For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
TELEVISION
Copps, Adelstein Slam Election Coverage
FCC Chairman Powell on Broadcasting
NCTA Responds to Broadcasters on Must Carry Issues
Study Finds More Latinos, Fewer Asians on Prime-time TV
FTC OK's NBC/Universal
PTV Expands Fare Offered on Demand
SPECTRUM
FCC Announces NextWave Settlement Agreement
TELECOM COMPETITION
SBC Proposes a Higher but Uniform Rate for Rivals Using Its Lines
QUICK HITS
CDT Presents Consensus List of Devious Software Practices
FCC "Solutions Summit" on Disability Access Issues
PBS May Start Foundation to Seek Major Gifts
PBS Web Sites Receive Record Number of Webby Award Nominations
Study: Swedes Most 'Digital-Savvy' in Europe
Jail Mail Can Have Web Downloads, Court Rules
TELEVISION
COPPS, ADELSTEIN SLAM ELECTION COVERAGE
In an event organized by the Public Interest, Public Airwaves Coalition
[which includes the Benton Foundation], FCC Commissioners Michael J. Copps
and Jonathan Adelstein took turns endorsing a proposal that broadcasters
provide a minimum of three hours a week of "civic or electoral affairs" on
their primary digital television channel. Commissioner Copps slammed local
stations, charging that their coverage of elections is "just plain
pathetic." Commissioner Adelstein seconded the notion, although altering
the adjective to "pitiful." Commissioner Copps also complained about what
he saw as the FCC's silence on the issue of digital public interest
obligations. "The FCC has a "bad case of lockjaw," he said.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Steve McClellan]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA411871?display=Breaking+News
(requires subscription)
FCC CHAIRMAN POWELL ON BROADCASTING
"Adapt, evolve or die." This was FCC Michael Powell's message to
broadcasters in his keynote speech at the National Association of
Broadcasters convention Tuesday. "Broadcasting is the original mass media.
On the other end, there's a rise of a digital generation that has access to
highly individualized and customized news and information," Chairman Powell
said. Broadcasters compete with cable and satellite services and new
digital media offerings via the Internet, video-on-demand, and wireless and
gaming technologies. The transition to digital TV is supposed to help
broadcasters compete, but if they do not keep pace with new competitors the
government could yank the spectrum licenses or demand fees, Chairman Powell
said.
He also told the audience that the FCC will not be trying to enforce
decency standards on cable programmers before Congress passes legislation
that mandates it. Though Powell may not have the authority to regulate
cable, he suggested he had the inclination. "I don't believe the First
Amendment should change channels when it goes from ch. 7 to ch. 107. I
don't believe it's that arbitrary, but I am not free to disavow that
distinction."
Finally, on the proposed plan the FCC is working on to advance the
transition to digital TV, Chairman Powell said that he has not yet endorsed
the plan, but broadcasters should consider that there could be alternatives
they could like even less. "The law [setting a transition deadline] is
muddy," Chairman Powell said. The issue, he said "is not about being pro-
or anti-broadcast, it's about being pro-public." He warned that government
officials with fees on their radar screens could find themselves desperate
to raise $50 billion to head off a Social Security crisis.
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Stefanie Olsen]
http://news.com.com/2100-1037-5195961.html?tag=nefd.hed
B&C: Powell Can't Pursue Cable Smut
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA411729?display=Breaking+News
Powell Says Ferree Plan Isn't 'Last Word'
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA411722?display=Breaking+News
LATimes: FCC Chief Turns Up Heat on Broadcasters
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-powell21apr21,1,60388...
Multichannel News: Powell Warns NAB on Spectrum Squatting
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA411878?display=Breaking+News
NCTA RESPONDS TO BROADCASTERS ON MUST CARRY ISSUES
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) yesterday filed
an ex parte letter with the FCC concerning the digital must carry
proceeding, responding to a series of recent filings by broadcasters on the
digital TV transition and cable's obligations for signal carriage. The
letter states that commercial broadcasters' response to a good-faith effort
by the Commission to address the hard issues of the digital transition is a
distraction to the work at hand. It is a distraction because it focuses on what
they want the government to impose on other industries and their customers,
not on what broadcasters are themselves willing to do. Specifically, their
counterproposal to the Media Bureau is nothing more than a repackaged
version of the so-called "either/or" demands broadcasters put forth last
November. That proposal is the functional equivalent of dual carriage,
unless cable customers were forced to lease digital-to-analog set-top boxes
for the 145 million analog sets in their homes.
