Federal Democratic policymakers praised a commitment from the major broadcast networks to begin putting content rating information on their full-length programming when it’s shown on websites they control. The commitment, to take effect next year, will cover shows streamed on each network’s own site. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel and Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., praised the commitment. A critic of the networks’ ratings policies said the move will do little to help parents make decisions about their children’s viewing habits. Disney’s ABC, News Corp.’s Fox, Comcast’s NBC and Telemundo, CBS, Univision and its TeleFutura network all signed on.
The Rural Cellular Association said it’s “difficult to overstate” the importance of a 700 MHz interoperability mandate to “the future health of the wireless industry,” in comments to the FCC. RCA has made an interoperability requirement one of its top priorities. The main resistance has come from Verizon Wireless and AT&T. But CEA and TIA weighed in against a mandate, giving the two major carriers critical support. Where the newly reconstituted FCC will come down remains to be seen, agency and industry officials agreed Monday.
BOSTON -- Usage-based data pricing can spur competition in broadband, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said of ISPs’ moves to systems not always charging flat prices regardless of consumption. NCTA CEO Michael Powell asked Genachowski about the practice in a Q-and-A Tuesday at The Cable Show, noting ISPs of all sorts, including cable operators, are starting to charge based on consumption. “Business model innovation is very important, particularly in new areas like broadband,” Genachowski replied. The commission’s 2010 net neutrality order allowed such practices. Nonprofits that backed the order criticized Genachowski’s remarks, while AT&T supported the comments.
Having five FCC members for the first time in about a year automatically gives the agency more legitimacy, and the new additions may push the commission to act on some long-pending issues, industry officials and the most recent member to step down predicted. USF contribution is an issue that will see commission action soon anyway, and adding Ajit Pai as the new Republican member and Jessica Rosenworcel as the new Democratic commissioner brings differing views that could be helpful (CD May 8 p1). Meredith Baker left the FCC late last spring, and Pai fills her term through 2016.
Comcast won a stay of an FCC administrative judge’s decision (CD Dec 28 p2) that it move the Tennis Channel to the same programming package as the cable operator’s own sports networks. The Office of General Counsel’s stay may be short-lived, because commissioners have a draft order before them on the case. The Media Bureau Wednesday separately backed a complaint Comcast isn’t living up to the conditions of last year’s order letting it buy control of NBCUniversal, because Bloomberg TV isn’t near the channel positions of other news networks. (See separate report in this issue.)
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is “doubtful” he will remove his holds on FCC nominees this week but suggested to us that he may reconsider after the Senate returns from its upcoming recess May 7. He had complained that the commission didn’t provide all the documents about LightSquared he requested in the agency’s initial delivery to the House Commerce Committee. Grassley is blocking votes on FCC nominees Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel until he gets those documents.
FCC nominees may have moved one step closer to Senate confirmation after the House Commerce Committee on Friday shared the FCC’s LightSquared documents with Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. Grassley was blocking votes on Jessica Rosenworcel and Ajit Pai until he got the documents, but the senator’s hold “stands pending document review,” a Grassley spokeswoman said: The senator “appreciates receiving the documents, and he and his staff look forward to reviewing them.” Grassley and the committee “are continuing to work together, and we will have additional updates to share as we assess the information that has been delivered and what additional documents are needed for our investigations,” a House Commerce spokeswoman said. The committee isn’t yet publicly releasing the LightSquared documents, which amount to more than 13,000 pages (CD March 29 p1), she said. It’s up to House Commerce when to release the documents, the Grassley spokeswoman said. The documents comprise communications among the FCC, White House and LightSquared investor Harbinger.
FCC nominees’ chances of Senate confirmation remain uncertain even if Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, lifts his hold on confirmation of Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel, communications industry lobbyists said. A House Commerce Committee request for LightSquared documents from the FCC could appease Grassley, but political dynamics in the Senate may still stand in the way of confirming new commissioners, they said. Top House Commerce members indicated last week that the committee would share with Grassley.
NTIA plans to cooperate with the House Commerce Committee’s request for documents related to the LightSquared network, the agency’s spokeswoman said Thursday. The FCC pledged Tuesday that it would respond (CD Feb 29 p1). It’s still unclear whether the FCC divulging documents to House Commerce will satisfy Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who has placed a hold on commissioner nominees Jessica Rosenworcel and Ajit Pai until he receives the LightSquared documents himself. The request and the agency’s public intention to cooperate initiate what could be prolonged negotiations, said a congressional aide. Generally, congressional committees are willing to share the results of document request with other offices without any additional procedural steps, the aide said. Still, the FCC could seek to prevent other offices from gaining access to the documents as part of informal negotiations with the Commerce Committee, though that may be difficult, the aide said. Another question mark is the content of the FCC’s response. “They have to be the right documents,” a government official said. “It has to be what Grassley wants. The House seems to be asking for similar things, but if [Grassley] thinks that the FCC still hasn’t produced documents that he thinks exist … he'd be less inclined to lift the hold.”
The FCC International Bureau proposed to block LightSquared from beginning terrestrial service (CD Feb 15 p1), severely dampening the company’s prospects and possibly increasing the likelihood of a bankruptcy filing in the near future. While the agency initiated Wednesday a proceeding on the proposals, many consider that process largely perfunctory, said industry observers.