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Welcome Back To The Wireless Messaging News
I like the Blues! Some people call it the “devil's music.” I looked up some varying opinions about the origin of this appellation and the one that I accept as being most probably factual is that it came from racist white people because the Blues was originally performed and enjoyed by black people. What a shame! I heard one black artist, when asked if singing the blues makes a person sad, he said no emphatically. It is a catharsis. Anyway . . . there is a very good blues performance by two young ladies in this week's video near the end of this issue. I hope you enjoy it.
We need your help. This is probably the only weekly news source about paging and wireless messaging.
Editorial Opinion pieces present only the opinions of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of any of advertisers or supporters. This newsletter is independent of any trade association. I don't intend to hurt anyone's feelings, but I do freely express my own opinions.
Prism-IPX Systems is growing and they are looking for more good software developers with communications experience. Additional information is available on their web site. Click here .
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NO POLITICS HERE
This doesn't mean that nothing is ever published here that mentions a US political party—it just means that the editorial policy of this newsletter is to remain neutral on all political issues. We don't take sides.
A new issue of the Wireless Messaging Newsletter is posted on the web each week. A notification goes out by e-mail to subscribers on most Fridays around noon central US time. The notification message has a link to the actual newsletter on the web. That way it doesn’t fill up your incoming e-mail account. There is no charge for subscription and there are no membership restrictions. Readers are a very select group of wireless industry professionals, and include the senior managers of many of the world’s major Paging and Wireless Messaging companies. There is an even mix of operations managers, marketing people, and engineers — so I try to include items of interest to all three groups. It’s all about staying up-to-date with business trends and technology.
I regularly get readers’ comments, so this newsletter has become a community forum for the Paging, and Wireless Messaging communities. You are welcome to contribute your ideas and opinions. Unless otherwise requested, all correspondence addressed to me is subject to publication in the newsletter and on my web site. I am very careful to protect the anonymity of those who request it.
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I spend the whole week searching the INTERNET for news that I think may be of interest to you — so you won’t have to. This newsletter is an aggregator — a service that aggregates news from other news sources. You can help our community by sharing any interesting news that you find.
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RSS Motorola Solutions Reports Third-Quarter Financial ResultsFriday, November 02, 2018 Motorola Solutions reported its earnings results for the third quarter of 2018. Sales increased $217 million, or 13 percent from the year-ago quarter, driven by growth in the Americas and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Asia-Pacific revenues decreased 1 percent. About $145 million of revenue growth was related to acquisitions, and $19 million was related to the adoption of accounting standard ASC 606. The products and systems integration segment increased 10 percent, driven by the Americas and EMEA. The services and software segment grew 22 percent with growth in all regions. During an earnings call, Motorola Solutions President and CEO Greg Brown said Motorola anticipates signing final contracts for the U.K. Airwave and Emergency Services Network (ESN) extensions by year-end, echoing what a Home Office official said last month. Brown said the Airwave three-year extension contract is worth about $1.45 billion, and ESN’s impact on 2019 results will be “reasonably modest.” When questioned on the declining Asia-Pacific revenues, Brown said Australia leads the firm’s Asia-Pacific strategy, while China represents 2 percent of its overall revenue. Motorola has no manufacturing or product development in China, only sales and support, he said. GAAP operating margin was 15.8 percent of sales, compared with 21.1 percent in the year-ago quarter. The decline was primarily due to higher operating expenses related to acquisitions and an increase to an existing environmental reserve related to a legacy business, partially offset by higher gross margins in services and software. Operating cash flow was $338 million compared with $270 million of operating cash generated in the year-ago quarter. Free cash flow was $292 million, compared with $185 million of free cash flow generated in the year-ago quarter. Cash flow for the quarter increased on higher earnings, improved working capital and lower capital expenditures. The company paid $84 million in cash dividends. From a debt perspective, the company