Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27519 

this section is prohibited. Each 

occurrence of non-compliance with 

these regulations is a separate violation. 

Dated: April 10, 2007. 

David M. Verhey, 

Acting Assistant Secretary, Fish and Wildlife 

and Parks. 

[FR Doc. E7–9351 Filed 5–15–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4312–CT–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 1, 20, and 43 

[WC Docket No. 07–38; FCC 07–17] 

Development of Nationwide Broadband 

Data To Evaluate Reasonable and 

Timely Deployment of Advanced 

Services to All Americans, 

Improvement of Wireless Broadband 

Subscribership Data, and Development 

of Data on Interconnected Voice Over 

Internet Protocol (VoIP) 

Subscribership 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the 

Commission requests comment about 

how it can continue to acquire the 

information it needs to develop and 

maintain appropriate broadband 

policies. In particular, it seeks comment 

on: How best to ensure that it receives 

sufficient information about the 

availability and deployment of 

broadband services nationwide, 

particularly in rural and other hard-toserve areas; how it can improve the data 

about wireless broadband Internet 

access services that it currently collects 

on FCC Form 477; and whether it 

should modify the speed-tier 

information it currently collects. It also 

requests comment on how it can best 

collect information about subscribership 

to interconnected voice over Internet 

Protocol service, or VoIP. 

DATES: Comments must be filed on or 

before June 15, 2007, and reply 

comments must be filed on or before 

July 16, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by WC Docket No. 07–38, by 

any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Federal Communications 

Commission’s Web site: http:// 

www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• People with Disabilities: Contact 

the FCC to request reasonable 

accommodations (accessible format 

documents, sign language interpreters, 

CART, etc.) by e-mail: fcc504@fcc.gov, 

phone: 202–418–0530, or TTY: 202–

418–0432. 

For detailed instructions for 

submitting comments and additional 

information on the rulemaking process, 

see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

section of this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alan Feldman or Ellen Burton, Wireline 

Competition Bureau, Industry Analysis 

and Technology Division, 202–418–

0940. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in WC 

Docket No. 07–38, released April 16, 

2007. The complete text of this 

document, including attachments, is 

available for inspection and copying 

during normal business hours in the 

FCC Reference Center (Room CY–A257), 

445 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 

20554. It is available on the 

Commission’s Web site: http:// 

hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/ 

attachmatch/FCC-07–17A1.pdf, http:// 

hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/ 

attachmatch/FCC-07–17A1.doc, and 

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/ 

attachmatch/FCC-07–17A1.txt. The 

complete text may be purchased from 

the Commission’s copy contractor, Best 

Copy and Printing, Inc., 445 12th Street, 

SW., Room, CY–B402, Washington, DC 

20554, via Web site: http:// 

www.bcpiweb.com or phone: 800–378–

3160. When ordering documents from 

BCPI please provide the appropriate 

FCC document number (in this case: 

FCC 07–17). 

Pursuant to Sections 1.415 and 1.419 

of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 

1.415, 1.419, interested parties may file 

comments on or before June 15, 2007 

and reply comments on or before July 

16, 2007. Comments may be filed using: 

(1) the Commission’s Electronic 

Comment Filing System (ECFS), (2) the 

Federal Government’s eRulemaking 

Portal, or (3) by filing paper copies. See 

Electronic Filing of Documents in 

Rulemaking Proceedings, 63 FR 24121 

(1998). 

• Electronic Filers: Comments may be 

filed electronically using the Internet by 

accessing the ECFS: http://www.fcc.gov/ 

cgb/ecfs/ or the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 

Filers should follow the instructions 

provided on the website for submitting 

comments. 

• For ECFS filers, if multiple docket 

or rulemaking numbers appear in the 

caption of this proceeding, filers must 

transmit one electronic copy of the 

comments for each docket or 

rulemaking number referenced in the 

caption. In completing the transmittal 

screen, filers should include their full 

name, U.S. Postal Service mailing 

address, and the applicable docket or 

rulemaking number (in this case: 07–

38). Parties may also submit an 

electronic comment by Internet e-mail. 

To get filing instructions, filers should 

send an e-mail to ecfs@fcc.gov, and 

include the following words in the body 

of the message, ‘‘get form.’’ A sample 

form and directions will be sent in 

response. 

• Paper Filers: Parties who choose to 

file by paper must file an original and 

four copies of each filing. If more than 

one docket or rulemaking number 

appears in the caption of this 

proceeding, filers must submit two 

additional copies for each additional 

docket or rulemaking number. 

Filings may be sent by hand or 

messenger delivery, by commercial 

overnight courier, or by first-class or 

overnight U.S. Postal Service mail 

(although we continue to experience 

delays in receiving U.S. Postal Service 

mail). Paper filings must be addressed 

to: Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary; Office 

of the Secretary; Federal 

Communications Commission. 

• The Commission’s contractor will 

receive hand-delivered or messengerdelivered paper filings for the 

Commission’s Secretary at 236 

Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, 

Washington, DC 20002. The filing hours 

at this location are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. All 

hand deliveries must be held together 

with rubber bands or fasteners. Any 

envelopes must be disposed of before 

entering the building. 

• Commercial overnight mail (other 

than U.S. Postal Service Express Mail 

and Priority Mail) must be sent to 9300 

East Hampton Drive, Capitol Heights, 

MD 20743. 

• U.S. Postal Service first-class, 

Express, and Priority mail must be 

addressed to 445 12th Street, SW., 

Washington DC 20554. 

• People with Disabilities: To request 

materials in accessible formats for 

people with disabilities (braille, large 

print, electronic files, audio format), 

send an e-mail to fcc504@fcc.gov or call 

the Consumer & Governmental Affairs 

Bureau at 202–418–0530 (voice), 202–

418–0432 (TTY). 

Comments filed in WC Docket No. 

07–38 will be available for public 

inspection and copying during business 

hours at the FCC Reference Information 

Center (Room CY–A257), 445 12th 

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20554. 

They will also be available via the 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27520 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

Commission’s ECFS: http:// 

www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/. 

Initial Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995 Analysis 

This document does not contain 

proposed information collection(s) 

subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act 

of 1995 (PRA), Public Law 104–13. In 

addition, therefore, it does not contain 

any new or modified ‘‘information 

collection burden for small business 

concerns with fewer than 25 

employees,’’ pursuant to the Small 

Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002, 

Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(4). 

Summary of the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking 

I. Introduction 

1. In this NPRM, the Commission 

seeks comment about how it can 

continue to acquire the information it 

needs to develop and maintain 

appropriate broadband policies. First, 

the NPRM seeks comment about how 

the Commission can best ensure that it 

receives sufficient information about the 

availability and deployment of 

broadband services nationwide, 

particularly in rural and other hard-toserve areas, including tribal lands. 

Second, it seeks comment about how 

the Commission can improve the data 

about wireless broadband Internet 

access services that it currently collects 

on FCC Form 477. Third, it asks 

whether the Commission should modify 

the speed-tier information it currently 

collects. Fourth and finally, it seeks 

comment about how the Commission 

can best collect information about 

subscribership to interconnected voice 

over Internet Protocol (interconnected 

VoIP) service. 

2. The NPRM specifically solicits 

comment about the balance between the 

burden of additional data collection and 

the benefits such information provides. 

II. Background 

3. To date, the Commission has based 

its analysis of nationwide broadband 

deployment on three sources of 

information: data submitted on FCC 

Form 477; public comment submitted in 

response to inquiries undertaken 

pursuant to Section 706(b) of the 

Telecommunications Act of 1996, 

Public Law 104–104; and ancillary 

information gathered by Commission 

staff from publicly available sources. 

The Commission adopted the Form 477 

program in 2000, after concluding that 

the collected information would 

materially improve its ability to 

develop, evaluate, and revise policy 

regarding broadband deployment and 

local telephone service competition, and 

provide valuable benchmarks for 

Congress, the Commission, other policy 

makers, and consumers. Pursuant to the 

broadband portions of the Form 477, 

facilities-based providers of broadband 

connections list, by state, those Zip 

Codes in which they have at least one 

broadband subscriber. Reporting entities 

include incumbent and competitive 

local exchange carriers (LECs), cable 

companies, operators of terrestrial and 

satellite wireless facilities, 

municipalities, and any other facilitiesbased provider of broadband 

connections to end users. 

4. The Commission significantly 

improved the Form 477 in 2004 by 

extending the data collection program 

for five years beyond its original sunset; 

eliminating reporting thresholds which 

effectively exempted small entities from 

reporting requirements; requiring more 

granular reporting of broadband data, 

e.g., about services offered at speeds in 

excess of 200 kbps, about symmetric 

xDSL connections as distinguished from 

T–1/DS1 and other ‘‘traditional 

wireline’’ connections, and about power 

line connections; requiring technologyspecific lists of Zip Codes; requiring 

cable companies to report, by state, the 

extent to which cable modem service is 

available to the households to whom 

they can provide cable TV service, and 

requiring incumbent LECs to report 

comparable information about their DSL 

connections; and adopting various other 

modifications. The Commission 

acknowledged that mobile broadband 

services differ in particular respects 

from fixed broadband services—noting 

that the end user of a mobile wireless 

broadband service must be within a 

mobile wireless broadband service 

coverage area to make use of the service, 

but may move around within and 

among coverage areas—and made 

provisions for such differences in the 

data collection. The Commission 

rejected suggestions to add to the Form 

477 questions specifically about VoIP 

service, noting that only a very small 

portion of local telephone service was 

being provided by entities exclusively 

utilizing VoIP and that LECs may 

already include information about VoIP 

subscribers in their Form 477 filings. 

5. Based in large part on analysis of 

Form 477 data, the Commission’s 

various reports have demonstrated 

significant and steady progress in 

broadband deployment and availability 

nationwide. Reflecting such robust 

deployment statistics, the Commission’s 

Section 706 reports have consistently 

concluded that broadband is being 

deployed nationwide in a reasonable 

and timely fashion. 

6. A report issued by the United 

States Government Accountability 

Office (GAO), Broadband Deployment Is 

Extensive throughout the United States, 

but It Is Difficult to Assess the Extent of 

Deployment Gaps in Rural Areas (May 

2006), reviews the strengths and 

weaknesses of available data about 

broadband availability, including FCC 

Form 477 data. The report concludes 

that, while broadband deployment is 

extensive nationwide, it remains very 

difficult to assess the extent of 

deployment gaps in rural areas. It 

recommends that, in order to develop a 

better understanding of the dynamics of 

broadband deployment and availability 

in rural areas particularly, the 

Commission should ‘‘develop 

information regarding the degree of cost 

and burden that would be associated 

with various options for improving the 

information about broadband 

deployment.’’

7. Mobile wireless services have 

developed rapidly since the 

Commission revised the Form 477 

program in 2004, as nationwide mobile 

telephone operators Verizon Wireless, 

Sprint Nextel, and Cingular, and some 

regional wireless carriers such as Alltel, 

have expanded or initiated their 

deployment of Third Generation (or 

‘‘3G’’) wireless networks based on the 

EV–DO and WCDMA/HSDPA standards. 

8. Interconnected VoIP subscribership 

in the United States also appears to have 

grown rapidly. In a separate proceeding, 

the Commission has explained that the 

growth of interconnected VoIP services 

is one of the changing market conditions 

that are placing under significant strain 

the existing system to preserve and 

advance universal service, which is a 

fundamental goal of communications 

policy in the United States. 

III. Discussion 

9. Notwithstanding the robust 

statistics and the more granular 

broadband data that have been reported 

on FCC Form 477 beginning September 

1, 2005, the Commission continues to 

consider the need to improve its data 

collection, particularly regarding data 

reflecting broadband deployment and 

availability in rural and other hard-toserve areas, and also regarding 

subscribership to new broadbandenabled services such as interconnected 

VoIP service. 

10. Broadband Deployment Data. In 

rural and other hard-to-serve areas, the 

Commission questions whether 

submission of simple Zip Code 

information such as that currently 

required by the Form 477 is sufficient to 

provide a truly accurate picture of the 

state of broadband deployment. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27521 

Wireline broadband service providers 

filing Form 477 are currently required to 

list those Zip Codes where they have at 

least one broadband subscriber. In 

sparsely populated rural Zip Codes this 

could mean that a given provider has 

just one broadband subscriber who is 

located in a small town or at some other 

location convenient to telephone or 

cable facilities. Broadband 

‘‘availability’’ could be non-existent for 

that carrier’s other customers located a 

few blocks or many miles away from 

that single customer. Ideally, 

information would be available about 

the choices that a customer faces on a 

house-by-house and business-bybusiness basis. The NPRM discusses 

several options that might move the 

Commission closer to that ideal. 

11. Wireless Broadband Data. The 

Commission believes it should modify 

the Form 477 reporting instructions for 

wireless broadband providers in certain 

respects and seeks comment on how 

best to do so. 

12. First, the Commission believes 

that it should modify the reporting 

instructions for terrestrial mobile 

wireless providers to solicit data that 

will enable the Commission to 

distinguish among the numbers of 

subscribers to month-to-month or longer 

term broadband Internet access 

packages and casual users. In the 

current Form 477, information about 

numbers and types of broadband 

connections is collected in Part I.A, 

where filers are directed to ‘‘[c]omplete 

Part I.A if you provide one or more lines 

or wireless channels in the state that 

connect end users to the Internet [at 

broadband speed].’’ However, the 

detailed reporting instructions for 

terrestrial mobile wireless providers are 

to ‘‘[r]eport the number of subscribers to 

broadband services provided over 

terrestrial mobile wireless facilities 

* * * .’’ More specifically, the 

instructions are to ‘‘report the number of 

end users whose mobile device, such as 

wireless modem laptop cards, 

smartphones, or handsets, are capable of 

sending or receiving data at speeds in 

excess of 200 kbps * * *.’’ The 

Commission finds that it is currently 

unable to determine from the reported 

data the number of subscribers who 

make regular use of a broadband 

Internet access service as part of their 

mobile service package. Moreover, the 

Commission believes the current 

instructions make it likely that more 

and more mobile voice service 

subscribers will be reported as mobile 

broadband subscribers merely by virtue 

of purchasing a broadband-capable 

handset, rather than a specific Internet 

plan. 

