The Rural & Agriculture Council of America reinforced its opposition to Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act reauthorization Monday, ahead of the Senate Commerce Committee's Wednesday hearing (see 1910160036). The Communications Workers of America endorses renewal (see 1910170067). “There continues to be consensus in rural America regarding the fact that people in rural communities are directly negatively affected” by STELA, RACA President Jack Alexander wrote Commerce Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. “This legislative loophole creates a broadcast television divide.” Residents in the 12 markets where AT&T's DirecTV provides limited or no access to locally broadcast network stations (see 1903150045) “receive none of this sometimes lifesaving programming during times of crisis,” Alexander said. AT&T says the markets have access to local stations' terrestrial signals.

The FCC won't extend by a few weeks comment deadlines on an NPRM about improving low-power FM technical rules. REC Networks, "the original proponent of the LPFM rulemaking proceeding," made a "late-filed Extension Request ... submitted only five days before the comment deadline," said Media Bureau Chief Michelle Carey's order, released Friday. She said the group doesn't "present any emergency or other persuasive reason." Comments remain due Oct. 21, replies Nov. 4, on docket 19-193. REC's request was posted there Thursday. It sought more time because MB took eight days from "when the NPRM was published in the Federal Register to the time when the public notice was issued," emailed founder Michelle Bradley Friday. "Reaching out to LPFM stations is somewhat like reaching out to consumers, you have to be more proactive." MB denied her motion "on a technicality because I filed it too late for their standards, yet the Media Bureau can be 8 days late on informing the public of a comment deadline period," Bradley added.

ATSC 3.0 "will lead to important gains for consumers,” Microsoft lawyers told FCC Media Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology representatives Tuesday, said a filing posted Friday in docket 16-142. “But granting a second channel to every licensee in the country” for voluntary simulcasts “is unnecessary,” it said. “Given the lack of unused spectrum in urban areas and plentitude of available simulcast partners there, urban broadcasters will readily make the transition.” The cost of leveraging a second allocated channel “is sure to be prohibitive for many,” said Microsoft. There’s “no evidence” in the proceeding of “any true need” for extra simulcast channels, it said. “Broadcasters initiated the ATSC 3.0 transition with the express representation that no additional spectrum would be necessary.” The company "misapprehends both the issue at hand and the rights to which unlicensed services are entitled," emailed NAB's spokesperson Friday. "Temporary use of available channels to smooth the transition to ATSC 3.0 remains the single most consumer-friendly step the FCC could take” here.

The FCC should "process and grant the applications" involving Terrier Media Buyer, lawyers for that company, Cox Enterprises and NBI asked officials. The deals relate to Cox selling its radio and TV assets to Terrier, an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, representatives for the companies told us. Northwest Broadcasting also is involved. The attorneys "discussed the status of the Terrier Media applications, the public interest showings contained in the applications, the markets included in the applications, and the implications, if any, of the Third Circuit’s recent decision in Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC." Last month's ruling was the FCC's fourth appeals court loss on quadrennial updates to media ownership rules (see 1909230067). Terrier Media representatives discussed why the 3rd Circuit's decision shouldn't "affect the Commission’s review of the pending applications," emailed that company's spokesperson Friday. The deals are in the public interest and got DOJ approval, so Terrier's "confident" the FCC will OK "these transactions," she added. "We are working through the implications, if any, of the recent 3rd Circuit court decision with respect to our pending sale of" Cox Media Group to an Apollo affiliate to form the new CMG, a Cox Enterprises spokesperson emailed Friday. Lawyers for the broadcasters had one meeting with FCC General Counsel Tom Johnson, Media Bureau Chief Michelle Carey, an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai and others. Terrier Media (see 1908300037), seeks to buy TV and radio licenses and permits controlled by Northwest or by Cox and potentially to be up to fully foreign owned. It's buying all of Northwest's TV stations, the Terrier representative confirmed to us. The Cox deal is for all of CMG's stations other than two radio outlets, she said. The lawyer who made the filing posted Friday in dockets including 19-196 didn't answer questions about what specifically was discussed about the transactions. All the Terrier rep would tell us is that foreign ownership didn't come up.

