In December, the FCC proposed dropping its sports blackout rules. This week, the FCC announced the deadlines for commenting on that proposal. Comments are due February 24 and reply comments are due March 25.

            Background. The sports blackout rules prohibit cable systems from importing an out-of-market telecast of a live sports event if the home team’s local broadcaster does not carry the event.

The FCC adopted the blackout rule in 1975 to “address concerns that cable systems could frustrate sports leagues’ blackout policies by importing the distant signal of a television station carrying the home game of a sports team that has elected to black out the game in its home territory.”  The FCC concluded that the rule was necessary to ensure the “overall availability of sports telecasts to the general public, which it found was of vital importance to the larger and more effective use of the airwaves.”

            Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.  In 2011, several consumer groups petitioned the FCC to eliminate the sports blackout rules, arguing that the FCC shouldn’t support “anti-consumer” blackout policies. The FCC acted on the petition last month, finding that changes “in the sports industry in the last four decades have called into question whether the sports blackout rules remain necessary to ensure the overall availability of sports programming to the general public.”

The FCC proposed eliminating the rules and seeks comment on a variety of issues related to repealing the rules. Comments are due February 24, with reply comments due on March 25.

            If you have questions about the sports blackout rules, please contact Scott Friedman or Jake Baldwin at (312) 372-3930 or sfriedman@cinnamonmueller.com or jbaldwin@cinnamonmueller.com.

FCC Grants Must-Carry Complaint After Cable Operator Fails to Attach Signal Strength Studies

            Last week, the FCC granted a broadcaster’s carriage complaint and ordered a cable operator to carry the station’s signal, even though the station was over 106 miles away from the headend and despite the operator’s assertion that the broadcaster did not deliver a sufficient signal to the headend. 

            Cable operators who receive must-carry demands must respond within 30 days. If they deny carriage based on the broadcaster’s inability to deliver a good quality signal to the headend, they must include with their reply certain information about the equipment and methods used to test the signal.

In this case, the broadcaster stated that it was a “default must carry” station – a station that had “elected” must-carry by not making an affirmative choice between retransmission consent and must-carry.  When the operator did not carry the station, the broadcaster sent a carriage demand.  The operator did not reply to the demand before the 30-day deadline, and the broadcaster filed its carriage complaint.  The operator responded, referencing signal strength studies that were not attached to its pleading.  The FCC sided with the broadcaster, noting that the operator failed to respond timely to the carriage demand, failed to provide information about its signal tests, and failed to attach its signal studies in its pleading to the FCC.

This case reminds operators to diligently monitor correspondence for carriage demands and respond promptly.  If the broadcaster demanding carriage does not deliver a good quality signal, make sure to respond timely and attach the required information in your reply.

            If you have questions about this case or broadcast signal carriage, please contact Scott Friedman at (312) 372-3930 or sfriedman@cinnamonmueller.com or Elvis Stumbergs at (202) 872-6881 or estumbergs@cinnamonmueller.com.

FCC Proposes Fines Against Tower Owners For Violations of Lighting and Painting Rules

            The FCC recently issued Notices of Apparent Liablity (“NALs”) totaling $30,000 against three companies, and a Forfeiture Order for another $20,000 against a fourth, for violating the Commission’s rules governing the operation and maintenance of their towers.

            FCC rules require towers exceeding 200 feet above ground level or requiring “special aeronautical study” to be painted and lit according to FAA standards. Tower owners must also monitor and periodically inspect tower lighting systems, report lighting outages to the FAA immediately, and repair lighting outages “as soon as practicable.”

In the first case, an FCC field agent observed a tower whose white paint was severely faded and rusted and whose aviation orange paint was also severely faded.  The FCC issued a Notice of Violation (“NOV”) and the owner repainted the tower.  The FCC proposed a $10,000 forfeiture for the violation.

