The FCC Media Bureau extended filing deadlines for documents to be uploaded to broadcast, cable and satellite online public inspection files due to technical issues, said a public notice in Monday’s Daily Digest. “All documents that were due to be placed in an entities OPIF since January 1, 2023, must be filed no later than January 31, 2023," said the public notice. Stations and lawyers uploading documents to the system have experienced difficulties doing so since Jan. 1, said Fletcher Heald broadcast attorney Kathleen Victory in an interview. Documents didn’t show as having been uploaded or would appear to have uploaded and then vanish, she said. Before the extension, Q4 issues/program lists were due from almost all broadcasters Tuesday. Missing those deadlines or deadlines for political ad filings often leads to enforcement actions, Victory said. “The Online Public Inspection File experienced intermittent operation last week,” emailed an FCC spokesperson. The system was upgraded Friday to address the issue, the spokesperson said. “Our testing indicates the upgrade addressed the problem, but we will continue to monitor the system and address any new issues that arise.”
The FCC Enforcement Bureau requested additional time to review discovery for the hearing proceeding for broadcaster Arm & Rage (see 2206170063) due to a technical issue with some of the filings and the large amount of documents involved, said a filing posted Friday in docket 22-122. Arm & Rage doesn’t oppose the extension, the filing said. The EB wants the close of discovery moved from Jan. 18 to March 31. Arm & Rage's Joseph Armstrong, owner of WJBE (AM) Powell, Tennessee, was convicted of making a false statement on a 2008 tax form.
Searchlight II HMT filed a petition for declaratory ruling seeking permission for its parent company, Hemisphere Media Group, to be up to 100% foreign owned, said a public notice Wednesday. The request is connected with pending broadcast station transactions at the FCC involving Searchlight subsidiary Televicentro of Puerto Rico and Univision, that would lead to the stations being controlled by “certain Searchlight investment fund entities organized in the Cayman Islands that are ultimately controlled by foreign individuals.” Comments on the petition are due Feb. 3, replies Feb. 21.
The Advanced Television Systems Committee will demonstrate new set-top and USB ATSC 3.0 receivers and “upgrade accessory devices” at the Consumer Electronics Show, which runs Thursday to Sunday in Las Vegas, said an ATSC news release Tuesday. Broadcasters expect to launch 3.0 soon in Miami and Boston, the release said. ATSC 3.0 has been launched in 66 markets nationwide, the release said.
Gray Television has built three low-power TV stations to service the loss areas that would be created by its proposed channel substitution for WMC-TV Memphis, said supplemental comments from Gray posted Friday in docket 22-146. Gray wants to substitute Channel 30 for WMC’s current Channel 5. “As the predicted loss areas now are served by these three stations, Gray respectfully requests that the Bureau grant its Petition,” said the filing.
The Media Bureau’s approval of a channel substitution for KRTV(TV) Great Falls, Montana, took effect Thursday, said a notice in Thursday's Federal Register. KRTV moved from Channel 7 to Channel 22, the notice said.
Comments are due Jan. 13, replies Jan. 20, on commitments made by Standard General in the past couple of weeks regarding retransmission consent, local station staffing and coordination between Standard General/Tegna and Apollo Global/CMG Media, the Media Bureau said Friday.
Standard General pledged it won't make any journalism or newsroom staffing layoffs at Tegna stations for at least two years after consummation of the Tegna deal. Standard, in a docket 22-162 filing posted Friday, said it's reinforcing its commitment that the Tegna acquisition won't mean reducing local news or newsroom staff. It said its plans would mean more news content at Tegna stations and "actually increase the number of journalists and newsroom employees at the stations." Standard said it's willing to file regular status reports documenting investments made at Tegna stations and, after the two years, providing information about any Tegna newsroom layoffs. It also pledged Tegna will recognize each of the labor unions covered by a collective bargaining agreement with that company. Standard earlier this year told Tegna employees it's not planning newsroom cuts (see 2206170051).
The FCC Media Bureau granted an extension on comments on proposals to update foreign-sponsored content rules, said a public notice in Wednesday’s Daily Digest. Comments are now due Jan. 9, replies Jan. 24, in docket 20-299. Comments had been due Dec. 19, replies Jan. 3 (see 2212070062). NAB and the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council requested the extension, which was supported by a group of religious broadcasters. The groups “correctly note that ‘three significant Federal holidays’ occur during the comment cycle,” said the PN. “The Joint Filers have provided sufficient justification to warrant grant of their requested extension.”
Broadcasters hosting other broadcasters’ ATSC 1.0 multicasts doesn’t create any harms for cable companies, said NAB in an ex parte filing posted Wednesday in docket 16-142 (see 2210040070). NCTA has said the FCC should allow the practice -- called lateral hosting -- only through a waiver process and require notice and comment for each application. NAB has been pushing for the FCC to affirmatively authorize lateral hosting to speed the ATSC 3.0 transition. “NCTA plainly has no meaningful interest in this aspect of the proceeding,” NAB said. The FCC’s role “should not be to indulge the NCTA’s obviously anticompetitive concerns but, rather, to lay the groundwork for success by providing broadcasters with as much flexibility as possible,” NAB said.