Marriott released a statement further explaining its position on controlling Wi-Fi at its hotels. In August, Marriott, joined by the American Hospitality and Lodging Association and Ryman Hospitality Properties, asked the FCC to clarify the extent to which companies can manage networks on their properties without violating FCC rules, and the FCC sought comment. CTIA, Google, NCTA and other commenters said such network management is a clear violation of FCC rules (see 1412220055). “To set the record straight it has never been nor will it ever be Marriott's policy to limit our guests' ability to access the Internet by all available means, including through the use of personal Mi-Fi and/or Wi-Fi devices,” Marriott said in a statement. “As a matter of fact, we invite and encourage our guests to use these Internet connectivity devices in our hotels. To be clear, this matter does not involve in any way Wi-Fi access in hotel guestrooms or lobby spaces.” The question is merely “what measures a network operator can take to detect and contain rogue and imposter Wi-Fi hotspots” in meeting rooms and otherwise on hotel property, Marriott said. The company cited the growing use of wireless technology to launch cyberattacks and “purposefully disrupt hotel networks.” That's why it and others are seeking clarity, the company said: “We feel this is extremely important as we are increasingly being asked what measures we take to protect our conference and meeting guests and the conference groups that are using Wi-Fi technology in our hotels.”

The FCC Wireless Bureau is giving U.S. Cellular three more days to respond to a December letter from the bureau asking questions about the proposed sale of a single 700 MHz A-block license in West Virginia from McBride Spectrum Partners to Hardy Cellular, a subsidiary of U.S. Cellular (see 1412090049). The new deadline is Jan. 8. “You indicate that holiday-related absences among USCC engineering personnel have made it impossible to complete the USCC's internal review process before the specified deadline,” said the Wednesday letter in docket 14-240. Because of the "unusual circumstances" the bureau granted "a brief three-day extension.”

The 800 MHz rebanding is nearly complete along the Canadian border, one of the last areas to retune, the 800 MHz Transition Administrator said in a report to the FCC. The largest amount of work that remains is in Washington state, the report said. The TA said progress also is being made along the Mexican border, where more than three-fourths of the licensees have completed frequency reconfiguration agreements. “The few remaining non-border and Canadian border licensees that have not completed physical retuning should expeditiously complete their implementation activities,” the TA said. “Licensees that are behind schedule should make every effort to get back on schedule. A delay in the completion of an implementation task by a licensee that has a downstream impact on other licensees … can have a cascading effect and cause delays for other dependent licensees and, in some cases, for an entire region.”

FirstNet highlighted recent tests of the Hybrid Public Safety Microphone, or Turtle Mike, which potentially allows first responders to merge traditional land mobile radio and broadband communications. The tests were conducted in Nebraska, a Tuesday news release said. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate funded the device. “The Turtle Mike takes the conversation off the frequencies and bridges them together,” said Tom Chirhart, a DHS telecom specialist. “You can talk radio-to-radio or broadband-to-broadband or radio-to-broadband. It connects everyone together.”

The FCC Public Safety and Wireless bureaus said the 800 MHz rebanding is complete in nine additional National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) regions. With the rebanding a wrap, remaining channels in the interleaved segment of the band vacated by Sprint are now available for licensing to public safety entities and, later, to critical infrastructure entities. Unoccupied channels in the expansion band and guard band are also available for licensing, the bureaus said. The NPSPAC regions cover: Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Eastern and Western Upstate New York (two regions), West Virginia and American Samoa. Finally, the bureaus announced the availability for licensing of additional channels vacated by Sprint in NPSPAC regions that aren't finished with band reconfiguration. Other channels outside those regions have also become available, the Tuesday notice said. The majority of vacated channels are in regions that had been affected by an application freeze along the border with Canada that has now been lifted, though other channels also are available, the bureaus said: “Potential applicants should check the Commission’s Vacated Channel Search Engine (VCSE) to determine which channels may be available in their region.” The 800 MHz rebanding has been in process since the FCC approved its landmark order in 2004.