Comments on the FCC Further NPRM on eliminating local notice requirements for broadcasters filing certain kinds of applications (see 1909050074) are due Nov. 18, says Friday's Federal Register in a docket 05-6 notice. Replies are due Dec. 2.

Expect a “bunch” of ATSC 3.0 commercial license applications to be filed at the FCC by mid-December from stations seeking to begin 3.0 services in January, Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle told us. “The work actually started back in the spring,” she said. “Business partnerships don’t happen overnight. There’s a lot happening that’s not really seen. When the application is filed, it means basically everything is done.” She expects a “steady stream” of applications will “start to come in” throughout 2020, as broadcasters fulfill their goal of activating 3.0 services in 61 U.S. markets. The commission “has done a great job” with the 3.0 commercial license program since it started collecting applications in May (see 1905230065), said Schelle. It typically approves a license within 10 days, she said. “I can’t say enough about the Media Bureau and their support for the industry when those applications come in.”

FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly's focus is on reducing the “overall regulatory burden on broadcasters,” and eliminating regulations that “impinge” on their service to local communities, he said at the NAB Show New York Thursday, accepting the 2019 New Yorker of the Year award from the New York State Broadcasters Association. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, and Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks recorded congratulatory messages for the presentation, and O'Rielly said he may need to re-add some names to his Christmas card list.

It's unclear how FCC modifications to kidvid rules will affect children's programming accessibility, replied American Council for the Blind, the National Association for the Deaf and other consumer groups in a joint filing posted in docket 18-202 Wednesday. Proposals in a Further NPRM (see 1907100067) seeking comment on allowing commercial broadcasters to fulfill requirements by sponsoring content on noncommercial stations could have implications for children with visual and hearing disabilities, the groups said. The agency should require the Media Bureau assess effects of such rule changes on kids with such disabilities, the filing said. Consider a broader view of what form such sponsorship efforts could take, said NAB. It may not be practical to expect sponsorship to increase the quantity of total children's programming available since noncommercial stations already air “vast amounts,” the association said.

A court-appointed bankruptcy trustee for Entertainment Media Trust wants to participate in the FCC proceeding (see 1910100057) on EMT. Donald Samson's petition posted Wednesday in Media Bureau docket 19-156 said he's "now the party which controls the licensee" and its FCC licenses "and is charged with the orderly collection and liquidation of the assets" in the Chapter 7 case. Samson "identified two bona fide interested buyers of the assets of EMT and will be selecting a successful bidder," and within about two months seeking court OK and filing a MB application to transfer the licenses, said the petition. During that time, he asked "that proposed issues in this case in addition to those already designated for [FCC] hearing should include the abeyance of discovery."

The TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board hasn’t done anything to make ratings more accurate in the five months since the FCC said the board is “insufficiently accessible and transparent to the public” (see 1905160085), said Parents Television Council President Tim Winter to reporters Tuesday. He promoted PTC research saying violence and profanity in TV shows rated for children has increased over the past decade. After measuring and recording instances of violence and profanity on prime-time network broadcast TV during “sweeps week” in 2017-18, PTC found 28 percent more violence and 43.5 percent more profanity on TV-PG shows in 2017-18 than in 2007-08. “There was over 150% more violence, and 62% more profanity total, on programs rated TV-14,” PTC said. “We are urgently calling on Congress to ensure that the TV content ratings system, and the TV Parental Guidelines Oversight Monitoring Board, is overhauled to improve the accuracy, consistence, transparency and public accountability of the TV ratings,” Winter said. The call to improve the board isn’t intended to control what people watch, said film critic and content ratings supporter Nell Minow to reporters. “We want parents to have the information they need,” said Minow, whose father, then-FCC Chairman Newton Minow, famously called television a “vast wasteland.” The current, industry-controlled board is “fake oversight,” said Penny Nance, CEO of Concerned Women for America. Two of the board’s seats earmarked for non-industry groups are held by what Winter called industry front groups, Entertainment Industries Council and Call for Action. Both groups have boards that include numerous TV industry executives, according to their own websites. “You cannot be the pitcher and the umpire in the same game,” said Minow. Winter wants congressional hearings and symposiums on improving the ratings board to include independent oversight by child behavior experts. “What we have isn’t working,” Winter said. The board and the trade groups that oversee it -- NCTA, NAB and the Motion Picture Association -- didn’t comment.