New FCC Website Coming Soon

Posted on December 1st, 2015 by

We’re only passing on this information, so don’t wish harm on the messengers. Deep breath. Here we go. Yes, the FCC is going to launch a new “responsively designed” website on December 10, 2015. Still with us? Good.

A large-scale redesign of the www.fcc.gov website to improve usability by all, and interoperability with tablets and mobile devices is what’s on tap. In the FCC’s words, “while our expectation is to switch to the new website on December 10th, there may be some specific pages that will need format, content or functional content that will need format, content or functional content after the change-over date.” Shorthand translation – we’ll get it right eventually.

As opposed to the last website design effort that allowed temporary access to the previous site after launch of the new one, this time around the current website will no longer be available to users after 12:00 a.m. December 10th. But don’t worry. Most of the webpages and files will have been migrated to the new site.

This brings to mind a potential frequently asked question: Will all of our bookmarks still work? Answer: “The FCC has worked to ensure that all web addresses that users might have bookmarked or otherwise utilize on an ongoing basis will remain connected to the relevant content.” Hmmmm.

If you just can’t wait and want a sneak peek of the new site, we have that for you here. It’s been available since April 2015. If you don’t like it, use this link to tell the FCC. But only if you are a human. Yes, those submitting a comment using that link have to first prove that they are “human” by answering a simple math problem. Like 3+5. No kidding.

If you would like to skip the humanity check, and want a specific question answered, email deanna.stephens@fcc.gov or sarah.millican.ctr@fcc.gov. Or call them at 202.418.0421 or 202.418.4017. They’ll be happy to help you.

Yes, we have surfed a little on the new prototype website. What are our thoughts? We will have no comment at this time. But we’ll vent on any legitimate issues in this space.