December 2005

For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org

INDECENCY AND A LA CARTE
Cable Ops Offer Family Tiers, Says McSlarrow
NCTA Fuzzy on Family-Tier Details
Stevens Sees Indecency Bills Going Away
Martin's Response to Cable's Family Tier Plan
Martin Asked To Re-Examine Retrans
Abernathy: Indecency Was Toughest Call

INTERNET
Study: 'Digital Divide' Affects School Success
Can Wi-Fi make it in Manhattan?

TELEVISION
EU to Liberalize Television Advertising
Getting 'Housewives' To Speak Spanish Can Turn Desperate
Made-by-Viewers TV

CELLPHONES
Cellphone Rulings could mean Billions in tax Refunds
Cellphone technology rings in pornography in USA

QUICKLY -- Former Baghdad Chief Not Surprised By Payola Program; DirecTV to
pay $5 mln to settle multi-state probe; Patients trust docs, but ...

INDECENCY AND A LA CARTE

CABLE OPS OFFER FAMILY TIERS, SAYS MCSLARROW
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton & John M. Higgins]
National Cable & Telecommunications Association President Kyle McSlarrow
Monday outlined preliminary plans for a number of cable operators
voluntarily to start selling "family tiers." Comcast, Time Warner Cable,
Advance-Newhouse, Brennan, Insight, and Midcontinent are all on board and
other operators are considering offering family tiers. The move is an
attempt to head off government-mandated tiering or a la carte cable
lineups. McSlarrow said the individual operators would define
family-friendly differently, saying there would be anti-trust issues
involved in coming to group decisions on those. He said he could not say
exactly what the tiers would look like, but that it would be a case of the
mandatory basic service--broadcasters and public access channels--then a
choice of the traditional 70 or 80 channels of expanded basic or a digital
family tier, though he did not know what form that would take, or how it
would be priced. McSlarrow said he hoped that government-mandated tiers
would now be off the table because he said the government would "get it
wrong." He also cautioned that the decisions by the individual operators
"were not easy decisions, nor is this an easy place," he said, "because
marketplace negotiations have produced the greatest single engine for
diversity or compelling content in the world. That should not be lightly
trod upon." Additionally, former Motion Picture Association of America
President Jack Valenti said he had held three meetings with industry in the
past two weeks, and that the conclusion was to simplify the TV ratings and
give parents more information about them. Mr. Valenti said he had been
working on behalf of cable, broadcast and movies "trying to make the
American parent understand that they have total control over all the visual
programming into their home.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6290528?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* There's lots and lots of coverage of this decision. We summarize a bit
below and list the rest at http://www.benton.org/index.php?q=node/910

NCTA FUZZY ON FAMILY-TIER DETAILS
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
"I can't sit here and tell you exactly what it looks like," National Cable
& Telecommunications Association president Kyle McSlarrow said of proposed
family tier programming on cable, adding that he wanted Congress to give
the industry time to adopt a plan. McSlarrow said cable operators that want
to offer a family tier still have "very serious negotiations" with
programmers ahead. A family tier could siphon subscribers from expanded
basic, causing some channels to lose license-fee and advertising revenue.
Creation of a family tier "has to be a decision that's done in conjunction
with programmers," McSlarrow said. The Parents Television Council, which
has blasted sex and violence on cable, said the family tier was doomed to
fail and that cable needed to sell every channel individually, not solely
in tiers.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6290532.html?display=Breaking+News
(requires subscription)

STEVENS SEES INDECENCY BILLS GOING AWAY
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Stop the %#3( at )^ing presses. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens
(R-Alaska) said yesterday that cable operators' voluntary adoption of
family tiers, combined with simplified TV ratings, would obviate the need
for legislation, at least in the short term. There are currently four
indecency-related bills before his committee, but Sen Stevens said he
didn't see any going forward, including boosting indecency fines and
enforcement. Sen Stevens said that it would be up to the American public to
decide whether that voluntary action or tiering plus ratings will be
sufficient. But he said, "I believe it will be and, if it is, as far as I'm
concerned, that will be the end of [legislation]." He said he did not
expect a family tier to cost more than expanded basic, adding that he was
not concerned that the cable pledge is to do family tiers in digital, which
is more expensive than analog service.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6290665?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

MARTIN'S REACTION TO CABLE'S TIER PLAN
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin released the following statement Monday: "I am
pleased that some cable companies may respond to consumer demand and begin
to voluntarily offer family tiers. For several years, I have been urging
the cable and satellite industry to give parents additional tools to help
them address the increasing amount of coarse programming on television.
Offering a family-friendly package has always been one of the options I
supported. I look forward to hearing more about the details of their plans
and hope that it will provide parents with real options to address parents'
legitimate concerns with having to purchase programming that they believe
is unsuitable for their children."
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-262676A1.doc
* See also:
Barton, Upton Praise Cable Family Tier Proposal
http://energycommerce.house.gov/108/News/12122005_1743.htm