The FCC Public Safety Bureau released certification and registration instructions for public safety answering points that request delivery of text-to-911 service from wireless carriers and interconnected over-the-top text providers. The FCC approved an order in August (see 1408110031) requiring both to have the capacity to transmit emergency texts to 911 call centers by the end of the year. Under the Tuesday notice, a PSAP is required to certify it's “technically ready” to accept texts and must demonstrate that the state or other 911 service governing authority has authorized it to accept texts. A PSAP must also notify covered text providers of its status, the bureau said. “At the Commission’s direction, the Bureau will maintain a centralized database that will list those PSAPs that have registered and certified their readiness to receive texts to 911, and will list the date of each PSAP’s request,” the bureau said. The FCC also posted the form PSAPs must fill out to become certified.

Wireless pricing is confusing to many subscribers, Glenn Lurie, new chief executive of AT&T’s mobile business, said in an interview with The New York Times. Lurie said AT&T wants to go beyond deal-of-the-day offers, citing new offerings that spring up almost daily. “Some of those offers are long-term offers, some of them are short-term,” he said. “Some of them stay for the customers and some of them don’t. I think we’re propagating some confusion in the market place -- us as an industry. There’s been so much noise in the industry. There’s been so much noise that customers are getting confused.” Lurie also said AT&T dropped the use of “super cookies," which track users' mobile activity in a deeper manner than in the past, because of subscriber “discomfort” with their use. “It’s a great example of us listening to our customers,” he said.

The unexpectedly high prices in the AWS-3 auction may reflect carrier recognition that unlike the TV incentive auction, the AWS spectrum will be immediately available for use, with none of the same uncertainties, Guggenheim Partners analyst Paul Gallant told us in an email. “Hard to say why everyone missed it by so much, but it’s pretty remarkable what’s happened on pricing,” Gallant said. “It could be that only carriers themselves truly see where mobile and video are taking the Internet. And AWS is a bird in the hand. There’s plenty of hopefulness around the broadcast auction, but AWS is here and now, which is powerful.”

Rules proposed by the FCC in February aren't a viable alternative to the wireless location accuracy road map proposed by the four major carriers, APCO and the National Emergency Number Association last month, said Verizon in reply comments posted in docket 07-114 Monday. Comments were due last week at the FCC (see 1412230037), and some were made public Monday. “Many Roadmap opponents erroneously presume that the NPRM’s proposed rules are technically feasible, contrary to the rulemaking record, and object to the Roadmap simply on the basis that it departs from the NPRM,” Verizon said. The carrier cautioned the FCC not to make major changes to the consensus proposal. “The Roadmap is an integrated combination of enforceable milestones that balances multiple public interest objectives, and supplementing or modifying it will undermine that careful balance,” the carrier said. T-Mobile offered a similar take in its reply comments. “The Roadmap sets into motion the necessary steps to implement and deploy a true dispatchable location solution -- something not one of the Roadmap’s critics has attempted to do and for which none of them has a proposed alternative,” T-Mobile said. NENA also urged adoption of the road map. “The record in this proceeding is replete with references to new technologies that can and will bring significant improvements to wireless location accuracy,” NENA said. “But to suggest that these benefits can somehow magically accrue to the installed base is, at best, disingenuous and, at worst, intentionally misleading.”

CEA, CTIA and the Telecommunications Industry Association asked the FCC to delay comment deadlines on the TV incentive auction procedures public notice for 30 days. Comments are currently due Jan. 30, replies Feb. 27. The FCC approved the PN on a 3-2 vote at the December open meeting (see 1412110065). Interested parties need time to “examine the novel issues raised by this auction and to develop a meaningful record in this proceeding,” the groups said. The AWS-3 auction is still in progress and several likely incentive auction bidders also are bidding in that auction, they said. “Key personnel for these companies are currently sequestered and may be unavailable to assist with comments and/or reply comments until bidding is complete.” Even after the auction is complete, there's a prohibition of certain communications between bidders for another 10 days, the groups reminded the FCC. “The requested extension will permit individual Auction 97 bidders to fully dedicate the resources of their auction experts to comments filed in this proceeding, and it will also permit industry associations such as Petitioners to engage in greater discussion with their member companies regarding comments and reply comments.” The Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition filed in support of the delay. "This request is in the public interest and will provide interested parties an adequate opportunity to analyze the highly technical proposals in the Comment PN and address, in a meaningful manner, the important questions regarding the implementation of this complex and novel auction," the group said.