The FCC's Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau has launched an initiative on "bill shock" for mobile consumers. The bureau is seeking input on ways to alert consumers about potential high charges before they add up. In the public notice, the bureau asks for comment on whether technological or other differences exist that would prevent mobile providers in this country from employing usage alerts similar to those now required by the EU, the extent to which consumers can now monitor their mobile usage and know when they are exceeding their predetermined allocations of voice minutes, text messages, or data usage, and the extent to which US providers are already offering such usage alerts, and the cost to the consumer or the provider. The bureau has also asked for comment on whether certain usage controls lend themselves more to one type of service than to another, and the extent to which such information can be accessed on devices by people with disabilities in particular, by people who are blind or have low vision and what kinds of usage alerts would be most helpful to them. Comments to the public notice are due 45 days after publication in the Federal Register.
