INCOMPAS News -- April 7, 2025

Vol. 21, No. 14

April 7, 2025

WEBINAR TOMORROW

Learn How to Boost Sales, Close Deals with Trusted Marketing

In the communications industry, standing out against competition is a constant challenge. This exclusive free INCOMPAS webinar - Tuesday, April 8 at 2 p.m. ET, led by Laura Johns, CEO of The Business Growers - offers a proven framework for those who want to become their field's best-known and most trusted partner and achieve revenue growth as a result.

With the average B2B purchase requiring 27 different interactions before a decision is made, staying visible throughout long sales cycles is critical to achieving revenue goals. Yet many organizations don’t show up during crucial parts of the buyer journey, leaving more than $250,000 in annual contracts on the table.

In the webinar, Trust-to-Revenue Marketing Approach: A Communications Industry Framework for Closing More Deals, you will learn:

The complete "omnipresence" framework that positions your company at every crucial touchpoint in the buying process
How to leverage your technical expertise to build customer confidence (without coming across as arrogant)
Proven strategies for competing against larger providers with bigger marketing budgets
A multi-channel approach to influence your reputation across Google Search, LinkedIn, email, SMS and in-person events
Time-saving tricks that make reputation management sustainable for busy communications industry leaders

Advanced Registration Required

Register today and join us tomorrow - Tuesday, April 8, at 2 p.m. ET - to see how your business can turn trust-building marketing techniques into revenue.

Senate Commerce to Take Action on Roth, Trusty Nominations

This Wednesday, April 9, at 10 a.m. ET, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee is scheduled to vote on the nomination of Arielle Roth to head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Following the vote, the committee plans to hold a hearing on the nominations of Olivia Trusty to be an FCC Commissioner and Jared Isaacman to be administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Committees Hold AI Hearings

Last week, there were several artificial intelligence (AI)-related hearings in the U.S. House of Representatives.

America’s AI Moonshot: The Economics of AI, Data Centers and Power Consumption - This House Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Energy Policy and Regulatory Affairs hearing brought together expert witnesses who discussed ways to effectively and responsibly harness AI to bolster the U.S.'s economic competitiveness, national security and technological leadership for generations to come.
Artificial Intelligence: Examining Trends in Innovation and Competition - This House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform and Antitrust hearing examined the competitive landscape within the AI sector, emphasizing the importance of solutions that preserve economic dynamism, technological innovation, and America's global leadership. During his opening statement, Chairman Fitzgerald correctly pointed out that “overregulation kills innovation.” View the Chairman’s opening statement and INCOMPAS’ commentary on the hearing here.
From Chalkboards to Chatbots: The Impact of AI on K-12 Education - The House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education held a hearing that discussed how AI will likely revolutionize the way students learn, but the federal government doesn’t need to be involved, as the Trump administration’s goal is to return education to states and families.

Intermedia's 2024 Success with Service Providers Sets the Stage for Further Growth and Innovation in 2025

In 2024, Intermedia Cloud Communications solidified its position as a trusted partner for service providers navigating platform transitions and legacy system uncertainties. By offering modern, AI-powered communications solutions, Intermedia enabled partners to modernize their offerings, accelerate revenue growth, and maintain ownership of customer relationships.

Intermedia’s Service Provider program is designed to address market challenges by offering actionable solutions that enable service providers to stand out, grow, and deliver value to their customers—all while maintaining ownership of those customer relationships. Intermedia's commitment to partner success is further demonstrated by its 8th J.D. Power Certification for delivering exceptional assisted technical support experiences and recognition as a UCaaS Leader by Frost & Sullivan in the 2024 Frost Radar™ Report. With a focus on innovation, reliability and comprehensive support, Intermedia is poised to drive further growth and success for service providers in 2025 and beyond.

Learn more about Intermedia’s partnership benefits.

House Commerce to Mark Up Telecommunications Bills

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce will hold a full committee markup on April 8, where it will consider 26 bills, eight of which are telecom-related, including:

Rural Broadband Protection Act (H.R. 2399), which would require the FCC to establish a vetting process for prospective applicants for high-cost universal service support funding
National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Reauthorization Act of 2025 (H.R. 2482)
Promoting Resilient Supply Chains Act of 2025 (H.R. 2444)

Bills Aimed to Bring Broadband to Appalachia, Expand Telehealth

In the House, Rep. David Taylor (R-OH) introduced a bill that would increase access to broadband for rural communities across Appalachia. The Expanding Appalachia’s Broadband Access Act would request the Government Accountability Office to conduct a study on the capabilities of low-orbit satellites operated under the purview of the Appalachian Regional Commission. Taylor said if favorable results are produced from this study, the bill would allow for the potential inclusion of low-orbit satellites in the BEAD Program.

On the Senate side, Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Brian Schatz (D-HI), along with 57 other Senators, reintroduced bipartisan legislation that would expand telehealth services under Medicare, make COVID-19-related telehealth flexibilities permanent, improve health outcomes and make it easier for patients to connect with their healthcare providers.

USAC Estimates Demand for E-Rate Discounts

The Universal Service Administrative Co (USAC) sent a letter to the FCC regarding its estimate of demand for the E-Rate support mechanism discounts for funding year 2025.

The estimate is $3.225 billion, of which $1.806 billion is for Category 1 services and $1.418 billion for Category 2 services. USAC said this estimate is based on the total amount of funding requested in the FCC Form 471 applications received on or before March 26, 2025.

April 15 is Deadline for Network Performance Test

Certification for Recipients of of High-Cost Support

The FCC issued a public notice reminding high-cost support recipients the results of first quarter 2025 network performance tests must be certified in USAC’s performance measures module by April 15, 2025. The bureau said carriers that did not perform network performance tests for any reason and therefore do not have network performance tests to certify must notify the bureau and USAC by April 15, 2025. The bureau also listed other future deadlines related to the certification of network performance tests.

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