Representatives of Qwest and ALTS told lawyers Fri. that the FCC got some things right and some things wrong in the Commission’s Triennial Review Remand Order (TRRO), though they disagree on most of them. The 2 spoke at a brown bag lunch sponsored by FCBA’s Common Carrier Practice Committee. Qwest Vp Melissa Newman: “After 8 years, the FCC got it right that switching is competitive” and no longer needs to be unbundled. She said Qwest in particular questions the impairment test set by the FCC for when unbundling requirements can be stopped. The tests are based on the number of access lines in a wire center -- for example, 38,000 business lines and 4 colocators must be present before a Bell can stop unbundling DS-3 loops. Newman said Qwest is different from other Bells and doesn’t have very many wire centers with that many lines. She said the FCC also was wrong in deciding special access “is not a suitable method of competition. Competitors are using it.” There’s no better test of competition than whether competitors are using something, she said. Special access may not be as profitable as TELRIC-priced UNEs, “but it does work,” she said. ALTS Gen. Counsel Jason Oxman also cited the FCC’s treatment of special access, but as a positive. It was good the FCC decided “special access is not a substitute for UNEs,” he said. “It’s not correct that CLECs are using special access as a substitute for UNEs.” Some categories of competitors, such as wireless and interexchange providers are using them that way, he said, but CLECs use UNEs,” he said. Oxman said the FCC acted positively in ruling that even after some UNEs are being phased out, Bells have to continue providing them if a CLEC makes a case that it still is entitled to one. Oxman said both CLECs and Bells agree in general on the tier- based test for unbundling elements but don’t agree on the details. “We think the numbers are too low, they think they are too high,” he said. Asked about CLEC concerns that the Bells are too quickly cutting off access to high capacity loops and transport in some central offices, Oxman said “CLECs don’t think LECs should be the universal arbitrators of the math” in determining when a central office meets the impairment test numbers. Newman said Qwest isn’t moving as quickly as some Bells on the high-capacity UNE issues: “We're looking for more guidance from the FCC.”
European competitive telcos will likely rejoice over a study, published Mon., that links changes in market concentration to broadband uptake. The Strategy & Policy Consultants Network report found that for every 1% drop in market concentration there’s a 3% rise in broadband penetration. The finding will provide ammunition to new entrants that have long complained Europe’s broadband market is far from competitive.
More people are satisfied with PBS programming than that offered by commercial broadcasters, according to a Roper Media poll commissioned by PBS. The study found that 38% of the 1,000 respondents are “very satisfied” with PBS programming, to 21% for cable and 16% for commercial broadcasters. PBS also beat network broadcasters as the most trusted source for news and public affairs programs. The study found that 62% believed availability of PBS is “very important,” vs. 42% for commercial broadcasters and 35% for cable. A majority (52%) said federal funding for PBS was too low, and most believe PBS funds are well spent. PBS ranked 2nd behind the military as the most valuable service taxpayers get.
With few exceptions, the combination of Sprint’s and Nextel’s 2.5 GHz spectrum portfolios wouldn’t increase the amount of spectrum -- licensed or leased -- the combined company would have in a given area above the amount currently available to either company, Sprint told the FCC. In an application for transfer of licenses Mon., the carrier said the companies had focused their spectrum acquisition activities on different geographic areas and there were no overlaps that could cause concerns.
Stratos Global reported 2004 net earnings Thurs. of $25 million, compared with $38 million in 2003, when results reflected peak demand related to conflict in the Middle East and an after-tax gain of $8.7 million related to the sale of Stratos’ interest in Inmarsat. Revenue for 2004 was $367.8 million, down 7%, reflecting a reduction in govt. and military expenditures for mobile satellite services (MSS). Stratos said revenue in broadband business grew 6% during 2004, with VSAT revenue up 25%, officials said. Stratos expects revenue growth in 2005 to be in the low-to-mid teen range, including revenue relating to the acquisition of Plenexis Holding, which closed Jan. 31. Basic earnings are expected to remain comparable to 2004, while capital expenditures are anticipated at 6-7% of revenue, officials said.
SAN FRANCISCO - Websites of local public broadcasting operations shouldn’t represent both a TV and a radio station and should offer program content and other information not available in newspapers, according to participants in focus groups. “They want public radio to be everything - and that’s a hard thing to deliver with limited resources,” said Public Interactive COO Debra Hughes. Public radio listeners and users of public radio websites were asked in late summer to evaluate the websites developed by Public Interactive for their local station and those in Boston, Dallas and Portland, as well as public broadcasting sites from Chicago and San Francisco and NPR.org. The results, and those of a companion poll, were presented at the Integrated Media Assn.’s Public Bcstg. New Media Summit here last week.
DTV shipments reached 7.2 million units in 2004, a 75% increase from 2003, CEA said Fri. The 2004 total includes 927,000 units shipped in Dec., a 45% increase from Dec. 2003, CEA said. Flat-panel displays accounted for 38% of DTV shipments last year, it said. Over 16.1 million DTV products accounting for $25 billion in total revenue were shipped 1998 -- when the first products reached retail shelves -- through 2004, CEA said.
Sirius’s retail market share for the 4th quarter of 2004 should be in the 45% range, up from 38% 3rd quarter, a Banc of America Securities analyst said before the company’s investor conference call scheduled for today (Wed.). The analyst predicted 2005 will be a strong year for Sirius as Howard Stern’s sign-on date approaches and Ford factory installation of Sirius receivers begins.
Paxson is seeking FCC approval for its shutdown of an LPTV station in Amityville, N.Y., until it can find a new channel to operate on. In an FCC filing, it said the launch of full-power DTV service by WWOR-TV Secaucus, N.J., on Ch. 38 means WPXU-LP in Amityville can’t operate on the same channel. Paxson said it’s “currently exploring channel change options.” The channel shut down Dec. 20, when WWOR-DT went on the air.
“Too much hype and expectation” has surrounded Sirius Satellite Radio’s deal with shock jock Howard Stern, Banc of America Securities analyst Jonathan Jacoby said in a report released Tues. He downgraded his rating on Sirius to “sell,” and shares of the company fell 29 cents (3.5%) to $7.81 by the end of regular trading Tues. Sirius also signed an agreement recently with NFL, but analysts don’t expect the company to be profitable in the near term. Jacoby advised clients to capitalize on competitor XM’s expected subscriber growth. That company is counting on deals with several automobile manufacturers and plans to air Major League Baseball games (CD Dec 1 p14). XM shares also slid 84 cents (2.1%) to $38.89 on Tues. Despite XM’s lead, Sirius continues to gain retail share and Jacoby said he expects the company’s 4th quarter share to increase to 45%, from 38% in the 3rd quarter. In the report, he raised his price targets for XM to $44 from $37 and for Sirius to $5.25 from $3.68. Jacoby also said his firm has a proprietary potential customer survey in the works to help them better determine long-term projections.