L to R: Commissioner Ajit Pai, Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, Chairman Tom Wheeler, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, and Commissioner Michael O’Rielly.

You may have heard by now about the latest US$718,000 FCC fine for electrical contractor M.C. Dean for blocking Wi-Fi connections at the Baltimore Convention Center. What you may not have heard, though, is the ruling has two dissenters: FCC Commissioners Michael O’Rielly and Agit Pai.

“We are, once again, trying to set important and complex regulatory policy by enforcement adjudication,” O’Rielly wrote in his dissent. “This is backward and not the best course of action.”

Before the FCC can enforce rules, Pai wrote in his dissent, rules must exist.

“That’s why I believe that the FCC should adopt rules that limit Wi-Fi blocking,” Pai wrote. “In this case, the Commission proposes to fine a company $718,000 for engaging in Wi-Fi blocking. But here’s the rub. Because the Commission dropped the ball earlier this year, we do not have any rules that limit Wi-Fi blocking. Indeed, the only relevant rules we have on the books preclude liability in these circumstances.”

Pai believes that Wi-Fi blocking is currently lawful under the FCC’s rules.

“But even if I am wrong about that, the Commission’s case would still founder,” Pai wrote. “That is because it is certainly not clear that Wi-Fi blocking is currently unlawful under the Commission’s rules. And a core principle of the American legal system is that the government cannot sanction you for violating the law unless it has told you what the law is.

“This decision is the latest evidence that the FCC’s enforcement process has gone off the rails,” Pai continued. “Instead of dispensing justice by applying the law to the facts, the Commission is yet again focused on issuing headline-grabbing fines,” Pai wrote. “And while I have no doubt that this NAL [Notice of Apparent Liability] will generate plenty of press, I cannot support this lawless item. Therefore, I respectfully dissent.”

For more on this story, please read Bob Brown’s article in Network World.

(Image: FCC)

VenueNext CEO John Paul announced yesterday during the Web Summit in Dublin, Ireland, a new strategic partner: Legends Hospitality.

“Adding Legends Hospitality to our list of strategic partners gives us great confidence in our ability to innovate further for guests and venue owners in this space and to deliver large scale impact, as we strengthen our early lead in the sports and entertainment market,” VenueNext wrote in a blog post on its website.

Legends Hospitality clients include Yankee Stadium in New York, New York, and AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas.

“The partnership has been in place for several months as the tech vendor gradually rolls out new features in new mobile applications for both facilities, according to VenueNext VP/Marketing Louise Callagy,” wrote Don Muret for SportsBusiness Daily. “In Arlington, some pieces are already folded into AT&T Stadium’s new mobile app, including video replays and parking directions. Wayfinding features inside the stadium will be added in the near future. At Yankee Stadium, the mobile upgrades include scanning of tickets at gate entrances.”

VenueNext’s other partners are Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, and the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida.

(Image: VenueNext)

I’m not going to bury the lead here: There’s a Whataburger in the renovated AT&T Center in San Antonio. As a 100-percent, red-blooded Texan, this is great news. Even better, guests can access this Whataburger location on non-event days.

“We are extremely proud of the new AT&T Center,” said Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff, in a statement. “With improvements made at all levels of the arena, fans will have an enhanced experience with improved technology, new seating, and an array of new concession options.”

AT&T Center is located in Bexar County, which implemented a visitor tax that ultimately helped fund the $110 million renovation.

The renovation focused on the fan experience, and upgrades include a larger Fan Shop, a new bar area on the H-E-B Fan Zone level, and more than 600 HD TVs installed throughout the arena. Also, there’s improved Wi-Fi and new seating in the venue.

“This was a substantial project in a condensed timeline,” said Lori Warren, Spurs Sports & Entertainment senior vice president of corporate finance and strategy, in a statement. “It could not have been completed without the selfless collaboration of all those involved. The end result is a first-class facility that the community can really be proud of, and we’re excited for fans to experience the all-new AT&T Center.”

And that Whataburger.

(Image: AT&T Center)

You, as an IAVM member, are our most important asset. Without your commitment to the association and to the venue management industry, we wouldn’t be here. Because of your support, we are featuring member profiles in our I Am Venue Management series.

If I wasn’t doing this I’d be: golfing or fishing for striped bass.

Most impressive person I’ve ever met is: my dad.

I unwind by: having a Manhattan cocktail straight up with dirty ice on the side.

On my desk right now is: way too much stuff!

If you weren’t doing what you are doing now, what other career would you pursue? Charter fishing captain.

One trait an up-and-coming venue manager should have is: flexibility, lots of energy, and a good sense of humor.

One up-and-coming venue star in the arena industry is: Anais Mitchell, an American singer/songwriter.

One of my goals for this year is to: fully educate people on the benefits of arena curtains to provide custom solutions in downsizing.

How do you plan to help elevate the profession? Two fold. By keep doing what my father taught me: providing the best personal service to all of our customers and adding technology to advance arena curtain solutions to the next generation.

Where do you see new growth opportunities in the profession? Everywhere. Every venue is different, and each has special needs to accommodate all the different sized shows and entertainment coming through their doors.

How do you stay current with industry trends and developments? By reading trade material and listening to our customers.

Who are three people you’d invite to a dinner party and why? Billy Joel, Jack Nicholson, and Lady Gaga!

Bob Keller is chairman of the board for Nickerson Corp.

We’re happy to announce some programming notes for GuestX, Feb. 21-23, 2016, in Dallas, Texas.

One of the most popular and informative sessions last year was led by Jennifer Blackmon, corporate director of culture transformation at The Ritz-Carlton Leadership Center, and we’re pleased that she will be rejoining us for a new session focused on service excellence culture.

“Customer service re-energized is really the starting point on your journey to exceptional customer service,” Blackmon said in the video below. “One of the biggest points of that course is our motto, which is we’re ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen. But throughout the class, we rework that to say we’re ladies and gentlemen working with ladies and gentlemen.”

Other speakers and sessions lined up for GuestX include our keynote speaker T. Scott Gross, an author and hospitality industry veteran, who will speak on how to sell, serve, and stand out in a digital age; Carmen Day, director of guest experience for the Toronto Blue Jays, who will focus on front line supervisors; Jeff Cockrell from Dale Carnegie Training, who will educate attendees on how to have richer and more meaningful conversations with strangers; and Steve A. Klein, who will help attendees unleash their potential. There will also be a panel of experts from several major league sports leagues discussing how to create a great guest experience and an interactive session led by Gensler on how to design environments for optimal experiences.

Registration is open. Please visit the GuestX website to learn more about the conference and to stay up-to-date on additional speakers and sessions. See you in February!