Broadcasters and their attorneys don’t expect the FCC to complete the 2018 quadrennial review before 2022, and said a substantive order is unlikely even if something is voted on before year’s end.
Monty Tayloe, Associate Editor, covers broadcasting and the Federal Communications Commission for Communications Daily. He joined Warren Communications News in 2013, after spending 10 years covering crime and local politics for Virginia regional newspapers and a turn in television as a communications assistant for the PBS NewsHour. He’s a Virginia native who graduated Fork Union Military Academy and the College of William and Mary. You can follow Tayloe on Twitter: @MontyTayloe .
Broadcasters and their attorneys don’t expect the FCC to complete the 2018 quadrennial review before 2022, and said a substantive order is unlikely even if something is voted on before year’s end.
Public TV stations are broadcasting ATSC 3.0 signals in nine U.S. markets, and America’s Public Television Stations President Patrick Butler expects “an accelerated pace of transition” to start next year, he said in a virtual talk Tuesday hosted by The Media Institute. Commercial ATSC 3.0 consortiums such as Pearl TV and BitPath worked with public TV stations on sharing arrangements for the transition, said Butler, conceding that public TV spectrum demands can make the hosting requirements difficult. Public TV stations will be “substantially transitioned" to 3.0 within three to five years, he said.
Broadcasters should never be partisan, should focus on “the counterpunch” and shouldn't be afraid to negotiate, said outgoing NAB CEO Gordon Smith in a livestreamed “state of the industry” address before NAB’s Marconi Awards presentation Wednesday. Smith steps down at year-end and will be replaced by current NAB Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt (see 2104070045). The speech had been planned for the since-canceled NAB Show 2021. Smith has headed NAB for 12 years, after a two-term stint in the U.S. Senate. LeGeyt is “the right person at the right time for this job,” Smith said Wednesday. The outgoing CEO praised NAB’s role in securing COVID-19 pandemic relief for broadcasters and “standing up to the tech giants,” and said broadcasting has never been more important as an institution than over the past 20 months. Smith advised advocates for broadcasting to prioritize issues with practical consequences, hire “the best, not the most,” and not “punch” until they have assessed the likely response from their opponent. “Some things have to ripen, and you want to calibrate your punch when it’s most impactful,” Smith said. He will continue to work for NAB as an adviser starting in January.
Broadcasters should never be partisan, should focus on “the counterpunch” and shouldn't be afraid to negotiate, said outgoing NAB CEO Gordon Smith in a livestreamed “state of the industry” address before NAB’s Marconi Awards presentation Wednesday. Smith steps down at year-end and will be replaced by current NAB Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt (see 2104070045). The speech had been planned for the since-canceled NAB Show 2021. Smith has headed NAB for 12 years, after a two-term stint in the U.S. Senate. LeGeyt is “the right person at the right time for this job,” Smith said Wednesday. The outgoing CEO praised NAB’s role in securing COVID-19 pandemic relief for broadcasters and “standing up to the tech giants,” and said broadcasting has never been more important as an institution than over the past 20 months. Smith advised advocates for broadcasting to prioritize issues with practical consequences, hire “the best, not the most,” and not “punch” until they have assessed the likely response from their opponent. “Some things have to ripen, and you want to calibrate your punch when it’s most impactful,” Smith said. He will continue to work for NAB as an adviser starting in January.
The FCC unanimously approved a Further NPRM seeking comment on proposals from NAB’s petition on ATSC 3.0 multicasting. The FNPRM released Friday tentatively concludes that the agency should let 3.0 stations license multicast streams that are hosted by other stations (see 2110280064). It proposes allowing stations broadcasting in 3.0 on their own channels to license ATSC 1.0 multicast streams hosted by other stations without simulcasting that stream in 3.0 themselves. Licensing multicast streams would make clear what station is responsible for FCC violations on a given stream, the FNPRM said. It would also address concerns about noncommercial educational stations hosting the streams of commercial broadcasters, the FNPRM said. FCC rules prohibit airing broadcast ads over NCE spectrum. The proposals could help address broadcaster capacity concerns “by facilitating the participation of stations uncomfortable with a purely contractual approach and making the participation of NCE stations legally permissible,” the FNPRM said. The FCC declined to seek comment on an NAB proposal for broadcasters to host multicast streams even without broadcasting in 3.0 but asked about allowing 3.0 broadcasters to host their primary and multicast streams on different stations to prevent service loss. “Is there any reason to treat ‘simulcast’ multicast streams differently than ‘simulcast’ primary streams?” the FCC asked. The FNPRM seeks comment on how to prevent broadcasters from taking advantage of the rule changes “to aggregate programming or broadcast spectrum on multiple stations in a market in a manner that would not otherwise be possible or permitted.”
A drop in automotive advertising caused by supply chain woes remains a drag on TV and radio advertising, according to Q3 reports delivered in calls last week. Last year's revenue was strongly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic’s slowdown on commercials but buoyed by political spots from the presidential election, several companies noted.
The FCC unanimously approved a Further NPRM seeking comment on proposals from NAB’s petition on ATSC 3.0 multicasting. The FNPRM released Friday tentatively concludes that the agency should let 3.0 stations license multicast streams that are hosted by other stations (see 2110280064). It proposes allowing stations broadcasting in 3.0 on their own channels to license ATSC 1.0 multicast streams hosted by other stations without simulcasting that stream in 3.0 themselves. Licensing multicast streams would make clear what station is responsible for FCC violations on a given stream, the FNPRM said. It would also address concerns about noncommercial educational stations hosting the streams of commercial broadcasters, the FNPRM said. FCC rules prohibit airing broadcast ads over NCE spectrum. The proposals could help address broadcaster capacity concerns “by facilitating the participation of stations uncomfortable with a purely contractual approach and making the participation of NCE stations legally permissible,” the FNPRM said. The FCC declined to seek comment on an NAB proposal for broadcasters to host multicast streams even without broadcasting in 3.0 but asked about allowing 3.0 broadcasters to host their primary and multicast streams on different stations to prevent service loss. “Is there any reason to treat ‘simulcast’ multicast streams differently than ‘simulcast’ primary streams?” the FCC asked. The FNPRM seeks comment on how to prevent broadcasters from taking advantage of the rule changes “to aggregate programming or broadcast spectrum on multiple stations in a market in a manner that would not otherwise be possible or permitted.”
The FCC’s new Communications Equity and Diversity Council will meet more often and act more quickly than preceding diversity committees, said Chair Heather Gate at the CEDC's first virtual meeting. Previous diversity committees voted on most recommendations at the end of their terms, but the new group should aim at being “part of the solution as things are happening right now," said Gate, the Connected Nation vice president-digital inclusion: "Waiting until 2023 to drop all of our recommendations, we may miss a window that is open right now.”
The FCC is planning to allow employees to return to working at the agency’s headquarters starting Dec.1, according to a memo emailed to FCC staff by the agency’s HR department Monday and obtained by Communications Daily. The agency will shift from “mandatory telework” to “maximum telework,” allowing employees to come in if they choose. “We want to assure everyone that you should not be hesitant to take advantage of the maximum telework flexibility, doing so will not be seen in a negative light, and employees should do what they think is best given their individual circumstances,” said the memo.
The FCC’s first window for full-power FM noncommercial educational station construction permit applications since 2007 opens Tuesday, and anecdotal evidence suggests high interest. Three people involved with assisting with NCE applications told us they are turning away would-be applicants. Broadcast attorney Dan Alpert said 1,500 to 2,000 applications are expected. Each entity has a 10-application limit.