13. The Commission has observed 

that many mobile data services are 

marketed primarily as an add-on to 

mobile voice service. These services 

include mobile data services that enable 

subscribers to send text and multimedia 

messages, download ringtones and 

games, and access other content on 

handsets, as well as mobile data services 

that enable subscribers to browse web 

sites customized for handsets. The 

Commission has discussed how mobile 

service subscribers who wish to browse 

web sites customized for handsets 

generally may choose a month-to-month 

plan that includes such browsing, and 

that some carriers also offer a casual 

usage plan. And the Commission has 

observed that, aside from handset-based 

applications, mobile wireless carriers 

offer month-to-month Internet access 

packages for data users who access the 

Internet through laptop computers or 

certain Personal Digital Assistants 

(‘‘PDAs’’), including mobile wireless 

Internet access packages for wireless 

broadband networks. 

14. Based on these observations about 

various mobile wireless data services, 

the NPRM seeks comment on whether 

the Commission should revise the Form 

477 instructions to require mobile 

wireless providers to report, separately, 

the number of month-to-month (or 

longer term) subscriptions to broadband 

Internet access service designed for 

wireless devices that have their own 

browsers (‘‘full Internet browsing’’ for 

purposes of this NPRM), such as laptop 

computers and PDAs. The NPRM also 

asks whether the Commission should 

require mobile wireless providers to 

report, separately, the number of monthto-month (or longer term) subscriptions 

for broadband-speed browsing of 

customized-for-mobile web sites 

(‘‘mobile web browsing’’ for purposes of 

this NPRM). Further, the NPRM seeks 

comment on whether the Commission 

should require mobile wireless 

providers to report, separately, the 

number of unique mobile voice service 

subscribers who are not month-tomonth (or longer term) subscribers to an 

Internet access service, as discussed 

above, but who nevertheless made any 

news, music, video, or other 

entertainment downloads to the 

subscriber’s handset at broadband speed 

during the month preceding the Form 

477 reporting date (i.e., during June, or 

during December). The NPRM seeks 

specific comment on whether the abovedescribed delineations among types and 

levels of service are appropriate in light 

of market and technological factors. 

Commenters should explain how an 

alternative approach would ensure that 

mobile voice service subscribers will 

not be reported as mobile broadband 

subscribers merely by virtue of 

purchasing a broadband-capable 

handset, rather than a specific Internet 

plan. 

15. The NPRM also seeks comment 

about whether the Commission should 

modify any other parts of the Form 477 

instructions for mobile wireless 

broadband providers. The current 

instructions direct these providers to 

include in their subscriber counts those 

end users ‘‘whose billing addresses are 

within the areas of terrestrial mobile 

wireless broadband availability * * *.’’

The idea behind this instruction is that 

end users should not be reported as 

broadband subscribers if they are not 

generally present in an area where 

mobile broadband service is available. 

While this may become less likely as 

wireless broadband networks are more 

extensively deployed, it appears that 

some voice service subscribers are 

reported as mobile broadband 

subscribers only because they have 

broadband-capable handsets and that 

this may include persons who do not 

reside (or work) where mobile 

broadband is available. However, the 

billing address for some business end 

users may not indicate where the 

broadband Internet access service is 

primarily used, i.e., if a single corporate 

address is the billing address for 

subscriptions used by employees 

working in various areas. Therefore, the 

NPRM invites comments on how this 

particular instruction might be 

improved, while keeping in mind that 

the Commission does not want to count, 

as broadband subscribers, mobile voice 

service subscribers who have purchased 

a broadband-capable handset but not an 

Internet plan. 

16. The NPRM also seeks comment 

about how the Commission could 

improve the Form 477 instructions for 

reporting the percentage of mobile 

wireless broadband subscribers who are 

residential end users. Experience with 

the current Form 477 suggests that 

mobile wireless broadband providers 

are not using comparable methodologies 

to estimate the residential percentage. In 

the latest aggregated Form 477 data, 

about 11 percent of mobile wireless 

broadband subscribers are reported as 

residential. This percentage may be low, 

since broadband-capable handsets are 

widely available and appear to be an 

increasingly popular consumer product. 

Therefore, the NPRM seeks comment on 

whether the Commission should modify 

the instructions for mobile wireless 

broadband providers to require that they 

report, as residential subscribers, all 

subscriptions that are not billed to a 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27522 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

corporate customer account, to a noncorporate business customer account, or 

to a government or institutional 

account. Would this modification result 

in more accurate estimates of residential 

end users than the Commission 

currently receives? Are there different 

modifications to the current reporting 

instructions that would yield even 

better estimates? Or, instead, should the 

Commission explicitly require providers 

to undertake special studies for this 

purpose? 

17. Regarding wireless broadband 

Internet access services more generally, 

the NPRM invites comment in three 

areas. First, it asks whether, and how, 

the Commission could modify our Form 

477 instructions to collect useful 

information about households and 

businesses who subscribe to 

commercially deployed community 

Wi-Fi broadband Internet access service, 

for primary use at the subscriber’s 

residence or business location. Second, 

it specifically invites comment on 

whether the Commission should add a 

terrestrial portable (or nomadic) 

wireless broadband technology category 

to the Form 477. Adding this technology 

category could provide the Commission 

with an improved ability to monitor the 

development of terrestrial wireless 

broadband services, including services 

over WiMax infrastructures, which need 

not be used on a fixed basis but cannot 

be used while traveling at high speeds 

with signal handoff. Third, it seeks 

comment on whether the Commission 

needs to clarify how the Form 477 

instructions apply to satellite broadband 

capabilities provided by carriers to 

enterprise customers who operate their 

own corporate networks. 

18. Speed Tiers. The NPRM seeks 

comment on whether the Commission 

should refine the speed-tier information 

currently collected on Form 477 by 

splitting into two tiers the speed tier 

defined by information transfer rates 

greater than 200 kbps and less than 2.5 

mbps. Specifically, would be 

appropriate to define the lower of the 

resulting two tiers by information 

transfer rates greater than 200 kbps and 

less than 1.0 mbps? 

19. The NPRM asks whether the 

Commission should develop a higher or 

more varied measurement of broadband 

speed in the Form 477 program. Do the 

current speed-tier definitions enable the 

Commission to understand the evolving 

dynamics of the broadband marketplace 

as providers offer faster and faster 

connections? Would the Commission’s 

understanding of the rapidly evolving 

broadband marketplace be enhanced if 

it raised the current minimum threshold 

for reporting the speed-tier information 

specified on Form 477 (i.e., greater than 

200 kbps in both directions)? More 

generally, should the Commission’s 

definition of broadband allow different 

upstream and downstream speeds? The 

NPRM also asks if the Commission 

should raise the current minimum 

threshold for reporting any connections 

on the Form 477 (i.e., greater than 200 

kbps in at least one direction, which is 

generally ‘‘downstream’’ to the end 

user)? Do services with downstream 

connection speeds only slightly greater 

than 200 kbps continue to be an 

important stepping stone for broadband 

adoption by households, including 

households in rural and other hard-toserve areas? 

20. The NPRM seeks comment on 

whether and how the Commission could 

establish a system whereby the Form 

477 speed tiers would be automatically 

adjusted upwards over time to reflect 

technological advances. What 

information would the Commission 

need to design a meaningful system? 

Would the bandwidth requirements of 

particular services and applications 

provide useful guidance? The NPRM 

specifically invites comment on the 

extent to which there is general industry 

agreement on the bandwidth 

requirements of such regularly cited 

applications as distance learning, 

telemedicine, downloading of movies, 

latency-sensitive video services, and 

high definition TV. How should the 

Commission account for differences in 

the bandwidth requirements of 

particular applications across different 

delivery platforms (e.g., high definition 

TV requires about half of a 6 MHz 

channel on a cable system using 264 

QAM modulation and MPEG–2 

compression encoding, but about half 

that bandwidth when MPEG–4 encoding 

is used)? 

21. The NPRM asks whether 

broadband providers are placing their 

reported broadband connections into 

speed tiers in a consistent manner. It 

seeks comment on industry practices for 

matching advertised ‘‘up to’’ speeds 

with probable customer experience. The 

Commission also wishes to refresh the 

record on whether the Commission 

effectively could modify the Form 477 

reporting instructions to require filers to 

categorize broadband connections by 

the download and upload speeds 

experienced by actual customers rather 

than the theoretical maximum that a 

given network can support or the 

particular service configuration allow. 

Are there existing, administratively 

workable industry standards or 

practices for measuring typical or actual 

speeds delivered to end users? 

22. Interconnected VoIP 

Subscribership Data. At present, only 

some LECs include interconnected VoIP 

subscribers in the local telephone 

service information they report on Form 

477. Interconnected VoIP service 

providers who are not LECs are not 

required to file Form 477. Therefore, the 

NPRM invites comment on how the 

Commission could modify the Form 477 

to collect useful information about the 

number of interconnected VoIP service 

subscribers in service in the least 

burdensome manner. It specifically 

invites comment on whether collecting 

the following state-level information, 

from all retail and wholesale providers 

of interconnected VoIP service, would 

yield sufficient information for us to 

track deployment and adoption of VoIP 

service across the nation. The NPRM 

proposes requiring all retailers of 

interconnected VoIP service to report: 

(1) The number of interconnected VoIP 

subscribers in service for whom the filer 

is the service retailer, (2) the percentage 

of retail interconnected VoIP subscribers 

who are residential, as opposed to 

business, end users, and (3) the 

percentage of retail interconnected VoIP 

subscribers who receive that service 

over a broadband connection provided 

by the filer (or by the filer’s affiliate). 

The NPRM also proposes requiring 

wholesalers of interconnected service to 

report the number of interconnected 

VoIP service subscribers the filer serves 

on a wholesale basis. 

23. Proposals for Refining 

Commission Analysis of Broadband 

Deployment and Availability. The 

NPRM discusses several possible 

methods for increasing the 

Commission’s understanding of 

broadband deployment and availability. 

Some approaches for increasing our 

understanding of broadband 

deployment place little or no additional 

burdens on data filers but may yield 

commensurately modest analytic 

benefits. Other approaches could yield a 

more detailed and dynamic 

understanding of broadband 

deployment, some of which could prove 

to be costly to data reporters or 

impractical. The NPRM seeks comment 

about whether, and how, data filers 

should be required to report information 

about the prices at which they offer 

broadband services. It seeks comment 

about the technical feasibility, costs and 

benefits of each of the approaches 

discussed below. In order to 

appropriately analyze the costs and 

benefits of each approach/proposal, the 

Commission seeks evidence that 

quantifies the costs of each alternative, 

including initial set up costs, recurring 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27523 

direct costs and reasonably attributable 

indirect costs. Commenters should 

identify all costs with as much precision 

as they can and should identify and 

analyze the potential benefits that each 

approach yields. The Commission also 

invites commenters to suggest and to 

explain in detail alternative methods of 

data collection beyond those identified 

herein. 

24. The Commission concluded in 

2004 that the benefits to the 

policymaking process that derive from 

requiring all filers—including smaller 

entities that serve sparse populations 

over wide geographical areas—to report 

the same data outweigh the reporting 

burdens on new Form 477 filers (i.e., 

entities required to file Form 477 once 

mandatory reporting thresholds were 

eliminated). The Commission 

recognized, however, the particular 

concerns about the reporting burdens of 

some smaller carriers, and consequently 

decided not to pursue at that time 

certain options similar to options about 

which this NPRM seeks comment. 

Therefore, this NPRM seeks comment on 

whether, if the Commission requires the 

submission of additional information, it 

should require all filers to report those 

data. The NPRM also invites comment 

on ways to mitigate the burden on 

smaller filers short of implementing 

reporting thresholds or other 

exemptions. 

25. Additional Analysis of Current 

Broadband Subscribership Data. The 

NPRM first asks whether the 

Commission could more closely analyze 

the broadband subscribership data it 

currently collects to identify more 

precisely the areas where broadband is 

not available, particularly to 

households. For example, currently 

available data suggest that about 12 

percent of 5-digit geographical Zip 

Codes have no providers of primarily 

residential, wired high-speed Internet 

access services delivered over ‘‘last 

mile’’ facilities the provider primarily 

owns. These Zip Codes contain about 2 

percent of the U.S. population. Should 

the Commission simply identify such 

areas for further, individual study? For 

these identified areas, should it analyze 

the full range of competitive choices 

including deployed broadband 

infrastructure, service offerings in the 

marketplace, and service offering 

prices? How should the Commission 

conduct such studies? Do existing data 

sources available to the Commission, 

including the Form 477 data, allow it to 

study the needs of discrete communities 

of users, for example, Native Americans 

on tribal lands? Are there better and 

more fruitful ways to frame questions 

about Form 477 data in the context of 

particular technologies utilized by 

broadband providers, for example, 

providers using satellite technology? 

