Mark Koskenmaki wrote:
When they ask you for your customer's address and IP numbers, what will
you do?
I see you're NOT wearing the tinfoil hat. Y'know, it works better than you
might think. :D
Our freedom to do business unimpeded.
You mean you live somewhere without specific chunks of spectrum that you
can and cannot use? Without EIRP limits? I knew Oregon was a strange place
with relatively relaxed laws, but still...
The fact of the matter is that WISPs are already regulated in about a
jillion ways. So are most businesses, in and out of the wonderful world of
telecom. This simply Is. Without the regulatory intervention you seem to
fear, I wouldn't have a job, because there would be no such thing as
"unlicensed spectrum."
Do they need our names, addresses, zip codes, and how many individuals we
have in each, reported 2X a year? Heck no.
Fun fact: The form doesn't ask how many customers you have in any given
ZIP code. If anyone, anywhere, reports having even one customer in a given
ZIP code, as far as the FCC is concerned, everyone in that ZIP has access
to broadband. Honestly, I think this is an oversight. (One that'd be a
pain in the ass, because it means I'd need more than a half-hour to
complete the form, but the goal of FCC477 is to get an accurate picture of
broadband coverage, and in that respect it fails miserably.)
Anyway.
Your argument that the FCC has no legal right to request this information
probably doesn't hold up. IANAL, but the form and its instructions do
provide a lot of impressive-looking USC references. I've skimmed most of
'em and the law seems to be relatively clear on the point. 47 USC
generally gives a lot of authority to the FCC on, well, just about
everything related to telecommunications, so even your stated intent to
call your Internet service something other than "Internet" probably
wouldn't work too well.
It certainly could be argued that the data on this form could be used for
Evil, but it also could be used for Good. So kick back, enjoy the
Kool-Aid, and consider waiting until you have something vaguely resembling
evidence of ill intent.
dave
