Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., said he plans to hold a hearing later this year on driving accidents related to the use of mobile devices. Rockefeller said in a YouTube video Friday (http://youtu.be/q0frFki-9vw) he plans to further examine the “unknown and very dangerous issue.” Rockefeller has long criticized the practice but has been unable to pass legislation aimed at curbing distracted driving. His Distracted Driving Prevention Act (S-1938) died last session after the Commerce Committee passed the bill by a 17-8 vote.
The Open Mobile Video Coalition (OMVC) will continue operating in its current capacity through 2012 and will “determine options for the future later this year,” Executive Director Anne Schelle said. Last week, the NAB’s TV board voted unanimously to integrate the OMVC’s functions within NAB (CD Jun 14 p13). “As Mobile Digital TV moves beyond the experimental to the commercial phase, the Open Mobile Video Coalition … is evaluating ways to ensure the most effective support and advocacy for the continuing development of Mobile DTV technology, including a potential integration into the National Association of Broadcasters,” Schelle said.
A group of broadcast executives representing the NBC TV affiliates met with FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai and an aide to discuss retransmission consent, broadcast spectrum, media ownership and the online public file rule, an ex parte notice said (http://xrl.us/bnbvyd). The executives talked about the importance of retrans and local exclusivity rules and their desire to work with the commission on the incentive spectrum auction and TV band repacking. They also talked up the benefits of shared services agreement among TV stations and the need for duopolies and cross-ownership of newspaper assets. They also discussed a proposal to put certain political file information online without disclosing station’s ad rates.
The FCC Media Bureau granted the application of Black Media Works for a new noncommercial educational FM station in Cocoa Beach, Fla., denying the petitions of CSN International and Central Florida Educational Foundation. CSN “has not raised a substantial and material question of fact regarding the BMW application sufficient to warrant its denial,” the bureau said in an order (http://xrl.us/bnbvze). The BMW application fully complies with all pertinent statutory and regulatory requirements, it said. The bureau also dismissed CSN’s application for a new NCE station in Cocoa Beach.
Mauna Kea Broadcasting asked the FCC to enforce its must-carry rights on Time Warner Cable for its KLEI-TV Kailua Kona, Hawaii, in the Honolulu market, in a filing (http://xrl.us/bnbvxv). TWC hasn’t responded to the company’s carriage request, the complaint said. TWC had no immediate comment.
Verizon representatives protested any move to suspend action on pricing flexibility petitions while the FCC asks more questions on special access rules, in a meeting with aides to Commissioners Ajit Pai and Mignon Clyburn. “We expressed Verizon’s concern that any order addressing the current special access pricing flexibility framework could prejudge the outcome of the Commission’s ongoing analysis of the marketplace before the Commission has collected the competitive data it needs to complete its review,” Verizon said in a filing on the meeting (http://xrl.us/bnbvxx). “The Commission has acknowledged that it does not have the necessary data to accurately assess the level of competition, and that it plans to seek additional data from the relevant parties."
The Media Bureau issued two protective orders concerning sensitive information in proceedings involving revision of the FCC program access rules. The bureau will make proprietary and confidential information available to participants in these proceedings only pursuant to a protective order, the bureau said in docket 12-68 (http://xrl.us/bnbvwq). In a second protective order, the commission adopted procedures “to provide more limited access to certain especially competitively sensitive information that may be filed in this proceeding,” the bureau said (http://xrl.us/bnbvxa). The order is intended to protect the information “from improper disclosure,” it said. Comments on whether the commission should allow the rules to sunset Oct. 5 are due June 22, replies July 23 (CD April 24 p14).
Sprint Nextel called on the FCC to suspend all new grants of pricing flexibility while the agency establishes “a new, more effective, framework for evaluating competition for channel termination services.” The request came in a meeting with Christine Kurth, aide to Commissioner Robert McDowell. “The current pricing flexibility triggers have never measured last-mile competition effectively,” Sprint said (http://xrl.us/bnbvxg).
KSQA-TV Topeka, Kan., asked the FCC to force Cox to carry it on Channel 12, the same channel the station broadcasts on over the air, in an FCC complaint (http://xrl.us/bnbvvx). Cox had told the must-carry station it could only request carriage on its program and system information protocol, or PSIP channel, the complaint said. A Cox spokesman said the company is reviewing the complaint.
The FCC Wireless Bureau released a pleading cycle on AT&T’s proposed buy of two lower 700 MHz band licenses from MTA Communications. The licenses cover three cellular market areas in Alaska. Petitions to deny are due June 29, oppositions July 10, replies July 17. “Preliminary review of the application indicates that in two of these three CMAs, AT&T would hold, post transaction, a maximum of 55 megahertz of spectrum below 1 GHz,” the bureau said (http://xrl.us/bnbvvz).