MARTIN ASKED TO RE-EXAMINE RETRANS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
In a letter sent to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin Monday, Reps Nathan Deal
(R-GA), Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and six other Members of the House Commerce
Commission wrote of their concerns that retransmission deals -- in which
broadcasters negotiate compensation for carriage of their TV stations on
cable -- have helped drive the bundling of family-friendly and unfriendly
channels. Big broadcast groups also frequently have co-owned cable nets
that become part of package station/cable channel deals. The Reps would
like Chairman Martin and the FCC to take a new look at retransmission
consent as the FCC reconsiders the economics of family-friendly tiers and a
la carte cable.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6290746?display=Breaking+News...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

ABERNATHY: INDECENCY WAS TOUGHEST CALL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
An exit interview with newly-departed FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy
covers indecency, kids TV rules, the stalled ownership rule rewrite, and
more. "I wish we had been able to come with sustainable media ownership
rules. The marketplace craves certainty, and I think it is harmful for the
industry and harmful for consumers when things remain uncertain for so
long. Our job is to provide the framework, and we haven't been able to do
that."
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6290697.html?display=Breaking...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

INTERNET

STUDY: 'DIGITAL DIVIDE' AFFECTS SCHOOL SUCCESS
[SOURCE: eSchool News]
Access to a home computer increases the likelihood that children will
graduate from high school, but blacks and Latinos are much less likely to
have a computer at home than are whites, according to a study by a
researcher at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC). The study
also found that the so-called "digital divide" is even more pronounced
among children than adults. The study's findings, which have important
implications for schools, seem to confirm the value of computer take-home
programs--such as one-to-one school laptop initiatives, or donating old
machines to students' families as they are replaced--as an effective
instructional strategy. The study shows the persistence of the digital
divide and suggests it has a profound impact on educational outcomes, even
when factors such as income and parental education are taken into
consideration, said Robert Fairlie, associate professor of economics at
UCSC. His findings appeared in the October issue of the Economics of
Education Review. "The digital divide is large and persistent, and black
and Latino children are particularly hard-hit," said Fairlie. "The digital
divide has important implications for educational and economic inequality
in the United States. These findings should be a wake-up call for policy
makers."
http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5999

CAN WI-FI MAKE IT IN MANHATTAN?
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Marguerite Reardon]
New York City is in the early stages of considering how to get the city's
roughly 8 million citizens access to broadband. "It's likely not a question
of 'if' but 'when'," said Craig Mathias, an analyst with Farpoint Group of
Ashland, Mass. "Every major city is going to have some kind of citywide
Wi-Fi access. It will become an expectation like electricity or telephone
service. But New York is definitely a challenge from a technology
perspective. You may not be able to get it in every nook and cranny." At
this point New York is still in the very early stages of planning its
broadband strategy. While cities like Philadelphia, New Orleans and San
Francisco are moving full steam ahead on their projects, New York is still
just trying to get a commission together to look at the issue. On Monday,
city council member Gale A. Brewer, chairwoman of the committee on
Technology in Government, held a legislative hearing on a proposed bill
that would create a special commission to advise Mayor Michael Bloomberg
and the city council on how the city can get affordable broadband access to
all its residents. The goal of the commission will be to learn about the
different technology options available and educate the public about them.
The vote on the bill is scheduled for Dec. 21.
http://news.com.com/Can+Wi-Fi+make+it+in+Manhattan/2100-7351_3-5992316.h...
For more on wireless efforts in NYC, see NYCWireless (obviously)
http://www.nycwireless.net/tiki-view_articles.php

TELEVISION

BRUSSELS TO LIBERALIZE TELEVISION ADVERTISING
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Sarah Laitner and Tobias Buck]
The European Commission will on Tuesday launch a sweeping plan to
liberalize television advertising under the biggest shake-up of European
Union broadcasting rules since 1989. For the first time it will let TV
producers, advertisers and broadcasters tap into the lucrative world of
product placement as well as enjoy greater flexibility on timing commercial
breaks. Viviane Reding, the media commissioner leading the review of the
"television without frontiers" directive, believes the changes will help
broadcasters compete in the new media era. But the revised legislation
faces intense criticism both from some of Ms Reding's fellow commissioners
and also new media - which are covered by the directive for the first time
and are bridling both at being regulated at all, and at the nature of the
new rules, which they say are unclear.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/e8753bc8-6b4c-11da-8aee-0000779e2340.html
(requires subscription)

GETTING 'HOUSEWIVES' TO SPEAK SPANISH CAN TURN DESPERATE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Brooks Barnes brooks.barnes( at )wsj.com]
The Hollywood infrastructure can pull off just about anything. Need a
30-foot ape and a Roman army? Done. But dubbing shows for U.S. audiences,
with a tight turnaround time, is presenting the networks with a formidable
new set of obstacles. ABC decided last summer to become the first old-line
network to make its entire prime-time lineup bilingual -- a move that
stands to boost ad revenue for parent Walt Disney Co., but one that has
strained the network's production cycle. Most of ABC's shows are now
subtitled in Spanish, but four high-profile shows are dubbed each week. ABC
and its sister studio, Touchstone, face thorny questions about how to
translate slang-heavy "Housewives." Producers, translators, studio
executives and ABC's standards and practices department can spend hours
arguing over the translation of a single phrase.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113444332395120914.html?mod=todays_us_pa...
(requires subscription)