See the full text of the letter at the URL below. For additional
information, contact Rob Stoddard or Brian Dietz at 202/775-3629.
[SOURCE: National Cable & Telecommunications Association]
http://www.ncta.com/pdf_files/NCTAExParte.pdf
STUDY FINDS MORE LATINOS, FEWER ASIANS ON PRIME-TIME TV
A new study on race and gender diversity on television has found that,
despite a significant increase in Latino characters on this season's
prime-time TV, Latinos are twice as visible in real life than on
television. The study, "Fall Colors 2003-04: Prime Time Diversity
Report," also found that representations of Asian and Pacific Islander
characters declined, Latino and Middle Eastern characters often were
typecast and Native American characters were absent. In addition, male
characters outnumbered their female counterparts nearly two to one, while
females tended to be younger. While Children Now researchers praised the
progress made by networks in showing more Latino characters, it was
tempered by the prevalence of low-paying jobs those characters were likely
to have compared to other racial groups. Whites, for example, were three
times as likely as Latinos to hold professional occupations such as doctors
or lawyers. And although the overall number was small, Latinos were four
times as likely as characters of other races to portray domestic workers.
"The message prime-time TV sends to kids about the world in which they live
is that some racial groups are privileged, while others are
under-represented or even invisible," said Patti Miller, director of
Children Now's Children & the Media program. "Regrettably, the networks
have not done nearly enough in the past five years to change this skewed
picture."
[SOURCE: Children Now Press Release]
http://www.childrennow.org/newsroom/news-04/pr-04-21-04.cfm
See full report at
http://www.childrennow.org/media/fc2003/fc-2003-highlights.cfm
In a related story...
HISPANIC MARKET DRAWS AD SPENDING
Advertisers are spending more to reach the Hispanic market, but their
investments remain very low, given the growth in population and purchasing
power of the largest U.S. minority, according to a study by the Association
of Hispanic Advertising Agencies. Most companies' Hispanic ad budgets still
fall short of what marketing experts deem adequate to reach the nation's 40
million Latinos, who represent about 14% of the population and have
aggregate disposable income of nearly $700 billion. Indeed, top U.S.
advertisers devoted only 5.1% of their total advertising budget to the
Hispanic market last year, up from 4.6% in 2002, according to the AHAA survey.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Miriam Jordan at
miriam.jordan( at )wsj.com ]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB108251203404088946,00.html?mod=mm%5Fm...
(requires subscription)
FTC OK'S NBC/UNIVERSAL
NBC has gotten Federal Trade Commission approval for its purchase of
Vivendi Universal Entertainment. The new entity will be called NBC
Universal, which officials billed as "one of the world's most profitable
and fastest-growing media and entertainment companies." The FTC did not
require divestitures of any business lines, nor did it insist that NBC
devote any of its prime time lineup to programming not produced by
Universal or other in-house studios, as some public advocates urged.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA411876?display=Breaking+News
(requires subscription)
WP: FTC Approves NBC's Vivendi Universal Deal
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28880-2004Apr20.html
USAToday: http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040421/6131690s.htm
PTV EXPANDS FARE OFFERED ON DEMAND
Rather watch The NewsHour after the kids are in bed? The show will be the
first news series to become available through digital cable video-on-demand
(VOD). A package of PBS Kids shows will soon be available to 8 million
homes during a one year test run. The programming will be available free to
cable subscribers. In markets where PBS has already experimented with VOD,
there was no loss in viewership. VOD viewing for kids programing spiked
when the day's children fare went off the air. "Our interest in getting on
VOD is that it's a new platform that consumers seem to really like," said
Kyra McGrath of Philadelphia's WHYY. "We don't know where it's going in the
future, but we want to get our foot in the door as the platform develops."
