SES filed a $1.8 billion claim Tuesday in Intelsat's bankruptcy, claiming the rival C-band operator committed breach of contract and of fiduciary duties plus unjust enrichment stemming from Intelsat's alleged violation of the C-Band Alliance agreement terms. Intelsat didn't comment. The claim, filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, said the CBA agreement set up SES and Intelsat as the lead members, splitting both control and the vast majority of the alliance's proceeds. SES said even after FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said the agency would pursue a public auction, the two still continued to partner until the draft C-band order, which laid out incentive payment terms for the satellite operators, with Intelsat getting a bigger share.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is eyeing additional duties on French products over France’s digital services tax. After determining in December the DST "is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce," USTR said Friday it plans the additional duties of 25%; it will suspend those levies' application for up to six months.

The Supreme Court Monday upheld the constitutionality of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act in a much-watched case heard in April, Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants. Justices let stand a 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling, which declared a 2015 government debt collection exemption unconstitutional and severed the provision from the remainder of the TCPA.

It likely wouldn't be safe to hold a meeting indoors, even in October, a tech think tank announced Thursday afternoon. The Technology Policy Institute in mid-April canceled its annual summer event for Aspen, Colorado, because of COVID-19. At that time, it planned to hold the rescheduled event Oct. 16-18 in person but in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Its $1.4 billion purchase of Sprint's Boost Mobile complete, Dish Network is now in the retail wireless marketplace, it said Wednesday. It said it would keep the Boost brand, and reinstituted a shrinking payments plan. It said its "$hrink-It!" plan starts at $45 a month for 15 GB and goes down by $5 after three on-time payments and another $5 after six on-time payments. It said Boost's previous shrinking payments offering ended in July 2014.

The $8.3 billion annual USF "may no longer be used to purchase, obtain, maintain, improve, modify, or otherwise support any equipment or services produced or provided by" Huawei and ZTE, the FCC announced Tuesday afternoon. The Public Safety Bureau designated the Chinese telecom gear makers as covered under the commission's 5-0 November ban on buying from companies posing a national security threat.

FCC employees will continue to work remotely at least until the agency completes its move into its new headquarters near Union Station in Washington, with that move to be completed by Aug. 27, said an agencywide staff memo Monday, the commission told us. Whether the 900-some workers at the current headquarters will report to the new building immediately after Aug. 27 hasn't been determined, it said.

The FCC stopped taking COVID-19 telehealth applications, it announced Thursday. "Based on the applications received to date, demand for funding exceeds available" money. Some $200 million was allotted. The FCC doesn't "want to impose burdens on health care providers who may prepare new applications that cannot be funded under the current appropriation."

The FCC will consider rules for the vertical location accuracy of wireless calls to 911 and broadband mapping at commissioners’ July 16 meeting, as expected; see here. Also on the tentative agenda, an order addressing supply chain security and equipment from Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE.

APCO 2020 is canceled, the group emailed early Tuesday afternoon. Experts had said holding the annual summer convention planned for Aug. 2-5 in Orlando could pose public health problems, amid COVID-19. See our report here.