26. As the Commission considers the 

possible need for additional data, it 

remains vigilant for ways to use the data 

it has currently as effectively as 

possible. GAO worked with a state 

broadband alliance (ConnectKentucky) 

to use their data to troubleshoot Form 

477 data regarding broadband 

availability in Kentucky. Based on its 

comparison analysis, GAO concluded 

that the Form 477 data ‘‘may overstate 

the availability and competitive 

deployment of nonsatellite broadband.’’

Should the Commission explore 

collaborations, such as the one between 

GAO and ConnectKentucky, to 

troubleshoot its own data or to prepare 

discrete state or region-specific reports? 

How feasible is this given related costs 

and company concerns about sharing 

confidential information with private/ 

commercial third parties? Would 

information developed by collaboration 

with various third parties be consistent? 

Which states have public-private 

economic development or other 

initiatives that have developed 

comprehensive localized information 

about broadband availability? Where 

such information exists, can it be shared 

with the Commission? Where such 

information does not exist, are there 

plans to develop it? For example, might 

the ConnectKentucky approach be 

readily adaptable in other states? In 

sum, the NPRM invites comment 

regarding methods of analyzing 

currently available data that could 

provide better or more focused insights 

into the dynamics of broadband 

deployment and availability nationwide 

or in particular geographic regions, in 

connection with specific technologies, 

or with regards to the needs of discrete 

communities of users. 

27. The NPRM seeks comment on 

ways to better utilize Zip Code data 

currently submitted by Form 477 filers. 

Would requiring filers to submit 

customer counts along with Zip Code 

lists facilitate better analysis of 

broadband availability/deployment in 

specific Zip Codes? The Commission is 

skeptical that analysis of customer totals 

submitted at the 5-digit level of 

aggregation could significantly increase 

our understanding of the dynamics of 

broadband availability and deployment, 

i.e., because any methodology based on 

a 5-digit Zip Code aggregation will 

continue to yield results that do not 

accurately depict broadband availability 

in particular, localized areas within a 

Zip Code. Nevertheless, the NPRM seeks 

comment on whether such an approach 

could be fruitful. In particular, the 

Commission seeks detailed comment 

regarding the costs as well as the 

benefits of such an approach. It asks 

commenting providers to provide 

projected costs and related analysis at a 

level of detail sufficient to support their 

assertions, as well as other relevant 

information. For example, what steps 

would providers have to implement to 

furnish this information per available 

network/system technology and 

personnel and other resources? Do the 

characteristics of particular technologies 

make counting subscribers by Zip Code 

problematic and, if so, are there useful 

substitute approaches for those 

technologies? The NPRM asks 

commenters to estimate separately the 

cost for an initial collection, which 

would presumably entail certain startup costs, and the cost of subsequent 

collections, which might be able to 

realize certain efficiencies. 

28. The NPRM invites comment on 

whether the Commission should require 

all broadband providers to report the 

number of residential customers served 

(in place of the current requirement to 

report the percentage of total broadband 

connections in service that are 

residential connections) and also the 

number of homes ‘‘passed’’ by their 

broadband-enabled infrastructure. 

Collecting both the number of 

residential customers served and the 

number of homes passed by each Form 

477 filer’s broadband-enabled 

infrastructure could enable the 

Commission to calculate and compare 

consumer broadband uptake figures 

(i.e., the ratio between adoption and 

availability). The NPRM seeks specific 

comment on how ‘‘passing’’ should be 

defined for this purpose, for each of the 

broadband technologies specified in the 

current Form 477, to enable us 

meaningfully to compare consumer 

uptake figures. 

29. The NPRM asks generally whether 

there are other ways in which the 

Commission could make better use of 

the broadband data it currently collects 

on Form 477. For example, the 

semiannual report based on the Form 

477 data includes tables showing how 

broadband Internet subscribership 

varies among 5-digit geographical Zip 

Codes based on population density and 

household incomes. The Commission is 

able to develop these tables because a 

commercial vendor has translated 

Census Bureau data (which is not 

collected by Zip Code) into Zip Codelevel data for those particular variables 

(i.e., population density and income). 

The NPRM invites commenters to 

identify, with specificity, comparable 

commercial products that translate, to 

the Zip Code level, Census Bureau 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27524 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

information about household education, 

race (including tribal lands), or 

disability status, so that the Commission 

might include in its semiannual report 

tables showing how broadband Internet 

subscribership varies among Zip Codes 

based on these demographic variables. 

30. The NPRM also invites comment 

on whether the Commission’s 

semiannual report should include 

figures about international broadband 

adoption, prices, or other measures that 

are developed by the Organization for 

Economic Cooperation and 

Development (OECD) or the 

International Telecommunications 

Union (ITU). It asks for comment about 

which such figures the Commission 

should include. Ideally, any such 

figures will be published regularly and 

will be based on comparable definitions, 

measurement standards, and reporting 

practices. The NPRM asks, in particular, 

if a regularly published, reliably 

comparable figure is available on the 

cost per bit in leading industrial nations 

(for both residential and business 

customers). More generally, how could 

the Commission conduct a regular 

analysis of broadband policies in other 

nations and how their regulatory 

policies have played out? The NPRM 

seeks specific comment on whether and 

how the Commission should present 

such an analysis, e.g., either in its 

semiannual report or the less frequent 

Section 706 report. 

31. Subscribers per 9-digit Zip Code. 

The NPRM seeks comment about 

whether the Commission should require 

Form 477 data filers to submit 9-digit 

Zip Codes and associated customer 

counts. A 9-digit level of geographic 

aggregation coupled with such customer 

information could provide more 

granular information about deployment 

than 5-digit information. Nevertheless, 

associated costs could be greater. The 

NPRM asks, specifically, whether 

current Form 477 filers, including any 

of their affiliates, or their marketing 

partners or agents maintain information 

about the end-user termination locations 

(e.g., service addresses) of wired and 

fixed wireless broadband connections 

that includes the 9-digit Zip Codes of 

those locations—particularly 

information about residential end-user 

termination locations. If not, do Form 

477 filers maintain billing address 

information at the 9-digit Zip Code 

level, and would such data be a 

sufficiently accurate proxy for service 

location? Do Form 477 filers typically 

maintain any other types of information 

that could be used to identify the 9-digit 

Zip Codes of end-user termination 

locations? The NPRM asks commenters 

to undertake the same kind of cost/ 

benefit analysis regarding 9-digit Zip 

Code data as discussed in the previous 

paragraphs, i.e., by discussing costs 

associated with implementation and 

associated potential benefits. It also 

seeks comment about whether there is 

significant value associated with simply 

requiring data filers to report lists of 9- 

digit Zip Codes where they have at least 

one customer, but without requiring 

associated customer counts by Zip 

Code. 

32. Purchase of Commercial 

Databases or Services. The NPRM seeks 

specific comment regarding the 

availability of commercial sources of 

broadband deployment data or dataprocessing programs that could augment 

or otherwise add value to the 

Commission’s use of Form 477 data, or 

reduce the associated costs and other 

burdens imposed on reporting 

providers. What existing databases 

could the Commission combine 

productively with the current Form 477 

data? Are such databases accurate, 

current, and national in scope? The 

NPRM asks, specifically, whether the 

online-search software, and associated 

databases, that many broadband 

providers have developed to allow 

households to check whether broadband 

service is available at their home 

telephone number, street address, or Zip 

Code can readily be adapted to provide 

localized broadband deployment 

information. Do data-processing or 

consulting companies exist whose 

operations or services could add value, 

or diminish associated collection 

burdens? For example, if (as discussed 

below) the Commission decides to 

require additional Zip Code information 

(9-digit codes) or subscriber information 

per Zip Code in connection with the 

current Form 477 program, would it be 

feasible and/or desirable for a dataprocessing company, rather than the 

provider itself, to add 5-digit or 9-digit 

Zip Codes to subscriber lists, and to 

identify the number of subscribers per 

Zip Code? Would there be economies of 

scope and scale to a region- or 

nationwide contract that would make 

such private assistance affordable to 

providers? Would such an approach 

raise special concerns about 

confidentially-submitted company 

information or consumer privacy, and 

how could such concerns be addressed? 

As the Commission seeks to understand 

more clearly the cost to providers of 

gathering and reporting additional 

broadband data, should it also explore 

engaging commercial data processors to 

conduct sample surveys and report 

sample information? Commenters are 

encouraged to carefully consider such 

approaches to current data 

augmentation as well as ways to reduce 

associated burdens. 

33. Geocoded Information about 

Subscriber Locations. The NPRM also 

seeks comment about non-Zip Code 

based approaches to using subscriberbased information to more precisely 

identify the geographic areas where 

broadband is deployed, such as 

requiring providers to report geocoded 

information (e.g., latitude and 

longitude) for the premises of their 

subscribers. Requiring subscriber counts 

by Zip Code could prove to be the least 

costly and most feasible change to our 

Form 477 data collection, i.e., to most 

efficiently produce additional 

information that would materially 

advance the Commission’s 

understanding of broadband 

availability. Are there other, more exact 

and accurate means of attaining that 

goal? How would such a method of data 

collection operate? The NPRM 

encourages suggestions from 

commenters that envision a non-Zip 

Code based approach to data collection, 

particularly alternatives that would 

yield data that is at least as granular as 

9-digit Zip Code data augmented with 

customer counts by Zip Code. 

34. Develop Automated System of 

Voluntary Reporting by Non-served 

Households. The NPRM also seeks 

comment about the feasibility and value 

of implementing a voluntary selfreporting system by non-served 

households, patterned after the National 

Do-Not-Call Registry. Under this 

proposal, non-served households could 

identify themselves at a Commissionmaintained electronic bulletin board 

(web page address) and/or telephone 

number call-in address where they 

would provide the limited information, 

e.g., home address with (preferably 9- 

digit) Zip Code, and the wired or fixed 

wireless telephone number at that 

particular location, that is needed to 

identify the particular non-served 

location. Would such a system be an 

effective and efficient way to identify 

localized areas where broadband 

services are not available? Would the 

reported information be accurate or, for 

example, might potential subscribers 

not be aware of all broadband options 

available to them? Would such a system 

in fact enable the Commission and other 

governmental entities to focus (limited) 

government resources to encourage 

broadband availability more efficiently, 

i.e., by targeting areas where there is 

evidence of actual demand for 

broadband services? The NPRM seeks 

comment on the costs and potential 

benefits of such a proposal. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27525 

35. Broadband-enabled Service 

Territory Report by Provider. Each of the 

previously discussed approaches relies 

on broadband subscription as a proxy 

for broadband availability. The 

approaches assume that, in Zip Codes 

where none or very few of the residents 

subscribe to broadband services, such 

services are unavailable, and vice versa. 

As GAO has found, while broadband 

infrastructure deployment is extensive, 

information about where subscribers are 

served may not depict with a high 

degree of accuracy the local deployment 

of broadband, especially in rural areas. 

Alternatively, the Commission could 

require data filers to report information 

about their customers and the 

broadband-enabled service territory—

i.e., the specific geographic area, which 

might include only parts of particular 

Zip Codes—where they offer and/or 

currently deploy broadband services, 

particularly residential services. By 

collecting and studying such data 

comparatively, the Commission could 

arrive at a far clearer understanding of 

the actual dynamics of broadband 

availability in discrete geographic areas 

and to different communities of users. 

The NPRM seeks comment about the 

need for and feasibility of requiring 

broadband providers to report 

information that delineates in detail the 

boundaries of their broadband-enabled 

service territories. What methodologies 

are available for developing such 

information? What requirements would 

the Commission need to specify to 

ensure that providers apply a 

methodology with enough uniformity to 

yield useful information? Terrestrial 

mobile wireless broadband service 

providers are currently required to 

report Zip Codes that best represent 

their coverage areas. Does this standard 

yield a sufficient level of detail about 

the deployment of those services? Are 

there alternate or additional reporting 

requirements that would provide more 

useful data on mobile wireless 

broadband deployment without 

imposing an undue burden on the 

providers? The NPRM asks commenters 

to undertake the same kind of cost/ 

benefit analysis discussed earlier with 

respect to 5-digit and/or 9-digit Zip 

Code information, i.e., by discussing 

costs associated with implementation 

and associated potential benefits. 

36. While, at present, precise 

information about the boundaries of the 

localized areas where broadband is 

generally available might be difficult for 

certain broadband providers to gauge, 

results achieved by broadband mapping 

initiatives such as those in Kentucky 

and Wyoming suggest that the 

difficulties are not insurmountable. For 

example, municipal cable systems and 

the Kentucky Cable 

Telecommunications Association 

(KCTA) are working with 

ConnectKentucky to map in fine detail 

(e.g., street-by-street, and sometimes 

block-by-block) the boundaries of the 

areas where cable modem broadband is 

available. The Kentucky mapping 

initiative has identified localized areas 

of DSL broadband availability by 

obtaining, from at least some carriers, 

detailed location information (i.e., 

latitude and longitude) for the carrier’s 

DSL-enabled wire centers and remote 

terminals, and assuming that DSL 

service is available within a 13,200-foot 

(2.5-mile) radius around the DSLenabled equipment. The Kentucky 

initiative has also collected detailed 

facilities information (e.g., latitude and 

longitude of towers, type of antenna 

technology, whether coverage is omnidirectional or partial) from at least some 

commercial providers of wireless 

broadband service. Therefore, the 

Kentucky experience suggests that 

providers can delineate their areas of 

broadband deployment at much finer 

levels of detail than the Zip Code based 

data now collected on Form 477. The 

Commission is also aware that, in 

localized areas where broadband is 

generally available, site-specific factors 

may impede availability to individual 

households. What steps, if any, should 

the Commission take to enable 

providers to report broadband 

availability, not by subscriber proxy but 

by actual territory served (e.g., a data 

collection or mapping system)? 

