FCC

Intel Inside FCC’s DTV-Transition Plan

By: By Ted Hearn Oct 27 2004 - 1:14pm

A business coalition that includes Intel Corp. is urging federal regulators to expedite the digital-television transition in order to give wireless-broadband companies access to valuable spectrum currently in the hands of local TV stations.

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NAB Lobbying FCC on Informal DTV Plan

By: By Ted Hearn Mar 19 2004 - 3:51pm

The National Association of Broadcasters is already raising objections to a new digital-TV-transition plan at the Federal Communications Commission that has even not seen the light of day.

The plan -- which has not been publicly released and continues to evolve -- would require TV stations to give back their analog spectrum many years earlier than expected. It would also require cable to carry off-air digital-TV signals in converted analog format.

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FCC Opens Cable-Violence Inquiry

By: By Ted Hearn Jul 28 2004 - 9:58am

At the request of Congress, the Federal Communications Commission Wednesday opened a proceeding that could result in the regulation of violent programming on cable.

Dozens of House members, both Democrats and Republicans, asked the FCC in March to examine the possibility of regulating TV violence, alarmed by studies showing that TV violence was growing and affecting the behavior of children in negative ways.

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FCC Launches DTV-Awareness Campaign

By: By Ted Hearn Oct 8 2004 - 10:43am

The federal government’s effort to switch the country to all-digital TV entered a new phase this past week with an emphasis on consumer education that included a brief appearance by Federal Communications Commission chairman Michael Powell on ABC’s Monday Night Football.

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FCC Probing Cox Buy-Through Charge

By: By Ted Hearn Apr 1 2004 - 10:42am

The Federal Communications Commission is probing whether cable operators may charge a fee for music services and interactive programming guides to consumers who want to purchase just the basic tier and a premium service such as Home Box Office, but not expanded basic.

At issue is the applicability of the FCC's so-called tier buy-through prohibition in a dispute involving Cox Communications Inc. and several communities in Connecticut that retain authority to set some of Cox's programming fees.

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FCC Opens a la Carte Inquiry Sought by House

By: By Ted Hearn May 25 2004 - 1:30pm

Under orders from key House members, the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday launched an inquiry into the plausibility of cable and satellite companies offering channels on an a la carte basis.

The FCC acted one week after receiving a bipartisan letter from leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, who punted a la carte issues to the agency partly to assuage the concerns of a la carte proponent Rep. Nathan Deal (R-Ga.).

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FCC Grants Bells Fiber-to-Curb Relief

By: By Ted Hearn Oct 15 2004 - 7:24am

The Baby Bells scored a broadband victory Thursday at the Federal Communications Commission when the agency ruled that fiber deployments feeding into copper loops do not have to be leased to competitors at regulated rates.

The FCC had previously deregulated fiber-to-the-home facilities, but BellSouth Corp. petitioned the agency for relief for fiber deployments near homes that are served by last-mile copper loops.

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Groups Press FCC for TV-Station Rules

By: By Ted Hearn Apr 13 2004 - 1:40pm

The Federal Communications Commission should withhold new regulatory benefits for broadcasters until TV stations promise to air more public-interest programming, according to a coalition of consumer groups and political activists.

In a statement Tuesday, the coalition argued that any effort by the FCC to expand cable-system carriage obligations for TV stations should come after the agency has adopted specific measures that TV stations would need to follow to keep their licenses.

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FCC: Broadband Adoption Surging in U.S.

By: By Ted Hearn Sep 9 2004 - 10:55am

Subscribership to high-speed-data service in the United States nearly tripled from June 2001-December 2003, the Federal Communications Commission said a report released Thursday.

The agency -- which regulates many wireless and wireline providers of high-speed data to homes and businesses -- said U.S. broadband penetration jumped from 9.6 million in June 2001 to 28.2 million in December 2003.

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Senate Forcing FCC on Multicasting

By: By Ted Hearn Sep 30 2004 - 9:54am

A bill expected to clear the Senate in a few days includes a provision that would require the Federal Communications Commission to quickly resolve a long-standing dispute between the cable and broadcasting industries.

The issue -- contained in an amendment adopted unanimously Wednesday -- would force the FCC to decide whether cable companies need to carry every programming service that a digital-TV station can pack into its signals.

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