[SOURCE: Current, AUTHOR: Karen Everhart]
(http://www.current.org/)
SPECTRUM
FCC ANNOUNCES NEXTWAVE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
The Federal Communications Commission announced today that the government
has reached an agreement with NextWave Communications, Inc. (NextWave)
regarding NextWave's broadband personal communication service (PCS)
licenses, which have been in dispute since 1996. The proposed deal would
immediately make available for other uses the vast majority of the spectrum
that had been tied up in litigation since NextWave declared bankruptcy in
1998. The government pursued three overarching goals in settling this
case: (i) putting the NextWave spectrum that lay dormant for so long to
active use; (ii) recouping value from NextWave for the U.S. government; and
(iii) facilitating a final resolution to the entire matter within the
context of the Supreme Court's NextWave opinion. Specifically, the
agreement: 1) provides for the immediate return of spectrum licenses that
will account for at least 90% of NextWave's spectrum when licenses already
sold to Cingular Wireless are taken into account; 2) contemplates total
cash recovery (including NextWave's down payment) of $1.6 billion if
anticipated sales occur; 3) results in a total cash and spectrum recovery
of at least $4 billion based on NextWave's original purchase price; 4)
requires additional cash payments to the U.S. Treasury if there is a
dramatic increase in value and sale of the spectrum that NextWave retains;
5) extinguishes any potential claims for damages against the FCC and the
U.S. government; 6) builds in safeguards to ensure prompt and timely
payment by NextWave; and 7) avoids the use of debt instruments, which could
be subject to further default and delay. FCC Chairman Michael Powell said,
"After eight long years, we can finally end the litigation and begin the
innovation. This landmark agreement takes valuable spectrum resources out
of the courts and will put it in the hands of consumers who can finally use
it. Making additional next-generation wireless services available is good
for the economy and good for broadband deployment. Ending one of the most
hotly contended legal battles with a commercial solution that results in
over four billion dollars in value to taxpayers makes this settlement a
success for the American people"
The deal will require approval of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the
Southern District of New York.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-246284A1.doc
See Also:
NYTimes: NextWave Pact With F.C.C. Ends Airwave Dispute
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/21/business/21spectrum.html
WSJ coverage
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB108249382699588274,00.html?mod=techno...
WP: FCC Calls Truce With NextWave
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29412-2004Apr20.html
USAToday: NextWave to return airwave licenses to FCC for auction
http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040421/6131698s.htm
TELECOM COMPETITION
SBC PROPOSES A HIGHER BUT UNIFORM RATE FOR RIVALS USING ITS LINES
Phone giant SBC yesterday proposed to offer uniform pricing to competitors
who want to use its local phone network. The offer is to last through the
year and the company -- which dominates local phone service in the Midwest,
the Southwest and California -- characterized the offer as an interim deal
aimed at bringing stability to a confusing system of telephone access fees
while telephone companies try to work out more permanent agreements. The
rates are also rising from ~$17 per line in to $22. Competitors, obviously,
don't like the increase. AT&T, for example, said the offer was a 20%
increase "without justification." Blair Levin, a regulatory analyst with
Legg Mason, a financial consulting firm in Washington, said the offers were
unlikely to inspire many deals. He indicated phone rate increases could
have electoral consequences, so look for deals that get past the election
season.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Matt Richtel]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/21/business/21bell.html
(requires registration)
See Also:
LATimes: Baby Bells Pushing to Keep Lid on Lease Deals
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-bells21apr21,1,578245...
QUICK HITS
CDT PRESENTS CONSENSUS LIST OF DEVIOUS SOFTWARE PRACTICES
Speaking at the FTC's Workshop on "Spyware," CDT Associate Director Ari
Schwartz presented a consensus list of "Unfair, Deceptive, or Devious
Practices Involving Software" endorsed by a broad coalition of software
companies, Internet service providers, anti-spyware technology vendors, and
consumer groups convened by CDT. Schwartz told the FTC that the consensus
list demonstrates the broad recognition that many "spyware" practices,
which are common today, are already illegal under current law, and he urged
the Commission to step up enforcement.
