Category Archives: FCC

Biden Order Cracks Down on Anticompetitive Practices in Big Tech

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President Biden signed an executive order titled: “Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy” today. In short, it calls for a whole-of-government effort to use the antitrust laws, including the Sherman Act, the Clayton Act, and the Federal Trade Commission Act. He called these “a first line of defense against the monopolization of the American economy”.

Among the groups focused on in the executive order are technology companies and internet service providers. A Fact Sheet about the executive order provides some details.

Requirements for internet service providers (ISPs):

The FCC will prevent ISPs from making deals with landlords that limit tenants’ choices of what internet they can use

The FCC will require ISPs to fill out a “Broadband Nutrition Label” that provides basic information about the internet service offered so people can compare options. According to the Fact Sheet, the Trump Administration abandoned those plans. The “Broadband Nutrition Label” must report prices and subscription rates.

The FCC will limit excessive early termination fees imposed by ISPs. In short, this means if you found a better internet service deal your current ISP won’t be allowed to force you to pay an excessively high fee before it sets you free.

The FCC is also called upon to restore the Net Neutrality rules that were undone by the Trump administration. Personally, I think this is a big deal, and one that will benefit everyone.

Requirements for dominant tech firms:

In the executive order, President Biden announced an Administration policy of greater scrutiny of mergers, especially by dominant internet platforms, with particular attention to the acquisition of nascent competitors, serial mergers, the accumulation of data, competition by “free” products, and the effect on user privacy.

Also in the executive order, President Biden encouraged the FTC to establish rules on surveillance and the accumulation of data. The Fact Sheet describes the reason behind this decision this way: “Many of the large platforms’ business models have depended on the accumulation of extraordinarily amounts of sensitive personal information and related data”.

Personally, I think this is an excellent idea. I’m tired of going to websites that demand my data (and that ignore the California Online Privacy Protection Act). If I have to give you more of my data to get you to stop selling my data… you’re doing it wrong!

The executive order also cracks down on cell phone manufacturers and other tech companies blocking out independent repair shops. To me, this sounds like the Biden Administration wants to give “the right to repair” to everyone. The FTC is encouraged to issue rules against anticompetitive restrictions on using independent repair shops or doing DIY repairs of your own devices and equipment.

FCC Chairman Recommends Approval of T-Mobile and Sprint Merger

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FCC Chairman Ajit Pai made a statement (PDF) in which he approved of the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint. In the statement, he says his approval came after the two companies made some commitments regarding their 5G network. FCC Office of Commissioner Brendan Carr also made a statement (PDF) approving the merger.

VentureBeat provided a good summary of what commitments T-Mobile and Sprint will make:

  • 97% U.S. population coverage within three years of the merger’s close, including 85% of rural Americans
  • 99% U.S. population coverage within six years of the merger’s close, including 90% of rural Americans
  • A guarantee that 90% of Americans will have mobile broadband access at 100Mbps or more, with 99% able to access speeds of 50Mbps or more
  • A guarantee that at least two-thirds of rural Americans will have access to high-speed, mid-band 5G
  • An agreement to divest Boost Mobile to retain competitiveness in the prepaid wireless segment
  • Billions of dollars in penalties to the FCC if the merged “New T-Mobile” fails to follow through on these commitments.

Not everyone is happy about this merger. Bloomberg reported that the U.S. Justice Department is against approving the T-Mobile and Sprint merger. According to Bloomberg, “someone familiar with the review” said the reason was the DOJ feels the companies do not go far enough to resolve antitrust concerns.

Makan Delrahim is the head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division and the person who can put a stop to the merger. The DOJ reviews if a merger would hurt competition and raise prices for customers. The T-Mobile and Sprint merger would combine the number 3 and number 4 wireless carriers in the U.S., leaving just three national competitors.

Bloomberg says it is rare for the Justice Department and the FCC to diverge on a merger. It seems like there is a good chance that the merger will not be approved. I also think that people who are currently using either T-Mobile or Sprint might feel anxious about how the merger could affect the quality and cost of their service.

FCC Requires Support for Text-To-911

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Federal Communications Commission logoThe Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted new rules that are designed to promote the widespread use of text-to-911. Currently, the availability of text-to-911 is limited. The purpose of this new rule is to keep pace with how Americans communicate. In other words, the FCC has noted that more people are using cellphones and texting now than they have in the past.

This new requirement builds on existing commitments that were made by America’s four largest wireless carries to support text-to-911 by May of 2014. The new rules require all remaining wireless carries and certain IP-based text application providers to support text-to-911 by the end of 2014.

The new text-to-911 requirements apply to wireless carriers and “interconnected” text messaging providers. It also includes providers of “over the top” applications that support texting to and from phone numbers. It does not include messaging apps that only support communications among users of social media or games.

Why is it important to have a more uniform system that allows for text-to-911? The overall reasons is to help save lives. The FCC noted that Americans who are deaf, hard of hearing, or who have speech disabilities are widely using text messaging. It also pointed out that there can be situations where a person is in danger but is not safe to call 911. Sending a text is silent, and can be used more discretely by people who need help. Text-to-911 can also be useful when networks are congested.

That being said, the FCC doesn’t necessarily recommend that everyone use text-to-911 as a “go-to” for emergencies. They describe text-to-911 as a complement to, not a substitute for, existing 911 service. Make a voice call to 911 whenever possible. If that doesn’t work, then it is time to use text-to-911. They recommend people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have speech disabilities to use relay services or other existing methods to contact 911 if text-to-911 is unavailable.

