A new compromise between National Public Radio (NPR) and the maker of equipment for digital radio that would allow boosting maximum FCC power levels fourfold for HD broadcasts is seen by proponents as paving the way for a larger increase. NPR executives said increased geographic separation between first-adjacent channels is necessary to prevent a digital broadcaster from interfering with another’s analog signal. But two of the 16 radio broadcasters that in July sought a tenfold increase from the commission (CD Oct 7 p14) said they'd still like that in-band-on-channel (IBOC) boost and with few, if any, conditions.

A broad array of cable and telcom interests sought equalization of pole-attachment rates. They were responding to an FCC petition by four electric utilities for cable VoIP service to pay the higher telecom rate. Conventional cable operators and incumbent and competitive local exchange carriers agreed that there’s much support among them for the commission to reject the petition. Utilities that own the poles should charge, instead of two rates, a broadband fee that applies to a wide range of companies, the telco and cable filings said. A Massachusetts regulator supported equalization.

An independent programmer that failed to convince an FCC administrative law judge of its program carriage complaint against four major cable operators (CD Oct 9 p18) noted that the decision is only a recommendation for how the full commission should act. “We are looking forward to making our case with the full commission,” WealthTV CEO Robert Herring told us. “Hopefully we will be given a chance to present our case in a format that will not favor the imbalance in number of attorneys.”

Broadcast and cable insiders expect few large mergers and acquisitions soon, even with the reports that Comcast may strike a multibillion dollar deal with General Electric to merge its cable networks with NBC Universal (CD Oct 5 p3). High debt and continuing lack of access to bank loans are among the obstacles to broadcasters’ bulking up, agreed the nine industry executives and investors we surveyed. Few large systems or popular channels are on the block and major operators won’t pay nearly as much for systems as owners want, they said.

The upcoming comprehensive review of FCC media ownership rules may begin with a notice of inquiry (NOI) -- not a rulemaking proposal as in past rounds, said numerous commission and industry officials. That tack is thought to be preferred by Chairman Julius Genachowski. It may help take the air out of possible criticism from members of Congress over the ownership process, which has drawn much heat in previous iterations, said communications lawyers.

The FCC released four letters between Chairman Julius Genachowski and members of Congress. The commission Monday posted lawmakers’ letters and Genachowski’s replies on the Office of Legislative Affairs’ Web site. That office had been working to make more documents of this kind public, after the commission’s practice of not routinely releasing all the letters drew scrutiny (CD Sept 18 p5), said a commission official. Neither a legislative-affairs official nor FCC representatives replied to messages seeking comment. At least one of the letters from a Congress member had been posted to a corresponding docket (CD Oct 5 p7) seven days after Chairman Julius Genachowski replied, in line with the commission’s new policy of releasing correspondence of this kind a week after Genachowski replies. The other letters made public Monday dealt with the national broadband plan, Iridium’s transfer of control and a New Jersey city’s application for a public safety radio license. Also on the office’s homepage are questions and answers about ex parte rules covering congressional communications. Letters from members of Congress to the FCC that don’t cover the merits of a proceeding but ask only about where it stands aren’t covered by ex parte rules, the Q&A said. “The FCC’s ex parte prohibitions affecting Congress generally apply only in adjudicatory-type proceedings and are based on provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act and court decisions,” the document said. “In such proceedings, written presentations to the Commission should be served on the parties and oral communications should not be made unless the parties are invited to be present.”

The federal chief technology officer and the FCC chairman will use a report on media and government to guide policy, they said at an event announcing the report that included two former FCC chairmen and a Google executive. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra said open-government guidelines for federal agencies that the Office of Management and Budget is close to distributing will be informed by the report. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said he and colleagues “will study this report very carefully.”

Supporters and opponents of an MPAA waiver request to lift the ban on selectable output control for streaming HD movies to homes before they're available on Blu-ray or DVD (CD May 13/08 p7) agree on one thing: The FCC has enough information for commissioners to vote on the MPAA petition. The major studios and pay-TV providers have asked the FCC to approve the MPAA request, and CEA and Public Knowledge recently asked again that the request be denied.

A multibillion dollar purchase of all or part of NBC Universal by Comcast probably would be approved after significant antitrust and FCC scrutiny, communications lawyers and analysts said Thursday. They were commenting on media reports that Comcast is exploring an acquisition along those lines. A lengthy FCC application by the companies would be required and public comment would be sought by the commission, said lawyers who represent TV stations. The absence of a rule prohibiting cross-ownership of cable systems and stations augurs eventual FCC approval, and the federal government probably wouldn’t challenge the deal on antitrust grounds, said attorneys and analysts.

A draft notice of inquiry on children’s media now before FCC members mostly asks questions set up in the commission’s August report to Congress on parental controls (CD Sept 1 p1), FCC and industry officials said. The report listed 10 issues to be explored in the inquiry, most related to the V- chip and other types of parental controls. The draft notice on the eighth floor asks about ways to improve parental controls and mentions the Children’s Television Act, commission officials said.