repaid the remaining $300 million on the revolving credit facility ahead of schedule; $200 million was repaid during the quarter, and $100 million was repaid subsequent to the quarter end. The company also repurchased 20 percent of the Silver Lake convertible note for $369 million; the $200 million of principal was repaid with new senior unsecured debt and the $169 million premium was paid in cash. The company ended the quarter with backlog of $9.5 billion, up $572 million from the year-ago quarter. Products and systems integration segment backlog was up 9 percent or $277 million, and services and software was up 5 percent or $295 million. LMR demand led by the Americas continues to drive backlog growth, executives said. “Q3 was another strong quarter of revenue and earnings growth,” said Greg Brown, chairman and CEO of Motorola Solutions. “Our overall business performance, along with our record Q3 backlog, provides solid momentum moving forward.” The results highlighted a more than $50 million TETRA system upgrade in Europe and Project 25 (P25) systems and device orders in Indianapolis; Austin; and Augusta, Georgia. For the fourth quarter, Motorola Solutions expects revenue growth of about 13.5 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2017. The company expects non-GAAP earnings in the range of $2.50 to $2.55 per share. For the full year, Motorola continues to expect revenue growth of about 14.5 percent and now expects non-GAAP earnings per share in the range of $7 to $7.05, up from the prior guidance of $6.79 to $6.89. |
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Paging Transmitters 150/900 MHz The RFI High Performance Paging Transmitter is designed for use in campus, city, state and country-wide paging systems. Designed for use where reliable simulcast systems where RF signal overlap coverage is critical.
Built-in custom interface for Prism-IPX ipBSC Base Controller for remote control, management and alarm reporting.
Prism-IPX Systems LLC.
11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022
Back To Paging
Still The Most Reliable Protocol For Wireless Messaging!
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Verizon opens 5G lab dedicated to tech for first respondersVerizon's 5G First Responder Lab is an incubator for 5G uses for public safety. BY GORDON GOTTSEGEN NOVEMBER 9, 2018 9:39 AM PST
Verizon is one of the industry's leaders in 5G, and its 5G development extends beyond making your mobile data speeds faster. On Thursday, Verizon announced its 5G First Responder Lab, an innovation incubator for public safety tech that uses 5G. It will give startups and other innovators early access to 5G so they can come up with useful real-world applications. 5G is the next wave of wireless connection, and it's quickly becoming closer to a reality. Besides being used on a consumer level, Verizon says that 5G has the potential to enable new technology for first responders with life-saving implications. "First responders should have the absolute best, most effective technologies available to them as they protect our communities and respond to emergencies large and small," said Verizon SVP Toby Redshaw. "Our 5G First Responder Lab will give technology innovators the opportunity to develop applications and use cases that leverage the unique capabilities of 5G, and to bring those solutions to market more quickly." The lab will be open for a one-year period and give 15 different innovators the tools they need so they can develop public safety solutions. Applications for the first wave of innovators are open until Dec. 31. 5G explained with billiards and darts | Bridget Breaks It Down
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GLENAYRE INFRASTRUCTUREI would like to recommend Easy Solutions for Support of all Glenayre Paging Equipment. This Texas company is owned and operated by Vaughan Bowden. I have known Vaughan for over 35 years. Without going into a long list of his experience and qualifications, let me just say that he was the V.P. of Engineering at PageNet which was—at that time—the largest paging company in the world. So Vaughan knows Paging. GTES is no longer offering support contracts. GTES was the original group from Vancouver that was setup to offer support to customers that wanted to continue with the legacy Glenayre support. Many U.S. customers chose not to use this service because of the price and the original requirement to upgrade to version 8.0 software (which required expensive hardware upgrades, etc.). Most contracts ended as of February 2018. If you are at all concerned about future support of Glenayre products, especially the “king of the hill” the GL3000 paging control terminal, I encourage you to talk to Vaughan about a service contract and please tell him about my recommendation.
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The Wireless Messaging News
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Cisco Systems Layoffs 2018: 460 by Joe Panettieri • Nov 7, 2018 Cisco Systems has cut roughly 460 employees in and around its San Jose, California, headquarters as part of Customer Experience shakeup, Silicon Valley Business Journal reports.
