The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council, an advocate of more designated entity (DE) participation in FCC auctions, views the AWS-3 auction as a success, MMTC said in a written statement Tuesday. “The auction netted over $41 billion that will be used to fund the first nationwide public safety network and contribute to significant reduction of the national debt,” the group said. “The auction also increased diversity of spectrum ownership and competition in the wireless industry -- two important policy goals that MMTC has long championed.” MMTC said it would have more to say after a review of the record. Monday, FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai criticized the commission for allowing Dish Network to get DE bidding credits (see 1502020039).

The Enforcement Bureau imposed a $25,000 penalty against Message Communications for allegedly making robocalls to consumers’ cellphones in contravention of FCC rules. The bureau said it issued a notice of apparent liability against the company in July, and Message Communications never responded to agency inquiries or produced requested documents. “We will not tolerate attempts by Message Communications or any other company to evade or ignore our lawful inquiries -- particularly questions related to compliance with laws that protect consumers from harm,” the bureau said Tuesday. The bureau also handed down a $25,000 fine against Calling Post Communications for similar violations of robocall rules. The companies couldn't be reached for comment.

Mobile Future congratulated the FCC, NTIA, the Department of Defense and other federal agencies for a successful AWS-3 auction, in a letter Monday to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. “The numbers certainly lay to rest any questions raised by the National Association of Broadcasters and others as to whether there really is a spectrum crunch,” the group said. But Mobile Future Chairman Jonathan Spalter said the auction also demonstrates the FCC shouldn't impose unnecessary restrictions on future auctions. The FCC last year approved rules for the TV incentive auction that would effectively limit bidding by AT&T and Verizon. “Restrictive and preferential participation rules harm consumers and the wireless marketplace,” the letter said. “In those instances where the FCC has placed its hand on the scale in spectrum auctions, the intended goals have not been achieved, service was delayed to consumers, and valuable spectrum remained unused for several years.”

The FCC Wireless Bureau denied a petition for reconsideration, filed in 2010 by the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters, protesting Verizon’s sale of wireless assets to AT&T. Verizon was required by federal regulators to sell the assets as a condition of its buy of Alltel, the bureau said Monday. Verizon conducted a bidding process and subsequently sold AT&T licenses and business units in 79 of the 105 markets where it had to divest assets, the bureau said. In its petition to deny, NABOB “argued in particular that the bidding process erected barriers to minority participation and that minority bidders were not given serious consideration as potential purchasers, due at least in part to Verizon Wireless’s alleged preference for a single purchaser,” the bureau said. The argument was rejected. “NABOB identifies no material error or omission in the Commission’s AT&T-Verizon Wireless Order, presents no additional new facts warranting reconsideration, and relies upon the same arguments that have already been considered and addressed by the Commission,” the bureau said.

Global shipments of Android smartphones fell quarter-on-quarter for the first time in Q4, ABI Research said Friday in a report. Worldwide shipments of smartphones of all types jumped 7 percent to 378 million in Q4 from 354 million in Q3, ABI said. Android smartphones didn’t share in that success, as they fell 5 percent to 206 million, ABI said. Apple had a banner quarter, as iPhones climbed 90 percent to 74.5 million smartphones, it said. Shipments of Windows Phones fared well, rising 19 percent to 11 million, the industry researcher said. Apple’s success with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus “has taken the high end of the market away from certified Android’s premium tier vendors,” ABI said. It was a “seismic quarter” in the smartphone industry, and “many premium tier Android vendors may once again review their operating system and therefore content and service strategies” in light of Apple’s success, it said. These are “worrying times for Google’s mobile services and Android, but it presents opportunity for other service providers and even operating systems,” ABI said. Google representatives didn’t comment.

Many broadband innovations could help people get and stay healthier, Chris Gibbons, FCC distinguished scholar in residence, said Friday in an agency blog post. Gibbons highlighted wearables, like watches that track pulse rate and other vital signs. “Beyond medical monitoring, such wearables may also help improve athletic performance, track fitness goals or help prevent dangerous falls in the elderly,” he wrote. Gibbons mentioned “ingestibles,” including smart pills that use wireless technology to help monitor internal reactions to medications. Digital “embeddables” also offer a bright future, he said. “In the future, embeddables may use nanotechnology and be so tiny that doctors would simply ‘inject’ them into our bodies. Some promising applications in this area could help diabetes patients monitor their blood sugar levels reliably and automatically, without the need to prick their fingers or otherwise draw blood.”

