Congress intended for the FCC to retain authority to relax the national TV-ownership cap as market conditions change, said Wiley Rein's Thomas Johnson, a former general counsel at the agency, in an ex parte letter posted in docket 17-318 Tuesday. The FCC “should not be duped” by “false-flag arguments” that the best reading of the text of the statute is that the FCC doesn’t have authority over the cap. Congress repeatedly used phrases allowing the FCC to modify its rules “because it was not mandating that these ownership limits be set in stone,” Johnson wrote. “Rather, these were one-time adjustments that Congress intended the FCC would continually revisit over time -- and indeed, that the FCC would modify or repeal these rules over time as the media marketplace became more competitive.” The national cap “places an anticompetitive thumb on the scale in favor of Big Tech. Relaxing or eliminating it would remove this artificial constraint on broadcasters’ ability to compete with today’s dominant media conglomerates.”
Hogan Lovells promotes George John to partner in its global regulatory practice … The Media Institute elects Kathleen Kirby, Wiley, and Heidi Raphael, Beasley Media Group, to its board of trustees.
The FCC is expected to hold its open meeting Tuesday as scheduled, despite the government shutdown, said Chairman Brendan Carr and other agency officials in interviews. “The plan is to move forward with an in-person October open meeting as scheduled,” an FCC spokesperson told us.
American Press Institute names Robyn Tomlin, formerly McClatchy, executive director, effective Dec. 1, replacing Senior Vice President Samantha Ragland, who was interim executive director after Michael Bolden departed to lead University of California, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism … Wiley adds Erin Joe, ex-Google, as special counsel in its privacy, cyber and data governance practice.
T-Mobile asked the FCC to block the access of outside counsel for Verizon to confidential information in the docket on T-Mobile’s proposed buy of wireless assets from UScellular, which FCC approved Friday (see 2507110045). Wiley’s Joshua Turner and Sara Baxenberg filed last week seeking access to the information. “Verizon has not filed an application, petition to deny, or material comments in this proceeding and the time for doing so has long ago expired,” T-Mobile said in a filing posted Friday in docket 24-286. “Given that over 9 months have passed since the filing of the applications and nearly half a year has passed since the deadline for filing petitions and/or comments, there is no basis to believe that affording Verizon’s counsel access to T-Mobile’s [confidential information] at this late hour would serve any permitted purpose.”
New satellite entrants struggle in the face of incumbent operators taking up geostationary orbital slots with old satellites that barely operate anymore, said Kimberly Baum, regulatory head for Astranis, at a space and spectrum conference Tuesday at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder. The related challenge of mini payloads on satellites that don't provide commercial service -- but nonetheless get licensed -- can stifle spectrum access for new entrants, she said. She called for the FCC to look at changing how it licenses payloads or older satellites that can't provide commercial services.
Two Texas associations this week petitioned the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals asking it to overturn a January declaratory ruling by the FCC in response to the Salt Typhoon cyberattacks. CTIA, NCTA and USTelecom previously asked the FCC to reconsider the ruling (see 2502190081), which now-Chairman Brendan Carr had opposed (see 2501160041). Commissioners approved it 3-2 in the final days of the Biden administration.
Top Senate Republicans told us Wednesday that they're likely to prioritize confirmation votes for GOP FCC nominee Olivia Trusty much earlier than expected as a result of Commissioner Nathan Simington’s abrupt exit. Simington said Wednesday he plans to depart the FCC “at the end of this week,” as we reported (see 2506030069). Democratic Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said he will resign Friday, also as expected (see 2505220043). The departures mean the FCC's party makeup will stand at a 1-1 tie by week’s end. That will also leave the commission below the statutory three-commissioner quorum, posing potential problems for Chairman Brendan Carr’s agenda heading into the commission’s planned June 26 meeting (see 2506040061).
Wiley's David Gross, a former top State Department official on communications, said the next World Radiocommunication Conference in 2027 will be critical, as WRCs usually are. But it’s unclear where the meeting will be held, with China making a strong bid to serve as host, he said. Gross spoke during a Free State Foundation webcast posted Friday and hosted by former FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly.
Comcast taps Jon Gieselman, formerly Expedia Group, as chief growth officer-residential domestic businesses, connectivity and platforms segment, a new position, effective April 28 … David Brodian, formerly FCC, becomes NTIA chief counsel, replacing Stephanie Weiner … Wiley taps Shiva Goel, ex-NTIA and FCC, as partner in its telecom, media and technology practice ... SEALSQ names Loic Hamon, ex-Capgemini, COO, a new position … Utopia Fiber adds deputy director to the title of Nicole Cottle, who's also general counsel and director of government affairs ... National Wireless Communications Council elects to board: David Smith, Forest Industries Telecommunications, president; Ralph Haller, Forestry Conservation Communications Association, vice president; Mark Crosby, Enterprise Wireless Alliance, secretary/treasurer; at large: Douglas Aiken, International Association of Fire Chiefs; Michele Farquhar, Association of American Railroads; and Farokh Latif, Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International.