Maria Martinez, the recently hired Cisco executive at the center of the company’s organizational shakeup, notified employees of the restructuring in an Election Day email, the report noted. Martinez, a Sales-force and Microsoft veteran, is executive VP and chief customer experience officer. She reports directly to CEO Chuck Robbins. Martinez is striving to align Cisco’s Customer Experience (CX) initiatives to accelerate the company’s business toward cloud and subscription services. Those efforts are particularly important to channel partners — many of whom are moving toward recurring revenue business models. The cuts come one week before Cisco Partner Summit 2018. The summit is a transition point of sorts for Cisco’s channel leadership. Oliver Tuszik, a senior VP, recently succeeded Wendy Bahr in that capacity. Cisco is also making SMB (small and midsize business) channel partner moves. The latest steps are expected to surface at Cisco Partner Summit along with this week’s ConnectWise IT Nation 2018 conference in Orlando. Growing Amid Staff Changes The Cisco job cuts are relatively limited considering the company’s size and worldwide footprint. The firm employs more than 14,000 in Silicon Valley, and about 70,000 people worldwide, the Business Journal estimates. CEO Chuck Robbins has made targeted staff cuts multiple times in recent years. The layoffs included 310 staff cuts in September 2017 and 1,100 layoffs in May 2017. That’s in addition to 5,500 job cuts announced in August 2016. Cisco’s overall business has been moving in the right direction and gaining momentum on the subscription services front. The company is expected to announce Q1 fiscal 2019 earnings on November 14. For its Q4 fiscal 2018, revenue was $12.8 billion, up 6 percent year over year. Also, recurring revenue represented 32 percent of total revenue, up 1 percent year over year. |
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| Prism-IPX Systems |
Critical Messaging that works
Secure . . . Dependable . . . and Encrypted |
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Repair and Refurbishment Services
Product Support Services, Inc.
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Click on the image above for more info about advertising here.
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INTERNET Protocol Terminal
The IPT accepts INTERNET or serial messaging using various protocols and can easily convert them to different protocols, or send them out as paging messages. An ideal platform for hospitals, on-site paging applications, or converting legacy systems to modern protocols.
Additional/Optional Features
Prism-IPX Systems LLC.
11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022
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Paging Data Receiver PDR-4 The PDR-4 is a multi-function paging data receiver that decodes paging messages and outputs them via the serial port, USB or Ethernet connectors. Designed for use with Prism-IPX ECHO software Message Logging Software to receive messages and log the information for proof of transmission over the air, and if the data was error free.
Prism-IPX Systems LLC.
11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022
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Wireless Network Planners
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Remote AB Switches ABX-1 switches are often used at remote transmitter sites to convert from old, outdated and unsupported controllers to the new modern Prism-IPX ipBSC base station controllers. Remotely switch to new controllers with GUI commands. ABX-1
ABX-3 switches are widely used for enabling or disabling remote equipment and switching I/O connections between redundant messaging systems. ABX-3
Common Features:
Prism-IPX Systems LLC.
