TV stations didn’t back down from their political ad file proposal, envisioning putting online some but not all information in that part of the public inspection file now kept on paper at broadcaster studios. Lawyers for the 11 owners of 200-plus stations that made an alternative proposal to what’s in a rulemaking notice answered Media Bureau staffers’ questions last week on whether they'd amend the plan. The broadcasters are willing to provide some additional information than what they proposed last month, though not as much as nonprofit groups that seek more disclosure want or as much as the rulemaking sought (CD March 2 p7).

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said he’s “pleased” TV station blackouts on subscription-video providers seemed to have been kept in check as retransmission consent contracts expired and often were renewed at year’s end. Retrans blackouts and “very serious disruptions to consumers” were kept to “a minimum” in the cycle of agreements that expired around Dec. 31, he said Wednesday. “I know that took some work on the part of cable operators and broadcasters to get there -- so that’s good news.” Cable executives also speaking to an American Cable Association conference said FCC retrans rules need fixing, while broadcast officials said the system works.

Chairman Julius Genachowski voiced hope that the FCC will get data on broadband availability from small cable operators to help the agency direct money to fast-Internet projects in areas unserved by any ISP. The commission is “committed” to not funding broadband projects in areas that are already served and needs help from American Cable Association members in providing relevant information, he told the ACA’s convention Wednesday. He pledged the FCC will be careful to seek only what it needs so as not to overburden small companies with requests, and he hopes they'll deliver the needed documents. Genachowski also said the FCC wants to work with industry to keep a lid on viewer complaints about loud TV ads and will keep small operators in mind in reviewing whether to extend viewability rules for stations guaranteed cable carriage.

Broadcasters and cable operators debated analog video’s popularity, commenting on whether so-called FCC dual-carriage rules should sunset June 12 or be extended three years. The NAB and NCTA cited analog subscriber figures, with the first association saying viewability rules for cable carriage of must-carry TV stations’ HD signals ought to be extended because there are still many analog viewers and the second saying they should lapse given the shrinking size of that customer segment. Both associations backed an exemption for small cable operators, though they and the American Cable Association differed on what it should entail.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said an FCC order’s “unintended consequences” could make some emergency alert system messages originated in a FEMA-designed format useless. The agency petitioned the commission to revisit a January order (CD Jan 12 p8) on the new Common Alerting Protocol format to reverse its ban on text-to-speech EAS warnings. By not allowing such warnings where government agencies originating alerts send scripts of the warnings without also transmitting audio, some transmissions may not go through at all and others may only have warning tones and no actual message, the petition said. “No EAS Participants transmit the full detail alert message and the public is left to make life saving decisions based upon a 90-character” alert from participating wireless carriers “alone,” under one scenario.

Discrepancies in how the FCC handles evidence in program carriage cases ought to be resolved by remanding an independent programmer’s failed complaint against four major cable operators to the agency, the indie said. WealthTV said the commission in last year’s order finding against its complaint against Bright House Networks, Comcast, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable should have found those defendants had the burden of proof and not the plaintiff. The appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals cited various recommendations in recent years by administrative law judges in other cases and by the Media Bureau. Many were not approved by the full agency.

Interests of cable operators and the Big Four broadcast TV networks aligned in what some called a rarity late last week. The owners of the ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC networks backed encryption of cable’s basic programming tier (CD March 2 p4) that includes signals of their affiliates by all-digital cable systems. It’s the first time cable programmers have directly weighed in on an FCC rulemaking proposing to let operators scramble basic channels to cut down on signal theft of unencrypted signals and let companies turn on and off service without technician visits to subscribers. The most vociferous consumer electronics manufacturer against encryption continued to oppose it: Boxee said broadcasters added no new reasons for the commission to act.

The question of if the FCC should make all TV stations put political ad information on the commission’s website (CD March 2 p7) changed focus at least briefly to shine on another agency. The question is if 2002 campaign finance legislation solely makes the Federal Election Commission the place for such disclosure, or whether the FCC also has a role. The NAB said the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) doesn’t give the FCC authority to implement the FCC proposal to move political-ad files and much of the rest of public-inspection files from TV stations’ main studios to the Internet. A longtime advocate for such disclosure said the BCRA -- often referred to as the McCain-Feingold bill after its main sponsors -- doesn’t preclude the commission from acting, and few details about political TV spots are available in FEC filings.

The cable industry has faced privacy rules for longer than other sectors, with the 1984 Cable Act the first U.S. statute to mandate fair information practices, executives said Thursday. As this Congress and administration are focused on the issue of privacy across communications platforms, cable lawyer Paul Glist of Davis Wright suggested the Cable Act got much of the balance right between protecting information and allowing operators to aggregate and otherwise use data. “It speaks to the requirements according to pertinent uses,” he said at an International Association of Privacy Professionals conference in Washington. Speakers from Comcast and Canoe Ventures, an interactive ad venture of that company and the five next-largest U.S. operators, also addressed how they think the act is still relevant.

FCC members likely will soon approve two items affecting low-power FM stations, agency officials said. They said a rulemaking notice on implementing the 2010 Local Community Radio Act for LPFM stations to be closer on the dial to full-power outlets and an order to wrap up consideration of applications in 2003 for new FM translators ought to be approved before the March 21 commissioner meeting, where they were tentatively set for a vote (CD March 1 p9). The items from the Media Bureau aren’t likely to be very controversial on the eighth floor, and the final versions of the order on the application window and the LPFM rulemaking notice may not change very much from initial drafts circulated Jan. 27 (http://xrl.us/bmxdnu), commission officials said. A bureau spokeswoman declined to comment. LPFM and FM translator interests have been lobbying the agency on the items, ex parte filings in docket 99-25 show (http://xrl.us/bmxdn2).