Multichannel News

"Disconnectivity" -- and specifically its locations -- has emerged as a major hurdle as the "Connect2HealthFCC" project prepares to submit its report within coming weeks. Karen Onyeije, a Federal Communications Commission associate general counsel and chief of staff for the Connect2HealthFCC Task Force, said that she hopes the group's final report and recommendations can be presented in early January, pending approvals.

In remarks to the annual Connected Health Conference in suburban Washington Dec. 11-14, Onyeije described the initial findings of the two-year-old study, which is intended to find "a new way of analyzing the intersection of broadband and health." At the core of the examination is a mapping process that identifies how broadband infrastructure (or the lack of it -- mainly in rural areas) and health needs coincide around the country. Working with other agencies, the Task Force is seeking to identify the types of telemedical services that could be developed.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler's Emergency Alert System (EAS) revamp has been pulled from the Dec 15 meeting agenda. In fact, the FCC has dispensed with almost all of the items that had been on its Dec 15 meeting agenda for vote, either having already been voted or in the case of EAS and one other, removing them from the lineup. That will provide time for some goodbyes since it is expected to be the last meeting of Democrat Jessica Rosenworcel and potentially FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler.

The current January meeting is scheduled for Jan 20, after which Chairman Wheeler would no longer be chairman and probably will no longer be at the commission. The EAS item according to the FCC, "improves alerting organization at the state and local levels, builds stronger community-based alerting exercise programs, and protects the EAS against accidental misuse and malicious intrusion." It was also planning to vote on an EAS further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on "proposals to leverage technological advances to improve alerting and additional measures to preserve EAS security."

AT&T Fiber said it has introduced 1-Gig broadband service to parts of three more markets – Greenville (SC), Little Rock (AR), and Sacramento (CA). There, AT&T Fiber’s standalone 1-Gig service starts at $90 per month.

Comcast has said time and time again that offering a Over-the-Top-TV service outside its own footprint doesn’t make economic sense, and that it is content, for now, to focus on bumping video sub numbers in-footprint with X1, its next-gen platform. Did Comcast suddenly change its mind? Did the dim economics of a virtual multichannel video programming distributor service brighten overnight? One might wonder, given some headlines circulating today claiming that Comcast is developing its own online TV service that's akin to a DirecTV Now or Sling TV. The apparent confusion about what Comcast is planning, or isn’t planning, stems from an interview with Mike Cavanagh, Comcast’s SVP and CFO, conducted Wednesday at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference. The quote in question: “It’s coming.” And some took that to mean that what was "coming" was a new online TV service from Comcast. But when I looked back at that part of the conversation, the quote seems to be out of context. It wasn’t about a service from Comcast that is coming, but about the OTT competition that Comcast is facing, and will continue to face.

The American Cable Association, whose membership comprises hundreds of small businesses, was pleased with President-elect Donald Trump's choice of Linda McMahon as administrator of the Small Business Administration, which Trump has made a cabinet level position. ACA's mission has been to inform Washington of the special challenges and disproportionate costs of regulation on those small businesses. “ACA believes that Linda McMahon, a sports industry pioneer with the experience of building a small business from the ground up, is an excellent choice to lead the SBA to help smaller companies resume their role as engines of economic growth and job creation," said ACA President Matt Polka. "She’s on record as opposing government mandates that burden smaller companies and understands that government should not needlessly stand in the way of small businesses’ efforts. ACA looks forward to working with SBA Administrator-designate McMahon following her Senate confirmation.”

Alongside her husband, Vince, McMahon helped build WWE from a 13-person operation to a global brand with more than 800 employees. McMahon is currently CEO of Women's Leadership Live, which promotes entrepreneurship.

The House has passed a bill with a directive likely to get action in a Trump Federal Communications Commission given the President-elect's commitment to helping out veterans. The Improving Broadband Access for Veterans Act of 2016 (HR 6394) passed the House on suspension of the rules, a way to fast-track noncontroversial bills that limits debate, prevents amendments, and requires a 2/3 majority for passage.