11175 Cicero Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30022
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Investor Relations — Press Release Spok Ranked #1 in Secure Communications for Hospital Systems by Black Book Market ResearchSpok Care Connect® platform rated highest for best-of-breed technology and ‘overwhelming client satisfaction’ in annual healthcare industry report SPRINGFIELD, Va.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Nov. 7, 2018— SPOK, INC., a wholly owned subsidiary of Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPOK) and a global leader in healthcare communications, announced that it has earned honors as the top overall healthcare technology vendor for SECURE COMMUNICATIONS PLATFORMS in an annual report published by BLACK BOOK MARKET RESEARCH. Spok also received the highest scores in the categories of best-of-breed technology and process improvement; trust, accountability, transparency, and ethics; viability and managerial stability, training and education; and tech support and customer care. “The research indicates that ninety-seven percent of hospitals are budgeting for or investing in comprehensive clinical communication platforms this year, and the Spok Care Connect platform is the solution of choice in this category,” said Vincent D. Kelly, president and chief executive officer of Spok Holdings, Inc. “Enterprise technology that fully supports care team collaboration and decision-making is key to the evolution of real-time health systems and improving patient safety and outcomes, and Spok continues to build an industry-leading reputation in this area by consistently exceeding customer expectations.” Spok Care Connect is the industry’s leading clinical communication platform that combines a CONTACT CENTER SOLUTION, centralized and integrated directory and scheduling, ALARM MANAGEMENT, critical test result notifications, SECURE MESSAGING, and paging to fully support multimodal, real-time communication among all of those responsible for patient care. “Healthcare leaders are not looking for simple point solutions for communication anymore, and the top ranking Spok received reflects a preference for a vendor that can do it all—secure communications across the entire organization, from the care teams on patient floors to the contact center to emergency response teams,” said Doug Brown, president of Black Book. “Spok has been a top player in this space for a long time, and their consistently positive feedback indicates that there are no disconnects between their promises and delivery.” Black Book polled more than 2,000 healthcare professionals in Q4 2017 and Q1 2018 to develop this comprehensive industry report on the state of secure communications. The independent healthcare research firm recognizes top-performing vendors based on client experience and customer satisfaction indicators. “We are proud to be a trusted partner for more than 1,900 healthcare organizations to support the delivery of exceptional, compassionate care,” said Hemant Goel, president of Spok, Inc. “As we develop the next evolution of the Spok Care Connect platform, we look forward to continuing our tradition of trustworthy technology that administrators, clinicians, and patients alike can rely on when it matters most.” About Spok Spok is a trademark of Spok Holdings, Inc. Spok Care Connect is a trademark of Spok, Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: HTTPS://WWW.BUSINESSWIRE.COM/NEWS/HOME/20181107005042/EN/ Source: Spok, Inc. Spok, Inc. |
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New York State Supreme Court Judge Overrules Zoning Board’s Tower DenialA New York State Supreme Court Justice ordered the Town of Lockport's Zoning Board of Appeals to approve Verizon’s use variance for a proposed, 154-foot cell tower, reported the Union-Sun & Journal. The ruling clears the way for the tower’s construction. The ruling follows a challenge that Verizon Wireless and Horvath Communications brought against the ZBA's rejection of the companies' request for a use variance for the cell tower, citing proximity to occupied homes. Additionally, the ZBA noted the proposed site is surrounded by open fields. “[The] applicant has not made an adequate showing that it has navigated the possibility of locating its facilities in an open field that would ... not negatively impact neighborhood houses and not require variances,” the ZBA wrote. The judge, Justice Daniel J. Furlong, stated the rejection violated state and federal law because it wasn’t supported by substantial evidence and the ruling interferes with the area's telecommunication services. Furlong also noted that as a public utility, Verizon and Horvath need only show the tower would satisfy a public necessity of poor cell coverage. Additionally, Furlong found fault in the ZBA’s assertion that Verizon and Horvath had not demonstrated “compelling reasons,” for siting the tower at the proposed location rather than an alternative site. The companies explored at least eight alternative sites but found none viable, reported the Journal. Though opposed by many residents, local firefighters and police supported the tower, arguing better cell service is needed in the area for emergency response. David Marotta, one of the most vocal tower opponents, urged the town to appeal Furlong’s ruling, stating, “I hope the town will appeal it as to back the people of the neighborhood and to fully back the board’s decision.” |
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| Source: | Inside Towers newsletter | Courtesy of the editor of Inside Towers. |
| BloostonLaw Newsletter |
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Selected portions [sometimes more — sometimes less] of the BloostonLaw Telecom Update and/or the BloostonLaw Private Users Update — newsletters from the Law Offices of Blooston, Mordkofsky, Dickens, Duffy & Prendergast, LLP — are reproduced in this section of The Wireless Messaging News with kind permission from the firm. The firm's contact information is included at the end of this section of the newsletter.
