Welcome to the latest edition of Arent Fox’s This Week in Telecom, our weekly newsletter designed to keep you apprised of recent developments in telecommunications policy, legislation, and litigation. Follow our Telecom Group on Twitter! Click here.

We wish all of our readers a happy and prosperous 2013!

Jump to a Topic:
FCC Announcements l The Mobile Market l FTC and Privacy Regulation l New Markets: Smart Grid and E-Health l Intercarrier Compensation l Compliance Notes l Broadband News l In the Courts l Events

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Announcements

• The Open Internet Advisory Committee will meet on January 17, 2013, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm Pacific in Paul Brest Hall-East, Stanford University. The meeting is open to the public and available via live webcast. The Public Notice of the meeting is available here.
• The next two FCC Open Meetings will be held January 31, 2013, at 10:30 am Eastern, and February 20, 2013, at 10:30 am Eastern.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Jon Canis, Alan Fishel, Michael Hazzard, Jeffrey Rummel, or Stephanie Joyce (contact information below) for further information.

The Mobile Market

• Petitions to deny the application of Softbank Corp. to acquire 70% of SprintNextel are due January 4, 2013, oppositions to the petitions to deny are due January 22, 2013, and replies are due February 1, 2013. Those that file petitions to deny become parties to the proceeding and may participate fully in the proceeding, including seeking access to any confidential information filed under a protective order, seeking reconsideration of decisions, and filing appeals of a final decision to the courts. Filings should be made in IB Docket No. 12-343. The Public Notice is available here.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Michael Hazzard, or G. David Carter (contact information below) for further information.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Privacy Regulation

• As part of its effort to thwart robocalls, the FTC has announced that it is launching the “FTC Robocall Challenge” – a contest that will award a $50,000 cash prize for the best technical solution for blocking illegal robocalls. The FTC believes the challenge will allow it to “tap into the genius and technical expertise among the public” in order to develop a successful solution to the illegal robocall problem. The award will go to the person, team, or small company (with fewer than 10 employees) that develops the best robocall-blocking technology. Entries will be judged by the following criteria: (1) it must work; (2) be easy to use; and (3) be easy to implement and operate. The FTC Robocall Challenge is free and open to the public. Entries will be accepted until January 17, 2013. More information regarding the FTC Robocall Challenge is available here.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Alan Fishel, Stephanie Joyce, or Stephen Thompson (contact information below) for further information.

New Markets: Smart Grid and E-Health

• The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has announced federal funding to enable entities to participate in a program aimed at the harmonization and advancement of the interoperability and security of smart grid systems. The funded entities will work with NIST in its standards coordination activities. The funding will be approximately $750,000 for the first partial year of 2013 and can continue in two subsequent fiscal years at up to $1,000,000 per year, subject to availability of funds, for a total of up to $2,750,000. All applications must be received no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on January 3, 2013, and awards are expected to be made in the January to March 2013 time frame. More information is available here.
• The IEEE Power & Energy Society has announced its fourth Conference on Innovative Smart Grid Technologies (ISGT) to be held February 24-27, 2013, in Washington, DC. The ISGT Conference will provide a forum for participants to discuss state-of-the-art innovations in smart grid technologies. According to the announcement, it will feature “plenary sessions, panels, technical papers, and tutorials by international experts on smart grid applications.” Researchers and practitioners from around the world are also invited to submit papers for review and possible presentation at the ISGT Conference. More information about the ISGT Conference is available here.

Please contact Stephanie Joyce, Jeffrey Rummel, G. David Carter, or Stephen Thompson (contact information below) for further information.

Developments in Intercarrier Compensation

• On December 20, 2012, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) extended the statutory deadline to resolve a proceeding initiated by Level 3 Communications, LLC against AT&T California. The deadline was extended an additional twelve months to December 29, 2013. Level 3 filed a complaint against AT&T on December 29, 2010, alleging that AT&T was not abiding by the terms of the parties’ interconnection agreement (ICA), because it failed in some wire centers to provide cross-connects to other competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) at Total Element Long-Run Incremental Cost (TELRIC) rates. Level 3 claimed that AT&T’s alleged practices violate the non-discrimination mandate in Section 251 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. AT&T responded that its tariff, and not the ICA, controls and thus Level 3’s claims are barred by the filed tariff doctrine. AT&T also cross-claimed for the amounts that, it asserts, Level 3 has wrongfully withheld for the cross-connects AT&T did provide. Docket No. C1012018.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Jon Canis, Michael Hazzard, Stephanie Joyce, or Adam Bowser (contact information below) for further information regarding intercarrier compensation matters.