In the second case, an FCC field agent observed a tower that was completely unlit.  Moreover, because the tower owner was not aware of the lack of lighting, it had not contacted the FAA, as is required.  The field agent filed a temporary FAA notification and contacted the tower owner.  At the FCC field agent’s request, the local police department observed that the tower was still unlit a week later.  The owner had also not renewed the FAA notification.  The owner received a NOV from the FCC the following month, and the NAL proposed a $10,000 forfeiture for the violation.

In a third case, an FCC field agent observed a tower that had never been painted and had no lights installed.  The FCC issued a NAL and an NOV.  The owner constructed the tower in 2001, and had it inspected through the Puerto Rico Radio Broadcasters Association’s Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program in 2005 and 2008; it was not made aware of any violations and received certificates of compliance.  The FCC rejected the owner’s arguments that these inspections protected it from the proposed forfeiture.  The FCC upheld its proposed $20,000 fine, increased from a base amount of $10,000, because of the egregiousness of the the violation, which began more than three years before the first inspection, lasted over 10 years in total, and was corrected only after issuance of the NAL.

These cases continue a trend that started in 2012 of increased antenna structure rule enforcement by the FCC and its field inspectors.  Cable operators with registered towers should make sure their towers are painted and lighted in accordance with their FCC registrations.  If you have any questions about the FCC’s antenna structure rules, please contact Scott Friedman or Jake Baldwin at (312) 372-3930 or sfriedman@cinnamonmueller.com or jbaldwin@cinnamonmueller.com. 

Regulatory Filings Due March 3

            The deadlines for threesignificant cable operator filings converge on March 3 this year.

CPNI Officer’s Certificate. The FCC’s customer proprietary network information (“CPNI”) rules require officers of telecommunications carriers and interconnected VoIP providers to file an annual certificate with the FCC stating that the officer has personal knowledge that the provider has established operating procedures adequate to ensure compliance with the CPNI rules.  The filing must also include a statement explaining how its operating procedures ensure compliance with the CPNI rules. 

The provider must also include, if applicable, an explanation of any actions taken against data brokers and a summary of all customer complaints concerning the unauthorized release of CPNI received in the past year.  The officer’s certificate, as well as the information noted above, must be filed in EB Docket No. 06-36 using the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System.

If you have any questions about CPNI or filing the officer’s certificate, please contact Bruce Beard at (314) 394-1535 or bbeard@cinnamonmueller.com or Elvis Stumbergs at (202) 872-6881 or estumbergs@cinnamonmueller.com.

FCC Form 477. Operators are required to include information about broadband connections and local telephone service as of December 31, 2013.   Filing instructions and a link to the electronic filing system are available at http://www.fcc.gov/form477/. 

As a reminder, broadband providers must provide:

• The number of broadband connections in individual census tracts, broken down by technology type and upload and download speed.
• The percentage of broadband connections that is residential.

 In addition, interconnected VoIP providers must report:

• The number of subscribers served (both end-user and resale).
• The percentage of subscribers that is residential.
• Whether the service is provided over a broadband connection provided by the filer or the filer’s affiliate. 
• A list of the 5-digit zip codes in which the filer has at least one subscriber.
• Whether the service is fixed or nomadic.

For more information about filing Form 477, please contact Scott Friedman at (312) 372-3930 or sfriedman@cinnamonmueller.com.

Copyright. Cable operators must file with the U.S. Copyright Office their Statement of Account (Form SA1-2 or SA3) and pay any royalty fees due for the July 2013 – December 2013 accounting period by March 3, 2014.  The following forms apply:

• SA1-2 Short Form. For use by cable television systems with semiannual gross receipts of less than $527,600. 
• SA3 Long Form. For use by cable television systems with semiannual gross receipts of $527,600 or more.

For the first time, copyright filings must be accompanied by a filing fee—in addition to the royalty payment. The filing fee is calculated based on the type of form filed:  

Revised forms that include the filing fee as part of the royalty fee calculation are available online.  Operators must remit the royalty fee and filing fee in a single electronic payment. 

If you have any questions about copyright forms or fees, please contact Heidi Schmid at (312) 372-3930 or hschmid@cinnamonmueller.com.