FCC Updates Auction 101 System User GuideOn November 2, the FCC issued a Public Notice announcing an update to the FCC Auction Bidding System User Guide for Auction 101. The updated user guide provides additional information and a few clarifications, which are listed in the revision history at the beginning of the document. The updated document is accessible in the same location as the previous version: under the “Education” section of the Auction 101 website at www.fcc.gov/auction/101, or directly at www.fcc.gov/file/14584/download. If you have downloaded or printed the User Guide, make sure you have the most up-to-date version. BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast, Cary Mitchell, and Sal Taillefer. HeadlinesFCC Announces 40 Qualified Bidders in Auction 101; 58 Complete Applications for Auction 102On October 31, the FCC released two Public Notices regarding the status of Auction 101, which will offer 3,072 Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service (UMFUS) licenses in the 27.5–28.35 GHz (28 GHz) band, and Auction 102, which will offer 2,909 Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service (UMFUS) licenses in the 24.25–24.45 GHz and 24.75–25.25 GHz (24 GHz) band. As we reported in a previous edition of the BloostonLaw Telecom Update, Bidding in Auction 101 is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, November 14, 2018. Bidding in Auction 102 will be scheduled to begin after the conclusion of bidding in Auction 101. The Public Notice on Auction 101 identified 40 applicants found to be qualified to bid in Auction 101. It also included bidding instructions and other important information regarding Auction 101. It also addresses the continuing obligations and auction procedures for all Auction 101 applicants, including those that have been deemed not qualified to bid. These topics included registration and access to the auction bidding system; educational materials and important upcoming events; and the initial bidding schedule. Specifically, bidding will begin Wednesday, November 14, 2018, with the following schedule:
The bidding schedule starting on Thursday, November 15, 2018, and continuing each business day until further notice, will be:
The Public Notice on Auction 102 announces that 58 of the 60 applications received for Auction 102 have been deemed to be complete. To become a qualified bidder in Auction 102, each applicant whose application has been deemed complete must also submit a timely and sufficient upfront payment. The deadline for submitting upfront payments for Auction 102 will be provided, along with detailed instructions about submitting upfront payments, in a public notice that will be issued after Auction 101 is completed. Applicants whose applications were deemed incomplete no longer have an opportunity to cure application defects and cannot become qualified to bid in Auction 102. In both Public Notices, the Commission reminded applicants that the Commission’s rules require they maintain the accuracy and completeness of information furnished in their applications to participate in each auction. Each applicant should amend its application to furnish additional or corrected information within five days of a significant occurrence, or no more than five days after the applicant becomes aware of the need for amendment. All changes are subject to review by Commission staff. The Commission also reminded applicants that the “prohibited communications” rule prevents all applicants from discussing bids, bidding strategies, market selections and post-auction market structure. This prohibition took effect as of the short-form application filing deadline, which for Auctions 101 and 102 was Tuesday, September 18, at 6:00 p.m. ET, and ends at the post-auction down payment deadline for Auction 102, which will be announced in a future public notice. This prohibition applies to all applicants regardless of whether such applicants become qualified bidders or actually bid in Auction 101 and/or Auction 102. BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast, Cary Mitchell, and Sal Taillefer. FCC Calls for More Carriers to Combat RobocallsOn November 5, the FCC issued a Press Release indicating that FCC Chairman Ajit Pai today “demanded” that the phone industry adopt a robust call authentication system to combat illegal caller ID spoofing, and launch that system no later than next year. Specifically, Chairman Pai sent letters to voice providers this afternoon, asking those that apparently have not yet established concrete plans to protect their customers using the Signature-based Handling of Asserted Information Using toKENs (SHAKEN) and the Secure Telephone Identity Revisited (STIR) standards to do so without delay. Under the SHAKEN/STIR framework, calls traveling through interconnected phone networks would be “signed” as legitimate by originating carriers and validated by other carriers before reaching consumers. The framework digitally validates the handoff of phone calls passing through the complex web of networks, allowing the phone company of the consumer receiving the call to verify that a call is from the person supposedly making it. The next day, on November 6, the FCC