It requires the FCC to study and report back to Congress on the availability of broadband access to veterans. The FCC has a year from enactment--the bill still needs to pass the Senate and be signed by the President--to report back to Congress on access, particularly for low-income vets and ones living in rural areas, where there is the toughest business case for building out networks. But the FCC would have to do more than produce a state of the marketplace report. Congress wants recommendations on how to promote access. The FCC won't have the full year to work on the report. It is required to put it out for public comment before submitting it.

The Federal Communications Commission has cleared EchoStar to import, market and sell the AirTV, a new device seemingly targeted to cord-cutters that will support over-the-air digital TV signals as well as over-the-top content.

The FCC’s opinion and order, released Dec. 1, found that the AirTV, as well as a new USB-based tuner product from Hauppauge, are “capable of adequately receiving all channels allocated by the Commission to the television broadcast service.” Though TV broadcast receivers must be capable of receiving both analog and digital broadcast signals until August 31, 2017, the FCC said a waiver of this rule was in order for the EchoStar AirTV and Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD products because they are in the public interest. Neither EchoStar’s or Hauppauge’s waiver request faced opposition. “As EchoStar and Hauppauge point out, a digital-only device has several advantages over equipment using both analog and digital tuners: the digital-only models involve less design complexity, avoid substantial operating costs that are generally associated with additional hardware and software, and consume less energy,” the FCC noted in the order. “These advantages should result in lower costs, which can be passed on to consumers and also promote a strong, competitive marketplace.”

The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) has given the President-elect Donald Trump transition team a to-do list of 12 telecommunication priorities for creating a more diverse media in terms of access, ownership, participation and procurement. In a memorandum to the Trump team, MMTC made the following asks:

1. Appoint and support Federal Communications Commission leadership that integrates diversity and inclusion into the regulatory rulemaking and public engagement processes.
2. Preserve the FCC’s Lifeline program and improve it to enhance marketplace competition and increase the number of eligible program participants.
3. Maintain free data programs that can preserve the affordability of mobile services, especially for economically vulnerable populations who are extremely sensitive to data costs.
4. Provide for multilingual emergency information in all radio markets.
5. Ban geographic redlining in broadband deployment to ensure ubiquitous access for all communities.
6. Engage the multi-stakeholder process to enhance consumer privacy and counter 'applications redlining in the online marketplace.
7. Work with State Public Utility Commissions and the FCC to ban predatory intrastate and interstate telephone rates charged to prisoners and their families.
8. Engage the FCC and the Department of Labor to address employment discrimination in all communications industries and, especially, the dismal EEO record of the high tech industry.
9. Extend FCC equal procurement opportunity enforcement to all regulatory platforms, and engage the General Accounting Office to ensure that federal agencies and departments consider diversity in procurement when choosing suppliers.
10. Encourage the FCC to adopt an Overcoming Disadvantages Preference that would define eligible entities for competitive authorizations and thereby increase ownership diversity.
11. Incentivize Secondary Market Transactions in commercial wireless spectrum by using tax incentives, auction bidding credits and other measures.
12. Create a 'Glide Path' for the Short-Term Survival and Long-Term Humane Decommissioning of the AM Band in a Manner that Preserves Minority Ownership.

A new group called the Coalition Against Hate, which includes the National Hispanic Media Coalition, is taking aim at the incoming Trump Administration with plans to push "media platforms" to "abandon hate speech as a model," it said. The coalition said it will warn of the dangers of using the "alt-right" label to describe what it said is actually white supremacy, and that it will take issue with Trump appointees and staffers.

Altice USA took the wraps off of Economy Internet, a low-cost broadband service for eligible families and seniors in the operator’s Optimum systems covering portions of New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. Altice USA is offering the new, cap-free tier, which delivers up to 30 Mbps downstream, for $14.99 per month, plus in-home Wi-Fi via a free “smart router,” access to the operator’s Optimum Wi-Fi network of more than 1.5 million hotspots, and up to three email accounts.

The rollout comes a more than five months after Altice closed its acquisition of Cablevision Systems in June. Tied in, Altice had committed to introduce the low income broadband option throughout the Cablevision service territory. That commitment is referenced in the Federal Communications Commission order allowing the deal, and, in June, the New York State Public Service Commission approved the agreement with conditions that included a pledge that included the low-cost broadband option.