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AT&T URGES FCC TO REJECT MORE CONDITIONS ON MERGER
[SOURCE: Technology Daily 11/2, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
"There are no new facts to gather, no new proposals to consider, and [there is] nothing more to do," the companies wrote in a letter dated last Friday that surfaced this week. AT&T, which recently outlined a series of conditions that the merger partners support, said the FCC should reject efforts by their opponents to saddle them with more restrictions. "While competitors continue to clamor for handouts, and while inside-the-Beltway interest groups continue to press their own narrow and misguided policy agendas, none of their proposals is remotely related to any real merger-specific harm," the companies wrote. They argued that this reason alone is sufficient to reject demands for more requirements. The letter was submitted to the FCC just before a week-long "sunshine" period when regulators cannot discuss the transaction with outside parties.
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-SLFJ1162480501136.html
AT&T Urges FCC To Reject More Conditions On Merger
THREE BLACK MAYORS TAKE LONELY STAND ON AT&T/BELLSOUTH MERGER
[SOURCE: Lasar's Letter on the FCC, AUTHOR: Matthew Lasar]
As the FCC struggles for consensus on AT&T's proposed acquisition of BellSouth, one aspect of the public filing record stands clear: minority advocacy groups overwhelmingly support the union. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Jesse Jackson's Operation Rainbow Push, and other regional civil rights groups have all submitted statements on behalf of the $67.1 billion deal, which will create an entity that serves up almost half the telephone land lines in the United States. But Mayors Ray Nagin of New Orleans, Kwame Kilpatrick of Detroit, and Eric Perrodin of Compton are again expressing concerns about AT&T and BellSouth's performance in inner-city areas. Calling themselves the Concerned Mayors Alliance (CMA), they cite studies and newspaper reports suggesting that AT&T redlines minority neighborhoods -- systematically denying or delaying service to low-income ethnic areas. Their comments at the FCC describe these regions as the "last wired and the last hired," and expressed concern that the merger could reduce opportunities for minority contractors. Their filing also charges that minority neighborhood residents often receive shoddy service from AT&T.
http://www.lasarletter.net/drupal/node/188
Black Mayors take Stand on AT&T/BellSouth Merger
CONSUMER ADVISORY COMMITTEE ADOPTS SECOND MEDIA OWNERSHIP RECOMMENDATION
[SOURCE: Benton Foundation]
On November 3 the Federal Communication Commission's Consumer Advisory Committee, which includes the Benton Foundation, adopted a recommendation on the 2006 Quadrennial Regulatory Review of the Commission's Media Ownership Rules. The recommendation asks the FCC to adopt media ownership rules that promote: 1) Local ownership of broadcast outlets; 2) Competition as manifested through increased responsiveness to community needs and increased diversity of programming; and 3) Ownership opportunities for minorities, women and people with disabilities. In addition, the recommendation reiterates the CAC's previous call to compile a complete record and issue specific rules changes for public comment -- and asks the Commission to aggressively enforce its media ownership rules.
http://www.benton.org/benton_files/ownershipamended.doc
FCC Committee Adopts 2nd Media Ownership Recommendation
A NEW OPPORTUNITY TO CRAFT MEDIA OWNERSHIP RULES
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle 11/5, AUTHOR: FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein]
[Commentary] The public airwaves belong to the public. In the exchange for the free use of the airwaves, radio and television broadcasters are required to serve the needs of your community. It's the job of the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that the airwaves foster a competitive, diverse and locally responsive media marketplace. The FCC sets limits on media ownership that affects every citizen's exposure to news, information and entertainment programming. The laws that govern the FCC say we are to maximize the diversity of viewpoints to which Americans are exposed. We are not to allow a few media giants to dominate our media landscape. Three years ago, three million citizens nationwide, from the left of the political spectrum, to the right, and virtually everyone in between, expressed their opposition to a FCC plan to relax media ownership rules. Eventually, an appeals court sent the rules back to the FCC, and chastised the agency for its failure to make sensible rules that served the public's need for competition, localism and diversity. We need to continue to hear your voice about the effects of media consolidation in your communities. Share your concerns on media ownership and inform us about the types of programs that will most benefit your local communities. I urge you to provide insight on how the FCC can best ensure an open rule-making process, so that we can serve the public interest with maximum effectiveness. Remember, your views can influence media policy decisions that affect people across the nation for generations to come. I will do everything in my power to ensure that, in the pending review of media ownership rules, we are more receptive to the views of the public. After all, the law says we are to promote the public interest, not the interests of the media companies that use the public airwaves.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/1...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/11/05/EDG…
