The FCC doesn’t have the authority to expand the base of regulatory fee payors, said a host of trade groups in reply comments on the agency’s proposed 2025 regulatory fees. Replies were due Monday in docket 25-190. NAB and Telesat pushed for the FCC to expand the payor base in their comments filed earlier this month (see 2507080044).
President Donald Trump said in a post Tuesday that his settlement with Paramount over a 60 Minutes interview has been paid and includes $20 million in ads, public service announcements and programming, on top of the $16 million donation to his presidential library that Paramount previously announced (see 2507020053). The company had denied that the settlement included PSAs or any payout beyond the $16 million, and it appeared to reaffirm that denial Tuesday.
AST SpaceMobile is facing growing global opposition from the amateur radio universe about plans to use the 430-440 MHz band for telemetry, tracking and control (TT&C) (see 2507170030). Since last Wednesday, docket 25-201 has received more than 2,100 submissions -- most from amateur radio advocates. Comments were due Monday on AST's request to use the band and operate an additional 243 satellites atop the five already authorized (see 2506200061).
New York will soon be the latest state to make incarcerated individuals' phone calls free in an effort to increase communication accessibility and improve prison safety. Five states -- California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Minnesota -- have already made phone calls free in their facilities. The New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) announced Tuesday that the change will take effect Aug. 1.
FCC commissioners are expected to approve, with a few tweaks, an NPRM designed to help major providers more easily retire aging copper networks. Industry officials said Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez appears likely to dissent on the item at Thursday’s open meeting. Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld told us Tuesday that the group has major concerns with proposals in the draft.
The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the FCC’s top-four prohibition and its extension to low power TV stations and multicast streams but upheld the agency’s other broadcast ownership rules in a unanimous opinion Wednesday on the 2018 quadrennial review. Petitioners Zimmer Radio, Nexstar, NAB, Beasley Media and Tri-State Communications challenged the order in October. In weighing whether to retain broadcast ownership rules, “the FCC properly considered all three of its public interest goals—competition, localism, and viewpoint diversity,” said the opinion. “In sum, Petitioners have not shown that the Commission’s decision was not reasoned or reasonable.” However, the agency’s justifications for retaining the Top Four prohibition were “counter to the evidence before the agency,” the opinion said. The court also vacated the FCC’s extension of the top four prohibition to multicast channels and LPTV, and ruled that Congress didn’t intend for the agency to use the quadrennial review process to tighten regulations. The court will wait 90 days before issuing the mandate in the case to give the FCC an opportunity to provide “adequate evidence to support any of its articulated justifications for retaining the rule. If the FCC fails to do so, upon further order the mandate will issue,” the opinion said.
Sue McNeil Sullivan, formerly FCC, joins Lumen as assistant general counsel for federal regulatory affairs, replacing Craig Brown, retiring after 24 years … MDA Space names Rob Singh, ex-Axta Space, vice president for strategic solutions, a newly created position … Nexsys-One adds Dave Mayo, Dish Network, to its board.
Japanese satcom company Sky Perfect JSAT, with 17 satellites in geostationary orbit, is looking to boost its presence in earth observation, subsidiary JSAT Beyond Innovation (JBI) told the FCC Space Bureau. In an application posted Saturday, JBI said it's aiming for a fall 2026 launch of the first of what will be 10 non-geostationary orbit earth observation satellites. It intends to target potential U.S. and international customers, including governmental agencies and commercial enterprises, the filing said.
Skydance Media is committed to unbiased journalism and diverse viewpoints, which "will ensure CBS’s editorial decision-making reflects the varied ideological perspectives of American viewers," CEO David Ellison promised FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, according to docket 24-275 filed Friday. Recapping their meeting, Skydance said it's also committed "to promoting non-discrimination and equal employment opportunity at New Paramount, ensuring the company is fully compliant with law." That seemingly refers to Carr's pledge that the agency will block mergers based on companies' diversity, equity and inclusion practices (see 2503210049).
The FCC Media Bureau has reached consent decrees with two more broadcasters that appealed forfeitures involving children’s programming violations related to Hot Wheels toys, according to a pair of orders released Friday. The additional settlements were with Second Generation of Iowa and several stations owned by the Sinclair-affiliated Deerfield Media. As in the other settlements with smaller broadcasters (see 2507180066), they won’t pay a penalty and will have their licenses renewed. Deerfield and Second Generation had faced fines of $20,000 per station.