Matt Daneman

FCC action on Newsmax's January blackout on DirecTV (see 2301250042) is unlikely, though it generated a brief burst of complaints filed with the FCC plus House GOP lawmaker ire, media industry officials said in interviews. There also have been almost no signals a congressional hearing is likely in the near future, lawmakers and media observers told us. Newsmax and DirecTV didn't comment.

FCC commissioners unanimously approved a supplemental coverage from space (SCS) NPRM at their March open meeting Thursday, but Republican commissioners sounded alarms about the proceeding potentially slowing agency processing of pending applications regarding satellite connectivity to smartphones. The NPRM's approval was expected (see 2303090047). Also getting 4-0 OK was an inmate calling services (ICS) NPRM on implementing the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act and a Further NPRM on expanding the number of broadcast TV markets required to provide audio description (see 2303100043). The approved items weren't released.

A growing number of space operators are going to face difficulty meeting their milestone deadlines for deployment, and the FCC needs to craft a policy response, said space lawyer Patrick Campbell of Milbank Tuesday at Satellite 2023. The problem is licenses given before the pandemic facing delays due to COVID-19 and supply chain issues, plus a launch supply bottleneck and needing more time, Campbell said. The ITU’s deployment milestones similarly will likely come up at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-23), said Audrey Allison, senior project leader, Aerospace Center for Space Policy and Strategy.

The government and some major customers are going to start pushing for more standardization for satellite connectivity providers, constellation executives said Monday at Satellite 2023. Several said an open network architecture and interoperability is the route to tying into mobile networks. However, Mangata Networks CEO Brian Holz said there's never satellite industry agreement on standards, and systems have to be designed instead to be adaptable.

Both Iridium and Lynk target the direct-to-handset universe, but they're seemingly worlds apart on their appraisal of potential market size for the service, with CEOs of the two companies frequently disagreeing during a panel Monday at Satellite 2023. The scant mobile network operator (MNO) investment in such supplemental coverage from space (SCS), and almost no one from the wireless industry attending the panel, is telling, Iridium CEO Matt Desch said.

Kansas lawmakers Thursday challenged opposition to SB-144, which would explicitly exempt streaming services and direct broadcast satellite operators from video service provider franchise fees. The bill would amend the state's Video Competition Act, making clear that DBS and streaming providers don't need video service provider authorization from the Kansas Corporation Commission. House Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Committee took no action on the bill.

The FCC's single network future NPRM on its March agenda (see 2302230059) is expected to get 4-0 commissioner support, we were told.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is "impatient for some real action" on diversity and inclusion in tech employment ranks, she said Monday at a Communications Equity and Diversity Council forum. Diverse workforces have been shown demonstrably to be "a win/win for businesses and workers," but employment in the tech sector doesn't look like the population overall, she said. Many employees still "know what it's like to be 'the only,'" she said, noting her own experience as the FCC's only permanent female chair. She said "upskilling" -- particularly among underrepresented populations -- could help address a tight labor market and the job disruptions of an increasingly automated future. Multiple speakers said one challenge is the perception by employers that tech careers require expensive, four-year degrees. Hector Mujica, Google.org, Americas head of economic opportunity, said degree requirements for tech jobs disproportionately exclude rural, Black and Latino workers and are largely unnecessary. Antonio Tijerino, Hispanic Heritage Foundation CEO, said there's no shortage of talent but there needs to be more work in exposing, preparing and supporting diverse communities. Given particularly low unemployment rates, Mujica said there should be "better, broader" pathways for immigration and citizenship, plus improved rural internet connectivity. Michelle Gilliard, IBM Americas corporate social responsibility leader, said the Pell Grant system needs to expand to cover such areas as short-term and online learning. She also said there's a need for a shared, verifiable "digital credentialing system" for workers' skills and training.

Section 25.112(a)(3) is squarely in the sights of the satellite industry and allies, with numerous calls for its elimination Monday in docket 22-411. Multiple commenters opposed dismissing applications that contain curable errors or omissions. The satellite licensing streamlining NPRM was adopted 4-0 in December (see 2212210054).

With Verizon potentially starting to turn on Phase II C-band spectrum within weeks, the FCC needs to act now on a certification process for the second phase of the spectrum's accelerated clearing by the incumbent satellite operators there, Eutelsat told us. A certification framework issued in June would be "far too late to assure that satellite services are protected from harmful interference," a company executive emailed. Eutelsat has pushed for an expeditious issuing of the framework, but one isn't expected soon (see 2302070043). The FCC didn't comment.