FTC Chair Lina Khan has engaged in undemocratic efforts to shift antitrust precedent, and she would be better served pursuing antitrust enforcement action to sway the judiciary, panelists told a Computer and Communications Industry Association event Monday.
The House Appropriations Committee voted 31-22 Friday night to advance the Financial Services Subcommittee’s FY 2023 bill with increases in annual funding for the FCC and FTC. The committee voted down Republicans’ bids to roll back a proposed substantial increase in FTC funding and altered a rider in the measure that removes an FCC barrier to broadcasters airing ads for cannabis products. The measure would allocate $490 million to the FTC, a 30% increase over what it received in the FY 2022 omnibus appropriations package (see 2203150076). The FY23 bill would give the FCC $390 million, up 2.3% from FY22.
An NAB-backed Senate bill to open a window to allow low-power television stations to upgrade to better-protected Class A status is opposed by some LPTV groups, but lawmakers are looking to move it this year, said legislators and LPTV industry officials in interviews.
States, local communities and industry should begin having conversations now about the type of partnerships needed once NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment program and middle-mile broadband infrastructure program funding become available, panelists said during a Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Coalition webinar Friday. Panelists encouraged anchor institutions to start organizing and identifying their communities' needs as funding from both programs may not reach everyone.
The Senate left on a two-week recess Thursday night without holding a vote Democratic leaders had considered to discharge FCC nominee Gigi Sohn from the Commerce Committee’s jurisdiction, as expected (see 2206230072). Senate Democratic leaders had eyed whether they could pursue the discharge vote because all 50 Democratic caucus members were available and a handful of Republicans were absent from the chamber (see 2206230066). Sohn’s confirmation process has been stalled since March, when the Commerce Committee tied 14-14 on advancing her to the full chamber, necessitating the discharge vote before the chamber can proceed on her confirmation. Her supporters have been eyeing ways to break the logjam (see 2206070046).
In the FCC’s further NPRM on ATSC 3.0, released Wednesday in docket 16-142 (see 2206220067), the commission seeks comment on the extent to which patent licensing may be “inhibiting the development of 3.0 TV sets or other 3.0 equipment by non-patent holders.” Comments are due 30 days, replies 60 days, after the NPRM is published in the Federal Register.
Dish Network’s launch of a stand-alone 5G open radio access network is proof that ORAN can be deployed on a “massive” scale, said Stefano Cantarelli, Mavenir chief marketing officer, during the TelecomTV ORAN summit Thursday. Dish is working with Mavenir on that deployment. Other speakers said use of ORAN is growing, but ORAN companies haven't turned a profit and need more direction from carriers.
The commercial availability of equipment that will allow integrated terrestrial/non-terrestrial 5G networks could be 12 to 24 months out, satellite communications and wireless experts told us. With the increasing efforts being made to integrate terrestrial and satellite networks, satcom claiming a bigger role in 5G "is just a matter of time," said Miguel Costa, SES senior product manager-mobile backhaul, on a webinar Thursday. Many satellite experts think a widespread satcom role in 5G will be years off (see 2205180003).
Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., should come to the table and negotiate privacy legislation instead of building opposition (see 2206220053), House Consumer Protection Subcommittee Chair Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., told us Thursday.
Apollo Global Management’s financing of Standard/Tegna, influence over the new company and the series of station transfers the $8.6 billion deal would create among Standard, Tegna and Apollo subsidiary Cox Media Group were targeted by MVPDs, public interest groups and fellow broadcaster Graham Media in petitions posted Thursday in docket 22-162. “Why would Applicants go through this many hoops?” asked MVPD Altice, saying one possibility “is that they seek to apply Cox retransmission consent rates to New TEGNA stations -- even though Cox isn’t buying TEGNA.” The applicants’ “attempt to exploit ‘after-acquisition’ clauses in retransmission consent contracts will inevitably result in increased MVPD subscription prices” for consumers, said a filing from two sectors of the Communications Workers of America.