The FCC voted unanimously to let expire later this year a rule that has required cable operators to deliver the DTV signals of must-carry stations to its analog cable subscribers. The order approved by a 5-0 vote had been expected (CD May 25 p5), though broadcasters had mobilized in recent weeks to attempt to alter it. The FCC said it finds the viewability rule is “no longer necessary,” but requires hybrid analog-digital cable systems to continue complying with the rule until Dec. 12, 2012. NAB will consult its board before it decides how to respond, it said. “The NAB remains concerned that today’s FCC decision has the potential to impose negative financial consequences on small local TV stations,” a spokesman said. “We will be reviewing our options with our Board of Directors.” A coalition of must-carry station owners that formed to lobby on the issue didn’t immediately respond to our query.
AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson was sharply critical of the Obama administration’s move to embrace spectrum sharing as the only way of making spectrum now in federal hands available for wireless broadband in the near future. Stephenson, who spoke at the Brookings Institution Tuesday, told reporters later he has deep reservations about spectrum sharing, with its many unknowns. Stephenson also warned that an upcoming incentive auction of broadcast TV spectrum is not a “silver bullet” that will solve the industry’s expected spectrum crunch.
The Senate debate over cybersecurity legislation grew increasingly partisan as Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said during a speech on the Senate floor Tuesday that some Republicans are not taking the cyberthreat seriously. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., told reporters he agreed with Reid and suggested there are political reasons for the Republican opposition to the Senate Cybersecurity Act (S-2105). But sponsors of the alternative Senate cybersecurity bill, the SECURE IT Act (S-2151), urged the majority leader to bring a bill to the floor for debate and see where the chips fall.
Verizon Wireless Tuesday unveiled plans under which customers would pay monthly fees and share data, voice minutes and text messages across multiple devices, from smartphones to tablets to notebooks -- up to 10 Verizon Wireless devices. The Share Everything Plans are a first for the U.S. wireless industry. The announcement was not a surprise and had been well telegraphed by Verizon. The plans kick in June 28.
Companies are submitting to the FCC data they say shows the lack of competition in the special access market, as well as the price-cap LECs’ exercise of market power. That’s even before the agency requests data from companies affected by special access “pricing flexibility” waivers. Level 3’s 39-page filing Friday -- much of which was redacted for public inspection -- attempted to demonstrate the price-cap LECs’ market power, arguing it must “begrudgingly purchase the vast majority” of its special access needs from carriers like Verizon, AT&T and CenturyLink because there’s often no other choice available.
Verizon Wireless, SpectrumCo and Cox went on the attack against T-Mobile, urging the FCC to reject T-Mobile’s arguments against the sale of AWS licenses from the cable operators to Verizon Wireless. T-Mobile has emerged as a leading opponent of the spectrum deals. The broadside comes as the FCC and Department of Justice’s review of the deals appears to be nearing its final stages, with approval likely, though with substantial conditions (CD June 11 p1).
Federal Democratic policymakers praised a commitment from the major broadcast networks to begin putting content rating information on their full-length programming when it’s shown on websites they control. The commitment, to take effect next year, will cover shows streamed on each network’s own site. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel and Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., praised the commitment. A critic of the networks’ ratings policies said the move will do little to help parents make decisions about their children’s viewing habits. Disney’s ABC, News Corp.’s Fox, Comcast’s NBC and Telemundo, CBS, Univision and its TeleFutura network all signed on.
TORONTO -- Multiple video screens offer multiple opportunities and challenges for established video service providers, programmers, advertisers and equipment vendors, executives said. They told the Canadian Telecom Summit last week that multi-screen video has quickly become a fact of life for all media players, whether they like it or not. With consumer adoption rates for smartphones, tablets, game consoles and other Web-enabled devices soaring, speakers said there’s no turning back to the old one-screen, linear TV world. They predicted consumers will increasingly use three, four, five or more Internet Protocol-enabled screens to view video content whenever and wherever they want.
Two congressional opponents of anti-piracy bills, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), urged Congress to adopt a new digital bill of rights to protect the Internet from future attempts to regulate it. House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said at the Personal Democracy Forum Monday that Internet guidelines would help lawmakers gauge the impact of future legislative proposals. Wyden also warned that greater threats to Internet freedom are looming in global treaties like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement.
The satellite industry, government and military entities are working toward mitigating and managing space debris from satellites. While satellite operators have obligations for operating satellites and deorbiting satellites at the end of their lives, industry and U.S. and foreign governments are still addressing the need for a solution to prevent debris from accumulating, and for increased collaboration among nations operating in space, government agencies and satellite operators said.