The FCC released the notice of apparent liability against AT&T approved by commissioners Thursday after a contentious debate at the commission's open meeting (see 1501290062). The NAL said AT&T violated agency rules on 34 microwave licenses the carrier bought from other companies between 2009 and 2012. The commission approved a proposed $640,000 fine, an amount adjusted upward 400 percent to reflect alleged bad behavior on AT&T’s part, an allegation denied by the carrier. “We are particularly concerned that AT&T’s apparent unauthorized operations continued for an extended period of time,” the NAL said. “The unauthorized operations involved a large number of stations. Of the 59 licenses for which AT&T filed, has yet to file, or canceled in lieu of filing major modification applications, AT&T operated 26 of the stations at variance from the stations’ authorizations for more than four years, 26 stations for approximately four years, and seven stations for approximately three and a half years.”

Dozens of performing arts organizations across the U.S. are asking the FCC to rethink a proposal that only performing arts entities that regularly use 50 or more wireless devices will be eligible to apply for a Part 74 license and have their mics protected in a database. The organizations said the rule would leave them without protection from TV broadband devices. The filings were in docket 14-165. “Thousands of performances are held by professional performing arts organizations each year and the use of wireless microphones is both essential to producing high-quality performances and also mitigates against significant public safety concerns,” the Baltimore Symphony said, in a representative filing. “Professional wireless capability, with successful interference protection, is essential to our sector.”

Smartphone shipments vaulted to a record level in Q4 on seasonality, strong end-user demand and a “deep selection of models,” said preliminary data released Thursday from IDC. Vendors shipped 375 million units during Q4, according to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, up 28 percent over the year-ago quarter and 12 percent growth over Q3. For the year, 1.3 billion smartphones shipped, IDC said, up 28 percent from 2013. Juniper Research said it was the first year global smartphone shipments exceeded 1 billion units, at 1.2 billion. It said the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus sold more iPhones in China than in the U.S. for the first time. Despite closing in on Samsung in Q4, Apple had a worldwide market share of 15 percent for 2014. The iPhone was the star of Apple's most recent quarter, CEO Tim Cook said earlier this week (see 1501280031). Both market research firms cited a narrowing gap between No. 1 smartphone maker Samsung and rival Apple. IDC said Apple cut the volume gap to 600,000 units in Q4 and said continued success -- along with challenges to Samsung from low-cost, low-margin Android smartphone makers -- could enable Apple to overtake Samsung as shipment leader sometime during 2015. For Samsung to hold on to the top spot, “it will either have to accept lower margins from here forward or revamp its high-end strategy to compete with Apple,” IDC said. While year-over-year smartphone unit growth slowed from 40 percent in 2013 to 27 percent last year, “the market clearly has legs,” IDC said. Growth is forecast to decline to the mid-teens this year, “but opportunity exists” as a large segment of the world population hasn't yet acquired a mobile phone or stepped up to a smartphone, IDC said. "Mature markets have become increasingly dependent on replacement purchases rather than first-time buyers, which has contributed to slower growth,” Ramon Llamas, research manager, said. In emerging markets, first-time buyers have provided momentum to the smartphone market, but “the focus has shifted toward low-cost devices, creating a different dynamic for both global and local vendors,” Llamas said. Facing increased pressure from Apple at the high end and from Chinese manufacturers Huawei, Xiaomi, ZTE and others at the mid- to low end, Samsung is facing a “multi-front battle” and has streamlined operations and its product portfolio to position itself more competitively, IDC said. Apple sales were up 44 percent in the U.S. to 74.5 million and up 97 percent in Brazil, Russia, India and China, IDC said. It “remains to be seen how long Apple can sustain this runaway growth,” IDC said. Juniper said the reception of the iPhone 6 Plus indicates “a large potential for Apple phablets” and will likely accelerate the trend toward bigger smartphone screens.

The FCC was right to issue a strong warning against blocking Wi-Fi (see 1501270037), said the Wireless Innovation Alliance Wednesday in a news release. “As the FCC has said before, and was forced to say again: blocking legal communications from wireless users is unequivocally wrong,” the group said. “Unlicensed spectrum is our best bet for wireless innovation; it supports billions of dollars of economic activity every year and serves as an essential on-ramp for communications through services like Wi-Fi.”