June 2015

FCC AGENDA

FCC ANNOUNCES TENTATIVE AGENDA FOR JULY OPEN MEETING
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler announced that the following items are tentatively on the agenda for the July Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, July 16, 2015:
Incentive Auction Procedures -- The FCC will take the next step to commencing the incentive auction in the first quarter of 2016 by considering the Procedures Public Notice, which adopts a balanced set of auction procedures that will ensure an effective, efficient, and timely auction. The Public Notice establishes and provides information on final procedures for setting the initial spectrum clearing target, qualifying to bid, and bidding in the reverse and forward auctions.
Mobile Spectrum Holdings -- The FCC will consider an Order on Reconsideration addressing petitions for reconsideration of certain aspects of the Mobile Spectrum Holdings Report and Order.
Competitive Bidding -- The FCC will consider a Report and Order, Order on Reconsideration, Third Order on Reconsideration and a Third Report and Order that provides meaningful opportunities for small businesses, rural telephone companies, and businesses owned by members of minority groups and women to participate in the provision of spectrum-based services, and also strengthens the FCC's rules to protect against unjust enrichment to ineligible entities.
benton.org/headlines/fcc-announces-tentative-agenda-july-open-meeting | Federal Communications Commission
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ENHANCING COMPETITION AND OPPORTUNITY IN THE MOBILE MARKETPLACE
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler]
[Commentary] The draft revised rules I circulated to the other Commissioners would provide greater flexibility for qualified small businesses so that they can better compete. For example, in today’s mature wireless industry, offering facilities-based wireless service is no longer a viable business plan for small enterprises, yet that’s what our rules require in order for small businesses to qualify for bidding credits. We propose eliminating this constraint on business model innovation and freeing small businesses to make decisions that work best for them. The rules would also create a new rural business bidding credit that will incentivize participation in future auctions by rural service providers in the communities they serve. In addition to expanding opportunities for small businesses, the modernized rules will increase transparency and efficiency to prevent potential gaming or abuse, as well as protect the integrity of the Federal Communications Commission’s auction process. In particular, we establish the first-ever cap on the total value of bidding credits, minimizing an incentive for major corporations to try to take advantage of the program. We must also make sure that small businesses receiving credits are exercising independent decision-making authority. We will not allow small businesses to serve as a stalking horse for another party. The Commission will also consider another item aimed at promoting competition in the wireless industry. As part of 2014’s update to our Mobile Spectrum Holding rules, the Commission voted to implement a market-based reserve of up to 30 megahertz of spectrum per market in the Incentive Auction for bidders that do not currently hold significant amounts of low-band spectrum, provided that eligible bidders pay their fair share of auction costs. The Incentive Auction offers one of the last opportunities for competitors to acquire significant quantities of low-band spectrum. With more than 70 percent of low-band spectrum in the hands of just two providers, one of the Commission’s priorities is to ensure that multiple providers have a meaningful opportunity to acquire these valuable airwaves, which is critical to competition among wireless carriers. This is why the Commission voted to set aside this reserve a year ago.
benton.org/headlines/enhancing-competition-and-opportunity-mobile-marketplace | Federal Communications Commission | Pai Statement | The Hill | The Hill | The Verge | ars technica | Washington Post | Broadcasting & Cable | Revere Digital | The Verge | Wall Street Journal
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DOJ PRESSES COMPETITION CASE IN WIRELESS SPECTRUM AUCTION
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: David McCabe]
The Department of Justice said that the Federal Communications Commission should give “considerable weight” to competition concerns when deciding whether to expand the block of wireless spectrum reserved for smaller carriers in a coming auction. The size of the reserve is the subject of a public fight between T-Mobile and the two largest players in wireless, AT&T and Verizon. In the letter, the chief of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice seemed supportive of T-Mobile’s case. “The Department recognizes that the Commission must balance competing policy priorities in setting the appropriate reserve levels,” said Assistant Attorney General William Baer in the letter. “In balancing these priorities, the Department urges the Commission to give considerable weight in determining the amount of spectrum included in the reserve to protecting and promoting competition, and the well-established competition principle that those with market power may be willing to pay the most to reinforce a leading position.” Baer also said the auction should take place as soon as possible. Baer did not explicitly call for the reserve to be expanded. Still, the letter is a small victory for T-Mobile, which sent its chief executive to Washington to meet with regulators and asked customers to appeal to the FCC. But the company's efforts may be dealt a blow Thursday, when FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler could submit his reported recommendation to the commission that they keep the size of the reserve at 30 megahertz. The proposal would come up for a vote at the commission’s July meeting.
benton.org/headlines/doj-presses-competition-case-wireless-spectrum-auction | Hill, The | Revere Digital | Broadcasting & Cable
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

