House Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Upton (R-Mich.) released witness list for hearing today (May 17) on HR-1765, bill to increase FCC enforcement powers: FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief David Solomon, private practice attorney and ex-FCC staffer Albert Halprin, USTA Vp-Regulatory Affairs Lawrence Sarjeant, Allegiance Telecom CEO Royce Holland.
Rep. Boucher (D-Va.) called on FCC to publish proposed final version of cable industry’s digital copy protection technology license for public comment, echoing earlier calls by consumer electronics industry. In 2-page letter to FCC Chmn. Powell Fri., Boucher, member of House Commerce Committee, said cable’s POD-Host Interface License Agreement (PHILA) should be published for comment because of concerns that “through the use of anticopying technologies, the license may open the door to substantial abridgement of time-honored home recording rights.” Boucher argued that by issuing license for public comment, agency could “learn of these concerns” and “act in a timely manner” to protect home recoding rights. “Given the importance of the license to the competitive availability of navigation devices and given the substantial concern which attends the anticopy protection capabilities contemplated by the license, the solicitation of public comment on the license is urgently needed,” he wrote.
With decisions still pending on 3rd generation wireless spectrum, ITU Secy.-Gen. Yoshio Utsumi warned in Washington Wed. that U.S. “is at this moment left aside from the world trend” of 3G licensing. “Unfortunately, the U.S. doesn’t have secure frequencies for this service,” he said at PCIA news conference. “The development of 3G in the U.S. market is very, very crucial for the success of these services.” In separate interview, Utsumi told us he believed World Telecom Standardization Assembly (WTSA) in Montreal last fall and March IP telephony forum in Geneva had helped narrow “conception gap” on certain Internet policy issues between U.S. and other countries. In arena of ITU reform, he said recommendation would be made to ITU Council next month to create Satellite Backlog Action Group, nicknamed SATBAG, to focus on solution to satellite filings challenge that has faced ITU for years.
APTS said it “strongly” supports FCC proposal to allow broadcasters operating on Ch. 52-59 to remain on their analog allocations until DTV transition is completed, and called for full protection for incumbents from interference. In comments on Commission’s rulemaking to reallocate spectrum at 698-746 MHz, APTS said that to ensure interference protection FCC should require new entrants to notify all co-channel and adjacent stations (as well as other stations with operations within broadcast contour of planned services) when new services are to commence. It also urged agency to establish 90-day test period from start of new services for broadcasters to gather sufficient data to assess any “real-world” interference problems. After 90- day period, it said, new entrant should be required to obtain written clearance from incumbent that no interference had occurred or degree of interference was acceptable. Notification requirement would allow incumbent broadcasters facing interference to “more easily and efficiently” identify source, APTS said, and test period will help resolve problems by giving time for engineers to consult on technical solutions.
SBC Chmn. Edward Whitacre said company’s next petition for long distance entry would be for Cal. and probably would be filed at FCC in summer. Answering questions after National Press Club speech Wed., he said coming up after Cal. were states in Ameritech region. SBC hopes to have won Sec. 271 entry in all of its states by end of 2002, Whitacre said. He said he hoped process would be completed sooner but he was trying to be realistic, considering how long it had taken Bells to gain entry in handful of states so far.
FCC Chmn. Powell on Tues. night praised ability of Deputy Office of Engineering & Technology Chief Julius Knapp to “translate difficult and esoteric concepts into terms even a commissioner could understand.” Knapp received Eugene Bowler Award, which honors public service commitments, at PCIA Foundation dinner. Other recipient this year was Richard Beaird, acting U.S. coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy at State Dept. PCIA also gave global achievement award to ITU Secy.-Gen. Yoshio Utsumi. “It is Julie who explained to me that Bluetooth is not a gum disease,” quipped Powell, who praised Knapp for his 27-year tenure at Commission. Comrs. Tristani, Ness and Furchtgott-Roth also lauded Knapp. Asst. Secy. of State Anthony Wayne said Beaird had “labored often in fields where even in his own department” his complicated work hadn’t been fully appreciated. Before joining State Dept. in 1988, Beaird had been at NTIA, where he was assoc. administrator for international affairs. He’s founder and still chmn. of working group on telecom in APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation). Kitchen also announced formation of Amy Zoslov Memorial Scholarship Fund. Zoslov had been chief of Auction & Industry Analysis Div. from 1998 until her death from breast cancer last Aug. Scholarship fund has been established at her alma mater, Case Western Reserve U. School of Law.