issued a second Press Release announcing that it has sent letters to voice providers, calling on them to assist industry efforts to trace scam robocalls that originate on or pass through their networks. These letters, written by FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief Rosemary Harold and Chief Technology Officer Eric Burger, were sent to voice providers that are not participating in these “traceback” efforts, including those the FCC has encouraged to do more to guard against illegal traffic. These traceback efforts assist the FCC in identifying the source of illegal calls. “It is vital that public and private stakeholders work together to combat scam calls,” said Chief Harold about the letters. “It hinders both FCC enforcement and industry call authentication work when companies do not cooperate with traceback efforts. We must do everything we can to catch and stop scammers, and industry cooperation is vital to achieving that goal.” “The industry is helping combat illegal robocalls and spoofing, but more must be done,” said Dr. Burger about the letters. “We hope all carriers and interconnected VoIP providers will join these traceback efforts and implement tools to speed the traceback process, such as deploying a robust call authentication framework. In my experience, strong enforcement is the best tool against bad actors, and improved traceback is a critical tool for finding scammers.” The agency also wrote to broadband industry trade association USTelecom to thank it for its leadership in the traceback effort. About two years ago, USTelecom, formed a group to share information among carriers and providers to help “traceback” the traffic of illegal calls to the originating provider. Industry participation in this call traceback effort has proved useful in the Commission’s enforcement efforts to combat illegal robocalling and spoofing. “A critical component of effective enforcement against robocalling and spoofing abuses is to quickly identify the source of the traffic by tracing back the calls to their origination,” wrote Harold and Burger in today’s letters. “Neither government nor industry, without the active assistance of the other, can hope to stem the flood of scam calls plaguing consumers across the country.” BloostonLaw Contacts: Ben Dickens, Mary Sisak, and Sal Taillefer. FCC Launches Re-examination of Wireless Resilience Cooperative FrameworkOn November 6, the FCC announced that it has launched a comprehensive review of the Wireless Resiliency Cooperative Framework, a voluntary wireless industry commitment to promote resilient wireless communications and situational awareness during disasters. To aid this review, FCC Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau Chief Lisa M. Fowlkes today sent letters to participating carriers, asking them to supply information regarding how they’ve implemented the framework in disaster situations over the past two years. The letters also ask wireless companies participating in the framework to summarize how it was used for all disaster events to which the framework applied. The letters request detailed lists of mutual aid and roaming agreements carriers have established with each other, as well as any instances where such agreements were modified, impeded, or even declined outright. The agency also asks for information as to each company’s implementation of industry best practices. “The American people expect quick and effective recoveries from natural disasters like Hurricane Michael and other storms,” said Chairman Pai. “That’s why we are re-examining the last Administration’s framework to make sure all wireless carriers are meeting communities’ needs and doing everything they can to promptly restore service after a natural disaster.” The framework, created by the wireless industry and approved by the FCC in 2016, is intended to promote resilient wireless communications during disasters through measures related to roaming and mutual aid as well as coordination efforts. The framework set out a five-pronged approach for enhancing coordination during an emergency through
BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast and Cary Mitchell. Law & RegulationFCC Extends VRS Call Handling Pilot through AprilOn October 31, the FCC issued an Order granting CSDVRS, LLC, d/b/a ZVRS (ZVRS) and Purple Communications, Inc. (Purple) a limited waiver of the expiration date of the at-home video relay service (VRS) call handling pilot program, so that these providers can continue their participation in the program for six additional months, through April 30, 2019. This voluntary program has allowed payment of compensation to authorized VRS providers, subject to specified safeguards, for VRS minutes served by at-home communications assistants (CAs). The pilot program, which commenced November 1, 2017, presently is set to expire October 31, 2018. By way of background, in March 2017, the Commission adopted rules establishing a one-year pilot program for at-home VRS call-handling. Under this program, authorized VRS providers may be compensated for calls handled by CAs at-home workstations, up to a maximum of 30 percent of a participating provider’s monthly minutes, so long as the provider