37. The NPRM invites comment on 

whether this approach is feasible for 

tribal lands and how it could most 

effectively be implemented on tribal 

lands. As GAO found in its report 

Challenges to Assessing and Improving 

Telecommunications for Native 

Americans on Tribal Lands (January 

2006), subscribership to Internet-access 

services (of any speed) by Native 

American households on tribal lands is 

unknown because no federal survey has 

been designed to track this information. 

As GAO also found, the Commission’s 

Form 477 data cannot be used to 

determine the number of residential 

Internet subscribers on tribal lands. The 

NPRM seeks specific comment on how 

the Commission can best measure 

broadband deployment/availability and 

adoption on tribal lands. 

38. Other Alternatives. The NPRM 

asks whether there are other alternatives 

the Commission can explore to better 

identify the extent of broadband 

deployment in rural areas and tribal 

lands across the nation. 

39. Extrapolating Nationwide 

Competitive Conditions from Conditions 

in Representative Areas. The NPRM 

invites comment on whether, even if 

more granular data cannot reasonably be 

collected across the entire country, it 

would be appropriate and feasible for 

the Commission to develop more 

accurate estimates of the competitive 

choices in representative urban, 

metropolitan, exurban, low-income, 

tribal, and rural areas and then use 

weighted extrapolation techniques to get 

a picture of nationwide competitive 

conditions. It asks whether detailed 

infrastructure deployment maps for 

representative areas could be developed, 

based on the location of municipal 

cable-system facilities and local 

exchange carrier DSLAMs, which would 

give a house-by-house picture of where 

those broadband infrastructures are 

deployed. 

40. The NPRM seeks comment on 

whether the Commission should collect 

key demographic information (e.g., 

income, education, race (including 

tribal status), and disability status) 

about households located in those parts 

of the representative areas in which 

cable modem or DSL infrastructures 

have been deployed, to illustrate the 

relationship between these factors and 

broadband adoption. Which 

demographic variables should the 

Commission measure? Does conducting 

meaningful analysis require 

demographic information about 

individual households? If it does, could 

the cable system and/or DSL service 

provider in the representative area 

provide that information? Alternatively, 

could the Commission effectively use 

publicly available Census Bureau 

detailed demographic information 

(which would not identify individual 

households)? In general, are there public 

sources of detailed demographic 

information for representative areas? 

Commenters who are aware of such 

sources should identify them with 

specificity and explain why they are 

appropriate to use. 

41. The NPRM asks if the Commission 

should also collect income, education, 

and other demographic information 

about households located in the parts of 

the representative areas where 

broadband infrastructures have not been 

deployed, to illustrate the relationship 

between these factors and broadband 

deployment. Which demographic 

variables should the Commission 

measure? Could the cable system and 

DSL service provider (or the local 

exchange carrier, if DSL infrastructure 

has not been deployed) provide that 

information? Would it be more cost 

effective or appropriate to use 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27526 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

demographic information that is 

publicly available from the Census 

Bureau (which does not identify 

individual households)? Are there 

publicly available commercial sources 

of geographically detailed demographic 

data that the Commission could use? 

The NPRM asks commenters to identify 

such sources with specificity and to 

explain why they are appropriate to use. 

42. The NPRM asks whether 

collecting detailed information about 

deployment of two broadband 

technologies (i.e., cable modem and 

DSL) would be sufficient to inform 

broadband policy making. Are there any 

other broadband technologies for which 

it is feasible to develop a house-byhouse picture of infrastructure 

deployment and key household 

demographic variables (e.g., income, 

education, race (including tribal status), 

and disability status) in representative 

areas? 

43. The NPRM invites specific 

comment on how the Commission 

should identify particular areas as 

representative areas, to ensure that 

weighted extrapolation techniques will 

provide a statistically accurate picture 

of nationwide competitive conditions. Is 

there at this time a known set of such 

representative areas? If not, what is the 

Census Bureau or other source of data 

that can be used to select specific areas 

to represent urban, metropolitan, 

exurban, low-income, tribal, and rural 

areas, respectively? The NPRM asks 

commenters to identify that data source, 

or sources, with specificity and to 

explain why the source is appropriate to 

use. Should the extent of broadband 

deployment in an area be taken into 

account in selecting the representative 

areas? If so, how should it be taken into 

account? As noted above, there is a 

detailed broadband deployment 

mapping initiative underway in 

Kentucky. While there are no tribal 

lands in Kentucky, would it be 

appropriate for the Commission to select 

Kentucky areas to represent each of the 

other types of areas (i.e., urban, 

metropolitan, exurban, low-income, and 

rural)? 

44. The NPRM asks for comment 

about how to select a representative area 

for tribal lands, in particular. As GAO 

has found, tribal lands vary dramatically 

in size, demographics, and location. 

GAO conducted interviews with 26 

tribes and 12 Alaska regional native 

nonprofit organizations and visited 6 of 

the tribes that have taken action to 

improve their telecommunications. The 

NPRM seeks comment on whether, and 

why, a particular one of the six tribes 

would be an appropriate choice for the 

representative tribal lands area. 

45. Price, Broadband Availability, and 

Consumer Uptake. The NPRM seeks 

comment on whether and how the 

Commission could collect price 

information that depicts competitive 

choice in representative areas. Would it 

be sufficient to collect price information 

only for cable modem and DSL service 

options? If so, should the Commission 

collect price information for the full 

range of cable modem and DSL service 

options in the representative areas? How 

should it treat the prices of introductory 

offers and bundled services? Should it 

calculate separate representative prices 

for residential and non-residential 

service offerings? How should it treat 

service offerings that appear both in 

advertisements for residential services 

and in advertisements for business 

services? 

46. The NPRM also asks whether the 

Commission should modify Form 477 to 

collect price information from all 

entities that report broadband 

connections. What price information 

should it collect? Should it collect the 

price information at the Zip Code, state, 

regional, or national level? What would 

be an appropriate way to define a region 

for this purpose? Should the 

Commission require filers to estimate 

and report the cost of residential 

broadband services measured as price 

per bit? 

47. The NPRM seeks specific 

comment on whether and how the 

Commission could provide a deeper 

understanding of the market for 

broadband services by collecting price 

information and comparing it to 

consumer uptake of broadband (i.e., the 

ratio between adoption and 

deployment). Commenters should 

address how non-price variables found 

to be correlated with consumer 

broadband uptake (e.g., income, 

education, race (including tribal lands), 

and disability status) should be 

incorporated into the comparison. 

Procedural Matters 

Ex Parte Rules. This matter shall be 

treated as a ‘‘permit-but-disclose’’

proceeding in accordance with the 

Commission’s ex parte rules. 47 CFR 

1.1200 et seq. Persons making oral ex 

parte presentations are reminded that 

memoranda summarizing the 

presentations must contain summaries 

of the substance of the presentations 

and not merely a listing of the subjects 

discussed. More than a one- or twosentence description of the views and 

arguments presented generally is 

required. 47 CFR 1.1206(b)(2). Other 

requirements pertaining to oral and 

written presentations are set forth in 

Section 1.1206(b) of the Commission’s 

rules. 47 CFR 1.1206(b). 

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

1. As required by the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended 

(RFA), the Commission has prepared the 

present Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (IRFA) of the possible 

significant economic impact on small 

entities that might result from today’s 

NPRM. Written public comments are 

requested on this IRFA. Comments must 

be identified as responses to the IRFA 

and must be filed by the deadlines for 

comments on the NPRM provided 

above. The Commission will send a 

copy of the NPRM, including this IRFA, 

to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration. In 

addition, the NPRM and IRFA (or 

summaries thereof) will be published in 

the Federal Register. 

A. Need for, and Objectives of, the 

Proposed Rules 

2. In the NPRM, the Commission 

seeks comment on various proposals 

that would deepen and refine its current 

understanding of broadband availability 

and deployment and its understanding 

of end user adoption of relatively new 

broadband-enabled services such as 

interconnected VoIP service. The 

Commission believes that a better 

understanding would assist it to adopt 

policies to promote the deployment of 

broadband services. At the same time, it 

recognizes that certain methods of 

collecting more precise data might 

impose burdens on small entities, and 

invites comment on ways to mitigate 

burdens on smaller entities. In this 

regard, the NPRM proposes many 

methods for collecting further data and 

analyzing current data that would 

impose little or no burden on small 

entities whatsoever. 

B. Legal Basis 

3. The legal basis for any action that 

may be taken pursuant to the NPRM is 

contained in Sections 1–5, 10, 11, 201–

205, 215, 218–220, 251–271, 303(r), 332, 

403, 502, and 503 of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 151–155, 160, 161, 

201–205, 215, 218–220, 251–271, 303(r), 

332, 403, 502, and 503, and Section 706 

of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, 

47 U.S.C. 157 nt. 

C. Description and Estimate of the 

Number of Small Entities to Which the 

Proposed Rules May Apply 

4. The RFA directs agencies to 

provide a description of, and, where 

feasible, an estimate of, the number of 

small entities that may be affected by 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27527 

the proposed rules. The RFA generally 

defines the term ‘‘small entity’’ as 

having the same meaning as the terms 

‘‘small business,’’ ‘‘small organization,’’

and ‘‘small governmental jurisdiction.’’

In addition, the term ‘‘small business’’

has the same meaning as the term 

‘‘small business concern’’ under the 

Small Business Act. A ‘‘small business 

concern’’ is one which: (1) Is 

independently owned and operated; (2) 

is not dominant in its field of operation; 

and (3) satisfies any additional criteria 

established by the Small Business 

Administration (SBA). As discussed in 

sections D and E below, many of the 

proposals contained in the NPRM would 

not impose any burden whatsoever on 

small entities. However, to the extent 

that other proposals contained in the 

NPRM might impact small entities, 

those possible entities are listed below. 

The Commission has perhaps been 

overbroad in the list of entities directly 

affected, below, in an effort to encourage 

comment. 

5. As noted above, in addition to 

covering small businesses, the RFA 

covers small organizations. A ‘‘small 

organization’’ is generally ‘‘any not-forprofit enterprise which is independently 

owned and operated and is not 

dominant in its field.’’ Nationwide, as of 

2002, there were approximately 1.6 

million small organizations. The term 

‘‘small governmental jurisdiction’’ is 

defined generally as ‘‘governments of 

cities, towns, townships, villages, 

school districts, or special districts, with 

a population of less than fifty 

thousand.’’ Census Bureau data for 2002 

indicate that there were 87,525 local 

governmental jurisdictions in the 

United States. We estimate that, of this 

total, 84,377 entities were ‘‘small 

governmental jurisdictions.’’ Thus, we 

estimate that most governmental 

jurisdictions are small. 

6. The most reliable source of 

information regarding the total numbers 

of certain common carrier and related 

providers nationwide, as well as the 

number of commercial wireless entities, 

is the data that the Commission 

publishes in its Trends in Telephone 

Service report. The SBA has developed 

small business size standards for 

wireline and wireless small businesses 

within the three commercial census 

categories of Wired 

Telecommunications Carriers, Paging, 

and Cellular and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications. Under these 

categories, a business is small if it has 

1,500 or fewer employees. Below, using 

the above size standards and others, we 

discuss the total estimated numbers of 

small businesses that might be affected 

by our actions. 

7. We have included small incumbent 

local exchange carriers (LECs) in this 

present RFA analysis. As noted above, 

a ‘‘small business’’ under the RFA is one 

that, inter alia, meets the pertinent 

small business size standard (e.g., a 

telephone communications business 

having 1,500 or fewer employees), and 

‘‘is not dominant in its field of 

operation.’’ The SBA’s Office of 

Advocacy contends that, for RFA 

purposes, small incumbent LECs are not 

dominant in their field of operation 

because any such dominance is not 

‘‘national’’ in scope. We have therefore 

included small incumbent LECs in this 

RFA analysis, although we emphasize 

that this RFA action has no effect on 

Commission analyses and 

determinations in other, non-RFA 

contexts. 

8. Wireline Carriers and Service 

Providers. We have included small 

incumbent local exchange carriers in 

this present RFA analysis. As noted 

above, a ‘‘small business’’ under the 

RFA is one that, inter alia, meets the 

pertinent small business size standard 

(e.g., a telephone communications 

business having 1,500 or fewer 

employees), and ‘‘is not dominant in its 

field of operation.’’ The SBA’s Office of 

Advocacy contends that, for RFA 

purposes, small incumbent local 

exchange carriers are not dominant in 

their field of operation because any such 

dominance is not ‘‘national’’ in scope. 

We have therefore included small 

incumbent local exchange carriers in 

this RFA analysis, although we 

emphasize that this RFA action has no 

effect on Commission analyses and 

determinations in other, non-RFA 

contexts. 

9. Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers 

(ILECs). Neither the Commission nor the 

SBA has developed a size standard for 

small businesses specifically applicable 

to incumbent local exchange services. 

The closest applicable size standard 

under SBA rules is for Wired 

Telecommunications Carriers. Under 

that size standard, such a business is 

small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

According to Commission data, 1,307 

carriers reported that they were engaged 

in the provision of local exchange 

services. Of these 1,307 carriers, an 

estimated 1,019 have 1,500 or fewer 

employees and 288 have more than 

1,500 employees. Consequently, the 

Commission estimates that most 

providers of incumbent local exchange 

service are small businesses that may be 

affected by our action. 

10. Competitive Local Exchange 

Carriers (CLECs), Competitive Access 

Providers (CAPs), ‘‘Shared-Tenant 

Service Providers,’’ and ‘‘Other Local 

Service Providers.’’ Neither the 

Commission nor the SBA has developed 

a small business size standard 

specifically for these service providers. 

