The new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) .wine and .vin shouldn’t be delegated to the domain name system, said House Communications Subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., in a letter (http://bit.ly/1t1veI9) to ICANN CEO Fadi Chehade June 25. ICANN published the letter Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1s33K0x). French officials raised concerns about the delegation of the domains at the ICANN 50 conference, which they said could negatively affect the wine industry (CD July 1 p3). Eshoo said she doesn’t oppose the delegation of new gTLDs, but “each application must be carefully scrutinized and take into account the concerns of impacted stakeholders.” France wants geographic indicators for the domains to protect the regionally integrity of its wine, they said at ICANN 50. ICANN’s Governmental Advisory Committee failed to reach a consensus on the issue at ICANN 50, it said in its communique (http://bit.ly/1jo8xUW).
The House Republican appropriations bill for the FCC and FTC was formally introduced Wednesday. The House Appropriations Committee cleared the measure last month. But the Appropriations General Government Subcommittee Chairman Ander Crenshaw, R-Fla., only this week introduced the appropriations package formally, now known as HR-5016, the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act. The bill would give the FCC $53 million less than requested -- $323 million -- and the FTC $293 million, as requested.
A draft bill that would narrow the conditions under which patent “demand letters” may be sent for alleged infringements was released by House Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Lee Terry, R-Nev., Tuesday. Demand letters would be found to be “deceptive and unfair” under the Federal Trade Commission Act if a “civil action” for an alleged infringement has already been taken against other parties. Demand letters would have to be sent by the rightsholder of the patent, and couldn’t “preempt” state law.
Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., asked the FCC about the possibility of criminals and foreign governments intercepting phone calls. He sent FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler a letter Wednesday with several questions, requesting “complete responses” by July 15 (http://1.usa.gov/1m9mavt). Recent reports of network vulnerability are “extremely troubling” and Grayson is “disturbed” the FCC has known of such weaknesses, he said. “Does the FCC have any evidence that IMSI [international mobile subscriber identity] catchers and similar cellular interception technology have been used by private entities or foreign governments to spy on the public, companies, policy makers or members of Congress?” Grayson asked. “Do the FCC’s existing legal authority permit it to force the wireless carriers to upgrade the security of their networks in order to secure their subscribers’ conversations from criminals, private parties or foreign governments using commercially available interception technology?”
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler is “open to exploring a rulemaking” on cellphone unlocking issues if the wireless industry fails to resolve them, he told Democratic senators in a letter released this week (http://bit.ly/TPiAvH). “I agree with you that consumers benefit from mobile device resale opportunities, and I am committed to supporting business that want to engage in the legitimate resale of second-hand devices,” Wheeler said in his mid-June response. “Apparently, some providers seem to link the bulk resale of devices with theft and fraud and this may affect the ability of third-party resellers to unlock phones."
Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., questioned FCC E-rate overhaul plans, sending a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler Wednesday criticizing aspects of the agency’s plans. “Small, cramped, crowded buildings often require more spending for wireless connectivity per square foot than uncrowded buildings,” Markey wrote. “A single flat rate of E-rate funding per square foot -- reportedly under consideration by the Commission -- might well not lead to adequate wireless connectivity in urban and rural buildings. Instead, the Commission should consider a wide range of factors including the number of users, connection from wireless in other buildings, architectural impediments, inside cabling, and the speed of access to the buildings.” The FCC had no comment right away.
The term of Republican FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly expired Monday. The White House nominated him to finish the term of Robert McDowell, who stepped down last year, and O'Rielly was sworn in as commissioner in November after the Senate approved the paired nominations of O'Rielly and current FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. McDowell’s term ran only up through Monday, as the White House noted when first nominating O'Rielly (http://1.usa.gov/1lA3noJ). Normally FCC commissioners are appointed for five-year terms and can serve beyond their expiration until the subsequent session of Congress expires. But an exception exists, according to the Communications Act (http://1.usa.gov/1opbbhs), saying “any person chosen to fill a vacancy shall be appointed only for the unexpired term of the commissioner whom he succeeds.” The agency had no immediate comment.
Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., plans to co-sponsor the USA Freedom Act, S-1599. The House had passed a modified version earlier this year, and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., had introduced the Senate version, expected to be considered soon. “And while I support the current version of the bill, I want to be clear that I can and will vote against any bill that undercuts transparency, or that undercuts any of the other oversight and accountability provisions that are necessary for a successful surveillance reform effort,” Franken said in a statement Monday night, slamming the House version for having “gutted” most of the transparency requirements. The USA Freedom Act as originally introduced has transparency provisions modeled after Franken’s Surveillance Transparency Act, S-1621, introduced last year with Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., Franken’s office said in a news release. Currently 21 other senators co-sponsor the S-1599, 18 Democrats and three Republicans. On Tuesday, Franken and Heller sent a letter to the White House (http://1.usa.gov/VD8Je5) urging it to “support stronger transparency provisions such as those included in our bill."
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler asked the Media Bureau to complete its review of the sports blackout rules proceeding and provide recommendations for the full commission by “early fall,” he told Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and John McCain, R-Ariz., in a letter the agency released last week (http://bit.ly/1iO4vKO). The comment period for that proceeding -- about whether to end the agency’s sports blackout rules -- ended in March, Wheeler observed. “I share your desire for a quick resolution to this pending proceeding,” he told the senators. Blumenthal and McCain had asked Wheeler commit to bringing “a final order to a vote within the next 60 days” in their initial letter to Wheeler, dated June 2.
It’s “unclear” when the FCC might open another filing window for low-power FM (LPFM) stations, Chairman Tom Wheeler told lawmakers in a letter the agency released last week (http://bit.ly/1vp1gtj). Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren and Reps. Michael Capuano and Stephen Lynch, all Massachusetts Democrats, had written Wheeler a joint letter in May asking about LPFM stations. “It is unlikely there would be many, if any, additional LPFM channels available in most urban markets due to spectrum congestion and interference concerns,” Wheeler said in his mid-June response. “However, interested entities could pursue other avenues to distribute their programming, absent a license from the FCC and beyond the frequently noted option to provide programming as an online radio station.” Wheeler pointed to the “potential to lease one of a station’s several multicast or ‘HD’ channels and to pair this digital signal with an analog FM translator to reach most listeners who continue to use analog radios.”