complies with personnel, technical, and environmental rules and monitoring and oversight obligations. In addition, each participating provider must file (1) monthly reports containing information regarding the location of each home workstation, the CA identification (ID) number for each individual handling VRS calls from that workstation, the location and call center IDs of call centers supervising at-home workstations, and the names of the supervisors at such call centers; and (2) a one-time report providing detailed information about the provision of service during the first six months of the program. Two VRS providers that are in the process of merging, ZVRS and Purple, currently are authorized to participate in the pilot program. Each has submitted the required monthly data, and on June 1, 2018, each provided the Commission with its six-month report. BloostonLaw Contacts: Gerry Duffy. Tenth Circuit to Hear Wireless Infrastructure Order ReviewOn November 2, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multi-district Litigation issued an Order randomly selecting the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in which to consolidate petitions for review of the FCC’s Third Report and Order in the Wireless Infrastructure proceeding of September 27, 2018. Petitions had been filed by Puerto Rico Tel. Col., Inc., Verizon, the City of San Jose, the City of Seattle, the City of Huntington Beach, and Sprint. As we reported in a previous edition of the BloostonLaw Telecom Update, in the Declaratory Ruling the FCC:
In the (Third) Report and Order, the FCC:
BloostonLaw Contacts: John Prendergast and Cary Mitchell. FCC Seeks Comment on Sprint Petition on IP Relay Rate-makingOn November 7, the FCC issued a Public Notice seeking comment on a petition for rulemaking filed by Sprint Corporation (Sprint) to establish a new rate-making methodology for IP Relay service, a form of telecommunications relay service (TRS) supported by the Interstate TRS Fund. Comments are due December 7, and reply comments are due December 24. Specifically, the current three-year price-cap period for IP Relay service expires at the end of the 2018-19 telecommunications relay service (TRS) Fund Year. Sprint proposes a hybrid rate methodology that is based on a combination of the Multistate Average Rate Structure (MARS) and provider costs to set future rates for IP Relay service. BloostonLaw Contacts: Gerry Duffy. IndustryFCC Announces Membership of BDAC Disaster Response and Recovery Working GroupOn November 1, the FCC issued a Public Notice announcing that FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has appointed members to serve on the Disaster Response and Recovery Working Group of the Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC). The BDAC’s Disaster Response and Recovery Working Group is charged with making recommendations on measures that can be taken to improve resiliency of broadband infrastructure before a disaster occurs, strategies that can be used during the response to a disaster to minimize the downtime of broadband networks, and actions that can be taken to more quickly restore broadband infrastructure during disaster recovery. It is also charged with developing best practices for coordination among wireless providers, backhaul providers, and power companies during and after a disaster. Red Grasso, FirstNet State Point of Contact, North Carolina Department of Information Technology has been appointed chair of the working group. Jonathan Adelstein, President & Chief Executive Officer, Wireless Infrastructure Association has been appointed vice-chair. A full list of the group’s membership can be found here. “Broadband communications have become essential to the delivery of life-saving information in a disaster,” Chairman Pai said. “It’s critical to public safety that our broadband networks are as resilient as possible to prevent outages in a disaster and also can be restored as quickly as possible when an outage occurs.” Chairman Pai Announces Forum on AI and Machine LearningOn November 7, the FCC issued a Press Release announcing that the agency will hold a Forum on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning on November 30, 2018. The forum will convene experts in the AI and machine learning fields to discuss the future of these technologies and their implications for the communications marketplace. The event will also include demonstrations to enable the public to see these emerging technologies in action. “Artificial intelligence and machine learning hold tremendous potential for the technological transformation of society. From healthcare and education to finance and transportation, they will disrupt the way we interact with the world around us. Because so much of AI intersects with the Commission’s technological and engineering work, we want to explore what it means for the future of communications. I look forward to bringing in experts to discuss this important issue, so that the FCC and the American public can learn about what’s on the horizon.” The Forum on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning will be held at FCC headquarters in Washington, D.C. and will be open to the public. For more information, visit