forward auction or any of its subsequent stages, an FCC spokesman told us. Becoming a qualified bidder required a timely submitted upfront payment, and those on the unqualified list likely chose not to make that payment, attorneys told us. The forward auction bidding system will be available to bidders starting Tuesday, and a clock phase practice auction will be July 25-July 29. A mock forward auction will be Aug.11-Aug. 12, the PN said. The real forward auction will begin Aug. 16 with a single round. “We will set the pace of the auction based upon monitoring of the bidding and assessment of the auction’s progress,” the PN said.

Leading tech industry and ex-FCC and other officials blasted the presidential bid from presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump. “We stand against Donald Trump’s divisive candidacy and want a candidate who embraces the ideals that built America’s technology industry: freedom of expression, openness to newcomers, equality of opportunity, public investments in research and infrastructure, and respect for the rule of law,” said the open letter, released Thursday. “We embrace an optimistic vision for a more inclusive country, where American innovation continues to fuel opportunity, prosperity and leadership.” Those signing included Hyperloop One General Counsel Marvin Ammori, Union Square Ventures Managing Partner Brad Burnham, Google’s Vint Cerf, former U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra, former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt, Tumblr CEO David Karp, Multicultural Media, Telecom & Internet Council CEO Kim Keenan, former FCC Chairman Bill Kennard, National Hispanic Media Coalition President Alex Nogales, Mobile Future Chairman Jonathan Spalter, Silicon Flatirons Center Director Phil Weiser, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Tim Wu, law professor at Columbia University. Trump “campaigns on anger, bigotry, fear of new ideas and new people, and a fundamental belief that America is weak and in decline,” they wrote. “We have listened to Donald Trump over the past year and we have concluded: Trump would be a disaster for innovation. His vision stands against the open exchange of ideas, free movement of people, and productive engagement with the outside world that is critical to our economy  --  and that provide the foundation for innovation and growth.” They said Trump “proposes ‘shutting down’ parts of the Internet as a security strategy  --  demonstrating both poor judgment and ignorance about how technology works. His penchant to censor extends to revoking press credentials and threatening to punish media platforms that criticize him.”

Americans should have confidence in the NSA, Director and U.S. Cyber Commander Michael Rogers said Thursday at the National Press Club. “The nation is counting on us to generate the insights,” said Rogers. “So we’ve got to ask ourselves, how do you do that in a world in which resources are declining and … the technical challenges … are just getting more and more complex?” NSA professionals “believe in their missions, they believe in doing the right thing the right way and they are committed to doing it within a legal framework,” he said. “We always obey the rule of law. If we make a mistake, we acknowledge that mistake and we own it. We don’t take shortcuts.” Seeking better dialog between the government and technology companies, Rogers supported a model in which cyber professionals can move back and forth between the public and private sectors. “The two cultures at times talk past each other,” he said. Some in the government think the private sector is interested only in money, but Rogers said both sectors fight for something bigger than themselves. “If you’re out in the Valley, your view is that you’re harnessing the power of technology to change the world for the better,” he said. Better dialogue could crack how to deal with encryption, which Rogers said can be used for good and evil. “Encryption is a positive thing,” he stressed. “I don’t know what the answer is,” but there should be a conversation about what’s possible, he said. Neither a company nor an intelligence agency should decide alone, but rather there should be “a broader dialogue as a society about what are we comfortable with here and what makes sense for us.” Rogers said the U.S. Cyber Command is halfway through building “a dedicated cyber-mission force,” which will be a 6,200-person army of cyber professionals divided into 133 specialized teams. The mission force will reach initial operating capabilities by Sept. 30, and is expected to be fully operational by the same day in 2018, he said. The nature of cyber required that phased approach, he said. “Because demand at the moment exceeds capacity, this is the one mission set that I’ve been involved in as a military professional for 35 years [where] we’re not even waiting until the team is fully constructed. As soon as we get a cadre, we’re putting teams on targets.”

