It's possible some states will miss Wednesday's filing deadline for NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, Incompas CEO Chip Pickering said Thursday in an interview. However, he said he remains optimistic about the BEAD program’s future. “It will have some failures, a lot of success, and overall, it will move the country ahead.”
Wireless technology companies, satellite operators and a host of broadcast industry entities pitching ATSC 3.0-based methods responded to the FCC Public Safety Bureau’s call for partners to test ways to deliver wireless emergency alerts without using cell towers, according to comments filed in docket 22-160 by Monday’s deadline. “In some cases, mobile networks can be disrupted by the very emergency to which a WEA pertains,” said NAB. “A successful partnership with the Bureau could further bolster the case for ATSC 3.0 abroad” and encourage manufacturers to include 3.0 chips in their phones, said Sinclair’s ATSC 3.0 subsidiary One Media. Qualcomm, Skylo Technologies, PBS, 5G broadcast company XGen and others suggested their own solutions.
The FBI’s surveillance authorities will extend through April after the House voted 310-118 Thursday to approve the National Defense Authorization Act (see 2312120073).
Citing the need to speed up resolution of pole attachment disputes, FCC commissioners during their open meeting Wednesday unanimously adopted an order, declaratory ruling and Further NPRM revising rules to make for faster and cheaper broadband deployment. The item builds on a 2022 proceeding seeking comment on the commission's cost allocation principles (see 2203160031).
Senate confirms former National Security Agency Executive Director Harry Coker as national cyber director on 59-40 Tuesday vote (see 2307250067) ... Pillsbury promotes Jessica Nyman to partner, communications …. Caveonix, platform for hybrid multicloud governance, compliance and security management, appoints Zscaler’s Aloysius Boyle CEO, succeeding Kaus Phaltankar, who transitions to chief strategy officer-board chairman … The Arena Group tech platform and media company terminates the employment of CEO Ross Levinsohn, and names majority owner Manoj Bhargava interim CEO; Levinsohn's termination follows last week's firing of Chief Operating Officer Andrew Kraft, Media President Rob Barrett and corporate counsel Julie Fenster.
TechNet hires PF Consulting’s Patrick Fleming, also ex-Republican House aide, as director-federal policy and external affairs … Summit Ridge Group appoints to its valuation and technology teams Kevin McElroy, ex-Crowe, as director and Yagnik Mehta, ex-New York University Stern School of Business, as analyst ... GlobalFoundries appoints Silicon Labs Chief Financial Officer John Hollister as CFO, effective Feb. 5; Silicon Labs announces Chief Accounting Officer Mark Mauldin will be named interim CFO when the “handover” is completed by Feb. 2, while search is underway for Hollister’s permanent replacement.
U.S. technology is “more important than ever” to national security, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Saturday at the Reagan Defense Forum in California. Raimondo was the first Commerce secretary to address the conference, but said she won’t be the last. The U.S. is serious about blocking China and its military from buying computer chips with advanced AI capabilities, she added.
Incompas CEO Chip Pickering praised House Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., for her longtime role in communications policymaking following the lawmaker's announcement that she won’t seek reelection in 2024 (see 2311210073). “I had the honor of serving in Congress with” Eshoo “and to say she will be missed is an understatement,” said Pickering, a Republican who served on House Communications with Eshoo. “Her time in Congress was marked by three decades of tirelessly advocating for her constituents in California, and pushing forward bipartisan policies that have shaped our telecommunications history and paved the way forward for its future. Even after my time with her in the halls of Congress, we remained friends and worked together to continue to advance America's position as the global leader in technology and work to ensure Internet for All.” Eshoo is one of seven House Commerce Committee members who have announced they won’t be seeking reelection next year. The others: Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del.; Michael Burgess, R-Texas; Tony Cardenas, D-Calif.; Bill Johnson, R-Ohio; Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz.; and John Sarbanes, D-Md. Cardenas is the only other sitting House Communications member who’s retiring.
Alaska Communications hires former Comcast executive Matthew McConnell as president-CEO ... Entertainment company TMB names Joseph Moschella senior vice president-general counsel; Moschella previously was general counsel of Jukin Media, which TMB acquired in 2021 ... Robert Puentes stepping down as president and CEO of Eno Center for Transportation … Ikotek, IoT original design manufacturer, hires Mathi Gurusamy, former president of Telit Cinterion’s IoT solutions division, as chief operating officer ... Spectra7, supplier of analog semiconductors for broadband connectivity, names its retired former Chief Financial Officer David Mier interim CFO; company previously announced that current CFO Bonnie Tomei will take a personal leave of absence effective Dec. 1 ... Website accessibility platform UserWay promotes Sophia Tupolev-Luz to vice president-communications, and hires Growthspace’s Etay Geller, also former Minute Media, as vice president-product ...
AST SpaceMobile remains on schedule for a Q1 launch of its first five mobile supplemental coverage from space (SCS) satellites, CEO Abel Avellan said Tuesday in a call with analysts as the company announced Q3 results. He said it's in talks with "multiple strategic partners" about funding the manufacturing, launch and operation of additional BlueBird satellites beyond those five. Asked about the end of the Iridium/Qualcomm SCS partnership (see 2311090077), Avellan said it was unsurprising as SCS offerings that work on currently available smartphones -- such as AST's planned service -- make those that require new chips -- such as through Qualcomm -- less relevant.