Zero rating narrows, rather than widens, the digital divide, Daniel Lyons, associate professor at Boston College Law School, said Monday on the American Enterprise Institute's tech blog. Lyons said offerings by Sprint and T-Mobile of zero-rated services are helpful rather than harmful to competition. The zero-rating question is seen as one of the toughest facing the FCC as it moves forward on net neutrality rules (see 1411140046). “Sprint and T-Mobile lack the scale and spectrum holdings they would need to compete head-on with Verizon and AT&T. Instead, each is introducing a differentiated product to appeal to customers who are not satisfied with traditional wireless broadband plans,” Lyons wrote. “Sprint’s social media plans target cost-conscious customers who want to access Facebook or Twitter on-the-go, but who are unwilling or unable to pay for full mobile Internet access. Similarly, T-Mobile’s streaming audio bundle appeals to heavy music consumers who would otherwise have to purchase larger data bundles or forego [sic] mobile music altogether on the larger carriers’ plans.”
The FCC Wireless Bureau extended by two weeks the comment deadline on a Nov. 21 public notice seeking to refresh the record on wireless hearing aid compatibility rules. Comments are now due Feb. 5, replies Feb. 20. CTIA, the Hearing Loss Association of America and the Telecommunications Industry Association sought a 30-day delay, the bureau noted Monday. The groups said the extension would allow “a more robust record” to develop, the bureau said. It opted instead for 14 days, saying "we believe the additional time will facilitate careful and deliberate considerations of these matters.”
U.S. Cellular will start testing its Voice over LTE service in two or three unidentified markets this year, a U.S. Cellular spokeswoman said Friday. The company also will focus on completing its 4G network.
Hogan Lovells cited a Dec. 19 FCC notice of violation against Nike on Friday as “the latest example of increased FCC enforcement activity.” The FCC issued the notice to Nike for interference from a defective UHF amplifier card in Nike’s distributed antenna system network. Nike subsequently replaced the amplifier card, ceasing the interference, the FCC said. The notice “is the latest indication that the FCC Enforcement Bureau is taking a more aggressive approach towards FCC rule violations under new acting Bureau Chief Travis LeBlanc,” Hogan Lovells said in a blog post. The notice is also “an important reminder for all companies that operate wireless equipment to keep a close watch on FCC compliance and enforcement developments,” Hogan Lovells said.
Americans would “risk losing the ability to benefit from new services and products” if the FCC subjects wireless to Title II-based net neutrality regulations, CTIA said in a YouTube video released Friday. The group said it supports Open Internet rules but with “mobile-specific” rules. The organization also released a shorter version of the video.
The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) said it formed an Emergency Location Task Force to improve location accuracy for wireless 911 calls. The task force is forming to support the goals included in the indoor location accuracy road map released in November by APCO, NENA and the top four U.S. wireless carriers (see 1412150061). The task force will focus initially on standards to support the road map commitments but also will collaborate with other organizations to “seek broader implementation and adoption of solutions, including with the Third Generation Partnership Project,” ATIS said in a Friday news release.
Sprint had 967,000 net additional subscribers in Q3, marking a turnaround for the company, it said in a news release Thursday. The company will provide full results for Q3 in February.
The FCC will take up an order on ensuring that accurate caller location information is automatically provided to public safety officials for all wireless calls to 911, the agency said in releasing its tentative agenda for its Jan. 29 meeting. Chairman Tom Wheeler in a blog post Thursday said the order he's circulating takes advantage of the "'roadmap'" proposed by APCO, AT&T, CTIA, the National Emergency Number Association, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon (see 1411190064) for improving location accuracy for calls made indoors. But recognizing the "valid criticisms raised by some public safety stakeholders," the report and order provides "confidence-building measures and backstop thresholds that set clear targets and deadlines for improving indoor location and hold parties accountable for results," Wheeler wrote. The agency also will hear a presentation on its new Consumer Help Center (see 1501050038). Wheeler's proposal, announced Wednesday (see 1501070046), to increase the broadband benchmark speed to 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload and to issue a notice of inquiry on improving broadband deployment was not on the agenda. The proposal is a vote on circulation, an agency spokesman said.
Wells Fargo Securities said it sees “impressive momentum in sub growth” at T-Mobile in Q4. But, it said in an analyst research note Tuesday, “the question remains how this sub growth translates to profitability and margins.” Wells Fargo said T-Mobile had 2.1 million total net additional subscribers relative to Q3. In another analyst research note Wednesday, Wells Fargo said T-Mobile "intends to hit its FY2014 EBITDA guidance of $5.6-5.8 billion."
Colorado tower building company Centerline Solutions said it bought wireless project management firm Cascadia PM, expanding Centerline’s operations in Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington. Centerline already had a presence in Hawaii and Washington, along with offices in Arizona, Colorado and New York. Centerline didn’t reveal the terms of the deal. Centerline’s clients have included all four major national wireless carriers.