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said he's “very happy” with the “broad participation” in the set-top box proceeding. “Ongoing dialogue” wasn’t occurring previously because the pay-TV industry had met such overtures with a “stiff arm,” Wheeler said Thursday after a commissioners' meeting. The sides are trying to find where they “have accord,” Wheeler said. In an emailed statement Thursday, the Consumer Video Choice Coalition praised Wheeler’s comments: “The Chairman made clear that those proclaiming a specific proposal was alive or dead were misguided, noting that all proceedings before the FCC contain the same degree of healthy back-and-forth.” Smaller pay-TV carriers shouldn’t be included in FCC set-top rules, even the pay-TV backed app proposal, the American Cable Association said in a meeting with aides to Chairman Tom Wheeler and Chief Technologist Scott Jordan last week. The requirements of the app proposal would be too financially burdensome for smaller cable carriers, ACA said. In a conference call with Jordan and aides to Wheeler this week, NCTA discussed HTML5 and how the app proposal wouldn't include an additional fee for consumers. Wednesday, Verizon emailed a blog post (see 1607120079) supporting the apps proposal to aides to all five commissioners and to Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake. The filings are in docket 16-42.

The future of Globalstar's broadband terrestrial low-power broadband system plans remains hazy, with Commissioners Mike O'Rielly and Mignon Clyburn still not having decided on the draft order circulated by Chairman Tom Wheeler. "As soon as I come to a conclusion, we'll see how it goes," O'Rielly said Thursday at the agency's meeting. An FCC official told us Clyburn hasn't voted. Commissioners Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel had voted no (see 1606030041). Globalstar didn't comment.

The FCC issued a “clarification” Wednesday in response to a Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council letter challenging a statement by agency Chairman Tom Wheeler before the House Communications Subcommittee Tuesday. MMTC Senior Adviser David Honig said an MMTC proposal for further reaching minority procurement policies wasn’t vulnerable to constitutional challenges, responding to a statement from Wheeler that such a rule change could invoke questions of strict scrutiny (see 1607120083). “At the hearing, Chairman Wheeler noted that in considering any action taken that might be subject to the Supreme Court’s Adarand decision, the Commission must be careful in determining whether that action would be reviewed under the strict-scrutiny standard, and if so whether it could satisfy that standard,” the clarification said. “The Chairman did not intend, by stating current law, to suggest that the MMTC procurement proposal would be subject to the strict-scrutiny standard.” Wheeler should “affirm that the broad outreach of the MVPD Procurement Rule is not subject to ‘strict scrutiny,’” MMTC President Kim Keenan said in a statement after the FCC clarification. “We stand in support of the July 12, 2016, letter from Congresswoman [Yvette] Clarke [D-N.Y.] and Congressmen [Bobby] Rush [D-Ill.] and [G.K.] Butterfield [D-N.C.] requesting that the a MVPD [multichannel video programming distributor] Procurement Rule, adopted and implemented under the 1992 Cable Act, be extended to all communications industries, with a referral to GAO for Title I information services.”

The FCC should apply the lessons from the spectrum frontiers proceeding to the ATSC 3.0 rulemaking, said NAB General Counsel Rick Kaplan in a blog post Wednesday. “The Commission’s approach has been to “promote a flexible regulatory environment for the next generation of wireless services,” Kaplan said. “5G’s nascent status has not prevented the Commission from moving forward in the Spectrum Frontiers proceeding, and it shouldn’t stop the Commission from moving forward with authorizing Next Gen TV. As it did for 5G, the FCC should reject calls for delay to study ATSC 3.0," Kaplan said. “Delays in approving voluntary use of a new television transmission standard could affect U.S. leadership in broadcast television and deprive consumers of new features and services.” Since broadcasters and CTA have asked for an Oct. 1 NPRM, a nine-month timeline similar to the spectrum frontiers proceeding would lead to final ATSC 3.0 rules being issued in July 2017, Kaplan said. “Just one year from now, the Commission should be in the admirable position of having laid the foundation for the future of both the wireless and television industries.” Commissioners are voting Thursday on the spectrum frontiers order.