DOTCOM ACT CLEARS SENATE COMMERCE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate Commerce Committee favorably reported the Dotcom Act out of committee. That is the same bill the House approved overwhelmingly (378 to 25) on June 23. The bill provides for congressional oversight of a US government handoff of oversight of the Internet domain naming function, while not unduly delaying that transition, say its supporters, which are on both sides of the aisle. The handoff of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) from oversight by the National Telecommunications & Information Administration to a multistakeholder model won't be ready by the Sept. 30, 2015 expiration date of the current contract with ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), a nonprofit created by the U.S. in 1997. The bill requires that Congress get 30 days to vet any transition plan, and take action to block or modify it if it does not pass muster. Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) proposed an amendment that would have required Congress to sign off on the plan before it could be implemented, rather than allowing it to take affect unless the Congress acted to block or modify it. He said the result could easily be that Congress could not get its act together in 30 days and "the Internet would be handed over." He said his amendment would simply reverse the presumption and require Congress to debate and vote on it.
benton.org/headlines/dotcom-act-clears-senate-commerce | Broadcasting&Cable | The Hill
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REMARKS OF COMMISSIONER O'RIELLY BEFORE THE INTERNET INNOVATION ALLIANCE
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Michael O'Rielly]
The question posed to me and the subsequent panel is: what is the regulator's role in our expanding broadband economy? When contemplating today's topic, I started to form some basic principles that would serves as a good starting point for approaching these issues in the current environment:
1) The Internet cannot be stopped.
2) Understand how the Internet economy works
3) Follow the law; don't make it up
4) Internet access is not a necessity or human right: It is important to note that Internet access is not a necessity in the day-to-day lives of Americans and doesn’t even come close to the threshold to be considered a basic human right. People can and do live without Internet access, and many lead very successful lives. It is even more ludicrous to compare Internet access to a basic human right. In fact, it is quite demeaning to do so in my opinion. Human rights are standards of behavior that are inherent in every human being. They are the core principles underpinning human interaction in society. These include liberty, due process or justice, and freedom of religious beliefs. I find little sympathy with efforts to try to equate Internet access with these higher, fundamental concepts.
5) The benefits of regulation must outweigh the burdens.
benton.org/headlines/remarks-commissioner-orielly-internet-innovation-alliance | Federal Communications Commission | Broadcasting & Cable
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28 GROUPS JOIN PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE IN URGING CHAIRMAN WHEELER TO PROTECT AMERICANS IN TECH TRANSITION
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Shiva Stella]
Public Knowledge, joined by 28 other organizations, sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler calling on him to issue rules to protect the more than 85 million Americans and millions of small business still dependent on traditional landline service from losing access to vital services, and to preserve the stability of the telephone system and reliability of the 911 system for the more than 300 million Americans that depend on it every day. The FCC previously recognized in two unanimous bipartisan votes in 2014 that what it calls the “Tech Transition” of our national communications network to the digital age must reflect the fundamental values that have governed our communications system for the last hundred years, including guaranteeing reliable, affordable service to all Americans and protecting access to public safety services such as 911. But the purely market-driven process driving the transition to date has resulted in many Americans experiencing degraded phone service and an alarming increase in 911 outages. Harold Feld, Senior Vice President at Public Knowledge, said, "Chairman Wheeler must act quickly to ensure that the transition of the phone system is an upgrade for everyone -- not an upgrade for some and a downgrade for the rest of us."
[The Benton Foundation was a co-signing organization]
benton.org/headlines/28-groups-join-public-knowledge-urging-chairman-wheeler-protect-americans-tech-transition | Public Knowledge | Letter
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INTERNET TESTS REVEALS MANY AMERICANS NOT GETTING THE SPEEDS THEY PAID FOR
[SOURCE: Medium, AUTHOR: Tim Karr]
[Commentary] For too long Internet users had to take it on faith that our Internet access providers were making good on their promises to give us what we pay for. But even those who pay a premium for top speeds have found that certain sites and services sputter out at the pace of dial-up. And calling your Internet service provider’s customer-service department to find out what’s going on can be a torturous exercise -- requiring you to endure an endless loop of hold music as you pray for a sentient being to pick up the line. Now you can do something about it. In May, BattlefortheNet.com launched the Internet Health Test to collect data on the speeds offered by the likes of AT&T, Comcast and Verizon. The test is an interactive tool that lets users run speed measurements across multiple “interconnection points” and gather information on whether and where ISPs are degrading speeds. The good news: Since its launch, more than 300,000 Internet users have run the Internet Health Test, resulting in over 2.5 million data points. Now here’s the bad: The evidence collected points to slowdowns for users on the networks of five of the largest Internet access providers -- AT&T, CenturyLink, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Verizon -- which represent 75 percent of all US wireline households. And the ugly: Since the test results were made public a number of paid cable industry operatives have tried to tear down these findings, suggesting without actually looking at the data that they are faulty and somehow corrupted. This is one of your best chances to hold your ISP accountable. The information the test collects is critical to protecting your online rights. The data provide more evidence to justify Net Neutrality protections -- and ensure that Internet users get the open and fast Internet that they deserve and are paying for.
[Tim Karr advocates for universal access to open networks at Free Press]
benton.org/headlines/internet-test-reveals-many-americans-not-getting-speeds-they-paid | Medium | BattlefortheNet.com
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THE RIGHT TIME FOR A NATIONAL DIGITAL INCLUSION ALLIANCE
[SOURCE: WebJunction, AUTHOR: Angela Siefer]
[Commentary] There is a clear need among non-profit organizations and libraries for a national broadband adoption advocacy organization. Three federal agencies (National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Housing and Urban Development, Federal Communications Commission), plus the White House, are focusing significant attention and possibly significant resources on broadband adoption. How significant the resources will be could depend upon strong advocacy by broadband adoption practitioners in non-profit organizations and libraries. To meet this need, I am pleased to announce the creation of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, and an opportunity to work together on common broadband challenges. Key Polices That Can Increase Broadband Adoption in the United States:
1) The FCC plans to initiate a rulemaking process in summer 2015 to include broadband as an allowable use of Lifeline funds for low-income Americans. Lifeline currently provides a discount on phone service for qualifying low-income consumers. An expanded Lifeline program with funding available to support the cost of broadband for low-income consumers could be incredibly helpful to raising broadband adoption rates in the United States.
2) The President’s interagency Broadband Opportunity Council (BOC) sought public comment on how federal agencies can promote broadband deployment, adoption, and competition. The Council, which is comprised of 25 federal agencies, is tasked with developing a framework of recommendations to explore ways to remove unnecessary regulatory and policy barriers, incentivize investment, and align funding polices and decisions to support broadband access and adoption. The BOC’s Request for Comments provided an opportunity for NDIA to gain public attention (and action!) on specific ways federal agencies can modernize current programs to increase broadband adoption without Congressional action. Comments were due June 10, 2015, and NDIA submitted comments with specific suggestions on how a variety of programs can be modernized to include support for public access, home broadband service and local training and support.
The evidence is clear. To successfully increase broadband use in the US we must have low-cost options AND local training/support, including a diverse set of local partners with established roots in the community.
[Angela Siefer is the Director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance]
[Benton Foundation's Director of Policy, Amina Fazlullah, is part of the Digital Inclusion Alliance's Founding Council]
benton.org/headlines/right-time-national-digital-inclusion-alliance | WebJunction
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ACCESSIBILITY

