Team Telecom warned that this contributed to a "substantial and unacceptable risk of increased economic espionage" against the United States.[1]
The Chinese government could use the grant of authority to China Mobile USA to further its cyber and economic espionage efforts against the United States. Team Telecom repeatedly warned that the Chinese government could use the grant of authority to China Mobile USA to further its espionage efforts against the United States.[2] Further, China Mobile USA could, at the request of the Chinese government, violate any security agreement with Team Telecom, as it may be required to do under Chinese law.[3] Even if breaches were reported and resolved, "the potential harms could very likely not be remediated."[4] Finally, Team Telecom concluded that it would be unable to work effectively with China Mobile USA or its parent companies to identify and disrupt unlawful activities, or to assist in the investigation of past and current unlawful conduct.[5]
2. Ten Months after Team Telecom's Recommendation, the FCC Denied China Mobile USA's Application on National Security Grounds
In May 2019—nearly a year after Team Telecom's July 2018 recommendation—the FCC voted unanimously to deny China Mobile USA's application.[6] The FCC accepted Team Telecom's national security rationale, explaining:
[D]ue to a number of factors related to China Mobile USA's ownership and control by the Chinese government, grant of the application would raise substantial and serious national security and law enforcement risks that cannot be addressed through a [security] agreement.
- ↑ Executive Branch Recommendation re China Mobile USA, supra note 56, at 11.
- ↑ Executive Branch Recommendation re China Mobile USA, supra note 56, at 9-17.
- ↑ Executive Branch Recommendation re China Mobile USA, supra note 56, at 7.
- ↑ Executive Branch Recommendation re China Mobile USA, supra note 56, at 16-17.
- ↑ Executive Branch Recommendation re China Mobile USA, supra note 56.
- ↑ In the Matter of China Mobile Int'l (USA) Inc., FCC No. 19-38, 34 FCC Red 3361, 3361, ¶1 (May 10, 2019); Press Release, Fed. Commc'ns Comm'n, FCC Denies China Mobile USA Application to Provide Telecommunications Services (May 9, 2019), https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-357372A1.pdf. As noted above, during this time, China Mobile USA filed a reply to Team Telecom's recommendation and NTIA, on behalf of Team Telecom and the other Executive Branch agencies, filed a reply. In the Matter of China Mobile Int'l (USA) Inc., FCC No. 19-38, 34 FCC Red 3361, 3361, 1 (May 10, 2019). The FCC noted that staff "actively worked on the recommendation to deny from July 2018, when it was received" until the May 2019 order. It also suggested that it took longer to reach a decision because the "denial of an international Section 214 application on national security grounds was a case of first impression." See Email from the Fed. Commc'ns Comm'n to the Subcommittee (June 2, 2020) (on file with the Subcommittee).
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