Today’s Regulatory Mix: FCC Seeks Comments on Competitive Access to Broadband in Apartments and Office Buildings, Comment Sought on Ringless Voicemail Petition, Gulf Coast Communications Services Report Updated
FCC Seeks Comments on Competitive Access to Broadband in Apartments and Office Buildings
The FCC announced it is inviting a new round of comments in a proceeding looking into competitive access to broadband in apartment and office buildings. The Commission seeks to promote competition, consumer choice, and lower prices for Americans living and working in these buildings. The focus is on three primary issues related to broadband deployment in Multiple Tenant Environment (MTE) buildings. The first focuses on revenue sharing agreements between MTE owners and service providers, and whether such arrangements inhibit entry by competitive providers or affect the price and quality of service options for consumers. Second, the FCC seeks comment on exclusive wiring arrangements and whether such arrangements preclude access to new entrants or inhibit choice for tenants. Finally, input is sought on whether exclusive marketing arrangements create confusion and lower choices for tenants.
Comment Sought on Ringless Voicemail Petition
The FCC’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau is seeking comments on a petition for declaratory ruling filed by Perdue for Senate, Inc. The petition asks the agency to “clarify that delivery of a voice message directly to a voicemail box through ringless voicemail (‘RVM’) technology does not constitute a ‘call’ subject to prohibitions on the use of an automatic telephone dialing system (‘ATDS’) or an artificial or prerecorded voice under Section 227(b)(1)(A)(iii) of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (‘TCPA’) or Section 64.1200(a)(1)(iii) of the [Commission’s] rules.” Comments are due Oct. 4 and replies Oct. 19 in CG docket 02-278.
Gulf Coast Communications Services Report Updated
The FCC issued an updated report about the status of communications services in geographic areas impacted by Hurricane Ida as of September7, 2021 at 11:00 a.m. EDT. This report incorporates network outage data submitted by communications providers to the FCC’s Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS). The following counties are reported in the current geographic area that is part of DIRS (the “disaster area”) in the report.
Louisiana: Acadia, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Point Coupee, St, Martin, St, Mary, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Vermillion, Washington, West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana.
Cellular service is continuing to be restored and no PSAPs are reported as being affected.
The Regulatory Mix, Inteserra’s blog of telecom related 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 an Inteserra Briefing.