Charter Communications is talking buildout plans with the FCC, apparently as part of discussions about conditions on its plans to buy Bright House Networks and Time Warner Cable. Meanwhile, an FCC decision on the deals seems close, experts said in interviews last week. Opponents are redoubling lobbying efforts against the deal. The FCC and Charter didn't comment.
Charter Communications is talking buildout plans with the FCC, apparently as part of discussions about conditions on its plans to buy Bright House Networks and Time Warner Cable. Meanwhile, an FCC decision on the deals seems close, experts said in interviews last week. Opponents are redoubling lobbying efforts against the deal. The FCC and Charter didn't comment.
The White House's Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) includes “a few big-ticket items” like the formation of the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity (CENC), but “in many ways it's corralling a lot” of the work President Barack Obama's administration has done on cybersecurity since 2009, said Department of Commerce Senior Adviser-Cybersecurity and Technology Clete Johnson Thursday during a USTelecom event. Federal officials highlighted many of the cybersecurity programs pulled into CNAP. The programs include the National Institute of Standards and Technology's ongoing assessment of the Cybersecurity Framework and the FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council's (CSRIC) continued work on cybersecurity issues. CNAP, which the White House announced last week, also includes the creation of the Federal Privacy Council and a federal chief information security officer position. The White House released CNAP in conjunction with the release of its FY 2017 federal budget proposal, which includes a 35 percent hike in cybersecurity spending (see 1602090068).
The White House's Cybersecurity National Action Plan (CNAP) includes “a few big-ticket items” like the formation of the Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity (CENC), but “in many ways it's corralling a lot” of the work President Barack Obama's administration has done on cybersecurity since 2009, said Department of Commerce Senior Adviser-Cybersecurity and Technology Clete Johnson Thursday during a USTelecom event. Federal officials highlighted many of the cybersecurity programs pulled into CNAP. The programs include the National Institute of Standards and Technology's ongoing assessment of the Cybersecurity Framework and the FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council's (CSRIC) continued work on cybersecurity issues. CNAP, which the White House announced last week, also includes the creation of the Federal Privacy Council and a federal chief information security officer position. The White House released CNAP in conjunction with the release of its FY 2017 federal budget proposal, which includes a 35 percent hike in cybersecurity spending (see 1602090068).
Along with documenting carriage hurdles facing independent and diverse programmers, the FCC in a notice of inquiry approved Thursday is looking for input on possible actions it might take to boost independent programming sources, Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake said. The commissioners approved the NOI, which was mostly as expected (see 1601290047) and seeks comments in docket 16-41 after it's published in the Federal Register. Chairman Tom Wheeler didn't comment about actions the FCC could consider after the NOI, which Commissioner Mignon Clyburn sought as part of last year's OK of AT&T buying DirecTV.
Along with documenting carriage hurdles facing independent and diverse programmers, the FCC in a notice of inquiry approved Thursday is looking for input on possible actions it might take to boost independent programming sources, Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake said. The commissioners approved the NOI, which was mostly as expected (see 1601290047) and seeks comments in docket 16-41 after it's published in the Federal Register. Chairman Tom Wheeler didn't comment about actions the FCC could consider after the NOI, which Commissioner Mignon Clyburn sought as part of last year's OK of AT&T buying DirecTV.
AT&T and Verizon appear to be neck-and-neck in a fight to become FirstNet’s lead partner, analyst Damon Verial said Wednesday in a report on financial website Seeking Alpha. “The importance of winning the FirstNet bid cannot be overstated for the stocks of these companies,” Verial wrote. “Becoming the FirstNet provider will give the winner a de facto monopoly on the national wireless network employed by the federal and state governments. This essentially guarantees the continued existence of the winner, protecting it from a possible bankruptcy (e.g., as a result of competition or disruptive technology to the wireless market) and should therefore change the lower bound valuation of the stock price (i.e., liquidation will not be possible as it would imply the destruction of a government system).” Verial also said the contract comes with many strings attached. The requirements are complex, he said. “Not only does it ask the wireless carrier to connect the entire country but it also requests ‘creativity’ in the bid.” Other industry observers see AT&T as more likely to emerge with the FirstNet contract (see 1601220053).
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul, R-Texas, shuffled his subcommittee leadership this week and named Rep. Dan Donovan, R-N.Y., chairman of the Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications Subcommittee. “Dan has shown great leadership on the Homeland Security Committee since being elected to Congress less than a year ago,” McCaul said in a statement. “He will continue to draw on his experience as a former District Attorney by conducting rigorous oversight of DHS and focusing on the posing threats our nation faces.” Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., previously led the subcommittee, which oversees such entities as FirstNet. She will chair the Border and Maritime Subcommittee, replacing Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., who is retiring at the end of this Congress.
House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul, R-Texas, shuffled his subcommittee leadership this week and named Rep. Dan Donovan, R-N.Y., chairman of the Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications Subcommittee. “Dan has shown great leadership on the Homeland Security Committee since being elected to Congress less than a year ago,” McCaul said in a statement. “He will continue to draw on his experience as a former District Attorney by conducting rigorous oversight of DHS and focusing on the posing threats our nation faces.” Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., previously led the subcommittee, which oversees such entities as FirstNet. She will chair the Border and Maritime Subcommittee, replacing Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., who is retiring at the end of this Congress.
Members of the ad hoc Governance and Reliability working group, led by the National Emergency Number Association, reported on a meeting with FCC staff on a previously submitted consensus proposal by the group on improving 911 reliability, said a filing posted Tuesday to docket 14-193. Members of the group discussed its vision on the collaborative management of roles and responsibilities in the changing 911 market, the filing said. Members from associations including the National Association of 911 State Administrators, National Emergency Number Association and USTelecom took questions from staff on the proposal, the group said. Public Safety Bureau Chief David Simpson was among the attendees from the FCC.