The appropriate size standard under 

SBA rules is for the category Wired 

Telecommunications Carriers. Under 

that size standard, such a business is 

small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

According to Commission data, 859 

carriers reported that they were engaged 

in the provision of either competitive 

local exchange carrier or competitive 

access provider services. Of these 859 

carriers, an estimated 741 have 1,500 or 

fewer employees and 118 have more 

than 1,500 employees. In addition, 16 

carriers have reported that they are 

‘‘Shared-Tenant Service Providers,’’ and 

all 16 are estimated to have 1,500 or 

fewer employees. In addition, 44 

carriers have reported that they are 

‘‘Other Local Service Providers.’’ Of the 

44, an estimated 43 have 1,500 or fewer 

employees and one has more than 1,500 

employees. Consequently, the 

Commission estimates that most 

providers of competitive local exchange 

service, competitive access providers, 

‘‘Shared-Tenant Service Providers,’’ and 

‘‘Other Local Service Providers’’ are 

small entities that may be affected by 

our action. 

11. Local Resellers. The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard for the category of 

Telecommunications Resellers. Under 

that size standard, such a business is 

small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

According to Commission data, 184 

carriers have reported that they are 

engaged in the provision of local resale 

services. Of these, an estimated 181 

have 1,500 or fewer employees and 

three have more than 1,500 employees. 

Consequently, the Commission 

estimates that the majority of local 

resellers are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. 

12. Toll Resellers. The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard for the category of 

Telecommunications Resellers. Under 

that size standard, such a business is 

small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

According to Commission data, 881 

carriers have reported that they are 

engaged in the provision of toll resale 

services. Of these, an estimated 853 

have 1,500 or fewer employees and 28 

have more than 1,500 employees. 

Consequently, the Commission 

estimates that the majority of toll 

resellers are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. 

13. Payphone Service Providers 

(PSPs). Neither the Commission nor the 

SBA has developed a small business 

size standard specifically for payphone 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27528 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

services providers. The appropriate size 

standard under SBA rules is for the 

category Wired Telecommunications 

Carriers. Under that size standard, such 

a business is small if it has 1,500 or 

fewer employees. According to 

Commission data, 657 carriers have 

reported that they are engaged in the 

provision of payphone services. Of 

these, an estimated 653 have 1,500 or 

fewer employees and four have more 

than 1,500 employees. Consequently, 

the Commission estimates that the 

majority of payphone service providers 

are small entities that may be affected 

by our action. 

14. Interexchange Carriers (IXCs). 

Neither the Commission nor the SBA 

has developed a size standard for small 

businesses specifically applicable to 

interexchange services. The closest 

applicable size standard under SBA 

rules is for Wired Telecommunications 

Carriers. Under that size standard, such 

a business is small if it has 1,500 or 

fewer employees. According to 

Commission data, 330 companies 

reported that their primary 

telecommunications service activity was 

the provision of interexchange services. 

Of these 330 companies, an estimated 

309 have 1,500 or fewer employees and 

21 have more than 1,500 employees. 

Consequently, the Commission 

estimates that the majority of 

interexchange service providers are 

small entities that may be affected by 

our action. 

15. Operator Service Providers (OSPs). 

Neither the Commission nor the SBA 

has developed a small business size 

standard specifically for operator 

service providers. The appropriate size 

standard under SBA rules is for the 

category Wired Telecommunications 

Carriers. Under that size standard, such 

a business is small if it has 1,500 or 

fewer employees. According to 

Commission data, 23 carriers have 

reported that they are engaged in the 

provision of operator services. Of these, 

an estimated 22 have 1,500 or fewer 

employees and one has more than 1,500 

employees. Consequently, the 

Commission estimates that the majority 

of OSPs are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. 

16. Prepaid Calling Card Providers. 

Neither the Commission nor the SBA 

has developed a small business size 

standard specifically for prepaid calling 

card providers. The appropriate size 

standard under SBA rules is for the 

category Telecommunications Resellers. 

Under that size standard, such a 

business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer 

employees. According to Commission 

data, 104 carriers have reported that 

they are engaged in the provision of 

prepaid calling cards. Of these, an 

estimated 102 have 1,500 or fewer 

employees and two have more than 

1,500 employees. Consequently, the 

Commission estimates that the majority 

of prepaid calling card providers are 

small entities that may be affected by 

our action. 

17. 800 and 800-Like Service 

Subscribers. Neither the Commission 

nor the SBA has developed a small 

business size standard specifically for 

800 and 800-like service (‘‘toll free’’) 

subscribers. The appropriate size 

standard under SBA rules is for the 

category Telecommunications Resellers. 

Under that size standard, such a 

business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer 

employees. The most reliable source of 

information regarding the number of 

these service subscribers appears to be 

data the Commission collects on the 

800, 888, 877, and 866 numbers in use. 

According to our data, at the beginning 

of July 2006, the number of 800 

numbers assigned was 7,647,941; the 

number of 888 numbers assigned was 

5,318,667; the number of 877 numbers 

assigned was 4,431,162; and the number 

of 866 numbers assigned was 6,008,976. 

We do not have data specifying the 

number of these subscribers that are not 

independently owned and operated or 

have more than 1,500 employees, and 

thus are unable at this time to estimate 

with greater precision the number of toll 

free subscribers that would qualify as 

small businesses under the SBA size 

standard. Consequently, we estimate 

that there are 7,647,941 or fewer small 

entity 800 subscribers; 5,318,667 or 

fewer small entity 888 subscribers; 

4,431,162 or fewer small entity 877 

subscribers; and 5,318,667 or fewer 

small entity 866 subscribers. 

18. Wireless Carriers and Service 

Providers. Below, for those services 

subject to auctions, we note that, as a 

general matter, the number of winning 

bidders that qualify as small businesses 

at the close of an auction does not 

necessarily represent the number of 

small businesses currently in service. 

Also, the Commission does not 

generally track subsequent business size 

unless, in the context of assignments or 

transfers, unjust enrichment issues are 

implicated. 

19. Wireless Service Providers. The 

SBA has developed a small business 

size standard for wireless firms within 

the two broad economic census 

categories of ‘‘Paging’’ and ‘‘Cellular and 

Other Wireless Telecommunications.’’

Under both categories, the SBA deems 

a wireless business to be small if it has 

1,500 or fewer employees. For the 

census category of Paging, Census 

Bureau data for 2002 show that there 

were 807 firms in this category that 

operated for the entire year. Of this 

total, 804 firms had employment of 999 

or fewer employees, and three firms had 

employment of 1,000 employees or 

more. Thus, under this category and 

associated small business size standard, 

the majority of firms can be considered 

small. For the census category of 

Cellular and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications, Census Bureau 

data for 2002 show that there were 1,397 

firms in this category that operated for 

the entire year. Of this total, 1,378 firms 

had employment of 999 or fewer 

employees, and 19 firms had 

employment of 1,000 employees or 

more. Thus, under this second category 

and size standard, the majority of firms 

can, again, be considered small. 

20. Cellular Licensees. The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard for wireless firms within the 

broad economic census category 

‘‘Cellular and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications.’’ Under this SBA 

category, a wireless business is small if 

it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

According to Commission data, 432 

carriers reported that they were engaged 

in the provision of cellular service, 

Personal Communications Service 

(PCS), or Specialized Mobile Radio 

(SMR) Telephony services, which are 

placed together in the data. We have 

estimated that 221 of these are small, 

under the SBA small business size 

standard. Thus, under this category and 

size standard, about half of firms can be 

considered small. This information is 

also included in the discussion of 

Wireless Telephony, below. 

21. Common Carrier Paging. The SBA 

has developed a small business size 

standard for Paging, under which a 

business is small if it has 1,500 or fewer 

employees. According to Commission 

data, 365 carriers have reported that 

they are engaged in Paging or Messaging 

Service. Of these, an estimated 360 have 

1,500 or fewer employees, and 5 have 

more than 1,500 employees. 

Consequently, the Commission 

estimates that the majority of paging 

providers are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. In addition, in 

the Paging Third Report and Order, we 

developed a small business size 

standard for ‘‘small businesses’’ and 

‘‘very small businesses’’ for purposes of 

determining their eligibility for special 

provisions such as bidding credits and 

installment payments. A ‘‘small 

business’’ is an entity that, together with 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues not 

exceeding $15 million for the preceding 

three years. Additionally, a ‘‘very small 

business’’ is an entity that, together with 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27529 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues that are not 

more than $3 million for the preceding 

three years. The SBA has approved 

these small business size standards. An 

auction of Metropolitan Economic Area 

licenses commenced on February 24, 

2000, and closed on March 2, 2000. Of 

the 985 licenses auctioned, 440 were 

sold. Fifty-seven companies claiming 

small business status won. 

22. Wireless Communications 

Services. This service can be used for 

fixed, mobile, radiolocation, and digital 

audio broadcasting satellite uses. The 

Commission established small business 

size standards for the wireless 

communications services (WCS) 

auction. A ‘‘small business’’ is an entity 

with average gross revenues of $40 

million for each of the three preceding 

years, and a ‘‘very small business’’ is an 

entity with average gross revenues of 

$15 million for each of the three 

preceding years. The SBA has approved 

these small business size standards. The 

Commission auctioned geographic area 

licenses in the WCS service. In the 

auction, held in April 1997, there were 

seven winning bidders that qualified as 

‘‘very small business’’ entities, and one 

that qualified as a ‘‘small business’’

entity. 

23. Wireless Telephony. Wireless 

telephony includes cellular, personal 

communications services (PCS), and 

specialized mobile radio (SMR) 

telephony carriers. As noted earlier, the 

SBA has developed a small business 

size standard for ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Wireless Telecommunications’’ services. 

Under that SBA small business size 

standard, a business is small if it has 

1,500 or fewer employees. According to 

Commission data, 432 carriers reported 

that they were engaged in the provision 

of wireless telephony. We have 

estimated that 221 of these are small 

under the SBA small business size 

standard. 

24. Broadband Personal 

Communications Service. The 

broadband Personal Communications 

Service (PCS) spectrum is divided into 

six frequency blocks designated A 

through F, and the Commission has held 

auctions for each block. The 

Commission defined ‘‘small entity’’ for 

Blocks C and F as an entity that has 

average gross revenues of $40 million or 

less in the three previous calendar 

years. For Block F, an additional 

classification for ‘‘very small business’’

was added and is defined as an entity 

that, together with its affiliates, has 

average gross revenues of not more than 

$15 million for the preceding three 

calendar years. These standards 

defining ‘‘small entity’’ in the context of 

broadband PCS auctions have been 

approved by the SBA. No small 

businesses, within the SBA-approved 

small business size standards bid 

successfully for licenses in Blocks A 

and B. There were 90 winning bidders 

that qualified as small entities in the 

Block C auctions. A total of 93 small 

and very small business bidders won 

approximately 40 percent of the 1,479 

licenses for Blocks D, E, and F. On 

March 23, 1999, the Commission reauctioned 347 C, D, E, and F Block 

licenses. There were 48 small business 

winning bidders. On January 26, 2001, 

the Commission completed the auction 

of 422 C and F Broadband PCS licenses 

in Auction No. 35. Of the 35 winning 

bidders in this auction, 29 qualified as 

‘‘small’’ or ‘‘very small’’ businesses. 

Subsequent events, concerning Auction 

35, including judicial and agency 

determinations, resulted in a total of 163 

C and F Block licenses being available 

for grant. 

25. Narrowband Personal 

Communications Services. To date, two 

auctions of narrowband personal 

communications services (PCS) licenses 

have been conducted. For purposes of 

the two auctions that have already been 

held, ‘‘small businesses’’ were entities 

with average gross revenues for the prior 

three calendar years of $40 million or 

less. Through these auctions, the 

Commission has awarded a total of 41 

licenses, out of which 11 were obtained 

by small businesses. To ensure 

meaningful participation of small 

business entities in future auctions, the 

Commission has adopted a two-tiered 

small business size standard in the 

Narrowband PCS Second Report and 

Order. A ‘‘small business’’ is an entity 

that, together with affiliates and 

controlling interests, has average gross 

revenues for the three preceding years of 

not more than $40 million. A ‘‘very 

small business’’ is an entity that, 

together with affiliates and controlling 

interests, has average gross revenues for 

the three preceding years of not more 

than $15 million. The SBA has 

approved these small business size 

standards. In the future, the 

Commission will auction 459 licenses to 

serve Metropolitan Trading Areas 

(MTAs) and 408 response channel 

licenses. There is also one megahertz of 

narrowband PCS spectrum that has been 

held in reserve and that the Commission 

has not yet decided to release for 

licensing. The Commission cannot 

predict accurately the number of 

licenses that will be awarded to small 

entities in future actions. However, four 

of the 16 winning bidders in the two 

previous narrowband PCS auctions were 

small businesses, as that term was 

defined under the Commission’s Rules. 

The Commission assumes, for purposes 

of this analysis, that a large portion of 

the remaining narrowband PCS licenses 

will be awarded to small entities. The 

Commission also assumes that at least 

some small businesses will acquire 

narrowband PCS licenses by means of 

the Commission’s partitioning and 

disaggregation rules. 