ACCESSIBLE COMMUNICATIONS: FCC SHOULD EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ITS PUBLIC OUTREACH EFFORTS
[SOURCE: Government Accountability Office, AUTHOR: Mark Goldstein]
The Federal Communications Commission established accessibility complaint and enforcement procedures within the time frames mandated by the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA) to ensure that people with disabilities would have access to advanced communications. CVAA was enacted to help ensure that people with disabilities have full access to the benefits of technological advances in communications. The act required FCC to establish regulations and conduct public outreach and included a provision that GAO review FCC's efforts. GAO examined (1) the extent to which FCC established complaint and enforcement procedures within CVAA-required time frames and conducted public outreach, (2) the actions FCC has taken to ensure industry compliance with CVAA's recordkeeping provisions and to determine the level of industry compliance with accessibility requirements, and (3) stakeholders' views on the effect of CVAA's recordkeeping obligations on the development and deployment of new communications technologies. GAO reviewed FCC's regulations, orders, and biennial reports to Congress; surveyed a random sample of companies certifying compliance with CVAA requirements; assessed FCC's efforts to conduct public outreach against key practices GAO previously identified through an expert panel; and interviewed FCC officials and representatives from industry associations, consumer advocate groups, and disability research organizations selected based on CVAA-related comments they submitted to FCC. FCC should evaluate its public outreach efforts and ensure those efforts incorporate key practices. FCC concurred with the recommendation and intends to take action to address it.
benton.org/headlines/accessible-communications-fcc-should-evaluate-effectiveness-its-public-outreach-efforts | Government Accountability Office
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OWNERSHIP

