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TIA staff has been active in the past month to further its goals of access to telecommunications for all Americans.

On December 21 TIA filed comments in the FCC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on a possible amendment of its rules governing Hearing Aid-Compatible (HAC) Mobile Handsets. TIA supports the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) Joint Consensus Plan, which changes the deadlines and percentage of HAC phone requirements for service providers and handset manufacturers. 

TIA also argued that the commission should ensure that its rules accommodate multi-band devices and allow   manufacturers and carriers an adequate grace period to comply with newly developed standards for those bands; that any regulation governing emerging technologies is premature; and that the FCC should maintain the de minimis exception.

Meanwhile, the final in-person full committee meeting of the Telecommunications and Electronic and Information Technology Advisory Committee (TEITAC) convened this week at the National Science Foundation in Arlington to refresh regulations related to disability access; TEITAC is discussing the provisions which will be used in the final report to be submitted to the access board this spring. The committee is also addressing which provisions are applicable under the Telecom Act or Rehabilitation Act or both.

TEITAC's role in the guidelines refresh will be completed in March.

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Just before the holidays, the United States and India ended their latest Bilateral Dialogue on a very optimistic note, with several definitive statements issued by the Indian government on market liberalization there.

Some highlights of the dialogue include:

• Shri M. Sahu, Joint Secretary of India's Department of Telecommunications, pledged that the government is working to finalize spectrum policy, with the goal of auctioning 3G spectrum as soon as possible. While no timeframe was mentioned during the Dialogue, informed sources indicate that the policy could be finalized in several months, with an auction being held shortly afterwards. Auctions for 2G spectrum remain uncertain, as some legal concerns remaining.

• Joint Secretary Sahu indicated that the government would work to improve transparency in the licensing process. Government officials agreed to examine a key industry document, which has been submitted for the record, and provide written responses and clarifications to the questions raised throughout the dialogue.

• Mr. Sahu indicated that the issue of VoIP liberalization and interconnection would be considered after the phase-out of the Access Deficit Charge in April 2008.

The dialogue also addressed lingering issues such as India's access deficit charge, with TRAI committing that it will fall to zero this year; the international service tax, which TIA now believes clearly doesn't apply to international settlement payments; and wireless directory assistance, for which TIA encourages the government to consider establishing criteria for an appropriate Directory Assistance System that would give customers control over incoming calls to insure privacy and security.

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Now that the January 4 upfront payment deadline for the FCC's 700 MHz spectrum auction has passed, the auction itself is upon us. The bidding will begin Thursday, January 24, 2008.

TIA believes the 700 MHz spectrum auction will enable the delivery of broadband solutions to our nation’s first responders and commercial wireless service providers, drive technological innovation, and bring advanced wireless data services to rural America.

We will monitor the auction closely and update members as this momentous event in the wireless industry comes to pass.

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