MADE-BY-VIEWERS TV
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Christopher Lawton
christopher.lawton( at )wsj.com]
What some people really want to do is direct. After a decade of the
Internet revolutionizing the way people communicate and spend their leisure
time, a growing number of consumers are going further -- creating
entertainment and other media "content" on their own. Cable networks, radio
stations -- even advertisers -- are embracing such "user-generated content"
and serving it up, hoping to appeal to new and younger audiences that are
impatient with standard media fare. This new genre of Do-It-Yourself Media
harks back in some ways to public-access cable TV, to funny home videos and
radio call-in shows. But it's slicker and more sophisticated. For a
generation of young people raised on the Internet, it is second nature to
express themselves in new ways. These aren't passive consumers: They think
they have something to say and they don't see why they can't do what the
big media companies are doing. In a series this week, The Wall Street
Journal explores how Do-It-Yourself Media in various forms is creating a
kind of parallel media universe. Today's article describes Al Gore's
Current TV, which is helping to fill its 24 hours of daily programming with
films made by viewers. Subsequent articles will look at how advertisers are
soliciting ad ideas from their consumers, how cable operators are asking
viewers to contribute material for dating services and real-estate channels
and how phone companies are encouraging contributions to video logs.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113443820320320817.html?mod=todays_us_ma...
(requires subscription)

CELLPHONES

CELLPHONE RULINGS COULD MEAN BILLIONS IN TAX REFUNDS
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Dennis Cauchon]
Phone customers are due $9 billion in tax refunds and a 3% cut in wireless
phone and long-distance bills, according to a series of federal court
decisions. But the federal government continues to collect the tax and
requires so much paperwork for refunds that only big corporations are
likely to benefit. On Friday, a court in Washington (DC) became the third
federal appeals court since May to void the tax. Two other federal appeals
courts, covering seven states, have ruled the tax unlawful, and cases are
pending elsewhere in the nation's 13 appeals courts. In all, nine federal
courts have ruled that the 3% federal tax doesn't apply to calls that are
priced only by how long a person talks -- not by how far the call travels.
That means cellular phones, Internet phone service and about one-third of
long distance calls would be exempt from the tax. The wireless industry
estimates that consumers would save about $4.5 billion a year. Taxpayers
also would be due three years of refunds -- about $9 billion. The cellphone
industry wants the tax removed immediately from bills and the money refunded.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20051213/a_cellphonetax13.art.htm

CELLPHONE TECHNOLOGY RINGS IN PORNOGRAPHY IN USA
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Gary Strauss]
Quickly developing into big business overseas, cellphone pornography is a
step closer to taking off in the USA. Cingular Wireless, the nation's
largest cellphone service provider, quietly has launched filtering devices
and password-enabled blockers that help thwart underage consumers from
buying adult material. The absence of V-chip-style parental controls
largely has kept U.S. consumers from using cellphones to access porn, but
Cingular, along with rivals, could launch a huge new porn platform. The
evolution of video-capable wireless devices has made mobile porn an
emerging cultural phenomenon and booming enterprise. Global 2005 sales will
hit $1 billion, up 175% from 2004, says Juniper Research. U.S. sales are
just $30 million, mostly because carriers, fearful of a backlash, haven't
provided easy access to X-rated theater.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/life/20051213/d_bottomstrip13.art.htm

QUICKLY

FORMER KR BAGHDAD CHIEF NOT SURPRISED BY PAYOLA PROGRAM
[SOURCE: Editor&Publisher, AUTHOR: Joe Strupp]
Recent revelations that the Pentagon has paid hundreds of Iraqi journalists
for positive stories in the war-torn country are no surprise to former
Knight Ridder Baghdad bureau chief Hannah Allam. During her two years in
the capital city, Allam says signs of a "cozy" relationship between U.S.
officials and the local press were everywhere.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...

DIRECTV TO PAY $5 MILLION TO SETTLE MULTI-STATE PROBE
[SOURCE: Reuters]
DirecTV Group agreed to pay $5 million to 21 states to settle an
investigation into the top U.S. satellite television operator's marketing
and advertising practices, New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said on
Monday. States got complaints from customers who could not view some
blacked-out programs, including sports events. Others said they could not
receive all the local channels that they had expected to receive. The
company also charged an early termination fee for customers who signed up
for a free programing trial offer but then backed out before the programing
period expired.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=technologyNews&story...

PATIENTS TRUST DOCS, BUT OFTEN USE THE INTERNET
[SOURCE: Reuters]
Patients in the United States are likely to first turn to the World Wide
Web when seeking health information, even though they trust their
physicians more to provide them with accurate medical information, results
of a nationally representative survey suggest.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID...
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang
headlines( at )benton.org -- we welcome your comments.
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