SENATE COMMERCE APPROVES JSA BILL
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate Commerce Committee, after a brief false start, passed a bipartisan bill limiting the Federal Communications Commission's decision that most TV station joint sales agreement (JSAs) attributable as ownership interests. Specifically, it would grandfather any JSA that violated the new rule but that was struck before the March 2104 decision. While the bill had a number of Democratic supporters, they were mostly not on the committee. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Bill Nelson (D-FL), along with Sens Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Corey Booker (D-NJ) registered their concerns, and were among a number of Democratic Senators who voted no. Sen Blumenthal wound up not introducing an amendment that would have limited the bill. And Sen Booker also had an amendment he kept in his pocket. But Sens Blumenthal and Booker said they hoped to work with the bill's author, Sen Roy Blunt (R-MO) and get the amendments or at least some of their principles, into the final bill. Sen Booker said he was concerned about the impact of JSAs on diversity, saying that while some JSAs could help smaller stations, they were also pretty clearly being used by media "behemoths" to in some cases sell 100 percent of the ad time for smaller stations.
benton.org/headlines/senate-commerce-approves-jsa-bill | Broadcasting&Cable | Pai Statement
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CHARTER FILES APPLICATION FOR TIME WARNER CABLE MERGER
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Charter has filed its application with the Federal Communications Commission to buy Time Warner Cable. That includes a public interest statement with promises to go beyond the FCC's new Open Internet rules by agreeing to a legally enforceable condition for the combined company, which it dubs "New Charter," not to impose data caps or usage-based billing, neither of which it currently engages in it points out. The FCC on June 23 opened an official docket for comment on the deal, saying it was expecting the application to be filed. Now it has been. Among the key benefits Charter tells the FCC the deal will produce are: faster speeds, affordable (and unlimited) broadband, faster rollouts of new technology, nondiscriminatory interconnection, and more investment in customer care. Among its commitments are a $2.5 billion investment in commercial broadband and returning call center jobs to the US. According to a summary of the public interest statement filed with the FCC, Charter is volunteering specific, legally enforceable commitments.
benton.org/headlines/charter-files-application-time-warner-cable-merger | Broadcasting&Cable | pdf | Associated Press | The Hill
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CHARTER'S CHANCES WITH TIME WARNER CABLE LOOK GOOD
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Miriam Gottfried]
It is no surprise that investors are wary about deal-making in the cable sector these days. But for Charter Communications ’ proposed offer for Time Warner Cable, such concern may be overblown. Comcast ’s decision in April to abandon its bid for Time Warner Cable due to regulatory pressure took many on Wall Street by surprise. So when Charter swooped in a month later with its own offer for the cable operator, along with another offer for closely held Bright House Networks, the specter of a regulatory backlash reappeared. That may explain why the spread between the value of Charter’s offer and the price of Time Warner Cable’s stock has widened slightly to 9 percent since the deal was first announced. The market appears to see only a 50 percent probability of Charter’s deal being approved, according to New Street Research. New Street itself puts the deal’s odds of approval at 80 percent to 85 percent. And indeed, Charter’s deal may have significantly higher odds of approval than did Comcast’s. Regulators have shown they want at least two companies in a sector with sufficient scale to implement their own competing standards and business practices. That suggests they would want a company with enough heft to rival Comcast, according to Paul Gallant of Guggenheim Securities. Comcast’s ownership of content via its NBCUniversal unit was also a government concern that wouldn’t apply to Charter, Gallant adds. Moreover, Comcast had nearly double the high-speed broadband market share of Charter, Time Warner Cable and Bright House combined as of the end of 2014, according to New Street, and would thus have less leverage over Internet-video programmers.
benton.org/headlines/charters-chances-time-warner-cable-look-good | Wall Street Journal
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WHY THE GOVERNMENT IS ABOUT TO APPROVE THE AT&T AND DIRECTV MEGA-DEAL
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
A decision on AT&T's merger with DirecTV is expected any day now, and suddenly federal officials are being swarmed with visits and calls by the companies who are arguing over details of the conditions attached to any approval. Public filings show that top AT&T and DirecTV executives have met with antitrust officials and commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission to answer a slew of last-minute, detailed questions in recent weeks -- a major sign that regulators are likely to approve the $45 billion merger that would create a mobile video powerhouse. The companies elaborated on plans to deploy their top-speed Internet service to an additional 2 million homes -- a promise made to sweeten their merger pitch. They discussed AT&T's pricing schemes for wireless data, and how the merger would affect consumers' wireless bills. In several calls and meetings, they replied to questions about so-called "interconnection fees" -- the money a company such as Netflix is paying AT&T to make sure its streaming videos move across the backbone of AT&T's networks in a high-quality manner. In meetings with the FCC's top antitrust official, Jonathan Sallet, company executives including AT&T's top regulatory and legal officials, Wayne Watts and Robert Quinn, reiterated their pitch for "voluntary commitments...which will provide the Commission with further assurance that the transaction will serve the public interest and deliver benefits to consumers," one of the filings say. Of course the FCC and Justice Department could still reject the deal, especially given the controversy over interconnection fees.
benton.org/headlines/why-government-about-approve-att-and-directv-mega-deal-and-one-thing-remains-big-concern | Washington Post
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EDUCATION

