While FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has indicated that the agency envisions more steps to retire copper networks, beyond a series of orders issued in March, we're told it's unclear what big regulatory burdens remain. The agency last month called its steps "initial" and promised additional action (see 2503200056). Carr used similar language at last week's FCC meeting (see 2503270042). His office didn't comment further.
As the spectrum wars continue, WifiForward released a study Wednesday that found Wi-Fi was responsible for more than 7 million U.S. jobs in 2023. It projected that the figure would grow to more than 13 million by 2027 and 21 million by 2032. “This growth is driven by significant direct employment derived from the economic value of Wi-Fi, coupled with substantial indirect employment from upstream supply chains and a Wi-Fi-facilitated boost in consumer spending,” the analysis said. Telecom Advisory Services wrote the study.
The FCC should reform and refocus its annual reports on broadband availability required by Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act, the Phoenix Center said in an analysis released Wednesday. Historically, the FCC’s Section 706 reports “have been plagued by partisan interpretations and have failed to address the core issues behind broadband deployment gaps,” the center said in a separate news release. The FCC hasn’t created consistent definitions of when a deployment timeline is “reasonable” and “timely,” as required by the statute, and what actions should be taken when deployment doesn’t meet those requirements, the Phoenix Center said.
A wave of retirements has hit the FCC, likely owing to a combination of early retirement offers, the transition in administrations, return-to-office requirements and increased pressure on federal workers, according to interviews with FCC employees and union officials.
Regulatory fees assessed on all authorized satellites and earth stations, not just operational ones, help better distribute the fee burden to everyone benefiting from FCC Space Bureau employee resources, the Satellite Industry Association said. In docket 24-85 comments posted Wednesday, SIA said this would also mean lower per-station and per-satellite fees. The group backs assessing satellite regulatory fees based on how much a particular type of operator likely benefits from "full-time employee resources" and constellation size. But it opposes alternative approaches that use a subjective analysis of a system's design and operations, it said. If the FCC takes a fee approach that looks at the number of authorized satellites in a fleet, it must use consistent methodology across satellite operators for what constitutes an authorized satellite, SIA added.
Viewers now rely on streaming platforms' suggestions more than recommendations from friends and family in deciding what to watch, Ampere Analysis blogged Tuesday. It said its study of 56,000 consumers across 30 markets globally found that 26% use the streaming platforms' algorithm picks, vs. 23% relying on word-of-mouth suggestions.
President Donald Trump’s executive order putting independent regulatory agencies under greater White House control (see 2502190075) should result in stronger regulatory analysis by those agencies and better evidence supporting their arguments, said George Washington University Regulatory Studies Center Director Susan Dudley. Speaking Wednesday at an administrative law panel discussion by the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Program of Regulation, Dudley said the order also should lead to those independent agencies better coordinating their work across the government.
Greater adoption of AI could result in sizable benefits for communications networks, and various policy approaches could facilitate that effort, Analysys Mason's Andrew Daly said Tuesday. The consultancy this week issued a Cisco-commissioned paper that laid out a variety of AI policy opportunities. It urged ongoing tracking of AI developments in communications, assistance in coming up with AI frameworks and standards, investment in AI-related R&D, and incentives such as tax breaks.
The Phoenix Center on Monday disputed findings in a Brattle Group study from last year that found fiber deployment through BEAD and other programs could generate about $3.24 trillion "in terms of net present value (NPV) in incremental economic impact.” The study was the “first to show that fiber deployment has significant incremental economic benefits even in the presence of other high-speed broadband technologies,” Brattle said at the time (see 2411200025).
Deceptive negative-option contracts -- where consumers pay monthly for a subscription unless they opt out -- are ballooning, despite regulators' efforts, backers of the FTC's "click-to-cancel" rule told the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday. NCTA and others are challenging the rule (see 2411220029). Last week, amicus briefs were filed for both sides in docket 24-3137.