The Wireless Bureau seeks comment on the “operation and effectiveness” of FCC rules for the hearing aid compatibility of wireless handsets. The bureau said it wants to build a record on the state of the industry since the last public notice in 2010. “During the 19 months since the record closed ... technologies and markets for both wireless handsets and hearing assistance devices have continued to evolve,” the bureau said (http://xrl.us/bnxgp8). “For example, manufacturers have introduced many new handset models, including models that both do and do not meet hearing aid compatibility technical standards. Many of these handsets offer 3G and 4G broadband capability as well as other advanced and innovative features. At the same time, increasing numbers of hearing aids are equipped with telecoils. We seek comment on how these and other developments affect any of the matters addressed in the 2010 Review PN.” Comments will be due 30 days after the notice appears in the Federal Register.
The State Department Thursday released the U.S.’s second set of proposed revisions to the International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs). The proposals, submitted to the ITU Wednesday, will be considered at the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), which is set to convene in Dubai starting Dec. 3 (http://xrl.us/bnxgph). In its submission, the U.S. codified into policy proposals its public opposition to efforts to address cybersecurity issues and a proposal from the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association (ETNO) that would establish a “sender-party-pays” model for Internet traffic transmission fees that critics say goes against the commercial agreements that have become standard in the industry (CD Nov 1 p4).
About 1.6 million households served by Cablevision were still without power Thursday morning, the company said. Of those with power, 7,265 were without Cablevision service. “Following this unprecedented event, loss of electrical power continues to be the primary cause of widespread disruptions of Optimum service,” the company said. “Cablevision crews are in the field and working to restore service as quickly as possible after the return of power."
Globalstar said it remains committed to providing services that yield substantial public safety benefits as NTIA moves forward with development of a nationwide interoperable public safety broadband network. The company urged the agency in comments on a notice of inquiry regarding the network to move quickly and decisively “to establish the interoperable network that first responders so desperately need” (http://xrl.us/bnxgs3). The company developed an emergency response interoperable communications system that provides immediate localized communications services to first responders and the ability to communicate with trapped victims, “using their existing mobile phones,” it said. Globalstar suggested that NTIA focus part of its inquiry on the necessary efforts “to eliminate the communications gaps that occur during the first hours after a catastrophic event” when communications are disrupted.
Crown Media Holdings’ Q3 sales increased 4 percent from a year earlier to $77.1 million, the company said. Net income dropped to $11.5 million from $203 million a year earlier when the company recorded a $191 million income tax benefit.
AMC Networks’ improved tiering on Dish Network added about 1.3 million subscribers to its base, which rose to 98.2 million from 96.9, BTIG analyst Richard Greenberg said. As part of a settlement of the Voom suit in October, AMC Network was restored Oct. 21 on Dish to a more widely distributed tier -- America’s Top 120 (AT120) -- against America’s Top 200 (AT200) where it previously resided, Greenberg said. AMC’s other channels, including WE, IFC and Sundance also benefitted from the new structure, Greenberg said. WE and IFC shifted to AT120 from AT200, each adding 1.3 million subscribers in the process in increasing to 79.8 million and 68.2 million subscribers, Greenberg said. Sundance moved to AT200 from Blockbuster@Home premium package, adding 9.7 million subscribers, boosting its base to 50.1 million, Greenberg said. WE, IFC and Sundance were scheduled to go back on Dish Thursday. While the gains at AMC and WE won’t have “meaningful impact” on AMC Networks’ advertising and sponsorship, distribution at IFC is up 11 percent from year ago, while Sundance jumped 24 percent, Greenberg said. IFC has begun to switch to an advertising-based network, with Sundance having the potential to make the change within one to two years, Greenberg said. The broader distribution of AMC on Dish “illustrates the decisiveness” of the Voom legal victory, Greenberg said. “We expect that the new AMC affiliate fees paid by Dish will be quite attractive relative to what Dish was paying” before, Greenberg said. With the Dish agreement in hand, AMC’s subscriber fees should improve seven percent from a year earlier, given that $20 million was likely lost during AMC’s four-month dispute with Dish when it lost carriage on the satellite service, Greenberg said. In addition to better tiering, AMC received $310 million as its share of a $700 million settlement with Dish that also involved former parent Cablevision. The pact ended a costly legal battle for Dish, which was sued by Cablevision in 2008 after it dropped Voom channels, ending a 15-year distribution pact signed three years earlier. As part of settlement, Dish paid $80 million for Cablevision’s multichannel video distribution and data service spectrum licenses.
Multiple parties questioned the FCC’s authority to regulate the Internet, in amicus briefs filed at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, scheduled to hear Verizon v. FCC. The net neutrality order “violates broadband providers’ First Amendment rights” by “denying Internet service providers their editorial discretion and by compelling them to convey content providers’ messages with which they may disagree,” said TechFreedom, the Cato Institute, Competitive Enterprise Institute and Free State Foundation(http://xrl.us/bnxgf3). It “violates the Fifth Amendment’s prohibition on takings without just compensation,” they said. The National Association of Manufacturers said “the FCC’s central claim to legal authority relies on assertions regarding the linkage between net neutrality requirements and broadband deployment that were comprehensively refuted by record evidence that the Order simply refused to address” (http://xrl.us/bnxgeo). The court should vacate the 2010 order, NAM said. Broadband regulation could hurt manufacturers, and Congress didn’t intend to authorize the FCC to regulate broadband, the association said.
Sinclair said it will pay a special dividend of $1 per share on Dec. 14 to shareholders of record as of Nov. 12. The company’s Q3 sales increased 49 percent from a year earlier to $226 million, a jump that resulted from acquiring stations over the last year and higher political and retransmission consent revenue, the company said. Net income increased 36 percent to $26.3 million. Sinclair decided to pay the special dividend this year ahead of the potential for higher dividend tax rates in 2013, CEO David Smith said.
British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) reported an increase in revenue for the 2013 first quarter ending Sept. 30. Revenue reached about $2.7 billion, compared to about $2.58 billion from the same period last year, it said in a press release. BSkyB added about 48,000 households to its subscribership and had an improved 10.9 percent churn, CEO Jeremy Darroch said Thursday during a webcast. The pay-TV company’s “triple-play” base, which includes TV, wireline and Internet, grew 19 percent year-over-year, with about 3.5 million customers, and “demand for HD is strong,” he said. Total high-definition TV customers reached about 4.5 million, with 125,000 net additions in the quarter, BSkyB said. The overall strong financial results were attributed to content, innovative services and efficiency, Darroch said. BSkyB reached an extended agreement for pay-per-view movies with Warner Bros., which created “more exclusivity for our demand service,” he said. BSkyB relaunched its Sky+ service this quarter, which is used in about 9 million homes, he said. About 1.3 million households activated the full on-demand service by connecting their Sky+HD box to the Internet and are downloading about three pieces of on-demand content per week, the company said. BSkyB isn’t threatened by competition offering faster broadband speeds, Darroch said. “Speeds are getting faster but we don’t see that as a single dimension of choice that’s moving the bulk of customers in the marketplace.” The company has the biggest triple-play base in the U.K., he said: “We feel comfortable with our product lineup.” Programming costs were slightly higher and affected by coverage of the Ryder Cup, Darroch said. Those costs are expected to increase during coverage of Premier League soccer, he added.
Scripps Networks Interactive Q3 sales increased 12 percent from a year earlier to $566 million, the company said. Higher employee costs and investments in some of its domestic and international businesses pushed expenses up 11 percent to $315 million. Still, net income increased 21 percent to $156 million as a result of the absence last quarter of a one-time charge the company took in the year-earlier period.