Page 132 - SAMENA Trends - Jan-Mar 2024

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

comprehensive data about where service is and is not Lingo Telecom, which transmitted the call.
all across the country,” Rosenworcel stated. If adopted (February 8, 2024) www.theverge.com
by a vote of the full Commission, the proposed draft
order would relaunch the 5G Fund for America. An The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has
initial multi-round reverse auction would dish out up adopted updates to its rules for the 70, 80, and 90
to $9 billion for voice and 5G broadband services “to GHz spectrum bands in the US to include broadband
rural areas of the country unlikely to otherwise see access on ships and aircraft, in addition to backhaul
unsubsidized deployment” of compatible networks. service for 5G. In a statement, the regulator said that
Rosenworcel stated the fund would also include up the new rules authorize certain point-to-point links to
$900 million in incentives for incorporating open RAN endpoints in motion in the 70 GHz and 80 GHz bands for
in 5G networks. The FCC stated a second order would the use of these frequencies for access to broadband
cover several additional steps to improve the program, services on aircraft and ships. According to the FCC,
including “modifying the definition of areas eligible the rules will promote efficient use of spectrum, and
for the auction and ensuring that areas in Puerto Rico also permit the use of smaller and lower-cost antennas
and the US Virgin Islands that meet the criteria would to facilitate the provision of backhaul service in the 70
be included; increasing the budget for Phase I of the GHz and 80 GHz bands. "Finally, the Report and Order
5G Fund auction and the Tribal reserve budget, a set- changes the link registration process in the 70/80/90
aside portion of the fund to support connecting Tribal GHz bands to require certification of construction of
communities; and requiring 5G Fund support recipients registered links, which will promote more efficient use
to implement cybersecurity and supply chain risk of this spectrum and improve the accuracy of the link
management plans as a condition of receiving registration database," added the FCC. In November,
support”. (March 21, 2024) www.mobileworldlive.com the Biden Administration released a National Spectrum
Strategy for the US, which aims to open up additional
The Federal Communications Commission is making wireless spectrum for advanced technologies - despite
it illegal for robocalls to use AI-generated voices. the fact that spectrum auctions in the US have been
The ruling, issued on Thursday, gives state attorneys in limbo since March, when the authority of the
general the ability to take action against callers using Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was
AI voice cloning tech. As outlined in the ruling, AI- allowed to lapse. More than 2,700 MHz of spectrum is
generated voices are now considered “an artificial or being studied by the US government, which could be
prerecorded voice” under the Telephone Consumer reallocated for purposes including wireless broadband
Protection Act (TCPA). This restricts callers from using networks, satellites, and drones. The proposal also
AI-generated voices for non-emergency purposes or suggests improved spectrum management.
without prior consent. The TCPA includes bans on a (January 27, 2023) www.datacenterdynamics.com
variety of automated call practices, including using an
“artificial or prerecorded voice” to deliver messages, The Federal Communications Commission updated
but it wasn’t explicitly stated whether this included its rules, and proposed additional updates, to improve
AI-powered voice cloning. The new ruling clarifies that communications network reliability, resiliency, and
these recordings should indeed fall under the law’s transparency during disasters and outages. The rule
scope. “Bad actors are using AI-generated voices changes will increase participation in, and enhance
in unsolicited robocalls to extort vulnerable family the use of, the FCC’s Disaster Information Reporting
members, imitate celebrities, and misinform voters,” System (DIRS), in which service providers report on
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a their operational status during emergencies. Certain
statement. “State Attorneys General will now have new types of communications providers are required to
tools to crack down on these scams and ensure the report network outages to the FCC’s Network Outage
public is protected from fraud and misinformation.” Reporting System (NORS) on an ongoing basis. To
Although state attorneys general could already go after address gaps in NORS, the FCC adopted rules that:
the bad actors behind robocalls based on the scam or • Require cable communications, wireline, wireless,
fraud they’re perpetrating, this new ruling gives them and interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol
the power to hold scam artists accountable solely (VoIP) providers to report daily infrastructure status
because they’re using an AI-generated voice. Scrutiny information when DIRS is activated for geographic
of AI voices in robocalls has ramped up in recent areas in which they provide service.
weeks. In January, some New Hampshire residents • Suspend NORS reporting obligations when providers
received a call that appeared to use AI to impersonate are required to report in DIRS during a disaster, so
President Joe Biden’s voice, and it told them not to they are not obligated to report twice.
show up at the polls for the state’s presidential primary. • Require DIRS filers to provide a single, final summary
An investigation has since linked the robocall to two DIRS report to the Commission within 24 hours of
Texas-based companies: Life Corporation and Lingo the deactivation of DIRS
Telecom. The FCC issued a cease-and-desist order to (January 26, 2023) www.benton.org

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