GCI Pays Small Fee to Settle with FCC Over Submarine Cable License Lapse
Company to develop compliance plan.
WASHINGTON, August 14, 2025 – GCI, an Alaska-based telecommunications company under CEO and co-founder Ronald Duncan, has agreed to pay a $10,000 settlement to the Federal Communications Commission to close the agency’s investigation into its failure to renew a submarine cable license.
The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau launched the probe after discovering GCI may have violated Section 34 of the 1921 Cable Landing License Act and Section 1.767 of the FCC’s rules. These regulations govern the ownership and buildout of submarine cables on U.S. soil.
The investigation focused on GCI’s failure to renew its license for the Alaska United East submarine cable system, which connects Alaska to the lower 48 states through undersea fiber-optic infrastructure.
Although GCI did not admit to any wrongdoing, it voluntarily agreed to pay a $10,000 contribution to the U.S. Treasury. The company also committed to implementing a compliance plan to prevent similar oversights in the future.
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