## Facts

- ABC Fulfillment Services LLC and Indubitably, Inc. (collectively, HobbyKing) operated a website marketing recreational radiofrequency devices, including audio/video (AV) transmitters used on drones and model aircraft, to U.S. customers.
- The FCC investigated HobbyKing’s marketing of AV transmitters that purported to operate on amateur-related frequency bands, including portions of the 1240–1300 MHz and 2300–2310 MHz / 2390–2450 MHz ranges.
- The FCC alleged multiple AV transmitter models were noncompliant because they lacked required FCC equipment authorization and/or operated outside permitted technical parameters (including frequency and power limits).
- In 2016, the FCC issued a prior citation and order warning HobbyKing about equipment authorization and marketing requirements and directing it to cease marketing noncompliant devices.
- In April 2017, the FCC issued a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) seeking documents and information about equipment authorization status and sales; HobbyKing did not fully respond.
- In 2017, the FCC issued a citation and order finding HobbyKing violated federal law by failing to comply with the LOI and warning that continued similar misconduct could result in substantial monetary forfeitures.
- The FCC concluded HobbyKing continued marketing noncompliant AV transmitters and still did not provide complete LOI responses despite opportunities and extensions.

## Issues

1. Whether HobbyKing apparently violated § 302(b) of the Communications Act and the FCC’s equipment marketing rules (including 47 C.F.R. § 2.803) by marketing noncompliant, unauthorized AV transmitters in the United States.
2. Whether HobbyKing apparently violated the Communications Act and FCC orders by failing to fully and timely respond to the FCC’s LOI, under the FCC’s investigative authority (including §§ 4(i), 4(j), and 403).

## Decision

- The FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture finding HobbyKing apparently liable for marketing unauthorized/noncompliant RF devices and for failing to fully comply with FCC investigative orders.
- The FCC proposed a forfeiture of $2,861,128 based on the nature, extent, and gravity of the apparent violations and HobbyKing’s prior notice from earlier citations.
- The FCC treated the equipment marketing violations and the LOI noncompliance as distinct bases for apparent liability.
- The FCC stated the proposed forfeiture reflected deterrence considerations and the enforcement importance of equipment authorization and cooperation with investigations.

## Legal Principles

- Section 302(b) of the Communications Act and 47 C.F.R. § 2.803 generally prohibit marketing radiofrequency devices in the United States unless the devices are properly authorized and comply with applicable technical standards.
- Marketing devices that lack required authorization and/or operate outside technical limits constitutes an apparent equipment marketing violation, regardless of the device’s intended recreational use.
- The FCC may require regulated entities to provide information and documents through investigatory orders, including LOIs, under statutory authority such as §§ 4(i), 4(j), and 403.
- Failure to fully and timely respond to an FCC LOI, particularly after explicit warnings and extensions, can constitute a separate apparent violation supporting forfeiture.
- In setting a proposed forfeiture, the FCC considers statutory forfeiture factors, including the nature, circumstances, extent, gravity, culpability, history of prior offenses, and deterrence.

## Conclusion

The FCC found HobbyKing apparently liable for marketing unauthorized/noncompliant drone AV transmitters and for failing to fully comply with an FCC LOI, and it proposed a $2,861,128 forfeiture based on repeated noncompliance after prior citations and the enforcement need to protect the spectrum from harmful interference.


In re ABC Fulfillment Servs. LLC, 33 FCC Rcd. 5530 (F.C.C. 2018)