Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley this week urged FCC Chairman Brendan Carr and acting Media Bureau Chief Erin Boone to set a specific date for an ATSC 1.0 sunset, according to an ex parte filing posted Thursday in docket 16-142. “The best way to spur the availability of more consumer devices is to provide certainty regarding a sunset,” the filing said. Issuing a prompt NPRM on ATSC 3.0 would allow the FCC to sunset 1.0 in the top 55 markets by February 2028, as NAB has proposed, it added. "ATSC 3.0 is a game-changing opportunity for broadcasters to diversify their revenue streams and ensure that they can continue to serve their viewers -- but time is of the essence.”
The FCC is seeking nominations by Oct. 20 for six positions on the Universal Service Administrative Co. board, said a Thursday notice from the Wireline Bureau. Those positions, which have three-year terms, are representatives for commercial mobile radio service providers, incumbent local exchange carriers, cable providers, state consumer advocates, and libraries and schools participating in the USF.
The C-band Relocation Payment Clearinghouse has shut down, the FCC Wireless Bureau said Thursday. The clearinghouse submitted a final written certification of completion on Wednesday, indicating that it had finished its administrative duties, the notice said. The bureau approved the clearinghouse ending operations in June (see 2506040046).
Portions of the FCC's Part 76 rules, which govern multichannel video and cable TV service, are off the books, as the agency said Thursday that its Media Bureau had axed 43 of those requirements under its "Delete" initiative. The order pointed to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' 2013 Time Warner Cable decision, which vacated the temporary standstill rule for program carriage complaint proceedings, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit's 2013 EchoStar decision, which set aside a pair of 2003 orders adopting encoding rules. In both cases, the agency said, the rules have no legal effect but remain in the Code of Federal Regulations, and doing away with them effectuates the courts' decisions.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed Standard General’s lawsuit accusing former FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, Allen Media CEO Byron Allen and Dish Chairman Charlie Ergen of conspiring to block Standard’s attempted purchase of Tegna in 2023, according to an opinion issued Tuesday. Standard’s attempt to buy Tegna for $8.6 billion unraveled after the matter was designated for hearing (see 2404250059). Nexstar on Tuesday announced its plan to buy Tegna (see 2508190042).
The FCC Wireless Bureau is seeking comment on a proposal by ShipCom and Global HF Net to offer their public coast station system for greater use by land-based parties, which they claim have a greater need. Comments are due Sept. 18, replies Oct. 3, in docket 25-255, said a Tuesday notice from the Wireless Bureau.
The FCC Wireline Bureau Tuesday rejected a petition by Mercury Broadband seeking a waiver of Rural Deployment Opportunity Fund rules. Mercury said in May (see 2505200063) a potential $25.1 million in fines for the surrender of multiple RDOF census block groups was "neither reasonable nor proportionate.”
States face a challenge getting their BEAD final proposals to NTIA by the Sept. 4, but most will meet the deadline, Colorado Broadband Office Executive Director Brandy Reitter said Tuesday at the Technology Policy Institute's Aspen Forum. Large states like Texas and California will probably need extensions, she told us. Reitter said she was fairly confident NTIA in turn would meet its deadline for reviewing the final proposals within 90 days of receiving them.
The Consumer Technology Association and other groups are urging the FCC not to approve rules that could overcomplicate the approval of wireless devices by test facilities. The FCC is considering new rules for telecommunications certification bodies (TCBs) in response to a May Further NPRM that was part of the agency’s focus on “bad labs” (see 2505220056). Commenters warn that overly prescriptive rules could harm U.S. competitiveness.
SpaceX is seeking FCC OK to significantly rejigger the configuration of its first-generation Starlink satellites. In a Space Bureau application submitted Friday, the company said it wanted to boost the number of planes and satellites per plane for the approved 4,408 first-gen satellites. It added that the new configuration would let it more efficiently deploy broadband coverage and capacity to meet customer demand.