Federal Communications Commission

Delivering on the announcement made by Chairman Wheeler in his Digital Learning Day remarks, the Wireline Competition Bureau released a Public Notice seeking more focused comment on a set of key issues initially raised in the E-Rate Modernization notice of proposed rulemaking. The Notice seeks to strengthen the record on four important issues:

• how to best structure the program in a way that places a greater focus on connectivity inside the walls of classrooms and libraries in an equitable manner to all eligible schools and libraries; whether and how to establish a one-time deployment initiative within the structure of the existing program providing targeted additional funding for those schools and libraries who remain without access to a high-speed broadband connection;
• phasing out or reducing support for legacy voice services; and
• ideas on potential demonstration projects.

Additional focused comment on these topics will help the Commission tackle some difficult issues necessary to accomplishing the program goals laid out in the E-Rate Modernization NPRM. While we seek answers to these questions, by no means does this Notice represent the full set of issues that may be addressed in a future order. Working with E-rate supported companies, schools and libraries, we are working to better understanding current connectivity levels and pricing, as well as the potential one-time and recurring costs of paying for scalable high-speed connections to and within all schools and libraries. We have repeatedly emphasized the Commission’s commitment to data-driven decision making throughout the E-rate modernization process.

[March 7]

I had the privilege of meeting Pervis Parker, the General Manager and Chief Creative Officer of WLOO TV.

During our conversation, Parker recounted with great pride all that his station had been able to accomplish since it was acquired by Tougaloo College in 2012 -- and made by possible by WLOO’s Joint Sales Agreement (JSA) with another Mississippi station, WDBD.

As Tougaloo College has put it, “the JSA has permitted WLOO to become a real success story, enabling a new, minority station owner to reinvigorate this station and expand its local services.” Parker stated that he was very concerned about what would happen to WLOO if the Federal Communications Commission were effectively to require the station to terminate its JSA.