Commissioners Likely to Approve DTV Clarification Order Soon
FCC members seem likely to approve a digital TV order circulated Friday exempting broadcasters from mandatory immediate updates of on-screen programming guides when shows are preempted or run long, agency and industry officials said. Chairman Kevin Martin said he had asked colleagues to vote on the proposed order, clarifying the Dec. 31 third periodic DTV review (CD Jan 2 p12) by the commission’s June 12 meeting. The order finds that TV stations need not pass along real-time updates to program guides, he said.
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The proposed order would grant a petition for reconsideration of the review, filed by the Association for Maximum Service TV, Martin said at a news briefing, during which he went over all white-copied items. “That’s a very narrow recon, but it’s something that’s important as we move into those rules going into place” with the Feb. 17 analog cutoff, he added. The DTV review had “flagged” potential technology to relay updated information on broadcast programs that run long, Martin said.
MSTV President David Donovan expects the item to win commissioners’ approval, he said. The group sought the clarification only regarding immediate notification when shows go long when preempted by news, games go into overtime and the like, he added. “This is a very narrow piece here,” Donovan said. “This is not controversial at all.”
Two other FCC officials agreed, calling the item unlikely to raise 8th floor hackles. The 2-page item may be approved on circulation before the June 12 meeting, they said. But commissioners must study the item further and get more information from the chairman’s office before voting, and last-minute tangles could arise, they said. The software and equipment stations need for automatic program-guide updates won’t be available for at least a year, Donovan said. The updates don’t affect cable guides, he said.
Martin defended an early analog cutoff in Wilmington, N.C., and said he supports efforts to educate people about DTV. Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein and an aide said last week at the NCTA cable show that they fear the Wilmington test will sap FCC resources (CD May 20 p6; May 21 p2). “It will be a very helpful and useful exercise from the commission’s perspective,” Martin said. “Obviously we're going to give a test market a lot of attention so we can understand what works well and what doesn’t work well. The idea of a test market is to determine what is most effective in moving forward and to address challenges, whether from a technical or an educational perspective.”
FCC staffers met last week with Wilmington-area municipal officials and will do so again this week, Martin said. “We're actively trying to make sure we get the word out and address any issues they may have,” he said. The Wilmington pilot will help understand the “cliff effect” when over-the-air viewers can’t receive DTV broadcasts, Martin said.
Martin backs plans by TV stations in other cities for a momentary cut off of analog signals in the coming months to publicize the transition, and he said the FCC probably would approve the plans if asked to. But approval may not be needed because “I don’t believe there’s a requirement that you have to broadcast 24 hours a day,” he said. “Anything that broadcasters can do to try to help highlight the upcoming transition and the potential impact to consumers, the commission would end up supporting,” Martin said. “The test in Wilmington is a much more effective test than turning your signal off for 30 seconds.”
KREM Spokane, Wash., briefly simulated an analog outage Wednesday, owner Belo said. “Viewers found the test very easy to understand,” John Souza, KREM technology director, said Friday in a written statement. The station said it will run the test again.