Ameritech filed evidence with Mich. PSC to support its claim that it’s in compliance with Sec. 271 requirements for InterLATA long distance entry. Voluminous filing Tues. included Ameritech evidence addressing compliance with all 14 points on open market checklist. Ameritech, an SBC company, said CLEC-served lines in its territory increased 86% from Jan. 1999 to this March, to 920,000 from 268,000. The company said its filing described how it had been working with PSC and CLECs for more than year to ensure its systems provide comprehensive, nondiscriminatory wholesale services to CLECs. It said Mich. CLECs had colocated their equipment in more than 900 sites in Ameritech central offices and had obtained some 250,000 trunks connecting their switching equipment to Ameritech. It said completion of operation support system (OSS) test by KPMG Consulting later this year would provide more proof of its claims. “It is clear from the facts presented today that Ameritech’s local markets are fully open to competition, and companies have a meaningful opportunity to compete in the marketplace,” Ameritech Mich. Pres. Gail Torreano said. Ameritech in Mich. was first Bell company to seek Sec. 271 approval following passage of the Telecom Act in 1996, but that bid failed, as did the carrier’s subsequent attempts in the state. Mich. CLECs sought to persuade the PSC to delay this filing or at least take evidence one point at a time after Ameritech last week filed notice of intent to ask FCC by Oct. for Mich. long distance authority and revealed plans to file proof of 271 compliance with PSC this week.
AT&T urged FCC to drop its suspended conditions for approval of company’s MediaOne purchase and consider company to be in compliance with agency’s merger order. In comments filed with FCC late Fri., AT&T argued that Commission should jettison merger conditions because of recent decision by U.S. Appeals Court, D.C., striking down 30% cable ownership cap as unconstitutional. Thanks to “significant changes” in cable ownership limits mandated by court ruling, company said, “it would be appropriate for the Commission to eliminate the ownership condition and deem AT&T in compliance with the merger order.” At very least, AT&T contended, Commission should continue suspending conditions and move quickly “to reconsider the cable ownership and attribution rules on remand,” as court ordered. “This approach will fully protect the public interest and the Commission’s legitimate diversity and competition concerns by ensuring that AT&T, like all other cable companies, must comply with whatever ownership restrictions can be justified as truly necessary to address those concerns,” company said. “This course of action is dictated by the D.C. Circuit’s decision -- and by its subsequent order staying the Viacom-CBS divestiture condition.” AT&T asked FCC to dismiss petition filed by Consumers Union (CU) and other public interest groups that sought to force company to divest its 25.5% stake in Time Warner Entertainment (TWE), as required under suspended conditions. “As the recent orders of the D.C. Circuit make explicit, there is no basis for the Commission either to enter the order and require the divestiture that CU seeks or otherwise ’to proceed with [enforcement of] the [cable ownership] condition’ imposed” in merger order, AT&T said. Regulatory gambit came as AT&T and AOL Time Warner hired investment bankers to set value of former’s TWE’s stake, with AT&T picking Credit Suisse First Boston and AOL Time Warner selecting Bear Stearns & Co. Move also came as AT&T revealed in new SEC filing that it planned to allocate $28.4 billion of its $65 billion debt load to its cable unit, AT&T Broadband, as part of company’s planned breakup into 4 divisions.
Mike Tsinberg, ex-Toshiba, founds Key Digital Systems HDTV manufacturing company… Consultant Kathleen Wallman, ex-White House and ex-FCC, joins Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study board… Changes at kpe, digital partner for media and entertainment companies: Win Peniston, ex-Pittard Sullivan, becomes vp, new TV Div.; Aaron King, ex-Pittard Sullivan, and Julie Klappas, kpe, appointed creative dirs.; Jeff Baumgardner moves from parent kpe to become producer in new division… Joining Katten, Muchin, Zavis from Arter & Hadden: Roger Furey, partner; Sylvia Davis, assoc.
Twenty-four senior cable network executives representing more than 70 channels fanned out over Capitol Hill Wed., lobbying key lawmakers against imposing digital must-carry requirements on cable operators. Meeting with 40 members of Congress, including most members of House and Senate Commerce Committees, cable programmers sought to counter increased lobbying and regulatory push by broadcasters for mandatory dual carriage of analog and digital broadcast signals during current DTV transition. “We know our competitors in the marketplace have been lobbying very actively on the Hill,” said A&E TV Networks Pres. Nick Davatzes, who chairs NCTA’s satellite networks committee. “We haven’t been spending enough time on the Hill.”