The FCC paused its clock on consideration of Comcast’s agreement to buy control of NBC Universal, because staffers want additional information from the companies. Comment deadlines on the deal are on hold until Comcast, NBC Universal and NBCU’s parent, General Electric, provide the information, said a Media Bureau order released Friday. A report will take up “the claimed benefits from the transaction” and another its effect on video distribution online, said the ruling signed by bureau Chief Bill Lake.
The FCC paused its clock on consideration of Comcast’s agreement to buy control of NBC Universal, because staffers want additional information from the companies. Comment deadlines on the deal are on hold until Comcast, NBC Universal and NBCU’s parent, General Electric, provide the information, said a Media Bureau order released Friday. A report will take up “the claimed benefits from the transaction” and another its effect on video distribution online, said the ruling signed by bureau Chief Bill Lake.
A draft FCC media ownership inquiry asks questions on a wide array of areas including the touchstones of localism, diversity and competition without preliminary conclusions or recommendations, agency officials said. The notice of inquiry asks how to define various terms related to ownership in the congressionally-mandated 2010 review, they said. In so doing, it gives no sense of whether the commission ultimately will move toward tighter or looser rules, agency officials noted.
The goal the FCC set to wrap up its media-ownership review this year will be tough to meet, said commission, industry and public-interest figures we surveyed. The FCC hasn’t issued notices of inquiry or rulemaking and must deal with a legal challenge to the previous review. Issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) soon with proposed rules, rather than starting with a notice of inquiry (NOI), would speed up the work, the officials agreed. They said time is tight for the commission to wrap it up this year, a goal apparently shared by Chairman Julius Genachowski, Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake and others. Congress mandated the reviews every four years, including 2010.
Comcast’s deal to buy control of NBC Universal has been discussed by the Department of Justice with some of those likely to be affected, at this early stage of antitrust review (CD March 10 p2), said some following the transaction and an opponent. An Asian American group that wants Comcast to pay $1 billion into a media diversity fund to be run by the FCC was the first to say in a commission filing that it has met with Justice. Others probably have discussed the deal with the department or will, analysts and a deal opponent said.
Former FCC Commissioner Tyrone Brown becomes Media Access Project president, effective April 1, succeeding Andrew Schwartzman, who will continue as senior vice president and policy director …
Rick Clancy, ex-Sony, joins Covario, supplier of search-engine marketing software, as senior PR director…Former FCC Commissioner Tyrone Brown becomes Media Access Project president, effective April 1, succeeding Andrew Schwartzman, who will continue as senior vice president and policy director … John Lawson leaves Ion Media to restart Convergence Services consultancy on mobile DTV and digital and public media …Carla Wojnaroski, ex-NBC Universal/iVillage.com, hired by Gannett as general manager of MomsLikeMe.com.
The FCC is likely to stick close to its comment deadlines for Comcast’s purchase of control of NBC Universal after a request for a 45-day delay backed by a many advocacy and industry groups, agency and industry officials predicted. That the groups cite no reasons specific to the deal structure to extend a May 3 deadline to file oppositions make it unlikely that the Media Access Project (MAP) and supporters will succeed in getting approval to have final comments due Aug. 1, they said. The Media Bureau built in extra time for comments (CD March 19 p2) in part to rebut time-constraint criticisms, an agency official said. Initial work among staffers reviewing the deal continues, commission officials said.
A pause in court consideration of an appeal of media ownership rules was lifted Tuesday by the 3rd U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia, a move cheered by an FCC member who didn’t support a stay earlier backed by the commission (CD April 6 p8). With its stay lifted in Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC, briefs from appellants are due May 17, said an order signed by Chief Judge Anthony Scirica. Respondent briefs are due 30 days after they've received those from petitioners and replies must be served in another 14 days, he said. Commissioner Robert McDowell believes “the lifting of the stay on the Commission’s very modest relaxation of the newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership rule is particularly appropriate given the economic upheaval affecting the ongoing viability of many daily newspapers and broadcast stations,” he said in a written statement. “I also believe that the Commission can only benefit from instruction of a Third Circuit ruling on the 2007 ownership rules as we begin the next round of the statutorily required quadrennial review of the regulations.” The FCC declined to comment, a spokesman said. Representatives for the FCC didn’t reply to messages seeking comment. “Although I think lifting the stay is unwarranted and unfortunate, it is understandable that the court would lose patience, given the FCC’s dilatory approach towards this proceeding,” said Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman, representing Prometheus.
Several groups that didn’t sign a petition to the FCC on retransmission consent by a wide array of pay-TV providers told us they support changing the system and may take part in the resulting proceeding. (See separate story in this issue.) Consumers Union is concerned that cable customers will face higher costs as the operators and channel owners resolve disputes by paying more for the programming. It probably will file in the docket, analyst Joel Kelsey said, but it’s “far from definite.” The Media Access Project, which believes the system “is out of balance,” got the petition too late to decide whether to sign on, President Andrew Schwartzman said. “It was given to us at the 11th hour,” he said. “I still haven’t read it super-closely, but there are some statements in the petition with which MAP would not be in complete agreement. However, we agree with the fundamental arguments, and the remedies requested.” Cox Communications wasn’t among those filing the petition. A spokesman declined to say why. The NCTA didn’t sign the petition, “but we do support changes to the retransmission consent process,” a spokesman said, declining to say what those changes are.