What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
Former FCC leaders push Congress to renew auction authority
A who’s who of former Federal Communications Commission leaders sent a letter to the chairs of the House and Senate Commerce Committees urging Congress to restore the FCC’s spectrum auction authority as soon as practicable. “As former leaders of the Federal Communications Commission, we have worked together, on a bipartisan basis, to lay the foundation for America’s global wireless leadership. Although our policy priorities at times differed, we share an understanding that central to Americans’ wireless success is the FCC’s spectrum auction authority,” the letter states.
The Rural Cellular Crisis
Some counties have a bigger cellular coverage problem than they do a broadband problem. There are often a much larger number of homes in a county that don’t have adequate cellular coverage than those that can’t buy broadband. I always knew that the cellular coverage maps published by the big cellular carriers were overstated; now I know that they are pure garbage. Before the pandemic, the Federal Communications Commission came up with a plan to spend $9 billion from the Universal Service Fund to build and equip new rural cellular towers—using a reverse auction method.
Communications and Technology Subcommittee Hearing Examines the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Communications and Technology convened to conduct oversight of the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The subcommittee is considering reauthorizing NTIA for the first time since 1993. Key questions leading into the hearing included:
Digital Inclusion Week is an annual week of awareness, recognition, and celebration.
With support from NDIA, organizations and individuals across the country host special events and campaigns to promote and increase digital equity in their communities.
In search of a sustainable funding mechanism through which to power universal connectivity, the European Commission has launched a consultation on “The Future of the Electronic Communications Sector and its Infrastructure.” But will the consultation’s proposal on mandating a “fair contribution” by large digital players undermine the Internet ecosystem or strengthen it?
The Next Spectrum Battle May be Between AT&T/AST and T-Mobile/SpaceX
The same day that SpaceX scored a big win on the proper use of spectrum, it became embroiled in a new fight over appropriate spectrum use. The new fight is with AT&T over SpaceX’s plans to enable calls from T-Mobile cellphones via SpaceX satellites. That type of service is called supplemental coverage from space (SCS) and is a market AT&T also is pursuing via a deal with satellite operator AST.
Witness
The Honorable Alan Davidson, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Defaults Estimate: Over $2.8 Billion -- What Happens to That Money?
Nearly every winning bid in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) rural broadband funding program has now either been authorized or deemed to be in default.