26. 220 MHz Radio Service—Phase I 

Licensees. The 220 MHz service has 

both Phase I and Phase II licenses. Phase 

I licensing was conducted by lotteries in 

1992 and 1993. There are approximately 

1,515 such non-nationwide licensees 

and four nationwide licensees currently 

authorized to operate in the 220 MHz 

band. The Commission has not 

developed a small business size 

standard for small entities specifically 

applicable to such incumbent 220 MHz 

Phase I licensees. To estimate the 

number of such licensees that are small 

businesses, we apply the small business 

size standard under the SBA rules 

applicable to ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Wireless Telecommunications’’

companies. Under this category, the 

SBA deems a wireless business to be 

small if it has 1,500 or fewer employees. 

The Commission estimates that nearly 

all such licensees are small businesses 

under the SBA’s small business size 

standard. 

27. 220 MHz Radio Service—Phase II 

Licensees. The 220 MHz service has 

both Phase I and Phase II licenses. The 

Phase II 220 MHz service is a new 

service, and is subject to spectrum 

auctions. In the 220 MHz Third Report 

and Order, we adopted a small business 

size standard for ‘‘small’’ and ‘‘very 

small’’ businesses for purposes of 

determining their eligibility for special 

provisions such as bidding credits and 

installment payments. This small 

business size standard indicates that a 

‘‘small business’’ is an entity that, 

together with its affiliates and 

controlling principals, has average gross 

revenues not exceeding $15 million for 

the preceding three years. A ‘‘very small 

business’’ is an entity that, together with 

its affiliates and controlling principals, 

has average gross revenues that do not 

exceed $3 million for the preceding 

three years. The SBA has approved 

these small business size standards. 

Auctions of Phase II licenses 

commenced on September 15, 1998, and 

closed on October 22, 1998. In the first 

auction, 908 licenses were auctioned in 

three different-sized geographic areas: 

three nationwide licenses, 30 Regional 

Economic Area Group (EAG) Licenses, 

and 875 Economic Area (EA) Licenses. 

Of the 908 licenses auctioned, 693 were 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27530 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

sold. Thirty-nine small businesses won 

licenses in the first 220 MHz auction. 

The second auction included 225 

licenses: 216 EA licenses and 9 EAG 

licenses. Fourteen companies claiming 

small business status won 158 licenses. 

28. 800 MHz and 900 MHz 

Specialized Mobile Radio Licensees. 

The Commission awards ‘‘small entity’’

and ‘‘very small entity’’ bidding credits 

in auctions for Specialized Mobile 

Radio (SMR) geographic area licenses in 

the 800 MHz and 900 MHz bands to 

firms that had revenues of no more than 

$15 million in each of the three 

previous calendar years, or that had 

revenues of no more than $3 million in 

each of the previous calendar years, 

respectively. These bidding credits 

apply to SMR providers in the 800 MHz 

and 900 MHz bands that either hold 

geographic area licenses or have 

obtained extended implementation 

authorizations. The Commission does 

not know how many firms provide 800 

MHz or 900 MHz geographic area SMR 

service pursuant to extended 

implementation authorizations, nor how 

many of these providers have annual 

revenues of no more than $15 million. 

One firm has over $15 million in 

revenues. The Commission assumes, for 

purposes here, that all of the remaining 

existing extended implementation 

authorizations are held by small 

entities, as that term is defined by the 

SBA. The Commission has held 

auctions for geographic area licenses in 

the 800 MHz and 900 MHz SMR bands. 

There were 60 winning bidders that 

qualified as small or very small entities 

in the 900 MHz SMR auctions. Of the 

1,020 licenses won in the 900 MHz 

auction, bidders qualifying as small or 

very small entities won 263 licenses. In 

the 800 MHz auction, 38 of the 524 

licenses won were won by small and 

very small entities. 

29. 700 MHz Guard Band Licensees. 

In the 700 MHz Guard Band Order, we 

adopted a small business size standard 

for ‘‘small businesses’’ and ‘‘very small 

businesses’’ for purposes of determining 

their eligibility for special provisions 

such as bidding credits and installment 

payments. A ‘‘small business’’ as an 

entity that, together with its affiliates 

and controlling principals, has average 

gross revenues not exceeding $15 

million for the preceding three years. 

Additionally, a ‘‘very small business’’ is 

an entity that, together with its affiliates 

and controlling principals, has average 

gross revenues that are not more than $3 

million for the preceding three years. 

An auction of 52 Major Economic Area 

(MEA) licenses commenced on 

September 6, 2000, and closed on 

September 21, 2000. Of the 104 licenses 

auctioned, 96 licenses were sold to nine 

bidders. Five of these bidders were 

small businesses that won a total of 26 

licenses. A second auction of 700 MHz 

Guard Band licenses commenced on 

February 13, 2001 and closed on 

February 21, 2001. All eight of the 

licenses auctioned were sold to three 

bidders. One of these bidders was a 

small business that won a total of two 

licenses. 

30. Rural Radiotelephone Service. The 

Commission has not adopted a size 

standard for small businesses specific to 

the Rural Radiotelephone Service. A 

significant subset of the Rural 

Radiotelephone Service is the Basic 

Exchange Telephone Radio System 

(BETRS). The Commission uses the 

SBA’s small business size standard 

applicable to ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Wireless Telecommunications,’’ i.e., an 

entity employing no more than 1,500 

persons. There are approximately 1,000 

licensees in the Rural Radiotelephone 

Service, and the Commission estimates 

that there are 1,000 or fewer small entity 

licensees in the Rural Radiotelephone 

Service that may be affected by the rules 

and policies adopted herein. 

31. Air-Ground Radiotelephone 

Service. The Commission has not 

adopted a small business size standard 

specific to the Air-Ground 

Radiotelephone Service. We will use 

SBA’s small business size standard 

applicable to ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Wireless Telecommunications,’’ i.e., an 

entity employing no more than 1,500 

persons. There are approximately 100 

licensees in the Air-Ground 

Radiotelephone Service, and we 

estimate that almost all of them qualify 

as small under the SBA small business 

size standard. 

32. Aviation and Marine Radio 

Services. Small businesses in the 

aviation and marine radio services use 

a very high frequency (VHF) marine or 

aircraft radio and, as appropriate, an 

emergency position-indicating radio 

beacon (and/or radar) or an emergency 

locator transmitter. The Commission has 

not developed a small business size 

standard specifically applicable to these 

small businesses. For purposes of this 

analysis, the Commission uses the SBA 

small business size standard for the 

category ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Telecommunications,’’ which is 1,500 

or fewer employees. Most applicants for 

recreational licenses are individuals. 

Approximately 581,000 ship station 

licensees and 131,000 aircraft station 

licensees operate domestically and are 

not subject to the radio carriage 

requirements of any statute or treaty. 

For purposes of our evaluations in this 

analysis, we estimate that there are up 

to approximately 712,000 licensees that 

are small businesses (or individuals) 

under the SBA standard. In addition, 

between December 3, 1998 and 

December 14, 1998, the Commission 

held an auction of 42 VHF Public Coast 

licenses in the 157.1875–157.4500 MHz 

(ship transmit) and 161.775–162.0125 

MHz (coast transmit) bands. For 

purposes of the auction, the 

Commission defined a ‘‘small’’ business 

as an entity that, together with 

controlling interests and affiliates, has 

average gross revenues for the preceding 

three years not to exceed $15 million 

dollars. In addition, a ‘‘very small’’

business is one that, together with 

controlling interests and affiliates, has 

average gross revenues for the preceding 

three years not to exceed $3 million 

dollars. There are approximately 10,672 

licensees in the Marine Coast Service, 

and the Commission estimates that 

almost all of them qualify as ‘‘small’’

businesses under the above special 

small business size standards. 

33. Fixed Microwave Services. Fixed 

microwave services include common 

carrier, private operational-fixed, and 

broadcast auxiliary radio services. At 

present, there are approximately 22,015 

common carrier fixed licensees and 

61,670 private operational-fixed 

licensees and broadcast auxiliary radio 

licensees in the microwave services. 

The Commission has not created a size 

standard for a small business 

specifically with respect to fixed 

microwave services. For purposes of 

this analysis, the Commission uses the 

SBA small business size standard for the 

category ‘‘Cellular and Other 

Telecommunications,’’ which is 1,500 

or fewer employees. The Commission 

does not have data specifying the 

number of these licensees that have 

more than 1,500 employees, and thus 

are unable at this time to estimate with 

greater precision the number of fixed 

microwave service licensees that would 

qualify as small business concerns 

under the SBA’s small business size 

standard. Consequently, the 

Commission estimates that there are up 

to 22,015 common carrier fixed 

licensees and up to 61,670 private 

operational-fixed licensees and 

broadcast auxiliary radio licensees in 

the microwave services that may be 

small and may be affected by the rules 

and policies adopted herein. We noted, 

however, that the common carrier 

microwave fixed licensee category 

includes some large entities. 

34. Offshore Radiotelephone Service. 

This service operates on several UHF 

television broadcast channels that are 

not used for television broadcasting in 

the coastal areas of states bordering the 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27531 

Gulf of Mexico. There are presently 

approximately 55 licensees in this 

service. We are unable to estimate at 

this time the number of licensees that 

would qualify as small under the SBA’s 

small business size standard for 

‘‘Cellular and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications’’ services. Under 

that SBA small business size standard, 

a business is small if it has 1,500 or 

fewer employees. 

35. 39 GHz Service. The Commission 

created a special small business size 

standard for 39 GHz licenses—an entity 

that has average gross revenues of $40 

million or less in the three previous 

calendar years. An additional size 

standard for ‘‘very small business’’ is: an 

entity that, together with affiliates, has 

average gross revenues of not more than 

$15 million for the preceding three 

calendar years. The SBA has approved 

these small business size standards. The 

auction of the 2,173 39 GHz licenses 

began on April 12, 2000 and closed on 

May 8, 2000. The 18 bidders who 

claimed small business status won 849 

licenses. Consequently, the Commission 

estimates that 18 or fewer 39 GHz 

licensees are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. 

36. Multipoint Distribution Service, 

Multichannel Multipoint Distribution 

Service, and ITFS. Multichannel 

Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS) 

systems, often referred to as ‘‘wireless 

cable,’’ transmit video programming to 

subscribers using the microwave 

frequencies of the Multipoint 

Distribution Service (MDS) and 

Instructional Television Fixed Service 

(ITFS). In connection with the 1996 

MDS auction, the Commission 

established a small business size 

standard as an entity that had annual 

average gross revenues of less than $40 

million in the previous three calendar 

years. The MDS auctions resulted in 67 

successful bidders obtaining licensing 

opportunities for 493 Basic Trading 

Areas (BTAs). Of the 67 auction 

winners, 61 met the definition of a small 

business. MDS also includes licensees 

of stations authorized prior to the 

auction. In addition, the SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard for Cable and Other Program 

Distribution, which includes all such 

companies generating $13.5 million or 

less in annual receipts. According to 

Census Bureau data for 2002, there were 

a total of 1,191 firms in this category 

that operated for the entire year. Of this 

total, 1,087 firms had annual receipts of 

under $10 million, and 43 firms had 

receipts of $10 million or more but less 

than $25 million. Consequently, we 

estimate that the majority of providers 

in this service category are small 

businesses that may be affected by the 

rules and policies adopted herein. This 

SBA small business size standard also 

appears applicable to ITFS. There are 

presently 2,032 ITFS licensees. All but 

100 of these licenses are held by 

educational institutions. Educational 

institutions are included in this analysis 

as small entities. Thus, we tentatively 

conclude that at least 1,932 licensees are 

small businesses. 

37. Local Multipoint Distribution 

Service. Local Multipoint Distribution 

Service (LMDS) is a fixed broadband 

point-to-multipoint microwave service 

that provides for two-way video 

telecommunications. The auction of the 

1,030 Local Multipoint Distribution 

Service (LMDS) licenses began on 

February 18, 1998 and closed on March 

25, 1998. The Commission established a 

small business size standard for LMDS 

licenses as an entity that has average 

gross revenues of less than $40 million 

in the three previous calendar years. An 

additional small business size standard 

for ‘‘very small business’’ was added as 

an entity that, together with its affiliates, 

has average gross revenues of not more 

than $13.5 million for the preceding 

three calendar years. The SBA has 

approved these small business size 

standards in the context of LMDS 

auctions. There were 93 winning 

bidders that qualified as small entities 

in the LMDS auctions. A total of 93 

small and very small business bidders 

won approximately 277 A Block 

licenses and 387 B Block licenses. On 

March 27, 1999, the Commission reauctioned 161 licenses; there were 40 

winning bidders. Based on this 

information, we conclude that the 

number of small LMDS licenses consists 

of the 93 winning bidders in the first 

auction and the 40 winning bidders in 

the re-auction, for a total of 133 small 

entity LMDS providers. The license 

terms require the licensees to build their 

wireless facilities within ten years of the 

grant. As a result, more information on 

the licensees will become available in 

the year 2008, when the licensees are 

required to show the Commission that 

they have achieved substantial service 

as part of the application renewal 

process. 

38. 218–219 MHz Service. The first 

auction of 218–219 MHz spectrum 

resulted in 170 entities winning licenses 

for 594 Metropolitan Statistical Area 

(MSA) licenses. Of the 594 licenses, 557 

were won by entities qualifying as a 

small business. For that auction, the 

small business size standard was an 

entity that, together with its affiliates, 

has no more than a $6 million net worth 

and, after federal income taxes 

(excluding any carry over losses), has no 

more than $2 million in annual profits 

each year for the previous two years. In 

the 218–219 MHz Report and Order and 

Memorandum Opinion and Order, we 

established a small business size 

standard for a ‘‘small business’’ as an 

entity that, together with its affiliates 

and persons or entities that hold 

interests in such an entity and their 

affiliates, has average annual gross 

revenues not to exceed $15 million for 

the preceding three years. A ‘‘very small 

business’’ is defined as an entity that, 

together with its affiliates and persons 

or entities that hold interests in such an 

entity and its affiliates, has average 

annual gross revenues not to exceed $3 

million for the preceding three years. 