Compliance Notes

• UPDATED: Eligible Telecommunications Carriers (ETCs) that provide Lifeline service are required to recertify the eligibility of their base customers as of June 1, 2012 by December 31, 2012. Each ETC is then required to report the results to the FCC, the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), and the applicable state regulatory commission or Tribal government. The recertification process can take place in one of two ways: either through review of databases to confirm eligibility, if there are databases available; or by obtaining a signed certification from the subscriber confirming eligibility to receive Lifeline service. Each ETC must report its results on FCC Form 555 by January 31, 2013. FCC Form 555 can be found here.
  
  In the alternative, companies that electronically file with USAC may log-in to their accounts and file FCC Form 555 via USAC’s Electronic Filing System. More information can be found in the Public Notice found here. (DA 12-1626)
• Comments on proposed changes to the FCC Form 499-A and Form 499-Q, along with accompanying instructions, for use in 2013 are due January 11, 2013. (DA 12-2010, WC Docket 06-122) A list of the proposed changes can be found here.
  
  A redline of the proposed changes to FCC Form 499-A can be found here, with the redline of its instructions found here.
  
  A redline of the proposed changes to FCC Form 499-Q can be found here.
  
  The proposed changes to the Form 499-Q instructions can be found here.
• Due to the impact of Hurricane Sandy, the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) has extended the filing deadlines for FCC Form 486, the Receipt of Service Confirmation Form for the Schools and Libraries fund, for Funding Year 2011 recurring services invoice submissions until January 28, 2013. This is the same deadline for non-recurring services, which means all invoices for Funding Year 2011 now are due at the same time.
  
  In addition, USAC announced that the FCC Form 486 for Funding Year 2012 will also be due on January 28, 2013.
  
  More information regarding these filings can be found here.
• The Universal Service contribution factor for the first quarter of 2013 is 16.1%. A copy of the Public Notice announcing the rate can be found here. (DA 12-2014)

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Jon Canis, Michael Hazzard, or Katherine Barker Marshall (contact information below) for further information regarding compliance matters.

Broadband News

• Comments in the Incentive Auctions proceeding are due January 25, 2013, and Reply Comments are due March 12, 2013. To read the order setting these deadlines, click here. To read the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comments, click here. GN Docket No. 12-268.
• Reply Comments in the FCC Spectrum Holdings proceeding are due January 7, 2013. To read the NPRM, click here.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Alan Fishel, Michael Hazzard, or Jeffrey Rummel (contact information below) for further information.

In the Courts

• On December 21, 2012, Verizon and MetroPCS filed their reply brief in the appeal from the FCC Open Internet Order, arguing that the order fails in several respects. Relying on its recent, failed challenge to the FCC’s data roaming rules, Verizon argued that net neutrality rules amount to unlawful “per se common carriage” rules on broadband providers: “if a carrier is forced to offer service indiscriminately and on general terms, then that carrier is being relegated to common carrier status.” If the broadband providers cannot, for example, charge a content provider to have its content delivered to the provider’s paying customers at a faster speed, then the providers are effectively being forced to carry all traffic “at a common, regulated rate of zero.” The carriers also repeated their constitutional challenge to the rules, claiming that they have “editorial discretion” over the content they transmit, and thus are “speakers” entitled to First Amendment protection. The carriers also argue that the FCC’s rules give “squatting rights” to content providers. Finally, they repeated their challenge that the rules are arbitrary and capricious, because no cognizable harm has been presented that warrants agency action. Verizon v. FCC, No. 11-1355 (D.C. Cir.).

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Jon Canis, Michael Hazzard, Stephanie Joyce, or Joseph Bowser (contact information below) for further information.

Upcoming Events

• The next Broadband Breakfast Club will be held January 15, 2013, from 8:00 to 10:00 am Eastern at Clyde’s Restaurant, 707 7th Street, NW (Chinatown/Gallery Place Metro). The title is “The President-Elect’s and Congress’ New Broadband Agenda”. To learn more or to register, click here.

Please contact Ross Buntrock, Jonathan Canis, or Stephanie Joyce (contact information below) for further information.

For further information, please contact any of our attorneys in the Arent Fox Telecommunications Group.