PROGRESS REPORT ON CONNECTED
[SOURCE: The White House, AUTHOR: Press release]
In 2013, President Barack Obama announced the ConnectED Initiative, setting an ambitious goal to provide 99 percent of American students with access to next-generation broadband in their classrooms and libraries by 2018. Since that time, the public and private sectors have committed more than $10 billion of total funding and in-kind commitments as part of this five-year effort to transform American education. To leverage this technology, thousands of school and community leaders have pledged to help realize the President’s vision to move America’s schools into the digital age. ConnectED is on track to achieve its goal of connecting students to tools they need for 21st century learning — and on its two year anniversary, the White House announced additional progress:
Delivering connectivity funding: This week, the FCC’s E-rate program will award $161 million to bring Wi-Fi and high-speed connectivity to classrooms in over 10,000 schools and over 500 libraries across America. This will bring the total to $470 million that the E-rate program has committed in just the last six weeks to advance and improve access to broadband connectivity and Wi-Fi access this year — part of the over $8 billion in funding the FCC has made available to meet the President’s connectivity goal.
Catalyzing private-sector impact: Over 3 million students from 10,000 schools in all 50 states are using the software, hardware, wireless connectivity and training resources that are deployed as part of the over $2 billion in private-sector commitments the President announced in 2014.
Growing the national movement of educators: More than 1,900 superintendents, representing more than 14 million students across all 50 states, have committed to help transform their districts’ teaching and learning in the digital age.
Leveraging libraries and expanding access to reading materials: Non-profits and libraries are partnering with publishers to provide more than $250 million in eBook reading materials to low-income students. More than 30 local communities throughout the Nation are developing programs to ensure library access for all students.
benton.org/headlines/connected-two-years-delivering-opportunity-k-12-schools-libraries | White House, The
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June 2015

Nowhere To Go But Up For Retransmission Fees

Sirius XM Settles Royalty Dispute Over Old Recordings

How Data-Driven Instruction is Making Learning More Personal

June 26, 2015 (FCC Agenda for July)

ConnectED: Two Years of Delivering Opportunity to K-12 Schools & Libraries

An Advance May Double the Capabilities of Fiber Optics

Enhancing Competition and Opportunity in the Mobile Marketplace

Remarks of Commissioner O'Rielly Before the Internet Innovation Alliance

FCC Announces Tentative Agenda for July Open Meeting

Analysts: Netflix poised to top American networks’ Nielsen ratings by 2016