Hacked Recordings Put Inmate Calling Systems on Trial

The twists and turns that occur in the telecom legal world are varied and fascinating.
Most telecom litigation doesn't make for great cocktail party patter (and it is that season), but the case I read about last week is not only interesting, but appropriate for all audiences. Most importantly, it shines a bright light onto an oft-ignored regulatory realm for communications law junkies. Prepare to be captivated.

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FCC Champions Consumer Privacy

With the FCC's new privacy rules for broadband, providers are held to stricter standards for protecting consumer data.
The FCC in its regularly scheduled monthly meeting at the end of Oct., approved new privacy rules for providers of broadband Internet access service. The new rules are, in part, a result of the classification of broadband services as “common carrier” services in the 2015 Open Internet Order, thus moving consumer issues from the regulatory realm of the Federal Trade Commission to that of the Federal Communications Commission.

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OSHA Takes a Stand on Distracted Drivers

To pick up on a theme from last week's "When Texting Is a Bad Thing" post from SCTC consultant Art Yonemoto, too many of us get lured into communicating while we’re driving or otherwise distracted when we know better.  Desensitized as we are to the "don’t be a distracted driver message," the fact is that the number one cause of workplace fatalities is distracted driving and/or operation of complex machinery or processes,  It’s all about messaging, talking and game playing, and it’s crazy dangerous... particularly since we can’t tell who is doing what in the car next to us on the highway. Yup… the one that’s whizzing by at 65 mph or faster.

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Robocall Regulations Revised

Adjustments take into account increased calling to mobile numbers.

Not that this is exactly news, but most of us don't like to be the recipients of robocalls. Lawmakers have heard us loud and clear, enacting and, over time, modifying the Telecommunications Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) with the purpose of preventing consumers from receiving unwanted, unsolicited calls. Sadly, despite repeated good faith efforts to restrict and/or clamp down on those that abuse unwitting and witting consumers alike, the calls persist.

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TDM Legally Strolling Toward Sunset

Is it possible that regulation is catching up with—or at least acknowledging--the changes that advanced technology has brought to the communications marketplace?  The answer is a clear “yes” based on the issuance of the Declaratory Ruling, Second Report and Order, and Order on Reconsideration that was adopted last week by the FCC.

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