[SOURCE: Center for Digital Democracy]
http://www.cdt.org/
For more see:
Consumer Software Working Group Examples of Unfair, Deceptive or Devious
Practices Involving Software
http://www.cdt.org/privacy/spyware/20040419cswg.pdf
Policy Post 10.07: CDT, Presenting List of Devious Spyware Practices, Calls
for FTC Action
http://www.cdt.org/publications/pp_10.07.shtml
CDT's Spyware page
http://www.cdt.org/privacy/spyware/
Spyware: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You. The House Subcommittee on
Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing April 29
at 10:00 a.m. in 2322 Rayburn House Office Building. This event will be
open to the public and webcast live (audio only).
http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
FCC "SOLUTIONS SUMMIT" ON DISABILITY ACCESS ISSUES
The FCC will hold a "Solutions Summit" on Friday, May 7, 2004. This
Solutions Summit is the second in a series where government, industry
leaders and stakeholders can discuss creative ways to address policy issues
that arise as communications services move to Internet-Protocol-based
platforms. This meeting will focus on the ways persons with disabilities
access services increasingly based upon IP technologies. The summit is
open to the public, and seating will be available on a first-come,
first-served basis. The FCC is recommending that attendees submit a
pre-registration form. Pre-registration is encouraged, but not
required. The pre-registration form is located at: http://www.fcc.gov/voip/.
For more information about the Solutions Summit, contact Kelly Jones at
202-418-7078 (voice) 202-418-1169 (TTY), or Kelly.Jones( at )fcc.gov (E-mail).
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-04-1051A1.doc
PBS MAY START FOUNDATION TO SEEK MAJOR GIFTS
The PBS board has authorized a task force to develop operating principles
for a fundraising foundation which would solicit major gifts for the
service. "We're all of the view that we've got to develop additional
sources of revenue to support the wonderful work of public television,"
said Board Vice Chair Mary Bitterman. The 501(c)(3) foundation would
"complement and not compete with individual station efforts to solicit
major gifts" and work with "the full engagement and knowledge of stations."
[SOURCE: Current, AUTHOR: Karen Everhart]
(http://www.current.org/)
PBS WEB SITES RECEIVE RECORD NUMBER OF WEBBY AWARD NOMINATIONS
PBS-affiliated Web sites received six Webby Award nominations today for the
8th Annual Webby Awards. PBS Web sites nominated are:
PBS.org www.pbs.org (TV category)
PBS Kids www.pbskids.org (Youth category)
Arthur www.pbskids.org/arthur (Youth category)
FRONTLINE World www.pbs.org/frontlineworld (TV category)
Listen Up! www.pbs.org/merrow/listenup (Youth category)
P.O.V. Borders www.pbs.org/pov/borders/index_flash.html (Broadband category)
[SOURCE: PBS]
http://www.pbs.org/
For more info see:
Webby Award nominee press release
http://www.webbyawards.com/main/press/press_releases/pr_042004.html
The complete list of Webby Award nominees
http://www.webbyawards.com/main/webby_awards/nominees.html
STUDY: SWEDES MOST 'DIGITAL-SAVVY' IN EUROPE
According to Jupiter Research's inaugural "Digital Life Index" -- a study
that attempts to rank consumers' digital sophistication across 17 Western
European countries -- the further south you venture, the fewer digital
gadgets, satellite TV dishes and Internet connections there are. "Europe's
constituent countries may be getting closer together economically, but the
lifestyles of its inhabitants remain as diverse as ever. Nowhere is this
clearer than in the consumption of digital technology," said Jupiter
analyst Mark Mulligan. The study counts a variety of factors from Internet
shopping habits to uptake of satellite television and the number of digital
devices and mobile phones among consumers in tabulating its "digital
sophistication index." Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland rank highest in
terms of digital sophistication while the Mediterranean countries,
including Greece, Portugal and Italy, score below the Continental average,
Jupiter said.
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Bernhard Warner]
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=L3LCBWRSMFJ2MCRBAE0C...
JAIL MAIL CAN HAVE WEB DOWNLOADS, COURT RULES
The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court ruling that a
state cannot bar prisoners access from mail that contains downloads from
the Internet. The court granted a permanent statewide injunction against
the ban. "The injunction prohibits banning Internet materials simply
because their source is the Internet," the three-judge panel wrote. "It
does not prohibit restrictions for any legitimate penological or security
reasons. Without violating the injunction, legitimate restrictions could be
adopted by any prison to meet its individual needs, for example page
limitations, or a ban on recipes for pipe-bombs."
[SOURCE: Reuters]
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=10L3UHBAXDQXICRBAEOC...
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