Unhappy about Airborne Cell Phones? Don't Call the FCC. [telecom]

Posted on CommLawBlog on November 22, 2013 by Mitchell Lazarus

| Yes, we all hate the FCC's proposal to allow cell phones in | flight, but the FCC is not to blame. | | The FCC's release of its "tentative agenda" before each | monthly meeting draws close scrutiny from people like us, but | not much from the larger world outside the Beltway. | | Until, that is, this week. That's when the December agenda | appeared, with this item: | | Increasing Consumer Access to In-Flight Mobile Wireless | Services: The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed | Rulemaking to revise outdated rules and provide airlines with | the ability to permit passengers to use mobile wireless | services via onboard airborne access systems. | | The FCC confirmed that, yes, it will formally propose removing | its ban on in-flight cell-phone use. | | The public reacted vehemently. Who says Americans are a | pathetic? The 24 hours after the agenda item appeared saw | intense press, TV, and online coverage. Website commenters | were outraged - even more than usual. Flight attendants were | up in arms. A White House petition is gaining hundreds of | signatures by the hour. The FCC has not said, but we're | betting their in-box is piling up angry messages. | | In fact, we can't think of another time when an FCC action | (or, in this case, an announcement of a coming proposal to | maybe take a possible future action) has triggered such a | strong public outcry. | | We would join the outcry, too, except that we have an inside | fact: the FCC is the wrong target.

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Neal McLain

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