The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is set to launch a major review of subsea cable licensing rules.
In the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, approved on November 21 by the FCC, the agency said it will seek to improve the security and protection of subsea infrastructure and streamline the licensing process.
Currently, the licensing process requires applications to several federal US agencies.
The FCC’s release said it “proposes a three-year periodic reporting requirement for cable landing licenses and, in the alternative, seeks comment on shortening the current 25-year license term.”
The US agency intends to focus on national security in its review. For example, it has also proposed that companies with international telecommunications authorizations will have to file renewal applications with the FCC. It is also working to remove what it deems as dangerous or risky communication equipment from US networks.
This will be the first review of subsea cables since 2001.
There are currently 84 FCC-licensed submarine cable systems. The FCC said cable-landing licensees currently have more than 5.3 Gbps of available capacity and an additional 6.8 million Gbps in the pipeline.