https://www.fcc.gov/newsevents/ events/2018/11/forum-artificial-intelligence-and-machine-learning DeadlinesJANUARY 15: HAC REPORTING DEADLINE. At this time, the next Hearing Aid Compatible (HAC) reporting deadline for digital commercial mobile radio service (CMRS) providers (including carriers that provide service using AWS-1 spectrum and resellers of cellular, broadband PCS and/or AWS services) is January 15, 2019. The FCC is considering an item at its November 2018 meeting that may impact this requirement. As of today, non-Tier I service providers must offer to consumers at least 50 percent of the handset models per air interface, or a minimum of ten handset models per air interface, that meet or exceed the M3 rating, and at least one-third of the handset models per air interface, or a minimum of ten handset models per air interface, that meet or exceed the T3 rating. Month-to-month handset offering information provided in annual reports must be current through the end of 2018. With many of our clients adjusting their handset offerings and making new devices available to customers throughout the year, it is very easy for even the most diligent carriers to stumble unknowingly into a non-compliance situation, resulting in fines starting at $15,000 for each HAC-enabled handset they are deficient. Following the T-Mobile USA Notice of Apparent Liability (FCC 12-39), the FCC’s enforcement policy calls for multiplying the $15,000 per-handset fine by the number of months of the deficiency, creating the potential for very steep fines. It is therefore crucial that our clients pay close attention to their HAC regulatory compliance, and monthly checks are strongly recommended. In this regard, we have prepared a HAC reporting template to assist our clients in keeping track of their HAC handset offerings, and other regulatory compliance efforts. ALL SERVICE PROVIDERS SUBJECT TO THE FCC’S HAC RULES – INCLUDING COMPANIES THAT QUALIFY FOR THE DE MINIMIS EXCEPTION – MUST PARTICIPATE IN ANNUAL HAC REPORTING. To the extent that your company is a provider of broadband PCS, cellular and/or interconnected SMR services, if you are a CMRS reseller and/or if you have plans to provide CMRS using newly licensed (or partitioned) AWS or 700 MHz spectrum, you and your company will need to be familiar with the FCC’s revised rules. BloostonLaw contacts: John Prendergast, Cary Mitchell, and Sal Taillefer. Calendar At-a-GlanceNovember December January
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| THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK |
BluesFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Blues is a music genre and musical form originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1870s. The genre developed from roots, and spirituals. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads. The blues form, ubiquitous in jazz, rhythm and blues and rock and roll, is characterized by the call-and-response pattern, the blues scale and specific chord progressions, of which the twelve-bar blues is the most common. Blue notes (or “worried notes”), usually thirds or fifths flattened in pitch, are also an essential part of the sound. Blues shuffles or walking bass reinforce the trance-like rhythm and form a repetitive effect known as the groove. Blues as a genre is also characterized by its lyrics, bass lines, and instrumentation. Early traditional blues verses consisted of a single line repeated four times. It was only in the first decades of the 20th century that the most common current structure became standard: the AAB pattern, consisting of a line sung over the four first bars, its repetition over the next four, and then a longer concluding line over the last bars. Early blues frequently took the form of a loose narrative, often relating the racial discrimination and other challenges experienced by African-Americans. Many elements, such as the call-and-response format and the use of blue notes, can be traced back to the music of Africa. The origins of the blues are also closely related to the religious music of the Afro-American community, the spirituals. The first appearance of the blues is often dated to after the ending of slavery and, later, the development of juke joints. It is associated with the newly acquired freedom of the former slaves. Chroniclers began to report about blues music at the dawn of the 20th century. The first publication of blues sheet music was in 1908. Blues has since evolved from unaccompanied vocal music and oral traditions of slaves into a wide variety of styles and sub-genres. Blues sub-genres include country blues, such as Delta blues and Piedmont blues, as well as urban blues styles such as Chicago blues and West Coast blues. World War II marked the transition from acoustic to electric blues and the progressive opening of blues music to a wider audience, especially white listeners. In the 1960s and 1970s, a hybrid form called blues rock developed, which blended blues styles with rock music. |
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| Source: | YouTube | To learn more about the work of the PFC Foundation, visit http://www.playingforchange.org |
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