CROSS-OWNERSHIP MUDDIES TRIBUNE SALE
[SOURCE: Washington Post 11/3, AUTHOR: Frank Ahrens]
The Tribune Co. eyes an uncertain future as it sorts through bids from potential buyers. One thing is clear, however: Any new owner faces numerous regulatory hurdles and is going to spend plenty of time and money in Washington and in court. The Chicago-based media giant owns 11 television stations and 25 newspapers, some in the same city -- a violation of Federal Communications Commission rules on what it calls "cross-ownership." Tribune has received FCC waivers that allow it to keep the properties in violation, at least temporarily. But those waivers will not convey to a new owner. And any new owner will face continued waiver challenges from advocacy groups that oppose media consolidation. The first challenge was filed with the FCC November 2. "Anybody looking to buy the whole [Tribune] package is buying a lot of uncertainty," said Andrew Jay Schwartzman, president of the Media Access Project, an advocacy group that generally opposes media consolidation and filed the petition to block Tribune's waiver in Los Angeles, where it owns television station KTLA. Schwartzman's group has asked the FCC to deny Tribune's request to renew its license to own KTLA under waiver, arguing that Tribune has made no effort to sell KTLA, has no interest in divesting its Los Angeles properties and is holding on to them in hopes that the FCC will lift cross-ownership restrictions. Schwartzman's group is also planning challenges to Tribune station licenses in Connecticut and New York, which come up for renewal next year, something that a new Tribune owner would have to contend with.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/02/AR200611...
(requires registration)
Cross-Ownership Muddies Tribune Sale
FCC ENDORSES BROADBAND OVER POWERLINE
[SOURCE: TechWeb Technology News, AUTHOR: W. David Gardner]
The Federal Communications Commission on Friday gave a big boost to Broadband over Powerline (BPL), classifying the technology as an "information service." The declaration places BPL-enabled access services on equal footing with cable modem and DSL Internet access services. The FCC has campaigned for BPL approval for years, although ham radio operators have long complained that BPL would interfere with its service. By ruling BPL service's transmission component is "telecommunications," and an "information service," BPL will find it easier to deploy beyond the handful of networks that are currently scattered around the country, mostly in the Northeast.
http://www.techweb.com/wire/mobile/193501695;jsessionid=X11BT13GKZOAUQSN...
* FCC news release
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-268331A1.doc
* Chairman Martin: "I believe that it is the Commission's responsibility to help ensure technological and competitive neutrality in communications markets. Accordingly, I believe that all providers of the same service must be treated in the same manner regardless of the technology that they employ. I am therefore pleased that the Commission has recognized that Internet access services provided over broadband power lines, like those provided over cable plant and wireline facilities, are information services."
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-268331A2.doc
* Commissioner Copps: "[C]onsigning broadband services to an indeterminate Title I regulatory limbo is no substitute for a genuine national broadband strategy. Just relegating something to Title I doesn't provide the kind of certainty that either business or consumers are entitled to if broadband over power line is going to be the success we want it to be. And reclassification by itself gets us no closer to the kind of high speed broadband infrastructure this nation needs to be competitive in world markets and to expand economic and social opportunity here at home."
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-268331A3.doc
* Commissioner Adelstein: "Even as we move forward with this Order today, it is worth mentioning some of the important issues that we shouldn't lose sight of:" consumer protection, Truth-in-Billing rules, access for persons with disabilities, and the preservation and advancement of universal service.
