Staff doesn’t oppose Crown Castle’s application for a statewide telecom certificate at the South Carolina Public Service Commission, the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff said Monday in docket 2018-272-C. Rural phone companies conditionally agreed not to oppose the application (see 1809250015).
Commercial products exist that could potentially fill the reassigned numbers database need the FCC is trying to fill, contact management services company Ontario Systems told an Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis staffer, according to a docket 17-59 posting Thursday. Ontario also urged safe harbor protection against Telephone Consumer Protection Act litigation for callers using the FCC database, saying it would promote caller adoption and allow tech providers like Ontario to integrate it.
Oppositions are due Nov. 9, replies Nov. 19 to petitions to reconsider an FCC August order and ruling aimed at removing barriers to pole attachments for broadband deployment (see 1808020034), said a notice in Thursday's Federal Register. The Coalition of Concerned Utilities (here) asked the commission to revisit pole-attachment rate and process changes in the order (see 1810160031). Smart Communities and Special Districts Coalition (here), County Road Association of Michigan (here) and New York City (here) sought reconsideration of a pre-emption ruling, with the latter also targeting part of the order (see 1809110009). A proposed rule for Friday's FR sets comments for Dec. 10, replies Jan. 9 (timetable) on an NPRM proposing to ensure direct-dial 911 calling from centralized phone systems in multiline buildings and campuses under Kari's Law. It seeks comment on ensuring "dispatchable location" information is conveyed with emergency calls, under Ray Baum's Act (see 1809260047).
FCC staff cleared IM Telecom's amended Lifeline wireless compliance plan as part of the provider's sale from Trevan Morrow to KonaTel Parent, said a Wireline Bureau public notice in docket 11-42 and Wednesday's Daily Digest. It said IM Telecom (also known as Infiniti Mobile) provides Lifeline service in seven states.
Free State Foundation President Randolph May welcomed the FCC's proposed $63.5 million fine of American Broadband and Telecommunications for apparently fraudulent Lifeline conduct (see Notebook section at end of 1810230037). He also blogged on his opposition to the agency's proposal to bar resellers, hoping the agency tables "proposals that would have the effect, even if inadvertently, of gutting the program."
The FCC Public Safety Bureau dismissed without prejudice a Colorado request for clarification about FirstNet. Tuesday’s order in docket 16-269 follows the Colorado Broadband Office in July asking the FCC not to act on the Colorado Public Safety Broadband Governing Body (CPSBGB) request the commission adopt rules to ensure interoperability on FirstNet (see 1807170042). The office said it would work with CPSBGB and FirstNet to resolve the concerns. “This collaboration may result in further steps to address Colorado’s interoperability concerns without the need for the Commission to consider the Request,” the FCC bureau said. “This ongoing collaboration indicates that the interoperability issues identified in the Request have not crystallized into a controversy or uncertainty that warrants Commission resolution through a declaratory ruling.”
Silicon Labs announced an LTE-M expansion kit for its EFM32 Giant Gecko 11 starter kit to accelerate development of gateways and devices that operate in deep-sleep mode and require extended battery life, it said Monday. The ready-to-deploy solution uses a Digi XBee3 modem that’s said to be future-ready for 5G technologies. Applications include smart energy and smart cities.
Oppositions are due Nov. 7 to petitions to reconsider an FCC staff order setting a framework for measuring broadband performance of fixed service provider recipients of high-cost USF support, under a notice in docket 10-90 for Tuesday's Federal Register (timetable). An order to begin auctioning off toll-free phone numbers takes effect Nov. 23, also per Tuesday's FR.
Comments are due Nov. 19, replies Dec. 3 on a toll-free service provider's request for emergency FCC relief or a rulemaking to bar carriers from blocking "interconnection to their location platform for toll-free calls initiated on their networks," said a Wireline Bureau public notice Thursday in docket 96-115. Citing AT&T and Verizon plans, 800 Response Information Services sought relief by Oct. 19 (see 1810110051). The bureau also sought comment on related issues raised in ATIS and North American Numbering Council documents referenced by 800 Response.
IT managers deploying IoT should closely monitor devices that collect vast amounts of data, as it creates a trust concern, the National Institute of Standards and Technology announced Wednesday. The white paper draft outlines 17 “technical trust-related issues that may negatively impact the adoption of IoT products and services.” Comments are due Nov. 16.