Spotify and Sony unveiled a new option that lets gamers using a PS4 concurrently listen to music, said Spotify in a news release. The partnership lets the player use a mobile device or tablet to skip tracks or change volume of the music instead of requiring the gamer to pause the game, Spotify said. Spotify on PlayStation Music rolled out on PS4 Monday and also will be available on Sony Xperia for smartphones and tablets, the release said.
Comcast now expects government review of its proposed buy of Time Warner Cable to be completed in mid- 2015, said Executive Vice President David Cohen at the Center for Media Law and Policy of the University of North Carolina Tuesday, according to a blog post on Comcast’s website. “Given the FCC's recent decision to pause the shot clock, we have recently reassessed the time frame,” Cohen said. Comcast will continue to describe the public interest benefits of the deal while it waits for the review to be completed, Cohen said.
Comcast now expects government review of its proposed buy of Time Warner Cable to be completed in mid- 2015, said Executive Vice President David Cohen at the Center for Media Law and Policy of the University of North Carolina Tuesday, according to a blog post on Comcast’s website. “Given the FCC's recent decision to pause the shot clock, we have recently reassessed the time frame,” Cohen said. Comcast will continue to describe the public interest benefits of the deal while it waits for the review to be completed, Cohen said.
Copyright experts attempted to make sense of the complex music licensing regime currently under review on Capitol Hill, at the Justice Department and in the courts, during a FCBA event Thursday. Digital and terrestrial radio advocates warned of any overhaul to the current consent decree system for performance rights organizations, which DOJ is currently examining (see 1503030027). SoundExchange General Counsel Colin Rushing made the case for terrestrial broadcasters to pay a performance right.
The FCC appears increasingly likely to stick to its latest timetable and begin the TV incentive auction in early 2016, industry officials said Friday. Chairman Tom Wheeler already moved the proposed start of the auction back once, from mid-2015. On Wednesday, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman urged the FCC to hold the auction early next year, in his remarks at a Georgetown Center for Business and Public Policy event (see 1503180044). “The success of the last auction is an argument for the importance of the next auction,” he said. Industry observers said a 2016 auction likely was in the cards regardless of the White House push.
Copyright experts attempted to make sense of the complex music licensing regime currently under review on Capitol Hill, at the Justice Department and in the courts, during a FCBA event Thursday. Digital and terrestrial radio advocates warned of any overhaul to the current consent decree system for performance rights organizations, which DOJ is currently examining (see 1503030027). SoundExchange General Counsel Colin Rushing made the case for terrestrial broadcasters to pay a performance right.
The FCC appears increasingly likely to stick to its latest timetable and begin the TV incentive auction in early 2016, industry officials said Friday. Chairman Tom Wheeler already moved the proposed start of the auction back once, from mid-2015. On Wednesday, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Jason Furman urged the FCC to hold the auction early next year, in his remarks at a Georgetown Center for Business and Public Policy event (see 1503180044). “The success of the last auction is an argument for the importance of the next auction,” he said. Industry observers said a 2016 auction likely was in the cards regardless of the White House push.
A win for the FCC in its Court of Appeals battle with content companies over releasing confidential programming and retransmission consent contracts could push back a decision in the Comcast/Time Warner Cable and AT&T/DirecTV transactions, said communications attorneys on both sides of the dispute. Oral argument in CBS et al v. FCC was Feb. 20 (see 1502200051). “They would have to give parties a chance to review the information,” said American Cable Association Senior Vice President-Government Affairs Ross Lieberman. ACA supported the FCC in filings with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and Lieberman was blocked from access to the Video Programming Confidential Information (VPCI) at the request of the content company petitioners, which include CBS, Disney, Time Warner and Univision.
A win for the FCC in its Court of Appeals battle with content companies over releasing confidential programming and retransmission consent contracts could push back a decision in the Comcast/Time Warner Cable and AT&T/DirecTV transactions, said communications attorneys on both sides of the dispute. Oral argument in CBS et al v. FCC was Feb. 20 (see 1502200051). “They would have to give parties a chance to review the information,” said American Cable Association Senior Vice President-Government Affairs Ross Lieberman. ACA supported the FCC in filings with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and Lieberman was blocked from access to the Video Programming Confidential Information (VPCI) at the request of the content company petitioners, which include CBS, Disney, Time Warner and Univision.
The FCC Enforcement Bureau’s Market Disputes Resolution Division granted a stay request Monday from Duke Energy, which had asked the commission to pause its proceeding between Frontier Communications and Duke until both companies can complete arbitration in their dispute over the amount of money Frontier owes Duke as part of their joint use of each other’s utility poles in North Carolina. Frontier had filed a complaint with the FCC in January 2014 seeking a reduction in the rates included in its joint use agreement with Duke pursuant to the FCC’s 2011 pole attachment order. Duke had previously filed an arbitration demand in October 2013 over what it claims are unpaid invoice amounts. Frontier had sought a ruling from the U.S. District Court in Raleigh in November 2013 that the FCC had primary jurisdiction over the dispute; the court dismissed Frontier’s complaint in August and compelled the parties to arbitrate. The Raleigh District Court has scheduled a hearing on the arbitration for the week of June 15, the FCC said. The ongoing arbitration process means a stay in the FCC’s proceeding is necessary, because it will “preserve the time and resources of the Commission and the parties by preventing duplicative proceedings addressing the same issues,” the FCC said. “Moreover, Frontier's Complaint is governed by the Arbitration Clause, which applies to ‘disputes aris[ing] between the parties concerning matters pertaining to [the Agreements].’ The parties' dispute as to whether the Agreements' rates are unlawful is a dispute ‘pertaining to’ the Agreements.”