FCC Amends E911 VOIP Order's Subscriber Notice, Reporting and Cancellation Requirements

July 26, 2005. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a document [PDF] in its proceedings titled "In the Matter of IP-Enabled Services" and numbered WC Docket No. 04-36, and "E911 Requirements for IP-Enabled Service Providers" and WC Docket No. 05-196.

This document amends and expands upon the requirements imposed upon the providers of interconnected VOIP services with respect to mandatory notice to their customers, mandatory acquisition of responses from customers, mandatory reporting to the FCC, and mandatory cancellation of service.

It amends the order portion of the FCC's First Report and Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [90 pages in PDF], numbered FCC 05-116, adopted on May 19, 2005, and released on June 3, 2005.

The FCC titled its July 26 document "Public Notice". This document describes its contents as "guidance".

This document states that the FCC "has determined that it will not initiate enforcement action, until August 30, 2005, against any provider of interconnected VoIP service regarding the requirement that it obtain affirmative acknowledgement by every existing subscriber on the condition that the provider file a detailed report with the Commission by August 10, 2005, containing the information described below. During this brief extension, interconnected VoIP providers will have the ability to continue obtaining affirmative acknowledgements from the entirety of their customer base. Further, we expect that if an interconnected VoIP provider has not received subscriber acknowledgements from 100% of its existing subscribers by August 29, 2005, then the interconnected VoIP provider will disconnect, no later than August 30, 2005, all subscribers from whom it has not received such acknowledgements.

This document also propounds interrogatories regarding this matter, to be answered, in writing, by interconnected VOIP service providers, by August 10, 2005.

For further information on the original order, see, story titled "FCC Releases VOIP E911 Order" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,148, June 6, 2005. See also, stories titled "FCC Adopts Order Expanding E911 Regulation to Include Some VOIP Service Providers", "Summary of the FCC's 911 VOIP Order", "Opponents of FCC 911 VOIP Order State that the FCC Exceeded Its Statutory Authority", and "More Reaction to the FCC's 911 VOIP Order", in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,139, May 20, 2005.