The FCC may certify Spectrum Bridge as the first TV white spaces database with permission to start commercial operations in the U.S., industry and agency officials told us last week. That could lead to deployment of the first commercially available white spaces technology as early as Q1.

The FCC may certify Spectrum Bridge as the first TV white spaces database with permission to start commercial operations in the U.S., industry and agency officials told us last week. That could lead to deployment of the first commercially available white spaces technology as early as Q1. The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology earlier this year completed a 45-day public trial of the Spectrum Bridge database(CD Nov 14 p13) and this month began a 45-day trial of rival database provider Telcordia Technologies, making those the first two of the 10 commission-designated database operators to be ready for trials. White spaces devices, including one produced by Spectrum Bridge’s partner KTS, are being tested in the OET lab, and could soon be certified for commercial use as well, said industry executives.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, postponed the markup of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) after considering less than half of the proposed amendments to the bill Thursday and Friday. Opponents repeatedly decried the legislation’s lack of technical analysis at the Thursday markup, particularly with respect to its proposed DNS blocking provision (WID Dec 16 p1). Smith said Friday he would consider, but did not agree to, holding a subsequent hearing with security experts to determine what effects the bill could have on the security of the Internet.

Thursday’s hotly anticipated House Judiciary Committee markup of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), HR-3261, set the stage for a prolonged debate over the constitutionality and technical feasibility of the divisive legislation. The bill’s author, House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said he had every intention of moving forward with the markup “today, tomorrow and however long it takes.” However, the lack of expert technical analysis of the bill became a rallying cry for a bipartisan group of opponents, who urged the committee to slow the pace of the legislation.

Thursday’s hotly anticipated House Judiciary Committee markup of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), HR-3261, set the stage for a prolonged debate over the constitutionality and technical feasibility of the divisive legislation. The bill’s author, House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said he had every intention of moving forward with the markup “today, tomorrow and however long it takes.” However, the lack of expert technical analysis of the bill became a rallying cry for a bipartisan group of opponents, who urged the committee to slow the pace of the legislation.

The FCC said it will look into allegations of anticompetitive conduct against Intelsat in a coming proceeding about the structure and operation of the fixed satellite service (FSS) sector. In a satellite-market report for Congress covering calendar years 2008-2010 filed late Tuesday, the commission withheld conclusions about whether any of the industries’ sectors -- FSS, mobile satellite service (MSS) or satellite radio -- are competitive. In the two previous reports, the FCC found the industry competitive. The report was pulled from the agenda of this week’s commission meeting because the commissioners voted ahead of time to approve it. Satellite TV is covered by a Media Bureau report.

AT&T’s buy of T-Mobile is officially on hold, after U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle agreed to stay the Justice Department’s lawsuit against the deal until Jan. 18. AT&T and DOJ jointly sought the delay in a motion filed Monday. Huvelle acted quickly, issuing an order putting off other deadlines in the case and scheduling the next status conference in her courtroom on that date. DOJ and AT&T were due back in court Thursday.

House Republicans as expected included the draft spectrum bill by Communications Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., in spending legislation to extend the payroll tax cut and other items. The House GOP unveiled the text of the “extenders” bill Friday morning (http://xrl.us/bmkks2). The chamber is likely to vote on the package this week, the House Rules Committee said. The extenders bill is unlikely to survive in its current form, but could foreshadow a final deal that includes spectrum, said telecom lobbyists and analysts. Also Friday, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., condemned House proposals to provide $3 billion for broadcaster relocation and to force public safety to return narrowband spectrum.

An FCC International Bureau draft report on the competitiveness of the satellite market points to competitive concerns in the marketplace, said industry executives and an agency official. The report, which analyzes three years -- 2008, 2009 and 2010 -- is expected to voice some agency worry on satellite operator capacity pricing, they said. The report, which will be considered as part of the FCC’s Tuesday open meeting, is on circulation and could still see modification.

Concerns Starz raised over the classification of promotional spots as “advertising” for the purposes of loudness mitigation rules (CD Dec 8 p5) have been cited by other TV programmers in meetings with FCC officials, ex parte notices show. Time Warner and CBS attorneys separately pointed to Starz’s positions in meetings with legal advisers for all four FCC commissioners, the notices show. Meanwhile, NCTA officials also lobbied against applying the loudness mitigation rules to “promotional announcements or digital networks that do not carry paid commercial advertisements,” an ex parte filing shows. The specific language of the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act only applies to “commercial advertisements,” the notice said. “Finding the act to reach those digital networks that are not advertiser-supported but provide only promotional material would unfairly sweep within the scope of the requirements virtually every digital network an operator carries,” it said. “This misrepresentation of the Act would substantially increase burdens on cable operators and other MVPDs, requiring substantially more testing and more resources devoted to ensuring network compliance."