Sen. Orrin Hatch will look to move the Music Modernization Act (S-2823) in the “next few weeks,” an aide for the Utah Republican told us Wednesday. His push will likely come after Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh (see 1808280054), which begin Tuesday, the aide said. Nashville Songwriters Association International Executive Director Bart Herbison expects the Senate to focus on Kavanaugh proceedings the next two weeks. He anticipates a vote on the music copyright legislation (see 1808170046) in late September or early October.
PHILADELPHIA -- Verizon throttling of Santa Clara County firefighters shows “one of the reasons FirstNet is here,” said AT&T Director-FirstNet Strategy and Policy Ryan Burchnell Wednesday at the NATOA conference. Burchnell pitched FirstNet to attendees as AT&T works to sign up local agencies. Meanwhile, local officials and attorneys continued to sound the alarm about imminent federal and state actions to ease 5G small-cells deployments by pre-empting local authority in the right of way (ROW).
Tribune helped plan divestitures it now calls "shams" and violated the terms of its agreement with Sinclair by backing away from the deal in the face of the FCC hearing designation order, the spurned buyer said Wednesday in a response filing and counterclaim to the takeover target's breach of contract lawsuit in Delaware Chancery Court (see 1808150056). FCC objections to the deal “came out of nowhere” and were “abrupt and surprising,” Sinclair said: “At no point during these discussions did the FCC ask for any changes or more information” regarding the divestitures it later called out as deceptive or regarding “the consideration the Parties would receive in the transaction.”
Telecom industry interests are supporting the FCC's proposal for extending the current jurisdictional separations freeze and allowing RLECs that chose to lock in their category relationships in 2001 a chance to opt out, in docket 80-286 comments. Commissioners unanimously approved the Further NPRM in July (see 1807180059). Monday was the comment deadline, with replies and state public utility commission initial comments due Sept. 10 (see 1808200025).
The fight is on. Dish Network, public interest and consumer groups, and groups representing mostly rural carriers asked the FCC to deny T-Mobile’s takeover of Sprint, in petitions filed by the Monday deadline in docket 18-197. Commenters underscored the negative effect on competition of any deal that would reduce the number of national wireless carriers from four to three. Some filed earlier (see 1808270049).
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said Tuesday he plans to ask Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh about his dissent in the D.C. Circuit's 2017 en banc affirmation of the FCC's 2015 net neutrality rules in USTelecom v. FCC, No. 15-1063, during his confirmation hearing (see 1705010038). Blumenthal is one of five Commerce Committee members who also sit on the Judiciary Committee, which will begin hearings on Kavanaugh Sept. 4. Three other lawmakers -- Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass., Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif. -- also said during a conference call with Blumenthal and reporters they oppose Senate confirmation of Kavanaugh because of his views on net neutrality.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal will introduce an “expanded version” of his online privacy bill with Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., the Connecticut Democrat told us Monday. Blumenthal said it’s an extension of the Customer Online Notification for Stopping Edge-provider Network Transgressions (Consent) Act (S-2639) and will be unveiled “shortly.”
PHILADELPHIA -- Local governments should make deals with the wireless industry on their own terms before they are pre-empted by states or the FCC, panelists warned Tuesday at a NATOA conference. They cited a San Jose deal with carriers as one that could be a model, though cautioning carriers are reluctant to apply the same terms elsewhere.
Gray Television’s buy of Raycom is widely expected to be approved by the FCC, industry officials told us, though recent DOJ actions make it harder to predict that agency’s reaction. Gray/Raycom is the leading edge of what could be a wave of dealmaking among TV groups, partially spurred by the demise of Sinclair/Tribune (see 1807230055), said Patrick Communications media broker Gregory Guy. The collapse of a combination that would have been vastly larger than any other broadcaster has “pumped a bunch of air into the industry,” Guy said. TV broadcasting is no longer a “two-horse race,” he said.
The FCC likely can find an easy solution after a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated one part (see 1808280020) of a decision easing regulation of the business data service rates of major incumbent telcos, experts said. The court denied CLEC and ILEC petitions in general but vacated the final rule on TDM transport services, remanding it to the regulator for further proceedings. The case is Citizens Telecommunications v. FCC, No. 17-2296. Oral argument was in May (see 1805150020).