These size standards will be used in 

future auctions of 218–219 MHz 

spectrum. 

39. 24 GHz—Incumbent Licensees. 

This analysis may affect incumbent 

licensees who were relocated to the 24 

GHz band from the 18 GHz band, and 

applicants who wish to provide services 

in the 24 GHz band. The applicable SBA 

small business size standard is that of 

‘‘Cellular and Other Wireless 

Telecommunications’’ companies. This 

category provides that such a company 

is small if it employs no more than 

1,500 persons. We believe that there are 

only two licensees in the 24 GHz band 

that were relocated from the 18 GHz 

band, Teligent and TRW, Inc. It is our 

understanding that Teligent and its 

related companies have less than 1,500 

employees, though this may change in 

the future. TRW is not a small entity. 

Thus, only one incumbent licensee in 

the 24 GHz band is a small business 

entity. 

40. 24 GHz—Future Licensees. With 

respect to new applicants in the 24 GHz 

band, the small business size standard 

for ‘‘small business’’ is an entity that, 

together with controlling interests and 

affiliates, has average annual gross 

revenues for the three preceding years 

not in excess of $15 million. ‘‘Very 

small business’’ in the 24 GHz band is 

an entity that, together with controlling 

interests and affiliates, has average gross 

revenues not exceeding $3 million for 

the preceding three years. The SBA has 

approved these small business size 

standards. These size standards will 

apply to the future auction, if held. 

41. Satellite Telecommunications and 

Other Telecommunications. There is no 

small business size standard developed 

specifically for providers of 

international service. The appropriate 

size standards under SBA rules are for 

the two broad census categories of 

‘‘Satellite Telecommunications’’ and 

‘‘Other Telecommunications.’’ Under 

both categories, such a business is small 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27532 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

if it has $13.5 million or less in average 

annual receipts. 

42. The first category of Satellite 

Telecommunications ‘‘comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in 

providing point-to-point 

telecommunications services to other 

establishments in the 

telecommunications and broadcasting 

industries by forwarding and receiving 

communications signals via a system of 

satellites or reselling satellite 

telecommunications.’’ For this category, 

Census Bureau data for 2002 show that 

there were a total of 371 firms that 

operated for the entire year. Of this 

total, 307 firms had annual receipts of 

under $10 million, and 26 firms had 

receipts of $10 million to $24,999,999. 

Consequently, we estimate that the 

majority of Satellite 

Telecommunications firms are small 

entities that might be affected by our 

action. 

43. The second category of Other 

Telecommunications ‘‘comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in (1) 

providing specialized 

telecommunications applications, such 

as satellite tracking, communications 

telemetry, and radar station operations; 

or (2) providing satellite terminal 

stations and associated facilities 

operationally connected with one or 

more terrestrial communications 

systems and capable of transmitting 

telecommunications to or receiving 

telecommunications from satellite 

systems.’’ For this category, Census 

Bureau data for 2002 show that there 

were a total of 332 firms that operated 

for the entire year. Of this total, 259 

firms had annual receipts of under $10 

million and 15 firms had annual 

receipts of $10 million to $24,999,999. 

Consequently, we estimate that the 

majority of Other Telecommunications 

firms are small entities that might be 

affected by our action. 

44. Cable and OVS Operators. In 

addition to the estimates provided 

above, we consider certain additional 

entities that may be affected by the data 

collection from broadband service 

providers. Because Section 706 requires 

us to monitor the deployment of 

broadband regardless of technology or 

transmission media employed, we 

anticipate that some broadband service 

providers will not provide telephone 

service. Accordingly, we describe below 

other types of firms that may provide 

broadband services, including cable 

companies, MDS providers, and 

utilities, among others. 

45. Cable and Other Program 

Distribution. The Census Bureau defines 

this category as follows: ‘‘This industry 

comprises establishments primarily 

engaged as third-party distribution 

systems for broadcast programming. The 

establishments of this industry deliver 

visual, aural, or textual programming 

received from cable networks, local 

television stations, or radio networks to 

consumers via cable or direct-to-home 

satellite systems on a subscription or fee 

basis. These establishments do not 

generally originate programming 

material.’’ The SBA has developed a 

small business size standard for Cable 

and Other Program Distribution, which 

is: all such firms having $13.5 million 

or less in annual receipts. According to 

Census Bureau data for 2002, there were 

a total of 1,191 firms in this category 

that operated for the entire year. Of this 

total, 1,087 firms had annual receipts of 

under $10 million, and 43 firms had 

receipts of $10 million or more but less 

than $25 million. Thus, under this size 

standard, the majority of firms can be 

considered small. 

46. Cable Companies and Systems. 

The Commission has also developed its 

own small business size standards, for 

the purpose of cable rate regulation. 

Under the Commission’s rules, a ‘‘small 

cable company’’ is one serving 400,000 

or fewer subscribers, nationwide. 

Industry data indicate that, of 1,076 

cable operators nationwide, all but 

eleven are small under this size 

standard. In addition, under the 

Commission’s rules, a ‘‘small system’’ is 

a cable system serving 15,000 or fewer 

subscribers. Industry data indicate that, 

of 7,208 systems nationwide, 6,139 

systems have under 10,000 subscribers, 

and an additional 379 systems have 

10,000–19,999 subscribers. Thus, under 

this second size standard, most cable 

systems are small. 

47. Cable System Operators. The 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, also contains a size standard 

for small cable system operators, which 

is ‘‘a cable operator that, directly or 

through an affiliate, serves in the 

aggregate fewer than 1 percent of all 

subscribers in the United States and is 

not affiliated with any entity or entities 

whose gross annual revenues in the 

aggregate exceed $250,000,000.’’ The 

Commission has determined that an 

operator serving fewer than 677,000 

subscribers shall be deemed a small 

operator, if its annual revenues, when 

combined with the total annual 

revenues of all its affiliates, do not 

exceed $250 million in the aggregate. 

Industry data indicate that, of 1,076 

cable operators nationwide, all but ten 

are small under this size standard. We 

note that the Commission neither 

requests nor collects information on 

whether cable system operators are 

affiliated with entities whose gross 

annual revenues exceed $250 million, 

and therefore we are unable to estimate 

more accurately the number of cable 

system operators that would qualify as 

small under this size standard. 

48. Open Video Services. Open Video 

Service (OVS) systems provide 

subscription services. As noted above, 

the SBA has created a small business 

size standard for Cable and Other 

Program Distribution. This standard 

provides that a small entity is one with 

$13.5 million or less in annual receipts. 

The Commission has certified 

approximately 45 OVS operators to 

serve 75 areas, and some of these are 

currently providing service. Affiliates of 

Residential Communications Network, 

Inc. (RCN) received approval to operate 

OVS systems in New York City, Boston, 

Washington, DC, and other areas. RCN 

has sufficient revenues to assure that 

they do not qualify as a small business 

entity. Little financial information is 

available for the other entities that are 

authorized to provide OVS and are not 

yet operational. Given that some entities 

authorized to provide OVS service have 

not yet begun to generate revenues, the 

Commission concludes that up to 44 

OVS operators (those remaining) might 

qualify as small businesses that may be 

affected by the rules and policies 

adopted herein. 

49. Electric Power Generation, 

Transmission and Distribution. The 

Census Bureau defines this category as 

follows: ‘‘This industry group comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in 

generating, transmitting, and/or 

distributing electric power. 

Establishments in this industry group 

may perform one or more of the 

following activities: (1) Operate 

generation facilities that produce 

electric energy; (2) operate transmission 

systems that convey the electricity from 

the generation facility to the distribution 

system; and (3) operate distribution 

systems that convey electric power 

received from the generation facility or 

the transmission system to the final 

consumer.’’ The SBA has developed a 

small business size standard for firms in 

this category: ‘‘A firm is small if, 

including its affiliates, it is primarily 

engaged in the generation, transmission, 

and/or distribution of electric energy for 

sale and its total electric output for the 

preceding fiscal year did not exceed 4 

million megawatt hours.’’ According to 

Census Bureau data for 2002, there were 

1,644 firms in this category that 

operated for the entire year. Census data 

do not track electric output and we have 

not determined how many of these firms 

fit the SBA size standard for small, with 

no more than 4 million megawatt hours 

of electric output. Consequently, we 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27533 

estimate that 1,644 or fewer firms may 

be considered small under the SBA 

small business size standard. 

50. Internet Service Providers. The 

SBA has developed a small business 

size standard for Internet Service 

Providers (ISPs). ISPs ‘‘provide clients 

access to the Internet and generally 

provide related services such as web 

hosting, web page designing, and 

hardware or software consulting related 

to Internet connectivity.’’ Under the 

SBA size standard, such a business is 

small if it has average annual receipts of 

$23 million or less. According to Census 

Bureau data for 2002, there were 2,529 

firms in this category that operated for 

the entire year. Of these, 2,437 firms had 

annual receipts of under $10 million, 

and an additional 47 firms had receipts 

of between $10 million and 

$24,999,999. Consequently, we estimate 

that the majority of these firms are small 

entities that may be affected by our 

action. 

51. Web Search Portals. Our action 

pertains to VoIP services, which could 

be provided by entities that provide 

other services such as e-mail, online 

gaming, web browsing, video 

conferencing, instant messaging, and 

other, similar IP-enabled services. The 

Commission has not adopted a size 

standard for entities that create or 

provide these types of services or 

applications. However, the Census 

Bureau has identified firms that 

‘‘operate web sites that use a search 

engine to generate and maintain 

extensive databases of Internet 

addresses and content in an easily 

searchable format. Web search portals 

often provide additional Internet 

services, such as e-mail, connections to 

other web sites, auctions, news, and 

other limited content, and serve as a 

home base for Internet users.’’ The SBA 

has developed a small business size 

standard for this category; that size 

standard is $6.5 million or less in 

average annual receipts. According to 

Census Bureau data for 2002, there were 

342 firms in this category that operated 

for the entire year. Of these, 303 had 

annual receipts of under $5 million, and 

an additional 15 firms had receipts of 

between $5 million and $9,999,999. 

Consequently, we estimate that the 

majority of these firms are small entities 

that may be affected by our action. 

52. Data Processing, Hosting, and 

Related Services. Entities in this 

category ‘‘primarily * * * provid[e] 

infrastructure for hosting or data 

processing services.’’ The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard for this category; that size 

standard is $23 million or less in 

average annual receipts. According to 

Census Bureau data for 2002, there were 

6,877 firms in this category that 

operated for the entire year. Of these, 

6,418 had annual receipts of under $10 

million, and an additional 251 firms had 

receipts of between $10 million and 

$24,999,999. Consequently, we estimate 

that the majority of these firms are small 

entities that may be affected by our 

action. 

53. All Other Information Services. 

‘‘This industry comprises 

establishments primarily engaged in 

providing other information services 

(except new syndicates and libraries 

and archives).’’ Our action pertains to 

VoIP services, which could be provided 

by entities that provide other services 

such as e-mail, online gaming, web 

browsing, video conferencing, instant 

messaging, and other, similar IP-enabled 

services. The SBA has developed a 

small business size standard for this 

category; that size standard is $6.5 

million or less in average annual 

receipts. According to Census Bureau 

data for 2002, there were 155 firms in 

this category that operated for the entire 

year. Of these, 138 had annual receipts 

of under $5 million, and an additional 

four firms had receipts of between $5 

million and $9,999,999. Consequently, 

we estimate that the majority of these 

firms are small entities that may be 

affected by our action. 

54. Internet Publishing and 

Broadcasting. ‘‘This industry comprises 

establishments engaged in publishing 

and/or broadcasting content on the 

Internet exclusively. These 

establishments do not provide 

traditional (non-Internet) versions of the 

content that they publish or broadcast.’’

The SBA has developed a small 

business size standard for this census 

category; that size standard is 500 or 

fewer employees. According to Census 

Bureau data for 2002, there were 1,362 

firms in this category that operated for 

the entire year. Of these, 1,351 had 

employment of 499 or fewer employees, 

and six firms had employment of 

between 500 and 999. Consequently, we 

estimate that the majority of these firms 

are small entities that may be affected 

by our action. 

55. Software Publishers. These 

companies may design, develop or 

publish software and may provide other 

support services to software purchasers, 

such as providing documentation or 

assisting in installation. The companies 

may also design software to meet the 

needs of specific users. The SBA has 

developed a small business size 

standard of $23 million or less in 

average annual receipts for all of the 

following pertinent categories: Software 

Publishers, Custom Computer 

Programming Services, and Other 

Computer Related Services. For 

Software Publishers, Census Bureau 

data for 2002 indicate that there were 

6,155 firms in the category that operated 

for the entire year. Of these, 7,633 had 

annual receipts of under $10 million, 

and an additional 403 firms had receipts 

of between $10 million and 

$24,999,999. For providers of Custom 

Computer Programming Services, the 

Census Bureau data indicate that there 

were 32,269 firms that operated for the 

entire year. Of these, 31,416 had annual 

receipts of under $10 million, and an 

additional 565 firms had receipts of 

between $10 million and $24,999,999. 

For providers of Other Computer 

Related Services, the Census Bureau 

data indicate that there were 6,357 firms 

that operated for the entire year. Of 

these, 6,187 had annual receipts of 

under $10 million, and an additional 

101 firms had receipts of between $10 

million and $24,999,999. Consequently, 

we estimate that the majority of the 

firms in each of these three categories 

are small entities that may be affected 

by our action. 