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-268331A4.doc
COMMERCE SPECTRUM ADVISORY COMMITTEE ANNOUNCED
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez announced the appointment of a diverse group of representatives from the private sector for a two-year term to an advisory committee on radio frequency spectrum. The radio frequency spectrum is a vital and limited national resource, and committee members will provide advice and recommendations that will enable the United States to remain a leader in new wireless technologies while ensuring the country’s homeland security, national defense, and other critical government needs are satisfied. The Commerce Spectrum Advisory Committee is part of the President’s Spectrum Policy Initiative, which was established by President George W. Bush in June 2003 to further develop and implement a U.S. spectrum policy for the 21st century that meets the Nation’s needs and spurs economic growth. Radio frequency spectrum contributes to increased technological innovation and scientific discovery, enables communications among first responders to natural disasters and terrorist attacks, assists in military operations, and spurs economic growth and job creation by providing sound commercial choices for consumers including high-speed Internet and increased wireless services. The Advisory Committee will report to John Kneuer, Acting Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information, who will appoint a chair at the first meeting. Members of the Committee include: Dr. David Borth, Motorola; Martin Cooper, ArrayComm; Mark Crosby, Enterprise Wireless Alliance; James Goldstein, Sprint Nextel; Alexander H. Good, Mobile Satellite Ventures; Robert M. Gurss, Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International Inc; Dr. Dale Hatfield, University of Colorado;Dr. Kevin Kahn, Intel; Hilda Legg, Legg Strategies; James Lewis, Center for Strategic & International Studies; Dr. Mark McHenry, Shared Spectrum Company; Darrin M. Mylet, Cantor Fitzgerald; Janice Obuchowski, Freedom Technologies; Dr. Robert Pepper, Cisco Systems; R. Gerard Salemme, Clearwire Corp; Bryan N. Tramont, Wilkinson, Barker, Knauer, LLP, Washington, D.C.; Mark Tucker, CoCo Communications; Jennifer Warren, Lockheed Martin.
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/press/2006/specadvisory_110306.htm
Commerce Spectrum Advisory Committee Announced
DIGITAL TO ANALOG CONVERTER BOX COUPON PUBLIC MEETINGS
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced that it will be holding individual meetings with interested parties on November 14-15, 2006 in connection with its digital-to-analog converter box coupon program. Discussions will be limited to those subjects raised in the NPRM and no discussions are permitted with respect to the Request for Information published by NTIA on July 31, 2006, or other procurement related issues. These meetings will be considered ex parte presentations, and the substance of these meetings will be placed on the public record. At least two days after the meetings, parties should submit a memorandum to NTIA which summarizes the substance of the meetings. Any written presentations will be placed on the public record. Individual meetings with interested parties will be scheduled from 9:00 to 5:00 p.m. on November 14 and 15 and are expected to last no longer than thirty minutes each. The meetings will be held at the Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 1401 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC, 20230. Parties interested in scheduling meetings with NTIA must contact Sandra Stewart at (202) 482-2246 no later than November 10, 2006.
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/frnotices/2006/DTVmeeting_110806.htm
Digital to Analog Converter Box Coupon Public Meetings
MEDIA'S NEW MASTERS
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Jon Fine]
[Commentary] It's now a matter of when, not if, private-equity players will begin owning a large chunk of the consumer media world. Thus, regardless of who ends up controlling Tribune Co. and Clear Channel Communications -- to cite just two recent headlines -- it's worth considering, without rant or cant, what this will mean to media companies and properties. 1) Old dogs learn new math: "There is equity. There is debt. There is cash flow. There is interest. There is growth. There is value. That's the world." A shift to a "hard" accountability won't be easy. A soft-edged ecosystem allowed generations of lower-tier employees to make decent middle-class salaries--in some cases, much better than middle-class salaries. That world has been shrinking. It will shrink faster. 2) Expect a quicker sprint to digital. 3) The old-style conglomerate, be it Knight Ridder or Time Warner, consists of properties bolted together more or less haphazardly. Their run of dominating media will end. In their place will come tightly focused companies.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_46/b4009039.htm
Media's New Masters
ORDER TO STREAMLINE FM TABLE OF ALLOTMENTS AND AM COMMUNITY OF LICENSE PROCEDURES
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
The Federal Communications Commission on Friday adopted a Report and Order that sets rules to revise the FM Table of Allotments and AM community of license modification procedures. The Report and Order adopts the following rule changes: 1) Permits Community of License Minor Change Applications - Allows AM and FM licensees and permittees to change their community of license by first-come/first-served minor modification applications, streamlining the current two-step procedures. 2) Requires Simultaneous Filing of Form 301 with Petitions to Add New FM Allotments - Requires filing Form 301, and paying the required filing fee, with all petitions to add new FM allotments to the Table. This will help ensure that parties who value new allotments most - those who participate in broadcast auctions - will be the ones seeking to add new FM allotments. 3) Eliminates the Prohibition on Electronic Filing of Rulemaking Petitions to Amend FM Table of Allotments - Eliminates the current prohibition on electronic filing of petitions and other documents in proceedings to amend the FM Table of Allotments.
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-268334A1.doc
Order to Streamline FM Table of Allotments and AM Community of License Procedures