The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court, issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Regulatory Bulletin.
TELECOM
FCC
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler announced the appointment of Scott Jordan as Chief Technology Officer. Jordan succeeds Henning Schulzrinne who will continue to serve the FCC in a part-time capacity as a Technology Advisor. “Scott’s engineering and technical expertise, particularly with respect to the Internet, will provide great assistance to the Commission as we consider decisions that will affect America’s communications platforms. We are delighted that he is joining us,” said FCC Chairman Wheeler. Jordan joins the FCC from the University of California, Irvine, where he is a Professor of Computer Science. He is widely known for his research on communications platforms, pricing, and differentiated services on the Internet. In the technology arena, Jordan works to further integrate voice, data, and video on the Internet and on wireless networks.
California
California’s Governor signed SB 962 (Chapter 275) into law on August 25th. See the Regulatory Mix dated 8/13/14. The new law requires that smartphones manufactured after July 1, 2015, and sold in California contain a technological solution at the time of sale that will render the essential features of the smartphone inoperable when not in the possession of the authorized user. The law requires that the smartphone, during the initial device setup process, prompt an authorized user to enable the technological solution. An authorized user of a smartphone may affirmatively elect to opt-out of enabling the technological solution at any time. The technological solution, which may consist of software and/or hardware, must be reversible by an authorized user. The law also provides a civil penalty (of not less than $500 or more than $2,500) for violations and limits retail liability if the solution is circumvented.
Indiana
The Indiana Telecommunications Association (ITA) filed comments in response to the Commission’s Order extending the permissive dialing period for the 812 NPA all-services overlay. The 10-digit mandatory dialing period was previously scheduled to be implemented on September 6, 2014. TMI Regulatory Bulletin Service subscribers see Bulletin dated 8/7/14. A technical conference is scheduled for September 3, 2014. ITA said that its members serving the 812 NPA sent the appropriate customer notices via direct mail or bill messages; posted instructions on their websites; attended many local forums to discuss the implementations; and were fully prepared to implement mandatory 10-digit dialing by the September 6, 2014, deadline. The ITA requests that the Commission establish a deadline for mandatory 10-digit dialing in the 812 NPA prior to the November and December holiday period or, in the alternative, establish February 7, 2015, as the deadline for mandatory 10-digit dialing.
