Approval of SES' buying Intelsat should be conditioned on the new combined company complying with a variety of national security directives, NTIA petitioned the FCC on Monday (docket 24-267). The petition was on behalf of the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the U.S. Telecommunications Services Sector, or Team Telecom. The proposed conditions include the new company making available, when requested, network-management information or a list of customers that have hosted payloads on U.S. satellites or are using U.S.-located earth stations to connect with SES satellites. The $3.1 billion deal was announced in April 2024 (see 2404300048).
A pirate radio operator in the Boston area has agreed to pay $10,000 to the FCC as part of a settlement with the agency, said an order and consent decree in Tuesday’s Daily Digest. In April 2024, the FCC approved a $597,775 notice of apparent liability against Jean Marius, operator of the unauthorized radio station Radio Tele Planet Compas in several communities in Massachusetts. After the NAL, Marius gave the agency evidence of his inability to pay the proposed forfeiture, according to the consent decree. After determining that he had ceased broadcasting, the Enforcement Bureau agreed to the reduced amount, which Marius must pay within 30 days. Under the consent decree, Marius agreed not to commit future acts of pirate broadcasting or assist anyone else in doing so. If he violates the settlement within the next 20 years, he will have to pay the remaining $587,775 proposed, the consent decree said.
The FCC Public Safety Bureau on Tuesday provided extra time for comments on a next-generation 911 Further NPRM that commissioners approved 4-0 in March (see 2503270042). Initial comments are now due Aug. 4, instead of July 21, and replies Sept. 17, instead of Aug. 18. The National Emergency Number Association and the National Association of State 911 Administrators had asked for a 120-day delay for both initial comments and replies, the bureau said. While it didn't grant the full 120 days, it said “a moderate extension” of the initial comment deadline “will provide additional time for parties to organize and coordinate their input to the Commission.” In addition, increasing the interval between initial comments and replies creates “an expanded window for collaborative discussions among parties after the initial comments have been filed.”
The Utility Reform Network urged the California Public Utilities Commission to align its Lifeline rules with the FCC's federal program regarding the phase-out for voice-only support. In a filing posted Monday, TURN noted that the FCC again extended its phase-out and urged that CPUC deny AT&T's petition to relinquish its designation as an eligible telecommunications carrier based on the previous end date of the federal subsidy. The latest FCC extension order "continues to recognize the same issues TURN has raised throughout this proceeding [when wireline providers] do not (or choose not to) receive federal Lifeline subsidies for voice service," including harm to subscribers "who lose service or who cannot retain an affordable plan."
Ookla found “significant internet performance disparities for both Wi-Fi and mobile” at airports, it said in a survey released Tuesday. The report noted that connectivity is now something travelers expect.
The FCC Wireless Bureau on Tuesday sought comment on a CTIA petition asking the commission to extend a temporary waiver that allows use of the interim volume control testing method for hearing-aid compatibility compliance (see 2507020051). Comments are due July 18, replies July 28, in dockets 23-388 and 20-3. Without further action, the current waiver would expire Sept. 29. “We seek comment on whether we should grant CTIA’s petition to extend use of the temporary volume control standard beyond the upcoming … expiration date and, if so, for how long,” the bureau said.
Oliver Semans, executive director of the Coalition of Large Tribes (COLT), asked the FCC to reconsider its plan not to offer a tribal priority window for the AWS-3 auction (see 2507030049). “I understand it is late in the process for the AWS-3 auction, which is fast approaching, but I write to express the importance of spectrum access to the COLT member tribes,” said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 25-59. The 2.5 GHz priority window was “a great success among" them.
Various groups opposed Verizon’s proposed purchase of UScellular spectrum licenses, as the regional carrier seeks to sell off most of its spectrum holdings. The Verizon deal is contingent on a larger transaction with T-Mobile, in which it's buying “substantially all” of UScellular’s wireless operations for about $4.4 billion (see 2405280047). Verizon agreed in October to buy UScellular’s 850 MHz, AWS and PCS licenses for $1 billion (see 2410180004). Petitions to deny were due at the FCC on Monday in docket 25-192.
Comments are due July 23 in docket 25-210 on Consolidated Communications’ application to discontinue legacy voice services in 18 exchanges in Vermont, said a public notice in Tuesday’s Daily Digest. The application will be granted automatically Aug. 8, unless the FCC notifies the company otherwise.
The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau established the total funding requirement and approved contribution factors for the interstate telecommunications relay services (TRS) fund for a one-year period ending June 30, 2026. The FCC previously took comments (see 2506090018). Contribution factors determine the amounts that carriers and other covered service providers must contribute to the fund.