Telestream Captioning Products help you meet FCC Requirements

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Telestream logoTelestream is the leading provider of digital media tools and workflow solutions. They have announced that their closed captioning software products meet the new regulatory requirements, including video captioning quality and accuracy rules set forth by the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

On February 20, 2014, the FCC set new, improved, rules for TV closed captioning to ensure that viewers who are deaf and hard of hearing have full access to programming and to resolve concerns on captioning quality. These rules apply to all television programing with captions, and address quality standards for accuracy, synchronicity, program completeness, and placement of closed captions.

The products from Telestream are fully compliant with the new FCC rules. Those who use the products from Telestream can be assured they are following all the rules. This allows them to focus on producing content for TV, web, and mobile distribution.

Telestream’s closed captioning software products provide a full set of tools to help TV programmers and distributors address the new quality issues set forth by the FCC. Its strength is in fixing the difficult synchronous and caption placement issues.

Telestream also has developed new and improved versions of MacCaption (Mac) and CaptionMaker (Windows) products. The user interface has had a more contemporary facelift and there have also been functionality improvements. New integration allows Telestream’s Vantage customers to automate many types of captioning-related workflows including file-conversions.

Support for the latest caption formats and specs, including SMPTE 2052 and WebTT with full CEA-608 compatible formatting, plus CEA-708 digital caption authoring will be included in these new versions of MacCaption and CaptionMaker.

The Master Switch

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Once in a while, a book comes along that contains ground-breaking insights.  Such is the case with a book I’ve listened to over the past couple of days, the Audible audio book version of ‘The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires” by author Tim Wu.

“The Master Switch” is a compelling look into the history of major information industries such as the telegraph, the telephone, commercial broadcast radio, the commercial movie business, and commercial broadcast television. The book points out an identifiable, slowly-repeating cycle obviated by the fact that these industries were able to gain and hold monopoly status. Each in turn became quite adept at retarding disruptive technological innovations that threatened their respective business models.

Today we take an open Internet for granted, but these same and other forces are looking to take over control of the Internet and turn it into a closed, much more tightly-controlled system.

The book is extremely well written and well researched. The Audible audio book narrator Marc Vietor brings the book to life in a wonderful way.

Mr. Wu does a fantastic job of laying out the often-fascinating histories of companies such as Western Union, AT&T, NBC, etc. As consumers, we think we know these companies through their consumer advertising. The real history of these companies is often quite different and very eye opening.

If you enjoy stories about technology and business, you will almost certainly enjoy “The Master Switch” by Tim Wu.

Please, Sir, May I Have Some More?

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More bandwidth!  I want more bandwidth!  If I yell, can I get it?  No?  How about if I ask nicely?

Lots of us have yelled AND asked nicely.  And in a year or so, we might just be able to get it.  At least, another way of getting it.  The FCC is prepared to vote on the provisions associated with making so-called “white space” between broadcast channels available for use with super Wi-Fi, service that will be faster have more range, and be more robust than current Wi-Fi.  “Super” Wi-Fi should penetrate walls, as well, making the provision of this new Wi-Fi a huge player in the current broadband market.

It has taken two years for the FCC to complete the appropriate surveys of white space, and come to terms with broadcasters and wireless microphone manufacturers about how the space will be used and by whom.  With the new provisions approved, development can finally occur.  By 2011 CES, proof of concept devices should be on display, with actual primary devices becoming available within a year.

I, personally, can’t wait.  A wireless signal that can go two or three miles, and offer speeds of 10 to 20 mbps to the home or business?  No more worries about having to have fiber, cable, or copper installed?

Maybe I can seriously consider building that house on top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere after all…

Unscrupulous Scruples: Watch where you click.

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I’ve been seeing this more and more. You have to upgrade a product – a home (free) edition or something. You press the link and it sends you to a page that talks about upgrading. In fact, everything this page screams is “We don’t have the free version, you must buy an upgrade to continue”.

But if you scan the page, you see on the bottom in small print “No thanks. Register the Free version”.

Another case in point: I was searching for Drivers for a friends computer. I got to the companies webpage and selected what I thought was the driver. Instead, it shuttled me to download a program that would then collect information on my PC and find the right drivers.

It was not malware, but more of Bloatware. And that program wasn’t afraid to do the same thing – ask to install more Bloatware.

This practice is on the verge of misleading. You have to really scan pages to make sure you are selecting the right option.

Case in point #2: There is a great website out there that helps webmasters. We won’t get into the name, because this is not a witch hunt. I will say that when you purchase something on their site, you are taken to a page that looks like you have to press an “OK” button. However, this button is not to OK the purchase, but to add additional services. By scanning down the page, you find the “No thanks – Continue” option stuffed in the bottom part of the page.

In advertising creation, you learn a little trick. When an eye hits an ad, they instinctively start in the middle and work clockwise around the ad. Therefore, you put your “Hook” in the middle and the other items on the sides, including the name of the product.

What these sites have done is made the ad, but then put the “No thanks” in a spot where upon first glance, the eye will miss.

I just bought my ticket for Blogworld / New Media Expo. I used a discount site to purchase the plane ticket and hotel. After making the initial purchase, I was inundated with options I should look at. I suppose it’s so the discount site can offer lower fares. Once again, I had to carefully scan for the “No Thanks” option, although those other buttons looked like they were part of the processing.

Recently, people have been finding extra charges on their credit cards. They went to an online shopping site and chose the great deal of the day. They then pressed a button that looked legitimate to sign up for monthly deals (or something like that). Of course, those deals came with a price.

I really think that the FTC needs to start recognizing these little nuances in websites. It would be like if you went to the grocery store and the clerk started asking “Should I also add in a gallon of milk?” even if you didn’t grab milk.

As for this upgrade – I understand you need to make money off the product, but being sneaky about doing it is only going to make me go somewhere else. Put the “No thanks” in a more visible area. The consumer will buy your product if they don’t feel they are getting swindled.