Community anchor institutions require next-generation Internet connectivity, said the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition (SHLB) Wednesday, releasing an "Action Plan" to bring "gigabit-speed-and-beyond networks" to all schools, libraries, health clinics and other anchor institutions by 2020. The group released a "Vision" paper in April kicking off its effort (see 1604270022). The FCC understands the community role anchor institutions play and "is doing everything in its power" to achieve the Gbps connectivity goal by 2020, said Gigi Sohn, counselor to Chairman Tom Wheeler, in the written version of a speech she gave at an SHLB conference. She noted FCC USF subsidy actions to increase annual E-rate telecom discounts to schools and libraries to $3.9 billion, to extend Lifeline low-income support to broadband service, and to provide billions of dollars to support broadband to more than 11 million Americans in high-cost rural areas. She said requests for the USF rural healthcare program have "exploded," with demand this year expected to top $350 million, up from just over $250 million in recent years. "Anchor institutions are not just a key part of the solution to the broadband availability challenge, you are also key to the adoption challenge," Sohn said. She said many Kansas City area residents wouldn't accept free gigabit connectivity from Google Fiber because of a lack of trust: "This is where community anchor institutions come in. Successful broadband adoption programs come from the bottom up, not the top down. You are trusted members of the community who know how best to serve residents." Sohn asked the audience to help the FCC develop a digital inclusion plan to better understand non-price barriers to broadband adoption. The SHLB Action Plan includes 10 policy papers making recommendations on various issues such as broadband needs, Wi-Fi and wireless networking, broadband subsidies and broadband adoption. "The papers share three common themes: Sharing, such as aggregation and public-private partnerships that eliminate silos and reduce costs; promoting competition to incentivize growth and bring more affordable options; and, funding strategies that help communities meet up-front build-out and deployment costs, and ongoing monthly fees," a release said. The competition paper recommends requiring Connect America Fund recipients to bid on requests for proposed E-rate funding, limiting special access prices and upholding "open access and interconnection" policies.

NCTA slammed a Public Knowledge official's call for Bell cooperation on regulating business data services, including cable. NCTA cited a blog post by PK Senior Vice President Harold Feld that said AT&T should negotiate with Verizon -- which has collaborated with Incompas -- and that suggested cable could dominate the BDS market if the FCC constrains only ILECs. "This theory is wrong in so many different ways, that it requires some unpacking," said NCTA Vice President Steve Morris in a blog post Wednesday called "Let Some Fresh Air Inside the FCC's Smoke-Filled Tent." He wrote, "It's jaw-droppingly hard to conceive that an advocate who has consistently complained about the 'ILEC monopoly' ... would suggest that the biggest ILEC should join the second biggest ILEC in negotiating a regulatory regime that raises obstacles to emerging competitors. If you are concerned about market power and in favor of competition, why would you ever support regulation that constrains emerging competitors -- particularly competitors investing in fiber networks that are tremendously expensive to build and that everyone agrees are vital to the future of the nation? Does Feld support FCC action to constrain the new small business services just announced by Google Fiber or is it just cable that should be limited?" Despite extensive FCC data collection, "none of that data even hints at" emerging competitors exercising market power, Morris wrote. He said it's absurd to believe that limiting ILEC rates without limiting cable rates "will somehow enable cable to dominate the market," when cable has only a 10 percent market share. Feld's "suggestion that AT&T ‘come into the tent and negotiate’ illustrates just how broken this process has become -- encouraging a ‘wheel and deal’ mentality more apt for the selling of used cars," Morris said. Feld disagreed. "NCTA wants to negotiate a new STB [set-top box] standard for their ‘get rid of the box’ alternative. How is that not also a ‘smoke filled room?’ To paraphrase Captain Renault from Casablanca: NCTA is shocked, SHOCKED to find there are ex parte meetings going on here," he emailed. "Does NCTA really need a lecture on how the ex parte process in a permit but disclose proceeding works? Verizon and Incompas will continue to talk to each other and submit their proposals through the very public process -- just like NCTA will, presumably, someday, possibly, submit some further details on what 'get rid of the box' actually means and how it would work. Then other folks -- like NCTA in the case of BDS, or PK in the case of STBs -- get to meet with the staff and respond. Look, if NCTA wants to propose getting rid of 'permit but disclose proceedings' and do this just on comments and replies with no meetings for anyone, cool. But NCTA should stop playing the offended hypocrite.”