D. Description of Projected Reporting, 

Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 

Requirements 

56. In the NPRM, many of the 

proposals to increase the Commission’s 

understanding of broadband availability 

would impose no reporting, 

recordkeeping or other compliance 

requirements on small entities. 

However, the NPRM invites comment 

on several other proposals that would 

impose further reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements on current 

Form 477 filers. Specifically, the NPRM 

invites comment on whether current 

Form 477 filers should (1) report 

numbers of subscribers per 5-digit Zip 

Code, (2) report 9-digit Zip Codes where 

there is at least one subscriber or report 

numbers of subscribers per 9-digit Zip 

Code, (3) report geocoded information 

about subscriber locations, or (4) report 

information that delineates in detail the 

boundaries of their broadband-enabled 

service territories. The NPRM also seeks 

comment on whether the Commission 

should (1) refine the speed-tier 

information the Commission currently 

collects by splitting an existing speed 

tier into two; (2) require all broadband 

filers to report the number of residential 

customers served and also the number 

of homes ‘‘passed’’ by their broadband 

enabled infrastructure; (3) collect 

demographic information about 

households from filers located in 

representative areas; and (4) collect 

price information from filers in 

representative areas or from filers more 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
27534 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 

generally. In addition, the NPRM invites 

comment whether there are any 

alternatives not discussed in the NPRM 

that would also serve the objectives of 

the NPRM. The Commission invites 

comment on ways to mitigate the 

burden that might be imposed on small 

entities by proposals discussed in the 

NPRM. The Commission also invites 

comment on alternatives to these 

proposals that would meet the 

objectives of the NPRM but would 

impose lesser burdens on small entities. 

E. Steps Taken To Minimize Significant 

Economic Impact on Small Entities, and 

Significant Alternatives Considered 

57. The RFA requires an agency to 

describe any significant alternatives that 

it has considered in reaching its 

proposed approach, which may include 

(among others) the following four 

alternatives: (1) The establishment of 

differing compliance or reporting 

requirements or timetables that take into 

account the resources available to small 

entities; (2) the clarification, 

consolidation, or simplification of 

compliance or reporting requirements 

under the rule for small entities; (3) the 

use of performance, rather than design, 

standards; and (4) an exemption from 

coverage of the rule, or any part thereof, 

for small entities. 

58. From the outset, the NPRM invites 

comments on significant alternatives to 

improving data about broadband 

availability throughout the nation—

particularly availability in rural and 

other hard-to-serve areas—that would 

impose no burden on small entities 

whatsoever. These alternatives ask 

whether the Commission would be able 

to meet its objectives by conducting 

further analysis of current data, 

conducting its own studies, or 

purchasing databases from other entities 

to supplement Commission data. The 

NPRM asks whether the Commission 

should simply identify for further, 

individual study those Zip Code areas 

where deployment appears to be 

particularly limited. The NPRM invites 

comment on whether the Commission 

might collaborate with state publicprivate economic development or other 

initiatives to supplement and refine 

Commission data. Furthermore, the 

NPRM invites comment whether it 

might purchase commercial databases or 

services that would provide data 

without imposing additional burdens on 

filers. Finally, the Commission inquires 

whether it might rely on a voluntary 

self-reporting system by non-served 

households, patterned after the National 

Do-Not-Call Registry, to identify 

localized areas where broadband 

services are not available. None of these 

alternatives would impose burdens on 

small entities, but commenters are 

invited to comment on whether these 

alternatives would provide sufficient 

information for the Commission to 

assess whether it should institute new 

policies to encourage deployment of 

broadband services to rural and hard-toserve areas. 

59. With regard to proposals that 

would increase the reporting 

requirements of small entities, the 

NPRM invites comments on how these 

proposals might be tailored to mitigate 

the burden on smaller entities but 

nevertheless obtain data that would 

enable the Commission to determine 

whether subscribers in those territories 

have access to broadband services. As 

noted above, the NPRM invites 

comment on whether current Form 477 

filers should (1) report numbers of 

subscribers per 5-digit Zip Code, (2) 

report 9-digit Zip Codes where there is 

at least one subscriber or report 

numbers of subscribers per 9-digit Zip 

Code, (3) report geocoded information 

about subscriber locations, or (4) report 

information that delineates in detail the 

boundaries of their broadband-enabled 

service territories. The NPRM also seeks 

comment on whether the Commission 

should (1) refine the speed-tier 

information the Commission currently 

collects by splitting an existing speed 

tier into two; (2) require all broadband 

filers to report the number of residential 

customers served and also the number 

of homes ‘‘passed’’ by their broadband 

enabled infrastructure; (3) collect 

demographic information about 

households from filers located in 

representative areas; and (4) collect 

price information from filers in 

representative areas or from filers more 

generally. To analyze the impact on 

small entities, the NPRM specifically 

asks whether entities maintain these 

types of information in billing or 

marketing databases and asks 

commenters to demonstrate the burden 

for the entities to collect and report this 

type of information. This information 

will assist the Commission in 

determining whether these various 

proposals would impose a significant 

economic impact on small entities. 

Commenters are invited to comment on 

whether there are alternative methods 

that would obtain the same information 

while lessening the economic impact on 

small entities. 

60. The NPRM also invites comment 

on how we should modify the reporting 

requirements for wireless broadband 

providers and interconnected VoIP 

providers. Specifically, the NPRM 

invites comment on whether mobile 

wireless providers should (1) report the 

number of month-to-month (or longer 

term) subscriptions to broadband 

Internet access service designed for full 

Internet browsing; (2) report the number 

of month-to-month (or longer term) 

subscriptions for broadband-speed 

browsing of customized-for-mobile web 

sites; and (3) report the number of 

unique mobile voice service subscribers 

who are not month-to-month 

subscribers to an Internet access service, 

but who nevertheless made any news, 

video, or other entertainment 

downloads to the subscriber’s handset at 

broadband speed during the month 

preceding the Form 477 reporting date. 

The NPRM also seeks comment on how 

to improve the reporting estimate of the 

percentage of mobile wireless 

broadband subscribers who are 

residential end users. In doing so, the 

NPRM specifically suggests and seeks 

comment on alternative methods for 

arriving at the best estimates of 

residential end users. Finally, the NPRM 

specifically invites comment on how to 

collect useful information about the 

number of interconnected VoIP 

subscribers in the least burdensome 

manner. This information will assist the 

Commission in determining whether 

these various proposals would impose a 

significant economic impact on small 

entities. Commenters are invited to 

comment on whether there are 

alternative methods that would obtain 

the same information while lessening 

the economic impact on small entities. 

61. Based on these questions, and the 

alternatives discussed is the NPRM, the 

Commission anticipates that the record 

will be developed concerning 

alternative ways in which it could 

lessen the burden on small entities of 

obtaining improved data about 

broadband availability throughout the 

nation. 

F. Federal Rules That May Duplicate, 

Overlap, or Conflict With the Proposed 

Rules 

62. None. 

Ordering Clauses 

Accordingly, it is ordered that, 

pursuant to Sections 1–5, 10, 11, 201–

205, 215, 218–220, 251–271, 303(r), 332, 

403, 502, and 503 of the 

Communications Act of 1934, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 151–155, 160, 161, 

201–205, 215, 218–220, 251–271, 303(r), 

332, 403, 502, and 503, and Section 706 

of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, 

47 U.S.C. 157 nt, this NPRM, with all 

attachments, is adopted. 

It is further ordered that the 

Commission’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau, Reference 

Information Center, shall send a copy of 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 94 / Wednesday, May 16, 2007 / Proposed Rules 27535 

1 Docket Management System NHTSA–2003–

15650. 

2 Docket Management System NHTSA–2003–

16296. 

this NPRM, including the IRFA, to the 

Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. E7–9300 Filed 5–15–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration 

49 CFR Part 571 

[Docket No. NHTSA 2006–26339] 

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 

Standards; Occupant Crash Protection 

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Denial of petition for 

rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: This document denies a 

petition for rulemaking submitted by 

Siemens VDO to amend Federal Motor 

Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 

208, ‘‘Occupant Crash Protection.’’ The 

petition requests that the agency add a 

dynamic automatic suppression option 

under the advanced air bag options for 

the 12-month CRABI infant test dummy 

analogous to that for the 3-year and 6- 

year-old dummies. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

non-legal issues: David Sutula, Office of 

Crashworthiness Standards, at (202) 

366–3273. Fax: (202) 493–2739. 

For legal issues: Edward Glancy, 

Office of Chief Counsel, at (202) 366–

2992. 

Fax: (202) 366–3820. 

You may send mail to these officials 

at the National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration, 400 Seventh Street, 

SW., Washington, DC 20590. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents 

I. Background 

II. The Petition 

III. Data Submission and NHTSA Analysis 

A. Data Submission 

B. Ex Parte Meeting With Siemens, 

Volkswagen and Audi 

C. NHTSA Analysis 

IV. Conclusion 

I. Background 

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 

Standard (FMVSS) No. 208, ‘‘Occupant 

crash protection,’’ specifies performance 

requirements for the protection of 

vehicle occupants in crashes (49 CFR 

571.208). On May 12, 2000, we 

published an interim final rule that 

amended FMVSS No. 208 to require 

advanced air bags (65 FR 30680; 

(Advanced Air Bag Rule). Among other 

things, the rule addressed the risk of 

serious air bag-induced injuries, 

particularly for small women and young 

children, and amended FMVSS No. 208 

to require that future air bags be 

designed to minimize such risk. The 

Advanced Air Bag Rule established a 

rigid barrier crash test with a 5th 

percentile adult female test dummy, as 

well as several low risk deployment and 

static suppression tests using a range of 

dummy sizes and a number of specified 

child restraint systems (CRSs). 

The Advanced Air Bag Rule allows for 

passenger side compliance through any 

of three options. The first option, Low 

Risk Deployment (LRD), defines a 

reduced deployment strength for 

occupants in close proximity to the air 

bag. The second option suppresses the 

air bag when a child is present. The 

third option, Dynamic Automatic 

Suppression (DASS), senses the location 

of an occupant with respect to the air 

bag, interprets the occupant 

characteristics and movement, and 

determines whether or not to allow the 

air bag to deploy. Performance tests for 

determining compliance with the LRD 

and suppression options were specified 

in the Advanced Air Bag Rule. A 

performance test for determining 

compliance with the DASS option was 

not specified in the rule because at that 

time it was not known what 

technologies would be used to attempt 

to meet the DASS option. 

The agency received multiple 

petitions for reconsideration to the 

Advanced Air Bag Rule. Petitioners 

raised a large number of concerns about 

the various test procedures in their 

written submissions. The agency then 

addressed each petition in a Federal 

Register notice published on December 

18, 2001, and made a number of 

refinements to the test dummy 

positioning procedures in the barrier 

tests and the low risk deployment tests 

used in the Advanced Air Bag Rule (66 

FR 65376). 

The December 18, 2001 response to 

petitions for reconsiderations (66 FR 

65383) stated that: 

To address the risks posed by passenger air 

bags, the rule requires vehicles to either (1) 

have a passenger air bag that deploys in a 

low-risk manner to out-of-position 

occupants, (2) to have a feature that 

suppresses the air bag when a young child is 

present in a variety of positions, or (3) to 

have a feature that suppresses the air bag 

when a passenger is out-of-position 

(including in dynamic events). The risk 

minimization requirements must be met 

separately for 1-year-old, 3-year-old and 6- 

year-old children, and manufacturers may 

choose different options for these three 

classes of occupants [emphasis added].’’

In making this statement, the agency 

clarified that for each dummy type, the 

selected ‘‘risk minimization’’ strategy 

had to be met in full for each dummy. 

That is, it was not acceptable to comply 

with only the suppression strategy for 

an infant in a rear facing child restraint 

system (RFCRS) and the low risk 

deployment strategy for an infant in a 

forward facing child restraint system 

(FFCRS). This was further emphasized 

in letters responding to request for 

interpretation from TRW Automotive 

(TRW) 1 and International Electronics 

and Engineering (IEE) 2 in July and 

October of 2003, respectively. The IEE 

interpretation also indicated that 

‘‘[m]anufacturers may not use 

suppression technology to ensure that 

there will be no air bag deployment in 

the indicant test if they are certifying to 

the low risk deployment test.’’

In both regulatory and non-regulatory 

environments the agency has discussed 

extensively its concern about the danger 

of air bag deployment in the presence of 

an infant in a RFCRS. It was for this 

reason that the infant low risk 

deployment certification option 

effectively requires a broader range of 

crash severities for which the air bag 

must deploy in a low risk manner. 

II. The Petition 

On August 20, 2003, Siemens VDO 

(Siemens) petitioned the agency to 

amend FMVSS No. 208 to add a DASS 

option under the advanced air bag 

options for the 12-month-old CRABI 

infant test dummy. This would be an 

option analogous to that provided for 

the 3-year-old and 6-year-old dummies 

in S21.3 and S23.3, respectively. 

Siemens stated that ‘‘including the 

DASS option with the 1-year-old (12- 

month-old) dummy could have a 

positive impact on motor vehicle safety 

by enabling the development and 

certification of advanced air bag 

suppression systems.’’

The petition stated that the lack of a 

DASS option (for infants) is limiting 

advanced air bag technologies for the 

following reasons: 

1. Using a vision-based DASS system it is 

not possible, under all circumstances, 

[emphasis added] to distinguish between a 

12-month-old child in a FFCRS with a 

sunshield or blanket and a 5th percentile 

female. The system would suppress the air 

bag and eliminate potential benefits to 

children older than 1-year and small adults. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS