fcc

FCC tongue-tied as appeals court judge blows holes in muni preemption

22 March 2016 by Steve Blum
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The Federal Communications Commission has serious difficulties explaining why it has the power to preempt state laws that restrict municipal broadband service. Matthew Dunne, an FCC lawyer, argued the agency’s case before three federal appeals court judges on Thursday, defending last year’s decision to remove state-imposed restrictions on municipal broadband systems in Chattanooga, Tennessee and Wilson, North Carolina.

The case hinges on whether the FCC is using authority granted (or not) by congress to remove barriers to broadband deployment, or if it’s simply interfering in a state’s traditional – and well litigated – right to manage what its cities and counties can do, and how they can do it.… More

U.S. house bill says bigger ISPs have lower transparency standards

19 March 2016 by Steve Blum
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Face it, $100 million is chump change here.

Mid-sized Internet service providers as well as small ones would be exempt from Federal Communications Commission rules that require, among other things, full disclosure of monthly price, fees, data caps and other such terms of service, under a bill approved unanimously (411 to zip) by the U.S. house of representatives. HR 4596 says that transparency rules adopted last year by the FCC, as part of its decision to regulate broadband as a common carrier service, “shall not apply to any small business”, which is defined as “any provider of broadband Internet access service that has not more than 250,000 subscribers”.… More

FCC leaning toward allowing Charter to buy Time Warner

17 March 2016 by Steve Blum
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Word is beginning to leak out of the Federal Communications Commission that Charter Communications’ pending purchase of Time Warner and Bright House cable systems will get a green light from regulators. According to Politico, there are serious discussions going on regarding conditions that would be attached to federal approvals…

The latest development shows the Charter deal is further along the path than Comcast’s failed $45 billion bid for Time Warner Cable, which never reached the point where regulators seriously considered conditions, the sources said.

… More

FCC broadband lifeline proposal is slow and slower

13 March 2016 by Steve Blum
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Low aspirations.

The broadband lifeline plan under consideration by the Federal Communications Commission would perpetuate the gap between people who have access to wireline broadband at home, and those who rely solely on mobile service. Floated last week by FCC chair Tom Wheeler, the new program would allow low income consumers to opt for subsidised broadband service, instead of or in addition to lifeline telephone service.

But it sets one standard for wireline (and fixed wireless) subscriptions, and another for mobile.… More

FCC accused of rolling over for Obama

3 March 2016 by Steve Blum
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Click for the big picture.

Republicans in the U.S. senate published a report this week that slammed the way Federal Communications Commission developed and adopted net neutrality rules last year, particularly the influence that president Obama exerted over FCC chairman Tom Wheeler. There is certainly partisan intent behind the report, but along with the rhetoric it also includes emails and other documents that back up what newspapers had already reported: Wheeler’s cherished no lobbyist left behind approach – leave net neutrality rules open to ongoing wrangling by Beltway insiders – was deep sixed after Obama publicly endorsed a comprehensive common carrier approach.… More

Satellite TV's special circumstances are history

27 February 2016 by Steve Blum
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For more than 20 years, satellite television companies have gotten a pass on many of the federal regulations that apply to their cable competitors. There was a lot of righteous rhetoric in those days about why Direct Broadcast Satellite was unique and should be allowed to live by different rules. But the underlying thinking was that satellite companies were small, cable companies were big and it was in everyone’s interest to foster a competitive alternative.

Those assumptions no longer hold.… More

Bipartisan support for simplicity at the FCC

24 February 2016 by Steve Blum
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The Federal Communication Commission’s decision to move ahead with writing new rules for set top boxes was made on a party line 3 to 2 vote. But that’s not the way the vote on the final rules will necessarily go.

FCC chair Tom Wheeler is all for the draft rules as written – no surprise, his office wrote them. So is Mignon Clyburn, a fellow democrat. The third democrat, Jessica Rosenworcel is not as enthusiastic, though…

This rulemaking is complicated…The most successful regulatory efforts are simple ones.

… More

FCC approves, publishes draft set top box rules

22 February 2016 by Steve Blum
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As expected, the Federal Communications Commission moved ahead last week with a plan to rewrite the rules for network operators – cable, telephone and satellite – that deliver television channels to consumers, requiring them to allow third parties such as consumer electronics manufacturers and software developers to access their programming streams. The shorthand way of explaining it is to say that the set top box market will be open to competition – anyone would be able to license the necessary technology, build a box and sell it to consumers.… More

Network ownership will no longer mean content control with new STB rules

16 February 2016 by Steve Blum
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It’ll all look the same.

Opening up the currently closed set top box market will disrupt, and perhaps kill, the network business models that rely on it. On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission is set to launch a process that to write new rules requiring cable, satellite and other flavors of multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to give third party manufacturers direct access to their television transmission streams, including on-screen guide data. With all due respect for license limitations, such as recording rights, of course.… More

Wheeler keeps muni broadband cards close to chest

10 February 2016 by Steve Blum
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Muni broadband? Never heard of it.

Eight republican senators, including presidential hopeful Marco Rubio, sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler asking four questions about municipal broadband (h/t to the Baller Herbst list for the pointer). Or it might have been eight separate letters – doesn’t matter. Wheeler sent separately addressed but otherwise identical letters in reply.

If you take Wheeler’s letter at face value, the FCC has no plans to anything at all regarding municipal broadband.… More